“No, that’s not it. Tomorrow the hard part begins.”
Chapter 8
Knox’s goons look reluctant when he tells them he’ll be driving me home himself. But they know better than to argue with him. We walk silently through another corridor then exit the garage through a back door. The alley is dark, but the moonlight glistens on the silver sports car.
“I’m taking you home myself so I can check your home for bugs. So, when we enter your apartment, don’t say anything until I give you the all clear signal.”
He presses the key fob to unlock the car then opens the passenger door for me.
“What’s the all clear signal?”
I slide into the passenger seat and he pauses to watch me pull on my seatbelt. “I’ll let you know when it’s all clear.”
The hum of the engine tells me this is one powerful ride. Powerful and silent. We slip unnoticed through the streets of Manhattan. I’m surprised I wasn’t blindfolded again. Now I can see that we were in a garage in Harlem.
There are so many questions I want to ask him as we drive toward midtown. Mainly, I want to know if this sexy, self-possessed man is Marco. His face only looks like Marco in the sharp edges of his chiseled cheekbones. And his eyes. I’m certain I’d recognize those eyes anywhere. But his nose is different; a bit broader. And the dimple in his chin is gone.
We arrive at my building while I’m still contemplating his face. He pulls his expensive car into a guest space in the underground parking lot. Then he grabs my hand before I can exit the car.
“Remember: Don’t say a word. There could be bugs everywhere. Even in the elevator. Got it?”
I nod, already practicing my tight-lipped act. Eager to please this complete stranger. He smiles as if he can hear my thoughts.
We ride the elevator up to the fourth floor. He follows closely behind me as I lead him to my door. Before I can turn the key in the lock, he places his hand over mine.
“I’ll go in first.”
He finishes turning the key, then hands it back to me, his fingers brushing lightly over my palm. He holds my gaze for a moment, a fiery glint in his eyes. The left corner of his mouth curves upward, beckoning a carnal pull in the center of my core. Letting out a soft chuckle, he turns back to the door. I swallow hard and take a step back as he slowly pushes the door open.
The apartment is pitch black, just the way I like it.
“The light switch is—”
He shushes me and a swell of anger overcomes me. I didn’t leave Bensonhurst four years ago only to get mixed up in another one of my dad’s schemes. I’m about to tell him to leave my apartment, when he turns around. He’s smiling as he points at the light switch on the wall. That smile is so disarming. I nod and he flips the switch.
He presses a finger to his lips to indicate the need for silence, then he continues into my apartment. While he searches the kitchen and the bathroom, I grab myself a glass of ice water, to cool myself down after that intensely hot gaze and irritating shush. When he moves toward the living-slash-sleeping area, I follow him.
He sweeps the ceiling and all the walls with a bug detector device. Then he begins searching the drawers. My stomach is clenched tightly as he sifts through my closet and my dresser. When he reaches for the top drawer of my nightstand, I almost yell for him to stop. He slides the drawer open and pauses as he stares at the contents. Then he reaches into the drawer and pulls out a very large vibrator and a box of ribbed condoms.
“Please put those back.”
He shushes me again as he opens the box of condoms. Does he really think he’s going to find a listening device in there? Then he pulls out a strip of condoms. He dangles the strip from his fingers, eyeing it curiously. Then he tosses the condoms onto the bed and places the empty box and the vibrator back in the drawer.
He rounds the bed and my heart races as he makes his way toward me. Stopping right in front of me, he leans in until his lips are on my ear.
“All clear.”
A shiver travels over my neck and shoulders as he brushes his lips over my earlobe. His breath is hot and heavy in my ear. My heart races as I realize where this is going.
His hand comes forward, his fingertips skimming their way up the back of my hand and arm, my body tensing as they skate over my shoulder and land on my neck. The resolve drains from my limbs as he nudges his nose into my hair and inhales slowly. His solid chest inflates, pressing into my chest as his hand curls tighter around my neck.
