Reclaim Me

by Ann Marie Walker

  She nearly sobbed with relief.

  “Bend yourself over the desk and lift your skirt.”

  All thoughts of office decorum left her and she hurried to obey. A second later she heard the faint click of his buckle followed by the metallic sound of a zipper.

  “Hold on to the edge and don’t let go,” he ordered, his voice hoarse and urgent.

  She did as he asked, her fingers curling around the mahogany top. His hands gripped her waist and she felt the blunt head of him slip against her as he guided himself to where she was wet and more than ready.

  “Brace yourself.” He spread her legs wider with a push of his foot against hers. “This is going to be hard and fast.” With no further warning he surged forward with a powerful thrust of his hips.

  Allie bit the inside of her cheek to keep from crying out. She loved it when he took her like this, rough and unapologetic in his use of her body to bring them both the pleasure they craved. His need to claim her, to make her his own, ratcheted her desire for him to an almost unfathomable level.

  He growled her name as he eased slowly back, then with a shift of his hips slammed into her again. Over and over he took her, pushing her forward with each punishing thrust. “Hold on,” he ground out between clenched teeth. She tightened her grasp on the desktop as he yanked her back to meet his hips, angling her body so she felt every hard inch of him. His drives were merciless and in no time she felt her insides begin to quicken.

  Bending over her, his lips grazed her ear. “Now, baby. Come for me.”

  On command her body exploded with an orgasm so intense her vision blurred. Hudson cursed and jerked against her, driving to the hilt one last time, then stilling as he followed her over the edge. She was vaguely aware of movement as he fell back in the chair, pulling her with him and cradling her in his arms. They sat like that for several minutes while their breathing calmed. When Allie finally lifted her head to meet his gaze, she found his eyes filled with nothing but warmth and tenderness.

  “How was that?” he asked, pressing a soft kiss to her lips.

  “Amazing.” She leaned her head against his shoulder and a quiet giggle escaped her lips. “Adventurous. Arousing . . . Awesome.”

  He chuckled quietly. “Allie’s orgasm brought to you by the letter ‘A’”?

  She looked up at him and smiled. “More like the letter ‘H’. As in holy hell, Hudson.” She laughed. “That was intense.”

  He met her grin with one of his own.

  “You supposedly came in here to argue with me,” she reminded him. “Hope you have a decent poker face, Chase, because right now you look like a man who’s thoroughly pleased with himself.”

  “Perhaps they’ll believe I got what I came for.”

  Allie rolled her eyes. “That was bad.”

  “Terrible puns aside, I actually did have something to discuss with you.”

  “Oh?”

  “I’m taking you to the lake on Friday,” he said. It wasn’t a question, and from the way he said it, there wouldn’t be much discussion either. Still, Allie protested.

  “You know I love your lake house, Hudson, but—”

  “But nothing,” he said, cutting her off before she had a chance to list the numerous reasons why they couldn’t go away together. “I’m tired of stealing time. I want a whole weekend with you, a three-day weekend, no less. I want to go to bed with you and wake up with you and fuck you senseless during every hour in between.”

  Her breath caught. “When . . . who . . . I mean how . . .” she stammered, her mouth trying to catch up with her brain.

  Hudson laughed. He planted a swift kiss on the top of her head before hauling her to her feet. “Trust me, I have a plan.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Allie’s schedule was tighter than ever. With the holiday weekend approaching, Colin had extended her calendar well into the evening hours. From breakfast meetings to late-night e-mails, work consumed her every waking moment. It should have made time fly. But the end of the week held the promise of uninterrupted quality time with Hudson Chase. No sneaking around, no stolen moments behind closed doors, no covert texts or furtive glances. Just three days alone with the man she loved. The thought was never far from her mind, and so despite its hectic pace, the week crawled by. And by late Friday morning it seemed as though time had actually ground to a halt.

  Hudson had been vague about their plans, saying only that they would be going to his lake house and that he would take care of the rest. She’d assumed he’d give her some sort of instructions during the week, but so far she hadn’t heard a word from him, much less the details on how or when they were escaping the city for the peace and tranquility of his Lake Geneva cabin.

  Allie’s thoughts drifted to the time they’d spent there in October, and all at once memories bombarded her senses. The sight of Hudson straddling his motorcycle, looking every bit the bad boy she once knew; the scent of pine trees mixed with the rich smell of leather as she rode on the back of his bike; the feel of the sun on her face and his muscles flexing beneath her palms; the sound of his laughter mixed with her squeals. The day had been perfect in every way, but it paled in comparison to the night. Because there, on the floor in front of a roaring fire, Hudson had let his guard down. He’d opened up to her and shared glimpses of his past; his thoughts, his fears, his emotions. It was the night she’d always longed for. The night she knew they’d have.

  “Big plans for the weekend?” Colin asked, interrupting her daydream.

  Allie looked up to find him standing at the door to her office holding a large box in his hands. “What? Um, no. I mean, why do you ask?”

  “Just figured with three days blocked off, you must have something exciting planned.”

  “Not really.” She shrugged. “I just need a few days to unplug and recharge.”

  “So you’re not going anywhere?”

