Playing Dirty: Windy City Kink, Book 3 (25 page)

He licked her throat, sucked on the thin skin to the point she feared he was marking her. God! Then his mouth found hers again, his strong tongue pushing inside and stroking over hers. Once again, she planted a foot into the mattress and rolled him to his back. Would he let her stay on top this time? He liked to be the one in control, but then again, she should have known that even with her on top, he’d be in control. He clasped her hips and lifted her easily, thrilling her with his masculine strength, lowering her onto his hard cock.

She bit her lip as her body sank onto him, his thick flesh filling her. He watched with a savage, intense stare. She set her hands on his chest, his powerful pectoral muscles flexing beneath her palms, then rubbed over them. His small, hard nipples tightened even more and he let out a low growl.

She needed to move on him, needed it badly, pulsing around him. She stretched out over top of him, her hands pushed into the mattress, arms straight. Their eyes met. She began to move on him, but he soon took over. His arms came around her, one hand on her ass, the other banded around her upper back, pulling her down to him, her cheek pressed against his rough one. And even though she was on top, he fucked her, fucked up into her with powerful, virile pumps of his hips. Her breath left her, heat surrounded her. He turned his head to press his mouth to her cheek, his breath a hot caress.

Fire spread through her body, burning and rippling. Violent pleasure consumed her.

“Okay, that’s it,” Raff growled, knifing up, slinging her around and beneath him with one arm. “Sorry, baby. Like you on top. Like the view.”

“There was no view,” she gasped, now flat on her back, his thick shaft still inside her. “I was flat on top of you.”

“There was a view at first. Those sweet tits, those suckable nipples right in front of my face. But…” he groaned again as he picked up the rhythm he’d left off, pounding into her, “…need…to…do…this…” His face tightened.

She was there. So close. She once again slipped her hand down between them and found her clit, rubbing furiously, whimpering with anguished need.

“Yeah. Like that. Come, baby. Wanna feel you come on my cock… Fuck yeah.”

She was making noises and in the back of her mind knew she shouldn’t be, with Emma and Kevin there. God, they could probably hear the banging of the door when he’d shoved her up against it, the pounding of her bed and her hot little screams, but she couldn’t help it. Ecstatic pleasure poured through her, those flames inside her bursting higher and hotter, and she convulsed around Raff, holding him with arms, legs and pussy.

He fell over her, buried his face in the side of her neck and came, long, hard contractions that she felt deep inside her. She held on tighter, her chest full of emotion.

“Fuck, Paige,” Raff groaned, long moments later. “You’re gonna have bruises and hickies all over you from that.”

She smiled with her mouth against his shoulder and let her fingers play with his hair. “Very possibly.”

“You okay?” He lifted his head to look down at her, concern shadowing his eyes.

“I’m fine,” she murmured, still smiling. “I am
so
fine.”

His lips curved too. “True that. Christ. You’re amazing. Love how you can handle that, babe.”

“Not just handle it,” she corrected. “I
loved
it.”

“Good.” He kissed her mouth. “That is so fucking good.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Saturday night, Paige and Raff were meeting Mallory and Joe before the Blackhawks game then joining them in Raff’s suite for the game. They were both hockey fans and were excited to be invited to watch the game from there.

Shortly before Raff was to pick her up, Paige’s phone rang. She saw Raff’s name on the screen and touched it to answer the call. “Hey, what’s up?”

After a short pause, he said, “Gonna be late, baby. Sending a car to pick you up to take you to the restaurant. I’ll try to get there as soon as I can.”

“Oh no! Why?”

“Some shit came up. I gotta deal with it. Be there soon.”

“Okay.” She pouted a little as she ended the call. But she knew how busy Raff was. He tried not to let it interfere with their time together, and she really respected and appreciated that. So the odd time it happened, it wasn’t the end of the world.

The town car arrived a short time later and drove her to the pizza restaurant where they were meeting Mallory and Joe. She spotted them inside, alerted by Mallory’s wave, and she wove through tables to reach the one at which they sat. Mallory rose to hug her, but her eyes were troubled and her smile stiff.