I don’t know what to do. All I know is that I don’t want him to stop.
“Is that the signal?” I ask breathily.
His hand is firm as he clasps the back of my head, tilting my head to the side as he plants a deep, slow kiss on my neck. The kind of kiss that pulls at the flesh, but not enough to leave a mark. The kind of kiss that says I want to devour every inch of you, just like this. His other hand slides around my waist and down to my ass. He pulls my hips against his so his erection is stiff against my thigh. That must be the signal. A very huge signal.
Oh, God. Am I really going to do this? Am I going to cheat on August with a guy I met hours ago? When I’m sober?
As he gathers up the back of my skirt and slides his firm hand into my panties, I know the answer to that is yes. A very huge yes.
Chapter 9
I raise my hands so I can unknot his tie. But he grabs them and glares at me.
“I’ll do that,” he says, pushing my hands down near his crotch.
“But, I want to do it.”
I flash him my sexiest come-hither smile and he shakes his head.
“You’re not going to do anything,” he growls. “You’re going to lie back and pay attention as I show you what it means to be fucked, in every sense of the word. And when I’m done, you’re going to have only one choice: To do everything I ask of you. Understood?”
Holy shit. What have I gotten myself into?
Something so completely screwed up that I know there’s no way out. I’m falling further into this rabbit hole by the second. Gleefully falling in after Knox. Hoping he’ll soften the impact when I hit the bottom.
“Understood,” I whisper.
Then his mouth is on mine. The moment I’ve been waiting for. And it’s as perfect, and electric, as I imagined it would be. The way he kisses me, fast and then slow, hard and then tender, I know there’s no turning back. Because there’s no way he can deny it now.
This is Marco.
Once he’s kissed me long enough for me to relinquish all control, he steps back. “Take off your panties.”
I slip out of my panties and kick them a few feet away. He steps forward and slides his hand between my thighs. His finger quickly finds my clit and my knees instantly begin to buckle. He wraps his thick arm around my waist to steady me, caressing me slowly as my limbs grow weaker.
Then, suddenly, he jams two fingers inside me and I gasp. “Oh, my God.”
He slides his fingers out of me, spilling my moisture. He rubs my clit again, firmer this time, until I can’t breathe. Tightening his arm around my waist, he lifts me off the floor. Then he sits me down on the edge of the bed. I begin to lie back and he shakes his head.
He kneels before me, slowly pulling off his tie, then his coat and shirt. Spreading my knees slowly, he lifts my skirt to look at me. I can feel my cheeks getting hot. He lowers his head between my legs and I dig my nails into his muscular back as he devours me.
His tongue massages my hard nub until I’m certain my juices have soaked through the comforter and the sheets beneath me. My body trembling, his back screaming with red scratch marks, he finally comes up for air. The hunger in his eyes is not even close to being sated. He doesn’t just want more. He needs more.
“Take off your clothes and lie down on your belly.”
I do as he says and, when I lie down, I notice the strip of condoms. The mattress shifts under his weight as he pushes my legs together and climbs on behind me. His legs straddle my thighs as he takes my hands and p
ulls them behind my back. The smooth silk fabric of his tie is cool against my skin as he loops it around my wrists.
Pulling the knot tight, he lets out a soft chuckle. “You’ve never been on the wrong side of the law, Rebecca.” He slides a pillow under my abdomen, then he lies down on top of me, his weight pressing me into the mattress as his erection rubs against the crease of my cheeks. “I’m going to teach you a little lesson about having your freedom taken away, so you can know just how serious I am about this job.”
His hand slides beneath me to cup my breast. Then the tip of his erection presses against the entrance of my vagina.
“Wait! Aren’t you going to put on one of those?”
“Is that what you want?”
“Yes.”
“Then, no. I’m not.”
“Wait, wait, wait! No! I mean, no. That’s not what I want.” Shut up, Rebecca. He’s not going to fall for your stupid attempt to salvage this last shred of control.
