Craving Sugar

by Elena M. Reyes

  “Do your worst, Beau. I’ll repay you tenfold the moment I get out of those binds.” Won’t deny that the picture she painted made me harder. I swelled to almost the point of pain, had to force myself inside with each pump of my hips as her walls clamped down. “But right now,” I grunted, picking up speed while her body seized, our combined fingers drawing tight circles over her clit. “I want you to cry out for me. Make sure everyone in this hotel knows it’s me taking you high—the one that makes you soar.”

  “Hendrix, I’m so close. Please…” A whisper. That shit wouldn’t do.

  No. I wanted her screaming at the top of her lungs. To lose all rational thought and control of her body.

  “Who the fuck do you belong to? Tell me, nymph.” Taking her leg from the banister, I placed it over my elbow and bent her lower. I pulled all the way out and smacked her ass cheek with my glistening cock, the thwack loud inside the quiet room. “Answer me or I’ll stop. I have no problem with decorating this sweet ass with my come and leaving you a horny mess for the rest of the night.”

  “Don’t you dare,” she threatened, turning to look at me from over her shoulder with a glare. My reply, I raised a brow and waited. Slapped her ass once more and then slid half way in; gave her short little jabs that pissed her off.

  Beau tried and failed to fuck herself back on my dick; she gave up and fell forward with her hands landing on the step in front of her.

  “Tell me what I need to hear.” Jesus, her walls were pulsing—every single clench made it hard for me to see straight. Her pussy was trying to milk the come from me.

  I slammed back in without conscious thought. Fucked her with short angry pumps of my hips until the girl in front of me cried out my name. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and still, I didn’t let up on my punishment.

  “You! Dammit, Parker—” Beau’s scream got caught in her throat; her eyes widened and knees shook from the force of my strokes.

  Bringing my hand back to her pussy, I rubbed her clit in tight circles. “Take it. Take everything I gift you.” That time when her body seized, she stopped breathing and her eyes rolled back. I had to grit my teeth and hold still while she rode out her release. Fuck, I was close, but didn’t want to end our night like that. No, when I came, I wanted to be face to face. “Breathe, baby. Fuck, sweet girl, I need you to take in a deep breath for me.”

  “Oh God…too much. Hendrix, too much.” Her wails were music to my fucking ears, but still not enough. So, when she moved off my dick, I flipped our positions.

  Sat down on a low step with her straddling me—pussy lined up with my cock. Tremors rocked her body, whimpers of pleasure turning into a scream of ecstasy the moment I forced her down onto my girth.

  “Look at me,” I demanded, hands at her waist, manipulating her hips. Green jewels met mine, blissed out and with a lazy smile. Fucking beautiful.

  Beau pressed her forehead against my own and breathed in my every exhale. There were no words exchanged, while I chased my own release. Our eyes stayed connected while I pumped my hips beneath her.

  “Come for me, Mr. Parker. Let me feel you,” she breathed out before kissing me slow and sweet. Two pecks, and a tiny bite as pleasure tore through me—a lightning strike that left me blind for a second or two. My come filled her pussy.

  Left my mark.

  It was intense. Everything I’d been too blind to see was now smacking me in the face. How could I ever think that I’d get through this unscathed?

  This woman in my arms was everything.

  I was fighting a losing battle.

  TWENTY-EIGHT

  “So, do we have a deal, Mr. Rossi?” We were back home in the Keys after a long week of busy schedules. Work was grueling, my plans to build a resort had been accepted by the city, while Beau finished signing up for next semester’s classes. Our paths had crossed only to say good morning and an even quicker goodnight.

  That’s why the second I wrapped up this phone conference, I was saying goodbye to work, and enjoying our long weekend alone. Four days of fun in the sun with my nymph.

  Mine. And she was, even if she didn’t realize it yet.

  The scent of spices and seafood wafted through the air vents, and my mouth watered. It took everything within me not to hang up and go cop a feel—then a taste of whatever she was creating.

  Beau was busy cooking for me today, and it was a remarkable sight. Her, in a short summer dress—feet bare and hips swaying to the island rhythms playing on the radio.