Paige took her seat, slipping her jacket off to hang it over the back of her chair. “Raff got delayed with some business,” she said. “He says he’ll join us as soon as he can.”

“Business,” Joe said, exchanging a look with Mallory. “That’s what he told you?”

“Yeah.” She looked back and forth between them, going still. “What? What’s going on?”

Mallory looked at Joe again, bugging her eyes out at him. Joe’s lips thinned.

“What?” Paige repeated, a frown tightening her forehead.

“Paige.” Joe leaned forward. “Raff was taken in by the police for questioning today.”

Paige froze. She blinked. “What? What on earth for?”

“Your ex-husband was assaulted last night. Beaten up pretty bad.”

Paige’s insides went cold and a small gasp escaped her parted lips. “Delmer?”

“Yeah.” Joe glanced again at Mallory. “The police are questioning Raff about it.”

Paige’s heart began to thump and her head went fuzzy. “That’s ridiculous,” she stammered. Wasn’t it? “Last night?”

Joe nodded.

Raff had been sparring with Dutch last night.

An image of her holding Raff’s hand, looking at his scraped knuckles, then lifting his hand to her mouth to kiss it sprang into her mind. She lifted both hands to her head, shoving them into her hair and scrubbing. No.

“He was with Dutch,” she whispered. “Then he came over to my place. You guys saw him there.”

They both nodded. “I’m not sure of the timing,” Joe admitted. “I don’t know all the details. But, Paige…how much do you know about this guy?”

“I…I… What do you mean?”

Joe’s forehead notched between his eyebrows. “Raff was involved with some shit when he was younger.”

“Yes. I know that.”

Joe’s eyes flickered. Paige glanced at Mallory, who leaned onto the table, her face serious.

“He got involved with a gang when he was a teenager,” Paige continued. “He told me about that.”

“Huh.” Joe sat back. “He did?”

Paige nodded. “He told me he’d been involved with bad stuff. He told me he’d done things he’d regret for the rest of his life. But he told me why he got involved. That kind of life sucks kids in, kids who have nothing else, kids who want to belong somewhere.”

“True.” Joe nodded.

“That’s in his past, though,” Paige said. She paused. “Isn’t it?”

Joe shrugged. “What I learned of him, yeah. His friend Finn isn’t so squeaky clean.”

“He told me about Finn too. He runs a strip club.”

“Xanadu,” Joe said. “Classy joint. Lots of money flowing through there.”

“Um. I guess.” She squinted at him.

“Money laundering,” he clarified. “He’s never been caught, but it’s always been thought that’s what goes on there. Drugs. It’s a front for a lot of other activities.”

“Oh.” Paige’s eyes widened. She looked down at her hands on the scarred oak table. “Oh.” She let her mind process all this, her insides icy and shivery, her heart still thudding. She looked up at Joe again. “Are you saying Raff is involved in that kind of activity?”

Joe shook his head slowly, his eyes drooping a little. “No. I’m not saying that. Got no proof of that. But it does make you wonder. He’s been amazingly successful, for a guy who started out rough like that.”

Paige tipped her head and looked across the restaurant, her eyes going out of focus. It did make you wonder. Sweet zombie Jesus.

The server appeared to take their orders. The last thing Paige felt like doing was eating, but she ordered a small deep-dish pizza and a glass of wine, hoping it was a really, really big glass.

“Are you going to order something for Raff?” Mallory asked.

Paige looked at her, dazed. “Um. I don’t know. I don’t know when he’ll get here.” She turned her gaze to Joe. “Do you… Are you okay doing this? I mean, being with Raff?”

“Hell yeah. I wanna see him.” Joe’s voice was low and rough. “Wanna make sure you’re safe with him.”

Paige’s forehead tightened. She’d never felt unsafe with Raff. Never. And she’d thought Joe and Mallory had agreed that she was safe with him. That had changed now.

