HIGHER (The Indigo Lounge Series) (18 page)

Chapter Twenty-Three

She stared down and realized her
fingers were gripping his hard ass cheeks through his jeans. Face flaming, she
released him slowly, letting her fingers linger over his tight glutes.

He set her down, and smoothed
back her hair, his eyes filled with humor and hunger. Her vision swam with the
headiness of being close to Zach and knowing she could soon have him again.

Eyes on her face, he slowly
cupped her breasts and played with her nipples. Then he lowered his head and
sucked one tight bud into his mouth.

Head falling back, she grabbed
his arms to keep from buckling. He suckled and teased until she groaned from
the pleasure rocketing through her. When he was satisfied he had her on the
knife-edge of delirium, he pulled back.

“You ready for me to show you how
the horse works?”

She gave a jerky nod. He turned
her to face the smooth, faceless gadget.

It was chest high and made of
expensive, highly polished wood set on an inch-thick black granite platform.
The horse’s neck was wider than normal, she guessed because it could offer the
rider a chance to ride backward while lying against its neck.

The saddle was equally as wide
with twin curved seats. With one hand bracing her stomach, Zach leaned forward
and slid his hand underneath the front saddle.

A smooth whine followed a click
and a small crack opened in the saddle. The finger-like gadget that rose
brought another blush to her cheek.

“Touch it,” Zach crooned in her
ear.

Lifting her hand, she brushed her
finger against the pale finger and felt its vibration. He pressed another
button and two more openings three inches long appeared on either side of the
finger. Soft rubber tubes rotated outwards in a slow rhythm.

“Those two are called
pussy-spreaders,” he whispered in her ear. “They hold you nice and open while
the finger goes to work on your clit. Normally, I’d object to anything touching
you, but I have a feeling I’ll have my hands full behind you.”

Without giving her warning, he picked
her up and placed her on the back saddle. He waited until she had a leg on
either side and was grasping the saddle before he let go.

Eyes fixed firmly on her, he
unbuttoned his jeans and kicked them off.

Naked and rampantly aroused, he
was so breath-taking, she felt dizzy just looking at him. He caught her staring
and smiled. One hand grasped his thick cock and he lazily stroked himself. With
the other, he smoothed her hair over her shoulders so the long
chocolate-colored strands drifted down her back.

“You look so fucking gorgeous up
there, Peaches,” he muttered gruffly. He stroked himself again and a drop of
pre-cum glistened at his wide head.

She didn’t realize she was
licking her lips until he gave a hard groan. “As much as I want that mouth on
me, I want inside you more. Slip your feet into the stirrups and slide into the
front saddle. Then slowly lower yourself down for me,” he instructed.

Bracing her hands on the wide
saddle, she did as he asked. Wild sensation shot through her body as the
gadgets went to work. The spreaders parted her wet folds and kept her parted as
the fat finger vibrated against her sensitive clit. “Oh…oh, God!”

Zach’s face darkened as need and
rough envy tightened his features. “Having fun without me, baby?”

She shook her head quickly. “It
just feels…different.” Nothing would ever beat the touch of Zach’s hands and
mouth on her but the gadget had been created for a reason and that reason was
making her core scream with even more hunger for Zach. “I want you.”

His nostrils flared wide. “You’ll
have me. Cross your hands behind you, baby.”

Breath fracturing out of her
lungs, she complied. Releasing his cock, he circled her waist with his hands,
pressed her down harder onto the gadget as he flicked the tip of his tongue against
her nipples.

The twin sensation at her breast
and between her legs ripped sharp cries from her lips. Wet heat oozed between
her legs and her whole body trembled as pleasure slammed into her.

After a full minute of the
studied assault, he trailed his mouth up to her neck and gently nipped on her
earlobe. “Did you like that?”

“Yes,” she gasped shamelessly.

“Good.” He placed one foot into
his stirrup and swung himself into his saddle.

His strong thighs bracketed hers
and heat from his body immediately engulfed her. One hand slid around her waist
and his thick cock brushed against the crease in her ass.

