Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
August
P aisley whirled on me. “I cannot believe you just did that.”
I frowned, wondering what the hell she could possibly mean. It wasn’t as if I had kicked the guy in the nuts or gutted him like I had wanted to. Jacob would’ve earned those outcomes considering he had dared put his hands on her.
“What do you mean?”
“You know exactly what I mean. You can’t just beat up anybody who stands in your way.”
I took a step back, shaking my head. “That’s what you think that was? That I just had a little disagreement with that asshole and suddenly what, I can’t handle myself? Get a fucking clue, Paisley. He put his hands on you.”
“He didn’t.” She ran her hands over her face, looking as exhausted as I felt in that moment. “Okay, he touched me, but I was fine. I was fine . He was hovering over me, but I was handling it. I’ve always been able to handle him.”
Sheer rage slid over me. “Are you fucking kidding me? How many times has he done this to you? You told me he didn’t hurt you that way. Were you lying about him? Because I will go out there right now and kill him. He doesn’t get to touch you.”
“And you don’t get to try to protect me from him. I can do that myself.”
“Yes. Because you could always do everything by yourself, Paisley Cassidy Renee.”
“Don’t full name me. You have no right to stand in here and yell at me and try to take over. We were both very clear that we have nothing to do with each other than our shared connections.”
“And yet, what were you going to do to Jacob to get him out of your office? Where’s your fucking security? Why are you here alone where anybody can just come in?”
“My security is on a different floor at the moment as they’re closing up. I was just packing my things so I could go home.”
“And yet he was allowed to come up here.”
“Because he was my husband. And apparently whoever’s at the front desk decided that he was allowed to be up here. Do not worry, I will take care of that.”
“Yes, because you’ll take care of that. ”
“Don’t say that so sarcastically. I can handle things on my own.”
“Didn’t look like that from here.”
“Fuck you.”
“Yes, so original.”
“You’re the one who tried to use his fists. So I don’t know what you’re talking about being original here.”
“They let me up here without a second thought because I’m apparently family.”
She blanched. “What?”
“Yes, because I’m family with two of the women that work here, and they know that I’m your ex-husband, so they just let me up here. What kind of fucking shit show for security are you running here?”
“Apparently one that I need to change,” she said, letting out a breath. “He didn’t hurt me, August.”
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“I’m fine. He’s not here anymore. And he’s not coming back.”
Underneath the bravado, finally I could see the fear. Not of me, hopefully never of me. But of that man.
I let out a breath, my heart rate finally being able to slow down. Because that first tableau I had witnessed when I had walked into this office? It had nearly taken ten years off my life. Jacob had hovered over her, caging her within his arms against the desk. And there had been nothing I could do until I was suddenly on his back, pulling the man away. If I had been just seconds later, what would that man have done to her? It didn’t bear even thinking about, and yet I knew those would be the only thoughts running through my mind for far too long. The only thing that ever echoed in my memories. The look of her fear right then and there, and the fact that she had looked so helpless in front of her ex-husband. And Paisley never looked helpless. Even when she looked as if she were falling underneath the weight of a thousand commands and responsibilities, she never looked as if she couldn’t handle it. And yet clearly, something had happened.
“Why was he here? And what did you threaten him with?”
She took a step away then and headed over to the beverage cabinet. I thought she would pour whiskey or something else absurd that businesspeople always seem to do in the movies, but instead, she poured two glasses of water in lowball glasses, and handed me one. I took it, and frowned, before she downed half of hers in one gulp.
Well, she was far more rattled than I thought.
“Paisley.” When she didn’t say anything, a cold sensation spread through my chest. “Paisley. What happened with pretty boy?”
Her eyes flashed for a moment, exactly what I had wanted. I didn’t care about the fuck face, Jacob. But I did care about what he was doing to her. I would have to dig a little deeper about what all that meant later. But for now, I needed to know.
“He wanted to make sure I was going to sign an extra non-disclosure. Evidently he doesn’t want any of his dirty secrets out in the world. Even though I already told him I wouldn’t be signing it, and there was nothing he could do about it. It wasn’t part of our prenups, and he can’t make me.” She held up her hand before I could say anything. “Not that I would have said anything to begin with. I just want to be out of the news. I want people to see what we’re doing here at work. See the good, the money we’re raising to help others. I want them to see women in business kicking ass. I don’t want to be the bitter ex-wife. But I’ll absolutely play that part if he comes after you. If he threatens to sue you, I will go to the press, I will tell them everything I know about him. All about his cheating, and any business ties that might be a little shady. I will tell them everything.”
I cursed under my breath and moved forward after setting the water glass down. “You don’t have to protect me, Paisley.”
“I think I just said the same to you.”
I cursed under my breath, and moved forward, not realizing my hand was already outstretched, my fingers gently grazing her cheek. She stiffened for a moment, before swallowing hard.
