Hindrance (7 page)

“Wow, you are such a sore loser,” he said, grinning down at me. “You might want to let that loss sit a little better. I have the rest of my punishment to dish out.”

I looked up at him with wide eyes. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, you thought punishment meant pleasure. Well, that’s the point, isn’t it, naughty girl? You see, I’m in charge of your pleasure. It’s time you learned that. Get on the floor, all fours.”

Hours later, I was out of my mind as Aiden tortured me with his cock, his lips, and fingers. I was aroused beyond repair and still he hadn’t freed me, knowing exactly when I was on the verge and taking it away as soon as I was close. He’d slapped my hands hard every time I tried to touch myself.

“You haven’t earned it!”

Frustration rolled off me with every knowing smirk he gave. I would
never
ask Aiden to punish me again.

We lay in his bed a tangled mess as he chuckled at me pouting into his chest. My face was on fire with heat and need, and I couldn’t stop moving. I tried my best to get away from him, but he knew exactly what I would do. I was a broken mess, turned on to the point of tears as he held me tightly to him. I looked up in anger as he continued his endless release of humor at my expense. When I caught his eyes, he was back. My Aiden was back and suddenly it didn’t matter what state I was in.

“Hi,” I said, holding him tighter to me, kissing the underside of his tattoo, slowing my kiss at his nipple, biting it softly with my teeth.

“Hi,” he said, catching on. I felt his forgiveness as he looked down at me. We spent the rest of the night talking as he kept me from leaving the bed until I fell asleep.

I woke with my legs parted and Aiden’s tongue bathing me. I smiled down at him as his fiery eyes turned my greeting into begging.

“Jesus, Aiden, please let me come.” I gripped his blonde hair in an attempt to keep his mouth where it was as he chuckled, slightly sucking on my folds before pulling away.

“We’ll see.” I let out a loud frustrated groan as he licked and sipped on my swollen pussy until I was at that point and pulled away.

“Fuck, fuck, no, Aiden, please. I’m begging you!”

“And you will continue to until I see fit.” I slapped at his chest, my frustration getting the best of me as I wriggled beneath his huge muscled frame, the sight of him hard and ready only angering me further. He pinned me beneath him, sucking my nipples as he taunted me with his cock playing between my legs.

“Stop, please. I can’t take it anymore.” Closing my eyes tightly, I tried to avoid what his coaxing touch was doing to me.

“Open your eyes, Nina.” I kept them closed as he licked down my stomach. “Now,” he ordered in a sharp tone. I opened them reluctantly, only to be met with the sexiest version of him imaginable. I studied him, taking in his features and his taut muscled arms braced over me, the small amount of stubble growing on his chin.

I had done so much begging I had no choice but to stop. I was defeated.

I was punished.

Aiden stopped his assault, as if he sensed the small break in me. He took my hand, pulling me to him and leading me to the bathroom. We showered together then went downstairs. I stayed silent over breakfast, my emotions still getting the best of me as I watched him eat.

“Eat your breakfast, Nina,” he chided before taking a sip of his coffee.

“I told you I wasn’t hungry.” Wow. Even I recognized the childish tantrum I was throwing. I waited a patient and respectable amount of time before excusing myself. “I have to get to work.” I couldn’t even pretend to be civil at that point. I was burning, every muscle in my body screaming for release.

“Not so fast.” He stood, turning me away from him, wrapping his arms around me. “Today, I want you thinking of me filling you with this.” He pressed himself into my backside, and I realized how close I still was. So fucking close. “And when you finish your day,” he whispered into my ear, licking the shell and then pulling at my lobe, “choose the place and I’ll meet you there and give you the best orgasm of your life.”

He turned me to him, pulling slowly at my lips until I relented, letting him taste me fully. He pulled back, closing our kiss, his eyes intent on mine. “No touching. Don’t do it and I promise you it will feel like your first one.”

“Okay,” I agreed as he smiled warmly at me.

“I’m trying, Nina.”

“I know.” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I think we should get away, you know. Just go somewhere. No past, no future, just the present.”

“I couldn’t agree more.” I felt my heart flutter with excitement as I took his slightly larger lower lip into my mouth, sucking greedily.

“Where are you thinking?” he asked, taking his lip back and tucking it in his mouth.

“Hmm, how about I let you decide.”

“I’ll think about it today.” He swatted my ass, dismissing me.

