by Nashoda Rose
Jesus. My body tensed as I watched him slowly suck on his finger. A charming gleam of amusement lit his eyes then a slight twitch played at the corner of his lips.
He withdrew his finger. “I knew you’d taste amazing, braveheart.”
His hand slid down the front of me, between my breasts, over my rib cage to my abdomen then under the waistband of my boxers. His finger rolled over my clit and my hips rose to his touch.
He began circling, slow and gentle at first while his other hand played with my nipples. My body heated, overheated. It craved more. Needed more.
It didn’t take long as my body had been anticipating his touch for an hour.
“Kai,” I moaned as his fingers quickened back and forth. “Oh, God.” I was on the cusp, ready to fall over the edge when it all stopped.
His hands went to my hips and he plucked me off his lap and set me down on the couch away from him. He stood and towered over me, and I saw the bulge of his cock against his jeans, but it didn’t match the look in his eyes.
“You want to fuck me, great. But baby, if you don’t… you damn well better fuckin’ tell me. Don’t ever lie there and say nothing like you did tonight in bed.”
My mouth dropped open.
I pulsed. Throbbed. I ached for him to finish me, but there was no question he had no intention of doing that. By his grating tone and glaring eyes, Kai was seriously pissed off.
He strode into the bedroom and snagged his suit jacket off the chair. When he turned and came back toward me, I saw the leather holster dangling from his hand with the familiar knife and a roll of what looked like strands of wire peeking out of his pants pocket.
I stiffened, getting ready to run for my life, but he didn’t stop walking, nor did he look at me as he opened the door and left.
Jesus fucking Christ.
What the hell had I gotten myself into?
I LAY IN bed feeling stupid, weak, and completely vulnerable.
I was unable to concentrate at school.
I was unable to stop thinking about him.
And for two nights… nothing. Not since he’d left me on the couch.
He’d disappeared and that spiked my unease because Kai didn’t seem like a guy who’d back out of a deal. I should be glad he’d voided two of our days because if I saw him again, I was going to make that clear. A week meant seven days in succession, not seven days whenever he felt like it. If he wanted to waste his nights, then that was his problem. As long as my father had his two months, I didn’t care if I ever saw Kai again.
That was what I tried to convince myself of.
I shut off the light then curled up onto the leather chair beside the couch. I couldn’t sit on the couch or sleep in bed because all I thought about was him. Even looking at the island in the kitchen made me imagine him taking me.
At school that day, I’d broken three test tubes, spilled my lunch down the front of my lab coat and barely passed my quiz in microbiology because I was so absorbed with what was happening with Kai.
He was a virus. The plague. And I had to find a vaccine to stop him from leaching any more of my thoughts. I sure as hell wasn’t following his stupid rule of sleeping naked and since I wasn’t in bed, then I wasn’t really breaking his rule.
And why should I follow his rule? That wasn’t part of the arrangement.
The distinct sound of the lock clicked and I darted upright, my heart slamming into my chest. He had a key? Oh, my God, he had a key. Shit, of course he did. He’d probably stolen my key that first night and made a copy then returned it the next morning when he brought the coffee and croissant.
For being a straight A student all my life, I was falling short.
I had my legs tucked beneath me on the chair and the wool blanket up around my shoulders. The door opened and for a second before he stepped inside and closed it, I saw his handsome face under the hallway light above my door.
He may be a dangerous man, but there was no question he was a gorgeous one. He could wear the rags Ernie did and still be the most charismatic man in a room. He owned who he was and that made him all the more threatening, because I had a feeling he’d risk everything in order to get what he wanted.
The door closed behind him.
He stood watching me and I suddenly wished I was naked. That I followed his rule. But then he did something that didn’t suit him. He ran his hand through his hair as if agitated. Kai exuded steadiness and patience, and the gesture was unlike him.
God, I was thinking as if I knew him. A completely false perception because I doubted anyone did.
His next words blew any thought of him being agitated up in flames. “Take off your clothes and come here.”
Butterflies lifted and fluttered at the sound of his voice then landed heavy in the pit of my stomach. Uncertain. Confused. Complete chaos of emotions. “How did you know I wasn’t naked?”
His brows rose. “Because you’re stubborn and rebellious. Although, it’s in a rather passive way.”
It was unnerving that he read me so well. As a child I’d never outwardly shout or throw a tantrum; instead, I’d be quiet and subtle about it. The silent treatment was a usual occurrence in my early teens.
“You’re not mad?”
A slightly amused grin and the butterflies lifted again into perfect formation.
“No,” he drawled.
“Why not?”
“Do you want me to be?”
“Well, no. It’s just that I thought you would be.”
“And yet, you still refused to follow the rule.” He nodded to me. “Clothes. Let’s try and live up to your nickname, braveheart.”
I thought about refusing for about one second. But I’d made this deal, not him.
I uncurled my legs and stood. The blanket dropped to the floor. I crossed my arms, grabbed the bottom edge of my T-shirt and pulled it over my head. My nipples were erect and aching as was my already pulsing sex.
His eyes traveled down my neck to my breasts, hesitated, and then went to my over-sized boxers. He sighed, but he had a mild grin on his face. “A beautiful woman should never wear anything as unflattering as those. I suggest you get rid of them.”
