Over his chest, rib-by-rib to his belly, she kissed. A nipping, delving foray into his navel brought his knees jackknifing up while she spread her hands over his hips and slipped them under him to find and follow every dip and crevice.
"Bliss," he moaned, arching his back. "Bliss, you're into torture. Who'd have thought it?' "
"You, if you'd been thinking at all."
"I'm thinking now."
"Thinking you don't like this?"
"Thinking I'll die if you stop."
"You won't be dying real soon."
Abandoning his belly, she shifted quickly to his feet and began her mouth map at his toes. No inch of his legs was allowed to feel neglected. When she parted his thighs to kiss the inner sides, he brought his hips off the table and she stood up.
"Devil," he told her. "Evil woman."
Without preamble, she cradled his balls and flipped the tip of her tongue over the tip of his penis.
Sebastian yelled. He had to. He yelled and sat up.
Bliss pushed him back, and took him into her mouth all the way to the hilt. She took him in, slowly sucked her way almost free of him—and promptly made another meal of his throbbing flesh.
He came. He couldn't stop himself. "Bliss! Hell, Bliss!"
Laughing, she buried her face in his crotch. "Don't swear. I don't like it."
"Oh, God! Nothing like that ever happened to me. Geez."
"You didn't like it?"
"Come here."
"That was the before-the-shower. Now we'll do the during-the-shower. As soon as you're up to it, that is."
"Enough." He spanned her waist and hauled her to sit astride his hips. "You'll see how long it takes me to be up to it, sweetheart. How about two before-showers, and two—"
The intercom buzzed.
Sebastian froze.
Bliss covered her mouth and giggled.
"I sent him home, dammit!" He reached above his head to press the button. "What? I told you to go home, William."
"I'm still catching up on what I missed today, Mr. Plato."
"You can call me Sebastian. You helped save my life, remember?"
The next sound was of William clearing his throat. "Thank you. A Ms. Polly Crow called."
Bliss opened her mouth but Sebastian put a finger over it. "I know Polly."
"She wants you and Ms. Winters to know she's been hired."
"That's Bliss to you," Sebastian said. "Thank you, William."
"Hired as what?" Bliss said, pushing his hand away.
He worked her panties down, gave up on the puzzle of how to get them off and disposed of them with a single, tearing tug.
William cleared his throat again. "According to Ms. Crow she's to be a sort of female Mr. Rogers on a children's TV show. She's very excited."
Sebastian nudged the very wet place between Bliss's legs and mouthed, "Very excited."
She lifted her bottom and braced herself on a hand each side of his chest. "That's great news, William. I'm going to thank Zoya myself."
"It was Mr.—I mean, it was Sebastian who arranged the interview."
"That's just fine, William," Sebastian said, grinding his teeth. "Thank you. You can go home now." He cut the connection.
Bliss's lips had parted. Her eyes glittered from the shadow of her mussed hair. "You're a dear man."
"They wouldn't have hired her if they didn't think she could do the job."
"I love you."
"I love you, too. I'm ready again. Sit on me."
Instead she played herself over his penis. Sebastian spied the cunning little fastening between her breasts and released it. She spilled free, her flesh white and full with pink nipples. The centers of her nipples stood out erect and too tempting—and wonderfully accessible above his face. Her breasts swung, just a little. He captured them, pressed them together, bobbed up to open his mouth over each crown, and grinned at her indrawn breath—and the way she forgot to keep her bottom just out of range.
His entry was sweet, slick, tight, a demanding contraction of clever muscles designed for moments like this.
Bliss's reaction was immediate. Her eyes closed. Her face became tense. Her lips flattened to her teeth and she panted. She panted, and pumped her pretty hips.
This time she cried out before he did, clamped down on him with a wild spasm before he ejaculated—but only instants before.
He couldn't keep still any longer. They rode out his climax together and Bliss fell on top of him, pressed wet kisses to his jaw and neck, to one of his nipples until he urged her face onto his shoulder. "Stop. Just for a moment, please. I'm older than you, remember?"
She sighed. "Two whole years. No excuse."
The intercom buzzed again.
