by Sam Crescent
EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING ®
www.evernightpublishing.com
Copyright© 2018 Sam Crescent
ISBN: 978-1-77339-566-1
Cover Artist: Jay Aheer
Editor: Karyn White
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
DADDY’S BOSS
Sam Crescent
Copyright © 2018
Chapter One
“There’s no way this is happening. You cannot sell a human. It’s wrong and illegal.”
Dawg Hampshire smiled as he watched Lori Kinsley argue her plight. The moment he’d made the suggestion to her father, he’d known she wouldn’t go down without a fight, but that was fine with him. He didn’t want a timid woman in his bed. No, the moment he saw Lori three years ago, on her twenty-fifth birthday, he’d wanted her. Of course, she’d not even looked twice at him. A man of his profession she steered well clear of, and he couldn’t blame her. He wasn’t a nice guy or a good guy. In fact, he even had the local law enforcement in his pocket, and he killed people on a daily basis. Those that didn’t pay up, he hurt.
Now, Lori’s father was a greedy man. Dawg had spotted it the moment he agreed to let the bastard loose on his payroll. For the most part, he’d done it for some amusement. Then he’d seen Lori. At first he thought she was just another woman in a long line of bitches he’d seen sniffing around the asshole. When he learned that she was Sean’s daughter, plans had started to form. She turned his offer of dinner down flat, not once but three times, and he’d seen the flash of fear in her eyes each time she did it.
Still, she’d kept her spine straight, and her stare firmly on his.
He’d admired that about her.
Of course, he loved a challenge, and with anyone willing to do anything for a price, he’d found out everything about her.
See, he didn’t just use the law to cover his back. He also liked to gather information.
Sitting in his home, Dawg stared over at the three men holding Sean down. The bastard already had a swollen eye and split lip, but that was fine.
Before her arrival, Sean had told him he’d do anything, and Dawg only wanted one thing from this man; his daughter.
“You see, Sean, you can’t barter everything when they’re not willing to pay.” Dawg stared down the length of her body, admiring her curves. A lot of fuller women always seemed to want to cover up, but not Lori. Her confidence only drew him closer to her. She wore clothes that enhanced her large tits, rounded ass, and fabulous hips.
Just staring at them alone, he wanted to get his hands on her and fuck her senseless. He knew from the information that he’d gathered that she was a sensual woman. She loved sex, but what she didn’t like was to be used.
“What the hell is going on?” Lori asked, looking from him to her father.
“Well, your father decided he was above my rules.”
“You mean you actually have rules?” she asked, shooting fire at him with her gaze.
“I have rules. It’s simple, but your father decided to steal from me.”
He watched her hands clench into fists, the anger and rage simmering beneath the surface. Dawg wondered, not for the first time, if she’d had to bail him out of situations before.
“Let me guess, he offered you anything.” She turned toward her father. “What is it now, Dad? My house? My car? Mom’s ring? What more can you take?”
He always noticed that she never swore. No matter how much anger she had inside her, she always stayed in control, never cursing.
“So, this has happened often?” Dawg asked, getting up from his chair and rounding the desk to lean against it.
She turned toward him and shook her head. “You know he steals.”
He quirked an eyebrow. “How would I know?”
“Because you’re not a man with your reputation without doing your homework. You knew the moment you took my father on that there would be a chance he’d steal from you.” She tilted her head to the side, watching him. “Why?”
Dawg shrugged. “I have to get my entertainment somehow.”
She closed her eyes, and he watched her lips move, seeing that she counted to ten. She rubbed at her eyes, looking really tired all of a sudden.
“What is it you need or want?” she asked.
“I told you. It’s you I want.”
“You’ve got to be joking. I’m not up for sale. I’m not a thing to be bartered. I’m a person.”
“You don’t want to pay his debt, that’s fine by me.” He nodded toward his men in front of her father.
Dawg watched as the man slammed his fists against Sean’s face three times. Lori gasped, covering her mouth, looking terrified. He hated to see that look on her face, but he wasn’t going to back down until he got what he wanted.
Three years he’d been patient, waiting for this moment to happen. He was a man known for getting what he wanted, and nothing was going to change that.
With another nod, he pointed to the second man, who drew his gun and pointed it at Sean’s head.
He would kill Sean. It wouldn’t be a problem. He doubted it would be a whole lot harder to win Lori over, but that was the risk he was willing to take. No one stole from him, but taking Lori, everyone would know he allowed it to happen just so he could have something. His men would make sure no one doubted his power, and that he was the one in control the entire time.
“No. No. Stop. Please. Fine. I’ll do it.” She turned toward him. Her voice was loud but not screeching.
Tears filled her eyes but didn’t fall down her cheeks. Her hands were clenched so hard that he saw her knuckles were white.
