“Still topping from the bottom, Sage?” Mike asked as he picked up a few bags next to his feet.
“Always.” She smiled cheekily at him before glaring at Laz again.
“Fine,” Lazario conceded and the men made their way into the house as well.
Sophie followed the woman in a sort of daze, not really sure what was going on and apparently, neither did Riley as she looked up at the woman in front of them in a sort of awestruck gaze.
Sage noticed them gaping and giggled again.
“Close those mouths, sweeties. I’ll teach you all the ways to manipulate the men in your lives.”
“You’re adding to your punishment, baby,” Caleb’s voice called from the bottom of the stairs and she winked at him.
“I’ll hold you to it, handsome.”
Sophie looked at Riley again. Who the hell were these people?
* * *
Sophie could only stare at the woman in front of her in wonder.
“Okay, so you’re telling me, as a child you’d been bumped from abusive one foster home to the next, only to end up in the care of a psychopath who nearly killed you, and you and Milané still ended up getting adopted by her husband’s late sister?”
Sage nodded as she lit herself a cigarette.
“I’ll spare you all the gruesome details, but yeah, that’s basically what happened. Then I fell in love with Caleb without knowing I loved him. Me and Mills ran away after school, returned to New York a few years later, and me and Beau tried to be a couple, but I was too fucked up in my mind to make any kind of relationship work.”
“Except for with Caleb?” Riley asked her as she took a sip of the gin and tonic Sage had poured them.
“Oh, no, honey. I managed to fuck that up too, but Caleb is a very stubborn man. We eventually sorted our shit out.”
“And what happened with Beau?” Sophie asked eagerly.
“Oh, he and Caleb decided to look past their differences when Greg escaped and captured me.”
“That’s the psycho, right?” Riley asked softly and saw Sage shudder lightly.
“Yeah. He almost killed Beau, but I got him back good and then Caleb and Daniel’s men found me before I could actually kill the fucker.”
“He did not almost kill me, love.” The girls glanced up at Beau, who stood smiling next to a petite girl who had crazy curly hair surrounding her face.
Sage rolled her eyes. “You got shot.” Beau rubbed a spot below his collarbone as though it still pained him.
“It wasn’t that bad,” he mumbled before pushing Milané toward the girls.
“You girls carry on. I’m going upstairs to get caught up with the others.”
Sophie bit her lip nervously, wondering what the men were discussing.
“Sophie, Riley. This is my sister Mills.”
Pleasantries were exchanged before Milané made her way over to the drink table and poured herself a whiskey. She walked over to Sage and held up her glass.
“Taking what we can,” she said and Sage clinked her glass to hers. “Never giving back.”
The girls knocked their drinks back like they were men before pouring themselves another glass.
“That bad, huh?” Sage asked with a twinkle in her eyes.
“He’s driving me fucking insane!” Mills exclaimed before sending Sophie and Riley an apologetic look. “Guy problems.”
They both nodded in understanding.
“What do you think they’re doing?” Sophie asked as silence descended on the group.
“No. No. No. Nope. No way!” Sage exclaimed as she got up. “We are strong, independent women and we are not victims.”
“Fuck, yeah!” Mills stood up as well and looked at Riley and Sophie.
“We love our men, we love our lives, but we are sisters and we’ve got each other’s backs.”
Sophie felt a weird sense of strength flowing through her. Despite the two women’s obvious rebellious natures, she could tell they’d had their fair share of hell on earth, but they’d survived, and they were still together. She grabbed Riley’s hand and pulled her up as well.
“Yes. What do we do now?”
“Now...” Mills gave her sister a wicked look. “We drink!”
Not what Sophie was going for... but to hell with it. She has been under so much stress these past few weeks, she deserved to let go and have fun. Sage had assured her that the mansion was on lockdown and even this room was actually the panic room with a bar. One press of a button and no one was getting in or out without the security codes. It was just a few drinks. What’s the worst that could happen?
