Cocky Suit: A Hero Club Novel

by Harlow Layne

  “I’m sorry about today. About everything. I was an asshole, which isn’t news, but if it wasn’t for me leaving, you wouldn’t be here.” I laced my fingers through hers and tried to smile, but I knew I wasn’t successful. Guilt was going to be on the menu for a long time to come. Every time I looked at her it reminded me that if I’d bothered to stay to talk to her, Pria wouldn’t have been trying to escape all things, me.

  “You can’t know that.” She shrugged and winced. “I’m fine. They’ve given me some good drugs, so don’t feel guilty. We could have talked, and I could have stormed out and the same thing could have happened.”

  “That doesn’t make me feel better. I seem to be the common denominator for the reason why you’re leaving and getting hurt.” I sat down in the chair beside the bed, keeping her hand in mine the entire time. “Let me feel guilty. It’s my penance.”

  “If it makes you feel better the nurse said I wasn’t raped.” Her bottom lip started to tremble on the last word, and I wanted to kick my own ass. I needed to be here for Pria and keep my guilt to myself.

  Nodding my head, I rubbed my thumb over the back of her arm. “I’m glad you don’t have to go through that as well, but it wouldn’t have changed the way I see you.”

  “And how do you see me?” she asked on a shaky breath.

  I held nothing back telling her the absolute truth of my feelings for her. “Strong, resilient, feisty, smart, kind and caring, beyond gorgeous, and my perfect match. You were made for me. No one else besides my family has ever made me want to show them who I really am.” I hung my head, unable to look her in the eye.

  “I like what you show me, King,” She spoke softly but with conviction in her voice. With those simple but profound words, I knew she was being honest with me. “When we met in your office all I could think was you were a cocky suit, well, besides the obvious.” I tilted my head looking at her through the hair that hung over my eyes. Lightheartedness filled her voice. “Don’t make me feed your ego. You know you’re gorgeous. Your only flaw is being an asshole.”

  “I have a few more, but yeah, being a cocky asshole is a good way to keep people away. Most don’t want to put up with me, but you… you’ve got me by the balls.”

  Pria closed her eyes for a long moment. I thought she’d fallen asleep from the drugs until she blew out a long breath. With her eyes still closed, she asked, “Want to tell me what earlier was all about?”

  “None of that matters now. Only that you’re going to be okay and you don’t hate me.” I paused thinking that Pria had never said she wasn’t still mad at me. “Do you hate me?”

  Her good eye slit open. “If I hated you, I wouldn’t have had the nurse bring you back.” She closed her eyes again. “Now, tell me what happened. Did I do something? Is it because we didn’t have lunchtime sex?”

  It hurt that she would even think that about me, but I knew I hadn’t given her any clues as to why I’d been furious with her.

  “I saw you on my way to lunch with…” I gritted my teeth because it still stung to know she’d lied to me. “I saw you with your dad and when I did it all clicked. Well, not all, but I knew who you were then. Why didn’t you say we knew each other? You had ample opportunity to tell me you knew me and my sister.”

  Pria let out a puff of air. “At first, it was because you didn’t recognize me. I know I’m not memorable, but still, I thought you’d know who I was. After that, I didn’t think it would matter since I didn’t think we’d have much contact. What did it matter if my dad was your family physician and I used to hang out with your sister? I even babysat you a couple of times.”

  It made sense as to why she hadn’t mentioned it then especially if we were only going to be acquaintances.

  “The next time I had the opportunity was when you said Murphy had named your dogs. I was going to say something then, but you stormed off. After that, it never seemed like the right moment. I wanted to tell you, but you’re one hell of a distraction. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you and you had to find out the way you did.”

  Lacing our fingers together, I brought her hand up and placed a soft kiss to the back of it. “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you. If I had, then maybe none of this would have happened.”

  “When you saw us, you should have come up to us and said something.” A small smile pulled at the corner of her lips.