  “The only trip I plan on taking is from the bed to the couch and back again. Eat, sleep, repeat.” It wasn’t a total lie. She merely omitted the part about it being Hudson’s bed. The one she’d been tied to while he teased and tormented her with his fingers, lips, and tongue.

  Jeez, snap out of it Sinclair.

  “What’s in the box?” she asked, attempting to refocus her attention on the here and now.

  Colin strode toward her. “No clue. It was just delivered via messenger, marked ‘personal and confidential.’ Again.” He set the box on her desk and lifted a brow. “If I didn’t know better I’d say you have a secret admirer.” An audible gasp escaped his lips, and a look of conspiratorial mischief lit his bright green eyes. “Is it the guy from Asylum?” he asked in a dramatic whisper.

  “Who?”

  “That hunk of handsome you were pressed against Friday night.”

  “He didn’t even know my name.”

  “I could enlighten him if you’d like?”

  “Don’t you have a memo to type or something?”

  Colin laughed. “Okay, okay. Consider it dropped.”

  Allie waited until he’d closed the door behind him before tearing into the package. Inside the box was a camel-colored top coat along with a pair of Chanel sunglasses and a red knit hat and scarf. One by one she placed the items on her desk. She even removed the tissue paper but found nothing underneath. No note, no instructions. While she was fairly sure who was responsible for the mysterious delivery, she had no idea the purpose of its contents.

  The burner phone. The thought had no sooner occurred to her when she heard a soft ping. She opened her bottom drawer of her desk and dug the phone out of her purse. A text from Hudson lit the screen.

  Did the package arrive?

  She smiled as she typed. The eagle has landed.

  Amusing yourself, Miss Sinclair?

  Have to distract myself somehow, Mr. Chase.

  From?

  Thoughts of you.

  Anything specific?

  Specifically naked, she replied.

  I like where this is going.


  All weekend.

  I’ll pack light, then.

  In fact, I may tie you to the bed.

  That’s my line.

  Fine, she typed, you can tie me to the bed.

  Fuck.

  What?

  I’m hard.

  She giggled. Let’s leave now then.

  We can’t.

  Why not?

  Because the plans I have for smuggling you out of the city won’t be in place until this afternoon. So as much as I’d love to have my face between your thighs...

  Fuck.

  His reply was immediate. What’s wrong?

  I’m wet.

  There was a pause while she waited for his reply, during which she imagined him cursing as he adjusted his trousers. Behave.

  Not sure I can.

  Did you growl before you typed that? Because you know what that does to me.

  Work, Alessandra. Get back to it.

  Yes...sir.

  That’s not helping.

  She smiled. It wasn’t meant to.

  Payback will be swift and decisive.

  A wave of heated anticipation rolled through her and she found herself pressing her thighs together in an effort to find some relief. It was her own fault, really, since she’d been the one to start their little game. So instead of protesting the fact that she had to wait several hours for said payback to begin, she simply answered with the truth. I can hardly wait.

  4:00. Wear the items from the box. A taxi will be waiting. Further instructions then.

  She almost made a joke about how very 007 this all sounded when she realized that the team Hudson had working for him might very well have been former MI6. With that sobering thought in mind, she got back to work, trying her best to remain focused on the e-mails and contracts and conference calls that filled the rest of her afternoon. When four o’clock rolled around, she did exactly as she’d been instructed, donning the coat, hat, and sunglasses in Ingram’s lobby before pushing through the revolving doors.

  The sun was still shining as Allie stepped out onto Michigan Avenue, making the sunglasses seem less out of place in January, but the bite of cold wind stung her face. She pulled the scarf up over her mouth as she scanned the row of cabs idling at the curb.

  A driver climbed out of the one directly in front of the door. “Miss Sinclair?” At Allie’s nod he hurried round the front of the car and opened the back door for her. Allie slid inside, then pulled the burner phone out of her purse. She’d dialed Hudson’s number before the driver was even back in the car.

  “Anxious to see me?” he asked. She could hear the smile in his voice.

  “Says the man who answered his phone on the first ring.”

  “I’ve never claimed to be anything but when it came to you.” A warmth spread through her at the gentle caress of his voice, dampened only by the realization he was speaking over a Bluetooth system.

  “You’re driving?”

  “The Range Rover, yes. Why do you ask?

  “No reason.”

  “Alessandra?” She could tell by his tone he was expecting an answer.

  “I just had a different picture in mind, that’s all.”

  “Did you now?”

  “Mmmhmm. You, me, the back of the limo.” She cut her eyes to the front seat of the taxi. The driver seemed far too busy maneuvering into traffic to pay her much attention, but she still turned her head and lowered her voice. “Something about your face and my thighs.”

  “Believe me, I’d like nothing more than to start the trip by spreading you out on that bench and fucking you with my tongue until we reach the state line.”

  A jolt of pleasure arrowed straight to her core, and she let out a frustrated groan. “You’re an evil bastard, do you know that?”

  He chuckled softly. “Yes, but I’m your evil bastard. And I’ll make it up to you when you get here.” His voice dropped to a sexy rasp. “Thoroughly and repeatedly.”

