Authors: Donina Lynn
Before Cassie
could get offended, Myles shot out of his chair and slammed his fist on to the
table. “She is not for sale, you arrogant, spoiled son-of-a—”
“Gentlemen.”
Cassie stood up and interrupted before Myles could finish that sentence. “I
think now would be a good time to take a break. Please help yourself to any of
the refreshments in the kitchen and let’s reconvene in about thirty minutes.”
Cassie gave the two of them a fake smile before turning to Myles. “Mr. Dayton,
I would like to speak with you in private.”
Myles stiffly
nodded and spoke to the lawyer as he continued to glare at Blake. “Mr. Brown, I
suggest you take the opportunity while we’re gone to speak to your client about
conducting himself in an appropriate manner.”
Cassie spun on
her heels and stomped out of the room. If Myles knew what was good for him,
he’d be right behind her.
Chapter
Eight
“What the hell
are you thinking?”
The door barely
clicked shut before Cassie let loose on Myles. By the time she’d walked down the
steps and made it to the furthest room of the lower level—where hopefully neither
Blake nor his lawyer could hear what most assuredly was going to be
shouting—she’d mentally worked herself up to the boiling point. She was beyond
pissed, and he was damn well going to know it, too.
“For a man who
likes to proclaim he needs to be in control of everything, you sure as hell
don’t show it.” Cassie couldn’t stand still. Her nerves and temper were prompting
her to pace back and forth as she flung her hands around in the air,
emphasizing her rant. “Did you happen to notice his lawyer? I could see the
dollar signs light up in his eyes when you lost it up there. He was just
waiting for you to make a move. Ever hear of a lawsuit? You were about an inch
away from getting one slapped on your ass. And over what? Because you thought
my honor needed protecting? I neither want nor need any protection or help from
you.”
Cassie stopped,
planted her hands on her hips, and tapped out her annoyance with her foot while
she stared at him. Waiting. For anything. Any type of reaction…at all. Of
course, there was nothing from him other than the stoic, stern look on his
face. The man was insufferable and she’d probably have better luck trying to
beat an answer out of a rock.
“For Christ’s
sake, Myles, say something.”
“He will treat
you with respect. No one talks to what’s mine like that.”
“Mine?” Cassie
shouted at him. “Now all of a sudden I’m yours? A few hours ago, you made it
clear you didn’t want me and now I’m yours? I’m nobody’s but my own person. Let
me make myself clear so there will be no misunderstandings between us. I can
speak for myself, fight my own battles, and handle someone like Blake. And who
says I don’t want to go with him? If I want to fuck him, the lawyer, or every
man in the whole state of Colorado, I damn well will. You gave up the right to
have your opinion heard the minute you pushed me away.” Tears stung the back of
her eyes, and Cassie headed for the door before all the anger, frustration, and
hurt threatening to pour out ran down her cheeks like a river. Grasping the
handle, she threw over her shoulder, “You have no say in what I do or don’t
do.”
“The hell I
don’t.”
“The hell you
do.”
Cassie opened
the door a fraction of an inch before Myles came up behind her and slammed it
back shut. He unforgivingly pushed her against the door, pressing his body into
her and rendering her immobile. Lowering his head, he nearly growled out into
her ear. “The only person that is going to fuck you is me. Do you understand?
You are mine.” Myles ground his erection into her ass, causing an involuntary
whimper to escape. “This is what you do to me. This is the reason I pushed you
away. I fucking lose control whenever I’m near you.” Myles raked his
fingernails up the outside of her thigh while the other hand twisted in her hair
and pulled, making her cheek come flush with the door. He moved his face
closer, his mouth brushing against her skin when he spoke. “Are you scared now,
Cassie? Because you damn well should be.”
The only thing
that scared her was him stopping. She was wet, panting, and his harsh words and
hot breath scorching her face made her even hotter. Her mind formed her answer,
but her mouth couldn’t relay the message.
“Tell. Me.” Myles
emphasized each word by unmercifully thrusting his pelvis into her backside. “Are
you scared?”
“No,” Cassie
blurted out, finally finding the ability to speak. “I want it. I want you,
Myles. Please.”
A shudder ran
through him as he muttered under his breath. “Jesus.”
Before she could
take another breath, he pulled on her hair, angling her head up, and claimed
her mouth in a kiss that was anything but gentle. The way he moved against her was
rough, punishing, and even painful when he bit down on her lip. Cassie knew she
wasn’t supposed to like it. She wasn’t supposed to want more, but she did.
