Holiday Spice & Everything Nice

by Conn, Claudy

  Hands snaked out like talons and shoved her against the wall. Before she could scream, a body slammed into hers and a hand covered her mouth.

  “Don’t make a sound, True. I just want to talk.”

  Brad?

  “Nod if you understand.” Brad’s voice was gravelly and desperate. The man had lost his mind. There was no way this would end well for him, not with so many people in the room at the end of the hallway.

  She nodded. He uncovered her mouth, but still kept her jammed against the wall. The taste of salt from his sweaty palm lingered on her lips

  “Why are you doing this?”

  “You’re supposed to be with me, not Cantrell. Don’t you see that?” He wiped the sweat from his face. “I shouldn’t have had to find out through office gossip that you and Cantrell used to date. Why didn’t you tell me that before I hired you?” His fist hit the wall near her head.

  Fear snaked its way up her spine and she began to shake uncontrollably. This couldn’t be happening to her. Two minutes ago she’d been excited about getting her life back. Now this? “Did you send me the letters?”

  The arm pinning her loosened, and she tried to shake free. He put his weight back into the hold. “I don’t know shit about any letters. I just want to talk.”

  “Then let me go and we’ll talk.” He was breathing heavy and his body shook harder than hers. “Please?”

  “I’m not going to hurt you.” His voice softened.

  “But you are hurting me.”

  “Don’t try to wiggle away again.” He relaxed his grip. “I found you, True. I hired you. You’re supposed to love me… not Cantrell. He’ll never love you back. You deserve better.”

  “You call being restrained against a wall better?”

  “You’re supposed to be mine.”

  “I belong to no one, Brad.”

  “You’re a little cock-tease, aren’t you? I bet your last boss didn’t attack you. You led Dunlap on, just like he said, and then screamed rape when he decided to take what you offered.”

  “You’re a bastard. I did nothing wrong.” She swallowed hard.

  He ran his hand over her dress. “You don’t think wearing a dress like this is a tease? I get hard imagining what you look like beneath it.”

  He pushed against her and she felt his arousal. Bile pooled in the back of her throat. “Please, Brad. Don’t do this.” A shudder ran through her. This had to stop. She’d had enough. There would be no repeat performance of Scott’s attack. Not while she had an ounce of fight left in her. She screamed and kneed him in the balls.

  Brad grabbed his crotch with one hand and bent over. She tried to move past him, but he drove his shoulder into her stomach. Her head banged against the wall and she slipped to the floor. She began to crawl away, but he kneeled next to her and grabbed her hand.

  “Shit. Look what you made me do. I’m sorry, True. I didn’t mean to hurt—”

  Brad’s fingers slid from her wrist and his body flew across the hall and slammed into the opposite wall.

  Nick bent over her and laid a hand on her cheek. “He hurt you.”

  “I’m okay. He just knocked the wind out of me.” Mentally? She was feeling pretty damn good. She’d fought back.

  “I’ll always be here for you, True.” Nick headed over to Brad. “You son-of-a-bitch. What the fuck did you do?”

  “It was an accident. She kicked me in the nuts and I reacted without thinking.” Sweat trickled down Brad’s forehead. “I told her I was sorry.”

  “You shouldn’t have come back.” He dragged Brad up by the collar and pummeled him in the face.

  True pulled herself into a sitting position. She said, “Stop, Nick. You’re going to kill him.” Adam and one of Nick’s security guards rushed into the hallway. They pulled him off of Brad. She’d never seen Nick lose control like this.

  “Take him downstairs and call the police. Don’t let him out of your sight until the cops have him in handcuffs.” Nick ran a hand through his hair and loosened his tie. “True will be pressing charges.”

  “Yes, sir. I’ll hang on to the piece of crap this time. Throwing him out earlier wasn’t enough.” Nick’s security guard held Brad by the collar.

  “I’ll bring True to the police station to fill out the paperwork later.” He move to her side, gathered her in his arms, and stood. “Let’s head to the hospital to get you checked out.”

