by Lexi Blake
He loomed over her. “Yes, this about the fact that we’re still in a dangerous situation and whether or not you like it, I’m still the top here. You can throw that contract in my face all you like once we get back to the States, but you will not disobey me here. You will get on that plane when I tell you to and there will be no arguments and no negotiations when it comes to your safety.”
She brushed past him because she wasn’t having this conversation where everyone could hear her.
Ian Taggart was lounging in the doorway. “You should give him hell. He deserves it.”
“What the fuck?” Ten cursed behind her as she moved along. “What happened to all that brotherly love shit?”
“I’m ridiculously mean,” Tag allowed. “Ask anyone.”
She wasn’t getting involved in their male bonding. She strode into the room they’d shared the night before. She’d curled up beside him and accepted that he would be gone. She’d accepted it the same way she’d accepted things all her life. She was done with that.
No one ever fought for Tennessee Smith. Well, he was about to find out that she would, but she didn’t fight fair.
She was about to find out if he’d been honest with her. If she had any real power in the relationship.
“Faith, what the hell is this about?” Ten closed the door and then crossed his arms over his chest. His shoulders broadened and for the first time since they’d rescued him, he looked every inch the Dom. “You should know that if you give me trouble about getting on that plane, I’ll put you over my knee and no one here will stop me. You’re getting on that plane one way or another.”
She wasn’t afraid of him. Not physically. He could play that card with her all day and she wouldn’t back down. Now emotionally, emotionally he could savage her. It was all he’d known as a child, and she had to show him another way.
Which unfortunately included getting yelled at by his sub because that was sometimes what people in love did. “You’re an idiot.”
Way to go, Faith. Way to build up his esteem.
One side of his mouth tugged up. “I’ve been told so, yes. You want to enlighten me as to how I’m an idiot this morning? I’m going to warn you. I’m feeling much better. I’m still sore, but it looks like my dick is up and running.”
She looked down at his crotch. Sure enough, no amount of torture could keep that monster cock down for long. “I should look at it.”
His head shook. “Not until I’m ready to use it on you. And it’s fine. No scarring. Like I said, those drugs heightened everything and made it seem worse than it actually was, so I’ll be able to fuck you hard after I’ve spanked your ass silly for this stunt.”
“Stunt? You think this is some kind of stunt?”
“I think you’re willing to do anything so I won’t put you on that plane. It won’t work.”
Tears threatened. “Because you’re a moron.”
“You are digging yourself a deep hole.”
He was so calm. It was infuriating. “You don’t have any right to spank me. I will get on that plane and I will go back to Dallas. I’m not stupid. I know what can happen, but do you? Do you even care?”
“About what happens to me? I often have not,” he replied calmly.
“Because you don’t think you’re worth anything.”
His face was blank for a moment. “When you start life in a trashcan, it makes you question your worth. I will admit that. I went through so many homes, I couldn’t help but think I was disposable.”
“You’re not. You have so much to give.”
“What do I have to give, Faith?”
This was it. She would either convince him or lose him, and she suddenly knew she wouldn’t survive losing him. No matter what had happened, she loved this man. He might have been a shit to her in the beginning, but he’d protected her at the cost of his mission. She had to make him see that it could work. “You’re so smart, Ten. You’re smart and funny, and I like who I am around you.”
His face softened. “I like who I am around you, too. I’m a better man around you.”
That was good. “I don’t think you should keep pursuing my father. Not like this. I think you could take him down through research. I’ll help you. I’ll give you everything I know because I want to stop him, too. But it’s too dangerous to do it this way.”
“You think we can take him down using good investigative work?”
She nodded eagerly. “Yes. I think if McKay-Taggart wants to find information, they’ll find it. It simply takes patience. I know you want to take him out because of what he did to your brother, but could you be happy with sending him to prison?”
“Yes, Faith.” His voice was sure. “I could be happy with that. But that doesn’t change the fact that you’re going to be on that plane this afternoon. You will go back to Dallas and you will lay low until I figure this out and I can be sure you’re safe. I’m going to use the time to keep you naked as much as possible.”
“Somehow I think your sister won’t like that much.”
“My sister can get used to it. As often as I’ve caught sight of her and Jesse doing it at Sanctum, she can get used to my wife being naked. And she knocks. We’ll keep the door locked.”
She stopped. “You said I was still getting on the plane.”
“Yes. I did and you are. I will be your pilot for today, ma’am. You should know that I only accept tips from beautiful doctors.”
Now the tears were flowing in earnest. “You called me your wife.”
“I was hoping we could negotiate that contract, darlin’. I’m not getting any younger. I love you, Faith. Is there any way you can love me? Even a little. I know I don’t have a lot to offer, but I’ll give you everything I have. I’ll be the man you deserve, and that starts with getting on that plane with you. It starts with choosing you. I choose you, Faith.” He stepped forward and his hands cupped her face, staring down at her. “I pray that you’ll choose me, too. Forgive me. I was an idiot.”