Moaning into his mouth, she let him know she was ready and willing for whatever
he wanted to do to her.
Myles abruptly
stopped, released his hold, and reached down between them. Her lips felt
swollen and she desperately tried to catch her breath as he hiked her skirt up and
what was left of her thong fell to floor after he ripped it in two. The sound
of a zipper being yanked down brought with it a moment of sensibility.
“Myles. What if they hear us?”
“I hope they can.
I’m going to fuck you until you’re screaming my name. Then that arrogant shit
will know exactly who you belong to.”
Chills cascaded
through her at his promise and, admittedly, at the idea of being caught. She
was being damn near shameless, and she so didn’t care. She wanted Myles in a
way where her body ached and her clit throbbed. He did own her, every damn inch
of her.
He pulled her
arms above her head, placed his hand over hers, and pinned them flat against
the cool wood of the door. Slipping his other arm around to her abdomen, he
tugged her back, making her legs spread automatically. Desire and anticipation
raced through her as she felt him position the tip of his cock at her slick entrance.
Myles leaned flush
against her, his breathing ragged and voice strained when he asked her, “Are
you on birth control?”
“Yes.”
“I’m clean.”
“Me, too.”
She barely got
the words out before he thrust forward and buried his full length inside of
her. Her breath caught at the sudden invasion, her walls instantly stretching
to accommodate him. Myles was big and hard and filled her like no other. When
she released the air she’d been holding, it came out as a deep moan. He was
perfect.
Myles laced his
fingers through hers while the other snaked under her blouse and bra to firmly
grasp her breast. He pulled his cock back, pinched and twisted her nipple, and
slammed himself back into her. A gasp escaped her lips as the erotic mix of
pleasure and pain that only he could give rippled through her. He knew exactly
what to do and how hard to do it. Myles manipulated her body in ways she never
thought imaginable and, before she knew it, she was crying out and begging for
more.
Never
hesitating, he gave her what she wanted and unforgivingly pounded into her.
Every stroke, each thrust so powerful that she could feel the strain of his
muscles and hear him grunt from the exertion. Cassie herself would be lifted
off the ground by the momentum alone if he wasn’t holding her tight against him.
His hand left
hers and tightly wrapped around her thigh. Lifting her leg up, he opened her to
him and moved his hips where the new angle had him hitting areas deep within
her that she didn’t think were possible.
“Oh my God.
Myles, yes.”
“That’s it, baby.
Yell out my name. Tell the world who’s going to make you come.” Myles sped up,
moving so fast she couldn’t tell if he pulling or thrusting. All she could feel
was him and the pressure building so quick and intense that it is was almost
painful. She cried out again, not sure if it was too much or not enough. The
orgasm was right there, simmering below the surface, threatening to rip her
apart into a million pieces. She hovered, holding her breath, waiting for it to
come. The sting of her clit suddenly being slapped was all she needed. Cassie
exploded, screaming his name with Myles following right behind and calling out
hers.
Cassie rode the
waves of orgasmic bliss, letting herself drift away. She didn’t care where they
were taking her. That was the best quickie she’d ever had and she was going to
enjoy it for all it’s worth. Her mind cleared, her muscles relaxed, and the
world melted away as she basked in the afterglow and the warmth of the man
pressed up against her.
Chapter
Nine
Something—whether
it was the sound of the air-conditioning suddenly pushing air through the vents,
Cassie’s hair tickling the side of his neck, or the fact his heart finally stopped
pounding like it was going to come right out of his chest—something brought
Myles out of his post-orgasm fog, snapping him back into reality and making him
acutely aware of what he’d just done, how he’d done it, and that his hand was
possessively holding the breast of the woman he’d done it to.
Dammit
. What did he think he was doing? He shouldn’t
be standing behind Cassie with his arms wrapped around her like a contented
lover. His actions didn’t give him the right to be enjoying how her soft curves
molded perfectly against him. And he sure as hell had no business loving the
way her walls cradled his cock like a warm cocoon, because he shouldn’t be fucking
inside of her in the first place.
