Chapter 24
24
PENNY
“Let her go,” Collins demands.
He’s here. But where?
I thought he was on the patio looking all bodyguardy.
“I see, no, I hear a ghost. Ghost of Collinzzz.”
“Fuck, Penny, how much have you consumed?” He sounds so judgy.
“I just had a Threesome in the Driveway.” As soon as I say it, I know I got it wrong. Bending forward, I grab my sippy cup. “Haaaa, haaa, I said sippy cup.” Wait. No I didn’t. “Did I? Oh, foo.” I can hear Collins curse. “You gots a potty mouth, Mr. Stone.”
“I got this. Back off, Moreno.”
Oh, shit. Nothing good ever comes from men calling each other by their last name, in an angry tone like he just used.
I didn’t even think he knew his last name.
“Easy, man. We go way back.”
“Not way back as in bathtub pics way back. At least I don’t think. That would be awkward,” I mumble.
“I need you to remove your hands from Miss Hoffman’s waist, or I will remove them and then break each finger one by one.”
He did not just say that. But he did. Even in my tipsy state, I heard every word and all the other words that weren’t said but implied.
Welp, that just sobered me up. I mean, kind of. I am still seeing everything with a fuzzy halo around it, and these men aren’t angels.
Suddenly, I am transferred out of Ivan’s arms and into Collins’s stronger ones. I no longer feel nauseous. I feel confused. Why does his touch feel so different? Wanted.
I crave his attention.
We are the only three in the pool, which makes it extra awkward. It’s as if I’m stuck in the middle of some showdown, while the rest of my family is probably playing yard games in back.
They definitely can’t see this craziness. It will surely draw suspicion that Collins is doing more than just guarding my body. He is also corrupting it.
Reaching behind me, Collins grabs a huge disposable cup of water. “Drink this.”
“Okay, Mr. Bodyguard.”
“All of it.”
I do as I’m told and watch as he grins approvingly at me when I smack my lips after the last drop is consumed. “Happy?”
“Ecstatic,” he deadpans.
“Sheesh, you’re in a mood.”
“And eat this.”
I stare at the cheeseburger he magically presents to me out of thin air. Like seriously, where did he get this from? “I’m not hungry.”
“Eat it.”
“She said no. No means no.”
Ivan.
Ivan, you are going to get pummeled, and there won’t be a damn thing I can do to stop it.
Collins twitches but doesn’t pay Ivan any attention. Instead his entire focus is on me. “Eat the food, Penelope. Now. ”
“I’m a vegetarian now.”
“Bullshit,”—he lowers his voice—“I know you love swallowing my meat.”
Well, at least I can’t call him a liar.
One second I’m in the pool, and the next I’m sitting on the edge with a cheeseburger pressed into my palm.
I want to resist. Trust me, I do.
But Dad makes the juiciest burgers with a little bit of smoked gouda in the middle and white cheddar on top…
I need to soak up some of the alcohol I downed earlier. Collins is right—as usual—that I haven’t eaten enough food today. And he would know. The man hasn’t stopped staring at me since we arrived here. If anyone is going to cast suspicion onto us, it is him.
Moving the sandwich to my lips, I take a big bite, sinking my teeth down. With each chew, I think Collins gloats. He definitely won this battle. I just hope it doesn’t turn into a war with the way Ivan keeps staring.
I’m definitely not used to having two possessive men vying for my attention.
“I had this handled, man.”
Ivan, Ivan, Ivan…
He really doesn’t give up. It’s best though if he just shuts up. Collins is in no mood.
“No peeing in the pool from this pissing contest,” I blurt out. And then I giggle. Like the uncontrollable kind where I’m worrying I might be the one to pee. I giggle myself back into the pool, and when I start to sink and sputter out bubbles to the surface, Collins rescues me. “I need to use the bathroom.” I cross my legs under the water. “Hurry!”
With gentle precision, Collins has us both out of the pool, a dry towel wrapped around me, and his hand guiding me at my lower back to move toward the nearest bathroom.
Realizing I need my stuff, I whip around to try to look for my bag but find it dangling from Collins’s wrist.
“Oh.” I look up into Collins’s eyes. “You always rescue me when I need it most.”
“And I always will.”
