Wordlessly, they all pointed to the door on the left. I nodded curtly, and eased it open. Just as I walked into the barely lit tunnel, my phone vibrated.
It was an unknown number.
Answering it, I held it up to my ear and waited.
“We have your woman. If you want to see her again, you’ll get two million dollars to us within two hours. Call the police, and she dies,” a distorted deep voice ordered.
“You kidnapped her from a public parking lot full of prominent people. Security already called the police,” I snapped. “Not to mention that banks are closed. I won’t be able to get my hands on that much money until the morning.”
There was a pause and some chatter in the background. They’d had at least two weeks to get their shit together, and they were still fucking up. They had to be the dumbest criminals ever.
“Well?”
“We’ll call you back.” The call ended, and I grimaced. They clearly hadn’t thought things through when they decided to hole up in the hotel. What would that mean for Sloan?
Pressing myself into a darkened corner, I dialed Torrence and waited.
“Where the hell are you?” he snapped.
“I just got the ransom call. I don’t think they counted on the banks not being open. Get some police to the exit of the hotel. They’re going to try to leave with her.”
“How do you know?”
“They don’t have a choice. If they’re still here in the morning, the staff will catch them.”
I hung up the phone and waited. The faint sounds from the kitchen echoed into the hallway, but there were no footsteps. I had to get closer to the exit if I wanted to catch them.
The phone vibrated again, and I answered it. “Get the money by ten in the morning. We’ll call you then with further instructions.”
“I want proof of life,” I said immediately, but the call had already ended. “Damn it.”
Shucking off my jacket, I rolled up my sleeves and moved cautiously down the wall. Each time I came to a corner, I peered around it, but I was still alone. Worried that Torrence was wrong and they weren’t here, I kept following the exit signs.
Just as the girl had said, the last room before the door was the employee break room. I eased the door open and hid just inside the opening. If they were here, and the police were out back, there was nowhere for them to go.
Time blurred. I had no idea whether I’d waited minutes or hours, but a single voice finally echoed off the walls.
“Let go of me you, you fucking assholes!”
There was my proof of life.
Chapter Thirteen
Sloan
As they dragged me down the tunnel halls, I spat out the rag and started to scream. “Let go of me you fucking assholes!”
“Shut the hell up!” one of them hissed. “Duncan, shut her up.”
The fist came out of nowhere and connected to my jaw. Pain radiated throughout my face, but I didn’t stop. “If you want me to be quiet, you’re going to have to fucking kill me. Who will pay your damn ransom then?” I snarled.
We neared the exit doors, and my heart dropped. If I didn’t get free before we left the hotel, God knew what they would do to me. Dropping my body, I let my full weight slow them down. They grunted and reached for me, but before I knew it, they’d dropped me to the floor.
Stunned, I watched as Lucas leapt from an entryway. He’d struck two of the men before the doors opened up and police swarmed the area.
“Sloan,” Lucas shouted as he grabbed me. “Damn it, baby. Are you okay? Say something.”
He pulled me to my feet, and I just blinked and stared at him. “I didn’t know you even knew how to fight,” I said softly. “I figured you were the type who paid other people to do that.”
“Is that your way of saying thank you?” he said softly. He pulled a small knife from his pocket and sliced through the ties on my wrists. I immediately wrapped my arms around his neck and sagged against him. Now that I was safe, there was no more fight left in me.
That just left fear, horror, and shock.
“You scared the hell out of me.” As the police surrounded us and people barked orders, he finally lowered his head and kissed me.
Hot. Desperate. Urgent. This wasn’t the hesitant first kiss. I could taste fear, anger, and desire wrapped all in one. For a moment, he chased the demons away, and I returned the kiss with fervor. He may not be the forever kind of guy, but he was here now.
When I grew too dizzy and breathless, I had to break the kiss. Burying my head in his chest, I ignored the buzz around me. I didn’t want to talk to anyone. I just wanted to be alone.
