Tickle His Fancy: Trident Security Book 6 (Trident Security Series) (15 page)

With long, freestyle strokes, Brody did lap after lap in his
inground pool under the late Monday morning sun. He’d had it installed this
past winter, using the company Parker had used for his own pool. His friend’s
was designed to look like a small lake, with its dark floor and walls, and
surrounded by lush landscaping, giving it an overall feel of a natural hot
spring, complete with a diving rock. While Brody loved the garden feel to it,
he had wanted a pool that was long enough to get a decent workout in; being a
former SEAL, he could swim for miles. The end result had been better than he’d
hoped for. He’d had several pool parties since it was completed along with a
Jacuzzi on the patio. The spa was in its own little alcove so he could use it
naked if he wanted to and not worry about any neighbors seeing him, especially
the four-year-old twins next door. Taylor and McKenna loved chatting with him
through the fence, and he hadn’t had the heart to change the black chain link
to something they couldn’t see through. He’d invited the girls over with their
parents for a few barbecues, and their adorableness had quickly won over his
friends. They loved when baby Mara came to visit and couldn’t wait to meet
little JD.

The entire pool/patio/spa setup was now enclosed in a screen
house designed to keep the bugs and other critters out. It also was locked from
the inside so he didn’t have to worry about the twins coming over for a swim
without their parents.

Reaching the end closest to where Fancy was lying on a chaise
lounge reading an e-book, he stopped and ran a hand down his face, wiping away
the salt water the pool was filled with. He observed her in silence for a
moment. At his urging, she’d done something she apparently hadn’t done in quite
awhile—she’d taken the day off—the entire day, just to spend it with him. Her
curvy body was yummy looking in the bathing suit she’d run out to buy on her
way over this morning. That was another thing she hadn’t done in a long time,
sit by a pool or the gulf in a bathing suit to just relax and enjoy the day.
The navy blue tankini, as she’d called it, was a two-piece suit—the top was a
body-hugging tank with a racer back, while the bottom was a cute little skirt
over an attached, traditional bikini. And she looked tempting as hell in it.

Glancing up, she gave him a smile which grew as he put his
hands on the hard patio floor and pushed himself up and out of the pool. The
water sluiced off his body and dripped from the hem of his swimming trunks. Her
heated gaze roamed his body, taking in every contour of his muscular physique
as he stalked over to her and grabbed his towel from the chaise next to her.
“Keep looking at me like that, darlin’, and we’ll spend the rest of the day in
my bed.”

Bending down, he gave her a swift kiss on the lips. As much
as he would love to follow through with his threat, he wanted her to remember
what it was like to just loll around while playing hooky from work. Her
employees were more than competent at running the place for the day, and if he
had any say in it, she would be taking a lot more days off; no one could keep
up the pace of working every day of the week without burning out. Besides, they
would be playing later tonight after a visit to The Covenant.

While they couldn’t play at the club until Fancy was fully
vetted and had a complete physical and blood work with her doctor, it would
give him a chance to observe her as she watched some scenes. The screening
process was mandatory, with no exceptions, and even Kristen and Angie had gone
through it despite dating the owners. Not wanting any members to think he skipped
over anything on Fancy’s behalf, Brody had asked Marco to do the paperwork for
her clearance. His buddy had done the club’s background checks numerous times
when Brody was busy with other stuff, so it was nothing new.

“Sorry, but I can’t help but stare,” she replied. “Your body
is amazing, and you know it.”

He snorted and then stole another kiss. “Not as amazing as
yours, sweetness. You’re rockin’ that bathing suit.” He was thrilled when she
blushed; there was nothing prettier than a woman blushing when her man
complimented her. Dropping onto the other chaise, he grabbed a bottle of water
from the cooler next to him and guzzled half of it. “What are you reading,
anyway?”

“Believe it or not, it’s Kristen’s
Velvet Vixen.
”

“Really?”