  Her heart rate beat out of control. “I don’t want to talk to the police or go to the hospital, Nick. Please, just get me out of here.” She’d done that when Scott had attacked her. The cop had believed Scott’s version. It didn’t matter that her face had been covered in bruises and her clothing torn in several places. From the way the officer had lectured her, she was lucky he hadn’t arrested her on assault charges. But damn, it’d felt good hitting Scott over the head with the water globe.

  “I’ll have Adam handle the cops.” He smoothed her hair behind her ear. “You really should let a doctor look at you.”

  “No, Nick. Please. I just want to get out of here.”

  “If you’re sure?”

  “I am.” Her pulse began to slow. Being in Nick’s arms felt right. Too bad he hadn’t been around after Scott’s attack.

  ***

  True placed a hand on his cheek. “I can walk, Nick.”

  Nick turned his mouth into her palm and kissed it. “No. I like you in my arms.” He carried True to the elevator then into his penthouse. There was no damn way he was putting her down. He needed to hold her. Needed to feel her body next to his and know she was okay.

  After locking the door behind him and dumping the jacket he’d taken off earlier, he went to the couch and sat with True on his lap. “This is better. Now, let me check out your head. I saw it bounce off the wall after Easley knocked into your stomach.”

  She flinched when he touched the back of her head and he wanted to pound Easley all over again. “You’ve got a pretty good knot.”

  “I didn’t realize I’d hit it. Good thing it’s my head. It’s pretty thick.”

  “So, you kneed Easley in the family jewels?”

  “And it felt great.”

  “I’m not sure Easley will agree with you. The bastard was still holding his shriveled balls when security took him to meet the cops.”

  “I hope it hurt.” Her laughter was just what he needed. He closed his eyes and tried to reign in his anger. He kissed her temple gently.

  “Can I get you a drink?”

  “Not yet. I want to enjoy sitting here in your lap for a little while.”

  “I’m going to get some ice for your head.” He was quick and had her back on his lap in minutes. He held the ice against her head. He remembered the way they’d sat like this for hours back when they’d been a couple… minus the ice pack.

  “I’m sorry I left you seven years ago. I really wanted my business to take off. I wanted to be able to give you the world.”

  “You’ve been successful for a few years now.”

  He laid his head back and took a deep breath. “I should have found you when I’d made it. I just wasn’t sure you’d want me anymore. I could’ve built the company with you by my side, but at the time, I didn’t realize that. I guess I was embarrassed about how young and stupid I’d been.”

  “We were kids, Nick. You did what you thought was best. It was painful at the time, but, to be honest, I needed to grow up, too.”

  She put her arms around him and wiggled, turning his cock into iron. “It’s nice being in your arms again.”

  “If you don’t stop grinding that fine ass of yours on my lap, I’m not going to be able to sit much longer.” He stilled her by laying his hand on her thigh… the one covered with the slinky material. It definitely would not be safe to touch the side showing her bare skin. After what she’d been through with Easley, she needed to held. Needed to be comforted.

  “I can see… er …feel that.” Her smile was impish as she touched his erection.

  “Don’t
be a tease.” He gave her a playful pat on her leg. “I’m trying to control myself.”

  She stiffened in his arms and her eyes filled with tears.

  “Did I say something wrong, True?”

  “Brad said I was a tease and that it was my fault he hurt me. I think he may be right.”

  “That’s fucking bullshit. No man has a right to force himself on you. I don’t care if you parade around naked.” He grabbed a tissue from the box and dabbed her tears. “It’s an excuse weak men use to victimize women.”

  She buried her face in his shirt and her shoulders shook. Her tears soaked through his shirt, embedding a special spot for True inside his heart. He ached for her and would do anything to take away her pain.

  “What is it, True? Has Easley done this before? Is that what he meant when he said you didn’t want a repeat performance? I’ll fucking kill him.”

  True lifted her head and looked into his eyes. Her gaze was a mixture of trust and fear. Total opposite feelings, but that was what he saw. “You can tell me, True.”

