Steele Trap (Heart of Steele) (4 page)

Chapter Seven

Now, six years and at
least a dozen of her dad’s employees under her belt, Ashley was an accomplished
lover. As she grew more confident and went after older and more sophisticated
men, they taught her moves and positions that captivated any man she wanted.
Oral sex was her specialty, and she prided herself on being able to bring a man
to tears with her talent. Jake had a treat in store, finding out just how grown
up she was.

Jake carried her easily
through the door into his bedroom and deposited Ashley gently upon the bed. He
stood back and observed as she curled into a seductive pose, in the process
somehow removing her jeans. Jake's mind and body both responded to the sight.
She was some hot stuff!

It had been a while
since Jake's last encounter with a woman, and never with one this hot since he
usually waited for a woman to approach him and the hot ones seldom wanted the
competition. Jake could see himself in the mirror and plenty of women given him
to understand he was good-looking, but it didn’t matter to him. He could never
figure out why women placed so much stock in looks. They all felt good in his
arms.

Jake considered where
to start, since Ashley's body offered a smorgasbord of places to receive his
favor. But, Ashley took matters into her own hand, after swiftly unbuckling his
belt and unzipping him. He swelled to attention, escaping through the gap in
his shorts.

"Oh, my, that's an
impressive sight," she said.

As far as Jake knew, he
was about average. The last time a chance to observe occurred, back in high
school gym, he didn't seem to be much bigger or much smaller than any of the
other boys. And no one had told him differently in the meanwhile. But Ashley eyed
him like a succulent bratwurst, and before he knew it, engulfed him all the way
to the root. Oh, god. This was going to be something.

Jake stood on shaking
legs as Ashley plied her most practiced wiles. Her head bobbed rhythmically,
and she applied a deeply arousing pressure as she sucked on the up stroke. But,
something else, something different, was going on, too. It felt so damn good,
at first he didn't even try to identify what was happening. Then, it clicked;
Ashley had formed her tongue into a firm, blunt point. On the down stroke, she
used it to trace circles right above where his sac attached to his cock. Then,
the point would drag all the way up the middle of the shaft on the up stroke,
and she would hold the tip in her mouth as her tongue traced around the crown.
He had never felt anything so incredible in his life.

All too soon, though, she
stopped what she was doing, and scooted back onto the pillows. Ashley patted
the bed.

"Are you going to
join me?"

As a matter of fact,
nothing would have stopped him, but without a doubt it would be a mistake.
Ashley seemed immature for her age, making him uneasy, as if he were taking
advantage of a kid even though he was only two years older. On the other hand, he
harbored no doubt that she knew exactly what she was doing. It took just half a
second for his better judgment to be overwhelmed by his lust, and he suited the
action to the thought.

When he took her into
his arms, Ashley surprised him by the way she curled into him. From aggressor
to vulnerable in one second flat; how did she do that? It brought out the
protector in him, and he held Ashley close as he stroked her back and kissed
her. He only now realized she was so small. Ashley's confident stride,
assertive manner and the way she dressed gave the impression of someone much
taller than her, what, five-four? His hands roamed her curves and cupped a
buttock, the perfect size to fill his hand sweetly. Ashley's hands captured him
again and were causing the most delicious sensations. Jake kissed her more
deeply, and shifted her so that her breasts, which were previously mashed up
against his chest, now sprang free. His hand roamed from her ass to her thigh, and
he stroked her there while dipping his head to taste a taut nipple.

Soon Jake overcame his
misgivings; dismissed from his thoughts even that the girl in his arms happened
to be the spoiled daughter of his most important client. Her responsiveness
fascinated him. Whatever he did with hand or tongue, her body rose to meet
them. She sighed her pleasure, murmured his name, and all the while, kept
squeezing and stroking that part of him that would soon need its release. He
covered every inch of her torso with wet kisses, and dipped a finger into the
mysterious depths before finding the sweet bud that caused her to cry out.
Overcome with the desire to make her melt completely, he scooted down and used
his tongue to find it again. He stayed until Ashley cried out and went rigid. When
he rose to finally enter her, to Jake's delight, another crashing orgasm came
on the heels of the first. As he thrust, she milked him with internal squeezes
and it was all he could do to wait. He wanted to last as long as possible,
never wanted this bliss to end. But, after long minutes when nothing existed
except their two bodies, working in rhythm to bring the two of them all the
pleasure they wanted, he anticipated his explosion would be soon.