Chapter Thirteen
“What’s the news from Ripley?” Sam asked Daniel as the men all gathered in Caleb’s ostentatious study.
“Phillip and Marco are still in custody. A legal representative has shown up and demanded to spring them from jail, but the judge hasn’t allowed bail yet. The other two were found dead in their cells.”
“Dead?” Mike asked as he glanced through all the documents Daniel had brought with him.
“Yeah. Most of Connor’s men who get arrested end up taking cyanide pills. The same with these two.”
“What about the other two? Phillip and Marco? Why are they still alive?” Luke asked.
“They are high up in the hierarchy of the business. They won’t talk and Connor knows it. We have enough to keep them. Breaking and entering, aggravated assault, attempted murder and kidnapping. They won’t get out easily.” Sam nodded.
“Will Sophie’s journal be enough to get a warrant?”
Daniel sighed wearily. “We can only hope. What counts in our favor is that they don’t have any officials in their back pockets.”
“That you know of,” Caleb answered from his corner in the room. He and Lazario weren’t really involved in the discussion. They were simply there to stay in the loop to ensure that Sam and his entourage didn’t bring danger to their doorstep.
“I can make a few calls, just to be sure,” Lazario said before Mike nodded at him.
“That’s a good idea. The more we know the better prepared we are.”
“I’ll open an official file tomorrow at the station to get the application for the warrant. Sam, Sophie will have to go in and give a statement.” Daniel looked at his friend with worry written clear as day across his face.
“I know. I’ll talk to her. She wants to start living her life... with me. The only way to do that is to get Connor out of the way. I think we all know he won’t be signing any divorce papers.”
“Not likely,” Beau snorted from his corner.
Sam cast him a furious glare. “Did anyone ask your opinion?” Beau raised his hand innocently.
“Why is he even here?” Sam asked Daniel as he kept his glare on Beau. He saw the way Sophie and Riley appreciated the tattooed man’s rugged good looks.
“He’s our private pilot and Sage’s personal bodyguard,” Caleb answered with a sigh. Sam raised his eyebrows at that.
“She seemed awfully fond of her bodyguard,” Luke muttered but the other men heard it and the temperature in the room dropped drastically. Mike stepped around the counter as Beau and Caleb stood up simultaneously. Sam laid a hand on Luke’s shoulder.
“Don’t talk about her like you know anything about her,” Beau answered through gritted teeth. Luke looked between them all and shrugged.
“I wasn’t judging anyone. I’m probably the biggest freak and man-whore in the room. It was just an observation.” Caleb gave Beau a look and the other man simply nodded before leaving the room.
“It’s a long story, but he loves Sage and she is very fond of him, like you said. Don’t worry about our personal affairs. Judging by the looks you were throwing at the little spitfire, I’d say you have enough of your own troubles.”
Sam barked a laugh at that and looked from Luke to Caleb with mirth shining brightly in his eyes.
“Told you, Luke.” Daniel slapped his friend on the shoulder.
“The city sli
cker called it. Mike, you owe me fifty bucks.”
Mike laughed as he put away all the documents.
“It’s not a done deal yet.” Luke glared at the other men.
“What exactly is this bet?”
Caleb walked over to the drinks table and started pouring everyone a whiskey.
“As confusing as it may sound—our women’s almost boyfriends are now their bodyguards. Beau and Dave love the girls and are loyal beyond belief, but there is no saying what will happen once your little spitfire meets Dave. The bet was to see if I could tell which woman goes with which man before being introduced. However, it has now changed to whether you are going to pull your finger out of your ass and claim your woman before someone else does.” He took a leisurely sip of his drink. “Dave should be down in the basement already.”
Luke rushed out of the room, ignoring all the other men’s laughter and comments.
Sam took the drink that Caleb offered him. “I haven’t had the chance to thank you yet for all the effort you’ve put in for us.”
Daniel took a drink as well. “Trust me, if Caleb could keep Sage away from any kind of danger he would; too bad she has him wrapped around her little pinkie.”
