She nodded at Theo. ‘Okay. I’m good.’ He smiled at her but she could see he wasn’t convinced. She put her arms around his neck.
‘This was a place of horror. For one hour. One night. He doesn’t get to sully all the good times we’re going to have here. With you. Our family. With all of us together.’ She kissed him and felt him respond. He ran his hands down her back, pulling her to him. She pressed her body into his, hearing his intake of breath. He picked her up and carried her into the living room, laid her on the couch. She took his face in her hands as he moved on top of her.
‘You are the most wonderful man, Theo Storm. Have you missed this as much as me?’
He nodded, his smile filled with desire. She took his hand and guided it, under her dress, between her legs.
‘Make this is a place of joy again, Theo. Please.’
He slid his hand into her panties and grinned down at her. ‘My pleasure, ma’am.’ He kissed her as she unzipped his pants and touched him. ‘God, I love you.’
She laughed, gasping at his caress. ‘I love you, Theo, so, so much.’
He started to unbutton her dress, kissing her from her neck, between her breasts. He pressed his lips to every scar, every bruise on her stomach. He hooked his fingers into the side of her panties and pulled them down. He smiled up at her.
‘You’re beautiful, baby.’ Then his mouth was on her, his tongue caressing her. She moaned with pleasure.
‘Theo.’ she whispered,
‘Yes, baby?’ He looked up and saw she had tears in her eyes. ‘What is it?’ He moved up her body, concerned.
She kissed him. ‘I want you,’ she murmured, ‘I want you inside me.’
Theo frowned. ‘Jessie, I don’t think…’
‘Sssh….’ She pushed him onto his back and straddled him, wincing slightly. Theo held her waist, still concerned.
‘Jess, we should…’
‘Sssh….’ She moved lower and took his cock into her mouth, feeling it quiver and thicken as she sucked, tongued and teased it. She felt his fingers stroke through her long hair, massage her scalp, heard his moan of longing.
When his cock was rigid, pulsating and hard, she moved up and gently lowered herself onto him, closing her eyes as she felt him fill her entirely, moaning softly. Theo’s hands clasped her hips as she began to rock gently, slowly, taking him in deeper, deeper, deeper…
Theo gazed up at her as she moved….god, she was so beautiful it hurt…his cock was being squeezed and massaged by her soft, wet cunt and his head swam with desire, longing, desperate love. His fingers bit into the tender flesh of hips as they fucked but he was aware of not hurting her still healing body. He slipped his hand between her legs and stroked her clit, feeling the small bud harden and pulse against his fingers and was gratified by her gasps of pleasure, the soft moans as she moved on top of him.
They made love slowly, gently, each experiencing a mellow climax that seemed to linger and afterward, they lay together naked, skin against skin and held each other and listened to the peace of the evening together.
Theo turned to kiss her temple. ‘You okay, Jessie?’ He felt her arms tighten around him, felt her press a kiss to his chest.
‘I am good, very good,’ she lifted her chin to kiss him, ‘I love you, Theodore Storm. I feel like we’re on the way to reclaiming our lives.’
Theo sighed and closed his eyes. He wanted to feel hopeful, wanted to feel happy in this moment but…he slide his hand down to her belly and stroked it. He would never forget that night, the torn skin, the blood. ‘Are you sure we didn’t go too fast? Are you hurting?’
‘No,’ but when he raised his eyebrows at her, she smiled sheepishly, ‘…okay, I do ache a little but no more than a regular stomach ache.’
‘Aspirin and a hot bath then.’ Theo started to get up but she moaned and pulled him back down beside her. He didn’t protest – her skin was so soft, so warm next to his and she smelled so good. She burrowed into his chest. ‘Theo?’
‘What’s up, beautiful?’
‘I have to talk to you about something.’
He looked down at her. ‘Oh yeah?’
She hesitated for a moment, her brown eyes wary then she took a breath in. ‘I know about Kelly.’
For some reason, Theo wasn’t shocked or surprised. He nodded. ‘I somehow knew you did. Don’t ask me how.’
‘How come you never mentioned her?’