“Perfect,” he crooned,
anticipation thickening his voice even further. Somewhere behind her, she heard
another electric whine and the horse tilted forward slightly, exposing her more
from behind. Zach caressed her ass, squeezing her smarting rump before parting
her from behind. She turned and watched his face as he stared down at her ass.

His tongue rested against his
bottom lip and his eyes, when they reconnected with her, raged with lust. “Are
you holding on, Peaches? This
will
get a lot rough.”

She gripped the saddle in front
of her and tried to breathe.

Hard hands gripped her waist and
tilted her even further forward. Her clit pressed harder into the vibrating
finger and she felt the head of his cock nudge her entrance

“God, baby, you have no idea how
fucking incredible you look right now.”

“Fuck me, Zach. Please.” She felt
as if she’d been waiting for an eternity for this. As if the other times these
past two days had meant nothing because she’d been in charge and not him.

She’d never believed herself
submissive, but feeling his total power over her body, obeying his every
instruction, sent her excitement shooting up another few hundred notches.

His fingers slid along her crack,
fingered her hole before plunging a finger inside her. She squeezed around him
and his breath hitched.

“Christ, you’re so ready for me,
aren’t you?”

“Please…” She angled her ass
closer, desperate for him to take her.

After several long seconds of
lazily finger-fucking her, he withdrew. She bit her lip and waited.

The first thrust lifted her off
her seat. Zach buried himself deep, not taking the time to let her accommodate
him. She screamed as ecstasy ripped through her core. He filled her so
completely her vision blurred.

“Do you feel me, baby? Do you
feel how hard I am for you? This is what you’ve done to me. Are you pleased
with yourself?”

“Y…yes,” she gasped.

“Good. Because I fucking adore
you for it. I live for this, Bethany. To be with you like this.” He lifted her
and plunged her back down on his rigid length. Another grunt ripped from his
throat. “Every day. Every night. This!”

Stupid tears rose in her eyes,
crashing against the pleasure, the pain and the fear of what the future held
for them. “Oh, Zach,” her voice broke as emotions shook her body.

She wanted to blurt out the words
slamming through her brain but she bit her tongue. She would only tell him when
she knew it meant something to him, not because he demanded it. They both knew
it was there. For now, she would hold it in her heart and express it another
way that didn’t need the words.

His grip tightened and he fucked
her hard, relentlessly. As ever, sharply in tune with her body, he lifted her
off the saddle every time she hovered on the brink of orgasm. Without the
clitoral stimulus, her headlong rush into bliss was curbed. He slowed down long
enough for her excitement to abate before he set the raw, blistering pace
again.

He fucked her without mercy,
until her hair grew damp and sweat poured down their bodies. At one point, he
banded an arm around her waist and twined her hair in a tight hold, using it to
control his thrusts.

When he started to lift her
again, she shook her head, her need wild and uncontrollable. “Please, Zach, I
want…God, I need to come.”

“And I need to make you
understand how I felt this past week, baby,” he said hoarsely. “You keeping us
apart may have seemed like the right thing to do for you, but it shredded me.
So I’m taking this.
Because I fucking
need it!
”

The pain in his voice sent a
shaft of echoing anguish through her heart. Weirdly, and as much as she wanted
the release that clawed through her, she understood his need to conquer her.

They dealt with their issues
differently, she realized that. She was the retreat-and-lick-her wounds type
and he was the stick-together-no-matter-what type. By withholding herself from
him, she’d wounded him.

“Zach?” her voice was barely
above an audible croak.

“Yes, baby?” he rasped back.

“I understand.”

His breath punched out. He leaned
into her and his stubbled jaw brushed hers. Banding both arms around her body,
he brought her down hard onto his cock with a rough growl. “Thank you.”

From then on, all she could do
was hold on tight as he ravaged her. He eventually allowed her an orgasm;
followed by several more in quick succession once he was satisfied her
surrender was complete.

When she became too boneless to
move somewhere in the early hours, he arranged himself on a leather recliner
and settled her on top of him, her body on the opposite side to his. Spreading
her thighs wide, he lazily licked her throbbing pussy.

The soothing movement made her
melt even more. But beneath her cheek, his cock was beginning to grow again.

“No obligation at all, Peaches,
but you can suck me off if you want,” he said in between licks.