Mike laughed. “Too right. Pussy dom.”
Caleb growled. “My woman knows where her place is where our personal life is concerned.”
Mike nodded in agreement. “That’s true, but didn’t she go base jumping last week without talking to you?” Sam looked at Caleb in disbelief. If Sophie tried anything like that...
“Don’t worry, she still can’t sit down without wincing.”
The men all grinned at each other before clinking their glasses.
“So, how about we go see what ridiculously stupid thing my wife convinced your women to do.”
Sam placed his glass down as he looked at the other man. “Sounds like she’s a bad influence.”
Caleb smiled. “She’s harmless, most of the time... but she can be fucking crazy when she wants to be.”
* * *
Sophie was standing on a table, singing at the top of her lungs as Riley cheered her on. Sage, Milané, Beau, and Dave—another incredibly sexy tattooed stranger—were playing guitars. Needless to say, she was way past tipsy.
“Woo-hoo! Yeah, Soph! Take it off!” Riley shouted before giggling.
If Sophie thought she was past tipsy, then Riley was completely off the wagon.
Sophie laughed at her before shaking her head. Dave, on the other hand, was all for entertaining their one-woman crowd. He put his guitar down before walking over to Riley and pulled his shirt over his head. And then he started giving her a lap dance. Sophie stopped singing as her mouth fell open in shock. These people really were insane.
Milané cheered him on and Beau even threw a few dollars his way.
Sage came over to Sophie. “He means no harm. We are all just from the wild side of the tracks, you know.”
Sophie giggled. “I’ve noticed.”
“We’re not always like this; well, mostly we are, but it’s all just for shits and giggles.”
Sophie liked Sage. She was wild, blunt, and straightforward. Not at all like the other high-society wives Sophie used to know in the city.
“Oh, shit,” Sage mumbled and Sophie followed her gaze to the door where Luke had just appeared. He took in the scene in front of him before walking over calmly. He tapped Dave on the shoulder and just as Dave turned around, he punched him straight on the jaw. Dave dropped like a sack of potatoes. Riley jumped up and glared at Luke, enraged.
“What the hell, Luke!” Luke merely bent down and threw Riley over his shoulder before stalking out of the room with Riley slapping his back and yelling profanities.
“Phew!” Milané waved a hand in front of her face. “That was hot.” Sage laughed before getting some ice in a cloth and walking over to Dave who was still unconscious on the floor.
They all acted like it was nothing out of the ordinary to have a guy punch Dave. Mills took the makeshift ice pack and pressed it to Dave’s face, rubbing his hair back from his forehead and murmuring soft words to him.
“What have you done this time, baby?” Sage looked up at Caleb, who was now standing in the doorway with Sam right next to him.
“Oh, no. This time I’m innocent.” She gave him an innocent look and placed her hands behind her back.
“So then why isn’t he wearing a shirt?” Caleb asked as he crossed his arms in front of his chest and gave Sage an intimidating stare.
“He decided to entertain us.” She still looked like butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth.
“Upstairs. Now.”
Sophie saw Sage shiver slightly at the domineering tone of his voice before smiling slightly. She bowed her head and winked at Sophie. Sophie didn’t know what that was supposed to mean, but she sure found out when Sage opened her mouth again.
“I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as Sophie did, sir.” Sophie’s mouth fell open and she felt a blush creep up her cheeks as Sam focused all his attention now on her.
“Really?” he asked softly and Sage shrugged before walking toward Caleb, who only shook his head at her before following her out of the room. Sam held out his hand toward her and she walked over and took it without hesitation, despite the bountiful amount of butterflies in her stomach at the look he was giving her. He was quiet all the way to their designated bedroom and Sophie’s nerves were just about to snap at how tightly wound she was.
The door clicked shut behind her and she gulped at the sound of the lock clicking into place.
His arms wrapped around her from behind. “You haven’t been with Sage for a whole day and you’re already getting into trouble?”
