by Anna Antonia
“This formula is proprietary. Write any of it down and I’ll have you tossed in jail.”
She snorted. Snorted!
“Don’t worry. Your trade secrets are safe, Mr. Killian.”
“See that it remains that way, Miss Lucy.”
The third thing I’d never admit was how her insistence in calling me Mr. Killian pleased me. Of course, I understood it was a cultural aspect of respect. I’d grown up with it and practiced it myself—when I could be bothered. I just didn’t come across this kind of propriety within my age group that often.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-three. Why?”
“Curious. That’s all.”
Capping my marker, I took a step back and studied the board. Grandfather had a stable of classic colors that made up the King Cosmetics brand. I wanted to introduce rainbow hues for teens and women who loved all things anime, mermaids, and whimsy.
“Miss Lucy, what’s your favorite color?”
She didn’t answer right off the bat. It wasn’t that hard of a question. Turning towards her, I saw Lucy was giving her answer consideration.
“I’ve always loved emerald green and peacock blue.”
“That’s two colors. Unexpected though. Too bad that doesn’t help me now.”
The little goddess’s mouth drooped at one corner. She liked to please, did she? Hmm…so much could be done with that tidbit.
She stood up and approached the board. “You said this was for a particular pigment shade. Which one?”
“Amethyst.”
“Really?” Lucy leaned forward, squinting as if the letters would miraculously rearrange themselves in a way she could read.
I had the wholly inappropriate urge to tug on her ponytail. So I did.
Her hand flew up to touch the back of her head and grazed mine in the process. My teasing smile faded when I felt a bolt go right through me.
Interesting.
“Why did you do that?” she asked with an accusing glare.
“Because I felt like it.”
“You’re not in elementary school anymore.”
“No, I’m not.” I focused on her mouth, specifically her plump bottom lip. I imagined sinking my teeth into its fullness before tasting her thoroughly. Was Little Lucy a moaner?
I’d love to find out, but there was a time and a place for everything. Now was neither. Checking my watch, I saw it was 5:03.
“Congratulations, Miss Lucy. You’ve survived your first day.”
Her long lashes fluttered as if waking up from a nap. Good. I hoped she was as addled as she made me for a second or two or thirty.
“I did, didn’t I?”
“You don’t have to sound so damned pleased. I was soft on you today. Don’t expect it to continue.”
She grinned and gathered her purse, after jotting one more thing in her notebook. I stared at it. When would I take the damned thing from her?
Maybe next week. If she lasted that long. After all, once I got my fill of Lucy Martin I doubted she’d want to come back and be Gramp’s watchdog.
“You’re leaving too, right?”
“My grandfather doesn’t hold with late hours. He expects everyone to respect the clock and clear out. That includes me.”
“Oh, okay.” She lingered by the door, unsure in a way I hadn’t seen since our first meeting this morning.
“Is there something else you need, Miss Lucy Martin?”
She looked at me, visibly wary and mouth pinched as if she’d bitten into something sour. “Actually, Mr. King wants me to walk you to your car as part of my duties.”
I hissed out a breath. All my goodwill completely wiped out.
“You’re fucking kidding me. I’m not a child that needs to be walked to the bus stop.”
“I know you’re not.” She paused and then blurted, “Can I be honest with you?”
“No. Lie to me.”
She sighed and then lifted her chin in a stubborn angle. Great. Just what I needed—a martyr with a cause.
“I think your grandfather wants me to walk you to your car so that you have someone to say goodbye to since he can’t do it himself.”
This was exactly the kind of bullshit ideas an overly-sentimental woman would come up with. Hard experience proved my grandfather wasn’t afraid of doing whatever the hell he pleased.
If he wanted to tell me goodbye, he’d do it.
“Nice try, Miss Lucy, but you’re wrong.” I put down my marker on the tray and picked up my phone and keys. “Didn’t I tell you already? You’re not my therapist. Mind your business and don’t speak of things you know nothing about.”
I stalked past her. Once I reached the door, I snapped, “Come on. I need to lock up and I can’t very well do that if you’re still here.”
She glared at me and left the room without another word.
So much for ending things on a high note.
I hoped Lucy would just keep marching her gorgeous ass out of my sight, but no. She stubbornly waited by the elevator. Very well. If she was going to stick to the letter of her law then I’d do my best to thwart and pervert it.
Neither of us spoke on the way down. Silence carried until we reached the garage where my driver waited.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Mr. Killian. Have a good night.”
“You’re not rid of me just yet, Miss Lucy.” I relished the confusion on her lovely face. “Get in.”
She glanced at the Escalade. “No, that’s okay. I don’t have to go home with you.”
“Who’s asking you? Not me. I’m taking you home.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I know I don’t.” When she didn’t make a move, I said just the thing I knew she’d react strongly to. “Embarrassed I’ll see your hovel?”
Lucy’s head jerked. Her eyes narrowed as she spat out, “I’m not embarrassed of where I live!”
“Then get in the car and prove it.”
Keeping her stare pinned to mine, she didn’t give in graciously. “Fine.”
I opened the door, feeling pleased to have won something today. Miniscule as it may have been.
