I crawled over to him and flew into his arms. I started to sob, my hot tears staining his bare shoulder. He immediately wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close. “Penny, what’s wrong?” he asked, his voice laced with worry.
“Kimber,” I blubbered, not even able to say her whole name.
“What? What did you say?” he asked as he stroked my back, settling himself on the floor and pulling me between his legs.
I did my best to wipe my tears with my hand. My mind was playing tricks on me, and it caused me so much sadness. Thinking I heard my best friend’s voice made me miss her so much. All I knew was what Tag had told me when he first brought me to the cabin—that she was safe. What if he’d lied? What if she really was here? My hopes soared as I jerked my head back to look at him.
“Where is my friend Kimberly? The one I was going to meet the night I was kidnapped?”
His eyes showed utter confusion, then cleared. “Why is this coming up again? All I know was what I was told, that she wasn’t a part of this, that she’s safe.”
“So she’s not here on the yacht?” My hope started to fade.
He squinted his eyes, like he was trying to figure me out. “No, Penny. Where did this come from?”
Slumping against his chest, I sighed. “I thought I heard her voice out there, in all the commotion. It freaked me out, then made me happy thinking maybe she actually was here.”
His hand continued to lightly stroke up and down my back. “You thought you heard her out there?” I couldn’t see his face, but something in his voice sounded off.
I nodded. “Yes, but it was just my imagination. I really miss her. I miss everyone.”
He didn’t respond right away, just rubbed my back. I was too spent from sobbing to question it. My eyes started getting heavy, exhausted from crying and the stress of thinking she was here.
When my head started to bob from dozing, he gently stood, carrying me in his arms. He settled me on the bed, then laid down next to me, spooning me.
“Are you okay, querida?”
“No, but I will be. Just don’t leave, please.”
He held me tighter, pressing a kiss to my temple. “I’m not going anywhere, sweet girl. I promise.”
I woke up a little while later, the afternoon sun beating down on me. Tag was still next to me, sound asleep himself. I just lay there, thinking about what had happened earlier.
Your mind was playing tricks on you, I told myself. But if that was the case, why did it sound so real?
Turning over to look at the beautiful man next to me, I couldn’t help but second guess what he’d told me. Had he lied when he told me she wasn’t here, that she was safe? If he had, could I really blame him? He’d always been clear that he wouldn’t betray the cartel, that he wouldn’t tell me what was going on.
But he also had feelings for me; he’d said so himself. Didn’t that change things a bit? Having no idea, I let out a sigh and started twisting some of my hair around my finger, deep in thought.
Hazel eyes popped open, and he smiled when he saw me facing him. Pulling me closer to him, he ducked his head and kissed me. “How are you doing?” he asked.
Deciding not to tell him I still wondered if he had lied, I replied. “I’m okay.”
He turned over on his back, taking me with him so I was resting on top of him. “You’re lying, querida. I know you better than you think.”
Why couldn’t he just leave it alone? “Really, I’m fine. Still a little shaken up, but okay.”
His finger traced down my cheek, sending shivers through me. “Querida, she’s not here, I promise. It wasn’t her voice you heard, sweet girl.”
“Then whose voice was it?”
He lowered his eyes for a second, then looked back at me. “I don’t know.”
That made me sit up and move to sit next to him on the bed. “What do you mean you don’t know? There was a woman out there, right?”
He sat up then too, resting his back against the headboard. Rubbing the back of his neck with hand, he nodded. “Yeah, there was a lady out there.”
I waited for him to continue, and when he didn’t, I got flustered. “And? Who was it?”
“I told you I don’t know, querida. I don’t know who she is.”
He ran his hands down his face. He was clearly frustrated, with me or not knowing who she was, I didn’t know. Shrugging my shoulders, I sighed again.
“Well, what was the commotion about anyway?”
He gave me a look of regret, which told me he couldn’t tell me. “It’s nothing you need to worry about, Penny.”
I couldn’t help the anger that surged inside of me. Being taken against my will, locked up on some boat, and not really being told why was getting to me more and more. Tag had distracted me quite well the past few days, but the fact I was still a prisoner hadn’t escaped me.
I flinched when he cupped his hand behind my neck, which made him instantly remove it, the regret in his eyes deepening.
“Penny,” he whispered. “Don’t shut me out please. I’ve never lied to you; I’ve always told you that part of my life is off limits. I’m sorry, but that’s not going to change. You are better off not knowing anything, I swear.”
