Chapter 17
Kade
Her hand stayed on my thigh as I drove us home. I kept sneaking glances at her, half-expecting she’d burst into tears again. I’d kept a lid on my fury for her sake, but I couldn’t stop the quiet swell of gratitude for my own family.
It was ironic, really.
I’d lost Nadine to one city… but gained Juliette from another.
She was mine. Always.
I placed my hand over hers, and she offered me a gentle smile. Satisfaction curled in my belly.
Yes, my little mama was all mine, and nothing would come between us.
“You’re so sweet, Officer Kade,” she said, shaking her head, “even with that maniacal look in your eyes.”
“You can’t prove a thing,” I murmured.
When I parked my truck in the driveway, I watched her reaction as she took in my four-bedroom house—the one I’d always imagined being married in, filled with my children’s laughter and mischief.
Thank fuck Nadine left.
We’d outgrown each other, and I could see that now. She wanted more than small-town life.
More than me.
“Do you like it?” I asked, lifting her hand into mine.
“It’s not what I expected,” she said, and my heart started to sink.
“It’s so pretty and light. A lot bigger than I thought.”
I exhaled the breath I’d been holding.
“I liked the dark wood contrasting against the white.”
“A bit like us, then,” she said with a soft chuckle.
“Exactly like us,” I said, brushing my lips over her fingers.
?? ?? ??
While I made our dinner, I let Juliette explore my house. It was only fair, after all.
But it wasn’t until we sat down to eat that I became acutely aware of the need—the innate, primal urge—to feed her. To provide good nutrition for her and our child.
I loaded more asparagus tips and steamed kale onto her plate.
“You do realise I won’t be able to finish all that—and the massive steak you served me—right?”
I shrugged.
“Eat what you can. Once I’m inside you again, it’ll be a while before you get sustenance.”
“Can we play cops and robbers?” she asked, biting into the asparagus.
“Although… I’m partial to firemen too.”
Firemen?
It was like someone had thrown a bucket of ice water over me.
My lips tightened. I gripped my cutlery until my hands ached. My nostrils flared—the betrayal. I was two seconds away from listing every reason to hate firemen, when—
She laughed.
Not just a little laugh. She cackled.
Fork clattering onto the table, hands on her belly, tears in her eyes.
I set down my knife and fork and just watched her.
Indignant.
“Oh God,” she gasped, wiping her cheeks. “The look on your face.”
Then she collapsed into another fit of laughter.
Fucking firemen.
But I’d take her laughing over crying any day.
?? ?? ??
She wasn’t laughing now.
No—she had her wrists cuffed behind her back, pillows propped beneath her hips, and not a stitch of clothing left on her glowing skin. I’d stuffed her panties in her mouth for her fireman joke, but now they muffled every needy whimper as she stretched her legs apart.
Taunting me. Begging me.
God help me.
I ran my hand down the curve of her inner thigh, slow enough to make her squirm. She arched her back, hips twitching, like she thought that’d earn her a reward.
“Look at you,” I murmured. “Spread out and soaked like this. You wanted to play dirty girl—now you’re at my mercy.”
She moaned through the lace in her mouth, hips lifting, grinding air like it could satisfy her.
I leaned down, brushing my mouth over her ear.
“Problem is… I’m not done looking at you yet.”
She made a frustrated little noise and tried to roll her hips again, but I caught them in my grip—firm, controlling.
“Uh-uh,” I whispered, dragging my fingers just above her slick folds, never quite giving her what she wanted. “You wanted to be the bad girl. You’re gonna take your punishment first.”
I smiled when she threw her face into the pillow.
“So you like firemen, do you?”
Her head shook hard. A muffled no came through the panties stuffed in her mouth.
“Mmm. Too late. You said it.”
I slid my hand between her thighs. She was soaked—hot and sticky, just the way I liked her.
“Let’s see what kind of damage we’ve done.”
I ran two fingers along her folds, slow and deliberate. She twitched beneath me, trying to follow my hand, to rub against it—desperate for friction.
I slapped her ass. Not hard. Just enough to make her squeal.
“Bad girl. Stay still.”
Her hips stilled, but she whimpered.
I leaned closer, dragging a finger through her again—slow, teasing. I watched as her slick coated my skin, glistening in the low light.
“Look at this mess. You’ve been leaking all over my hand. You know what that means?”
She made another needy little sound.
I spread her open with two fingers, just enough to see the pink, swollen heat of her.
“Mm. Thought so. That’s a confession right there. You’re ready to be ruined.”
“You’ll only ever take my cock, Juliette,” I said, reaching around to tug the wet lace from her mouth.
“Now tell me—who owns this pussy?”
I dragged my cock over her slick, swollen heat, slow enough to make her tremble.
She drew in a slow breath through her nose, steadying herself before she managed to speak.
“You do, Officer Kade,” she rasped, glancing over her shoulder—curls hanging wild over her face.
“Please,” she whispered.
I pressed against her opening.
“Please what?” I drawled, holding myself still even as precum trickled out, joining the mess between her thighs.
“What do you want me to do, Juliette?”
Her eyes darkened.
“Ruin me,” she whispered.
“Fuck me so hard that all I feel is you inside me.”
Then she turned her head, resting her cheek against the pillow like she’d just offered me her soul.
Damn.
I adjusted my grip, cock throbbing as I lined myself up.
“Yes, ma’am.”