Strong Reflection: Book 2 of the Dark Series Trilogy (8 page)

Seething, Kyle pocketed his ID and stormed to dressing room number 8.  He didn’t knock.  He rushed right in, scanning the entire room in an instant.  They both were in the room.  Drew was hugging Ashley, thanking her.

“Hey, Uncle Kyle, what did you think?”

In barely contained fury he spoke to his nephew in a way he never did before.  “Get out.”

Drew and Ashley looked at each other in confusion and then at Kyle nervously.  “What’s wrong, Unc—“

Kyle took his nephew’s arm none too gently and walked him to the door, “Out now!”

“Uncle Kyle, what is it?”

Kyle slammed the door on his nephew’s crushed look.
 He would handle Drew later.  Right now he wanted to deal with her!

****  

Ashley watched Kyle close the door on Drew and then lock it.  He turned to face her.  His eyes were dark with anger.  And it wasn’t the kind of anger when she disobeyed one of his directives.  Something was pissing him off to the point Ashley felt as though she should be armed.

She wasn’t.  She rarely carried her weapon when she was on vacation.  Her vacation officially started yesterday when she left work.  Kyle had been angry then too but even that didn’t compare to this!  What was wrong?

Ashley was so intimidated by the look on Kyle’s face that when he took a step towards her she took a step back, bumping a loveseat behind her.  There was no more room for her to retreat.  So she tried reasoning with him.  He needed to calm down long enough for her to find out what the hell happened.  

“Kyle, what is it?”  He kept coming until he had her by her upper arms, shaking her.  

“How could you look me in the face and say you needed time to think about us when you’ve been 
fucking
my nephew?”

“W-what?”

He shook her again, harder.  “When I think about all the time I spent at your bedside, praying for you to get better, promising myself that I’d make my move for you if you ever woke up.  Hating myself for all the wasted time, wishing I had done something about us the day after that auction.”

“Kyle, p-please!”  She tried to grip his arms to lessen the effect of his shaking.  “I would—“

“You would what, Ashley?”  He shook her again.  “Fuck my nephew while leaving me panting in the background?”

Suddenly he gripped her ponytail, winding it around his fist, reducing her range of motion.  His other hand went around her throat, his thumb caressing along her carotid.  Touching their foreheads together, he questioned, “When Ashley?  When did you give my nephew your gift?”  The hand on her throat tightened a little bit more.  “Tell me when my 
19 year old nephew
 popped your cherry?”

Ashley had a grip on each of Kyle’s wrists, trying to pull them off her.  She couldn’t budge them.  Kyle was incredibly strong.  He was aptly named.  

However, the man who had her now was not the Assistant Director of the FBI-HCD.  This was Kyle Michael Strong and he was pissed!  She wanted to knock him upside his head for even thinking such a thing about her and Drew.  Drew was like her nephew.  Nancy was her best friend.  

Several counter moves went through her mind.  But, they all involved physically hurting Kyle.  She didn’t want to do that unless it became absolutely necessary.  He wasn’t hurting her, not physically anyway.  What he was thinking about her and his nephew hurt a lot.  She could get him to think.

She whispered urgently to him, “Kyle, yesterday you said I have a very expressive face.  You said you knew I was hurt when you said your family wasn’t mine.  It’s true, I was very hurt because I think of your sister as my sister and your niece and nephew are like my niece and nephew.   Your mom is like my mom.”  He was starting to listen to her.  He released the grip on her hair and loosened the hold on her neck.  “I could never hurt Nancy or any member of your family in the way you are suggesting.”  She added emphatically, “I’d die first.”

At her last words, the anger left his eyes, being replaced with profound perplexity.  “But, the way he touched you… it looked like…?”

“It looked like what?”  Ashley prompted.  “Did it look any differently than any of the other dancers?”

He shook his head.
 Then his eyes heated up again with something other than anger.  His hands took her waist as he once again tilted his forehead to hers, keeping eye contact in this position he whispered back to her.  “Answer a question.”

Her hands were around his neck.  This time she voluntarily tipped her forehead up to meet his, holding his eyes she asked, “What’s your question?”

His eyes closed and his hands tightened on her waist.  “Are you still a virgin?”

She leaned her head back and placed a hand on each of his cheeks.
 “Look at me Kyle.”

He opened his eyes.  With him staring unwaveringly into her eyes, she told him the truth.  “I am a virgin.”  She stroked his face, caressing until her one hand covered his heart.  “And, there is only one man I ever had a dream about ‘popping my cherry’.”

He crushed her to him, taking her mouth with consummate skill!  Over and over, kiss after kiss, he took her senses on a breathtaking ride.  Their kisses blended one into the other.

They were in a heady fog until there was a hard knock on the door.  “Kyle, is something wrong?”  It was his mother.  “Drew was a little scared, so he came to get me.”

Kyle tapered off his kisses slowly, ending with a small peck to her cheek.  “Ashley Mackenzie, will you go out with me?”

Smiling, she gave the answer she had wanted to give all along.  “Yes, Kyle Strong.”

He gave her lips a quick kiss.  “That’s a yes to us being a couple?”  He elaborated, “An exclusive couple?”

“Yes.”  