“Paise…”
“What are you doing here?” she asked, bringing me back to the present.
“I am just glad you’re okay.”
“I’ve forever been fine, August. Jacob can’t hurt me anymore.”
I thought I heard the lie in her voice, but instead I just continued to hold her cheek, cradling her as she stared up at me, both of us not speaking.
I kept thinking about what could have happened. What Jacob had been thinking in that moment. Because while I knew Paisley could handle anything, that man was so much bigger than her. And I wish I could find him and finish the job. But that wouldn’t accomplish anything, I knew that.
Jacob held so much more power than I ever could, but I was just the low life who could try to take that power back.
“What are you doing here, August?” Paisley asked again after a moment, bringing me out of my thoughts.
I blinked, swallowing hard. “I just...I thought we should talk.”
Such a lame thing to say after everything that had happened. But I had come here to talk to her. I didn’t know what about. Only I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her all day at work.
I had been teaching students about chemical bonds and reactions, all the while having Paisley’s voice in my head, telling me to keep going, or that it wasn’t enough. And it didn’t always have to do with what had happened in that suite. I hadn’t even realized that I was driving toward her building until I was already parking, knowing that I needed to see her.
This was the exact opposite of what I had told myself I would be doing. I did not need to be near her. I needed to take a step back and not want this. But I was still touching her, still looking into those eyes of hers that had drawn me in. She was my addiction, my drug of choice, and I knew I needed to quit her long ago. Just like I had before.
And then I wasn’t moving.
“We were so good at talking before, right?” Paisley asked, rolling her eyes. But she didn’t move away.
Instead we stood there, her office door closed, the two of us alone, and I couldn’t help but make wrong choice after wrong choice.
I leaned down and brushed my lips against hers, needing to know she was safe, that she was real.
Her lips parted in surprise, but she didn’t pull away, instead she leaned forward, going on her tiptoes, and kissing me back.
“Paisley. He could have hurt you.”
“But he didn’t,” she whispered against my lips.
And so I deepened the kiss, sliding my hand around to the back of her neck, holding her steady as my tongue slid against hers.
She moaned, and I moaned right back, her hands sliding down my sides to grip the belt loops of my jeans.
I let my other hand fall to her waist, squeezing gently, needing her touch, just needing her.
I would think about the consequences of what that thought meant later. I was so good about pretending that I would, but it didn’t matter in that moment.
Instead I continued to kiss her, sliding my lips along her jaw and then down her neck.
“Tell me to go. And I’ll go.”
But I wouldn’t want to.
But she didn’t, instead she pulled at my belt loops, tugging me toward her, and I let her.
She tasted of sweetness, and Paisley, and I continued to lap at her, needing every inch of her. I pulled away slightly, ignoring the frown on her face at the movement, before adjusting us both so we were at her desk. And then I was pulling off her shirt, one button at a time, and she was tugging at my Henley. I undid the blouse, the silk falling to the floor, and she stood there in a discreet bra that showed off the top half of her tits and lifted them up, and a business skirt with a slit up the side.
I groaned, gently running my hands up that slit.
“What kind of panties are you wearing?” I growled into her ear.
“Why don’t you find out?”
I bit gently down on her ear, and she tilted her head back. I couldn’t walk away from the invitation, so I licked up her neck, before biting gently down again.
She moaned, arching into me. I slid my hand around her backside, her soft skin bare under my palm. So when my fingers brushed against the edge of her thong, I slid it to the side, easing my fingers in between her ass cheeks.
“A thong? You don’t like panty lines, do you?”
“I hate them. But I don’t know if I like the breeze if I go pantiless.”
“One day you’ll go pantiless for me. So that way I know that just a bare touch and I’ll be between your legs. Would you do that?”
“August,” she whispered.
“I love the sound of my name on your lips.”
My hands in between her legs, she arched into me, and I played with her hole, just pressing against the pucker, loving the way that she moaned. And then I continued my exploration, one finger and then the second down to her pussy.
“Already so wet for me. You’re drenching that thong, aren’t you?”
“I can’t help it,” she gasped.
“Let me take care of that for you.”
So she leaned forward, her breasts against my chest as she gripped my arms, her back arched in an invitation. I slid one finger inside her heat, her cunt clamping around my finger.
“You’re soaked.”
And then I inserted another, before gently teasing, one sliding in and then out, then along her seam, then back to that puckered hole.
“Are you going to let me fuck your ass like before? Do you want my cock inside you, stretching you?”
“August, I can’t take any more.”
“Yes, you can.” And then I slid one finger deep inside her, using her own juices to help the penetration. And she moaned, shaking.
“That’s it, that’s my girl.”
But at this angle, I wouldn’t be able to see everything, so I slid my fingers out, ignoring her moan, then twisted her so her front was to me.
