Crossed (11 page)

This was definitely a lot to take in. I’d known about my family’s shady business my entire life—that’s why I’d kept my distance from them. I chose a solitary life because I didn’t want to deal with their scams.

“But your father is in need of funds and because everything is in your name he’ll try to get in touch with you. I have a feeling they’re going to try to drag you into whatever business it is they’re doing.”

“You knew me when you came to the salon.” There was no longer any doubt in my mind. Hunter had set our meeting up, after all—or at least it wasn’t a coincidence that we met.

“Once I found you lived in the same building as Emma, I asked her whether she knew you, and to make a long story short… well, here we are. I haven’t exactly lived here over the intervening three months, as I was away.”

I regarded his light eyes and the way he sat in the chair, leaning forward, waiting for my reaction. I may not have been a private investigator, but I’d dealt with people on a daily basis, listening to them tell stories, watching their body language, and from what I could tell, Hunter was being honest.

“Are you going to tell me you’re not in computer forensics next?”

His brows furrowed and lips tightened.

“No, I’m an undercover agent, and when circumstances call for it I deal in security. I do have some background in computer forensics, though. That’s how I found out about Scar, and I flew back from Vegas as soon as I could.”

“You knew my brother was going to attack me.”

“I had a hunch. And I meant to protect you a bit differently, but then you started undressing me and touching me… Grace, I couldn’t get enough of you. You made everything disappear and matter at the same time. For the first time in my life I knew why I was alive. You were my strength and my weakness.” He shook his head as if somehow regretting I’d touched him at all. “It was my fault so much of your salon was destroyed. I should have been ready to take Scar down, and I failed.”

I remembered that morning as if it were yesterday. Especially the part where we stood in the shower, Hunter completely naked with me helping him wash up. I punched him in his arm. “You played me.”

“I just wanted more of you, Grace. It’s not my fault you started undressing me.”

“I thought you needed help.”

“I did.” His brows wiggled up and down.

“I wish I had known.”

“If you had, we wouldn’t have gotten to know each other that well so quickly.”

“You mean we’d need to do what normal people do, like go out on a few dates before seeing each other naked and sleeping together?”

Hunter hopped off his stool and stood in front of mine. He spread my legs apart until they hugged his hips. Desire for this man curled through me. He was so good at spiking my hormones.

“Grace, I can guarantee you that we’d have ended up naked on our first date.”

“Oh, really?” I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Yes, there’s no escape from what happens between us when we’re near each other.”

His large hand grasped my thigh and slid up my jeans. Even through the thick fabric I could feel his touch doing wild things to my body.

“You’re already hot for me, Grace. I like you hot.”

I couldn’t do this. I didn’t want every single conversation we had to end up with me succumbing to his charms and him between my legs. As much as I wanted that now, I had to resist, so I removed his skillful fingers from my crotch and cleared my throat. “What were you doing in Vegas?”

“Work.”

“With a shaggy beard?”

“Would you believe it if I told you I was living as a bum?”

“I would. But why?”

“Work. Grace, the thing you need to understand about me is that I can’t always tell you everything I do. It doesn’t matter if I want to, I just can’t.”

“So, what happens now?”

And how did his hand end up back between my legs again?

“It looks like your little brother’s not giving up easily. I need you to stay with me. Make yourself at home, Magic Fingers. You’ll be living here from now on.”

C
HAPTER
11

“Will you be following me everywhere?” I asked as Hunter paced back and forth in front of the fitting room, checking his messages.

“Absolutely yes.” He scrolled his finger over his tablet as I lowered my stack of clothes. Lilly’s bachelorette party was this Friday and I had nothing to wear. My closet was in major need of an update, including a new dress. And since the birthday gift card from Emma had been burning in my wallet for the past three months, waiting to walk into a “by appointment only” designer store, I thought that this was the perfect time to use it. For the past hour Carol, the sales clerk, had been helping me choose dresses, sexy jumpsuit ensembles, and matching lingerie to go with every outfit.

“Don’t you have to work?” I watched Hunter roll up his sleeves and take a seat in the white chaise. I was sure that on the hottest day yet, Hunter wore long sleeves on purpose, just to look so damn sexy as he rolled them up.