When her glass of Merlot appeared in front of her, she grabbed it and took several big gulps.

Raff didn’t make it to the restaurant. He texted her a while later, saying to go to the United Center with Mallory and Joe, and he’d meet them there. She texted back:
Is everything okay?
His reply came:
Yeah, baby, all good. See you soon.

She dropped her phone into her purse and followed Mallory and Joe out of the restaurant.

They had to wait for Raff at the United Center because he had the tickets, and she texted again to tell him where they were. A few minutes later, he strode up to them through the crowd. His dark hair was tousled, his jaw stony. His black leather jacket hung open over jeans and an untucked charcoal button-down shirt.

She stared at him, once more aware of his powerful body and the edgy air about him that hinted at danger.

He greeted her with a touch of his lips to hers, and a brief smile for Joe and Mallory. Instantly his smile faded and he stared down at Paige. “What?” he muttered.

Her insides fluttered. “We know where you were.” She jerked her head toward Joe. “Joe heard.”

Raff’s eyes narrowed; his mouth compressed. “Right.” He turned to Joe. “They questioned me and let me go. They might talk to all of you to confirm where I was after I left the rec center last night.”

Joe nodded, his eyes cool. “Sure. We’ll tell them the truth. We all saw you at Kevin and Paige’s place last night. After ten o’clock.”

“That’s right.” Raff held Joe’s gaze and Paige felt herself tremble. “Just tell the truth.”

Raff turned his eyes back to her. “You okay, babe?”

She sucked briefly on her bottom lip. “Um.” She licked her top lip. “I’m not sure, actually.”

His eyes darkened, eyebrows lowering. “We’ll talk. Later.”

She nodded. Clearly this wasn’t a good time. He’d invited other guests to the suite as well. They all had to go in there and pretend nothing had happened and try to watch the game. Sure. She could do that.

“Take me home.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“Paige.”

“Raff.”

“Fuck,” he muttered. “What is wrong?”

“What is wrong? Are you kidding me?” Her voice rose. “What did you do, Raff?”

“We’ll talk when we get to my place. Not having this conversation while I’m driving.”

He drove fast but skillfully through illuminated city streets, along West Madison, onto Michigan, then turning onto East Randolph toward his building. His car roared into the underground parking garage, the powerful motor echoing off concrete walls. With grim silence, he helped Paige out of the car, kept hold of her hand in a tight grip and led her to the elevator.

Her stomach tense and jittery, she watched him in the elevator. He returned her gaze with his chin lifted, his face expressionless.

In his condo, the door shut behind them, he flicked on lights and led the way to the living room. City lights glittered outside the windows, yellow, orange, blue and white.

She turned to face him. “Is Delmer all right?”

He scowled at her. “You’re
worried
about him?”

“I hate him,” she said quietly, fingers curled into her palms. “You know that. But I would never wish for him to be actually hurt.”

Raff’s features tightened. He walked over to a cabinet that she knew housed an extensive collection of liquor. He pulled out a bottle of amber liquid, sloshed some into a short glass and took a big swallow.

She was afraid to ask the question. Because she already knew the answer.

“Raff. Are you going to be arrested?”

“Christ no!” He glared at her.

She nibbled her bottom lip. “Where were you last night?”

“I told you where I was. I was with Dutch. Then I came to your place.”

“You want me to let you in,” she said quietly. “You want me to tell you the truth, to tell you everything. But you’re lying to me.”

“Paige.” He tossed back another mouthful of his drink. “This is different.”

“I don’t understand why.”

He made a noise that sounded like a growl. “Everything is fine, Paige. Capon is okay. He got roughed up a little. He went to the cops and accused me of doing it. I told them where I was all night. Dutch will vouch for me. Other people saw me at the rec center. You and your friends saw me after that. I left the rec center at nine forty-five. I got to your place at five after ten. That was well after Capon was assaulted.”