“
Um-hmm
. I started reading it a few weeks ago, but
there are days I’m too tired to read at all or I start falling asleep after a
page or two. And don’t tell Kristen that; I don’t want her to think it’s
because of her book since it’s not. I loved all her vanilla books, but she writes
awesome BDSM books.”

Gritting his teeth, he fought the urge to reprimand her about
running herself ragged and not getting enough sleep. They hadn’t signed a
contract yet, nor had they gone over her hard and soft limits. But once
everything was in order, her well-being was going to be under his direct
supervision—it was one of the main reasons he enjoyed the lifestyle. It was
instinctive for him to want to care for a woman in every way possible—he was
just wired that way.

There would be no more dark circles under her eyes, and they
would find a way to combat her insomnia, although she looked well rested today.
In fact, she’d told him she’d slept fantastically last night, the first time in
a long time. He wished he’d been the cause of her good night sleep, but he had
been on a security detail until very late and hadn’t wanted to disturb her, so
he’d gone home alone.

He finished the rest of his water. “I agree.”

“You do? You’ve read them?”

Rolling his eyes, he said, “Yeah, but don’t tell the guys
that. As far as any of them will admit, they’ve only read the sex scenes and
skipped over all the sappy romance.”

“I can’t wait to meet her. But I hope I don’t say anything
stupid because I’m totally going to be fangirling.”

He took her hand in his. “You’ll be fine. Trust me, Kristen
is as down-home as they come. I’ve seen her with her fans, and she loves them
all, treating them as if they were longtime friends. You’ll meet her on Sunday
afternoon.”

Her eyes narrowed in confusion. “What’s Sunday afternoon?”

“Just a little get together at their place for a barbecue.
Angie designed this awesome ‘backyard,’” he made air quotes with his fingers,
“on the Trident compound and called it
Ian’s Oasis.
The only thing it
doesn’t have is a pool, but it’s got everything else. Will you come with me and
meet the rest of my crazy, extended family? Kristen’s mom and stepdad will be
there and so will Boomer’s folks. Oh, and Jake and Nick are flying in, too.
Nick took a four-day leave because he’s over the moon that he’s an uncle. And I
promise, no one will bite. Besides, by then, you’ll have met most of them
anyway.”

Before she could respond, a child’s shriek, fill with terror,
came from next door. “Mista Brophy! Mista Brophy!”

He flew from the lounge and ran out the door of the screen house
to the fence. The tears and expression on little McKenna Long’s face had the
hair on the back of his neck standing up. “McKenna, honey, what’s wrong?”

As Fancy joined them, the little girl answered through her
sobs, “M-mommy. . .she on. . .the floor. . .s-sleeping
and. . .and won’t wake up!”

Shit!
Placing his hands on the top of the fence, he
said, “Fancy, call 911. She’s a diabetic.”

Not waiting for a response, he vaulted over the fence and ran
barefoot and shirtless through his neighbor’s open back door. The sight
greeting him almost broke his heart. Amy Long was lying on the living room
floor with little Taylor crying and shaking her mother’s shoulders trying to
wake her. Kneeling down, he checked Amy’s breathing and pulse. No problems
there, but her pale and sweaty skin, in addition to her unconsciousness, were
positive signs of being in diabetic shock.

Brody hurried to the kitchen and yanked open the refrigerator
door.
Orange juice, perfect
. He searched through the cabinets, found a
glass, and poured the juice into it. Then he spotted a sugar bowl on the
counter by the coffee machine.
Even better
. Taking both the bowl and juice,
he rushed back to Amy. Fancy was standing nearby talking on her cell phone with
the 911 operator, telling them what was going on, while McKenna and Taylor each
clutched one of her legs in fear. Brody gave them a quick reassuring smile.
“It’s going to be okay, girls. Just stay there with Ms. Fancy.”

Using his fingers, he took some of the granulated sugar and
placed it under Amy’s tongue and along her gums. The orange juice wasn’t a good
option until she came around a little bit and could drink it without choking.
Come
on, Amy. Wake up.