“If you need anything, Grace, just press that button.” Carol pointed to the wall before she pulled the main curtain closed, giving us more privacy. The sound of the metal clips sliding along the rod provoked a pleasant tickle of goose bumps along my arms.

“I am working, Magic Fingers.” Hunter’s concentration had been on that tablet since this morning. And if he somehow found a way to set it down for a moment, then it was his phone—first one, then the other. I’d never seen a man who could multitask as well as Hunter, but honestly, I was beginning to feel left out.

Not that I was an attention seeker—definitely not. But you hear about these couples getting so used to each other that they no longer appreciate the time they spend together. I didn’t want to be one of those couples. And I still wasn’t sure whether we were a couple at all. But I didn’t want to take a chance. Not with Hunter. I’d die before that spark in our relationship went out. And while we were still in the beginning stages of whatever it was that was happening between us and the heat never died, I wanted to keep Hunter interested—all the time.

I changed into my first dress, turned around to look in the mirror, put my heels back on, and went out. I twirled, adjusted my boobs, and stood higher on my toes, and Hunter’s gaze remained on the tablet.

“What do you think?” I asked.

He looked up smiling. “You look nice, Grace.”

I didn’t want to look nice. I wanted to look hot, maybe a little whorish as well. Hunter lowered his gaze and I went back to the changing room.

The turquoise ensemble was next: a low-cut waterfall front, shorter hemline, and definitely tighter curves.

I stepped out of the fitting room and Hunter hadn’t budged. I cleared my throat.

“Do you like this one?” I asked.

“You look nice.”

I cocked my head to the side, waiting for another comment.

“It’s better than the floral one,” he said.

“I didn’t put on a floral one.”

“You know, that one with the things on the fabric.”

“You mean lace cutouts?”

“Yeah, that one.”

I didn’t even want to tell him there wasn’t one with lace cutouts, either. Frustrated, I went back inside to change again, wondering whether he’d notice if I wore an elephant costume. As I fumbled through the stack, one of my favorites caught my eye: the silver dress in which I couldn’t bend too low, as it’d reveal the tops of my stockings attached to a garter belt. The matching low-cut bra fit perfectly, giving the ladies an extra lift. It was a sheer gray, just like the hipster panties.

Maybe I should just walk out in this?
I thought, looking at myself in the mirror. Although by now I was beginning to wonder whether presenting my naked self would move any muscle. While I loved dressing up underneath my clothes as well, I didn’t own anything this luxurious. I slid on the silky ensemble, pinned my hair up in a bun, adjusted the fabric over my hips and stepped out.

“And how is this” I asked.

Hunter’s gaze flew up just like the other times. “That’s ni—” but this time the tablet fell out of his hands. And Hunter didn’t seem in a hurry to pick it up. His mouth was open as I twirled, surely revealing the surprise underneath. “You think the girls will like it?”

A growl vibrated through Hunter’s chest, making my pulse surge. He set his phone aside and cleared his throat. “And where are you planning to wear it?”

“To the strip club.”

“That...” He stood up, taking predatory steps toward me. I bit my lip, watching the bulge in his pants grow as he neared. I drank the full length of him, reading all his wicked intention in his provocative body language. “... Is off limits, Grace.”

“What do you mean?”

He stood so close to me, I could taste the flavor of his mint gum on the tip of my tongue, yet we didn’t touch. His finger skimmed over my shoulder, down along the spaghetti strap that held my dress, and over my cleavage. He gently pulled the fabric out to peek inside.

“Fuck me.” The rasp in his voice slithered along my body. Finally, I was getting the reaction that I was waiting for. Hunter moved toward me, brushing his hard front against my belly, which caused my insides to flip. My legs softened as Hunter’s demanding heat roamed over my skin.

“If anyone sees you in this, all they’ll want is to fuck you, Grace. I don’t want another man to be thinking about you that way.” He pressed his right leg to my left, making me shift. I stepped backward, feeling his penetrating gaze devour me.

“How do you know what they’ll be thinking?”