"Baby, I'm
coming," he managed to gasp, and then the world went blank for a while.

When Jake slipped out
of her and gathered her into his arms again, Ashley lay stunned. What had
happened? She had set her intention to sleep with Jake, but assumed that, as in
most of these encounters, she would be in charge. Somehow, Jake took control,
and what control! No other lover had pleasured her so completely, so
unselfishly. Certainly not that asshat Dirk. Now, when she would typically be
getting ready to leave and break the guy's heart by refusing her favors again,
she wanted to stay within the circle of Jake's arms until morning. Every
morning from now on.

While she enjoyed
Jake's slow strokes and warm embrace, Ashley reasoned with herself.
It would
never work. I don't want a blue-collar worker for a husband. And if it lasted
very long, Daddy would find out. Who knows what he would think?
For the
first time in her life, Ashley also considered her lover.
It might ruin
Jake, if Daddy disapproved.
But the most insistent thought was that she
wanted more of what Jake had given her.

Now the only thing to
figure out was how to get it while regaining control. Jake was something more
than she expected, and she sensed that it wouldn't be easy. She started working
on it by employing a familiar tactic.

"So, now you've
fucked the boss's daughter. How do you feel?"

Jake turned a pained
expression on her. "I felt great until you said that." Jake didn't
bother to tell Ashley that she had it wrong, that her dad was his client, not
his boss.

"I guess I feel
like I could be in trouble. What do you think?"

"I think you're in
trouble all right, because I want more. And I usually get what I want."

The spoiled brat was
back; no doubt about it. Jake didn't like this side of Ashley much, but he
didn’t think there would be much he could do about it. He'd have to take the
bad with the good.

"Well, if that's
what you mean by trouble, bring it on!"

Ashley laughed in spite
of herself. No matter how long this lasted, it promised to be fun.

Chapter Eight

"And then he
fucked me 'til my eyes rolled back."

Rebecca Sue sat back on
the bed, breathless. "Wow, he sounds like a stud!"

"You better believe
it! I'm gonna keep him for a while. Maybe keep him on the side forever. I've
never been so satisfied in my life."

Ashley, as usual, gave
Becky the low-down on her latest conquest. And this time, she saw with
satisfaction, Becks was green with envy.

"What about you,
Becky? Anything happen with Dirk's friend?"

"Oh, sure, but
nothing like that! A little foreplay, a quick boink and then he took me home.
But at least he called me after that night. Dirk's friends are usually so lame
they won't call."

Ashley didn't
understand it. Becky was a pretty girl, with a knockout figure. In fact, they wore
exactly the same size, which was why it worked so well for Becky to wear her
clothes. They looked spectacular together, she thought. A wave of affection for
good ol' Becks made her lean over and give her best friend a hug.

"You'll find Mr.
Right, Becks. You're beautiful, smart and a lot nicer than me. But remember to
be picky, ok?"

Ashley should have
taken that advice for herself, but Becky understood that Ashley's promiscuity
was something other than simply being a slut. She wished it would stop, though.
She was afraid, had been afraid for years, that Ashley was going to get hurt.
If not physically, possibly she would fall for some married guy and get her
heart broken. Loyal to a fault, though, Becky would never voice her misgivings.

Faced with a long
afternoon and nothing in particular to do, the girls decided to give each other
mani-pedis, the same way they used to do in high school. When Jessica passed
Ashley's room later, all she could hear was the girls giggling over something.
She smiled, content with the knowledge that her stepdaughter was happy and safe
at home. Nothing could have pleased her more, except an engagement. She made a
note to herself to call Sissy Johansson and ask her if she thought that son of
hers would ever pop the question. After all, Ashley was twenty-one. By the time
they threw an engagement party, waited for a respectable-length engagement and
a year to plan the wedding, Ashley would practically be an old maid of
twenty-three.