I scooted off the bed and stood, going to the small window in the cabin. “Yeah, I know,” I replied. “But it doesn’t make it any easier, Tag. I don’t need to remind you that I was brought here against my will, still having no real idea why. Can’t you possibly understand how infuriating that is?”
I felt him come up behind me, but I stayed still. He placed each of his hands against the wall beside me, his hot breath on my neck as his lips kissed the tender spot behind my ear. I shivered at the jolt of pleasure it brought me, but did my best to ignore it.
“You are so stubborn,” he whispered against my neck. “And I do understand how infuriating it is, believe me. When Roman first told me of this assignment, I felt right away he’d made a huge mistake taking you, and I still do. But again, the less you know, querida, the better. I didn’t expect to develop any feelings for you, but now that I have, I’ll be damned if I allow anything more to happen to you. I can’t lose you.”
I turned around then, and he raised his head to look at me. The absolute truth of his words was in his eyes, and it melted my angry heart. I touched his cheek with the tips of my fingers, stroking his unshaven jaw back and forth. I loved the feel of his rough whiskers against my sensitive skin.
“I can’t lose you either,” I responded. “Do you know how scared I am of just that? What would I do on here without you? You’re the only one I trust, Tag. I wouldn’t survive if something happened to you.”
His eyes softened at my words, and he grasped my wrist near his face with his hand, bringing it to his lips. “Is that the only reason, querida?” he asked, a slight smile on his face.
Dropping my gaze to his lips pressing kisses to my hand, I softly replied, “No.”
“What else?” he asked quietly, moving his lips toward my wrist.
“I can’t lose you,” I started, uttering a slight moan when I felt his tongue stroke the inside of my wrist. “I can’t lose you because—“ I was about to tell him because I loved him, but something stopped me. That would put me in an extremely vulnerable spot, something I wasn’t willing to do yet.
His eyes were looking at me as he continued to kiss up my arm. “Because?”
Dammit, he was so captivating, so sexy. “Because,” I started again. “Because I have feelings for you.” There; that was as good as it was going to get.
His lips were reaching my shoulder as his hands gripped them. “You do?”
I rolled my eyes. He knew that I did. “Yes, Tag.”
His hand lowered the strap of my tank top so his lips could kiss the top of my shoulder. “How strong are they?”
I moaned again when his tongue drew a line from my shoulder to my collarbone, kissing the spot between. “Pretty strong.”
He was now trailing kisses up my neck to my ja
w. “Pretty strong, huh?”
I leaned my head back to give him better access. “Yep.” I could barely think when he did this to me.
He raised his head, and I groaned at the loss of his lips on my skin. “I have pretty strong feelings for you too, querida,” he said just before his lips crushed mine.
My arms wrapped around his neck tightly, pulling him to me. Our heads moved from side to side, not being able to get enough of each other. We’d been together more times than I could count the past few days, each time feeling like the first. We clearly were not tiring of each other.
He tore his mouth from mine, taking deep breaths and pressing his forehead against mine. “Shit, Penny,” he breathed out. “What the hell have you done to me?”
I stood against him, trying to catch my own breath. Not looking up, I just kept my head resting against his chest. “Probably the same thing you’ve done to me,” I answered.
Chapter 19
“What the hell were you thinking?”
Jamille was standing in front of me in my office. I was furious she’d shown her face to my men. She was clearly playing a game with me, and it was one she wouldn’t win. What a damn fool.
“Why are you so upset?” she asked, not understanding, or caring about, the severity of the situation she’d put me in.
I slammed my fist on my desk, making her jump. “Really, did you just ask me that? Do you have no sense whatsoever?”
She cast her eyes downward, then looked back up at me, her lips in a pout. “Don’t be mad at me, Roman,” she said softly. “You know I had to be there to make sure everything went off without a hitch.”
I stood from my chair and ran a hand through my hair. She still didn’t realize she was disposable to me, that I didn’t need her anymore. I turned to face her.
“You were there because I’ve placed you there for the time being, but you did not have to show your face, Jamille. That was your pride, your curiosity. You have put me in a bad situation now.”
The slightest bit of fear crossed her eyes, then disappeared. Her lip turned into a snarl. “I’m getting quite tired of the way you treat me, señor,” she hissed. The anger inside of me surged to a boiling point, but I stayed quiet to hear what else she had to say.
