Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
Mia’s hand shook as she drank deeply from her wine glass before setting it down on her counter and facing Carter. “I know you must have a lot of questions, but I need a minute.”
She hadn’t seen her uncle in years. His popping up like…like some creepy clown in a horror movie freaked her out. Except, this wasn’t a movie theater, and she couldn’t get up and walk out.
Carter crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the fridge. “I let you put me off during the entire ride back here. If you’re trying to make up some kind of lie and it hasn’t come to you yet, then another minute isn’t going to help.”
Mia’s heart stuttered. His face was so serious, as if he really believed she’d set him up somehow. “That’s not fair.”
“Really? Your uncle is the kingpin of the gambling world on the Big Island, and you didn’t think to mention that to me? That’s what I’d classify as not fair. I said I would help you with Bobby. Did you not tell me because you were afraid that I wouldn’t help you if I knew about your uncle? Or is this all just some big setup to get me involved in this shit so you can screw with me?”
“If you remember, you insisted on helping me. I never asked. And I sure as hell wouldn’t screw with you.” Breathing hurt as Mia tried to get the words out. How the hell was she supposed to explain? How was she going to get him to believe her? She took another gulp of wine. “I’ll tell you the whole thing just…just give me a minute.” She ran shaking hands over her face. Since seeing him, her lungs had forgotten how to work, and each breath was a struggle. Running into her uncle had made her parents’ deaths fresh.
“Look, Carter…” she licked her dry lips. “My uncle…I didn’t know okay? I mean I knew he was bad news. He’s been involved with organized crime forever. But I had no idea he had taken over the whole gambling thing. The last time I was involved, it was Bobby.” She put a hand over her heart.
The muscle in Carter’s jaw pulsed as he stared at her. “And you didn’t think to give me the heads up that your uncle was a crime boss?”
Mia’s stomach twisted into knots as she stared at her wine. Forget the glass, she wanted to down the bottle. “No, I didn’t.” She let out a long sigh. “He’s my mother’s brother. They had a falling out a long time ago. My mom always said that her brother was jealous of her relationship with their father. My grandfather apparently loved my mother more, or at least that was what everyone thought, including Uncle Makaio. That was… He was incensed about it.”
She stood and started pacing, suddenly unable to sit still. “The only time he came to the house was when my grandfather was visiting. He would come, have tea or a meal and then leave again. It was awful. Full of tension that, even as a kid, I picked up on. Once my grandfather died, my uncle never came back.
“I didn’t know anything about him being involved in organized crime until I started gambling. I had no idea about any of it until the day my parents staged an intervention. My mother told me then about Uncle Makaio, that he was involved in organized crime, and she was worried I would somehow get pulled into that life if I kept running with the gambling crowd. She was extremely upset and worried about it. Her story had the desired effect. I stopped immediately.”
She turned and met Carter’s gaze. “I truly had no idea he was behind the gambling scene, Carter. I haven’t seen him in years. He didn’t even attend my parents’ funeral. I just blocked him from my mind. It never occurred to me that he was involved.” She tapped her heart again. “I would have mentioned it. I swear I would’ve.”
Carter’s continued silence made Mia want to scream. “Look, if you want out, then just leave. You don’t have to be involved in this. You never did. You insisted I needed your help. That’s on you. If you’re done, then just get out.” She waved her arms toward the door. “I don’t need this shit on top of everything else.”
“I’m not leaving.” Carter’s voice was calm, cold even, and the pulse still jumped in his jaw.
Mia frowned and resumed pacing. “What do you want then? An apology? I’m sorry. I really am. I just…blocked out everything about my uncle. I met him a total of three times in my entire life before tonight. No one even knows we’re related. My mother was always embarrassed by him, and he hated her, so it wasn’t like they told anyone. They grew up on Oahu, meaning there weren’t neighbors or relatives here to rat them out. I think that’s why my parents moved here. My mother couldn’t be far enough away from him. I had no idea he was here on the island even. I really just never thought about him.”
“Okay,” Carter said but he still looked pissed.
She stopped her pacing in front of him. “Okay? What the hell does that mean?” she demanded, hands on hips. “You believe me? You’re done and you want to go? You’ve obviously still pissed off. Well guess what? So am I. This just made my life that much more complicated,” she snarled
She was tired and pissed and freaking scared. The man who’d demanded to help her had suddenly turned frigid. What the fuck did he want?
She glared at him. “Just fucking go.” She poked him in the chest with every word. “I don’t need your attitude.
A smile tugged at the corners of Carter’s lips suddenly.
“Are you laughing at me?” Mia demanded incredulously.
“You’re awfully cute when you’re pissed off.”
She opened her mouth to tell him off when he swooped down and claimed her lips. He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to his chest. She struggled to escape his embrace but clasped her arms around his neck instead. The kiss deepened and the heat of it ratchetted up as she pressed herself against him and rolled her hips. This felt so damn good. She was beyond caring about anything.
As he scooped her up, she wrapped her thighs around his waist. He carried her to the bedroom, laid her on the bed, and then covered her body with his own. Her hands caressed the hard ridges of his chest through his t-shirt, and fire coursed through her veins. He was rock hard, and she was desperate to have him inside her.
He pulled her dress up over her head and then tossed it on the floor. He pulled down her bra, exposing one breast for him to suckle. He devoured her nipple with his mouth as desire took complete control of them both.