‘Honestly? I have no idea. Possibly because we have so much else to think about since we met that there was no good time. Ollie tell you?’
She nodded. ‘It’s a big piece of your past, is all. I thought we said no secrets.’
‘We did. I’m sorry, Jess, it was stupid and thoughtless of me. Kelly was troubled for a long time. Before I knew her even. I was too young to see the signs and we lost her.’
He sat up then and she moved to sit beside him, her hand resting on his chest. ‘You know you can talk about it, you know? With me?’
He smiled. ‘I do know, and I’m kind of glad you know. But I have to say something about that. I found her. I found her dead and it was awful, horrific, devastating. But, Jess, even that paled to what I felt when I found you that night. My heart was ripped out. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think, it was as if everything human in me disappeared.’
Jess looked stricken and he realized that underneath the distress was something else: guilt. He cupped her face in his palms, made her look at him. ‘None of this is your fault. None of it. It just is what it is. God, I hate that expression, but in this case…if I had to swap everything’s that’s happened for a life without you? Never.’ He kissed her gently. ‘I’m going make Jules’s life a living hell, I swear I am. He doesn’t get to do what he’s done and get away with it.
Jess hesitated but then met his gaze. ‘Do you love me?’
He looked confused. ‘You know I do.’
‘Then just promise me two things. One, you’ll let me help you bring him down. Yes.’ She added as Theo gave her an incredulous look. ‘Don’t let me be a victim. That’s not what is going to happen. You’re already my white knight. That’s a done deal. This is a partnership. Agreed?’
Theo nodded. ‘I get it. Yes, agreed. With reservations.’
‘Which are?’
‘You never put yourself in harm’s way. I never let you out of my sight. I’m the boss when it comes to anything less than…legal. You agree to be naked at least seventy-five percent of the time. That last one depends on the situation.’
She laughed, grateful for his effort to lighten the atmosphere. ‘Done, done, as much as possible, you’re the boss and I will if you will.’
He coughed out a throaty laugh and she joined in.
‘What was the other promise?’
Her smile faded. ‘That you promise, promise, you won’t put yourself in any danger. Promise me. Because if anything happened to you…then he might as well get his way. I don’t want to live in a world without you in it. I mean it, Theo’
Theo moaned at her words and she tightened her arms around him.
‘Okay. You got it.’
She rested her face against his, feeling his stubble graze her skin. ‘You and me now.’ He buried his face in her hair and locked his arms around her.
‘I’ll never let him hurt you again. I’ll never let anyone hurt you.’
Jess wanted to believe him, she knew he meant it with all his heart. But something in her said that Jules would stop at nothing. Jess knew that at the end of all of this, someone would be dead. One thing was certain, she would never let that person be Theo.
Even if it cost her own life.
Max arrived with the dogs the next day and both Theo and Jess hugged him tightly. Jess was cooking, periodically disappearing into the kitchen from where they sat on the porch. When she had gone to check on the food, Theo looked over at Max. It seemed to him that they had both aged a million years in a few months. The loss, the grief, the horror they had been through had made Theo even more
aware of how much Max was a brother to him – even if the guilt of Josh’s murder would never leave him. As much as he tried to reassure Jess, Theo’s own guilt kept him up at night: Because I fell in love, Max lost his own love. Max, knowing Theo’s mind, had constantly reassured him but it didn’t make Theo feel any better.
‘So, Gachet has disappeared.’ Max was the one who was in constant contact with the police whilst Jess recovered and he kept Theo updated with every detail.
Theo nodded. ‘Doesn’t surprise me. Well, we know now why he release Jess’s inheritance. To fund his own escape.’ They’d discovered Jess’s account drained the day after she’d been released from the hospital, although no-one knew exactly how he’d done it. ‘Jesus…how long has he planned to kill her?’
Max shrugged. ‘I really don’t want to think about that. The main thing is she’s safe now.’ He raised an eyebrow at the shadowy figures moving around the perimeter of the property. ‘What’s it like living in Fort Knox?’
Theo gave him a wry smile. ‘Better than not sleeping.’ He sighed and leaned back in his chair. ‘So, we got any leads?’