His superhuman recuperation
skills had long ceased to amaze her. Feeling drowsy and languid, she grasped
his cock and stroked him. Holding him was a treat she didn’t think twice about
foregoing.

“How about a hand job?”

She felt a smile against her
inner thigh. “That works for me too.”

She stroked him until the need to
taste him grew too strong to deny. Then she ended up giving him exactly what
he’d asked for. As he drew closer to losing control, his antics between her
legs altered, grew more urgent. He sucked, licked, bit and ravaged her as if he
hadn’t already spent hours feasting on her.

Renewed hunger tore through her,
sending a shuddering climax pounding through her seconds before he filled her
mouth with his hot, gushing seed.

After they caught their breaths,
he picked her up and headed for the bedroom. As they passed the horse, heat
stormed into her cheeks.

“You know I’ll never be able to
ride a horse with a straight face ever again, don’t you?”

His laughter was deep and
supremely satisfied. “I hope you won’t. From now on I want everything
meaningful in your life to remind you of me.”

The dark possessiveness in his
voice sent a pulse of pleasure through her body. Zach may be irrational in his
demands, but it turned her on that he made them anyway.

Walking her to the bathroom, he
washed her from head to toe, then washed himself as she dried her body. They
fell into bed and he pulled her close. Just as she was about to fall asleep, a
thought brought her wide awake.

“What happened with your
attorneys?”

Zach’s jaw tightened and a hard
light entered his eyes. “Karim didn’t turn up for the conference call.”

Her heart lurched. “You think
it’s because of the photo?”

His jaw clenched and released.
“Yes.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Find a different route to make
him play ball.” He tilted her face and looked into her eyes. “I promise you,
Bethany, one way or the other, this will be resolved.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

“Morning, Peaches. Time to wake
up.” Warm lips kissed along her shoulders and down her spine.

She groaned and buried her head
deeper into the pillow. “Why? It’s Saturday. And it’s stupidly early,” she
protested.

“I want to hit the pool.” He
trailed his lips from one dimple above her ass to the other.

“And you want me to leave my warm
bed and come and watch you swim. What’s in it for me?”

He worked his way back up and
nuzzled her earlobe. “A newly energized lover who may give you a poolside fuck
if you come keep him company.”

She groaned again. “You just
spent half the night fucking me, Zach.”

He paused at her neck. “Is that a
complaint?”

She knew better by now, so she
shook her head. “Throw in a coffee and I’ll consider your offer.” Even as she
said it, the smell of freshly ground coffee hit her nostrils.

He pulled away. She turned over
to see him smiling and holding out a steamy mug. “I know how grouchy you get
without your caffeine fix.”

Accepting the cup, she took a
grateful sip. He got out of bed, naked and unashamedly magnificent. At the
door, he paused and stared back at her. “You coming?”

She stared down at her naked
state. “I need to throw on some clothes first.”

His mouth compressed. “You don’t
need to but if you insist, you can grab a T-shirt from in there.” He pointed to
the dressing room and walked out.

She took another sip and set her
cup down. Zach might have no compunction walking around butt naked but she’d
never felt comfortable walking around in the buff. She didn’t think she ever
would.

Walking into his dressing room
was like walking into a shadow of Zach’s lingering aura. His smell and potency
permeated the room and she had to force herself to focus on finding a T-shirt
instead of sniffing in the air like an eager puppy.

By the time she got to the pool,
his huge body was cleaving rapidly through the water. Watching him swim, much
like watching him do anything, was a heady experience. The man was a fucking
god amongst other men, with a stamina that defied reason.

He’d set a timer by the poolside
and it read fifteen laps done already.

She made her way slowly to the
side of the pool where he’d found her last night, took two steps into the water
and perched on the edge. The water lapped her legs as she finished her coffee.

Setting the cup aside, she leaned
back on her hands and continued to watch Zach.

God, he really was magnificent.
The timer hit sixty laps and he continued to swim, his energy not showing signs
of depleting.

Recalling him expending that
energy on her last night, her belly grew hot. Heat arrowed between her legs and
she bit her lip on a soft moan. By the time he hit eighty-five, she was
struggling to breathe.