Walking outside, I sighed happily with a greeting. “Good morning, Cedric.”

He looked at me sideways as I greeted him. If he was expecting some sort of walk of shame, he would be sourly disappointed. I buried the guilt associated with Devin as we drove back to my house so I could shower and change. When I reached the office, I kept busy throughout the course of the day, my needy sex pulsing constantly as a reminder of what was to come. I’d never been so excited. I thought about the ways he’d taken me last night, as an assured lover whose skills were phenomenal, especially in the area of knowing my body well enough to keep me in this state. By midday, I was tapping my foot underneath my desk, trying horribly to cure the unrelenting ache. As if sensing my discomfort, Aiden texted me.

Aiden: Don’t fucking touch it.

Nina: I really hate you right now.

I hit my phone. “Taylor, when is our last meeting?” Breathless, I needed this to end. I had no patience left.

“Our last meeting is downtown at four. I arranged it there because of the construction.” Our floor was currently undergoing serious renovations due to Taylor’s new position and our plans to expand.

“Give me that address.”

I texted Aiden with orders to be there at four-thirty.

It dawned on me suddenly that in my hours with Aiden I hadn’t once feared for my life, or worried about the state of it. I’d simply been living it. It reminded me of a happier time. A time when …

I was so done going there.

DEVIN

I looked up from my phone to see Eileen hovering over me on the porch. Hanging up, I looked at her with bored and impatient eyes. For three weeks, I’d been in this hell. Three fucking weeks all I’d known about Nina was that she was a prisoner in her own home, alone, and without Aiden. That much was comforting.

“We need to make an appearance at the Admiral’s Club for the Marions’ birthday party.”

“No,
we
don’t.”

“Devin, for Christ’s sake, I haven’t been out of this house in three weeks!”

My head was splitting with the shriek of her voice. I needed the space as well. We were close to finding out exactly who she’d hired, and as soon as that was solved, I would have my freedom.

Glancing at my watch, I addressed her. “Ready to confess?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she scoffed as I followed her from the patio to the kitchen, pointing to the island barstool.

“Sit.” She hesitated before taking the seat.

“I want it on tape, Eileen. A video of you confessing to hiring a hit on Nina.”

“Devin, I told you, I called it off.” Her posture was that of a spoiled teenager, and I couldn’t help but reason this woman was not well. She clearly had more going on than I’d ever cared to understand. I almost felt bad for what I was about to do.

“This is a divorce decree.” I laid the paperwork in front of her. “This is the title for the plantation. I’ve signed it over to you. You can have all of our assets except for my boat. It’s all there. I’ll call Byron over and we can finally finish this.”

She looked at me as if I was an idiot. “You want this in exchange for my confession that I tried to kill your whore? Devin, it won’t happen.” She crossed her arms confidently across her chest after pushing the paperwork back in my direction.

“Yes it will,” her mother snapped behind her. “Stupid, stupid girl, did I teach you nothing?”

Eileen froze in her chair, sweat instantly beading on her forehead. Her mother had always been her kryptonite. I cursed my stupidity in my earlier attempts to sway her on my own. My greatest ally was in the woman who had ruined her. It took very little to convince her mother about Eileen’s latest evil deed, which is why she decided to intervene, for the sake of reputation. I’d only lightly threatened to take the ordeal public in an attempt to persuade her. In exchange for my freedom, I would take away my wife’s. Eileen would be spending the next ninety days under observation at the Charleston Mental Institute. When bargaining with her mother, I agreed to complete discretion as she ‘sought the help her daughter so desperately needed’. Eileen looked at me with tears in her eyes.

“Take the plantation, marry Thomas, and let me go.” She looked at her mother, wide-eyed and full of excuses.

“He’s speaking nonsense, Mother. His claims are ridiculous.”

“Give him what he wants, Eileen. Clearly you have failed him.” I felt the snap in Eileen then; it was tangible. It was also a beacon of hope for me. She picked up the pen and put it down, swiping her hand in the air.

“No, I’m not doing this again. Not without—”

“Byron,” I called as he entered the kitchen. With her mother and lawyer present, I was free. I had no doubts, but stayed as my wife unraveled, apologizing to her mother, and refusing to look at me.

I grabbed my keys as I heard Byron’s briefcase click shut. A celebratory drink at the club may just be what I needed.

Game over

A text came through, making my blood boil.