  “My last boss attacked me and tried to rape me, but I was able to get my hand on my glass water globe and hit him over the head.” She took another tissue and wiped her eyes. “I called the police. The only thing the officer did was threaten to arrest me for assault. I couldn’t believe it.”

  Well, that explained her reluctance to talk to the cops earlier. He’d have a little talk with his good friend, Police Commissioner Jax Thorten soon. Then he’d deal with her last employer. “What was the guy’s name? What company?”

  “It doesn’t matter. I never went back to the office after he attacked me. I took my stuff home with me the same night with a police officer watching every step I made. I felt like I was the bad guy.”

  “I want the bastard’s name, True. I can always look it up in your personnel files, you know.” He tapped her nose with his finger. “Save me the trouble.”

  “Scott Dunlap. But he’s been gone from New York for a few months. At first, I was able to avoid his advances. Then, one night, he had me stay to finish paperwork he said he needed at the last moment. Next thing I knew, everyone else had gone home and Scott attacked me.” She took a deep breath. “I didn’t fight hard enough until he pushed my skirt up and dropped his pants. I almost waited too long to defend myself. I was just so stunned at first.”

  “Of course you were in shock. What woman wouldn’t be?” He pushed a few strands of hair behind her ear. “What matters is that you fought like hell in the end and took the son of a bitch down.”

  “You’re right. And I fought like a wild woman from the moment Brad touched me tonight. It might have taken a bit longer to start fighting Scott, but I eventually I did.”

  “You took the bastard down with your trusty water globe. The one on your desk?” He recalled the huge trinket that always sat on her desk.

  She nodded.

  “Good for you.”

  “My therapist says it’s normal for me to feel guilty, wondering if I’d led him on and then didn’t fight hard enough to defend myself. Most victims of violence do that. That guilt and fear have ruled my life ever since.

  “I’ve worked really hard to deal with it. I try not to give the wrong signals to men and dress very conservatively. And look what happened tonight when I wore this thing.” She gathered a handful of her dress and stretched it. “I told Amy it would send the wrong signal.”

  “You have nothing to feel guilty about.”

  She shrugged.

  “You’ve been hiding behind your baggy clothes, but I’ve got a news flash for you. It didn’t work. I’d want you no matter what you had on.” He guided her head onto his shoulder. “You’re afraid of men?”

  “Mostly.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

  “God, I’m an idiot. I’m always screaming at you and being a total ass. If I’d only known, I would’ve—”

  “It’s okay. You’re one of the few men I’m not afraid of. I assumed you hated me because of our past since you’re always yelling at me. Your dislike was what made you safe. And it helped that we knew each other before.”

  He wasn’t exactly sure how safe she was from him right now. He’d never wanted a woman so much in all his thirty-two years. Probably never would. It broke his heart that someone as sweet as True had suffered through an attack by her ex-boss and Easley, men she should’ve been able to trust. No matter what it took, he’d back off and keep his fucking dick in his pants until she was ready.

  Nick already thought of her as his again. Truth be told, he’d never stopped. He was past the point of no return, but was willing to wait for her to resolve whatever issues the bastards had caused for her. After what she’d been through, there had to be plenty. Hell, he was more than happy to help her with her healing. She only had to tell him how.

  He let out a long sigh. “Now may not be the best time to bring this up, but I’m going for it anyway.”

  She straightened in his lap. “Best time for what?”

  “Full disclosure. I’m falling back in love with you, True. I doubt I ever stopped. I refuse to deny the way you make me feel, but I won’t act on my desire for you until you give me the okay. And if you can’t fall in love with me, I understand. Just say so. I will listen. I don’t want to do anything to send you running. I swear you’re safe with me.”

  “I don’t understand. This,” she waved her hand between them, “isn’t all about sex?”

  Yeah, he’d tried hard to convince himself it was over between them and he didn’t deserve her, but all he’d ended up doing was confusing the hell out of her. And himself. “It’s not all about sex, True. Although, I do think we’ll still burn the sheets up when we do make love.”