“What about when the contract ends?” I press. What will the dynamic be then?
“I will always put your interests ahead of my own.” It’s as if he wants to say more but holds back. And it’s in that silence that I know I’ll find the truth—the truth he is always resistant to share.
“But why?”
He continues to move me through the door to the basement and then into the bathroom. Shutting the door, he defaults to his natural reaction which is to ignore my question.
This man. He’ll be the death of me.
Alone inside my parents’ basement bathroom, I lean against the vanity to try to regain my composure. Why does Collins Stone continue to get under my skin without even trying? He does things to me. He gives me false hope.
So much has happened during this barbecue that I’m starting to get whiplash.
After a couple of minutes, I realize why I am here in the first place and start to undo my damp suit, but it’s suctioned to my skin like another layer. It’s basically bondage.
Cursing, I stumble into the shower door, creating a jarring sound.
“Penny, do you need help?”
Maybe if I just lie down, I can wiggle my way out of it.
Then I hear the click from the door opening, and the slow warmth from humiliation fills my body, hitting my cheeks which I know must be flaming red.
“Penny?”
“Yeah.” I look up at Collins who is now hovering above me. “My swimsuit is attacking me.”
“Is that so?”
“Quit looking like you’re enjoying my struggle.”
“It’s hard not to enjoy a view with you tied up on the floor.”
“Just help me get out of this straitjacket. This is a death trap.”
“Gladly.”
“Preferably before I pee all over this chastity belt.”
Helping me up from the floor, he mumbles, “Got it,” while stifling his laughter.
I want to smack him for finding this funny, but I can’t because I’m too grateful for him figuring out the maze which is my swimsuit. I definitely didn’t think about practicality when I bought this thing.
My hands cover my breasts, while I bend a thigh to shield my pussy from his penetrating gaze.
I can’t tell if he is amused or aroused. “Stop looking at me.”
“It’s impossible not to want to look at you, Pen.” Taking a step closer, he pulls my wrapped arms down from my chest. And without warning, he gently kicks open my feet to expose all of me. “There. That’s much better.”
I rock up on my heels. “You can leave.” I’m ready to burst.
“And miss the show?”
“Huh? I really do have to pee.” Does he not understand the urgency I’m facing? What’s he doing? “Like now .”
“I’d rather stay. So sit. Do your thing. It would be silly of me to miss an opportunity to administer your punishment—yeah?”
“I can’t with you watching.”
Leaning against the vanity, Collins locks his eyes with mine. “We’ve done way more intimate things together, and I’ll continue to push those boundaries. Because it’s in your discomfort that you learn more about yourself. So get used to it. And never hide that beautifully delectable body from me again. Now, sit.”
“Fine.”
“And let this be a reminder that I see everything. I see how men look at you. I see how you get a dark thrill from driving me to my breaking point with desire to consume all parts of your mind.”
Sitting down, I stare at him with my pouty lip pressed out in defiance. But I can’t do it. Not with his eagle eyes watching me like his prey. So I find my loophole and close my own eyes.
There. Now I can’t see him seeing me.
It’s almost the same thing…
Relaxing my pelvic floor muscles, I try.
But there’s no hiding from Collins. I can feel him even more when I am the one hiding out in the darkness.
Damn him.
“I don’t want you drinking anymore tonight.”
“Why? Drinking can be fun.”
“Because you get super charged up and?—“
My eyes pop open. “You mean horny .”
“Yeah, that.” He shakes his head at me while I giggle. “Then you’ll be more prone to making bad decisions.”
“Bad decisions can be fun.” Okay, now I can’t stop giggling.
“Only if you make them with me.”
Faking seriousness, I straighten my posture. “Mr. Rule Follower can make a bad decision? Nah. I don’t buy it.”
“Many would say I’m making one with you.” He watches me while I finish up and stand in front of him—fully exposed and vulnerable.
Silence hovers between us, like a ghostly third wheel, making me question if he is actually having regret.
I wouldn’t blame him. I don’t find pleasure in his constant state of turmoil over betraying my brothers, but he’s not alone in his emotions.
I know I’ve betrayed them too.
My brothers saved my life by getting me the counseling and therapy I needed to try to move past the trauma I endured from Mark Tanner.