After nearly a week,
Jake hadn't called. Ashley was upset, but too proud to show it. Hadn't she
wanted to keep control? Well, this might be the way to do it. He probably
expected her to make the first move, since she had been the one to chase him at
first. She needed a way to make that move while making it seem like a favor
that she noticed him. If she went to see Daddy, something would come to her.

An hour later, dressed
in a way her dad would like, in a feminine sun dress and sandals, her hair held
back by girlish barrettes, Ashley breezed into Wally's office to give him a
kiss on the cheek.

"Hi, Daddy!"

"Hi, baby girl.
What brings you here? Shouldn't you be out shopping with your stepmom, or your
little friend?"

"Oh, Daddy, stop
calling Becky my little friend! You act like we're ten years old again!"

"You'll always be
my baby, so your friends are all your little friends." Wally grinned to
let his daughter see he was kidding. "Seriously, Baby, what can I do for
you? Do you need some money?"

"No, Daddy, thank
you. You deposited my allowance into my account less than a week ago,
remember?"

"Oh, of course.
No, I forget. It's all automatic. So what
can
I do for you?"

"Do you remember I
went to apologize to that Jake who works for you?"

Giving up on trying to
straighten out Ashley's assumptions a second time, Wally simply nodded his
head.

"Well, he acted really
nice about it. I just wanted you to know so you can give him a bonus or
something."

"That's sweet,
Precious."

"Will you do
it?"

"Baby, that's not
exactly…"

Seeing Ashley begin to
pout, Wally tried to think of something he could do that wouldn't be weird.
Then he remembered he had tickets to Maroon 5 at Red Rocks. He had purchased
them as a surprise for Ashley and thought that she would take Dirk, but maybe
she would be happy to give them to Jake instead.

Wally said, "I've
got just the thing, if you don't mind."

"What, Daddy"

"Well, I got you
Maroon 5 tickets, and, well, if you want to give them to him, or take him as
your date instead of Dirk, that would be more proper a gesture, I think, than a
bonus."

"Daddy, that's
perfect! But, you don't care if I date him?"

"Why should I?
He's a fine young man. Will Dirk mind?"

"I don't care if
he does. He's a jerk. Don’t you remember? He went somewhere without even saying
goodbye, and hasn't returned my calls for over a week!"

Wally didn't realize
that Dirk was still off on his mysterious errand, but it worried him. "No,
Precious, I didn't. I'm sorry."

"Oh, I'm sure
we'll make up someday, but right now I'm mad at him.'

"Well, it's
settled anyway." Wally got the tickets out of his desk drawer and handed
them to her. "Do you want to deliver these, or shall I send a
courier?"

"Oh, I'll do it,
Daddy. Thank you!"

Throwing her arms
around him, Ashley gave her father a big hug. "I love you, Daddy."

"Love you, too,
Baby," he said. His baby girl had made his day.

Chapter Nine

After Ashley left his
office, Wally recalled his financial troubles, though, and sank into a blue
mood. Would he ever again be able to give his precious girl the gifts and
treats she deserved? The board meeting loomed, and if something didn't break in
the situation with Johansson, he would have to liquidate his personal assets to
return the unauthorized loan to the corporate coffers. Even that wouldn't keep
him out of court if any of the board harbored a grievance with him.
Embezzlement wouldn’t be erased by returning the money. His board might still
oust him and bring criminal charges, but he had hand-picked every one of them,
over twenty years ago, and had made them wealthy men in the interim. He hoped
they would be mollified by his willingness to make the loan good from his
personal assets.

It was time to call
Dane Johansson again and lean on him. Wally picked up the phone.

After an annoying wait
while Dane's gatekeeper made it clear that she was doing him a huge favor by
putting him through at all, Johansson's voice came over the speaker.

"Dane
Johansson."

"Dane, it's Wally
Steele. What have you got for me?"