  “What’s that look for?” I asked with my own smile. Even after all the shit of the day, she could still manage to make me smile and that was everything.

  “I was imagining you telling my dad we’re fucking and the look on his face. He probably would have imploded on the spot.”

  “Why?” My brows creased. “I’m a perfectly acceptable male specimen.”

  She giggled and then clutched at her side. “Please don’t make me laugh. It hurts too much. But really is that how you see yourself as an acceptable male specimen?” She shook her head at me. “You’re anything but acceptable.”

  “Then what am I?” I was starting to get worried she thought even less of me.

  “You are prime grade A beef. A father should strive for their daughters to meet a man like you.”

  “So your dad would be happy?” It didn’t make sense.

  “Just the opposite. He’s old school and thinks I should only be with a good Chinese man. He thinks Haider cheating on me was all my doing. He’d be absolutely appalled I’m with a white man.”

  It was shocking to know he thought that way. What I wanted to know was did Pria feel the same way. Was she only with me to defy her father?

  “What are your thoughts on being with an insanely wealthy white man with blond hair and green eyes who’s devilishly handsome and hung like a horse?”

  “There he is. My cocky asshole.” Her words may have been harsh, but she looked at me with love in her eyes, or at least I thought it looked something like love.

  “Right here. Now, what are your thoughts? I want to know,” I demanded but kept my tone light.

  She tightened her grip on my hand and motioned for me to come closer. I didn’t stop until there was only an inch between our noses. “If it was anyone but you, I wouldn’t want him. I like you for you, King. I don’t care what you look like or the size of your dick. That may have been what attracted me to you in the beginning, but it was you, the man buried deep inside that only me and your trio of dogs get to see that kept me by your side.”

  And at that moment, I knew I was in love with Pria Wang. If she hadn’t been in a hospital bed. If we had been anywhere else, I would have dropped down on one knee and proposed to her after hearing those words.

  Instead, I had to wait.

  21

  Pria

  Two Weeks Later

  Since the attack, I’d only been back at the office for two days. King had demanded that I stay home and rest. At first, I thought it would only be a few days, but once I was discharged and realized how much every motion I made elicited a great deal of pain, I ended up working from his place. My options were to work and feel pain or take the drugs they’d prescribed for me and be a loopy mess since nothing else seemed to work.

  King had been out of town for the last four days on the business trips he’d canceled to be with me when he found out I was in the hospital. When he walked into the room in the ER, I was shocked. I was ready to write him off after he’d left his apartment, but after our talk, I was one hundred and ten percent in love with him. He’d called and FaceTimed me every night he was gone, making sure I was okay and that the new dog walker was treating the dogs well. There was no way I was going to be walking any of them except Jimmy in the near future. It was too easy for either Sarah or Orvy to jerk me around and I wanted my ribs to heal as quickly as possible.

  My phone vibrated with an incoming call. Warmth flowed through my body and settled in my chest when I saw it was King calling.

  “Hey, what are you doing calling me?” I looked at the clock on my wall that read six forty-five. “I thought you’d be in a meeting r
ight about now.”

  “I’m getting ready to head inside in just a minute, but I wanted to say hi. Are you still at work?”

  I knew I should have already left, but I’d been busy dealing with one employee who went off on a tirade during a meeting, and another who had harassed a fellow employee about her period. Getting the statements from everyone who’d been at the meeting had taken most of the day, which is why I was still there even after the sun had started to go down.

  “I am, but I was just getting ready to pack up and leave after I called your driver to let him know I was ready.”

  “Good girl.” I could hear the smile in his voice. “Before you go, can you pick up a package in my office for me?”

  “Sure.” I wasn’t sure why he wanted me to get it when he could pick it up tomorrow when he got in, but I didn’t argue.

  “It’s something for you and I want you to have it right away.” He must have heard the uncertainty in my voice about retrieving his package.

