Promises, promises
On the bench and don’t move
.....
Yeah. I’ll do “on the bench.” I undo yet another button on my coat as
I walk over to the marble slab. I am hot now, for real. He must know
what his words do to me. I lie on my side, one leg out, one leg bent
at the knee, shoe on the bench, hand propped up on my elbow in the
traditional sex kitten pose. My coat slides over my skin, revealing things
that are for Max’s eyes only. The phone buzzes in my hand. Why did I
never notice it had such a powerful vibration?
.....
Behave. We’re almost done
.....
I stare at the phone. Suddenly, I have an idea. A delicious idea. A
naughty idea. I send Max a text.
.....
Call me. If I don’t answer, call again
....
I turn the ringer to vibration and swing my legs down so I am sitting on
the bench facing him. I part my legs. Max frowns. I slip the phone into
my coat and secure it at the juncture of my thighs. Max’s eyes widen.
He chokes. One of his clients pushes a glass of water across the table.
Max glares at me and shakes his head. I slide one hand into the coat and
fondle my breast. He closes his eyes and sucks in his lips.
Then he calls.
The vibration isn’t great. Not like my Rabbit. But it isn’t bad. And
coupled with the fact I am naked under the coat with six men in front
of me who could turn around at any moment, I don’t need much more
to get off. I hope the phone is waterproof.
I roll my nipple between my thumb and forefinger. Zings of
pleasure shoot to my core. I close my eyes and shift position. The
slippery slide of the coat’s silk lining brushes over my skin in a gentle
caress. My body tightens. I’ve never brought myself this close this fast.
I suck in a breath and press my lips together as I teeter on the edge.
The sultry, strawberry taste of Vivacious Vixen lip gloss bursts over
my tongue.
The vibrations stop. Damn. I pull out the phone and read the message.
.....
ENOUGH
.....
This is my show now.
I put the phone on the bench and slide my hand into the trench
coat. I stroke my sweet spot and my body tightens again. I should stop.
What if someone turns around? But I can’t stop. I am heady with the
knowledge he wants me and can’t have me. Aroused beyond belief. My
head falls back and I slip one finger inside my sex. Jeez. I’m so wet.
The office door crashes open. The glass walls shake.
I whip my hands out of the jacket and sit up straight, eyes wide,
innocence personified. Max stalks toward me, his face so taut, I can see
the blood pounding through the veins on his temples. He grabs my arm
and yanks me out of the seat.
Without so much as a hello, he drags me across the reception area
and slams his hand on the elevator button. The elevator opens instantly
as if it knows Max is no mood to be trifled with. He pounds on the
ground-level button and the doors slide closed.
“Are you angry?” My blood still runs hot with desire. I place a
tentative hand on his chest. He hisses in a breath and steps away.
“Don’t touch me. Don’t talk to me.”
My cheeks flame. Uh-oh. Really angry. My stomach clenches. It
was just meant to be a game.
The elevator reaches the ground floor. Max grabs my hand and
pulls me through a maze of corridors until we reach a battered metal
door. He throws the door open and I follow him out into a dark alley.
The streetlights from the main road lick the darkness but don’t
quite reach our toes. Although I can see cars and people, they can’t see
us. But I can see Max and he can see me. His eyes gleam under the soft
faint exit light above the door, and he studies me, a predator assessing
its prey.
My heart pounds so hard I fear it might break my ribs. Angry Max.
Dark alley. Maybe I pushed him too far.
Suddenly I am up against the wall, the rough brick digging into my
of the buttons and belt on the coat. He yanks it open, exposing me to
his heated gaze. His eyes rake over my naked body as cool air brushes
over my burning skin.
Fear and arousal blend into a potent cocktail of need. A whimper
escapes my lips. In an instant I am in Max’s arms, my body pressed
against his.
“I’ve never seen anything as fucking hot in my life. You were killing
me in there, baby.” He threads his fingers through my hair and yanks
my head back. His kiss is hard, almost punishing, but quickly it gentles,
softens. A tremor runs through me.
“So goddamned fucking sexy,” he whispers against my lips. “I
thought I was going to explode.”
My body sags as relief courses through my veins. Not angry.
Aroused. As am I.
Boldy I stroke my hand over his erection, hot and hard, strain-
ing against his fine wool trousers. “What a hard cock you have
Mr. Huntington.”
He sucks in a sharp breath and his body goes rigid. “What did you
just say to me?”
I lean against him and press my lips against his ear. “I said you had
a hard cock, and I want it.”
“Fuck.” He has a condom in his hand and his pants down before I
can catch my breath.
“I thought you didn’t like to talk dirty.” His voice is rough, grav-
elly, and hoarse with need.
