by Marie Harte
For all that she loved spending time with Trevor, she liked him more than she knew she should. They’d been forced to be together due to a dangerous circumstance. But what would happen when it ended?
“So how’s it going with your secret admirer?” Maggie asked.
Emma stared. “You know about that?”
“Trevor mentioned it. Also told Mac to watch over me about this Lancaster character.” Maggie snorted. “Like my brother couldn’t tell me, he had to tell my big strong fiancé instead. What does he think I’m going to do? Storm up to the guy and demand he be nice to Trevor? I’m not stupid.”
Mimi added, “Ian was a bit more diplomatic in cautioning me to be wary of strangers. I overheard Mac, and like Trevor, he’s beating his chest about protecting his loved ones.” Mimi gave Emma a look. “Yes, I said loved ones.”
“Trevor likes you a lot, Emma.” Maggie sounded excited about the prospect. “I’m so glad. He’s not the happy-go-lucky finance expert he pretends to be.”
“I’ve seen his tattoos. He’s not just a nine to five office guy, especially not working for Sawyer Security.” Emma was curious. She and Trevor had talked about a lot of things, but mostly superficial likes and dislikes. Learning more about the other through trial and error, and a lot of sex.
She hoped she didn’t look as flushed as she suddenly felt.
Maggie leaned in, and Mimi did the same. “My brother did some work overseas that was a lot more involved than what a finance guy would do. Ask him to tell you. Then maybe you can tell me.”
“Oh?”
“He swears he was an international business consultant. Ha. So why were his first few checks mailed from the government? I don’t buy that they were his first clients, no matter what he says.”
That would explain the hard glint she’d seen in Trevor’s gaze a time or two. The way he seemed almost combat ready when he should have been a mild-mannered banker, now financial investigator. And it made sense of his muscles and the way he had of looking like a warrior. She might be fanciful, but Trevor’s appearance and attitude were beyond that of an average businessman.
“I’ll ask him,” Emma said.
Mimi patted her on the hand. “So this stalker?”
She sighed. “Nothing since Trevor and I kind of announced we’re an item. We only said it to draw the guy out.” Yet somehow they’d turned their fake relationship into the real thing.
“How do you know the stalker is a guy? It could be a girl,” Maggie offered. “Women can be nasty too. Maybe some woman is trying to scare you with anonymous presents.”
Emma had thought about that. Could Ruth have been up to such a dark challenge? She hoped not. But like her stalker—admirer—Ruth and Scott had been absent as well. Still, the presents felt masculine, as if a man had picked them out. A man like Scott? She wished she knew.
She waved as Garrett and Phil said hello in passing. Business had picked up a bit and she planned to hire one of Eden’s college friends to help out.
“Well, anyway,” Maggie said, “we wanted to stop by so I could invite you over for girl’s night tonight.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, Shelby and I like to do movies every now and then. We used to do it all the time before Mac and Shane. So how about it?”
Emma perked up. She hadn’t been out with “the girls” since her mother had been alive and she’d had a few friends still in college. Then her mother had passed, Emma’s friends had graduated and moved away, and her life revolved around work. “That sounds like fun. I’m happy to join you.”
“Awesome. We’re doing it at my place. Mac will be hiding out in his man cave—his study. We’re watching a monster movie. Okay with you?”
“Sure.” She didn’t much like scary movies, but to spend time with girlfriends, she’d do it.
“I’ll let Trevor know. He shouldn’t be all overprotective if you’re with us. I’ll swing by to get you at six. That’s when you’ve been closing lately, right?”
Emma nodded, enthused at her prospects for the evening. She thought about letting Trevor know she’d be gone, but Maggie had said she’d let him know. A part of her wanted to rebel a little, to see if he’d even care she’d be gone. Stupid, because he wanted her close, she knew, but to protect her like he was on the job or because he genuinely cared for her as more than a bed partner?
It wasn’t like he owned her obedience twenty-four seven anyway, she rationalized. She’d be safe enough with his sister and her behemoth of a fiancé around. Emma would spend time with the girls, then come home to Trevor. The perfect night.