"Oh, no," Bliss whispered. "What if he can hear us?"
"If he can, he's a very jealous man." Sebastian opened the line again. "Yes, William?"
"Ms. Fabiola Crow this time. She's now The Seattle Micro Breweries Woman."
Bliss raised her head and grinned.
"Great," Sebastian said, meaning it. "I thought she was exactly what they were looking for. She'll be all over town. Billboards, TV, everywhere."
"That's what Ms. Crow said. And she wanted to thank you. She wonders if now would be a good time."
Sebastian clamped Bliss's face to his chest. He was still bur-
ied inside her—and, wonder of wonders, he was getting hard again. "No, William, now would not be a good time. Tell her I'll be in touch, and congratulate her for me."
When they arrived, the Medina house was in darkness. Bliss ached deliciously. They'd enjoyed before, during, and after showering. For the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. When they'd finally left Raptor, she'd been surprised either of them could walk at all.
"I do want to get back to the Point and tell Polly and Fab how thrilled I am for them," she told Sebastian.
"You will. I've got to get into some clothes that aren't in shreds."
"How do you feel?"
He switched off the engine of the Ford. "Are you fishing for compliments?"
"You're injured."
"And you're the best antidote to pain on earth. Injured? Me? A scratch or two—nothing. Have you ever made love on the hood of a truck?"
"No! And I'm not going to now." She shot from the passenger seat to the driveway and slammed the door behind her.
Sebastian joined her and draped an arm around her shoulders as they walked into the house.
"Where the fuck have you been?" Maryan Plato swayed in the doorway to the living room. "You told me you'd be home hours ago."
Bliss tried to turn away but Sebastian kept her beside him. "You're drunk. Again."
"Fuck, yes, I'm drunk. What the fuck else would I be after waiting for you for hours."
Ron appeared behind her, an apologetic smile on his too pretty face. "Sorry, folks," he said smoothly. "We've had a bit of a shock. William told us he didn't know how to reach you."
Bliss heard Sebastian mutter, "I'll give him a raise."
"What?" Maryan asked, lurching toward them. "What d'you say?"
"I said, it's been one of those days."
Bliss almost chuckled.
"Where've you been?" Maryan's old pewter eyes strayed blearily to Bliss. "With her?"
"We've got bad news," Ron said quickly. "That Prue woman called. Bad and good news, actually. Seems we've waved bye-bye to our darling Zoya."
Sebastian held Bliss even tighter. "Spit this out, Ron. I'm not in the mood for games."
"Unless they're with her." Maryan pointed a wavering finger at Bliss. "That's gonna stop. You owe me."
Bliss's stomach revolved.
"Seems Zoya's flown the coop," Ron said, making a futile attempt to hold Maryan's arm. "That bitch O'Leary's been digging around and she found out Zoya was taking money from clients."
Sebastian stiffened. "Where is Zoya? I don't listen to stories about my people without giving them a chance to tell me their side."
"I told you," R
on said. "Gone. Cleared out."
"Good," Maryan said. "The bitch wanted you. She always wanted you."
"That's enough, love," Ron said, his smile fixed now. "Zoya was taking kickbacks, Sebastian. Simple as that. She'd been in big financial trouble even before she invested in the Bellevue operation. She didn't have the money to cover that investment, so she traded jobs for fees. Extra fees that never showed up on our books."
"Our books?" Sebastian said tightly.
Ron grinned. "Sorry. Your books. And it was Zoya who sent the kid to the guy who made the porn flicks. Another big kickback, evidently."
Bliss's knees felt weak. "Sebastian?"
"Hell," he muttered. "If this is true, I've been a fool. A dan-
gerous fool in this case. I'll have to speak to the WOT people. I owe it to them."
"You don't owe them anything," Maryan said. "Zoya screwed us all over. She's gone. End of story."
"If she caused a girl's death," Sebastian said. "I've got to address that."
"Get rid of her," Maryan said, indicating Bliss. "We've got to make plans to get out of here in one piece."