  “Really?”

  “I’ve wanted you since the first day you walked back into my life. But I’d had my chance and blown it with you. Saying I was shocked to find you were my new assistant is an understatement. I thought if I was a big enough asshole, you’d ask to transfer or quit. Besides, Easley was supposed to find me a male assistant.” He held up a hand. “Yes, I realize that violates a gazillion rules for hiring, but it’s what I’d wanted.”

  “You wanted a man because of your last assistant?”

  “Katherine was always hitting on me, and to be honest, I found her appealing and we did get along well. Then, one day, she came into my office, shut the door, and took a seat. She proceeded to tell me that if I didn’t give her the London headquarters to run, she was going to scream sexual harassment. She threatened to ruin me and my company.”

  “Had you two ever been… umm… intimate?”

  “No, thank God.” He ran his hand through his hair. He might’ve been attracted to Katherine, but, until True, he’d never thought twice about having a relationship with an employee. “I called her bluff, but it took a lot of work to get her to go away. Adam had our private investigator research her background and interview ex-employers. Turns out, it wasn’t the first time Katherine had pulled her crap. Unfortunately, her other victims had fallen into her trap, and she’d had photos to prove it.”

  “I’m sorry, Nick. I understand why you might have trust issues. I think I even get why you wanted to avoid me.” She played with the second button on his shirt.

  “Oh, True. Didn’t you hear what I just said? You have no idea how much I do like you. I fought it so fucking hard, but you slipped past my defenses.”

  “I’m glad I did.”

  “Me, too. I hope you can forgive me for being a flaming asshole.”

  “I do. I have to say, pushing me away worked to my advantage. My therapist was pretty persistent about me going back to work and considered it a slam-dunk that I had a man for a boss. I didn’t tell her who you were for a full month.”

  “Easley said he couldn’t advertise for a male administrative assistant. He said it could be construed as sexual discrimination. In the end, it didn’t matter. No guys applied for the job anyway.”

  “Brad is a nut case and I wouldn’t be surprised if
he lied to you about that. He told me earlier that he’d hired me because he wanted me to be his.”

  “I wish I could get my hands on the bastard again. There’s no way you’ll ever be Easley’s.” She was Nick’s.

  True took his hand. “I’m not afraid of you. I’m giving you the okay.”

  “Are you saying—”

  “I need you and trust you completely. Let’s see where this goes between us. I want you to take me to bed.”

  “Is it too soon after Easley? I don’t want to frighten you or take advantage of you. That would make me as much of a low-life as Easley and your ex-boss.”

  “You’re nothing like them.” She pushed herself off his lap and stood in front of him. Her gaze never left his as she slipped first one strap, and then the other, off her shoulders, letting the slinky dress cascade to the floor. She stepped from the pool of material and stood in front of him, wearing only a tiny thong. “I’ve missed you and want you inside me.”

  Her pale, creamy skin and shapely body radiated pure innocence and raw sex combined. Exactly the way he remembered her. If he hadn’t been sitting, he’d have fallen to his knees. “Please tell me this is for real.” He pulled his tie off and tossed it aside.

  She held out her hands and he took them. “It’s for real.”

  Nick pulled her back onto his lap and nibbled a path from her collar bone to her ear, her skin like heaven against his lips. He ran his hand up and down her side before palming her breasts. They were the perfect fit for his hands and her nipples peaked on contact. “So fucking responsive, True.” He covered her lips with his.

  “Only for you.” She whispered the words between his kisses. “Only you.”

  She had that right. “Only me. You’re mine.” He pulled her off his lap and arranged her on the couch so he could see every perfect part of her. He could spend hours—no, make that days—worshipping her body, exploring every glorious inch again. Exactly what he planned to do, starting now.

  “This thong is nice, but, baby, it’s gotta go.” Kneeling next to her, he worked the small scrap down her long legs, past her dainty feet, and pitched them on top of her discarded dress. “Much better.”