"Wally, good to
hear from you. I was just going to call you."

"Oh, is that so?
Well, sorry for jumping the gun." Wally understood that Dane, a perpetual bullshitter,
had no intention of calling, but Wally might as well play the game.

"Oh, no problem,
no problem. Always glad to hear from an old friend. Yes, I meant to tell you
that Dirk has been making progress. We should have a positive outcome in a week
or so."

"Dane, you know as
well as I do that I don't have a week! If that money isn't back in the
corporate account by Wednesday, I'm going to have to get on my knees to my
board to stay out of jail. You need to do something, and do it before that."

"Wally, I don't
know what I can do that fast."

"Well, figure it
out. I'm looking at selling my house and cars, even Ashley's car, and emptying
my bank accounts to make good. If I have to do that, I swear I'll ruin
you."

Dane's voice went
frosty. "There's no need to make ugly threats, Steele." Silence on
the line meant he had hung up.

Steele was incensed. No
one treated him that way! As he did a slow burn, Wally's resolve hardened. If
anyone had looked into his office right then, they would have discovered why
Wally Steele had been known by a different nickname twenty years ago when he
had barely started in the mining and smelting business. Stonewall Steele made
an appearance, after being asleep for more than fifteen years. Once again, he
picked up the phone.

Jake Daniels, balancing
high on a steel beam when his cell phone vibrated in his pocket, nearly jumped
to his death. He told himself, not for the first time, that he really should
remember to take it off vibrate when he went up on the beams of one of his
jobs. Settling himself firmly into a corner where two beams met, he pulled the
phone from his pocket and answered.

"Jake
Daniels."

"Jake, Wally
Steele."

"Oh, hi, Mr.
Steele. What can I do for you?"

"Well, first, my
daughter's on her way to deliver a couple of concert tickets to you. It would
be a personal favor to me if you took her to the concert as her date."

Jake pulled the phone
away from his ear and looked at it as if it had suddenly become something
strange and exotic. Returning it to his ear, he sought an answer.

"Did you say
concert tickets?"

"Yes. You like
music don't you? Don't all young people like music?"

Bewildered, Jake
answered, "Well, sure. I mean, I like some music. What's this all about,
Wally?"

"Ashley wanted to
make a gesture because you were nice when she apologized."

"Apologized?"

"Yes, for some
hullaballoo with Dirk Johansson."

"Oh, that! It was
nothing, you don't have to give me concert tickets."

"It's done, Jake.
Ashley has a way of getting what she wants, and she's my only child. If she's
happy, I'm happy. So, will you accept the tickets and take her to the
concert?"

"Of course, if
that's okay with you." Jake had a very guilty memory of something he was
sure wouldn't be okay with Wally, but he wasn't about to mention it.

"Yes, yes.
Perfectly fine. Say, Jake, I wonder if I might ask you another favor?"

"Anything I can
do, Wally, I’ve told you that."

"Can you nose
around Dane Johansson's build again? He's stonewalling me on payment, and I'm
going to be in a bind within the week. I guess he sent his son to do something,
but it doesn't seem to be working. I'd like to find out what the son is up to,
if you can find out, and whether there has been any movement in
negotiations."

"Sure, Wally. I'll
run over there after Ashley gets here, and get back to you this evening or
tomorrow."

"Make it this
evening, Jake. Call my cell phone. This is urgent."

"Will do."

Jake shook his head as
he disconnected. It seemed to him that Steele was pulling him into family
business far too much, but he didn't have an idea quite what to do about it.
His own financial health was tied up in this job, even though he had four other
crews working other projects. None of them was as big a deal as this. When this
one wrapped up, he would have the capital to expand into developing, not just
building for other developers like Steele. He needed to help Wally or kiss that
dream goodbye. As for Ashley, he decided she was a force of nature. He would follow
her lead.

Ashley made sure to glance
above as she parked her little red sports car at the construction site this
time. She asked the first man she saw where to find Jake, and he pointed up
into the steel-framed structure. Her mouth fell open as she looked up. There
was no way she could climb up there. She was spared further scheming when she
saw an elevator descending with a familiar mop of blonde curls escaping their
bandanna, over the safety barrier.