“I’ve been with you for a long time, betrayed everyone who matters to me, for you,” she practically spat. “I would think that you’d recognize my devotion, my loyalty to you, but instead you continue to treat me like the scum on your shoe.” She lifted her chin as she finished, doing her best to show me her strength and determination. She definitely did, and my cock twitched in my pants at the fire blazing in her blue-green eyes.
I walked straight toward her and roughly cupped her cheek. She winced but did not turn her gaze away from mine. “You’re a little hellcat, you know that, Jamille?” I growled just as my mouth smashed hers in a very bruising kiss.
Her tongue wasted no time in joining mine in a battle of more than just our turned-on bodies. This was how it had always been with Jamille. I hated her, but I craved her. She wasn’t the ultimate prize I’d had my eye on for thirteen years, but she helped pass the time until it was right for me to claim that prize.
I was getting close.
Her hand grabbed hold of my cock in a tight grip, making me bite down hard on her lower lip, drawing blood. She stroked me up and down hard and fast, just the way I liked it. I broke our kiss and pressed my mouth to her ear, making sure she’d hear what I was about to say.
“Little girls need to be careful who they play with,” I whispered, biting down on her lobe. “You’ve been with me a long time, Jamille—you best be careful how you end up making your next move. My patience with you has run thin.”
I didn’t give her any time to respond before I took hold of her blouse and tore it off, sending the buttons flying across the room, making little pings as they landed on the floor. Her chest was heaving up and down in her excited breaths, her eyes hooded and blazing with passion for me.
It had always been for me.
Too bad I didn’t return her feelings. She knew I never would. She knew who I truly wanted in that way, and it would never be her.
I used her for the releases my body craved. I’ve used her to help me win what I’ve wanted for thirteen years. I used her in every single way possible.
I grabbed hold of each of her ample breasts and pulled them out of the cups of her bra, taking one large nipple into my mouth. I sucked on it hard, pleased with the moans of pleasure I always brought out in her. Her hands gruffly held onto my head, pulling me closer to her heavy bosom.
“Harder, señor,” she breathed out. “Bite it.”
I pushed her so she fell against my desk and gave in to her request, biting down on her nipple and making her scream.
“YES!”
As I trailed my mouth down her stomach, I did what I always had done. I put Jamille out of my mind and replaced her with the one I truly wanted. The one I wished was here with me, sucking on her nipples, making her cry out in ecstasy.
Thinking of doing those things to my prize instantly got me as hard as a rock, and I needed release right then. Still pretending Jamille was her, I shoved her skirt up to her waist, tore her panties from her, and rammed my cock into her, making her scream.
Soon it will really be you, I told my true love in my mind as I pushed roughly in and out of Jamille. Soon you and I will be together—forever.
Soon.
Chapter 20
“Dude, ever since that job the other night, Roman has been off.”
I was sitting out on deck with Theo, both of us drinking a beer as the yacht sailed across the sea. A few hours ago, Roman had announced we were moving on again, but didn’t say where. He’d been very closed mouthed ever since that night.
“I know. Something strange is going on,” I replied, taking a pull from my beer bottle.
The ocean was more rough than usual, the white tops of the waves looking very angry. Penny was asleep, having taken an anti-nausea pill from the roiling waves. I hated it when my girl didn’t feel well.
“What’s going on with you and Penny?” Theo suddenly asked.
I choked on the sip of beer I’d just taken. “What do you mean?”
Theo chuckled, his knowing eyes looking right at me. “Dude, I’m not stupid. I see how you guys look at each other. Have you done her yet?”
Anger burned inside of me at that. I slammed my bottle on the table between us. “Don’t talk about her like that, man.”
Theo chuckled harder, putting his hands up in a surrender stance. “Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he said with a laugh. “I guess that answers my question. You’ve got it bad.”
I took a breath, telling myself to calm down. I had to be careful, and being so whipped over her was causing me to lower my guard. Doing my best to show nonchalance, I took another sip of my beer and laughed with him.
“Sorry, man.” I smiled. “I guess you can’t blame me for being a little protective of her. I mean, we have been together day and night for close to three months now.”
“Yeah, and she is hot as shit too.”
The anger came back, but I squashed it back down. “And she’s fragile,” I told him. “Being kidnapped, then almost raped by that son of a bitch.” I didn’t finish my sentence, just the thought of Rico making me clench my fist.
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