And this is how I repay them? By sneaking behind their backs…
With their most trusted employee.
But Collins makes me feel alive.
He sees me when I am at my most vulnerable and doesn’t want to run away.
Like the opposing poles of a magnet, we are drawn together like a force that is far bigger than either of us. And no matter how hard we resist, we can’t help but find ourselves pressed up against one another when the opportunity presents itself—like now.
Collins’s lips find my neck, and his fingers trail paths along the sides of my torso, coming to rest at my hips. Every self-conscious thought on whether I look good enough for him washes away, because I feel his attraction—every inch of it.
“Collins,” my lips whisper. My head falls back, as he helps me stay upright. “I want…”
“Tell me, Princess.”
My body melts a bit more. I love when he calls me that. I swallow the saliva pooling in my mouth as his fingers caress and squeeze the flesh of my ass.
It’s a simple touch and yet it’s all I crave. The closeness…
“I want you to”—I moan as he slides his hands down the backs of my upper thighs—“make me come.”
“Oh, I plan to, but I’m not sure you’ve been a very good girl today.”
Like a balloon deflating, my spirit sags. He won’t deny me again, will he? “Please, Collins.”
When I flop forward, he catches me, placing a gentle kiss on my nose.
Hoisting me up, he places my bare ass onto the cold surface of the vanity. His mouth finds the hollow of my neck and then trails kisses all the way down my breasts to my navel.
“I shouldn’t want you, Penny.”
His lips hover over my core, as if he’s at the precipice of a big decision. And just when I think he’s about to deny me what I so desperately need, he spreads my legs and kisses my clit.
“But I want you so fucking bad that I’m willing to travel the rings of hell if it means that I can have you at the center of it.”
And then he licks me and nips, as I thrash on the countertop.
“Collins!”
Pulling himself off me, he spits on my pussy, and before I can recover from the shock of that surprisingly intimate act, he then slides two fingers inside. He knows just where to probe and press, but he seems to tragically—and I suspect, purposely —miss the spot.
“You are not to come. Do you understand?”
What kind of sick game of fuckery is this? “What? Are you just bitter I beat you at family games?”
Collins draws his eyebrows together. “We were on the same team.”
“Well, we definitely are on different teams right now.”
My inner walls clench, trying to suck his fingers in deeper. If I can just move this way, maybe I can…
Like a phantom, he’s gone. And I am empty.
Deprived.
And trembling with unfulfilled need.
Then he?—
“Ouch!”
Pain radiates through my pussy. Before I can slam my thighs together for protection, Collins is on me, eating me like I’m his last meal.
He’s pressing his face into my core so determinedly that the back of my head hits the mirror, jostling it.
In the heat of the moment, I somehow slide down the vanity and manage to now scrape my spine against the rough edges.
Splayed out on the floor in my parents’ bathroom, I surrender the only way I know how and submit to Collins as he feasts on me. The whole time, his hands hold my knees apart, giving me no other choice but to absorb every morsel of attention he wants to gift to me.
My whole body convulses as an orgasm so powerful pulses through me, gaining speed, and ultimately sending me over the edge of no return.
Tears flood out of my eyes, as I can’t do anything but keep them tightly squeezed.
“What just happened?” I whisper-choke, genuinely confused if I actually lived that euphoria or if I’m stuck in some drunken fog.
Kneeling up, Collins towers over me. He keeps my legs spread, eyeing me with what, I’m not quite sure. But then, sticking out his tongue, he bends one leg and licks from knee to pussy, while tugging my entire body off the ground so he has access.
By the time he repeats the same process on the second leg, I’m melting even more.
“You were given one rule, Penelope.”
“Hmm?” What is he even talking about?
“You were not to come .”
I start to giggle, but then stop when I realize he isn’t joking. “You can’t be serious.”
“Oh, I most definitely was clear with my expectations. You just decided that your desire for release trumped my desire for you to have a solid punishment.”
“So now what?”
“Funny you should ask.”
Helping us both up off the floor, he places me back onto the vanity. Then he slides a hand into the pocket of his swim shorts and pulls out a shimmery pink…
What is that?
Collins…
My mouth gapes.
A sex toy?
“Did you just happen to find that on accident?”
He spins it around in his hand. “Maybe.”