“Can she talk to you tomorrow? I don’t think she’s ready to give a statement,” he said in a low voice.
“We’ve got paramedics here to check her out.”
The voice sounded familiar. I pulled back and looked into the kind eyes of Detective Allen.
“I’m fine,” I muttered quietly. “I just don’t want to be here anymore.”
He nodded. “Take her home. I’ll give you both a call in the morning.”
Lucas wrapped his arms around me and slowly walked me through the doors. I turned my head and watched the flashing blue lights. I’d seen them far too much lately. Just past them, the limousine was waiting.
I slid inside and huddled in the corner. Lucas sat across from me, and I wondered why he wasn’t touching me. Why he wasn’t holding me.
“My bag,” I said hoarsely. “My bag is still inside.”
“My head of security has it. It’ll be returned to you,” he said in a low voice. There was something dangerous and restrained in his tone. “Do you want me to take you to your apartment?”
Randi would be there. She’d want to comfort me. She’d want to talk to me. I wasn’t ready for that. Numbly, I shook my head.
“Where do you want to go?”
Turning away from him, I rested my head on the window. I had no idea where I wanted to go.
I stared out the window. The moon hung high over the acres of the Montgomery Estate. I should have been exhausted, but I think I was still in shock.
“Sloan, do you want something to drink?” Lucas asked softly. He hadn’t said much of anything in the car. There was a dark rage that swirled in his eyes, but he was gentle as he helped me from the car to the house. Even now, I could hear the anger simmering just under the surface.
“You’re angry,” I said softly without turning around.
“Do you want a drink,” he asked again.
“Sure.” I didn’t really, but it would give me something to do.
I heard the click of the cabinet and the distant sound of running liquid. His reflection appeared behind me, and I held my hand out. The glass slid in my hand, and I gripped it automatically. “Thank you.”
Raising it to my lips, I sipped slowly at it. “Your place is nice.”
“What the hell were you thinking, Sloan?”
There it was. The accusation that was written all over his eyes. I knocked the rest of the bourbon back and sat the empty glass on the table before I turned to stare at him. “I was upset and needed some fresh air. There shouldn’t be anything wrong with that,” I said softly.
“You knew that I’d pulled your detail because you were with me. You knew that no one was watching you when you left that party,” he hissed.
Something inside me snapped, and I narrowed my eyes. “So this is my fault? What was I supposed to do? Spend the rest of my life under your protection?”
“At least you would have been safe!” he roared. He dropped his glass and let it shatter against the floor as he grabbed my arms and pushed me up against the window. “The minute I realized that you were gone, I thought I’d gotten you killed.”
His body pressed up against me, and I realized that he wasn’t angry at me. He was angry at himself. “Lucas,” I said softly as I reached up and touched his face. “You didn’t kidnap me. This isn’t your fault. You can’t blame yourself.”
&nbs
p; “You do,” he said through clenched teeth.
“I don’t.” A storm raged inside him, and was terrified to think of what he would do if he continued to carry the guilt on his shoulders. “I blame the men that kidnapped me. I blame myself for letting my feelings cloud my judgment. The one person that I do not blame is you. And it’s over now. They’re never going to touch me again.”
“It’s over,” he echoed.
“We can both go back to our normal lives. You don’t have to worry about me anymore.” My pulse spiked as I spread my hands over his chest. “It’s over, Lucas. The night is almost over.”
His eyes darkened as he pressed his body harder against mine. “It’s not over until I say it’s over,” he growled. “You should have gone home, Sloan.”
I lifted my chin and stared at him. The memory of the night’s events was blurring, but I remembered his lips on mine. It was the only thing that had shaken me from my fear.
“I didn’t want to go home.”
“Tell me no, Sloan. Tell me that you don’t want me. You should have someone gentle, and I don’t think I can be gentle tonight.”
I should have. I should have done all those things, but the only thing I truly wanted was for someone to chase the fear away.