“And you’ll ride with me to Newburgh tomorrow?”
 He held her eyes captive with his impassioned blue gaze.

“Yes.”

“You’ll spend our vacation together getting to know each other, becoming closer?”

“Yes,” She gave a happy laugh.  Another more insistent knock sounded.

“We’ll spend some of that time alone away from Jack and Catlyn?”

“Yes.”

“We’ll kiss, make out and do some heavy petting?”

“Yes.”  She laughed harder at his silliness.

“You’ll never disobey one of my orders again and go off after some bad guy?”

“Y—“ She started to answer but then snapped her lips shut.  Giving him a stern look she stuck out her tongue.

Kyle laughed out loud.  “I was on a roll so I thought I’d throw that one in there.”  He gave her another quick kiss before going to answer the door.

With his hand on the knob he turned back to her, “Ashley, just one more thing.”

She raised her eyebrows in question.

“No other man touches my woman, especially not my nephew, especially not in that manner.”  He held, not opening the door or moving a muscle until she answered.

“Yes, Kyle, as long as the monogamy applies to you too,” She was firm.

His smile returned, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Kyle let in his mother and nephew.

Cheryl looked at them both, taking in their cat-that-ate-the-canary looks.  “Well, I can see nothing is wrong here.”

Drew looked at his uncle.  “Uncle Kyle, you looked mad.”

Kyle put a reassuring hand on his nephew’s shoulder.  “Sorry about that, man, I didn’t mean to scare you and I apologize for the strong arm tactics.”

“So, we’re cool?”

“Always son,” Kyle winked.

Drew beamed.  Kyle was his hero.  He’d be devastated if he had somehow displeased him or if his uncle were not proud of him.  “So what did you think?”

“I have to tell you, I didn’t think I’d like this and was only going to tolerate it because I love you.”  He put his arm around Drew, giving him a one arm hug.  “But, I have to say, I’ve really enjoyed myself tonight.  The competition is so much more than I expected.  And, you guys on that stage are athletes. Some of those moves they did were impressive and all of yours were.  I am very proud.”

Tears came to Ashley’s eyes.  Kyle had made Drew very happy.

There was another knock on the door.  It was one of the event organizers.  “Team Ebony and Ivory, you’re on in 15 minutes.  Who is doing the singing, Drew, Ashley or both?”

“I am.”  Ashley said

“Ashley is singing.”  Drew said at the same time.

The organizer made a note on a clipboard, “15 minutes Ashley.  The rest of you should get to your seats.”  He closed the door.

Drew went to Ashley, taking her hands in his, “Mack, are you sure?  I know this is tough for you and brings back painful memories.  I just wanted to prove to myself and Maria that I could compete.  We can drop out if you want.”

Giving Drew a watery smile.
 “No way, we’re not done teaching that girl that nobody messes with a Strong.”

Drew laughed.  “I think she learned her lesson.”

“I like to be thorough in my teachings.  And, Drew, when she comes up to you after the show, you had better make her grovel.”

“Mack, she isn’t going to come to me after the show.  She made her choice before the show very clear.”

“Oh, make no mistake she’ll come over to you.”
 Ashley poked Drew in the chest for emphasis.  “I mean it.  You make that girl grovel to get you back.”

Shaking his head, Drew smiled, “Ok, but I don’t think I have to worry about it.”

“We’ll see.  Now scram, I have to put on the dress for my singing solo.”

He thanked her one more time, kissed her cheek and escorted his grandma out.  Kyle remained.

Ashley went behind a privacy screen setup in one corner of the room.  Her dress was on a hanger on the other side.  She stripped, ran a cool cloth over her body, removing the sweat from her dance routine.

She looked over the privacy screen while she stepped
 into fresh panties and the white dress.  Her eyes connected with Kyle’s.  She smiled at his aroused look.

“Kyle—“

“I love the way you say my name.”

Blushing she said his name again.  “Kyle,” She stepped from behind the privacy screen, walking towards him she presented him with her back.  “Can you please zip my dress?”

Kyle pressed against her, aligning their bodies, hers perfectly fitting into his.  He reached around to her front, reaching inside the loosened top part of her dress, staking claim to her breasts, kneading their fullness and tweaking the nipples.  He kissed the side of her neck as he caressed her.  “You’re going on stage braless?”

Ashley arched into him, pushing her breasts into his large hands, letting him take her weight against him.  She moaned her pleasure at his touch and titled her neck allowing him better access as he licked and suckled her neck.  Her nipples grew hard and achy.  Heated cream spilled into her thong, “Oh, Kyle.”

“Yes, Ashley?”  He whispered against her neck as she reached behind her, gripping his hips as he ground his hard dick into the cleft of her ass.

“I-I want…”

He continued to tease her, bringing her to a fevered pitch.  “You want what?  Tell me, Babydoll, what do you want?”

“You’re making me s-so wet.  I need… need…”  She cried out as his tongue flicked quicker against her neck and his deft fingers pinched and pulled her nipples.

Knowing what she needed, Kyle released her, guiding her to the loveseat where he quickly stripped the dress from her body.  He sat her down and parting her legs he knelt between them.  He gave her a quick, deep kiss.  “This is going to be quick.  Just to give you some release.”  He whispered as he positioned her legs.