  “Ah, you didn’t have to do that, King, but that’s very sweet of you.” I packed up my stuff a little quicker so I could see what he’d gotten me.

  “Wait until you see what it is.” The husky tone in his voice caught me off guard. Had he gotten me some lingerie to wear once he was back? King may have said he was used to pleasuring himself, but I felt the hard-on he woke with every morning. While I was sure he’d seen to himself while he was gone, I knew he wanted the real thing. It got me hot and bothered thinking of him touching himself.

  “You’ve got me intrigued, Mr. Avery. I can’t wait to see what you got me. I’m leaving my office now. Do you want to stay on the phone with me while I open it?” I felt like a giddy schoolgirl about ready to open all her presents on Christmas Day. I couldn’t remember the last time someone got me something for the hell of it.

  “I’d love nothing more.”

  The amusement in his tone halted me in my tracks. “Is this a prank?”

  “No, Pria, it most certainly is not a prank. Go see what I got for you. I think you’ll be happy with what you find.”

  “I hope your secretary isn’t at her desk, because it could get awkward. If you could have seen the look on her face yesterday when she saw me. I don’t know why she hates me so much.” If she could have killed me with the daggers from her eyes, she would have, and it made no sense why she hated me. I’d never done anything to her except expect her to do her job.

  “You need to start looking for her replacement. She’s the worst secretary I’ve ever had.” He sighed heavily. “I shouldn’t have fired my previous one for letting you in to see me with my pants down.”

  “Who knows what would have happened if I hadn’t seen you tucking yourself in that day?”

  King hummed down the line. “I knew you were only with me for my cock.”

  “It is mighty in every way.”

  I slowed my steps as I came closer to King’s office. I wasn’t sure how I’d get in if Mandy was at her desk, but with King being gone I didn’t see her staying past five.

  “It doesn’t look like she’s here. I’m going in,” I whispered to King.

  “Why are you whispering?” he asked, whispering back.

  “Because I don’t want to be caught.”

  “I’m giving you permission if anyone asks.”

  “Thanks, but I don’t want to explain why you asked me to pick something up in your office after hours.”

  I quickly snuck into King’s office and shut the door behind me. It was dark inside, but I didn’t want to turn on the lights and let anyone know I was inside.

  “Hang on. Let me put you on speaker. It’s dark in here and I need to use my phone’s flashlight to see. Are you sure she put the package in here? It could be at her desk.”

  “I’m one hundred percent positive it’s in my office.” The voice came from behind me and I nearly screamed. Twirling around, I threw myself at the man standing in front of me. He caught me gently around the waist thinking about my injuries more than I had. Picking me up with one arm wrapped around my back and the other under my ass, he brought me to his mouth and kissed me with tenderness.

  “King,” I gasped against his lips when we broke apart, “what are you doing here?”

  “Surprising you. Hopefully, it was a good one?”

  “The best one. Never in a million years would I have guessed you were my present.”

  “I wish I could have seen your face better.” King peppered kisses over my eyes, nose, and cheeks.

  “Why didn’t you just surprise me at your place?”

  “I thought we could live out one of my fantasies. I know I can’t bend you across my desk or get too physical, but I’ve been dying to sink into your heat since the first time you stepped foot in here. What do you say about helping me out?”

  “I say I think I should reward you for surprising me.”

  Before the last word was out of my mouth, King started to move first to lock the door and then over to the couch he had in his office. Luckily, he always kept his blinds closed, so we didn’t have to worry about that. If we got caught… I didn’t want to think about it.

  King sat down and slid his other hand down to the hem of my skirt. My legs were on either side of his. I kneeled on the couch and let him push my skirt above my waist. “Hold on tight,” he murmured right before he ripped my thong off.

  My mouth crashed into his and our tongues dueled. His need for me was incredibly hot and spurred me on.