“You are just walking around with a pocket full of tricks…”
I don’t remember him having it while we were in the pool. I can’t imagine him having it in the water where it could easily fall out—but what do I know? I’m either oblivious or he’s a magician.
My eyes study the curved device while Collins does what he does best—keeps quiet.
I motion toward the toy. “Is that for you or for me?”
There. I got him to smirk.
Finally.
I hate when he’s this serious. I think it just makes me nervous over his next move.
“Scoot back, bend your knees, and place your feet up on the counter.”
I do as I’m told, mainly because I’m curious what Collins has planned.
He rotates the toy in his hands, and then brings it to my lips. I open and suck on the smooth device, lubricating it with my saliva and testing its weight on my tongue.
“You are such a sight. A feast for my eyes.”
His words of praise help soften me, as I melt right onto the countertop.
Who needs spit when I have been charged and ready to go all day?
Collins removes the toy from my mouth and then presses it to my clit, making me jerk from the contrast. With a delicate touch, he inserts the device into me and then adjusts the external arm to align on top of my clit.
When he has it situated to his liking, Collins stands up and unzips my tote bag. He pulls out my panties and helps me into them while I’m still perched on the counter like some cupcake on display in the window at a bakery.
Just when I start to question what is so special about the toy embedded inside of me, Collins hits some button on a tiny remote, and suddenly I’m transported to another place in my head.
Staring up at the ceiling, I let out a moan. “I, ah, I…”
My bottom wiggles, trying to get away from the vibrating sensations wreaking havoc on what I can only assume is my G-spot. But the piece that is sitting on my clit, with my panties holding it firmly into place, is my ultimate undoing. That thing needs to go away or I will…
“Don’t come.”
“Oh, shut up!”
“Tsk, tsk.”
“Listening to you make these wonky demands is like listening to someone give directions on how to get to purgatory.”
Collins narrows his eyes, locking them in with mine. “That’s no way to speak to your deliverer of pleasure, is it?”
My eyes squeeze shut, and I instantly feel the moisture breaking out from the corners. I’m going to die. I’m going to die on this bathroom vanity from…I don’t know what.
But I just know I’m a goner.
“Turn it off.”
Collins presses a kiss to my forehead and then my nose. If he calls me adorable, I may attack him. He then pulls out my backup outfit from the bag, consisting of a red, white, and blue striped sundress.
I guess I did bring an obscene amount of outfits. I think I just bought too many festive ones, and with this being the last big holiday of summer, I am running out of time to wear them without it looking weird.
“Arms up.”
So he’s just going to ignore that I’m melting away right in front of his eyes. Is that what’s going on right now?
“I can’t.”
“You can . And you will.”
I shake my head no, which causes Collins to laugh. Then I jump into his arms as he triggers the higher setting on the toy buzzing between my legs.
It’s like he’s electrocuting me.
Bastard.
I go boneless and struggle to get my legs to hold my weight, and just when I think I’ll combust, all the sensations stop.
My body sags against Collins, as I try to catch my breath.
And somehow during all of this commotion, he managed to get my bra on and the dress over my head.
Wizard.
“Ready to go back out to the party?”
“I can’t.” I pout out my bottom lip. “That sounds like torture.”
“It will be invigorating.”
“I can’t,” I repeat, my tone a bit more urgent.
That has definitely been the theme of this little detour… Thinking I can’t, when clearly Collins had other expectations.
“You are forbidden from orgasming, no matter what you feel while we are out there”—he gestures toward the window—“having fun.”
“What happens if I can’t resist?”
“Then you get punished.”
I cross my arms over my chest. “That doesn’t seem fair at all. I should at least get a prize for accomplishing the challenge.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“If I do as I’m told and be your good girl, then”—I jolt as he hits the remote suddenly to send a shock to my core—“stop that!” I hit him on the arm that is controlling the next hour of my life, and he relents. “You are having way too much fun with a little bit of control.”
“I am,” he agrees. “Now what were you saying, Princess?”
“If I win, we have date night at Limit-X.”
“No.”
I frown. “Oh, c’mon.”
“No.”
“Just don’t lose.”
“Oh, trust me. I don’t plan on it.”
“So we have a deal?”
“Yes, Penelope.”