She was at his home last night.

And I was so close to gloating.

I sent a text of my own.

Devin: YOU CANNOT HAVE HER.

NINA

I finished my meeting with ten minutes to spare. Preparing the conference room, I frosted the privacy glass, turned on the radio, and ordered chilled champagne. For some reason I was nervous as I waited on Aiden. I opted to do the deed where my meeting was held, a comfortable lounge with plenty of seating. I’d suffered through twenty-five minutes of ass kissing only to hand over money I would have willingly given without prompting. Aiden was all I saw, his attempt to keep my attention solely on him had paid off and I was just about to show him how much. I wondered where he decided we would escape to.

Away with Aiden was becoming more appealing by the second as they ticked by. Adjusting my skirt, I smirked knowing I was pantyless underneath. There really was no point with Aiden.

Lying back on the oversized, leather couch, I closed my eyes briefly. Moments later¸ I felt his fingers trail up my leg, keeping my eyes closed, my slow smile revealing to him I was awake.

“Hey, beautiful, keep them closed.” His voice moved over me like a warm blanket and my body instantly responded. I did as he asked, his touch sending a welcomed shiver down my spine in anticipation. “Have you thought about me today?”

“Yes,” I replied, my voice heated.

“And,” he said, prompting for more.

“And what?” I breathed out as his hand pulled away. I could feel his presence sitting on the table next to me then heard the pop of the champagne.

“And how did I fuck you?” Two glasses were poured as he waited on my reply.

“The first time, from behind and hard, the second time, laid out in your bed. And it lasted much, much longer. The third time …”

“Tell. Me.”

“Aiden,
please
touch me.” I was already writhing.

“Tell me, naughty Nina.” His hand resumed its strumming on my legs, and I opened them in invitation, which he took. He paused when he realized I was already bare then slid his fingers through my drenched folds, feathering my clit then thrusting them inside. My body arched up at the intrusion, but he pushed me down then caressed my pebbled chest through my dress.

“So naughty,” he breathed into my ear. “This has been waiting for me all day.” I could hear the evidence of my arousal as he fingered me viciously. “And the last time I fucked your pussy, Nina, how did I do it?” Rough fingers explored me, my eyes still closed as I reveled in the feeling, still on the verge of explosion. “Tell me.”

“Lower.”

“And you will have it all. Keep them closed.” He pulled me to standing then led me across the room, placing my hands out in front of me until they touched the glass wall that surrounded us. Slowly lifting my skirt up, he kept it bunched around my waist, smoothing my thighs with his hands before pulling me back and stretching me before him.

“Keep them closed or you won’t get my cock, Nina.”

I nodded. Panting, I spread my legs further for him without him asking. I heard the zip of his jeans and my adrenaline spiked, kicking my need into overdrive.

Please, please, please, please.

“You sure you want this?”

“Aiden,” I warned.

Just as soon as my warning was heard, I felt the burn in my scalp as he wrapped his fist in my hair and buried himself to the hilt in one long thrust.

“Oh, God.”

“Keep them closed,” Aiden rasped on a promise of more. I pounded my hands against the barrier as he fucked me hard and fast, the build growing intense and unbearable.

His thrusts were frantic, hungry, and animalistic, and I welcomed each one with my moans. His hand came down hard on my ass as he pulled my hair, keeping us tightly together with brute force. Another whack at my skin and I was bucking back onto his cock, my body trembling with the need for release.

Thwack. Thwack. Thwack. Thwack.

Each slap of his hand became harder than the last and it sent me reeling. As I screamed his name I felt the rush of orgasm. Aiden gripped my hair even tighter, making my eyes tear up as he pressed my face into the glass.

“Open them.”

Blinding ecstasy ripped through me as I shuddered and pulsed, completely unaware of my surroundings. I screamed in pleasure as wave after wave hit me, praising his efforts, and losing myself completely in my body’s release. It continued on and on as Aiden reached around, massaging my clit in quick strokes, spurring it further, making it last.

Slowly Aiden massaged my singed skin as I focused my attention on the sight before me. Realizing Devin’s eyes were on mine, I cried out in surprise then jerked back in revulsion before looking up to Aiden, whose eyes were trained on Devin. Devin was sitting alone in the lounge adjacent to the conference room, a drink in hand, and completely focused on me. Unshed tears lay heavy as Devin watched me scramble to cover myself, pulling my skirt down.

