by Peyton Banks
If she kept this up, she’d have enough money to get her car fixed before they moved. Of course, that meant paying Con less. What he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him. Ignoring Con, she continued singing.
Movement from his side of the room forced her to look his way. Where was he going? Surely, he wasn’t coming onto the stage. Fuck. He was approaching the stage. And he was pushing people out of his way as he did so. Panicking, Criss hurried up and finished the song.
“Okay, guys, the band and I are going to take a quick break.” As the crowd booed, she looked to her right. Con was closer to the stage. “We’ll return in fifteen minutes. Go get a drink and then come back. Tell Lina I sent you and she’ll give you an extra shot. Oh, and I have a special song to sing to you guys when we return.”
That made the crowd cheer. She chanced a glance at Con, who’d just reached the stage stairs. He looked even more furious. It was time for a bathroom break. Criss scooped up her tip jar and quickly walked to the back of the stage, ignoring the confused stares from her band.
She raced to the backroom where her locker was. Her hand trembled as she turned the combination lock. Once it was open, she shoved the tip jar into her locker where the rest of her tips were. Now she just needed to sprint to the bathroom.
She prayed she’d reach the hall bathroom before Con reached her. Her prayers were answered. Criss stormed into the bathroom and shut the door. Unfortunately, there was no lock. She turned to the stalls.
Those had locks. Before she could take a step forward, the bathroom door burst open. Con. Damn! Criss opened her mouth to speak. No words came out. What to say? Wait, she didn’t have to say anything.
She’d done nothing wrong. Why was she running like she’d just stolen something? She held her ground as he strode over to her. Her gaze remained locked with his, unwavering, despite the fact that she was nervous.
She tilted her head back to stare up at him when he reached her. Why was he so damn tall? And why did he look so mad? It wasn’t like she’d chased him off stage and then followed him into the bathroom. The ladies bathroom!
Criss held his gaze. But the longer they just stood there staring at each other, the more nervous she became. Not because she was scared of him. But because she was scared of the way her body reacted to him.
He was currently violating her privacy. Yet, her body was wishing he’d violate her privacy. The part of her that hadn’t been touched by anyone, other than herself, in a few months.
Wait, it had almost been a year. A whole damn year. Yeah, she was in need of violating. He stepped closer to her. She could smell his cologne. Why did he have to smell so damn good? He was like a walking pussy magnet. Until he opened his mouth, of course.
“What the fuck are you wearing?” He growled down at her.
“The same thing you’re wearing. They’re called clothes.”
“Careful, Criss.”
“Careful, Con. Why did you follow me into the ladies’ room?”
“Why did you run into the ladies’ room?”
“Because I have to use the bathroom.”
“Then go ahead. I’m not stopping you.”
“I’m not about to use that bathroom while you’re in here.”
“I’m not going into the stall with you.”
“You’re still in here.”
“I’m not leaving.”
“Then I’m not using the bathroom.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
“Since you don’t have to use the bathroom, come with me.” He grabbed her wrist.
“Hey, where are you taking me? Con. Con!”
He rushed her out of the bathroom. In the hallway, he paused. “Fuck. I don’t want to go through the crowd.”
“Let me go, Con. I have a job to do.”
“You’re fired.”
Criss gasped. “What? Why?”
“Because I said so. We’ll take the elevators.”
Shocked from being fired, Criss didn’t protest as he steered her toward the elevator. The ding from the elevator broke her out of her trance. She tried to jerk her arm away from Con. He held on to her tightly.
“Fuck you, Con. If I’m fired, I don’t have to listen to you or do what you say.” She pushed at him.
He still didn’t release her. Patrons standing near the elevator stared in their direction. Criss didn’t care. She was no longer an employee of Private Affairs. Therefore, she didn’t have to worry about upholding a positive image for them.
That’s why she didn’t feel bad at all when she began screaming for help. That got the patrons’ attention. It also pissed Con off. He pulled her close to him and whispered in her ear.
“Act up and you’re going to get one of these motherfuckers hurt.”
Well damn.
One brave man stepped over to them. “Excuse me miss, is he bothering you?”
Con answered before she could think of a response. “She’s with me.”
“It doesn’t seem like she wants…”
“If you want to leave this club alive, I suggest you back the fuck off.”
The venom in Con’s voice shocked her. Apparently, it shocked those around them also. The man walked back over to his friends. The rest of the onlookers turned their heads. Scary motherfuckers.
What if she was really in trouble? They would let her get carried off by a mad man. People like that made her sick. She didn’t need them. She could fight her own battles. When Con tried to pull her into the elevator, she slapped him as hard as she could.
She immediately regretted it. The sound echoed through her skull. Her hand was stinging from the contact. Even she was surprised at how hard she’d hit him. She shouldn’t feel bad. But, damn it, she did.
“Con, I’m sor….”
If looks could kill. He released her wrist and scooped her up. She hadn’t expected him to be so strong. Neither had she expected him to be able to toss her big ass over his shoulder, knocking the air out of her lungs.
