Vice (15 page)

His face rested so close to hers, his lips a hair’s breadth away. “Surrender to me. Right here, right now. Give yourself to me.”

Kate nodded, worried, but overcome by hunger. Liam picked her up and sat her on the boardroom table. He urged her to lie back and she did, watching as he unzipped his pants and found a condom. Once sheathed, his eyes glinted as he pushed up her skirt, pulled aside her underwear and slid two fingers into her. She cried out, arching her back at his less-than-gentle yet perfect touch. His fingers moved inside her with a unique grace, marking her, stretching her, getting her ready for him.

She wanted him like this—rough and demanding.

When he was satisfied with her almost-shameful level of lubrication, he removed his hand. Positioning his cock at her entrance, he waited until their eyes met, and drove into her. Maddening thrusts made her close her eyes and bite her tongue. With each forceful thrust, he grunted, clutching at her. He spread her legs apart. Through the slit of her closed eyes, she was barely aware of her stilettos up in the air. Just the thought of someone discovering them forced her to the edge, and his movements drove her over.

“Fuck. Kate. Fuck.” He spat his words in time with each pump.

Her pussy clenched, tightened and sighed its release. As he came, she barreled over the precipice again, lost in the churning waters below. She opened her eyes and took in his messy hair and sweaty brow. His fresh dishevelment only heightened his allure. He shuddered and pulled out of her, clearly bashful about having given her such a forceful fucking. He pulled her into his embrace, and she went, her legs still wrapped around him.

He buried his face in her neck and shuddered once more. “No more questions. Just be with me, okay?”

Kate bit her trembling lip. He needed her. She needed him. Like this. Hard. Often. Victims to an unnerving passion.

She could forget her apprehensions, couldn’t she?

Maybe just for a while.

Chapter
Twelve

“I told you I’d get you in my bed.”

Kate smirked. “Don’t be so cocky, Doyle. I’m in your office, not your bed.”

They got off his private elevator and Liam pressed a button to take it off service. No sooner had he set her bags down on the floor, Liam backed her up against the nearest wall and kissed her, letting his tongue trace her lips. “Oh, you’ll be in my bed soon enough.”

He picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. Kate gasped and giggled at his insane enthusiasm. She’d never known a man with such stamina. Or was it their particular chemistry? Because God only knew she felt it too.

Over the past few heady days, they’d barely spent a moment outside each other’s arms. Kate wasn’t the sort of person to sleep in a man’s embrace, but she’d spent her nights tangled with Liam. The first thing he’d done upon waking this morning was gaze into her eyes, as if he saw great mysteries there, then reached a hand between her legs, pleased by the answers he’d found.

He’d taken her before their room-service breakfast and again afterward. They hadn’t stopped. They didn’t seem to know how.

Sure, it still felt strange to be part of such emotional fire, but she asked no more questions, as he’d requested.

And now, as he’d gently threatened not long ago, he’d moved her to his office suite. She hadn’t argued, figuring he could now make some revenue from booking her suite.

He turned the corner and led her to a room she hadn’t seen before, his bedroom. Once inside, he set her down, patting her derriere. “Here we are.”

Kate took a moment to look around. This was where Liam slept when he stayed at the hotel, his home away from home. In many ways, the room was as luxurious as she would have expected, but it held a few surprises.

A tinted floor-to-ceiling window made up the wall on one side, with an ideal view of the Strip’s lights. A flat-screen TV ornamented the wall opposite the bed. The door to the large walk-in closet hung open in the corner, where she spied countless pressed shirts and a rack full of navy blue ties. She giggled, realizing now she’d never seen him wear any other color. “What’s with the navy ties?”

“A long time ago, my mentor in the building industry told me about the importance of a strong image. That was back before I had any kind of image. ‘Wear a navy tie’ he said. ‘Whenever you walk into a room, people will think you own it.’ When I put on those ties, I forget the scared kid I used to be.”

Kate sensed an opening and prodded for more info. “Tell me more about this mentor. Who was he?”

“It’s not important anymore.” With a determined set to his jaw, he’d shut her down once again.

She decided to forget about it for now. Instead, she took in the rest of the space. The room was decorated in shades of slate grey and black, modern and sleek. The bed itself was simple, king-sized with black sheets, but its setting made her gasp. Three built-in steps led to its raised platform, and the short wall adjacent to it housed a long gas fireplace. Liam walked over to the wall and pressed a button. Flames shot down the length of the fireplace. At a glance, it seemed as if the footboard was made of fire.

She shook her head, awed at this dream bedroom.

Liam blushed. “I know. It’s extravagant, but the architect insisted on the fireplace. I don’t use it much. It’s Vegas, after all. I can turn it off if you want.”