She looked like a woman on edge, and he didn’t like that.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. I’m yours. Whatever. Just don’t kill him.”
“If he’s caused you so much pain before, why not kill him? It would be easier.”
“I’m not a monster. I can’t have his blood on my hands.”
The way she said it he knew something happened. That she’d had blood on her hands at one time. The only question was whose?
****
“Sign this,” Dawg said.
Lori felt sick to her stomach, but she somehow made it over to him and stared down at the couple sheets of paper. “What is this?”
“An agreement that you won’t run. That you’re mine. Everything that you now own is mine, and that you’re willing in all of this.”
The men behind her started to move, and she watched her father being dragged out. She hated that man more than anything else in the world. He was the reason her mother was killed, and even as she held her in those last moments, her mother had begged for her to take care of him.
This was … this was too far, even for him.
Glancing through the document, she saw it was nothing short of a business contract, and seeing no other alternative, she signed her name and stepped back. She wore a pair of jeans with a top that had some sparkle to it. She’d been going out dancing tonight, to have some fun, when Dawg’s men arrived, telling her she had no choice, that if she wanted her father to live, she had to follow them.
“You look beautiful.”
Staring at Dawg, she couldn’t deny the man was handsome. He was … very handsome. Sexy even.
Deadly and sexy. It was one heady combination, but she didn’t want any i
nvolvement with what he was in. Drugs, whores, fighting, gambling; everything that could possibly be a sin or be illegal, he had it.
She also knew he owned the law.
Three months ago, a cop had pulled her over and was about to give her a ticket. When one of Dawg’s guys turned up, the officer let her go with a warning. She hadn’t been able to afford a ticket at the time, and she knew that even as she tried to stay off his radar, he’d already seen her.
“Thank you,” she said.
Her mother had always told her to keep calm, to not cuss. That a lady was more respected than anyone from the gutter.
She took a deep breath. She hated her mother’s teachings at times as it always made her weak, or at least made her feel weak.
“What’s going to happen now? We go to bed? You want to have sex? What?”
Dawg smiled. “We go out dancing.”
She was surprised. “You want to go dancing?”
“Nope. I don’t want to go dancing. It’s never on my list of things to do. But it’s a Friday night. You’ve had a long week, and the last thing I’d ever want to do is not give my woman what she wants.”
“I’m not your woman.”
“You are my woman, Lori. You need to get used to it,” he said.
Biting her lip, she sighed. There was no point in arguing with him.
“Fine. Let’s go dancing.”
He stepped forward, and she refused to take a step back. Even though every instinct inside her was telling her to run, she stood her ground, refusing to back down. “I like that you’re not scared of me.”
“I never said I wasn’t.”
He smiled. “I’ll show you that you have nothing to fear from me.”
“I just watched you order someone to put a gun to my father’s head.” She shook her head.
“It wasn’t at your head, and one day you will believe me when I say to you that I will never hurt you. I won’t, Lori. You’re safe.”
His hand cupped her cheek, his thumb resting on her chin, tilting her head back.
She stared into his eyes, feeling the answering heat within her own, and she hated it. There was an attraction between the two of them and she couldn’t deny it, like a moth to a flame.
But he’d hurt her, or someone close to him would.
Men in his line of work never kept a woman for long.
When his lips touched hers, she felt warmth spread through her. Reaching out, she caught his arms, shocked by the sudden pull of his body.
One of his arms wrapped around her waist, holding her close. She felt the hard ridge of his cock against her stomach.
Even through their clothing, she could tell he was large.
His tongue glided across her lips and she gasped, letting him inside.
He took full advantage, plunging in, and she tasted him. He tasted of coffee and chocolate, and she loved that combination. Gripping the lapels of his jacket, she pressed her body against his.
There was no denying that she loved sex, and hadn’t been sitting around waiting for Mr. Right. She knew no such man existed, especially not in this day and age. No man knew how to be a gentleman or to stay faithful either.
Her own father hadn’t with her mother, a woman Lori considered to be one of the most beautiful women inside and out.
Pushing those thoughts aside, she pulled away, breaking from the kiss. “I want to go dancing.”
He held her hand as they made their way out of his large house. She hated that she liked his home. It wasn’t a pretentious bachelor pad, but filled with warmth and love. At least she could imagine children running down the halls, laughter, and once again, her imagination was running wild.
She hated it when she allowed herself to do that.
Lori didn’t know what she expected as they neared a car. Dawg opened the door and she slid inside. There was a man in the driver’s seat, and Dawg rounded the vehicle and slid in next to her.
He gave the name of a club she often visited. For a long time they wouldn’t let her in because she didn’t fit the look of the club. Then one day she’d been standing in the queue and the same guy had said she was free to go right on in. She even had a pass to get inside.
