His Wicked Love

by Anya Summers

  Hopefully, given enough time, the scandal of her departure would die down. The fact that she’d told her boss, the famed Chef Ormond, in the crowded dining room at the exclusive La Vida, exactly what he could do with his damn truffles. There was video footage of it, too, that had been put on YouTube and other social media. She sighed. It was going to take a while for the furor of her latest foot in mouth disease moment to absolve itself.

  Tibby and Faith were hard at work as she started preparing that night’s special, chicken buddha bowls with a spicy peanut dressing. It was different than what they had on the menu, she knew that, but it was simple enough, and delicious. And Emily herself loved it because it was healthy, along with being power packed with flavor. There was the grilled chicken seasoned just right, roasted sweet potatoes, roasted red peppers, roasted carrots, spinach, and avocado over a bed of fluffy jasmine rice and drizzled with her signature spicy peanut sauce.

  It was amazing.

  Emily lost time as she cooked. It was a job hazard. Time always seemed to fly by in a blink because of her constant movement. And, apparently, word had gotten out in Jackson Hole that the Elkhorn Restaurant had a new chef. While the dining room wasn’t stuffed to capacity, Emily knew once people started eating her cooking, they would come. It was that whole build it and they will come thing but, in this instance, she cooked, and they came with their forks ready.

  The skeleton wait staff time and again put in orders for today’s special, which made her giddy, in part because she enjoyed bringing her love of food to people, and creating a dish that was a big hit gave her a thrill. Although, she had to admit, it would be nice to make Mason eat his words.

  Later that evening, Mason came to the Elkhorn and had dinner with Cole. She purposefully served them the special, hoping for a reaction from him. As she moved around the dining room, greeting guests, she could feel Mason’s gaze following her. He ate the special, but his face didn’t show pleasure or disgust. He was thoroughly unreadable. It unsettled her. It made her feel like she was under a microscope. It made her skin flame as if she’d been sitting inside a broiler, and she caught herself wanting to use her hand to fan her face.

  Emily had worked in hot kitchens for the bulk of her existence, and she’d never been affected this way. So either there was something medically wrong with her—maybe because she was abstaining from her snack cake addiction, today at least, since she was out—or it was because of Mason.

  She wasn’t certain what to do with that bit of information. Even when she gave him the numbers near closing, with the special accounting for fifty percent of the meals sold, he just gave her a stoic nod and handed her the contract.

  “I’ll read it tonight and get it to you in the morning,” she said, tucking the contract beneath her arm.

  “Just sign the damn thing and we can move on,” Mason said, exasperation lacing his voice.

  “Honey, do you think I’m stupid? I don’t care if you’re Mother Theresa, I would still want to read through the entire thing before I sign it. Don’t get your boxers twisted.”

  “My—never mind. Drop it off at the office tomorrow,” Mason said and then stalked off.

  She addressed Cole, “Was it something I said?”

  Cole chuckled and shook his head. “No, he’s just got a lot on his mind. Dinner was fabulous. I’m on your side with whatever you want to cook. Just try not to go to war with Mason.”

  “Even if he started it?”

  Cole gave her a blasé glance and put a friendly hand on her shoulder, his gaze never wavering.

  Emily caved and said, “All right, fine. I will be the grown up. Now, I’m going to go to my cabin, read this thing, and give myself a pedicure… if you don’t mind locking up the restaurant behind you?”

  Cole responded with a cock-eyed grin. “I can do that. Get on home. I bet they’re real purdy, too.”

  “Oh honey, you can bet your ass they are,” she retorted with a grin, then moved past him and headed for the door.

  At Cole’s deep chuckle, she left the restaurant with a smile. Cole liked her, at least. As did the rest of the restaurant crew. In two days, she had the budding hope of and start of friendships with everyone who worked at the Elkhorn—save one. The man who cut her paycheck.

  The man who drove her crazy and tested her resolve to stay. Mason ignited feelings and desires that she had no business contemplating. Kitchens were always hotbeds of sexual relationships. And Emily had watched, time and again, as the woman got burned in the equation while the guy went on with his life as if nothing untoward had occurred. She didn’t mix business with pleasure. It was a recipe for disaster.