“I thought the circumstances warranted a little dirty talk. We are in
a filthy, garbage-strewn back alley after all. You sure know how to show
a girl a good time.”
“Christ” He rips open the condom and sheaths himself. “Every
time I think I’ve figured you out, you do something that makes me
think I don’t know you at all.”
“I didn’t know this about me either,” I whisper. “You’ve made me
into a wild, wicked, wanton woman.”
He slides his hands under my bottom and lifts me. I wrap my legs
around his body and the coat swings around us, hiding us from view.
“You were always a wild, wicked, wanton woman,” he chuckles.
“You just needed someone to set her free.” He slides inside me with one
long, hard thrust.
Oh God. So good. So big. So hard. I groan and tighten my arms
around Max’s shoulders.
A sharp nip on my lip makes me gasp, and then he thrusts his
tongue inside me, easing it in and out with the promise of what is to
come. The ache of need burns through my body. He pulls his lips away
and drags his mouth over my nipple, teasing it between his teeth until it
peaks. Then he nips gently, and my body turns liquid.
A thin whine escapes me. I manage one slide up and down before
he pushes me against the wall and grabs my hips, holding me still.
“I won’t last, baby. And you’re not ready.”
“I am ready. I’ve been ready since I put on that trench coat and
walked into your office.”
He slides his fingers between us and strokes around my swollen
nub. “I want y
ou to come as hard as I’m going to come. After what you
pulled in there, I want to hear you scream.”
His hot, wet mouth closes around my other nipple. He sucks it into
a peak then bites carefully. Pleasure pain shoots to my core, and my sex
clenches around him.
“God, baby, I like to feel your response. He bites again. I clench
and moan.
“Please, don’t torture me.”
His eyes crinkle. “Almost there.”
Another kiss, harder this time, demanding, possessing. Trembles
start in my core and spread outward to my fingers and toes. My eyes slit
closed and I rock my hips against him.
“Now, baby. Let’s go for a ride.” He moves. Finally. In and out, the
rhythm of his thrusts sending shockwaves through my body, winding
me tighter and tighter until my fingers are pressed deep into his flesh.
“Don’t stop. Don’t stop.”
With a low laugh, he puts his hand between us, and slides his
thumb firmly up and around the aching bundle of nerves at my center.
Up and around, over and over, slicking so near where I want him to go,
I want to scream with frustration.
My voice becomes one long, uncontrollable whimper as he continues
to pound into me. I am overwhelmed by sensation. The rough wall in my
back, the cool silk brushing over my skin, the sharp tang of his cologne
mixed with the sultry fetid scent of the alley, the sensual taste of him on
my tongue, the intense, all-consuming need for release. My mind blanks.
“That’s it, baby. Just feel.” His fingers slide over my clit and he
pinches. Hard.
Suddenly the alley sheets white and I explode. Spasms of intense
pleasure rip through my body, and I arch my back and scream.
Max’s mouth covers mine, swallowing the sound of my orgasm.
His hands slide under my bottom and he drives farther, deeper, chang-
ing to a hammering pace. With one last forceful jerk of his hips, he
groans and swells, pulsing against my sensitive, swollen tissue. Another
wave of tingles rolls through my body.
He holds me tight against him and presses his forehead against mine.
“Christ, Makayla,” he mumbles. “What you do to me.”
What I do to him? What about what he does to me? Never in my
wildest dreams would I have ever imagined having sex in a back alley
with a man I know so little and care so much about.
After one last, soft, sweet kiss, he lets me down and we straighten
our clothes. He leans against the wall and holds me, his chin resting on
my head, as if he doesn’t have a boardroom full of clients waiting for
him. The traffic hums past, people laugh, a bird tweets overhead. We
hold each other in comfortable silence until finally, he pulls away.
“You’ll never get rid of me now,” he says as we head back into
the building.
“I wasn’t planning to get rid of you. Who else will appreciate my
new penchant for dirty talk?”
We reach the elevator and he spins me around to face him. “You
said you wanted to talk about something.”
My cheeks flame. Will he think I tried to seduce him to get my
way? “I…um…it’s not that important.”
“It’s important to me.”
I bite my lip. “I…was wondering…if maybe you needed someone
to do first aid at the club during the week, or even during the day on the
weekend. If you did…I’m free. You wouldn’t have to pay me what you
paid me before. I’m not really worth that much. But—”
His eyes soften and he cups my jaw and strokes his thumb over my
cheek. “You want to work more often at my club?”
I nod, not sure where he’s going with this.
“Despite your issues with violence?”
I nod again. “Working on gym and training days isn’t really a
problem. The problem is watching the fights.”
“So I would see more of you?”
My lips quiver. I hadn’t really thought of that. “I suppose so.”
“And this is a request you thought I might refuse?”