She inhaled deeply as he strode onto the elevator with her over his shoulder, her ass in the air, with his arm wrapped tightly around her legs. When the elevator doors closed, she heard a beep, letting her know he’d selected a floor.
“Con let me go. Who the hell do you think you are?”
“Who the hell do you think you are, slapping me like that?”
“You wouldn’t have gotten slapped if you hadn’t kidnapped me.”
“You call this a kidnapping? You ain’t seen nothing yet.”
Real fear entered her heart. “Con, what are you talking about? Con? Okay, look, we both have been acting like big babies. Put me down and let’s talk about this.”
“I’m done talking.”
“What? How? When did you start? All you’ve done is yell and grab.”
Another beep sounded, followed by the sound of the elevator doors opening. She gripped the back of his shirt as he strode from the elevator. When he turned around, she was able to determine their location.
They were on the top floor of the club. The fourth floor, where the conference rooms were located. It was also where Con’s upper office was located. She held on tight as he walked with her over his shoulder.
“You can put me down now. I have two feet.”
“Really? I never noticed.”
Sarcastic asshole. “Seriously Con. Put me down. Now! If you don’t, I swear to you, I will slap you so fucking hard you’ll…”
Criss cried out when she felt a hard slap against her ass. Shocked silent, her mind raced to process what had just happened. Did he really just slap her ass? And, did she like it? Yes, and yes. What the fuck?
She didn’t know what to do or say now, so, she kept her mouth shut. Her ass was still stinging from the slap. But in a good way. In a, now let’s get to the second part, type of way. How dare he slap her ass and then just leave it stinging?
He was supposed to kiss it to make it better. Or slap it again, because she’d been a very naughty girl and needed to be puni
shed. Damn it, what was she thinking? These were not the type of thoughts she should be having about the brute, Constantine Novinkoff.
When they reached his office, he sat her down on her feet so he could enter his four-digit passcode into the security panel on the door. Criss chose that moment to try to run back to the elevator.
He caught her by her second step. Con wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her up against him. She had every intention to struggle. But the thought of struggling evaporated when she felt his hard cock pressed against her back.
Criss held completely still, afraid to move, yet desiring to move. Not away from him. Closer. Especially since she now knew her fantasies about him were real. He was indeed packing a monster in his pants.
Her kinky side was screaming for her to pretend to struggle, just so she could rub up against it. Her logical side, was tell herself to hold completely still and to move away from it as soon as she could. Her boring side won.
She trembled slightly when he leaned his head closer to hers and whispered, “Stop running from me.”
Criss cleared her throat before speaking. “Stop coming after me.”
“I can’t.”
“Can’t or won’t?”
“Both.”
Uh, wow!
He punched in the code to his office. The light blinked green. He twisted the knob and pushed the door to his office open and entered with her still pressed tightly against him.
“Must you hold me so tightly?” Criss tried to pry his hands off her.
“I must,” he mumbled as he strode into the room, still holding her.
“We’re here now. You can let me go. And can you please turn the light on. I can’t see in here.”
“Are you afraid of the dark?”
She felt his breath against her cheek when he whispered that question. Criss swallowed. “The only thing I’m afraid of right now is you.”
Con chuckled. Even that sounded sexy.
“I don’t think you’re afraid of me at all.” He stopped walking, but didn’t release her. “But I would like to know what you’re afraid of.”
Nosey ass. “Why?”
“So, I can destroy who or whatever it is you’re afraid of.”
That wasn’t the answer she’d expected to hear. And he hadn’t yelled the words. He’d said it as if he cared. She wasn’t comfortable with him behaving this way. This wasn’t how they behaved with each other. She wanted glaring Con back.
“I don’t need your help Constantine. I’m a big girl. I can take care of my own shit.” There, that should bring back glaring Con.
“It’s been brought to my attention that I have not been very nice to you,” Con told her.
Criss burst out laughing, sarcastically of course. “Are you freaking serious? Someone had to tell you that you’re rude as hell to me for you to realize it?”
“You’ve been rude to me as well.”
“Yeah, because you’re an arrogant jerk who thinks the world revolves around him. You expect people to do your bidding without complaint. News flash, I’m a grown ass woman. I don’t have to obey your rules. Even now, I’ve asked you to let me go, yet, you’re still holding me. Tightly. I can barely breathe.” Criss coughed to emphasize her point.
“If you couldn’t breathe, you wouldn’t be able to talk. Or fake cough.”
“Whatever. My point is, you can’t just drag me to your office whenever you want. My world doesn’t revolve around you. I do not belong to you. You cannot…”
“Yet.”
That caused her to pause. “Excuse me?”
“You said you do not belong to me. I said, yet.”
“I heard that. I’m wondering why you said it.”
“To let you know that you will belong to me, Cristal Dawson.”
What? Criss opened her mouth then closed it. Was he serious? He couldn’t be.
“Have you been drinking?”
“Yes.”