  She was sure she could chalk it up to frustrated hormones and that she needed a good boinking to get over it. Emily didn’t necessarily care for one-night stands, but hell, in this equation if it made her stop looking at her boss like he was a piece of divinely cooked filet mignon and she was starving for a taste, then it wouldn’t hurt. Tibby and Faith might know of a bar in town, could be a place where all the cowboys go to play, or any other place they might recommend.

  Maybe it was just of a case of her needing some hanky panky and, for some asinine reason, her hormones wanted Mason. Surely she could find another cowboy in a local bar who would suit much better.

  Because getting into bed with her boss would end in catastrophe.

  Chapter 6

  Mason spent the next few days holed up in his office, going over accounts, talking to creditors, to the bank, and to their vendors, getting them to extend their payment dates. He’d never been so thankful for having such a shit storm to deal with as he did presently. Because it kept him away from her. From Emily. It kept him from watching the way she walked into a room and seemed to light it up merely with her presence. It kept him from lusting after her. Or so he told himself.

  When the reality was far from it. She’d been the star of his fantasies lately.

  And her cooking was just about this side of heaven. The minute changes she’d made to the menu had made a difference. Receipts were up, as were end of the day totals. As much as he had resisted her suggestions, partially on principle and, he had to admit, partially because he was being an ass because of his attraction for her, they’d been solid, positive changes.

  The booked cabins had guests returning night after night to the restaurant and clamoring for her cooking. He didn’t blame them one bit. She’d snuck in some comfort food favorites on her daily specials. Sneaky of her, to be sure. But just today for lunch he’d had her truffle macaroni and cheese with bacon and peas. It was without a doubt one of the best things he’d ever put in his mouth.

  Not that he would tell her that.

  Everywhere he went on lodge property, he saw her touches. Guests leaving the dining area content and happy. Guests carrying boxed lunches and to go orders back to their cabins. His employees raving about Chef Emily.

  And the people loved her. She was warm and friendly. He watched her come out and greet guests in the dining room. And, Christ, he’d never considered a white tunic that hid more than it revealed to be sexy, but it was, decidedly so. Then again, it could have been the fantasy he’d had in his office after lunch where she’d appeared wearing what he knew now was her chef’s jacket, and nothing else.

  He was growing goddamn callouses. Because he couldn’t touch her.

  Even Cole, the traitor, was completely enamored by her. Then again, Cole was easy. More so than Mason, apparently. However, Cole hadn’t been the one who’d put their dream at risk of collapsing. Mason had.

  Which was why he had to maintain distance between himself and Emily. She called to him on a deep level that he didn’t fully understand, even as a Dom. There’d never been a submissive who had incited this level of need inside him, only for him to deny himself the pleasure of her company.

  Fuck, he wanted her. Wanted to see exactly what that sheet she wore in the kitchen was hiding underneath it. Wanted to hear her scream his name in ecstasy. Wanted to see how she’d react, bound a
nd awaiting his touch.

  It was a goddamn Greek tragedy. He could do none of that, even when he saw need reflected in her hazel eyes, her pupils dilated or her sweet pulse fluttering in her neck. Mason was being tortured for his crimes, for the mistakes he had made.

  Emily was his penance. As much as he craved her, he couldn’t touch her. He scrubbed a hand over his face at his internal admission.

  Glancing at the ledgers and the deficits in columns, Mason knew beyond any doubts, Emily was out of his reach.

  Yet every time he gave her the cold shoulder or kept his distance, she would stare at him, hurt clouding her eyes. He realized she had no idea why he was being an ass where she was concerned. And the Dom in him wanted to comfort and soothe her. It was a damn sticky conundrum. Except, keeping his distance, erecting barriers and a line in the sand he couldn’t cross with her, really was for the best—for everyone.

  At the knock on his door, he looked up. His brother was leaning against the doorjamb.

  “Alex needs us down at the stables,” Cole said.

  “Something wrong?”