“Let me see your tits. Take off that bra.”
“Are you serious right now?”
“Do it.”
She undid the clasp on the bra, her breasts falling heavy in front of me. I reached out and pinched one nipple, loving the way that her mouth parted. And then I took her by the hips and turned her so that her back faced me.
“Bend over, I wasn’t finished.”
“So bossy.”
I squeezed her other breast, just gently, loving the way that her eyes darkened as she looked over her shoulder.
“You like it.”
She didn’t say anything, but then she let me turn her fully, her hands on the desk, and then I was pulling her skirt up so I could see that luscious ass of hers.
I tugged the thong to the side and speared her with two fingers without warning. She gasped, her back arching again, and I finger-fucked her, loving the way the sounds of sex filled the room. Then I used her juices to continue to pleasure her as much as I could, using my middle finger in her pussy, my thumb playing with her puckered hole. She shook, her knees nearly going weak, but I kept her steady, until I knelt down in front of her, and licked up her cunt.
She came right then and there, the tip of my tongue playing with her clit, as she gushed over my face, and I continued to lick and suck at her. When I removed my fingers, she bent over the desk, her legs going weak, but I kept her steady. Because I would never let anyone hurt her.
No, I would just be the one who did that. I pushed that thought from my mind, before I squeezed her ass, continuing to massage her.
“You’re so fucking beautiful.”
“August. I can’t.”
“You will.”
I pulled off her skirt, but I kept her heels on. The sight of her naked in stilettos was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.
And then she stood up and turned, and I gently massaged her breasts, keeping my gaze on her.
“Do you want to come again?”
“From the look of that tent pole straining in your jeans right now, I think it’s my turn.”
I grinned, then took my hands to her shoulders and gently pushed her down to her knees.
“Do you need something to protect your skin?” I asked.
She shook her head as she undid my belt buckle.
“No, the carpet’s soft.”
“That’s a good girl,” I whispered, putting her hair into a ponytail as she gripped the base of my cock, pulling the length of me out of my boxer shorts.
“Suck it, let me fuck your mouth.”
“This is my office—shouldn’t I be the boss here?”
I tugged on her hair, forcing her gaze to mine.
“Not right now.”
She nodded, before she licked the tip of my cock, and I groaned.
When she swallowed me whole, hollowing her cheeks and humming along my cock so it touched the back of her throat, I nearly came right then.
With one hand on my balls, massaging them in her palm, she used the other hand to grip the base of my cock since not all of it could fit in her mouth. She bobbed her head, with me guiding the motion, the back of my spine tingling with the exertion of me holding back. But I needed to be inside her. I didn’t want to come down her throat or over those pretty breasts like I had in the past. No, I needed to be inside that pussy of hers. Even if I knew it was a mistake.
And when I almost came, I pulled back, and then tugged her to her feet so I could crush my mouth to hers.
“You’re way too good at that.”
“I’m glad you think so,” she said with a wink, and then I was picking her up by her waist and sitting her on her desk.
“This is most unhygienic for my office.”
“Sue me. We’ll clean up later.”
And then I crushed my mouth to hers before I pulled away and pushed her back so she lay over her desk, pushing the keyboard away, knocking a few things on the floor.
She let out a little giggle that made me smile, and so I pulled at her thighs, so her ass was right at the edge of the desk.
“Ready?”
For an instant she met my gaze, and I was afraid she was going to say no. Then again, I didn’t know if I was ready for this either.
But instead she nodded, playing with her own breasts, and so I plunged into her in one thrust, her pussy so tight around my cock I nearly came.
She shouted my name, and I continued to move, wrapping one of her legs around my waist and pulling her other leg so that her ankle was on my shoulder. I pounded into her, loving the way that her breasts bounced when she had to remove her hands to keep herself steady on the desk.
When I slid one leg between her legs, letting her rest her other leg on my shoulder, I slid my thumb over her clit, and she came, one touch, and she was gone, clamping down on me so tight that I nearly saw stars. So I came with her, lowering her leg so I could lean over her to take her mouth. I kept moving, even through the orgasm, as I helped her to a sitting position. She wrapped both legs around me, arching for me thrust for thrust, as I continued to kiss her, needing her touch.
I knew we would have to talk about this. We would have to deal.
Not now. Instead, after the orgasms faded, and we came down from our high, we just held each other, locked together, physically, emotionally, and with every memory in between.
Then I just held her and felt the tears against my chest.
And I knew some were for me, but not all. The only thing I could do was hold her. I wasn’t sure what else I could do.
“He won’t come back,” I promised. “He won’t.”
“I know,” she whispered against me, this time running her hands down my back as if in comfort.
And I knew I had fallen. Once again. And there was no going back.
Even if there was no future in what we had just done.