“The appropriate response is ‘Thank you, Mr. Killian. You’re so kind and thoughtful.’”
She didn’t ignore me and climb in anyways. Instead, she paused. “You’re right. I was being rude. Thank you.”
Interesting. No pouting. A sense of fairness.
“Good enough.” I watched her get in, enjoying how her skirt tightened across her round ass. I’d bet it would jiggle every time I smacked it. Damn, this wouldn’t do much to aid my cause if the little goddess saw how hard I was for her.
Luck was on my side because she wasn’t looking at me, choosing to stare out the tinted windows. I took advantage of my relative privacy to adjust myself and just in time too.
“Do I need to tell the driver my address?”
“I hardly know it.”
She whipped her head around. “You don’t have to be nasty.”
“You call that nasty?” I smirked while loosening my tie. “You’ve been sheltered, Miss Lucy.”
“That’s my line, Mr. Killian.”
She leaned forward and quietly introduced herself to my driver Jorge before giving her address. I recognized the street. It was in Grandfather’s old neighborhood.
What were the chances that of all the streets in the world, Lucy Martin just happened to live on the same street he grew up on?
Before the SUV got moving, I pointedly stared at the seatbelt. Lucy looked down, as if unused to being in a car. From what I’d seen so far of her, it wasn’t a stretch to believe this was her first time.
And maybe seatbelts aren’t her only firsts…
Damn! My cock strained against its fabric prison. Taking Lucy Martin home sounded like a phenomenal way to spend the evening. I’d strip her slowly, kissing, teasing, and licking her until she begged for me. Only when she was wet and dripping, then I’d take my tie and use it to bind her arms behind her back.
Maybe I’d use a stretcher so that she couldn’t close her legs, leaving her pretty pussy exposed and ready for my cock…
What a fun game that would be!
But all good things came to those who planned. Shit, but I didn’t want to create an intricate plan to get what I wanted in the future. I wanted Lucy Martin.
Right. Now.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!”
She startled, looking up at me. I yanked the seatbelt across her and snapped it closed.
“I could’ve got it.”
You have no idea.
“All right, Jorge. Let’s go.”
Here I sat, dick throbbing for the tool of my humiliation while she sat next to me, legs primly crossed. Miss Lucy kept her bag between us. A flimsy barrier if there ever was one.
Irritated, I studied her discreetly. I’d hate to be the only one of us affected this way.
Her parted lips looked reddened and not from lipstick. Ah! Her teeth bit down before she soothed the bite with her tongue. Lucy’s pulse thrummed in her neck. I wanted to lick her smooth skin and mark her.
Could she feel my need for her? Her dark gaze darted towards me before flying back towards the window.
A slow smile spread across my mouth.
She felt this just as much as I did. Probably had since this morning.
It really was too bad that she worked for Grandfather. If I met her on the street, I would’ve seduced Lucy within an hour of meeting her. I’d be sure to ask her about this very moment when I had her panties down by those slim ankles and my fingers pinching her clit.
Oh the things I’d do to you…for you…with you…
I spent the rest of the trip imagining the way her lips would fit against mine, the size of her nipples, the dip of her waist, the feel of her ass in my hands, how she sounded when she came, and the tightness of her pussy as it squeezed me while I pounded her seven different ways till sunrise.
My fantasies came to unwelcome end when the car pulled over. “You live here?”
“Yes.”
“At a bodega?” The small grocery store with its yellow sign and red lettering looked like it’d been servicing the community for at least a century.
“If you don’t believe me, look it up on my file.”
“I don’t care enough to look it up, Miss Lucy.”
Not true. I’d have the information within five minutes.
Another glare. “You’re so mean when there’s no cause for it.”
“Your position at King Cosmetics is enough cause.”
She didn’t have a ready answer for that one. Chagrin and a touch of remorse wiped the anger clear off her lovely face. Not exactly the reaction I wanted but close enough.
“Good day, Miss Lucy.”
“Have a good evening, Mr. Killian, and thank you for being kind.”
I raised a brow but she didn’t have the grace to flush for her unnecessary lie. Lucy looked away and then the tiny smile turned into something magnificent.
Puzzled, I glanced out the window. Two elderly men came shuffling out of the store, grins on their weathered faces. They were soon joined by a wiry teenage kid.
How did they know it was Lucy?
“They belong to you I presume?”
She barely glanced back at me. Her attention was solely on them. Lucy opened the door and was already out before she turned back to me and said in a breathless voice, “Thanks for the ride.”
“Yeah, don’t expect it again,” I snapped. “It was a one-time thing.” I reached for the door handle and slammed it shut. “Let’s go, Jorge, and fast.”
The SUV shot out of there, leaving Lucy Martin and her sweet, cozy family behind. I didn’t do guilt. It was a waste of an emotion, but sitting here where the feminine scent of her light, flowery perfume still lingered, I could say I felt guilt.
Lucy Martin wasn’t some random sexpot. She had a family who loved her. One who wouldn’t appreciate me going through her like tissue paper.
Since when did you start caring?
I didn’t know, but what I did know was this—I wasn’t about to let it become a habit.