“Oh my God,” I breathed, watching Devin’s expression go from surprise to devastation.

I looked to Aiden for answers and saw the glass remote in his hand. “Aiden … why?”

He looked down at me with a smirk. “Shall we go face the music?”

Incredulousness turned to rage as I watched him physically gloat, his eyes remaining trained on Devin. “How could you fucking do that to him?”

Aiden’s eyes drifted to me in mild surprise. “You chose this place. And, baby, I thought I told you I’d claim you anywhere.” He pulled me to him as I punched at his chest furiously.

“How could you do THAT!”

He gave me an odd look. “It was pretty fucking perfect, don’t you think? Weren’t you the victim when he was fucking his wife on his desk? Isn’t that what you told me?” Looking between them, it dawned on me.

“This isn’t about justice for me, though, is it?” Aiden looked down on me with contempt.

“It wasn’t about him. It had nothing to do with him until you brought him into it!” he countered.

“I didn’t invite him here!” I whirled on Aiden. “You thought I wanted this? That I am
capable
of this!”

“You didn’t plan on having him out there when I fucked you?” He seemed genuinely unbelieving as I studied him.

“Jesus, Aiden, and you would go along with it? This is who
you
are?”

I looked back to Devin, who was now standing, drink in hand, an odd expression passing over him. Grabbing my purse, I walked out to him, unable to deal anymore with the look on his face. “I didn’t know, Devin. I swear to God I didn’t know you were sitting there.” I couldn’t look at him as I pleaded my worthless case. I heard glass shatter, looked in that direction, and saw the splintered remnants of Devin’s glass had fallen short of Aiden’s step out of the conference room.

What was I thinking having Aiden meet me at the fucking Admiral’s Club where Devin and I met? I was sure Devin would think this was purposeful.

Everything went in slow motion from that moment on as Devin rushed Aiden in a bloodthirsty rage. It dawned on me then that the look I saw on Devin’s face was resolve; he intended to kill him. I heard the sick crunch of bones as I braced myself for war. Devin landed blow after blow as Aiden took the first few in an attempt to taunt him.

“Come on,
cousin,
you can do better than that,” Aiden urged as he took another solid blow to the face.

I screamed as they crashed through the glass table in front of me, Devin getting the better of him before Aiden—who had him in both weight and size—landed a hard blow to his midsection, knocking him off balance. Devin recovered in mere seconds, unfazed as I rushed to him before he went back in.

“Please, Devin, stop. Please. Stop. I’m so sorry, stop!” I was pushed out of the way as he roared, moving toward Aiden, his intent clear. I screamed for help as a bloody and now defeated Aiden took blow after blow, his face reddening with each one. Several people came running in from what looked like a private party to aid in breaking them up. Devin was uncontrollable, as it took five men to finally pull him off. I stood, mouth gaping, at the animal Devin had turned into, his eyes fixed on Aiden. Cedric came in moments later, sheer panic written on his features.

“YOU’RE LATE!” I screamed at him as he gave me a sharp nod in guilt before pulling me away. I looked to a bloody and battered Aiden who seemed pleased with himself for getting the best of Devin’s temper, while Devin looked to me completely broken. I let out a sob as Cedric pulled me out of the door.

“Where were you?” I was berating Cedric as I tried to wrap my mind around what had just happened.

“Downstairs with Taylor. I was only there for five minutes. You were safe inside the room with Mr. McIntyre.”

“Not really,” I said, the adrenaline crash making me dizzy as Carson drove us home. “I’ll never be safe with a McIntyre and that’s the sad truth of it.”

Aiden thought me capable of being a monster and now Devin saw me as one, as I had him. I ignored my emotion from the look on Devin’s face as I purposefully numbed myself.

No more. It was all over and I did not intend to entertain any of it further.

Aiden
wasn’t
perfect and his only flaw that I knew of lay within his contempt for a man I still loved. It made him the bad guy, and I’d had enough of the bad guy. I took a trusty Xanax from my purse and saluted Cedric with the bottle while throwing my phone out the window and into the Atlantic as we crossed the bridge.

“You are going to be so bored.” I toasted him as he took the bottle away, allowing me my one pill.

There was absolutely nothing to think about or mull over. I was completely done with both men. I had never been more certain.

As I slipped into a medicated sleep an hour later, I was thankful for the pull into darkness.