Jesus, she was so pathetic. And
helplessly addicted to everything about Zachary Savage - his inhuman strength,
his determination, his body.

Her legs slowly slid open and
water lapped against her heating sex. She rocked her hips and sensation built.
Her eyes started to drift shut and her breath grew shallower as memories of
last night rushed into her mind.

He’d feasted on her like a man
starved for a century. And she’d loved every single minute of it.

Dimly, she heard the timer beep.
She opened her eyes to see him stroking toward her, his wet hair slicked back
and his magnificent eyes taking in her shameless stance.

“I see you started without me.”
His eyes lingered on her peaked nipples, visible through his T-shirt before
drifting down.

“Watching you swim made me hot,”
she confessed breathlessly.

His eyes dropped to her open sex
and his nostrils flared. “And wet.”

His hands surged out of the water
and traced her inner thighs. One thumb brushed her clit and a cry ripped from
her lips.

“I can’t get enough of you,
Zach.”

Grey eyes grew molten hot and
ravenous. “I never want you to. I want you to remain as insatiable for me as I
am for you.”

Rising like an ancient sea god
out of the water, he bore her back, parted her thighs wider and delivered the
poolside fuck he’d promised.

***

The rest of the day passed at a
steady pace of final preparations for the IL trip. Since she needed to do
nothing on the actual flights, she concentrated on double and triple checking
the arrangements for the ground events.

At about midday, Zach received
another phone call from his attorneys. Her heart tripped over as his face hardened
and he walked away from where he’d been sitting next to her in the living room.

She forced herself to concentrate
on her work but when he remained locked in his study for two straight hours her
anxiety started to escalate.

What if he never found a way
round the non-disclosure agreement? Zach had shown her in Paris that his
integrity meant a great deal to him. She had no doubt that there was far more
than his integrity at stake here. But it was still a major issue. Knowing he
would hate himself if he ever had to compromise that too in order to find a
solution round his promise he’d made her heart ache.

When he emerged just
mid-afternoon, his hair was in disarray from raking his hands through it and
his jaw was set in a tight knot. Not that he looked anything less than
jaw-dropping in his designer khaki shorts and white T-shirt.

She rose and went to him. He
caught her in his arms and kissed her like she was his lifeline and he was near
death.

When he reluctantly set her free,
she looked into turbulent eyes. “On a scale of one to zombie apocalypse, how
bad is it?”

One corner of his mouth twitched
upward. “The fires have started and the bodies are stirring.”

The rock of despair that had
lodged beneath her breastbone that last night in Marrakech and never really
gone away, dropped into her belly. She witnessed that same despair in his eyes
and smoothed back his hair. “Do you want to get out of here for a while?”

“Unless we’re using the chopper,
it may not be wise. Philip tells me there are reporters downstairs.”

Her despair grew. “Taking the
chopper to go get an ice cream cone wasn’t quite what I had in mind.”

He smoothed a strand of her hair
behind her ears. “Sorry, baby. I can arrange for the ice cream to come to you?”

She frowned and shook her head.
“Not quite the same thing. But does that mean I won’t be able to go home to
pack for the IL trip?”

“I have a service that you can
use. Or we can get you new things. Is there anything in particular you need
from your place?”

She nodded. “My passport.”

He grimaced.

“I suppose I can get Keely to go
get it for me.”

He thought for a moment and
nodded. “It’ll give you girls a chance to catch up too. I’ll even make myself
scarce if you want me to.”

Her mood lightened. She gave him
a quick kiss. “Thank you. I’ll call her now.”

He caught her hand as she started
to walk away. “Does that win me brownie points?”

She smiled, feeling lighter than
she had five minutes ago. “It does indeed, Savage. And you’ll gain even more
when you answer my question of the day later.”

To his credit he didn’t flinch or
look uneasy. The only sign of his distress was the slight darkening of his eyes
and the shallow rise and fall of his chest as he nodded. He kissed her fingers
and released her.

Her smile widened as she walked
away to call Keely. Her man was doing better. He was willing to attempt change
in order to keep her. There were a great many things out of her control.
Maintaining an open channel of communication was one she would fight tooth and
nail to hang on to.