“No. It’s incredible.” She smiled at him. Somehow this room was the perfect symbol of his success in life, in spite of the odds.

Liam came over and took her in his embrace. They stood there, wrapped up in each other, when his desk phone rang. Liam groaned.

“I’d better get that.”

She moved over to the fireplace and stared at the gentle flames as he answered his call. Feeling its heat, she closed her eyes and dreamed.

Moments later, he stood behind her, brushing her hair aside and kissing her shoulder. He turned her around and then he kissed her forehead. “A few things need my attention, I’m afraid. I’ll have to ravish you later.”

Though she’d never admit it to him, she was glad for a breather. “I understand.”

“I can do my work from here. I have a spare laptop if you want to check emails or surf.”

“It’s okay. I should check my messages, but I can use my phone.”

“Help yourself to anything in the fridge. I’ll just be a couple of hours.” He smiled and went to a tidy workspace tucked into another corner of the massive bedroom.

Overwhelmed from seeing how he lived, how he worked, Kate meandered back to the front room. Letting out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, she sat on the couch where she and Liam had first talked.

It was so easy to forget his wealth when they were twisted in the sheets, just a man and a woman, but every time she was shown a new corner of his life, she felt winded. If her dad or that loan shark Vaughan ever got wind of her being here, the demands for money would never stop.

She touched the skin under her bruised eye, glad it felt better, but the memory of Vaughan touching her made her bristle with fear and shame. If he found her…

No. She was safe here with Liam. Not that she could stay forever, but for now she had sanctuary.

Thinking of Vaughan caused Kate to remember Lisa. Although Kate hadn’t shared the details of the attack yet, she had let her friend know she’d be away for a few days and not to worry. She’d told her to put Rod in charge of the New Horizons meetings until she got back. She didn’t want to keep her friends in the dark about the attack, but didn’t relish the idea of rehashing it just yet.

However, she did want to talk to Lisa about seeing Donny at Vice. Nervous, Kate retrieved her phone from her purse and began typing a text. Changing her mind, she dialed Lisa’s number, wanting to hear her voice instead.

Voicemail.

Lisa always picked up when she called. But as the recorded message ended, Kate couldn’t help wondering if her friend might be avoiding her.

“Hey Lisa. It’s me. I really need to talk to you. A lot’s happened.” She paused, not wanting to elaborate over voicemail. “Please call me back. Take care.” She felt a twinge of unease in her stomach. Within seconds, her unease turned to all-out worry.

She didn’t have much time to contemplate the sensation. As she held her phone, it buzzed and she picked it up quickly, hoping Lisa was on the other line. “Hello?”

There was no answer.

“Hello?”

Still nothing, but the memory of Hugo Vaughan’s face haunted her.

“Did you say something, Kate?” Liam called from the other room.

She fought to master her erratic breathing and shaky voice. “Just making some calls.” Liam nodded and went back to work.

“Who is this?” she whispered into the phone.

The line went dead. She browsed the call log and found the last number, no caller ID. She dialed it and waited, but a recorded voice came on, providing no further information. Even still, she called Detective Baxter and gave him the number, in case it should lead to Vaughan.

She knew in her bones the loan shark had called her. However, her reasonable side reminded her it could very well have been a wrong number.

Nevertheless, she turned off her phone and slipped it back in her purse. She knew she should tell Liam about the call, but couldn’t bring herself to disturb him. She’d taken him away from his work long enough as it was. Besides, he continued to choose to withhold information from her. Now she felt like doing the same.

Instead, she turned on the TV, curled up on the sofa, and stared at the screen.

As morning sun gave way to a rare drizzly afternoon, Liam closed his last document, eager to finish his work. It had taken all his willpower to focus on emails and make decisions, when all he wanted was to retrieve Kate from the other room and drag her into his bed. Now he could. He ignited the fireplace. The warm glow from its flames cast a soft light over his darkening bedroom. It might be piss-pouring outside, but inside it was toasty warm.

He moved to the bedroom door and poked his head around the corner. Kate sat quietly, watching some sort of documentary on space in the other room. She stared at the screen, clearly not absorbed in the content, fiddling with the ends of her hair. Watching her, he shed his clothing, feeling his cock swell and thicken in anticipation of the hunt.

Despite the fact their bodies seemed so in tune with one another, he knew he’d alarmed her the last couple of times they’d fucked. He could be a willful son-of-a-bitch and the reticence in her gaze had not been lost on him. But it was only in coming with her that he managed to forget himself for a while. When he lost himself in her body, he forgot about his present obligations, past sins, and future mistakes. He even forgot those damn chest pains.