Criss nodded. “Good. For a second there, I thought you was sober. That explains why you’re acting like a caveman. Listen, drunk ass, can you let me go, please? I have a show to return to.”
“Not dressed like that.”
“Your dancers get completely naked. Yet, you have a problem with my dress. That’s some bullshit.”
“What you’re wearing is some bullshit.”
“Hey…”
“The clothes you wore before was fine.”
“I… wait, you liked the way I dressed before?”
“Of course.”
Did he really? “But… I wasn’t making any tips dressed like that.”
“You made a lot of tips tonight?”
“I did.”
“But, did you like wearing this tight ass outfit? Did you like having those men and some women, stare at you the way they were, undressing you with their eyes?”
“Not at first, but…”
His arm tightened around her. “Did you enjoy knowing that most of them were picturing themselves fucking you while you sang on stage?”
“I can’t control…”
“Or did you simply do all of this to piss me off?”
“Hey now, hold up a minute.”
He pressed the side of his face against hers. “Did you do this to make me angry?”
Criss opened her mouth, but he continued talking, not allowing her to get a word in.
“Did you wear this dress to piss me off? Did you want me to see those men drooling over you?”
Criss shook her head. Con gripped her chin to hold her face still.
“Don’t deny it. You did this on purpose. You did this to see how I’d react?”
“I didn’t. I swea…”
He turned her around to face him. Still pressed tightly against him, she tilted her head back to look up at him. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she could make out the outline of his face.
Even in the dark, he was handsome. Tall, handsome, built like a Greek god and still rock hard down there. Hell, hard everywhere. Being in his arms like this was doing something to her mind.
It was making her yearn for things she shouldn’t. She didn’t even like Con. Yet, the way he was looking at her right now made her feel wanted, desired. He wasn’t glaring. He was gazing.
Gazing in her eyes, not at her breasts, which was a good thing. Tonight, all eyes had been on her curves. No one had stared into her eyes as she sang. They definitely hadn’t stared at her the way Con was staring at her right now.
The way he was staring at her made her want to come up on her tiptoes and press her lips against his. It made her want to stroke him until he was ready to explode. Damn it. Now she was wet and horny.
And her vibrator was miles away. Sadly, she didn’t think her vibrator would be able to get the job done tonight. Her body wanted the man in front of her. She wanted Constantine Novinkoff.
Before she left Chicago, before she left him behind, she may have to give him a test ride. Just to see if the monster in his pants was just for show. Just because one had a big dick, didn’t mean one could use it well.
“Did you hear me, Cristal?”
Cristal blinked. “Huh?”
“Did you hear what I said?”
He’d said something? She’d been too busy picturing herself sitting on his cock.
“I, uh, I… No. I sort of stopped listening.” There was that glare.
“Damn it, Criss.”
“What? You talk a lot. That doesn’t mean I have to listen. Geez.”
“Criss…”
“You were probably just saying the same thing you’ve been saying ever since we stepped into this dark ass office. So, let me clear things up for you. I wore this dress to get more tips. Why? Because sex sells. Especially in a gentlemen’s club. I wore this so I can make more money, so that I can pay you back. You should be happy. For the record, I didn’t wear this dress to make you mad. In fact, I never once thought about how you’d react to seeing me in this. Frankly, I have no idea why you’re reacting this way.
”
“No idea?”
“None, whatsoever. You should be happy. I’m making more money. Oh, that’s right. You wanted me to fail so that I could strip for you. Well, hah! I didn’t fail. I succeeded. You’re only reacting this way because you’re a sore loser and you’re not used to losing.”
“I’m not reacting this way because you succeeded.”
“Yes, you are. There’s no other reason for you to be this pissed.”
“Has it ever occurred to you that maybe I don’t want other men to see you like this? Has it ever occurred to you that maybe I don’t want them lusting after you?”
“Why would you care about any of that?”
“I feel like I’m talking to a brick wall. You still don’t fucking get it.”
“No, the fuck I don’t. I’m hella confused. Just spit it out. Why do you care?”
“Because I care about you, motherfucker,” Con yelled.
Criss was shocked silent.
“It’s because I want you. I want you all to myself. No other motherfucker is allowed to have you. But now, you’re going to have a gang of bastards approaching you. But they’ll only want one thing. I want everything. All of you.”
His heated gaze dropped to her breasts. “I want all of you, Cristal Dawson. And I think it’s time I showed you what I mean by that. I think it’s time I showed you who you belong to.”
Cristal swallowed. So, did this mean she was about to get the dick? Because she really wanted to see what that dick was about before she left the state.
6
Con stared down at Cristal.
After what he’d just said to her, he expected her to curse him out. Or to try and leave again. She did neither. She just stared up at him, gaze unwavering, as if she was waiting to see what he would do next. Was it possible that she wanted him just as much as he wanted her?
“I’m serious, Cristal.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
Again, she nodded. “Okay.”
“Do you understand what I’m talking about?”
“Of course, I do. I’m no dummy. You want to fuck me.”