  “No. He just had some ideas he wanted to run by us for increasing the number of tours. Said it should help the lodge,” Cole replied.

  Mason grimaced. The last thing he wanted was for Alex to feel like he needed to help the lodge. “Shit, I don’t want—”

  Cole crossed his arms and stared him down, much like he’d done when they were kids and Mason was doing something foolish, before he said, “Mason, it’s not just up to you. We’re partners in this place. Which means I have just as much say as you do. And I say we need help from every quadrant. I still think we should ask Carter or Spencer for a loan. They know we’re good for it.”

  And there it was, the proof that he had screwed them beyond measure. They would stand on their own and not go begging to have their woes fixed by their friends. Mason shook his head. “I’m not trying to be difficult here but I really don’t want to borrow against this place. If I have to, I will go to the bank and see about a personal loan. Let’s keep Carter and Spencer out of this. Carter has enough on his hands with his new bride and little boy. I won’t take money from him, not even a loan. And I won’t risk you or this place any further than I already have.”

  “It’s not your fault, Mason.”

  “Actually, it is. And nothing you can say will make me think or believe otherwise. I put us in this position and I will get us out.” Mason shoved his chair back as he stood. “Let’s go talk to Alex. If he wants to add more trail rides to increase revenue for Hunt, he can. But we aren’t taking a penny.”

  “Well, as your partner, I’m telling you that you have a month to figure it out. Otherwise, I will go to the boys and see who can help us out. Just because you’re too damn stubborn and proud to accept a little help when it’s warranted, doesn’t mean I’m not. I won’t lose this place over your hurt pride. Let’s face it, Mason, you’re more pissed that she fucked you and robbed us blind than you are upset about her. So get the fuck over it. You can’t change what happened, and no amount of hurt pride is going to fix it.”

  “I just need a little more time” Mason growled. Cole was right. Hit the nail on the fucking head.

  “Right about now it would be good to have a third partner as a tie breaker,” Cole murmured, scraping a hand over his jaw.

  “Never going to happen,” Mason retorted firmly. Hell would indeed freeze over before he allowed anyone else in on their dream. They headed out the main entrance of the lodge and took the dirt trail down to the stables.

  The stables were located back beyond the bend of a hill and a copse of trees not even a tenth of a mile from the main lodge. They had their own driveway access and parking for visitors from the highway, which helped ensure that the Black Elkhorn Lodge didn’t have excess street traffic. Part of the attraction of the lodge—what they attempted to inspire—was for guests to get back to nature, to enjoy the outdoors. The place backed up to the Grand Teton National Forest, within hiking distance of Jackson Lake and the Snake River.

  The lodge sat amidst the rolling foothills of the nearby mountains. The land was plush and untouched by manmade structures. Even the cabins had been built with the terrain in mind. Built not to detract from the land, but to be a part of it. There were twenty-five of them, of varying size. Plus a few extras had been built to accommodate employees.

  He and Cole shared a house that was back beyond the main lodge, away from everyone and everything. Currently, the only employee living on the grounds was Emily.

  Mason and Cole rounded the corner. The foliage dispersed, and he had a clear, unobstructed view of the paddock fences. As if thinking of her had conjured her up, he spotted Emily, wearing form-fitting blue jeans, currently bent over the rail of the wooden paddock. The view of her heart-shaped rear pointed in his direction ignited his hunger. She had one of the most succulent butts he’d had the good fortune to view.

  Not wanting to startle her, they approached her quietly.

  Her voice floated on the breeze. “Come here. I just want to pet you. I promise I’m nice.”

  Mason uttered beneath his breath, “Woman’s a menace.”

  She wanted to pet a horse. Didn’t she know anything about them? And then his heart nearly stopped. Her foot slipped. What the hell was she wearing, sneakers? Emily tried to catch herself. Her arms flailed. Her torso slid further down the opposite side of the rail. The nearby horses snorted and stomped their feet at her sharp yelp.