Glancing over at Dawg, she had so many questions.
Would he even answer them honestly?
Chapter Two
Dawg took a seat in the exclusive VIP area, ordering them both a drink as he did so. There were no queues or delays for him.
“You own this place, don’t you?” Lori asked.
He smiled. “Yes.”
“How long have you been watching me?” she asked.
“From the start.” He wasn’t even embarrassed about it. She averted her gaze though, and he knew she wasn’t happy about it.
“I don’t get it. You can have any woman you want, and yet why me?”
“Why not you?”
She released a breath. “I don’t like who you are or what you represent.”
“I’m not going to ever ask you to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.”
“But I don’t like what you do.”
He stared at her, seeing past the lies. Yes, maybe a small part of her was uncomfortable with it, but something else kept her at bay.
For now, he didn’t push. This was their first night together, and he didn’t want to ruin it. He’d have liked to take her out to dinner, but she’d been too stubborn to accept him.
Taking a sip of his brandy, he watched as she simply held her drink and stared down at the dance floor. She really was a beautiful woman, and sweet as well.
She tried to hide it underneath all that fire and anger, but he saw it. The documents he’d acquired about her had also told him what he already knew. During the weekends she helped at shelters to feed the homeless, and also volunteered as often as she could at several orphanages in town while also working a full-time job as a receptionist in a lawyer’s office. She never stopped, always worked, and always kept to herself.
There had been men in the past. Boyfriends that hadn’t really lasted longer than a couple of months. She’d not been pining for him.
He watched as she ran her fingers through her hair, and he couldn’t take it anymore. Reaching out, he asked for her hand, which she took.
“We’re here to dance.”
Leading the way onto the dance floor, he was aware of his men watching him, making sure nothing untoward would happen. He was a man that anything could happen to. Never had he allowed himself the luxury of relaxing and joining in the fun. His entertainment always came much later.
Tonight, he didn’t see himself getting what he wanted, but that was fine. He could have what he wanted if he was to use the contract, but he didn’t want to actually use it. What he wanted was for Lori to crave him like he did her. He could wait. The first part in his plan had been acquiring Lori. The next part was wooing her, and that alone would be hard. She had walls around her, keeping him out, and he was determined to break them down.
In the middle of the dance floor, he spun her around so that her back was to his front. With his hands on her hips, he began to move, feeling her ass rub against his dick.
“I didn’t know you liked to dance.”
“I happen to enjoy it.”
“But the risk it poses doesn’t allow you to do it,” she said, turning in his arms and wrapping one of hers around the back of his neck.
“No, it doesn’t.” He wondered how she knew that.
“You’ve got six guys standing near the dance floor. Your lifestyle is so dangerous that you can’t even enjoy the pleasure of a simple dance.”
She made to move away, but he caught her, holding onto her ass tightly. “Actually, I can enjoy the pleasure of a dance, baby, but I happen to like a different kind. The kind where we’re both naked and my dick is balls deep inside you.”
He saw her eyes dilate, and he’d surprised her.
She was pissed at him for her situation, and that was fine.
“You made sure I had a free
pass to get inside this club,” she said.
When he heard the man at the door had turned her away, claiming she was too fat, he’d shot the bastard through the thigh and told him the next time would be through his skull if he said such vile shit to his woman. No one spoke to his woman like that.
To some men Lori was fat.
Not to him.
He loved her curves, loved her confidence in displaying them, and that she didn’t try to hide.
To him, she was the sexiest woman he’d ever seen. When she finally got into his bed, he was going to love every single inch of her.
“You like to dance. I have the best club, and I don’t like the thought of anyone else seeing you work your magic.”
She pulled back a little. “You watch me?”
“Every chance I get.”
He was at the club most Fridays just to have the pleasure of watching her. Most of the time she came alone, and didn’t have a problem standing in the middle of the floor, swinging her hips, losing herself to the beat of the music. He often wondered what she was trying to run away from.
There was a darkness in her eyes, a vulnerability that he couldn’t find a reason as to why it was there. No records showed it, and no one had anything but nice things to say about her. Something was wrong though. He was sure of it.
Tilting her back so that her hair brushed the floor, he watched her giggle and smiled along with her.
That’s what he wanted. He didn’t want her submission to him or her to be afraid. From the first moment they met she’d never backed down, and he didn’t want her to. A broken woman was useless to him.
No, when it came to Lori, he wanted the chance to have everything with her. She’d be able to handle him, take on this life, and to give him children. Underneath all the badass, asshole ways, he wanted a family, and Lori was going to be the woman that would give it to him.
****
The night was amazing. Lori couldn’t deny it, nor could she deny the fun she had being in his arms. When he finally allowed himself to relax, he’d been more than just a crime lord, or whatever Dawg called himself.