I shrug. “You might not need another employee or not want to
take one on. It’s just… I enjoy being at the club. I like being able to
help people. I like the guys and I like spending time with you. But I
understand—”
His hand fists in my hair and he tilts my head back, cutting me off
with a gentle kiss.
“If you need money, baby, just ask. But I know you’re proud and
if you want to work for it, you work as many hours as you need to. You
are an incredible asset to the club. Everyone loves you. The pay stays
the same.”
My eyes fill and I try to pull away, but he cups my face with his
hands and holds my gaze. “Anything you want from me, Makayla, baby,
you can have.”
Ah. So sweet. The moment is ruined only by the hum of a floor
polisher, the ding of the elevator, and the slither of guilt up my spine. If
I didn’t need the money, would I have offered to work at the club? But
more troubling, do I feel the same way about him?
Chapter 19
This One Is Quite Wet
Four days later I spill the entire debt collector story to Charlie over
a box of donuts at a local donut shop. He offers to help. I refuse. My
mother never once accepted money from friends or family when we
were on our own, and I can’t bring myself to do it either. Self-reliance is
one lesson I learned well. I already feel like I’m betraying her by working
for Max and being overpaid.
“So what are you going to do?” He licks each of his fingers before
sticking them back in the box.
“I’ve got a second job at Max’s club.”
Charlie waggles his eyebrows and picks up a chocolate dip. “Why
work for the billionaire boyfriend? Why don’t you just hit him up for
some cash? You could promise to work it off in the bedroom.”
“He’s not a billionaire.” I bite into my sugary sweet honey glazed.
“No private jet. No yacht. No helicopter. No glider. No security team
shadowing his every move. He has a successful company, and he seems
to be financially comfortable, but our outings so far have been pretty
sedate. He’s as close to a regular guy as they come.” Except for the ropes
and D-rings on the desk.
Charlie frowns. “I thought you said he had a butler and a chauffeur
and a limo and a kick-ass pad.”
I shrug. “He said he entertains a lot of clients. I think those are all
business expenses. And his club is just a big warehouse. It isn’t like those
top-class MMA facilities with mirrored fitness studios and high-tech
equipment. He’s not really the type of guy to splash money around.”
Charlie snorts a laugh. “That’s why he blew one million bucks to
keep you out of Doctor Drake’s clutches at the auction.”
“He bought a necklace.”
“He bought you. A man spends money like that; a man thinks he
owns you. Don’t forget it.” He licks chocolate off his fingers and pulls
out a cruller.
The door opens and a cool breeze dissipates the thick yeasty smell
of baking donuts. I shiver and shrug on my sweater. A man in a brown
jacket with sandy brown hair takes a seat at the table beside us and
orders a coffee.
“You still haven’t told me where he’s taking you tonight.”
“The Symphony Gala.” My lips quiver with a repressed smile, and
I blow on my fingernails and rub them on my shirt.
Charlie’s eyes widen. “No way! That’s super swanky. I wouldn’t call
that sedate.”
I grin and lean over the table. “I KNOW. I’m so excited. I’ve never
been to a society event before. He’s even buying me something to wear
from a little boutique he knows.”
“DO NOT drink anything.” Charlie’s smile fades and he waggles a
finger at me. “You know what happens when you drink too much. You
need to act classy. Don’t embarrass him.”
I lean back in my chair and sigh. “Don’t be overly dramatic. I’ve
matured since the beer pong incident.”
Charlie snorts a laugh. “I thought you said he caught you playing
strip poker on the weekend.”
“That’s different. I knew what I was doing. I can even remember
some of it.”
The man in the brown jacket chokes on his coffee and dabs at his
lips with a napkin.
“Moving off the topic of my drunken exploits,” I say, “you’ve been
chomping at the bit to tell me something, so spill.” I bite into a Bavarian
cream and watch my thighs expand. Charlie licks his fingers and spears
another chocolate dip.
“I slept with Doris.”
“You’re kidding!” I lean right over the table. “You and Big Doris?”
Charlie blushes. “We had a lot to drink at the Heart 2 Heart benefit.
One thing led to another and suddenly we were in her bedroom.”
I snort and spew donut across the table. “Naturally. After a woman
slaps you in a public place for stealing a kiss, of course you would want
to sleep with her.”
“Anyhoo.” Charlie leans in and breathes donut in my face. “This is
where it gets really interesting.”
“I was interested from the second you said you slept with Big Doris.”
Charlie looks around and then takes a bite of his donut. “The
minute the door closed, she was all over me. She tore off my clothes in
a frenzy of lust and then she—”
“Big Doris?” I interject, more to save my innocent ears than
for clarification.
Charlie nods.
“Big Doris tore off your clothes in a frenzy of lust?”