"I think Maryan's right," Ron said promptly. "Withdrawal is definitely in order. Whether or not you knew what she was doing, Zoya's activities will be linked to us. We could find ourselves fighting liability issues. We'll never be able to do business effectively here now."
Sebastian didn't correct the "we" this time. Instead he led Bliss past Maryan and Ron, into the room where the entertainment center shared space with exercise equipment. "Wait for me, my love." He kissed her lightly. "I've got to deal with those two. Then we'll go over to the Point."
"Maybe I should leave. I can call a cab."
"No, you can't." His smile tightened places she had excellent uses for now. "You're going to sit here and let me put my sister and her friend straight. I'm not going to be able to do anything about Zoya till the morning anyway. Not that I'm sure I believe what I'm being told."
"Why would they say such things if they aren't true?"
"Because they're scared their cushy lives may change with you around. A bit like Vic, maybe. Just not desperate or sick enough to commit crimes to get what they want."
Ron and Maryan waited for him in the vestibule. Sebastian closed Bliss inside the room and approached his sister. "You've got to go for treatment. You're an alcoholic. Among other things."
Her lips curled. "I'm the woman you've driven to drink. Give me what I've got a right to and I won't need the booze." She pointed to the door that separated them from Bliss. "She's dan-
gerous. She's one of those ball-breaking feminists. Women's Studies prof? What else could she be but a ball-breaker? It's her friend who wants to ruin us. Send her away, Seb."
He turned and heard Maryan's cry. She'd seen the condition of his shirt—and his back. "It's nothing," he said, starting up the stairs. "I had a little fall and messed up my shirt. I'm going to change."
She followed him to his bedroom and inside. Ron was at her heels but she signaled for him to wait outside. His jaw tightened, but he did what she wanted.
"I've given my life to you," Maryan said.
When he went into his closet, she did the same and slid the sliding door over the entrance.
"Don't do this," he told her, selecting a clean shirt. "Get some sleep."
"I could have been anything I wanted to be."
"You're probably right." Sebastian's temper thinned. "I never stopped you."
"I had to look after you. Mom and Dad hated me for not being a boy, but they hated you for not being the son they wanted."
"I know that," Sebastian said softly. "What's the point of dragging it up now?"
"I always loved you."
He stared at her. "You've been a good sister."
"I've given everything up for you."
"You've enjoyed everything I've been able to give you."
Her eyelids lowered slowly. "Without me, you'd never have found start-up capital."
"What does that mean? I had to scrounge for that money."
"Forget it." She jerked her head up. "I never married."
"You've never been without a man. If you didn't choose to marry, it was your decision."
"Marry? Marry? " She advanced on him, her thin face white, the skin stretched tight over the bones. "How could I marry anyone else."
Sebastian stopped in the act of putting on his shirt. "How
could you marry anyone else? Are you saying I somehow stood in the way of you marrying someone?"
Without warning, she launched herself, wrapped her arms around his neck, fastened her mouth over his.
Sebastian stumbled backward, caught his heel and fell. Maryan was on top and all over him.
"I wanted you." She panted, and pawed at him—pushed his shirt aside and ran her hands over his chest. "I love you. I've always loved you. I want you."
He choked down the bile that rose to his throat. "You're my sister."
"I'm not your fucking sister," she told him through her teeth. "You were adopted by my parents."
"You're my sister," Sebastian repeated. He pushed her off with ease, but when he rose to his knees she dragged on his shirt. "You're drunk, or you wouldn't be saying these things."
"I'm drunk because they're true." She pulled him, tried to draw him down on top of her. "Make love to me, Seb. Don't waste time on her. Love me. Let's get rid of them all and be alone."
He opened his mouth to breathe and took in the sour scent of old alcohol. With a sense of disbelief, and disgust, he jerked her hands from his shirt and stood up. "Get out," he told her. "Get out and never come back."
"Seb—"
"And take that little freak of yours with you. Or is he planning to tell me he's in love with me next? His fawning makes me sick. He'd sleep with anything if it paid enough, Maryan. Don't tell me you haven't figured that out."
"Seb, please." She fumbled for the waist of his jeans. "I can make you happy."