I wanted to feel good.
Hooking my arms around him, I took his hand and slid it up the slit of my skirt. Higher until he could feel the heat pulsating from my pussy.
He groaned and rubbed his thumb across my wet lips, and I jumped at the pleasure that cascaded through my body. I knew that if I did this, nothing would ever be the same, but my life had changed the minute he’d touched me at the club.
I didn’t have the strength to do what was right. I wanted to do what felt good.
“I need you,” I whispered, and I dropped my inhibitions.
Tonight, my body would be his.
Billionaire Romance
When He Craves
Montgomery Billionaire Series
Book Two
By Michelle Love
Chapter One
Sloan
“Tell me no, Sloan. Tell me that you don’t want me. You should have someone gentle, and I don’t think I can be gentle tonight.”
I should have. I should have done all those things, but the only thing I truly wanted was for someone to chase the fear away.
I wanted to feel good.
Hooking my arms around him, I took his hand and slid it up the slit of my skirt. Higher until he could feel the heat pulsating from my pussy.
He groaned and rubbed his thumb across my wet lips, and I jumped at the pleasure that cascaded through my body. I knew that if I did this, nothing would ever be the same, but my life had changed the minute he’d touched me.
I didn’t have the strength to do what was right. I wanted to do what felt good.
“I need you,” I whispered, and I dropped my inhibitions.
Tonight, my body would be his.
His lips were on my throat as he hiked the fabric of my dress up to my waist and slowly inserted a finger inside me. Leaning my head back against the glass, my eyes drifted close. My body had been waiting for this the moment I’d laid eyes on him, and now that it was here, I thought I might explode before we’d even begun. Unable to help myself, a low moan escaped me.
Lucas hissed at the sound and raked his teeth across my skin. “I’ve dreamed of the sounds you would make when I pleasured you. When I fucked you,” he muttered. “Everything about you makes me so goddamn hard.”
He added a second finger and stroked deep inside me. My legs weakening, I had no choice but to wrap my arms around his shoulders and try to hang on as he continued to wreak havoc on my body.
“Lucas,” I whispered. “If you don’t stop…I’m going to…God, we haven’t even started…please…” I panted, but when his thumb circled my sensitive nub, I lost all control. Burying my head in his shoulders, I cried out as my body convulsed around him. I was embarrassed by how easily my body had responded to him and upset that it was already over.
Suddenly, his hands swept under me and easily lifted me in the air. When he laid me down on the bed, I took a deep breath. He’d obviously keep going until he’d found his own pleasure, and I needed to prepare myself. It had been rare for my ex-boyfriend to make me come before he’d even entered me, but when it did happen, sex was almost painful.
“Sloan,” he said in a low voice. “Why do you suddenly look upset? Do you want me to stop?”
“No,” I said with a forced smile. “I can handle it.”
His face was full of concern as he leaned over me and slowly stroked my cheek with his finger. “Baby, I know I said that I might be rough, but I’m not going to hurt you. If you’re not ready, we can stop.”
It was sweet of him to give me an option, but I wasn’t going to stop just because I had some issues with sex. “I want to keep going. I’m just a little nervous. It’s been a while.”
“You look more than nervous, my sweet. Let me see if I can make you feel more at ease.” There was a wicked look on his face as his hands slid up my thighs and pulled my dress up. I lifted my hips and then my back and shoulders as he slipped it off my head. Completely naked and feeling vulnerable, I tried to cover myself, but he quickly pinned my arms to the side.
His eyes darkened considerably as he gazed at me. “Let me see you, Sloan. You have no idea how badly I’ve wanted to see this. God, you are absolute perfection.”
There was something in the way he looked at me, but I felt my body warm despite my hesitation. He let go of my wrist and trailed a hand down my throat and over the swell of my breast. I arched against his touch and felt my body reawaken.