A relieved sigh escaped him when her head started moving
slowly as the sugar was absorbed into her bloodstream. Putting a hand behind
her neck and shoulders, he sat her up a little and held the glass to her lips.
“Here we go, Amy. Take a sip, sweetheart.”

As her glucose levels gradually increased, she seemed to
finally understand what he was saying and drank some of the juice, spilling
some on her shirt, but it was better than the alternative. By the time, the
police and paramedics pulled up, Amy was more alert and holding the glass on
her own. Brody stood up and let the professionals take over. He stepped over to
where Fancy was doing her best to soothe the little girls. Kneeling before
them, he held open his arms and they jumped into them, hugging him tightly.
“Mommy’s going to be okay, girls. Everything will be all right.”

“You a ’ero, Mista Brophy,” Taylor said, pulling back a
little to look at him before giving him a peck on the cheek.

McKenna put her little hand on his other cheek. “
Uh-huh
,
a ’ero! Mommy’s ’ero!”

No matter who you are, when little four-year-old twins kissed
your cheeks and called you a hero, you just have to grin from ear-to-ear.
“Well, thank you, but you’re Mommy’s heroes, too. Actually, you’re heroines
because you did what you were supposed to do and got her help.”

“We tried to call 911, like Mommy showed’d us,” Taylor informed
him. “B-But we couldn’t find her phone and the one in the kitten is broked.”

It took him a second to translate that last part as the phone
in the
kitchen
was
broken
. “Well, while the paramedics take care
of Mommy, why don’t we look for her cell phone so we can call your daddy and
let him know what happened.”

“Brody. . .” He glanced at Amy, now sitting on the
couch, to see the missing phone was in her hand. “It was in my pocket. Sorry.”

Relieved she was okay—embarrassed, but okay—he took it from
her and said, “No worries. Do you want me to call Kevin and let him know what’s
going on?”

Reluctantly she nodded as a medic checked her vital signs.
“Please. My doctor is going to have to adjust my insulin. The dosage I’m on
isn’t cutting it anymore. This was my third sugar dump this week, although the
other two weren’t as bad and Kevin was home.”

After getting ahold of Amy’s husband and assuring him she was
okay, Brody told him to meet his wife at the emergency room and not to worry
about the girls. Fancy was helping them get their bathing suits and arm
flotation thingies, while the medics were preparing Amy for transport. Brody
hadn’t missed how the wet-behind-the-ears cop, who’d responded to the
emergency, had eyed Fancy in her tankini as the children led her to their room.

Brody loudly cleared his throat, and when the uniformed man
saw his glaring, possessive expression, the bastard had the audacity to shrug.
“I’d be dead if I didn’t appreciate a fine-looking woman like that.”

“You’ll be dead if you do it again,” he growled.

The younger man grinned and held up his hands in mock
surrender. “I’ll let it slide that you just threatened a cop, but damn, you’re
a lucky guy.”

And Brody knew it. Since she’d purged her soul to him about
the accident and her loss, she’d seemed lighter, more open and free. She was
smiling all the time now as if the last of the grief holding her back from
enjoying life had finally lifted. The results made her even more attractive,
and men who may not have given the curvy woman a second glance over the past
few years were now taking notice of what they had been missing. It was almost
as she was going through a second blossoming into womanhood. And there was no
way he was letting her slip through his fingers—not when jackasses like this
were waiting in the wings for a chance at her.

“Tank you, Miff Fancy.”

“You’re welcome, Taylor,” Fancy responded as she pushed the
plate with a cut-up hotdog on it in front of the little brown-haired girl.
McKenna had just received her own cut-up meal from Brody. It hadn’t taken Fancy
long to tell the twins apart. In addition to being fraternal, not identical
twins, the girls’ personalities were like night and day. Taylor was quieter
than her sister and seemed to analyze and think things through before taking
any action. McKenna, on the other hand, was boisterous and plunged headfirst
into any situation. In the pool earlier, McKenna had been delighted when Brody
had repeatedly lifted her out of the water, high in the air, before letting her
plummet back in again. Taylor wasn’t the daredevil her sister was and preferred
to just wade in the shallow end with Fancy.