‘Not on Jules. His driver – or ex-driver is still in the city – why I’m not sure. The son-of-a-bitch may be here to spy for Jules. Pretty sure he knows more than he’s telling the police anyways.’
Theo’s face hardened. ‘Maybe I should speak directly to him.’ His words were heavy with meaning and when Max turned to look at him, he could see his own anger reflected in his friend’s eyes.
‘That might an idea,’ Max said slowly. ‘Then if he won’t talk, then what? The police?’
There was a long silence. ‘Oh, I think it’s gone way past the police…don’t you?’ Theo felt a calm settle over him as he spoke the words and he watched Max nod once, firmly. ‘Yeah, this is all us from now on. He’s not going to know what hit him.’
Jules Gachet sat back in his chair, admired the slim, brown legs of the woman that strolled past him. Paris was as beautiful as it had ever been but, even with the beautiful woman and delicious spring sunshine, he found it hard to concentrate.
She’s alive. It haunted him, the fact that he’d failed. When he’d left her that night, broken and bleeding out, he’d felt sure she couldn’t have possibly had a chance. None.
Jules signaled to the waiter for another pastis. The fake passports Malcolm had procured for him long before his attempt to kill Jessica had more than proven their worth but yes, he was taking a risk coming here, back to the place of his birth. Soon he would go deep into the French countryside, change his name, appearance and lay low until the American police – and Jessica – thought he was gone forever. Malcolm was arranging things back in Seattle and when it was safe, he, Jules, would return and finish what he promised Jess he would. Kill her. Make Storm watch as he took her life, once and for all.
Spring drifted lazily into summer and Jess found herself swept along with the plans for the wedding. Despite her and Theo’s wishes for a quick, small wedding, Theo’s mother had other ideas and Jess couldn’t bear to disappoint her. Amelia’s kindness had no limit, it seemed, and neither did her creativity.
The wedding was set for early September at Amelia’s sprawling estate on the island. Jess and Theo dutifully followed Amelia’s arrangements for their wedding attire, telling each other that if it made Amelia happy, then it was worth it.
But they lived for the times when they were alone. As Jess got healthier, their sex life got back on track and even became a deeper thing, a closeness between them that seemed anchored in complete trust.
Jess, waiting for Theo to return home one Friday night, soaked in a long bath, feeling horny as hell and sexy for the first time in an age. Her scars were fading into pink lines and she traced the path of them. It still didn’t feel real, but she remembered the agony all too well. She pushed that thought aside and got out of the bath, slowly drying herself and massaging lotion into her skin. She padded, nude, to the dressing room and was about to slip into her usual shorts and tee, when she saw it, peeking out of a box on the floor. The leather bondage harness they had only used once, the night before she was stabbed.
Jess started to grin and pulled the harness out. The leather was so buttery soft, the fastenings cool steel. She slipped her robe off her shoulders and stepped into the harness, enjoying the feel of the leather as she strapped it onto her body. The inch-wide straps crisscrossed her breasts, framing them and swept between her legs and around her thighs, leaving her cunt, her buttocks exposed. Even putting it on made her so aroused she could feel herself getting wet, and grabbing her robe, she darted downstairs to prepare Theo’s very special homecoming.
Theo left the office just after eight, and, as had become his habit, flew the chopper back to the island. He hated the commute via car and ferry boat now – when he was done with work, he wanted to get to her now. Hell, all day at work, he thought about nothing but Jess, working from home, the safest place she could be. He called her a dozen times a day and she was always glad to hear his voice. My girl.
There was a storm brewing over the island as he arrived home and the sky was dark, heavy with rain. After landing, he checked in with his head of security and then headed into the house.
Theo opened the front door. The house was dimly lit and as he moved into the house, he saw candles guttering on the tables.
‘Welcome home.’
He turned to see Jess sitting halfway up the stairs and his breath caught in his lungs as he saw the harness crisscrossing her body. Her dark tumbled down to her shoulders and in the candlelight, her skin glowed. She smiled lazily at him and slowly, tantalizingly spread her legs wide. He could see she was already wet, the dark red folds of her sex glistening with her arousal, plump and ripe. His breath hitched and caught at the sight of her.