She nodded, doubt curling through her. And yet…the scraped, reddened knuckles. The leashed energy and intensity he’d displayed last night, the restrained violence of their lovemaking. She’d known something had happened but had attributed it to the sparring session with Dutch.

Dutch…would he cover for Raff?

Yes. He would.

“The most important thing for you to know is that he’ll never touch you again.” Raff’s certainty and intensity burned into her.

Her jaw went slack and she stared at him. Could that be true? She so wanted to believe that.

“If the cops question you,” Raff said, “you tell them the truth. That’s all.”

Their gazes locked, and a burning sensation traveled through her. Her lungs constricted.

“I want to go home, Raff. Please. Take me home.”

“I’m not taking you home.”

“Then I’ll take a taxi. I’m not staying here with you. I don’t…I don’t think I can do this.”

“Do what?” His voice went icy.

“You know why I left Delmer. He hit me. He hurt me. I didn’t want to put up with that abuse. You also know why I was so hesitant to go out with you. You reminded me too much of him.”

He sucked in a sharp breath.

“You treated me so nicely,” she continued, her voice getting shaky. “And even though we…you hit me—”

“Fuck,” he muttered, rubbing his face. “I didn’t
hit
you, Paige. There’s a difference.”

“It was what I wanted. But now…now I see you’re exactly like him. Anyone who would do that… How do I know you won’t do that to
me
one day?” She fixed her gaze on him, lifting her chin.

“You know I’ll never hurt you.”

“I don’t know that, Raff,” she said sadly. “And you’ve just proved why.” She walked toward the door. She sensed him move. “Don’t.”

“I’ll take you home.” His voice abraded her senses. “Fuck if I’ll let you go out there alone at night.”

The drive to her place was made in thick, heavy silence. He walked her to the door. She turned to him. Tears stung her eyes and her throat ached so bad she could hardly talk, but she swallowed hard and tried to control her voice.

“I don’t want to see you again,” she said. His mouth tightened. A muscle twitched in his jaw. “I appreciate so much everything you’ve done for me. I know I owe you more than I can every repay—”

“You owe me nothing. I keep telling you that.”

She waved a hand. “I do. I can’t take anything more from you, though. I’ll be in touch with Brad Jaworski about what to do next.”

“No. Paige, no—”

She shook her head. “I’m not going to do something rash. Don’t worry. I’m not actually sure what I’m going to do,” she admitted. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Paige.”

She met his eyes. “Once again I thought I’d found the man who got me. I had my doubts all along, but you were starting to get to me. But now I know I was right to be cautious. You proved me right.”

The muscles in his jaw twitched.

“Goodbye, Raff.”

She closed the door in his face. His expression hadn’t changed, but she saw the pain in his eyes in the brief flash before the door blocked her view of him. She let the tears fall as she moved into the house.

“Paige.”

Her head jerked around. Kevin was sitting in the dark living room, a glass in his hand and an empty bottle of tequila on the coffee table in front of him.

“What are you doing?” she asked, moving into the dark room, swiping at her tears.

“Drinking. Where’s Raff?”

“He’s leaving. I, uh, broke up with him.”

Kevin was silent. Then he said, voice raspy, “Emma broke up with me too.”

Paige stopped midstride. Her hand went to her throat. “Oh, Kev.”

He waved a hand in a sloppy motion. “Whatever.”

“Not whatever.” She moved farther into the room and dropped onto the couch near him. “I think she thought
you
wanted to break up.”

He sighed. “I know. I’m messed up.”

“Did you two talk?”

“Yeah. Last night.”

She bit her lip. She and Raff had slept late, gotten up and gone out for brunch, then he’d gone home to take care of some business and change for the hockey game. She hadn’t seen Kevin all day.

“I’m sorry,” she offered.

“I’m sorry too,” he said. “About you and Raff. Seemed you really cared about him. Could see he was nuts about you.”

She made a face. “Sadly, I do care about him. I fell in love with him. I can’t believe how stupid I was.”

“How’d he fuck up?”