  Had to walk away before I fucked her. Not that she would complain, but my nymph wanted to surprise me, and I wasn’t about to be the dick that couldn’t let his girl breathe.

  Won’t deny that I’d been seeing her as such lately. Amber’s words had resonated with me. Her trusting eyes that night after the gala had broken some of my walls down. All I could think about was asking Beau to extend our contract.

  Those six months would never be enough for me. Hell, six years wouldn’t work either.

  But the question remained: would she want to? How do I go about asking her that we begin anew?

  Like any other couple.

  Just us. Me and her. Nothing between us.

  You still need to discuss your past with her. We both had to, but I wasn’t ready to face that monster just yet.

  “Your offer is fifteen grand below the market asking price, Parker. We both know that,” Rossi answered, bringing me back to the present. He was trying to force my hand into paying more than his lands were worth. The man was full of shit. That large plot near Clearwater had been abandoned for years with no other interested party looking to buy.

  Close to the beach, it had potential. Perfect place to build a family-friendly resort to inaugurate next spring. Plus, it would bring in a lot of new jobs to the area, which the state loved. Made it easier to justify the amount of permits I needed pushed through and fast, when it benefited the state.

  He was the sole thorn in my side, impending me from breaking ground. Fucker thought he could drain me.

  “Could be possible, but going from fifteen below to not a damn dime is quite a difference…don’t you think?” My cell phone chimed then with a reminder from my calendar. I looked, and wish I hadn’t.

  Eyes locked on the message, I couldn’t understand how I had forgotten.

  Anniversary of Ophelia’s Death, it read, and the world around me dissolved.

  “Let’s not be hasty, Hendrix. Maybe ten under would satisfy us both?”

  “Thirteen, and not a penny less.”

  Rossi sighed, his annoyance palpable. “Deal.”

  “Good.” Fuck, I needed to get off this call. Red fucking fury boiled beneath my skin, my mind a black haze. The painful memories of that night always rocked me, broke me in two. “I’ll have the office call you once the contract has been drawn up and we are ready for you to sign. Should be no later than Wednesday afternoon.”

  “Perfect, I’ll be in town.”

  “See you then. Have a great weekend.” Didn’t make a single move to place the cordless phone on the receiver. Muscles coiled tight, I tried to regulate my breathing.

  I’m an asshole. A piece of shit.

  Too busy chasing the ass of a woman I paid to fuck that I forgot the day she died. My wife. My best friend.

  I stood, the force sent my chair back and against a bookcase. The phone in my hand fell with a thud to the ground. All around me the walls closed, the pain in my chest intensifying with each minute that passed.

  Stumbling, I made it over to the small bar in the room and poured myself a drink. Not even looking to see what it was, I just tossed it back and served another.

  Three back to back while my mind replayed memories I fought day in and day out to suppress.

  It was my fault that she died. Had I not been such a dick to her when she—

  “Hey, grouch. Dinner’s ready.” Beau poked her head into my office, her smile fading at the sight of me with a bottle in hand. “You okay?”

  “Motherfuck
ing peachy, nymph. Let’s go eat.” Walking out, I waved my hand for her to lead the way. Had to bite the inside of my cheek until it bled to keep myself from telling her to shove that dinner. That I didn’t have an appetite, nor did I care if her feelings were hurt.

  The words were there, on the tip of my tongue, but they wouldn’t come out. So instead, I followed her into my dining room.

  It was set for two. Intimate.

  “Let me go grab our plates. I placed them in the oven to keep warm.” Beau walked off while I took a seat at the head and waited. I poured myself some wine and polished off the glass in two large gulps. Less than a minute later, she came back with our food in hand. “Hope you like it. It’s my first time attempting this.”

  “I’m sure it’s fine.” Even to my own ears, my voice was off. The pure rage that simmered beneath the surface was mixed with recriminations and self-hate. I was a willing participant in this charade, and yet, it felt as if I were watching from the sidelines.

  It wasn’t until she sat down and poured herself a drink that I looked down at what she served. My chest grew tight, and a barrage of emotions hit me all at once. As if a battering ram had been used, I was pounded on until my walls gave way.