  Mason didn’t think, he just reacted. He was there before she fell all the way. He caught her around the waist and hefted her back over the rail. Turning her slightly in his hands to get a better grip and so he didn’t drop her, he couldn’t help but notice how her waist felt in his hands. Nor how her taut body felt pressed against his. Her hands scrabbled for purchase and clutched his shoulders. Their gazes clashed. Her hair, the wealth of burning russet sunset, was loose around her shoulders. Some of it brushed against his face and he inhaled her scent. Christ, she smelled like vanilla cookies. His mouth watered. His gut clenched. Mason felt her touch down into his soul. Her body slid against his as he lowered her until her feet touched the ground. There was a moment, when their gazes clashed and their breaths mingled, where time seemed to suspend itself. A hair’s breadth separated their lips. All he had to do to finally discover what she tasted like was close the tiny distance. Emily’s eyes widened and her pupils dilated.

  Then one of the horses nickered and stomped. Mason released her like she’d burned him.

  “What the hell were you doing?” he shouted, glaring down at her. Lust and fear for her safety combined into a turbulent sea of anger. He wanted to shake some sense into her. Wanted to take her over his knee and spank some sense into her. Wanted. Her.

  He was so royally screwed.

  “I just wanted to pet one. It’s not like we have horses all over the place in Los Angeles,” Emily said defensively, her chest heaving slightly, and he couldn’t stop watching how it caused her ample cleavage to sway. His dick twitched at the innocent, innocuous motion.

  “Don’t go near the animals,” he ordered. The last thing he needed was for her to get injured and file a claim against the lodge. Any hope for seeding life back into their place would be gone.

  “Why not? I admit that might not have been the way to introduce myself to them, but I’ve never been around them. I didn’t want to bother anyone, I just wanted to pet one. It’s harmless—or should have been,” Emily said and blew out a breath.

  “You’re here to cook, not to ride,” Mason growled.

  “And what about in my free time? I can’t go for a ride or go anywhere on the lodge property?” She glared, her hands fisted at her sides, like she was trying to keep her hands off him.

  “I didn’t say that. Until you know your way around, just stay away from them. Last thing I need is you injuring yourself,” Mason muttered and stormed past her. It was either that or go all Dom on her sweet ass. And he could see the lawsuits now, should
he do something like spank an employee.

  When he reached the door to the stables, she asked Cole, “Is he always this grumpy? Or is it just me he doesn’t like?”

  And Cole, the ass, replied, “Don’t worry about Mason. When it comes to the lodge and protecting it, including the people on it, he can be overbearing.”

  “You mean he can be a jerk,” Emily replied.

  “Give him some space. And if you really want to learn to ride, either myself or Alex could teach you in our free time,” Cole offered.

  Mason knew that shouldn’t rile him. He had no claim on Emily whatsoever. But the thought of his brother or his good friend touching her, even to help her learn to ride a horse, infuriated him.

  “Thanks. I will think about. Especially if I’m here past the trial run. Later, Cole.”

  “Emily,” Cole said.

  At that, Mason turned back around and unabashedly watched Emily stroll up the bend to her cabin. Overbearing? He had kept her from breaking her damn fool neck. And she wanted to discuss methods?

  If there was ever a woman who needed a bit of a firm hand, it was Emily. Too bad he’d forbidden himself from ever touching her.

  Chapter 7

  It was finally Friday after one of the longest weeks in her life. Trying to impress Mason had taken on the intensity of an Olympic sport. Emily had worked in some of the finest restaurants in Los Angeles, and not one had challenged her the way this place did. It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. She’d been ready for the change. And having the chef she’d worked under steal her creations and call them his had been the shove she’d needed out the door.

  She liked it here. Wonder of all wonders. The little cabin was comfortable. She could imagine sitting near the fireplace in the evenings, with a cup of hot cocoa or tea and a good book, once it snowed. If she made it past the trial period, she’d have to purchase a winter coat, hiking boots, snow boots, and who knew what else. The land was stunning. The slate mountains pierced the heavens. The evergreens blanketed the land. She’d seen eagles and hawks fly through the air. Last night, she’d spotted a small heard of elk in the distant field.