‘I’ve been thinking about you all day, my love.’
Her smile widened and as he watched, her hand slipped between her legs and she began to masturbate for him. ‘And I, you. Strip for me, Theo.’
He grinned and pulled his clothes off, his cock already thickening and trembling. He fisted the root of it and began to stroke. Jess, moaning softly, nodded to a side table. An open bottle of champagne. Theo snagged it as he made his way up the stairs to her, putting it down by her head then grabbing both of her hands and binding them with his tie. Jess capitulated happily as Theo began to pour the champagne, first into the hollow of her throat then down her body. Jess arched her back as the liquid flowed over her body, down to her navel, snaking into her sex. Theo bent down and ran his tongue from her clit, over her belly. He bit down onto her nipples, teasing them into hard peaks and finally, taking a swig of champagne, covering her mouth with his and kissing her, their tongues caressing, the liquid dribbling down their faces. Jess dissolved into giggles as they both gasped for air and Theo swept her upstairs into their bedroom.
Jess had set up a video camera and a screen, and Theo raised his eyebrows. She kissed him. ‘I want to watch us fuck,’ she murmured, trailing her lips along his jaw, ‘I want to see your cock plunging in and out of me again and again and again…’
He pushed her down onto the bed, his senses frenzied with desire, turned on by her whispers, her obvious lust for him. He hooked one of her ankles of his shoulders and angled the camera down onto her swollen cunt.
‘Christ, Jessie, look how beautiful you are.’ He spread her labia with his long fingers, rubbing her rock-hard clit with his thumb and smiled down at her. ‘Do you want my cock, now, Jessie?’
She nodded, gasping as he placed the head of it against her and pushed in – stopping when he was an inch in. ‘Are you ready, Jessie?’
She moaned with frustration and he laughed. He poured some champagne over his cock then drove himself into her as hard as he could. Jessie screamed and came almost at once and Theo, incredibly turned on, had to slow down to prolong her pleasure. ‘Jessie, I love to fuck you, you know that? Your cunt is always ready for me, always hungry for me and I want to fill you, drive so deep in
to you. Look at us, my love.’
He turned her head so she could see the screen, the sight of his huge cock plowing into her, slower now, thick and rigid, the shaft pulsing with blood and arousal. They were both entranced by the sight of it, their bodies merging, moving as one. Theo watched her lovely face as she watched them. ‘God, Jessie, how the hell did I exist before you?’ He began to thrust hard and she looked back into his eyes, her legs clamped around his hips.
‘I love you,’ she was breathless as their fucking became almost delirious, overwhelming. She arched her back as she came violently, moaning so beautifully that he came too, shuddering as his cock pumped thick streams of cum deep inside of her. They barely took a breath before Jess, her hands still bound, made her way down his body and took his still ramrod cock in her mouth. She sucked him hard, drawing her mouth over the wide crest of his cock, hollowing her cheeks as she teased the head with her tongue, tracing patterns on the sensitive numb. Theo felt his entire body tense as she drove him towards a shattering climax.
Afterward, they lay naked, limbs tangled, and drank the rest of the champagne straight from the bottle.
‘We’re all class,’ Jess smirked up at him. Theo pressed his lips to hers.
‘You could never be anything else…and F.Y.I., being greeted by you in that get-up? Best welcome ever.’
She grinned. ‘I found it today…you know we have a whole box of fun toys we haven’t even used yet?’
Theo shook his head and sighed in mock-regret. ‘What have I turned you into?’
She pulled his lips down for another kiss. ‘Someone who loves and is loved, trusts and is trusted.’
‘Mushy.’
‘You bet your sweet ass. Now, Storm, fuck me again.’
Later, he was about to fall asleep when his phone beeped. Theo stole a look at Jess, sleeping on her stomach, her head on the pillow turned towards him. For a second he watched as she breathed, the silky skin of her back glowing in the dim light of his reading lamp.
Evergreen: An Alpha Billionaire Romance Page 118