  “So, I was thinking...” I tuned her out, not comprehending what I was seeing in front of me. How did she know? Where did she find this recipe?

  My eyes watched her talk, but I couldn't hear anything past the ringing inside my ears. Beads of sweat began to form on my forehead and the back of my neck. Fingers closed tightly around the fork in my hand a second before I let the cutlery drop and bang against my untouched plate.

  “Stop.” The familiar rush of anger brewing beneath my skin was dangerously close to tipping over.

  Beau speared another piece of shrimp from her plate and brought the fork to her lips. “Are you okay, Hendrix? You’re looking quite flushed.”

  “Where did you get this recipe from?” No one, not even Ophelia, had ever gotten my mother’s gumbo right. They always missed something. Didn't understand the Creole way of cooking.

  But it looked as if she nailed it, and that bothered me.

  My mother’s heritage tarnished by her touch.

  “Is it bad?” The confusion on her face would’ve made a lesser man feel like an ass, but instead, it incensed me further. She’d rifled through my attic—through the belongings of my deceased loved ones, and that wasn’t acceptable.

  Beau had no right to even breathe inside the same space. She’d forgotten her place.

  Who the fuck does she think she is?

  Nostrils flaring, I slammed a hand atop the dining room table. “Where!”

  “In a chest upstairs labeled kitchen,” she whispered, her smile gone. “Does that upset you?”

  “What were you doing in my attic? Who gave you permission to go through my things?” Fuck, I wanted to yell, throw shit, but I didn't. Instead, I glared at the woman before me and waited. Dared her to lie.

  Beau took in a deep breath, wrung her hands in her lap. “You told me it was okay the day after we had dinner with James and Marsha.” I remembered that night and the way I fucked her tight little pussy the morning after. Her ass, round and mouthwatering, had been splayed before me. Tempted me to take. Corrupt. I remembered how loud she moaned with each snap of my hips. How she shattered around my cock from the brutality of my thrust. “Said you might have some recipe books for me to try out in the attic, so I searched. It wasn't my intention to piss you off, Hendrix. I just wanted to surprise you with a nice meal.”

  She pushed her plate away, face red with embarrassment. Tears formed at the corner of her eyes, but only one fell. Beau swiped it away with her hand just as another one rolled down her cheek, and my chest grew tight.

  Hurting her hurt me.

  Made me feel shit that I could never acknowledge.

  Reminded me of the words Amber said while her son and my nymph danced at the banquet a few days ago. Was that just a few days ago?

  I didn't love her. Couldn’t. Doing so would be a blemish on the memory of my Ophelia.

  Just thinking about it renewed the simmering rage within me, and I snapped. Released all the pent-up emotions I’d been fighting like hell to keep under control. Misery, that was destined to destroy everything I touched, and she was no different.

  “For fuck’s sake, Beau,” I all but snarled, teeth bared in disgust. My heart was beating fast, palms sweating. The sole way to describe me at that moment was pissed—fuming at her audacity. For making me question my life and the choices I had made thus far. “I paid you to be my whore, not play Susie homemaker. You'll never be more than the woman I pay to use.”

  “Thank you for the reminder, Mr. Parker,” Beau’s voice was low but steady as she stood from her seat to my right. Her hands were clenched at her sides, face red and blotchy. “See, people make mistakes every day. Some they can fix and continue on with a lesson learned attitude, and others…”

  “Fuck is that supposed to mean?”

  “Consider our contract null and void.” Grabbing her plate, she turned and walked toward the entrance that connected the kitchen to dining room. She paused at the threshold and spoke without turning to face me. “I’m done trying with you, Hendrix. You’re not worth the heartache.”

  With that, she walked off and into the kitchen. I heard the clang of her plate hitting the sink and shattering.

  I followed her as she marched through the house and gathered a few things. “Where are you going? Answer me when I am talking to you.”

  She laughed, the sound fake and forced. Beau was already at the front door with her wristlet in hand when I realized her intention, but it was too late. Her green eyes were so full of pain that they brought me into a memory of another pair of eyes that looked at me the same way.