Keely was in a much calmer mood
when Bethany called.

“Dinner at your rich boyfriend’s
Upper East Side penthouse in exchange for a quick trip to your place? Why not?”
There was mild snark in her tone but Bethany chose to overlook it. Keely was
still smarting and Bethany didn’t really blame her. She would forgive her in
her own time.

She gave her the list of things
she needed and hung up.

By the time she returned to the
living room, Zach was once more shut off in his office.

Trying not to let it affect her
mood, she returned to the living room and continued working.

***

Zach walked into the kitchen as
she was uncorking the bottle of red Keely had chosen from Zach’s extensive wine
collection. He’d changed out of his shorts and T-shirt into a pair of slim
black chinos and another indigo shirt.

He crossed over to her side, took
the bottle from her and carried on with the task.

“Everything okay, Miss Benson?”
His glance held a touch of wariness which Bethany found cute.

Keely rolled her eyes. “It’s
fine, Savage, you can call me Keely, I won’t bite. As to my state of being,
it’s nothing a hot new
interesting
boyfriend won’t cure. The men I’ve been attracting lately bore me rigid.”

Zach nodded seriously. “I know a
few guys. I’ll make some calls.”

Keely’s eyes widened. “Whoa, hold
your horses there, Savage. I can find my own dates, thanks.”

“And I can put you in the
position where you can assess and select your next…conquest.”

Keely’s head whipped to where
Bethany stood at the kitchen counter. “Is he seriously trying to set me up?”
Without waiting for an answer, she turned back to Zach. “I bet you can’t find
me one hard core nerd among all your high flying friends.”

“Is that a challenge?”

Bethany groaned. “Oh God.”

Zach lifted a brow at her and
Keely glanced between them. “What did I say?”

“He devours challenges for
breakfast. And more often than not, he sees one where there is none.”

“Oh. Right. Well.” Keely smiled
and Bethany watched Zach’s reaction to her friend’s traffic stopping smile. To
his credit, he didn’t react. She released a breath she hadn’t realized was
trapped. “If your heart is set on winning some sort of challenge, then by all
means, have at it.”

“What are you doing next
weekend?”

“Why?”

“We’ll be in Amalfi. I’ll fly you
over and you can join us for a dinner party. I’ll invite a few friends.”

Keely’s mouth dropped open.
Bethany tried to keep hers from following suit. “Umm, I’ll check my calendar
and let you know.” Her eyes met Bethany’s with a
WTF just happened
expression clear in her eyes. Bethany fought not
to laugh.

Zach poured the first glass and
offered it to her. Then he slid one to Keely and set the bottle on the counter.
Going to the fridge, he took out a bottle of water and walked over to Bethany.
His kiss was short and sweet but no less mind-altering.

“Thai food will be here in
forty-five minutes. Is that okay?”

She nodded. “Great. Thanks.”

He nodded to Keely and walked his
fine ass out of the kitchen.

Bethany eyed her best friend.
“Are we good?”

Keely rolled her eyes. “Of
course. My diva fit needed to be thrown but I’d never stand in the way of you
going after what you want. You know that, right?”

“Bethany nodded. “Thank you.”

Keely glanced back at her. “So,”
she drawled, thoughtfully passing a forefinger over the rim of her wineglass.
“He doesn’t really strike me as a ruthless killer of first wives.”

“He isn’t,” Bethany replied, the
knowledge a rock-solid certainty in her gut.

Keely nodded. “Are we one hundred
per cent certain of this?”

“I’m in a relationship with a
rich, powerful guy who wears his secrets like a second skin, Keel. Nothing is
ever one hundred per cent guaranteed. Do I think he’ll take a butter knife to
my throat while I sleep? I’m certain he won’t. Am I terrified that I still
don’t know him nearly as well as I want to and that I’m falling harder for him
regardless? Fuck. Yes.” Her breath shuddered out.

Her best friend studied her for
several minutes, then leaned forward and covered her hand with hers. “I hear
you. But Aunt Keely wants to know, what now?”

Bethany clutched her glass
tighter and tried to smile through the anxiety storming through her body. “Now,
I stay the distance and see where this takes me.”