“You like that?” he asked softly as he bent down. “What about this?” Running a tongue over my erect nipple, he pulled another deep moan from me. Before too long, I was bucking against him. I desperately wished he was naked, but I couldn’t help rubbing my pussy against the cock still restrained in his pants. “It seems that you do.”
His head slid down my body as he licked a path to my sex. I saw his intentions, and quickly grabbed his head. If he fucked me with his tongue, I’d come again, and I wouldn’t have anything left to give him.
“Please,” I muttered as I forced his head up. “Just fuck me. I’m ready.”
Lucas’s eyes narrowed. “Did you just deny me?”
“I’m ready, Lucas. Please. I’m ready for you.”
Sliding off the bed, he began to unbutton his shirt. “Touch yourself,” he demanded hoarsely. “I want to see you touch yourself.”
My cheeks reddened. I had never done that in front of anyone. When I didn’t quickly follow his command, his hands stilled. “Sloan. Do it. Touch yourself.”
Afraid that he’d stop and I’d never feel him inside me, I slowly moved a hand down my body until I could lightly strum my clit. There was something forbidden about having his eyes on me while I played, and it only made me hotter. My hips twisted under my touch, and I bit down on my bottom lip. “Please,” I whimpered. “Please hurry.”
“You can stop.” He stood naked by the bed, and every fantasy in my head hadn’t even come close to reality. Every inch of his skin seemed to beg for my touch. Hard sculpted muscles, skin smooth and taut. His erection was, to say the least, impressive.
He covered my body with his and kissed me with a desperate urgency. As I spread my legs, his erection rubbed against me until I could take no more. “Lucas,” I begged. “Fuck me. Now. Please.”
Without another word, he slid inside me with a grunt and immediately stilled.
God. He stretched and filled me, and I gasped.
“Sloan,” he hissed. “Hold still. Let me have a minute.”
I froze under him and closed my eyes. I’d never felt anything like it. “Are you…?”
“Not yet,” he hissed. I saw the sweat forming on his forehead. He was straining to stay in control and not push the rest of his cock inside me. Slowly, I rocked my body just a little. I liked the way h
e felt, and I wanted all of him.
“Fuck, Sloan,” he moaned. “Baby, you have to stop. You’re too tight. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Don’t hold back. I can take it. I need you.” I couldn’t stop even if I wanted to. The more I rocked, the deeper he slid until he released a guttural moan and lifted my knees as he finally sank all the way home.
Wrapping my legs around his waist, I leaned up and licked the sweat from his skin as he started to pump his hips. Although he tried to be slow and easy, we were too far gone for that. Soon, he was hammering inside me.
Flames licked my body as the tension grew inside me. I wanted to touch and kiss him, but I could do nothing but let him control me, twist me, and move me as he pleased. When he sucked my breast into his mouth and flicked his tongue over the nipple, I arched helplessly under him. Sex had never felt like this before, and I was almost afraid to climax.
Gasping and panting, I gripped the bars of the headboard and held on to it as it slammed into the wall.
Faster. Deeper. I was so close. “Lucas,” I whimpered. “I’m going to come. Fuck. I don’t know.”
“I’ve got you,” he moaned. “Come, baby. I want to feel you around my cock.”
He covered my mouth with his and swallowed my scream as I lost all control of my body. Growing almost rigid under him, I tightened my legs around his waist in an effort to keep him inside me as I careened over the edge of chaos. My toes curled, and my nails dug into his back. I’d leave marks, but he didn’t seem to care.
“Fuck. Sloan. Ah, God,” he moaned as he suddenly slammed hard inside me and grunted. I felt him spill his seed until finally, he slumped over me, nothing but dead weight and complete and utter satisfaction.
I didn’t give a damn how heavy he was. As I tried to catch my breath, I traced my fingers over his back like an old lover familiar with every curve of his body.
Finally, he lifted his head and stared at me. “You want to tell me what the hell that was?” he asked accusingly.
Evergreen: An Alpha Billionaire Romance Page 88