"Hi, Jake,"
she called when he reached the ground. God, every time she saw him his looks struck
her afresh. A sudden desire to take him right there in front of everyone
brought the blood to her cheeks. But, she calmed herself by the time he reached
her.

"Hi, Babe."

"I've got
something for you."

"Another blow
job?"

"You are
bad," she giggled. "That could be arranged. But what I
meant
was Maroon 5 tickets."

"Oh, hey, that's
cool!" After his crude remark, even if it had been said in jest, it would
be a good idea to show enthusiasm.

"There's a string
attached."

"Oh, I knew that
was too good to be true."

Laughing, she punched
him lightly in the bulging bicep. "You are certainly in a frisky mood
today! I should take you down a notch."

"I'm sorry."
Jake rolled his beautiful aqua-ice eyes and hung his head as if dejected.

Matching his
playfulness, Ashley put her arms around him. "Oh, it's okay. I forgive
you. The string is, you have to take me to the concert. Please?"

"Babe, I'd be
delighted."

Taken aback, Ashley
wondered what had gotten into him. Where was all the hesitation? She expected
to have to threaten and cajole, like the last time. This wasn't going exactly
the way she planned, but she was nothing if not adaptable. Instantly becoming
the purring kitten he liked in his bed last week, she gave him a coy flick of
her eyes and smiled.

Now it was Jake's turn
to be wary. This Ashley was way too attractive to him. Every time she gave him
those big eyes, he turned into Tarzan or something, wanting to fight the bad
guys for her.
And I'm already committed to fighting some for her dad
, he
reminded himself. Jake took Ashley into his arms, kissed her and said,
"Babe, I'm sorry, but I have an errand to run for your dad. I need to get
going."

Ashley put on a
disappointed pout and said, "But I haven't seen you in so long!"

"I'll call you
tonight," he promised. "Maybe we can get together."

"I'll be
waiting."

Jake would have to come
clean with Big Jim to get any significant information, so he timed his visit
for shift end. Waving at his acquaintance, he signaled Big Jim to come over to
his Silverado.

"Buy you a
beer?"

"What do you want,
Daniels."

"Some security on
MY job. Can we talk?"

"Yeah, I'll take
that beer. But let's go somewhere my crew won't see us. I don't need to be seen
fraternizing with the enemy."

Gesturing for Jim to
get in, Jake responded, "Aw, now, is that any way to be? We have a different
philosophy, is all."

"You underbid
us."

"And you've got a
slush fund to dip into to match my bids. We're not enemies, Big Jim. In fact, you
might say our interests are in alignment right now."

"How so?"

"Your guys want to
get back to work if the safety issue can be resolved, right?"

"Right."

"Well, for
confidential reasons, I need your guys to get back to work, too."

"Confidential,
huh? Does it have anything to do with the fact that our client and your client
are in bed together?"

"I wouldn't say they're
in bed. Your client is about to royally screw mine, though."

"Okay, so let's
say you're right, and our interests are aligned. What do you have in
mind?"

"I asked Steele
whether our materials are coming from Johansson's manufacturing plant, and they
aren't. If Johansson can get replacements for you within your budget, you'll
have no reason to continue the strike."

"There's the
slight matter of back pay."

"I think he can
get a draw from his construction loan if you guys go back to work. What do you
say we talk to Steele, see if we can get him to back your play."

"I guess it can't
hurt."

Once Jake introduced
Big Jim to Wally and explained his idea, he would leave it to the other two to
implement it. He didn't need to be in the middle. Unfortunately, Steele had
left his office for the day and wasn't answering his cell phone. It would be
Monday before they could reach him, unless Jake took Big Jim to Steele's house.

He wanted to think
about that before he did it; it might be presumptuous. Bidding Big Jim goodbye,
he said he would call if he found a way to see Steele before Monday. It had
been a long day by now, and besides, he had a date to call a girl.