He laughs again, but this time his laugh sounds a little insane. “Rebecca, I’m not going to impregnate you. I’m incapable of such things.”
I let out a deep sigh. “Please, just tell me who you are.”
“How does it feel to be in this position? Physically surrendered.” He slides his cock inside me and I cry out. “Mentally surrendered. Incapable of getting the answers you so desperately need.”
He slides out of me and suddenly I feel hollow. Incomplete. He places the tip of his cock against my opening again and I hold my breath.
“Please.”
“Please, what?”
“Please put it in,” I beg.
He teases me a bit, sliding in just an inch or two. Then he rams into me, filling me completely, and my chest trembles with desperation.
“More,” I beg. “Faster. Harder.”
He thrusts into me, using my wetness to pierce me deeper with each stroke. My arms and neck are getting tired from this position, with the side of my face pressed against the mattress. As if he can sense this, he pulls his cock out of me and presses my ass down so I’m lying flat.
He straightens my right leg then bends my left leg as he enters me from behind. At this angle, with his chest pressed firmly against my back, I begin to lose myself quickly.
The hot friction makes our bodies slick with sweat. His cock fills me, stretches me, stabs me. His mouth devours my neck as his hand massages my breast, pinching my nipple so I can feel that carnal pull in my lower abdomen. He moves in and out of me, panting heavily into my ear as his hand slips between my thighs.
“Oh, Knox!” I cry, my body convulsing.
My thighs tremble as his thrusting speeds up. He growls, a low primal roar as he bites down on my neck and explodes inside me. He holds his finger over my clit, softly caressing me as my muscles contract and release. Until I come undone.
We lie breathless, boneless as we recover. Then he slowly reaches between us and unties me. He tosses the tie to the floor and I sigh as I stretch my arms. Then a sick feeling develops in my stomach as an equally sick thought materializes in my mind.
I don’t want to be free.
Chapter 10
I wake to find the other side of the bed empty. For a moment, I consider I may have dreamed the entire encounter with Knox. Maybe I even dreamed the part where I was taken to the garage.
Then I see his tie strewn across the beige carpet next to the strip of condoms. And I hear the shower going. It was real. Knox is real.
Or is he?
I leap out of bed. I have to find out if Knox is Marco and this is probably the only opportunity I’ll have to do so. I scramble around the bed until I see his slacks tossed onto the armchair a few feet away from my bed. I dig into the pockets and find his wallet. When I open it, I’m not surprised to find no identification. All I see is a black credit card bearing the name Knox Savage.
“You’re out of towels.”
I drop the wallet and slacks onto the armchair and spin around. Knox is standing in the doorway of the bathroom completely naked. Water drips from his glistening black hair and muscular body, all over the floor, forming small puddles around his feet. My eyes flit to his forearm, scanning his skin for the tattoo of Marco’s mother’s name. His entire forearm is covered in a sleeve of tattoos.
“I’m sorry,” I mutter. “I’ll get you one.”
I move toward the closet where I keep both my clothes and my linens, but he beats me there. His arms lock around my waist as he presses his naked body against mine.
“Find anything interesting in my wallet?”
His blue eyes look even bluer in the morning light. I want to scream at him. Just tell me the truth! But I don’t want to know what kind of lesson he’ll teach me after that. Or maybe I do want to know.
“Who are you?” I ask, unable to disguise the tremor in my voice. “Tell me who you are?”
“Are you making demands of me, Rebecca?” He grabs my face, his thumb and fingertips digging into my cheeks. When I don’t answer, he pulls my face to his so our noses are touching and asks again. “Are you making demands of me?”
I don’t say anything. I couldn’t speak if I tried. My throat has closed and my mouth is dry. If he doesn’t kill me now, he will do it eventually.
He crushes his lips to mine and I fight to breathe as he ravages my mouth. One of his hands grips my ass, jerking me toward him, as his other hand finds my clit. His fingers glide right past my pleasure spot as he thrusts them inside me. He curls his fingers, massaging and searching until he finds my g-spot and I begin to crumble.