Myles straightened,
slowly withdrew from her wet heat, and took a few steps back. His gut
immediately twisted as he took in the scene before him. Silent and unmoving,
Cassie remained pressed into the door with her legs spread, skirt pushed high up
on her waist, fresh marks marring her flesh from his grip, and the shredded
remains of her thong lying at her feet. Disgust flowed threw him and he closed
his eyes against the ugly truth that was right in front of him. His ex was right.
He was nothing more than an animal.
All it had taken
was Cassie threatening to be with another man and the resolve he’d been
struggling with throughout the day had snapped in two. There was no way he was
letting her walk out the door without proving to her and the rest of the damn
world she belonged to him. To hell with being in the middle of a business
meeting. To hell with trying to do the right thing. To hell with it all. Nothing
was going to stop him. He was going to have her and he tore into her, taking
exactly what he felt was his and staking his claim.
Christ, he
hadn’t even given Cassie a chance to object to him not using a condom. Now that
was a joke, wasn’t it? For her to object, he would’ve had to have enough
decency to actually ask her. He might be a lot of things—a domineering prick instantly
came to mind—but he never once imagined he could be as disrespectful or act
with such little regard to her wishes as he just had. Myles wasn’t gentle by
any stretch of the imagination, but at the very least, he considered himself to
be a gentleman. If he couldn’t even say that, what the hell could he say?
The longer he
was around her, the more he felt like he was literally unraveling and spiraling
out of control. Cassie was the first woman to come along since his ex who
captured his interest for anything other than casual and what did he do? Not
once, but twice, crossed every line he’d drawn for himself. Forgotten every
promise. Broken every rule.
Remain detached,
be honest, always ask before taking, and stay within the limits by keeping the
rein tight, not only physically but emotionally. That had been his way, his
insurance policy to ensure he never pushed too hard, got too rough, or went too
far. As long as he didn’t slip, he was comfortable—even happy—with the man he
was.
His obvious lack
of restraint when it came to Cassie had him forgetting all of it. The
boundaries were gone, the walls were down and his old buddies, contempt and
self-loathing, settled themselves right back in, leaving him in the same exact
place where he’d started. Hating himself.
Even more
disturbing was how while he stood there, knowing what he’d done, and feeling
the weight of his actions, there was still a part of him that couldn’t stop, wouldn’t
stop wanting her or giving up on the idea of being with her. No matter how hard
he’d tried not to.
And Myles
had
tried. He’d locked himself in his damn
room all in the effort of trying. All that had gotten him was a spike in his
blood pressure as he paced back and forth cursing at the walls for his own
inability to stop thinking about the softness of her skin and the taste of her
lips. How right it felt to wake up with her cradled in his arms. And how he
wanted to see her beautiful face as the first thing he saw every morning, to
have her in his life for more than a few short days.
He argued with
himself, trying to purge her from his system, his thoughts, and even his heart.
It hadn’t worked. None of it had, and when it was finally time for the meeting,
he left the room more frustrated than when he’d walked in. Cassie had lodged
herself deep inside of him, and whether it was because he never truly had
gotten over falling for her in the past or his own hope that she could love him
in the future, Myles simply wasn’t willing to let go.
What just
happened proved without a doubt he had to, though. Myles was no good for her,
or for anyone for that matter. Most men showed their feelings by being caring
and sensitive. They embraced the ones they loved in protective arms and shielded
them from pain. They didn’t cause it. They also didn’t push them against the
nearest surface and fuck them like a possessive, selfish bastard either. He
didn’t deserve happiness and love, or having someone like Cassie in his life,
and she sure as hell didn’t deserve to be with someone like him. What she did
deserve, however, was for Myles to start thinking with his head instead of his
dick, get control of himself, and find the strength to end this. For good, this
time.
Knowing what he
had to do and actually doing it were two entirely different things, though,
weren’t they? Because, in all honesty, the only thing he wanted to do was to
pull her into his arms, ask for her forgiveness, and beg her to stay with him.
He knew it was wrong, but there it was…nothing more than his own selfishness
showing itself yet again.
“Myles.”
The sound of her
voice brought him out of his thoughts. Cassie wasn’t going to like what was
going to happen next. Hell, he didn’t like it. But, if he’d learned anything
from all of this was that, when it came to Cassie, she was a temptation Myles
couldn’t resist. He couldn’t trust himself around her no matter how good his
intentions were, and it was about time he stopped intending to do the right
thing and finally did it. No matter what she was going to think of him when she
walked out the door, and no matter how much it was going to kill him to watch
her go.