It’d been the first time since her accident and miscarriage
she’d spent more than a few minutes in the company of a child, much less two
children. It wasn’t that she didn’t love little kids, they were just a reminder
of what she’d lost. But Taylor and McKenna had quickly won her over, and they’d
all had a great time in the pool.

When the waterlogged crew had gotten out and toweled off,
Brody had retrieved a package of hotdogs from the Long’s refrigerator and
thrown them on the grill with the chicken breasts he’d prepared for Fancy and
him. While the girls hadn’t been fans of the romaine lettuce in the
accompanying salad, they had both scarfed down most of the cherry tomatoes and
cucumber slices with gusto.

It was almost 3:00 p.m. when the girls’ parents arrived home
from the hospital. Amy gave Fancy a grateful hug and apologized profusely for
ruining her day off. But Fancy wouldn’t hear any of it. “I’m just glad we were
here and that you’re all right. The girls are adorable, and we had so much fun.
I think they’ll need a nap after all the swimming.”

As if on cue, both Taylor and McKenna yawned. Their mother
chuckled as she gathered them to leave. “I think I’m going to take one, too.
Thank you again, Brody. And Fancy, it was so nice to meet you, but next time
we’ll do it without the police and paramedics.”

The family of four headed to their own house with several
more waves and thanks sent in Brody and Fancy’s direction. When they were alone
again, Fancy let her eyes trail over Brody’s delicious torso, regretting that
he was now wearing a T-shirt to cover up all that sexy, hard flesh. His muscles
rippled as he began to clean up the last of their lunch. Grabbing the salad
bowl and dressing, she followed him into the house. They worked in silence for
a few moments, putting things into the fridge and dishwasher.

When everything was finished, Fancy stepped over to Brody and
put her arms around his waist. Smiling, he bent down and gave her a kiss that
she immediately took advantage of. Heat coursed through her as she kissed him
back with all the desire she felt. This man sent her hormones into overdrive,
and right now, they were revving high. His hands delved into her hair as he
held her head in place. He pivoted until their positions were reversed and she
was pinned against the counter. Clutching her hips, he picked her up and
plopped her onto the granite. It was cool against the bare backs of her legs,
but she didn’t care. Spreading her knees wide, Brody stepped between them and
pulled her to the edge of the counter. His swim trunks were now tented with his
growing erection, and he rubbed it against her core.

Ripping his mouth from hers, he brought her hands to the
bottom hem of his shirt. “Take it off me, sweetness. Nice and slow.”

Placing her hands underneath the material, she slid them
upward over the contours of his torso, reveling in the feel of him. When the
shirt was bunched up under his armpits, she took hold of it and pulled it over
his head. With the height of the counter, she was staring directly at the notch
in his throat. Leaning forward for a lick, she whimpered when he stopped her
before she got to her prize. “
Uh-uh
, baby. We’re in D/s mode here, even
though it’s only a verbal agreement right now. That will change Wednesday
night.” She’d asked to observe some scenes at the club before completing her
limit list. She and Patrick had only begun exploring the lifestyle when they
had found out she was pregnant, and then two weeks later he was gone. So she
was still very inexperienced in the different types of BDSM play. “But right
now, any self-indulgence will earn you a punishment, which I guarantee you
won’t like—at least, not at first. Understood?”

She couldn’t help it when her mouth turned into a sexy pout.
“Yes, Sir.”

Chuckling, Brody grabbed the hem of her tankini top. “Don’t
worry, sweetness. I’ll give you time to play around in a little bit. Right now,
it’s my turn.”