“Please stop,” I plead. It feels so good it’s almost painful. I don’t know if I can take it. As his thumb joins in to massage my clit, I shake my head adamantly. “Please.”
“Please, what?” he murmurs against my lips.
“This is too much. Please… just fuck me.”
He chuckles as he removes his hand from between my legs and proceeds to get dressed.
“What are you doing?” I ask incredulously.
He ignores me as he continues to pull on his clothes over his still damp body. He wraps his tie around his fist and musses up his hair as he walks toward the door.
When he reaches the door, he turns around and points at me with the same finger he just used to torture me. “Don’t ever fucking spy on me again, or this is going to end very badly.” He unlocks the door and pauses for a moment. “Now take a shower and make yourself pretty. You have work to do.” He reaches for the doorknob then pauses again, my heart pounding as I anticipate what he’s going to say or do next. He looks into my eyes as he slowly slides his finger into his mouth and smiles. “Be a good girl at work today and I’ll finish you tonight.”
That’s all he needed to say. A promise. There will be more, if you behave.
Chapter 11
I scrub myself in the shower, but I can’t seem to rid myself of Knox’s scent. I don’t think there’s any of him left on me, but I can still smell him. As if he’s embedded deeply inside me, in places I can’t reach.
August will be here to walk me to work in less than an hour. I have to hurry up and get dressed and blow-dry my hair. I have to make it seem as though nothing has happened. Then I can spring it on him when we get to the precinct.
August, it’s over. I’ve found a guy who can fuck my brains out. Literally. I think I’ve lost my mind in a matter of hours, but I’ve never felt better.
The doorbell rings as I’m pulling my bra out of the dresser. Shit! He must be here early hoping to get in a quick fuck before work. I glance down at myself. I’m wearing a towel wrapped around my body and another towel around my head.
The doorbell sounds again. I slam my dresser drawer shut and scramble for the door. I fumble with the lock for a moment, wondering if Knox left traces of me on it and the doorknob when he left. Pulling the door open, I’m not prepared to feel utterly disgusted when I see August’s smiling face.
I want to slap him and ask why I haven’t been invited to his apartment in four months.
I want to accuse him of cheating on me. I want to shake him so hard the truth falls out of him like loose change. But I can’t exactly chew him out when I just spent the night with someone else.
Instead, I smile and invite him inside. He leans in to kiss me as he steps over the threshold, and I allow it. In my head, all I can think is, You bastard. You lying little geek.
“Good morning, sunshine.”
He immediately walks into the kitchen area and begins putting on a pot of coffee. It’s something I usually find endearing how he supports my caffeine addiction by showing up with a skinny latte or making me a pot. Today I find it annoying.
“How did you sleep?” he asks as he fills the coffee pot with water then pours the water into the coffee machine.
“I slept great. Like a baby.”
“Really? Did you fill that prescription the doctor gave you?”
I open the dresser drawer again. “Nope. I was just really exhausted.”
“Really? What did you do last night?”
He runs his fingers through his soft blond hair as he walks toward me wearing a sly grin. The grin that says, I’m smarter, richer, and better looking than you, and I know it. And suddenly I’m reminded of the day I met August.
Lita had taken me to a dinner party at her then-boyfriend’s house in the Hamptons. Her boyfriend, Marty, was some hotshot in-house lawyer for a huge record label. August was at the party with a date, though I didn’t find this out until forty minutes into our conversation when his date stumbled out onto the patio and tried to punch me in the face.
I should have known then not to trust him. But he was so charming. And so well-dressed. The man dressed better than I did. And the fact that he dumped his date right there was equally impressive. He was sleeping at my apartment, making me coffee, and calling me honey less than two weeks later.
Yes, I fall for the worst guys. Even now, as August casts that sly smile in my direction, my stomach does a backflip. He reaches for me and my towel falls as I back up into the dresser.