Maybe I’d purposely worn my most unattractive boxers that should’ve been burned years ago. It was a quiet rebellion, but I’d never been one to give in to anyone easily.
What was surprising was that he obviously had a sense of humor, although I was aptly aware that this man could change to a deadly adversary in a flash.
I walked into the kitchen, pulled off my boxers, then opened the cupboard and pitched them in the trash.
When I turned back around, he was leaning against the door with his arms crossed. Casual. Patient. God, it was like he owned my place, owned everything in here, including me. Maybe he did… at least for another three nights.
I slowly walked barefoot across the hardwood floor until I was a foot away from him.
“Undress me,” he said.
My eyes narrowed for a second as I considered his order. And it was an order. The uncertainty was what would happen if I refused.
But no matter how this started out and how it would end, I wanted him. I was turned on by the way he was. I liked that he was so confident that nothing could touch him. I liked how sometimes his eyes lit up with amusement. I liked how his hands felt on me and how he made my body submit to his.
And most of all, I liked that when I breathed in his scent, it comforted.
I also had no delusions as to what this was and once I fulfilled my obligation, Kai would disappear and I’d move on with my life without him invading my every thought.
I lightly placed my hands on his chest then undid the tiny buttons of his pinstriped dress shirt. When I reached the bottom, I had to take off his belt that had a leather casing attached to it for his knife.
I unbuckled it and it slipped from his waist, the weight of it hanging in my hand. I’d never held a weapon before. Any kind of weapon, and it felt powerful and magnetic and scary
as hell to know that in my hand I held something that had more than likely killed. Or maybe it hadn’t. Maybe it was all a game. No matter what it was, I didn’t like the knife and I tossed it on the floor. It made a loud clunk as it landed.
I untucked his shirt from his dress pants then undid the last three buttons so the material parted.
My breath stopped when my gaze hit his chest and his name tumbled from my parted lips in a breathless gasp. “Kai.”
Angry, cruel, scars crisscrossed his skin. Some were raised white lines, others faint, but as my eyes trailed from one to the other, I couldn’t stop the tears from welling.
What had been done to him? Who did this? Why?
I slowly ran my hands up over the blemished skin, touching the horror of what looked like…. It was torture. It had to be. There was no other explanation for it. I shuddered at the thought as I traced one line after the other with the pads of my fingers.
When I finally looked up at him, he watched me, expression hard and unflinching. I didn’t understand what was happening. It was a clash of my fear, my desire and my compassion colliding.
“Kai… what… who did this?”
He didn’t say anything.
“Why? How could anyone do this to you?” A tear slid down my cheek and his lips pursed together, eyes darkening as his gaze followed it until he raised his hand then gently wiped it away with the pad of his thumb. “Kai? Please, tell me this won’t happen to my father.”
He didn’t say anything for a minute and my worry escalated at the thought of the danger my father was in. “No one will touch him. Or you.”
He said it with such certainty that I believed him. He’d kept his word so far and there’d been no reason for him to. He obviously worked for some powerful people who had no qualms about hurting or killing anyone. But Kai was protecting me. I knew that with every part of me.
“Finish what you started, London.”
I slowly ran my hands up his chest to his shoulders then slipped off his shirt. I turned to place it on the back of the chair when his arm curved around the waist. He swung me around so my back was against the door and the shirt fell from my fingertips, forgotten as his body pressed into mine.
That was it.
All control faltered for both of us as I fumbled with the button on his pants while his hands were all over me, scorching, hard and unforgiving. I unzipped his pants and they fell to the floor. He stepped out of them and kicked them away while he kissed my neck.
“Fuck.” He breathed against me. “I need to taste you, London. I can’t stop thinking about tasting you.” Then he did what was totally unexpected and dropped to his knees. He picked up my right leg, put it over his shoulder then lowered his mouth to me.
My head jerked back hard against the door, my hands weaving into his hair as I moaned. “Holy shit.”
He parted my throbbing lips with his fingers then flicked his tongue over me, suckled, and tasted every inch. There was no forgiveness as he played and teased. When he was too rough, he’d ease the discomfort with gentleness until I arched with intense need.
I’d never felt so out of control.
My body was his.
I had no recourse, but to let go and give in to him.
My body tightened as I came to the edge of the cliff. There was a mild fear that he’d stop again. That he’d leave me, but even if I wanted to, I couldn’t control the building, the burning inside me that mounted as his tongue drove me to the peak.
My fingers dug into his shoulders as my body clenched. “Oh, God. Oh, God.” I didn’t slip over the edge. I leapt and he was there to catch me as he held my hips steady while his tongue lazily brought me back down from the shuddering waves of pleasure.
I sagged against the door while he unhooked my leg off his shoulder, then grabbed his pants off the floor while rising to his feet. He reached into the pocket and pulled out a square gold package and held it toward my mouth. I kept my eyes locked on his as I gripped the corner of it with my teeth and tore it open.
He pulled the condom from the package, yanked off his boxer-briefs and rolled it on. Then his hands came under my butt and he hitched me up off the floor.