The weight of his horror galvanized him. "I never want to see you again," he said, pushing past her. "Send an address. I'll make sure you get your checks."
Twenty-eight
Sebastian stood in the doorway, staring at her. Pallor showed through his tan. "Come on," he said. "I want you out of here."
Bliss went to him. "What's happened?"
He held her hand and headed for the front door.
"Sebastian! Wait!" Ron York ran down the stairs. "Wait, for God's sake, man. You can't leave her like this."
Sebastian's shudder shocked Bliss. He didn't turn toward Ron, but he did hesitate.
"She's had too much to drink," Ron said, hovering on the bottom step. "Why don't you let me drive Bliss home while you see what you can do to make Maryan feel better?"
Sebastian raised his face and looked down at Bliss. "Never. I'm never leaving you to anyone else again. Maryan knows what she's got to do, York. Make sure you're both out of here before I come back."
They left the house to be met by Beater. The dog shambled from a side path with the big, orange rubber spider in his mouth. He spared Sebastian and Bliss a baleful glance before leaping into the bed of the Ford.
"Smart dog," Sebastian muttered. "Even he knows when the air's hazardous to his health."
"What happened?" Bliss asked again. "Sebastian?"
"I'll tell you. Later. I've got to deal with this in my own way first. Shit, now what?"
Coming too fast, a car swung into the driveway. Rubber screamed as it stopped inches from the front of the truck.
With a sense of disorientation, Bliss watched her mother push open the door of her Mercedes and scramble out. At first she didn't notice Sebastian and Bliss. When she did, she burst into tears.
"Mom? What is it?" Bliss started forward, taking Sebastian with her. "Is it Daddy?"
"I've done everything wrong," Kitten said through her sobs. "I went to that place and you weren't there. Then I went to his—to Sebastian's offices. The doorman said you'd left but he didn't know where you
'd gone. I never thought I'd say thank God for Prue O'Leary. She gave me Sebastian's address."
From now on Prue O'Leary was part of Bliss's past.
"You're upset, Mrs. Winters," Sebastian said, not entirely unkindly.
"Yes," Kitten agreed. "I've never been this upset in my life. What with all the terrible things in the papers. Bliss, why didn't you let us know you were involved in a fire. You might have died."
The fear in her mother's voice stunned Bliss.
"The papers say you went to meet Crystal Plato. She wasn't there. How could you do such a foolish thing?"
Sebastian made a noise that might well be sympathetic to Kitten.
"Crystal wasn't there?" Bliss said. "How do you know?"
"Oh, I don't remember how I know," Kitten said. She clung to the door of the Mercedes. "Yes. The papers. One victim. Male. You went into a trailer with that awful man."
"But I'm fine," Bliss pointed out, squeezing Sebastian's hand. "And I'm glad Crystal wasn't there."
"Even though she probably set you up?" Sebastian said.
"We don't know that."
"She called you. Then she wasn't there. She hated her father, she probably hated you—"
"Sebastian," Kitten said, her voice high and thin. "I won't
blame you if you refuse, but will you please come to our home and allow Bliss's father and me to show you both how glad we are she's all right? And how glad we are you two have finally found each other?"
Sebastian coughed into a fist.
"Oh, Mom," Bliss said softly. Why did it take a near disaster to bring out the best in some people? "You're so upset. Sebastian, I think I'd better drive my mother home. She shouldn't drive herself."
A fresh gale of tears erupted from Kitten. "I—want you both to come. Now! I don't want to waste another minute. How am I ever going to forgive myself? Bliss?"
Bliss pushed the nosepiece of her glasses. No previous experience had readied her to deal with her mother in this mood.
"Drive your mother," Sebastian said evenly. "I'll follow and take you on to your place."
"Oh, thank you!" Kitten rushed toward Bliss, her arms outstretched. "Thank you both."
Once Kitten was safely stowed in the passenger seat of her car, Bliss set off, taking the road across the Evergreen Point floating bridge over Lake Washington and exiting near the University of Washington to get to Laurelhurst. She checked the rearview mirror frequently to make sure Sebastian was still behind them.
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