Three Hard Lessons (35 page)
A sweaty, heaving chest pressed against me and the heart trapped inside was pounding like it wanted to break free from its cage. Which would be okay, since he had mine as a backup.
I turned my head to the side, my gaze fixed on those striking eyes.
“Mine,” I whispered to him.
“Yours. Forever.”
chapter
THIRTY
EIGHT MONTHS LATER
I stopped viewing Chase Sports as the enemy when they helped secure my visa. Sure, they dominated Dominic’s time, and he hated his shitty office and repetitive work, but it was temporary. We’d be home in four months.
Four more months in Tokyo I could deal with. It was late summer now, and the cherry blossoms were beautiful. Romantic. One of the things I was sure I’d miss when we returned to Chicago. But there was plenty I wouldn’t miss too. We’d always be treated as foreigners – second-class citizens, by everyone except for Akira and Yuriko. I didn’t fault the Japanese for it. It was just the culture.
It was early Tuesday morning in Tokyo when I called Evie on Skype.
“Hey!” she said, her warm eyes smiling. “Your flight still on time?”
“Yeah.” I took a sip of my drink that was more vodka than orange juice and received a knowing smile from her. “I’m going to wake Dominic up in a few minutes and then we’re on our way to the airport.”
Her and Logan’s wedding was Saturday, and Dominic had gotten ten days of vacation approved for it. I hated being so far away and a crappy maid of honor to her, but Evie handled it gracefully. She wanted us to be happy, and this annoying living situation was something both Logan and she dealt with. They understood it was necessary, plus they got a pretty sweet apartment out of the deal.
At least I’d be in Chicago early enough to throw an epic bachelorette party and give Evie plenty of time to recover before the big day. Dominic had mentioned he had a similar plan for Logan.
“I can’t wait to see you guys, you know, all life-sized,” she said.
I chuckled. “I’m right there with you.” The webcam was getting old. Four more months, I reminded myself. “I was just calling to let you know your wedding week officially starts as soon as my plane lands.” I held up my drink. “I’ve already started, but I’ll text you when to start doing shots.”
She laughed. “Wedding week? Logan’s mom has already turned this into wedding month. But okay, I’ll have a bottle of tequila at the ready—”
“Where the fuck’s my morning blowjob?” came from the doorway to our bedroom. I looked over to see Dominic standing there, his hand disappearing into his boxers. He thought this was Meredith since we’d started talking regularly on the weekends. Dominic loved to make his sister uncomfortable with his now-famous catchphrase.
“Wow,” Evie said, an eyebrow raised.
“I gotta run.”
“Yeah, sounds like it,” she teased, her eyes sparkling. “Have a safe flight.”
“See you soon.” I shut the laptop and set my eyes on him.
He sauntered over and dropped down beside me on the couch. “Was that Evie?”
“Yeah.”
He nuzzled into my neck.
“We need to get a move on,” I said.
One of his hands fumbled for my breasts, oblivious that I wasn’t reciprocating. His other hand found mine and put it on his boxers, like I needed guidance.
“We’re going to be late, and you told me that word doesn’t exist here.”
He continued to ignore me and his wicked mouth ghosted kisses on my skin. Dominic knew exactly what he was doing and how to turn me on. He’d learned every inch of my body in the ten months we’d been together, but there was more to it than just that. We’d fallen deeper in love than I could have imagined, and the connection between us was so hot I could barely catch my breath around him.
“Okay, seriously,” I said, trying to break free from his seduction. “Didn’t you get enough last night?”
His eyes glazed with lust. Yeah, bringing that up hadn’t been the best idea, because now we were
both
thinking about how insane it had been. Yuriko and Akira had come over to play.
We didn’t see our Japanese friends that often. Between all of our jobs, including mine where I taught English, it was hard to get schedules to align. They’d arrived late and we’d gone immediately into the master bedroom. There was a hierarchy within our group, but last night it had shifted slightly. I’d stood over Yuriko with the crop in my hand, punishing her under Akira’s instructions while my fiancé translated. The memory of Dominic’s sexy words in my ear while his hands stroked inside my panties made me burn hot. Then the memory of the rush of power and the satisfaction on Yuriko’s face cranked the temperature up to an unbearable level.