Trevor seethed. He’d been waiting for Emma for over an hour. No phone call or text to let him know she’d be late. Then worry settled in.
He said to hell with it and walked down to her bakery. The place looked locked up, but wanting to check it all over, he let himself inside with her spare key and glanced around.
Spotless. Yet in the back, he saw something on the counter. A silver box.
Dread balled in his stomach. He closed the distance to the box and listened but heard nothing. Didn’t mean it wasn’t dangerous, yet if the pattern held, there would be something unsettling and perhaps personal in the box. He opened it and blanched.
Her stalker had escalated into violence a lot faster than he’d thought the guy might. The sight of blood and fur at the bottom of the box unnerved him more than a little. Her secret friend had grown unhinged. Shit. Seeing a note underneath the animal, he carefully took it out and read, “You’re my kitten, Emma. No one else’s.”
Trevor’s blood froze. He and Emma had been intimate in her bakery, here, where he’d mentioned he’d call her his kitten. How the hell could her stalker have known that? Trevor would have felt the presence of someone watching. His instincts were still sharp enough to encounter an enemy. But a camera could do the trick.
Feeling as if he’d just had a break, he searched the room from top to bottom and hit pay dirt. A tiny camera in the ceiling, wound around other wiring so it looked perfectly innocuous. But the fiber optic wire might give him more answers. He carefully extracted it, praying the bastard who’d planted it had left prints, and that he had a record to tie the prints to a name.
After bagging the tiny camera and finding one other he also secured, he called Emma again. The phone just rang and rang. Now nervous, he dialed his sister and got no answer. So he called Mac.
“What? I’m busy, Doran.”
Relieved to hear someone, Trevor barked, “Where the hell is my sister?”
“Watching horror movies with your girlfriend. Why?”
Thank God. “Emma’s there?”
“Yeah. I thought Maggie texted you. She said she would.”
“Well, she didn’t.” But what upset him more was that neither had Emma.
“Is that so?” Mac sounded a little too quiet. “I’m going to paddle her ass for it. I told her to make sure you knew.”
“You know what? This time you have my blessing.” And I’ll be paddling Emma’s ass when my kitten comes home.
Three hours later, Emma entered the house humming under her breath. Trevor sat in the living room, stewing while he waited. The lab wouldn’t have any results back on the prints until tomorrow. But he had something more important to do tonight—like remind his sub where she belonged and to whom.
“Oh, hi, Trevor.” Emma looked so happy he almost decided against teaching her a lesson. “I had a blast tonight. Your sister and Shelby are so funny.”
“Mm hmm.”
“Oh, and Mimi left you a pouch of some herbs for protection. From what, I don’t know. I didn’t ask.”
“Right.”
She hung up her jacket and took off her shoes, then ran a hand through her long hair and joined him on the couch. Her smile faded when he sat there with his arms crossed. “Trevor?”
“Why didn’t you let me know you’d be going out tonight?”
“I thought Maggie texted you.”
He studied her, noting her defen
sive posture, the slight narrowing of her eyes. Ah, there. He’d been waiting for this. For his little sub to push her boundaries. Emma had been so good the week they’d played. She obeyed, she lost herself in pleasure, and she gave him whatever he asked for. But now she showed a little resistance, testing him. This he could handle.
He just stared at her.
“I wasn’t in any danger or anything. Shelby and Mac were there. Well, Mac was in the house somewhere, at least.” She looked so cute with that mutinous expression on her face. “It’s not a big deal, is it?” Still not out-and-out bratty, but bordering on disrespectful.
“Come here, kitten.”
Her lips parted and she blew out a soft breath. “Now?”
“Now.” He patted his lap, and she scooted over to straddle his waist, facing him. “Take off your top.” She pulled it off without hesitation. Her nipples were hard beneath her bra. “The bra too.”
She frowned but unclasped it, her hands behind her back. He let her take off the thing then used it to tie her hands behind her. “Hey.”
He leaned close and nipped her chin. She froze. “You’re going to get your first spanking tonight, aren’t you?” He kissed his way down her neck and sucked from her breast. She shifted under him, her arousal clear. “Aren’t you, kitten?”