“Because that’s what I’m thinking.” Hunter moved forward with his other leg, forcing me backward again.

“I thought you were busy working,” I teased. An incoming message buzzed on his tablet, yet his attention hadn’t wavered. “Shouldn’t you get that?” I felt my mouth curve up.

“Whoever it is can wait.
I
cannot wait.”

“For what?” I batted my lashes with innocence, feeling my body make it completely back into the fitting room. My back pressed against the mirror, and Hunter leaned his full weight on me. He bent down to my ear and whispered, “To fuck you.”

His breath weaved down my face and neck, meandering between my breasts, settling there because there was nowhere else to escape. Anticipation rose in my chest, making my breaths hotter and shorter. The rest of my body was attached to Hunter, feeling every enticing curve of his hard muscles, especially that one that pressed stiffly against my belly. I slid my hands up his arms, wishing that damn shirt was off so that I could appreciate the view of his sculpted perfection, and feel the rippling field underneath my palms.

He took my lips, tracing their seam with his tongue.

“Turn around, Grace.” His low throaty tone was like an aphrodisiac, pulsing through me, drugging me, making my head spin and tightening my belly.

Hunter lowered his hands to my hips, twisting my body. My cheek and palms pressed against the mirror as he lifted my dress. I arched my back with a soft moan as the first touch of his fingers tracing the undercurve of my ass flickered through me. He lowered my panties, leaving the garter around my waist. The sound of his zipper was amplified in my ears, adding to the uneasy excitement. In the side mirror, I saw Hunter release himself, bend his knees, and drag his tip over my ass and down toward my opening. Our reflection, breathing heavily and wanton, was like some kind of porn movie. I couldn’t believe that was us: so full of impatient longing, my ass reaching higher, his knees bending lower, tongue skimming over his lips as he probed my opening, unable to take it slow, diving into me with one swift push, pressing my entire body against the mirror and holding still. My sweaty hands squeaked against the surface.

“Try to stay quiet, Grace.”

Hunter slid in and out in slow rhythmic motion at first. I watched us from the side, the view in itself more stimulating than anything else. In the reflection, he gently bit my shoulder, kissed the reddened mark, and swept my hair to the side to lick my neck. His hands were all over me, slowly drifting lower and to my front until his fingers touched my heated mound. He licked them before returning, circling around my clit, causing new yearning to surge through my veins.

The boundary between a dream and reality blurred. This had to be what heaven felt like: being possessed, wanted, yearned for, and deliriously happy all at the same time.

“Faster, please.” I closed my eyes, concentrating on his unforgiving rhythm, feeling the cold zipper of his pants against my ass each time he pushed in.

Hunter strummed my clit until my body began trembling. My thighs tensed, and I couldn’t hold on any longer as my orgasm ripped violently through me. But Hunter didn’t stop. His breaths strained each time he plunged harder, until the last heavy groan left his lips as he stilled and joined me in the shattering bliss, leaving my body boneless.

I leaned against the mirror, completely spent and sweaty, watching the patch of fog condense to little drops and drip down.

“Looks like this dress is a winner after all,” I said, smiling.

Hunter slowly pulled out. I felt his seed drip down my thigh. He pulled out a tissue from his pocket, wiping me clean.

“You’ll definitely wear it again. At home.” Hunter stood up, kissing me gently on my lips. “Grace, I didn’t use a condom.”

I closed my eyes, counting the days in my head before breathing out in relief, “It should be okay. And I was tested after the accident…”

Hunter’s brows rose as he zipped himself up. “It’s been a year since then.”

“I know.” I looked to the ground where my clothes were scattered. “It’s been a long twelve months.”

“Please don’t feel ashamed,” Hunter whispered. “You’re a very special woman and I’m glad you choose your men wisely.”

“Well, it’s not every day that a caveman walks into my salon.”

“For what it’s worth, this caveman is clean too, Grace.”

I shifted uncomfortably, wishing we were home so that I could jump in the shower with Hunter. “I think I’m ready to go.”

“Is that all I’m gonna see today?”

“If you’re good I’ll show you more, but not here. There’s this tiny little outfit I wanted to try on…”