  Now bare, I started to rub back and forth against the bulge that was fighting to break through his suit pants. I didn’t care that I’d leave a mark all over his fly. My only thought was that I wanted to feel him against me. My fingers started to undo the buttons of his shirt. It was dark, but the city lights illuminated his office enough to let me see the contours of his torso the farther down I went. I wished I could have ripped it off like he’d done my panties.

  “I want to feel you skin to skin.” My ribs were still tender and I’d been wearing button-up blouses so I didn’t have to lift my arms above my head. King was much quicker at removing mine than I was his. Pulling one cup down, he took my breast into his mouth. His tongue swirled around my pebbled nipple in delicious swipes. Moaning, I rocked into him harder, rubbing my clit against his zipper for friction, but it wasn’t enough.

  My hands ran down the soft skin over hard muscle until I came into contact with his belt. Quickly, I undid it, had his zipper down, and was pulling his hot length out and wrapped my hand around his steel shaft. Placing it at my entrance, I slowly sank down until I took every inch of him inside. When he finally bottomed out, we both moaned.

  “You feel so fucking good. I’ve been dreaming about your sweet little pussy and what it would feel like to be inside of you again. Nothing compares.” He groaned. The deep sound filled the room.

  With both hands on my hips, King slowly withdrew and pumped up again and again. Even though he was frenzied before, he still took care of me and made sure not to hurt me. His movements were slow, as were his kisses as he took my mouth. It felt different than anything we’d ever done before. This time it was with our professed feelings between us. In his office with us on his couch, King made love to me. Each slow glide in and out felt like heaven.

  As slowly as we moved together, my pleasure came at a record pace and going by King’s sounds and strained movements, I’d say his did the same. My hips rocked a little faster as King’s thumb found my clit and rubbed it in slow, small circles.

  Our mouths broke apart as my back arched and heat licked up my spine. Stars blurred my vision as the most intense jolt of pleasure shot through my body. I felt electrified as I tensed and then sagged into King’s embrace. His grip on me tightened as he held himself deep within me for a long moment.

  Panting into his neck, I smiled. “That was the best surprise ever.”

  A noise came from outside that sounded like someone had run into a wall and had me sitting up straight. “What was that?” I whispered. If anyone had
been out there, it was too late to be quiet now.

  “I think you’re hearing things. What do you say we go out to eat before we head home? Whatever you’re in the mood for.”

  “Like a date?” I tried to see the look on his face, but it was covered in shadow.

  One hand slid up my spine and cupped the nape of my neck. “Yes, Pria. Would you go on a date with me tonight?” The tone in his voice was something I’d never heard from him. It was unsure, and I wanted to remove any hesitance from him ever again.

  “Why, Mr. Avery, I thought you’d never ask?” In all truth, I never thought we’d go anywhere in public. Before I thought I was just a convenient lay and now I had no clue what to expect from King. He was a surprisingly sweet man when he wanted to be.

  “All in good time, my dear. Now let’s get dressed so I can feed you. I have a plan to keep you up late into the night and you’ll need your strength.”

  I liked the sound of that.

  We dressed quickly in the dark. I wasn’t happy I had to go out with no underwear on while wearing a skirt, but I didn’t have a choice. It made me hot all over again thinking about how King ripped them off me.

  Stepping outside his office a tall, dark, and handsome man stood by the desk with a quizzical look on his face. He turned toward us when he heard us coming out of the office.

  “Graham, what are you doing here? I didn’t forget a meeting or anything did I?” King shook his hand with a boyish smile on his face.

  “Nope, I came by to see if you wanted to get dinner.” His friend looked me up and down assessing me. “I don’t mean to be rude, but were you doing a threesome and piss the other girl off?”

  What!

  King and I turned to look at each other with confused faces. His brows and lips turned down. “What the hell are you talking about? This is Pria, my…” My breathing stopped as I waited for King’s next words. “She’s my girlfriend and we’re not into that sort of thing.”

  “Okay. Cool, but it would be fine if you were. I saw a woman scurrying off from this direction and I didn’t know what to think.”