He dragged the spandex material of her suit top up to and
over her head. Her large breasts bounced when they were released, and she
moaned at their sensitivity.

“Lean back a little. It’s time for my dessert, and this time,
you’re my sweet treat.”

When she followed his order, resting her head against the
cabinet behind her, he bent over and took one of her nipples in his mouth. Wet
heat almost scorched her and spread throughout her body, coming to a stop deep
in her core. While his lips and tongue tortured the one peak, his thumb stroked
over the other one. Brody’s appreciation and attention of every bit of her
flesh could only be described as a sensual worship. Maybe he was the type of
man who didn’t mind a little extra weight on his woman.
Holy shit. Where did
those words come from? Is that who I am now? Brody’s woman? Am I woman enough
for him? Or am I too much woman?
Uncertainties she hadn’t known since
Patrick had started flirting with her all those years ago bubbled to the
surface.

Pain shot through her when Brody’s open hand slapped her
inner thigh, and her eyes flew open to find him scowling at her. She’d been so
far into her old teenage insecurities and hadn’t even noticed his mouth was no
longer on her breast. “Where’d you go, Fancy-girl? Because it wasn’t here with
me.”

“I-I’m sorry. . .I just. . .” She bit her
bottom lip, not quite sure what to say. How do you ask your lover it he likes
your body or not?
Does he wish I weighed less?

His brow furrowed even more as he cupped her chin. “Listen,
sweetness. I know you didn’t have a lot of time to explore the lifestyle back
then, but let me make one thing perfectly clear. When I ask you a question,
especially during playtime, I want a complete and honest answer. Whether you
think I’m going to be upset or get mad doesn’t matter. Communication is vital
in a D/s relationship. I can’t take care of you properly if I don’t know what
the problem is. Now, I’ll ask you again, and I expect a truthful answer. Where
was your sexy little mind a few minutes ago?”

He thought her mind was sexy? No one had ever come close to
saying that to her before, not even her husband, and she loved how warm and
fuzzy it made her feel. Her body and brain went to mush, and that was the only
reason when, without thinking, she blurted out, “I don’t think I deserve you.”

Her jaw dropped when she realized she’d said that out loud. Brody’s
expression hardened; the best way to describe it was thunderous. Anger flared
in his eyes as his jaw tightened. Holy crap, she’d never seen him mad before,
not like this. While she knew in her heart he wouldn’t hurt her, the fear she
felt at that moment had her shuddering.

He stepped back and pulled her off the counter, setting her
feet on the floor. Without a word, he took her by the hand and led her to his
bedroom. His silence was deafening, and she wished she’d kept her big mouth
shut.

“Brody, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. Can you just forget I
said it?”

Letting go of her hand, he grasped the waist of her bathing
skirt and shoved it down her legs until it pooled at her ankles. She gasped as
the cold air conditioning hit her bare mound and ass. He left her standing
there, completely naked and vulnerable, then sat down on the bed with his arms
crossed over his massive chest. “Rule number one, Fancy. I don’t ever want to
hear you say anything bad about yourself or that you’re not good enough for me.
You’re beautiful to me, inside and out. I thought that the first moment I met you,
and nothing will ever change my opinion. And no, I will not
just forget
you said it. Rule number two. Anytime I hear you say anything covered by rule
number one, you will be punished, as in a spanking, and not an erotic one like
you had the other night. Rule number three. Once said punishment is over, the
past is erased. We let it go and move on. Understand?”

His voice was hard and rumbling as he was obviously in
full-Dom mode.
Shit,
she was in so much trouble. “Yes, Sir.”

“Good girl.” Thankfully, she remembered to call him “Sir”
since he might have added more to her punishment. She shifted her weight from
one foot to the other as he continued. “What’s your safeword, sweetness?”

“Red, Sir.”

“Since we haven’t signed a contract yet, I will ask you
this—do you want to use your safeword now or are you willing to take your
punishment and wipe the slate clean between us?”