10
LUCY
The SUV rounded the corner, taking away the infuriating Killian King with it.
“Lucy! Everything okay?”
Hearing Mr. Luis’s concern, I erased my frown and smiled instead. “Everything’s great.”
“¿De verdad?”
“Yes, really. My first day turned out well.”
Mr. Victor gestured to the curb with his chin. “I was worried when that fancy car took out of here like that. I thought you’d been kicked out and fired.”
Killian wishes.
“No, nothing so bad. It’s a new driver. I think he’s still getting used to the car.” Mentally I crossed my fingers behind my back. I didn’t like lying, especially to my precious Mr. Luis and Mr. Victor, but they didn’t need to worry about the devil brat who’d quickly come to rule my day.
“Working for the man all it’s cracked up to be?”
I matched Mario’s grin. “Better.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” No harm in having Mario think of getting work outside the neighborhood. Depending on how things turned out, he could end up interning for Mr. Victor’s grandson or someplace even better. Thinking of a grown-up Mario outfitted in a $4,000 suit instantly put a sunny smile on my face.
Maybe my first day didn’t start or end as well as I would’ve liked, but I made it through. And I’d make it through tomorrow and the day after that.
Everything happened for a reason. It was no coincidence Mario stole that sandwich when he did. It was all so I could meet Mr. King and save his rebellious grandson.
No way was I going to let Killian King get in the middle of divine ordinance.
If I had to be a saint then so be it. No matter how irritated Killian made me. Somehow, someway, I was going to save that man—whether he liked it or not.
And maybe, just maybe, I’d erase a bit of the shame I carried constantly for the past ten years.
11
KILLIAN
Staring at Lucy, I gritted my teeth. This was unbelievable. Truly it was.
“Repeat that.”
Her serene smile required balls. Balls so big they’d split right through her pants. Ones that were an inch and a quarter too long for her frame. I didn’t like how they bunched at her ankles. Didn’t her neighborhood have a tailor? How much could it cost to hem them? Ten dollars? Twenty?
“You need to shut things down. You shouldn’t be late for your lunch with your grandfather. Hurry please.”
Yes, she did actually just talk to me as if I was a preschooler. What next? The “Everybody Clean-Up” song?
I slouched in my chair, fingers drumming against the desk’s smooth surface. “I don’t have a lunch with Gramps.”
“You certainly do, Mr. Killian.”
“I most certainly do not, Miss Lucy.”
There was that smile again. Pretty but utterly vacant. Did she really think I wouldn’t see through it? That I didn’t recognize it a million times over throughout my life?
“Fuck off, Miss Lucy.”
She froze. Fire, like that of an exploding boiler room, unleashed in her ebony gaze. Satisfaction and pride curled my lips. Lucy Martin would finally understand I wasn’t her pet project.
Nor would I be manipulated with false kindness.
I’d been stabbed in the back one time too many in thinking the outside matched the inside. Never again by people on the payroll and never by one of Grandfather’s watchdogs.
“Why did you say that to me?”
Conversational. Nothing to indicate she’d detonated silently upon hearing my vulgarity.
“Why do you think?”
“I’m asking.”
“I just answered.”
She crossed her hands at her waist, looking like she was either going to bow at any moment or jump across the desk and strangle me. Maybe one then the other
? The uncertainty made this even more fun.
What a bonus.
“I made you uncomfortable, Mr. Killian. For that I’m sorry.”
Apologies now? Lucy could save her breath.
“Your very presence is a study of discomfort. Go away and discomfort someone else.”
Lucy shook her head. A tiny thing of defiance. “I’m staying right here, Mr. Killian. You can count on it.”
Rolling my eyes, I once again mentally cursed my Grandfather out for sticking this gorgeous but annoying goddess on my backside. Was she a masochist? I could exploit that so easily, but she’d probably love me for it.
That wouldn’t do. Rumor had it parting was such sweet sorrow, but I counted on it. Lucy clinging to me? No.
Propping my chin on my palm, I stared her down. “Quadruple.”
Lucy blinked quickly. “Excuse me, I don’t understand.”
“Quadruple whatever my grandfather agreed to pay you this year.”
Her shoulders drew up. I angered her earlier but now I seriously offended the crap out of her.
“I won’t be bribed by you, Mr. Killian, so please don’t bring it up again.”
“Don’t be sanctimonious, Miss Lucy.” I found myself getting fonder of saying her name. I loved the way it rolled off my tongue. Luu-See. “Everyone has a price. It’s just a matter of negotiation.”
“No. Not everyone.”
A devil’s smirk possessed me. “You say that so confidently! Who tried to bribe you?”
Lucy’s expression shuttered. Locked up tight. No affirmation or denial passed those luscious pink lips. Definitely a mystery there.
Hmm…what to do? Dig further and perhaps find a nugget of passing interest? That presupposed Lucy would last long enough for me to keep caring. At the rate she traveled?
I couldn’t really say.
“Very well. You can’t be bribed to exit my life. What’s it going to take for me to see the back of you?”
A lovely back at that. So lovely it should be criminal. Or immortalized.