“I’m not...”
“Shh. I’ve had a very enlightening conversation with Caleb regarding his wife. Did you know that she got a spanking last week that still makes it uncomfortable for her to sit?” His voice was soft and hot in her ear and she shivered. She did notice the occasional grimace from Sage when she sat down, followed by a soft smile afterwards.
“You talked about us? With each other?” she asked, outraged, wondering what Samuel had told the other men about her. Mortification flushed across her body. Did he tell them how much she liked to be spanked? She wasn’t into anything hardcore—her time with Grant had healed her of any and all curiosity regarding BDSM—but that didn’t mean that she didn’t get turned on when Samuel warmed her backside with his hand.
“Hmm. I think, just to be on the safe side, I should make sure that you know the rules of our stay at the Dunford mansion, before you do something that will really upset me.”
“Samuel, you can’t be serious?”
“Oh, I am dead serious. Sage seems like a fine woman, but I’ve learned she is reckless. I don’t want you to be influenced or exposed to anything while we are supposed to be keeping a low profile.”
“I know what’s at stake, Sam, I won’t screw it up,” she told him while pushing away from him.
“Hmm,” he said as he walked over to their suitcases. He pulled his shirt from his pants and started unbuttoning it slowly.
“What is with the ‘hmm’ comments the whole...” Her sentence died in her throat as she turned, about to glare at him. The sight of him taking his shirt off slowly with a wicked gleam in his eyes had her knees turning to jelly. He smiled at her.
“Sit down.” Her body obeyed him without her mind even fully registering the words. He smiled at her before toeing off his shoes.
“See, that wasn’t so hard.” She shook her head, still in a trance as he unbuckled his belt. She gulped loudly. “Now, I’m going to take a shower and when I get out, you are going to be lying on that bed. Naked and waiting.”
Holy shit.
Waiting for Sam to finish with his shower was one of the hardest things Sophie ever had to do. Her hands had been trembling as she undressed and now, lying beneath the covers, naked as the day she was born, the trembling had moved from her hands all the way up her arms
and throughout her entire body. She wasn’t sure why she was trembling, whether it was nerves, trepidation, excitement, or all three. What she was sure of was that a dangerous thrill had taken over her body and filled her with a desperate expectation. As the door to their en-suite bathroom opened, she gulped. Sam was making his way over to the bed, slowly. He was naked and a few droplets of water were running down his bare and chiseled torso. She clenched her fists to keep from making a fool of herself, like by jumping him and licking every last bit of water from his divine body. He lifted the covers from her and tossed them aside.
“I don’t recall telling you to cover yourself?” He asked the question softly, not giving her a chance to answer. He merely pulled her up and out of the bed. Turning her so that her back was facing him, he pressed a gentle hand to her shoulder, and she bent over with a soft moan. He lightly tapped her inner thighs and she spread her legs for him.
“Look at that. She can listen.”
She kept herself from snorting out loud. Looked like her few hours with Sage and the copious amounts of alcohol they had consumed were affecting her judgment. Normally, she would have given him quite a mouthful as soon as they had entered the room. She wasn’t sure what was going on or what was going to happen, but she had decided to just go with it. You only lived once after all.
Sam’s hands were rubbing up and down her legs while he made an appreciative sound.
“So beautiful. So soft and supple. It’s almost a shame I have to punish you.” He didn’t sound regretful. “Lower your arms, keep this gorgeous ass raised, and place your head on the bed.” Sophie complied. Her body bent and arched in a way that she knew he would be able to see all of her. Every last soft, wet inch of her, exposed to his hungry gaze.
“That’s so fucking pretty, Soph.” She let out a soft sigh. “I’m going to give you ten swats and you’re going to count them out for me.”
“But...”
“We can make it twenty?” he asked sharply, lightly tapping her left ass cheek with his fingers.
“No. Please.”
“Good girl.” There it was again. That appreciation that made her feel like she could float.
Tennessee Law Page 9