“Yes, Sir.”
He wanted to worship her delectable body, to take her to new heights. But she needed a bit of discipline first. Something to reinforce her place. She’s my kitten. No one else’s. That box haunted him. He knew he’d have to tell her about it, but not yet. Not tonight.
“Stand up,” he ordered.
She awkwardly made it to her feet in front of him, and he stood to strip her down. Now naked, with her hands tied behind her, she made a most beautiful temptation. He could bend her over and fuck her over the couch. Have her kneel and gag on his cock, or finally take her ass the way he’d been fantasizing about doing it.
Trevor stood and removed his socks, pants, and shirt, leaving him in his boxer briefs. He loved how Emma watched him, her gaze like a caress as it lingered on his rock-hard body. “Turn around.” She did without question, but he noted her nerves, especially when he fondled her ass. “Bend over.”
She did so carefully, resting her head against the arm of the couch. With her hands behind her back, it wasn’t easy for her. Nor had he meant it to be.
Trevor palmed her tight ass, sliding his thumbs between the crease and nudging at her hole.
“We haven’t played here yet, have we, kitten?”
“No, Sir,” came out muffled.
“And have you been ass-fucked before?” They’d discussed her list of dos and don’ts early on, but he wanted to hear it again.
“Yes, Sir.”
“And did you like it?”
She squirmed when his thumb dug deeper, resting inside her anus. “Not really, no.”
He withdrew his thumb and smacked her ass, leaving a red mark.
“Ow.”
“No, what?”
“That hurt.” She tilted her head on the couch to stare at him with a wounded expression. “No, Sir.” She sounded sulky. So fucking adorable.
He felt hard enough to pound through steel and cupped himself, pleased when she stared at the bulge in his briefs. “You know what I think? I think you deliberately didn’t call me today. I think you wanted me to worry.”
“No, Sir.”
“Yes.” He spanked her again, twice more, but not as hard as before. He watched her response, saw her breathing hard, her eyes cloudy with lust, and rubbed the sting away. “You want to be punished, don’t you, kitten?”
“N-no, Sir.”
“Really?” He slid his hand under her ass to her pussy and shoved a finger through her cream. “Then why are you so wet for me?”
She wriggled, and he removed his hand and slapped her again.
“Ow. Stop it.”
He spanked her a few more times until she begged for his forgiveness.
“Why, kitten? Why beg for punishment?” Which was what she’d really been doing.
“Why do you care?” she said, sounding angry.
He was taken aback. “What?”
“You’re only with me because of your job. You feel responsible. When this is over you’ll leave,” she blurted, then looked mortified she’d done so.
He thought he’d come to the root of the problem. “Emma, explain.” He dropped his boxer briefs, giving his cock little respite from the pressure of that cotton. Because now he felt worse, drawn to the wet pussy so close. He could smell her need, and it killed him to hold back.
“You’ll leave me when it’s done. But it’s okay,” she hurried to say.
“Why would I leave you?” He stroked her, petting her ass and her back, watching as she tucked her chin under her, so he couldn’t see her expression.
“Men never stay. And now this will freak you out, and you’ll leave. Go ahead.” She sounded sad, resigned.
“Kitten?”
“My dad left. My exes left. We have sex, they get what they want, they go. We’ve had sex. So what? Now you’ll leave too.”
“Will I?” He kissed his way from her spine to just below her neck.
She trembled. “You will. But it’s okay. We barely know each other, really. I’m sorry I was rude, Sir.”
He didn’t like her closing off. “I know you, kitten. You’re an amazing, loving person, inside and out. You care for a sister that spites you and a father that never gave you what you needed. You’ve suffered loss. You’re so strong, so sweet. And you’re the sexiest woman I’ve ever been with.” Though the truth hurt that part of him that clung to Dana, it also eased his guilt over moving on. “And the most important part…you bake like a dream.” He chuckled.
She gave a soft moan when he slid a hand down her flank and under her to toy with her clit.