“Shit, now I’m all turned on,” I groaned, “and we’ve got a thirteen hour flight.”
Dominic pulled me onto his lap so I was straddling him. “What are you whining about?” He grinned widely. “You don’t do slow, so let’s do fast.” He ground his hips up into me. “And hard.” His mouth crashed against mine as his hands tore at my clothes. “I bet I can get you to come twice in the next ten minutes. I’ll even let you decide how.”
My body shuddered as I thought of all the ways he could do it. “You know, I fucking love you.”
“You fucking love me, or you love fucking me?” His voice rasped as he yanked my shirt over my head and tugged my bra down.
“Yes.”
He glanced at my half-empty breakfast cocktail and faked seriousness. “I hope that’s not just the booze talking.”
“Real, Dominic.” I laughed. “Always real.”
Always.
THANK YOU
To my husband. I am the luckiest girl in the world to be loved by you, and I promise to never forget that. Thank you for forever.
To my beta reader Robin Bateman. You are awesome on so many levels, it isn’t even funny.
To my editor Lori Whitwam. Some day I’ll figure out when to use lie vs. lay, and stop saying ‘that’ when referring to people. Thanks for sticking with me, and I can’t wait to work together again.
To my publicist Neda Amini for twisting arms to get people to read a brand-new author who you believed in.
To all the bloggers out there who helped
Three Simple Rules
find readers, especially: The Sub Club, Schmexy Girl Book Blog, Dirty Laundry Review, Agents of Romance, The Rockstars of Romance, Dirty Girl Romance, Paranormal Book Club, & True Story Book Blog.
IF YOU ENJOYED THE BOOK
What had originally started as a novella and bloomed into a full-length novel, then a series, has been an absolute joy to write—one I could not stop, much like a drug. Thank you so much for taking the time to read Payton’s story. If you enjoyed it, would you be so kind as to let other readers know via an Amazon review or on Goodreads? Just a few words can help an author tremendously, and are
always
appreciated!
PRAISE FOR THREE SIMPLE RULES
"Three Simple Rules is a smoking hot read that will have you hooked from the first page. Nikki Sloane is a hot new erotic author to watch for."
-The SubClub Books
"Get ready to be hot and bothered because Nikki Sloane creates the perfect erotic storm and you will love getting caught up in it!”
-Agents of Romance
“Hot, sexy, steamy, and so much more, Nikki delivers a story that will keep you begging for more!"
-Bella from PBC
"Undeniably explosive, flirty, and addictive... We were hooked!"
-The Rock Stars of Romance
"A slick, captivating, and incredibly sexy book. Sloane injects humor and depth into a compelling story, and ensures readers will be back for more."
-SM Book Obsessions
THREE
SIMPLE
RULES (Book 1 in The Blindfold Club Series)
I would do anything for my dream job. Now I have to.
In order to save my skin at the office, I'm forced to sell it at an exclusive and illegal blindfold club. He paid thousands of dollars for one night to own me, but when my blindfold comes off, I want more. More nights, more rules, and more from this unavailable and uncompromising man.
Rule number one, no questions. Rule number two, no lies. But, rule number three? That's the hardest one to obey.
THREE
little
MISTAKES
"My club began to dominate my focus. So dark and illegal, the smell of it didn't wash off for days.
And I fucking
loved
it."
Joseph,
owner of the Blindfold Club
___
Get to know him
Summer 2015.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nikki Sloane landed in graphic design after her careers as a waitress, a screenwriter, and a ballroom dance instructor fell through. For eight years she worked for a design firm in that extremely tall, black, and tiered building in Chicago that went through an unfortunate name change during her time there. Now she lives in Kentucky and manages a team of graphic artists. She is married and has two sons, writes both romantic suspense and dirty books, and couldn’t be any happier.
Website:
NikkiSloane.com
Contact her on Twitter:
@AuthorNSloane
Hook up on Facebook:
Nikki Sloan, Author
Send her an email: [email protected]
Text copyright © 2015 by Nikki Sloane
Cover photography © Shutterstock Images
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Paperback ISBN 978-1-507-58189-6
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