The moment she tightened under him, lost to the pleasure he created for her, was the closest he’d ever come to heaven.

And quite frankly he was better at fucking than talking about his emotions.

Kate had seen right through him the night he confessed his past to her and he hadn’t been at ease since. He’d never let himself be so vulnerable in front of anyone, not since he poured his heart out to his stepmother… and look at the travesty that had caused.

It scared him shitless.

He knew Kate wanted more, wanted honesty and openness. Hell, he wanted those things too. But he also knew if he allowed himself to be vulnerable with her again, he might fuck it up and lose her altogether. He’d already lost everyone who ever meant anything to him. So the primal beast inside him told him to keep her numb with ecstasy. If she couldn’t walk, she couldn’t walk away.

Flawed logic to be sure, but right now it was all he had.

As soon as he was nude, he pumped his cock, and sucked in a deep breath, then strode into the room.

Kate looked down to his crotch, then slowly back up to his face. Her face lit up with strange emotion. Need, it had to be need, because he felt it too.

He leaned over, picked her up and carried her into the bedroom, depositing her on his bed. “Now. Take it all off.”

She did, not breathing a word. Liam walked over to his closet to retrieve one of his ties. Once her nude form was illuminated by the dancing flames of the fireplace he whispered, “Trust me.”

She hesitated, but nodded.

He placed the tie around her eyes, making sure it wasn’t too tight. The deep blue of the silk complimented her red hair and the skin that grew pinker with each fraught moment. Everything about her made him want to push his boundaries and explore hers. He wanted to tease her into sexual submission, to take total mastery over her mind and soul.

He wanted to make her his.

“Liam,” Kate whispered, tilting her head as if to catch his scent.

He spread her legs, savoring the sight before him, and slid between them. “I’m here,” he said, as he licked at her inner thigh.

He drank her essence, losing track of where they were altogether. She tasted perfect, so bloody perfect, and he could never get enough of her. To have her blindfolded, at his disposal, gave him a heady rush that made his cock swell even more.

He glided his tongue along each sweet fold, savoring her. Kate’s body shook and she made a strangled noise. He looked up, ready to encourage her to shout out her pleasure. However, what he saw made him pounce back up the length of her body so he could see her better.

His tie was wet at the edge where it covered her eyes. A slow trail of tears rolled over her skin. Panicked, he removed the blindfold. Had he freaked her out? “Kate, sweetheart. What is it?”

“I got a call before. I think it was Vaughan.”

Fury blazed inside him like the flames in his fireplace. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her. In a hushed voice, she told him about the call and that she’d already phoned the cops. He was glad about that, but enraged Vaughan would try his scare tactics again.

He wanted him dealt with. Yesterday. He urged her to lie down on the bed and held her in his arms. Their bodies felt so right together, and as much as he wanted to be inside her, he held back. Even still, their bodies seemed to have their own minds. Each time one of them moved, the other responded. His cock hardened. Her nipples pebbled. As soon as his hand met with her moist pussy, he could no longer hold back. She whispered his name, so quiet and full of mystery, as he thrust his fingers inside her.

He wanted so much more of her. He wanted to take her and shake her and break her, until she was ruined for any other man.

She reached out with a shaking hand and rummaged inside his bedside table, producing a condom. Ripping the package open with her teeth, she pulled it out and sheathed him herself. One kiss, two kisses. A deft turn of his hips, and he penetrated her, thrusting deep.

“I’ll keep you safe,” he promised, murmuring into her fragrant hair. “Just stay with me.”

She clutched his backside and wrapped her legs around him as they crashed into each other, orgasms ripping through them with simultaneous violence.

As her body quaked, he whispered again, “Stay with me.”

Two days later, Liam sat in a wing chair in his office suite while Kate slept, dressed only in boxers. Despite spending every hour together in the past…fuck, he’d lost track of how many days it had been, and despite how much his body craved sleep, he couldn’t seem to close his eyes. Even now, at 2am, it was all he could do to stare out the window at the city lights and listen to the sirens of emergency vehicles as they raced down the Strip.

The air conditioning kicked in. He rested his head on the back of his chair and shivered as a blast of cool air teased his body. Damn. Maybe it was time they put some real clothes on. They’d been naked together much of the time, throwing on the bathrobes whenever they got cold.

She’d given him her body for days on end, had let him do whatever he wanted with her. He’d held her and caressed her, nibbled and sucked and tweaked her. He’d pinned her down, spanked her and mastered her beautiful body with his fingers, tongue and cock. He’d needed her more than he’d needed anything. Although she’d dropped off to sleep now and then, every time he’d so much as crooked a finger in her direction, she’d come and let him take more.