He was coming with her? He was leaving the island with her. He was choosing her. It was enough. “I love you, Tennessee. I’ll always choose you, too.”
She went on her toes and brushed her mouth against his, her whole body coming alive again. It had only been a few days, but it felt like forever since she’d kissed him. His hands moved, tangling in her hair as he took control of the kiss.
His tongue licked at her lips and she let him in. Faith molded her body to his, feeling every lean muscle. She let her hands slip down, easing over his shirt. She wanted to feel his skin, his warmth. She could never get enough of him. His tongue rubbed against hers as his hands explored. They seemed to want the same things, she and her man. Flesh to flesh. She tugged on the bottom of his shirt.
And then remembered what he’d been through.
“I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”
His eyes had darkened with desire. “Don’t even try that shit with me right now. I want you. I might be the tiniest bit uncomfortable, but that is nothing compared to what you’re going to be if you treat me like an invalid. I want to do something with you. Something I haven’t done in a long time. I don’t want any walls between us.”
She shook her head. She didn’t want anything between them either.
He backed up and pulled his shirt over his head. His chest looked so much better this morning. He would have new scars, but nothing could make Ten Smith anything less than gorgeous. She reached out and gently brushed her fingertips down his chest to the waistband of his sweatpants. They were slightly too large, having come from one of the other guys, so they rode low on his hips. His cock proved he was telling the truth. The man was feeling better, and she wanted to make sure he felt amazing.
“What do you want from me?”
He eased the shirt off her and her nipples immediately responded to the heat of his gaze. They pebbled for him, desperate for his touch. Her whole body was warming, softening and getting ready for him.
“Everything, darlin’. I want ever
ything you’ve got. But first you’re going to have to get me ready to fuck you.”
Yes, he seemed to be having so much trouble in that area. She didn’t complain though. She’d apparently had terrible timing. If she’d been the slightest bit more patient, she wouldn’t have called her future husband a moron. Oh, he was at times, but it was kinder to let him think she didn’t know. She dropped to her knees and slowly dragged the sweatpants over his muscled hips. He wasn’t wearing any underwear, so his cock sprang free. Long and thick, he was right. It appeared they’d left this part of him alone. She sighed and studied him as she stroked his erection. There were a few places on his lower abdomen with healing spots from the day before. She leaned over and brushed them softly with her lips.
Her father had done this to him and he still wanted her.
She looked up at him. “Did you think I was involved in my father’s business?”
For a spy, he could blanch quite quickly. She rather thought that was only for her. In the field, Tennessee Smith would have the world’s best poker face, but here he was just a man who didn’t want his future wife to know he’d doubted her. “I might have had some thoughts on the subject, but that was all before I met you and realized you were far too sweet to ever be involved in anything like that. Then all I wanted to do was protect you.”
Yeah, she bet he did. She leaned forward and kissed his cock, warm brushes of her mouth over his flesh. “I wouldn’t blame you, Ten.”
His hand tangled in her hair. “Erin knew. She told me from the beginning I was a paranoid freak and you were innocent. I…I haven’t had the greatest luck with women. Suck the head.”
His hands twisted, right to the point where her scalp lit up and she felt the tug in her nipples. The man had learned her sweet spots.
“I can’t imagine you haven’t had hundreds of lovers. You should know I’m the last in that line, babe. I’ve got it on good authority that the women of Sanctum don’t share.” She gave the head of his cock a good long lick. It was perfectly plum shaped and a lovely shade of purply red. A drop of pre-come pulsed out, and she lapped it up before closing her mouth over his cock.
Ten shuddered. “Not hundreds and I wouldn’t call them lovers. They were a way out of myself, an escape. A couple of them were near-death experiences.”
“What?” Faith tried to talk more, but Ten guided her back to his cock.
“It’s kind of in the job description, darlin’. If you’re fucking for information you sometimes get burned. Or almost emasculated. Or sold to a terrorist group because the operative you’re living with is a double agent. It’s all an accepted part of spy life. Don’t stop, baby. That feels so good.”
“You’re not going back to that job,” she tried to say, but her mouth was kind of completely full of cock.
He chuckled and thrust in a little further before proving he could understand her. “I’m never going back to that job. I’ve got a new mission and that’s taking care of you. You should know though that Ian wants me to run a small office in whatever craptastic country you’re working in.”
He was coming with her. She hummed her assent to that plan as she worked her mouth over and over his cock. McKay-Taggart obviously wasn’t the CIA, and thank god for that. He could use that brilliant mind of his and still stay relatively safe and close to her.
But there was one issue they had to settle.
She came up for air, her hand going down to cup his heavy balls. “I need to stay in Dallas for a while. I need McKay-Taggart to figure out who on my staff was working with my sister. She couldn’t have managed this without someone on the inside. She needed data from the patients she was experimenting on. My doctors rotate in and out, so it has to be one of my full-time nurses.”
It hurt her heart to think that one of her nurses would do that to patients for money, but she had to be realistic.