“Put me inside you,” he ordered.
I hooked my ankles around his hips then reached between us and held his cock. It pulsed and throbbed in my hand, the veins expanded with rushing blood. I squeezed, watching his face and the flicker of satisfaction as his eyes briefly closed, lips parting.
It felt good to give him that look. To have some control over his expression because I doubted he allowed anyone to have any power over him. I ran my hand down the length of him, my thumb stroking the tip. I wrapped my fingers closed again and jerked up at the base and he grunted.
“Stop fooling around. Put me inside. Now,” he growled.
Yeah, he definitely didn’t like anyone having control.
I locked eyes with him and guided his cock to my entrance. I didn’t have time to move my hand away before he pushed inside me. My spine pressed hard into the door and when he pulled back, I moved my arm from between us and cupped the back of his neck.
He arched his hips then thrust forward again, and my body hit the door. Again and again.
“Neighbors,” I panted.
“I don’t give a shit.” He slammed into me.
I thought I’d split apart but at the same time, I wanted it harder. I’d never experienced such raw unrestrained sex before. It was without boundaries as he grunted and pounded into me, hands gripping my ass so hard I knew I’d have bruises.
I didn’t care. I was catapulting over the edge with him. His grunts and my moans unleashing an angry, wild need that both of us craved. Wanted.
“Fuck, London. Fuck.” His body stiffened at the same time as mine. I clenched around his cock as the pulsing exploded into a frenzy of sparks as I came hard. Quivers darted through me for an intense few seconds before my final shudder and I sagged in his arms.
Kai thrust once, twice more, then stopped. I closed my eyes and rested my forehead on his chest, hearing his racing heartbeat next to my ear.
We stayed like that for a few minutes, not speaking. Unmoving.
I unhooked my legs and he slowly lowered me until I stood.
“Dangerous,” he muttered.
I had no idea what he meant by that and I didn’t have time to contemplate or ask him as a knock sounded on my door.
“You okay, Miss Westbrook?”
My head jerked up. Fuck.
More knocking.
“Miss Westbrook, we tried calling, but there was no answer.”
The phone rang?
“We’ve had a complaint about banging.”
My mouth dropped open and eyes widened as I looked at Kai.
He slowly grinned.
I didn’t. I pursed my lips together then scrambled around for my clothes. “Yes. It’s… a… Yeah… it’s fine, Derek. Thank you.” Shit, where were my boxers? Damn it, the garbage.
“Do you mind opening up? I have to check. Someone reported screaming, too.”
Jesus Christ. I’d lived here for almost two years, was quiet as a mouse and suddenly, I had a complaint about screaming and banging. I snagged my shirt off the floor and pulled it over my head while I ran into the bedroom and grabbed a pair of yoga pants from the dresser.
“Yeah, sure. I was just….”
I heard the deadbolt click and the door open.
Kai had his shirt and pants on already. “She’s fine.”
I glanced at the floor a few inches from the door where his knife lay. If Derek looked down, he’d see it. Shit. I ran for the door, kicking the knife to the side as I greeted Derek.
“Sorry. I didn’t realize how late it was. We were hanging—”
“Ah yeah… a painting. Your boyfriend said.” Derek chuckled and winked at me. Oh. My. God. My face felt like it was on fire. “Hey, you watch the game yesterday?” he asked Kai.
Boyfriend? The game? “No, unfortunately I had business to attend t
o.”
“Oh, man, you missed a good one. The Raptors totally kicked ass….” I looked from one to the other as they chatted about the basketball game.
Kai put his arm around my shoulders and dragged me in to his side. “Right, hon?”
“Huh?” I was still reeling that one of the security guards spoke to Kai as if they were friends. A man I was sleeping with in order to fulfill a deal.
“Well, keep the ah… hammering down?” Derek wiggled his brows at me.
Jesus. I’d been the quiet geek in loft 607 and now I was… God, I didn’t even want to know what the security guys would talk about now. I’d never be able to look them in the eye again. I’d have to run for the elevator or better yet, come in through the parking garage and avoid them altogether.
Kai shut the door. I pulled from his snug embrace and walked into the kitchen. I grabbed a bottled water from the fridge, cracked it open and chugged it back.
By the time I’d set it down on the counter, Kai stood next to me, eyes twinkling.
“Boyfriend?”
He didn’t say anything.
“The game?”
Again, he didn’t say anything.
“What are you doing? You have two more nights then this is over.”
“Four.”
I glared. “No. Two. You didn’t show up for the last two nights. That’s not my fault.”
He gently took the water from my hand and took a sip before answering. “Four, London. Actually, five because tonight isn’t over.”
“That’s not the deal. It was one week.”
“Yes. Seven days.”
I wasn’t giving in on this. I couldn’t let him win. He was taking advantage and I couldn’t do four more nights. It was… it unhinged me. I lost control and I didn’t like it. I didn’t like any of this because the truth was I did like it and it was wrong.
I marched to the washroom then glared over my shoulder at him. “Two more nights and then our association is over.” I slammed the door.
I leaned over the sink and splashed cold water on my heated cheeks, brushed my teeth and hoped by the time I was done, he’d be gone.