“Carter,” she breathed.
He planted soft kisses along the side of her neck. She let out a moan and grabbed his t-shirt. Lifting on one hand, he pulled the garment off with the other, dropping it to the floor before he lowered his weight onto her once again. She reveled in it.
His lips searched hers while she traced circles around his back with her fingertips. He pulled back from her as she shivered beneath him.
“Are you cold?” he asked.
“Not at all,” she replied breathlessly.
He unclasped her bra and pulled it free. When he brushed his tongue over one of her nipples she moaned. “God, that feels so incredible,” she whispered.
She reached for his belt buckle, but he stopped her hands, grasping both of her wrists and holding them above her head. He took control of the kiss again, their tongues dancing with desire. Then he moved slowly down from her lips to her neck and then to each of her nipples, tugging lightly at them until she gasped for air.
She tried to free herself from his grip, but he held on tight. “Stop fighting and let me play.” He nipped her breast and she yelped. He pulled away again and then rolled her onto her belly. Holding her hands above her head, he kissed her neck and pressed his hard-on against her backside. His cock nestled against the seam of her ass was so damn hot. Heat coursed through her. She moaned his name.
He reached his hand around to find the apex of her legs and then massaged her through her thong.
“Get naked,” she demanded and pushed her hips upward. Mia lifted her hips higher. Then he kissed her neck as he worked his fingers inside her thong. He rubbed her clit gently. She was wet with anticipation, pushing back and forth as his fingers moved at a leisurely pace.
“Faster,” she ordered, and he increased his speed.
Under him, she writhed until he finally plunged his fingers inside of her, which elicited a yelp of pleasure from her lips.
He turned her over again and took off her underwear. She loved an alpha male streak when it came to sex. And he was as alpha as they came, making her want him desperately.
Carter pressed his body completely against hers, trapping her against the bed as he kissed her again. The touch of his skin against hers ignited an uncontrollable need. When he fingered the hot center between her legs, she moved fiercely trying to direct his attention inside her body. A sexy-as-sin chuckle told her he knew what she was trying to do, But he procrastinated, kissing her neck while flicking his fingers against her clit. He made his way down her body until he was kneeling on the floor, positioned above the apex of her legs.
He blew on her heated center while she dug her fingers into his scalp. His grip on her ass kept her still as he increased the intensity of his tongue. Then slowly, finally…mercifully, he eased one finger inside while continuing to swirl his tongue around her clit.
Her hands moved to caress his hair as she lifted her hips to meet his mouth. Tightening his fingers on her butt, he lifted her hips, and planted his mouth against her core, sucking and licking her to a frenzy. She got closer and closer to the edge until finally, he nipped her clitoris with his teeth, which triggered a jolt through her body.
His name slipped from her lips as she reached her climax.
“Carter, I want you inside me,” Mia demanded. She wanted to feel him. To taste him. He started to kiss her, but she backed off. “Take off your jeans now.” She helped him out of the rest of his clothing and then pushed him gently until he was lying on his back on the bed.
She straddled him then, determined to enjoy this time with him for as long as she could, she kissed him deeply, tasting her release on his lips and tongue. Then she traveled her lips down his neck to his chest. With her teeth, she teased his nipples, and he groaned. He tried to grab her ass, but she squirmed away from him.
“Mia." His low voice rumbled from his chest and spread shivers across her body.
She touched the hard planes of his abdomen, running her fingers over the tight, thick muscles. He was so damn beautiful. She wanted to burn his image into her memory.
She toyed with his nipples, licking and pinching, and then trailed lower to hover her mouth over his cock. She ran her tongue across the tip before making slow circles around the crown, first one way and then the other. Gradually, she drew him deeper into her mouth as she sucked and twisted. She kept her fingers tight around the base and cupped his balls with her other hand.
Carter growled her name; his deep voice creating shivers along her spine. She wanted him inside of her, but first, she yearned to hear him say her name again. His hips began to move, and she responded with her tongue.
“Mia, you’re killing me.”
She stopped and looked up, staring into his eyes as she ordered, “Don’t come yet.”
Then she smiled wickedly before returning to her previous position. The fact that he wanted her so badly made desire course through her body. She was already soaking wet with anticipation. When she started to ease herself over him, he grabbed her hips and pulled her down hard.
She gasped as she stretched to accommodate his girth. “You need to wait.”
“Fuck waiting.” He began moving his hips underneath her. She moaned and arched to take him in fully. She matched his rhythm and urged him to go faster.
“Jesus, Carter. You feel so damn good inside me. Faster,” she demanded again. He obliged, holding her hips as she rode him.
“Mia,” he said through gritted teeth. She knew he was on the verge of coming but so was she. She ground her clit over his pubic bone and keened as sensation roared through her. She arched, her hips bucking as she came. A few long, deep strokes later, he careened over the edge with her.
Exhausted, sated, but still wanting more, she flopped down onto his chest. Her body trembled from the intense, earth-shattering orgasm. But a hollow feeling was already building in her chest.
Her world was a mess and she was dragging this man down. She couldn’t let him drown along with her. She wouldn’t be responsible for him getting hurt, and with her uncle on the scene, the odds of someone not making it out alive were almost one hundred percent.