“Stand up,” he commanded. It looked like he’d only wanted a taste. She stood and his hands found her undies, and suddenly he was the one on his knees. “I’ll talk to Ian when he gets back to Dallas. We’ll work something out, but if you want to go yourself, I’ll be beside you.”
She shuddered as he pushed her back and onto the bed, her legs splaying. He gripped her thighs, pressing them open so her pussy was right where he wanted it. “I need to stay in Dallas for a while.”
He put his nose right in her labia, breathing her in like she was the sweetest flower he’d ever encountered. “You will. You’re going to be under guard until we deal with your father, but I’m hoping that won’t take too long.”
“I have to stay and help Erin through this.” She wasn’t sure why, but she and Erin had clicked. They’d become the type of friends that rarely came along, and she wasn’t losing that. Love came in some strange forms, but it was too precious to toss out because it wasn’t perfect. Ten wasn’t perfect. He’d hurt her and likely would again because he was human. She would do the same, but if they made that vow to hold on despite whatever happened, they could have a life together.
Holding on. She’d let go of so many things in her life. She’d drifted, but he could keep her steady if she let him. He needed to be needed, craved it. He needed to understand that she wasn’t going anywhere. She was the permanent part of his life.
And she was going to give her friend some stability, too.
Ten rested his cheek against her, sighing as though he’d found his place. “I love you, Faith. I’ll go wherever you need to go. And I thank you for taking care of Erin. She’s going to need it. She’s welcome to stay with us. We’ll make sure she gets through this.”
He turned his head slightly and then his tongue rode over her delicate flesh.
She clutched the bedspread, trying not to scream out. Normally she wouldn’t care, but given the things that had happened, she wanted to respect her friends.
“That’s right. Keep quiet, but don’t think for a second this is disrespectful. I love you. If it had been me, I would want my friends to find something good. Theo was a good man. He wouldn’t deny us this.”
She nodded. He wouldn’t. Theo had been in love. If it had been Ten who had died, any of them really, Theo would have clung to Erin. They needed a reminder that there was still something good, that they were alive.
She relaxed back and let Tennessee take over. His tongue worked, caressing every inch of her pussy. He spread her wide and fucked deep inside, his mouth enveloping her. This was what she needed, what she would need for the rest of her life. This was what she’d been missing. All the times she’d surrendered before, all the play at submission had been nothing but a rehearsal for this man—her true match, her real Master, her partner and her husband.
“Let’s make this fun. We’ve got hours before we have to go.” He climbed on the bed with her, lying back. “Get up here and straddle me. I haven’t had my fill yet. Have I told you how good you taste? How perfect you are for me?”
She started to move, to obey him, but he hadn’t said how she should straddle him. She turned and before he could protest, she was on top of him, her tongue lapping at his cock again, but this time her pussy was right in line with his very talented mouth. Who didn’t love a good old-fashioned 69?
“Fuck, I like how you think, Doc.” A big hand slapped her ass. “You take me. You take every inch of me while I take what’s mine.”
He fucked her in earnest, his tongue going deep. It was hard to concentrate when her whole body felt like a live wire, but she had a job to do, too. She sucked his cock in long passes, loving how it seemed to pulse under her tongue. Salty pre-come leaked from his head and she sucked that down, too. Every now and then his big hand would come down, slapping at the flesh of her backside and sending ripples of sensation up her spine. Pain and pleasure. They combined and formed something new and sensational in her brain and body. She wasn’t sure why she needed both. Long ago she’d given up trying to be “normal.” This would be normal for them, the push and play of D/s in the bedroom. She would take this time she had with him
while they were in hiding and use it to teach her man that he could count on her, that she would stay.
He was necessary to her, as necessary as her next breath.
“Stop.” He slapped her ass again. “I don’t want to come yet. Sit on my face, darling. Ride my tongue and after you come, I want you to ride my cock. I used to fucking love this. I’m taking it back. I’m taking it back with you.”
She moved, getting into the position he wanted. He was making himself vulnerable to her. How many times had this man had some “lover” try to hurt him over government secrets? How many times had he offered up his body for something other than pleasure? “You are never going back to that job.”
He’d done enough for his country. Tennessee Smith’s shop was closed for business.
“I always listen to good advice, ma’am.” He pulled on her hips, getting her into position.
Then she couldn’t think anymore. When he speared his tongue deep inside, there was no more worry or pain. There was no loss to be felt, only the pure pleasure of joining with this man. She gave over to the incredible sensation of being Ten’s lover, Master T’s sub, Mr. Smith’s wife.
Faith McDonald. She could be all those things for him and still be herself because loving him made her more than she’d been before. She’d been alone, her soul missing an inherent piece, and now she was complete. Even when he was away from her, she would keep a piece of him inside.
Even when they were truly parted, as all lovers were in the end, she wouldn’t be alone because she’d loved him.
The pleasure burst across her and she bit her lip to stop from crying out his name.
He kept up the torturing, forcing her to come again under the sweet lash of his tongue, the sucking of his mouth on her.
Finally he let go, and she had to force herself to remain upright.
After all, it was time to give her man the ride of his life.
* * * *