The spanking he’d given her the other night had turned her on.
And while she was sure she wasn’t going to enjoy this one, she had a feeling
that in the aftermath, Brody would take care of her other needs, too. Her past
and future would fade into oblivion for a little while and let her live only in
the moment. She wanted to push away the insecurities holding her back from
falling for this wonderful man. All she had to do was hand over her body and
mind to him, and just feel how good it was between them—how he made her body
sing.

Did she want this? As much as she loved handing over the
reins to him in bed, this was something entirely different. Something she and
Patrick had never had a chance to explore— control over things outside of the
bedroom. Her late husband had been more mellow than Brody. If she worried out
loud about her weight or anything else, he had just kissed her silly, tickled
her, and told her he loved everything about her. Any flaws she thought she had
didn’t matter to him.

But Brody was not going to allow her to even
think
about her perceived flaws. He wouldn’t allow her to feel anything less than
beautiful. If those negative thoughts were spanked out of her, would she
finally come to love her body as much as he obviously did?

* * *

Brody stared at her, patiently waiting for her answer. This
was relatively new to her, and she needed time to think things through. But
there was no way he was going to allow his woman to ever believe she was undeserving
of his attention and love. And yes, he was totally head-over-in-heels in love
with Fancy.

No other woman had ever raised his Dom instincts as high as
she did. She’d spent a total of two nights in his bed, and he didn’t think he’d
get a good night’s sleep without her there ever again. He just had to think of her,
and his dick got hard. He could make love to her until he was one hundred and
never tire of, or stop wanting, her. Fancy Maguire was the other part of his
heart and soul he’d been searching for all his life, of that he was positive.
He just had to be patient until she reached the same conclusion.

She shifted her hips again, then finally said, “I’ll take my
punishment, Sir.”

The knot he hadn’t realized was in his gut released. Silently
thanking the universe that she was taking this important step in their
relationship, he held out his hand. “Good girl. Then we’ll talk about those
negative feelings you have. I won’t tolerate them. Now come over here and lay
across my lap.”

Stepping out of the bathing suit bottoms still around her
ankles, she slowly walked toward him, clearly feeling a mixture of dread and
anticipation. While she wasn’t going to enjoy her punishment, he was certain
she’d be wet and begging for him to fuck her when he was done doling it out.
And he’d be happy to oblige her, but first things first.

When she took his hand, he helped her lay across his lap.
While the other night, he’d used the bed to support her, this time, she was
face down toward the floor with her ass in his lap. Her feet didn’t reach the
ground so she was off balance, which is exactly how he wanted her. She gripped
his leg with one hand and reached up with the other to hold onto the poster of
the bed.

Rubbing her upper thighs and ass cheeks, he said, “Count out
loud, sweetness. You’ll be getting twenty-five of them.”

He ignored her gasp and lifted his hand, letting it smack
back down on her bare ass with a resounding
crack
. A yelp was followed
by her count. “One, Sir.”

Crack.

“Two, Sir.”

Crack.

“Thr-three, Sir.”

By the time he reached number five, the skin on her buttocks
and upper thighs was turning an angry shade of red. As much as he hated
disciplining her like this, he knew she needed it. She was definitely a
submissive, with lack of confidence issues, which wasn’t surprising after what
she’d been through, but the self-doubt she had about her body would be banished
if he had his way. If this was what it took for her to realize she was
beautiful to him, and it was he who should be wondering if he deserved her in
his life, then that’s what he would do.

“Nine, S-Sir,” came out on a sob, and he stopped for a moment
and caressed her tender flesh, giving her time to take a few deep breaths.

“Are you still green, sweetness?”

“Y-yes, Sir.”

He dipped his finger between her legs to her folds and found
them drenched with desire. He knew her body craved his dominance, and this was
his proof. When he tapped her clit, she moaned, but that was all the pleasure
he’d give her, brief as it was, until her punishment was complete.