  It wasn’t until the door slammed closed that her parting words hit me full force.

  “To remind myself that I am no one’s property. This whore quits.”

  TWENTY-NINE

  Beau

  It hurt to breathe, every muscle in my body aching the further from him I got.

  “We’ll get through this,” I mumbled to myself, exiting the Uber’s car.

  My mind still replayed the words he’d said. The hate in his eyes. To him, I was scum at the bottom of his shoes, and it hurt.

  What I still didn’t understand was the why of it all? And what was worse, I still worried about him.

  I shouldn’t be. Fuck, I should be wishing him a thousand deaths, but I didn’t. Had even sent Jax a text the moment the car came to pick me up. Asked him to be there for his best friend. To check on him.

  We’d been fine all morning and into the early afternoon. I had to physically push him out of the kitchen to get some work done. Hendrix had been frisky—playful.

  Wanted to touch me every chance he got, and then that phone conference happened.

  What went into that room and the man who came out were two very different people.

  “About time you arrived, slut,” Ruby’s voice came from behind me, closer to me than what I was comfortable with. The hell is she doing here?

  “Don’t have time for your shit today,” I hissed out from between clenched teeth, my hand with the keys to my apartment shaking. Didn’t turn around to face her, instead, I picked up my pace and entered my building. Three flights of stairs up, and I was at my door. Tried to get in before she could say whatever she came to say, but I wasn’t quick enough.

  I had the key in the lock when she grabbed my arm and turned me around. “People like you make me sick.”

  “Then leave. See how easy that is…get the hell out of my face.” Without an ounce of care, I pushed her hand off me. Ruby stumbled at bit, but righted herself. Her eyes were blazing, a raging inferno of hate. “Talk—you got two minutes. I’m done with you and have nothing left to say.”

  How had I missed her dislike for me until now?

  “Love the fact you are still trying to sit pretty on that high horse of yours…funn
y, really.”

  “Goodbye.” Turning around, I opened my door. Got one foot in, before she spoke again.

  “Wonder what your family will think of their princess playing the part of a rich man’s toy? His plaything.” Her gloat—how easily she would destroy me without an ounce of remorse—hurt. “And before you ask, I was there that night. My boyfriend’s family was invited to attend, and we tagged along.”

  “Leave.” Tremors started to rock me, my nerves crashing. My body felt as though I’d been in the ring with a prized fighter and he’d beaten the snot out of me.

  Her gleeful cackle was loud, hurt my head. “So, imagine my surprise when I see you walk in on the arm of one Hendrix Parker. Everyone was shocked. From what Silvia, Max’s mom, explained, he’s been a monk since his wife died more than four years ago.”

  Wife. That one word destroyed my world. That niggling doubt was now confirmed.

  My tattered existence that was already barely hanging on now lay in ashes at Ruby’s feet.

  Hendrix had been married, and she had died. He loved another, and it was very likely that he still did. A woman that wasn’t paid and used, like he said. Someone who he saw as his equal and not a whore.

  “Ruby, you need to get the fuck out.” My voice sounded strange, hollow. Muscles coiled, I felt trapped. A cornered snake ready to attack anything it considered a threat. “Just go.”

  “You didn’t know? That’s too rich!”

  “Last warning,” I choked out. The knot in my throat was too large for me to contain. Had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep the tears at bay.

  “Not before I leave you with a parting gift, my dear Beau.” Ruby got in my face, her finger jabbing into my chest—nails digging in. “You make me sick, pretending you’re so perfect…unreproachable.” Taking in a deep breath, she let it out slowly as her smile grew. “It will be my greatest joy to see you brought down like the garbage you are.” She dug her finger in deeper, oblivious to the panic starting to rush through my system. How shallow my breaths had become. “In that pitiful head of yours, you forgot a very important fact: people talk. Gossip, and its known in our circles that men like women of loose morals. The kind that sell themselves to the highest bidder. Sugars are not that hard to pick out in that crowd, Miss Carter, and I am going to enjoy exposing you. Wonder what your dad will say—”