“What do you know about me?” He wanted her to think about how well they did know each other.
She tried to spread her legs wider, to give him better access, but he slapped her ass. “No, stay right where you are.”
“Yes, Sir.” She moaned again. “I know you’re nice but not too nice. That you love your sister and have no one else.” She paused. “That you had a girlfriend you lost, and that you did more than work for a bank.”
He tensed for a moment, then relaxed. Of course she’d be curious. Between his tats, his build, and his bigmouthed sister, Emma probably had a few thoughts of her own about his history. “I worked for the government,” he admitted. “I did jobs for them while pretending I was in finance. I took care of bad people.” He laid it on the line. “I’ve killed, Emma. I’m not a nice man at all.” He removed the bra holding her wrists together. “Put your hands on the couch to brace yourself.”
She did, and he pulled her hips back, needing to be a part of her. He nudged her ankles wider and shoved his cock inside her.
She cried his name and ground back against him, and he stilled.
Thick and hard inside her slick heat, but he didn’t want to spill in her pussy. She had gone on the pill a few days ago, but it was too soon to trust that method of birth control. And he’d be damned if he’d wear a condom again. He needed to feel her surrounding him. He rimmed her ass with his thumb, increasing her need to match his.
“I want you, kitten. Like no one else. Just you and me. Together. During the job, after, I want to see you smile, hear you laugh. I want to be deep inside you when I come and watch you tighten around me. I can’t explain it, but I know you. And you know me.”
“Yes, Sir. Oh, Trevor.” She surrendered, finally, and he felt the truth to his bones.
“But tonight I need more, baby. I’m going to get you nice and slick, and then I’m coming in here.” He moved his thumb deeper into her ass, in and out in short bursts. Then he withdrew from her pussy and used her own arousal to lube her ass. He was slick, but not slick enough. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to move away from her.
Instead, he leaned down and kiss
ed her pussy, tonguing her and getting her even wetter.
“Sir, no. I’m going to come.”
“Good. Come hard, all over my face.” He ate her with fervor, and it didn’t take long before she shuddered and came, moisture coating his lips. He used it to slick up her ass. Then he rose over her and shoved inside her, getting his dick nice and wet. He pulled out and positioned himself at her ass. “I’m coming in, kitten. Open.”
She pushed out and he continued to move, slowly, inside her tight hole. The feeling was indescribable. So tight, like a fist around his cock. He waited while she adjusted, giving her time. And then he was all the way in, his balls resting against her clit.
“Fuck, Emma. I have to move. You okay?”
“Yes, Sir. Please.”
“Please, what?”
“Please take me.”
“Oh yeah.” He started moving, first slower, then faster as he was unable to ignore the pleasure gripping his shaft. She took him, each push and pull jarring her, swinging her tits and slapping her ass. He gripped her shoulders, holding her closer with each thrust. He teetered on the brink just as she cried out and rubbed her clit with her clever fingers. Hearing her come spurred his own orgasm, and he shoved one final time inside her and let go.
He saw stars as he joined her, their desire so much fuller than the physical. He sensed her comfort, her emotional closeness, and hugged her to him. After he finished coming, he withdrew and tugged her with him into her bathroom while she complained about making a mess.
He turned on the shower then dragged her inside with him and proceeded to clean her all over, taking care with her more tender parts. He soaped himself as well, until she took the bar from him and washed him.
“That was amazing.” She had a smile in her dark eyes, her golden hair slick against her head, looking like a naughty mermaid.
“You’re amazing,” he corrected with a smile. “And a little bratty, hmm?”
She glanced away but laughed. “I guess.”
He hugged her, and she hugged him back. “Do you still think I’m just here to protect you and that’s it?”
She sighed. “I don’t know. I hope not.”
He pulled back to look into her eyes. “Kitten, this is special to me. You’re special. Yes, I want you safe. But it’s more than a job that has me here. I felt it when I first laid eyes on you.” He paused, not wanting to alarm her if the feelings didn’t go both ways. She might not want him to leave, but that didn’t mean she wanted him to stay forever either. “You said your father left you.”