  “That’s not helping,” she said, echoing his words from earlier.

  This time he didn’t even bother to temper his laugh. “It wasn’t meant to.”

  “Wait,” she said, his words registering, “When I get there? Where are you?”

  “At the moment I’m at a red light in front of that little candy shop you were so fond of last time.”

  Allie remembered it well. She could picture the charming pink and white building clearly, right down to the woman spreading velvety chocolate across a cool marble slab. And while her mouth watered at the thought of the creamy fudge, her heart sank at the thought that Hudson was already in Lake Geneva.

  “I would have preferred we drive up together,” he said as if reading her mind. “But the risk was too great.”

  And there it was, the harsh reality that shadowed them. No matter how hard they tried, it was always there, threatening to end their happiness once and for all. Allie stared out the window at the pedestrians clogging the intersection, people rushing home to start their weekends without threats of blackmail or bodily harm. “I know,” she whispered. It was impossible to mask her disappointment, though she knew he was right.

  “And I need the time to prepare,” he added in what was obviously an effort to steer them away from the dark turn the conversation had taken. It was also clear that he was taunting her, but she couldn’t stop herself from asking. “What are you up to?”

  “Anticipation, Alessandra.”

  She knew from experience there would be no further explanation. Resigned to her two-hour torture, she sighed. “So what’s the plan?”

  “You’re about to turn onto lower Wacker,” Hudson began. She almost asked how he knew that, but then she remembered the spy gadget that allowed him to see across the river and into her office. Tracking her location was child’s play.

  The taxi grew dark as the driver veered onto a ramp that took them beneath the city. The winding tunnels were a much quicker option than the congested streets of the Loop as the fast-paced traffic and unmarked alleyways were far too daunting to the inexperienced driver. Only those well acquainted with the bowels of the city took the shortcut known as the Chicago Autobahn.

  “From there you will be taken to a parking garage, where you will transfer to another car.” The cab took a sharp right. After circling one level they pulled alongside a black limousine. A blonde stepped out of the back wearing the exact same coat, hat, scarf, and sunglasses as Allie.

  “Both the limo driver and the woman are members of Max’s team,” Hudson said. “Jessica will be taking the taxi you’re in to your brownstown, where she will remain for the duration of the weekend. Take whatever you need out of your purse, then give it to her along with your keys and cell phone. Keep the burner with you.”

  Three days off the grid with Hudson was exactly what Allie wanted, but still, the thought of being completely out of touch with the rest of the world gave her pause. “What if there’s an emergency. Or a break in the case?”

  “She will be monitoring the incoming call log and voice mails and, if necessary, has instructions on how to reach us. We don’t know if Julian is using your cell phone to track your movements, but in the event that he is, having it in her possession not only protects you, it aids our ruse.”

  “You’ve thought of everything, haven’t you?

  His voice dropped to a seductive purr. “You have no idea.”

  The promise held in those four words not only made her toes curl, it made the two hour drive to Lake Geneva seem more like eight.

  Allie peered through the tinted window when the limo finally rolled to a stop in the center of the quaint town. With the exception of the dusting of powdery snow, it was exactly as she remembered. Rows of pastel-colored shops lined both sides of the street—everything from high-end art galleries to extreme sports rentals—all catering to the affluent crowd who used the lakeside community as their chance to get away from the stress of the city. The streets were crowded with those taking advantage of the three-day weekend. But unlike the coupl
es who strolled hand in hand down the cobblestone sidewalks, pausing to window shop or duck into a café for a latte or a scoop of hand-churned ice cream, she and Hudson had no desire to venture into town. The only destination on their agenda was his cabin, and knowing he was already there, waiting for her, sent waves of adrenaline coursing through her veins.

  She could hardly sit still as the limo crawled along the narrow road that hugged the shoreline. And she was already unbuckling her seat belt as the driver turned through the stone walls flanking both sides of the winding driveway. At the top of the hill the peaks of Hudson’s wood and stone house soared high above the pine trees, the windows aglow like a beacon, calling her home.

  When they pulled into the clearing she saw him, watching from the balcony that wrapped the length of the house, the wood plank door standing open behind him. He was down the stairs in no time, and had the limo door open before the car had even rolled to a complete stop.

  “I thought you’d never fucking get here,” he growled, reaching for Allie’s hand. With a sharp tug he pulled her body flush against his, crushing his lips against hers in a ravenous kiss. His raw hunger ignited a flame that rushed like wildfire across her skin. Spending the week apart was a torture that had clearly taken its toll on both of them.

  Allie melted into the kiss, carried away by the combination of lust and love she felt for the man who owned her, body and soul. Her hands clutched his dark, unruly hair, holding him to her as if he might slip through her fingers; a dream that might vanish into the night. He groaned in response and his hand cupped her ass, obliterating whatever distance remained between them with a seductive roll of the hips. But it wasn’t enough. It would never be enough. Not until his skin was pressed against hers and he was buried deep inside her.

  When he finally broke their kiss, she was a panting, quivering mess.

  “I want you naked all weekend,” he said, rubbing the tip of his nose against hers.

  She grinned. “Is that so?”