38. June
38
JUNE
W hen Anderson comes home, he has a few shopping bags with him and a big smile. “Hi honey, I'm home.”
I roll my eyes and kiss him. “What's all that?”
“I felt like celebrating because Andre signed our mutually assured destruction contract.”
All the tension that had animated my body flows out of me. It's so sudden that I wobble on my feet. “And you couldn't text me? I've been waiting here for hours?—"
He cuts me off with another kiss. “Considering that we are blackmailing one of the most high-profile people in the city, I decided that texting might be a little dangerous. And I wanted to see your face when I told you, so that's why I didn't call.”
“Okay, well, I'm thrilled, and I'm curious to know what's in your bags.”
“I require wine. This calls for a celebration.”
“Screw the wine. I want prosecco.”
He grins. “Perfect.”
While I crack open a bottle, he stows his purchases. Some are food, while others get taken into the bedroom. Maybe clothes? Maybe he has a gift for me he wants to hide? I won’t be one of those nosy wives who always dig into their spouse’s business, but I am curious.
When he returns in his lounge pants and tee, I see the man I fell in love with all those months ago. He’s a bit more relaxed than he’s been since we figured out Andre’s bullshit. “Thank god I thought about Dana.”
“No shit. I like her a lot. She’s sharp, and given the rift between her and your folks, I don’t think she’s secretly in cahoots with your dad.”
He chuckles. “No, not at all. It's funny to think Mom was worried about her and Dad.”
“Why is that?”
“You didn’t pick up on the look her assistant gave her when we walked in?”
I shake my head.
“Dana has a thing for younger men. Always has.”
My insides clench. “You’re not about to tell me she was your first, are you?”
He laughs. “Fuck no! It’s like I said before—I think of her as an aunt. The only reason I know that is she was caught with two of the pool boys at the country club. Don’t make that face—they were in their twenties at the time. The point is, she would have never touched my dad. It’s a pity Mom never understood that, or they’d probably still be friends.”
I sigh, thinking about his mom. She never struck me as particularly jealous, but I’d never seen her in a position to be jealous, either. “Maybe one day they’ll bury the hatchet.”
“Perhaps.” He clinks his glass to mine. “One problem down. One to go.”
“Don’t mention the other one right now. I am trying to calm down.”
“Agreed.” He smiles at me, studying my lips for a moment. “You’ve been a fucking trooper through this, June. Thank you.”
A laugh chirps out of me. “You’re thanking me for what?”
“After all the shit I said to you … accused you of … and now, you’ve lost your job.”
“Trying to calm down, remember?”
He pulls me in for a kiss, and I taste the prosecco on his lips. “I know. I’m just telling you why it is. I appreciate you. You have sacrificed so much to be with me, and that is more than worthy of my gratitude.”
“Well, I love you, and I’m willing to make sacrifices for you. I know you’d do the same for me. Hell, you may end up sacrificing your freedom for me, so,” I shrug, “that’s just what we do for each other.”
His face goes pensive—the line in his brow forms. “It really has been one thing after another for us, hasn’t it?”
I giggle, feeling the prosecco’s warmth bubble through me on my empty stomach. I was so nervous all day that I couldn’t eat much. “Since we re-met, things have been turvy-topsy.”
“I think the phrase is topsy-turvy.”
“That’s how fucked up it’s been. Even that’s backward for us.”
He smirks, but it dies fast. “You know Andre will want revenge.”
“Oh, I’m aware. He’s not the kind of man to let this slide.”
“But we’ll handle it together. Like we handle everything else.”
I’ve been tense all day, so my mind bounces from topic to topic rapidly. I’m sure my father’s deal with Andre will fall through after this. The poor baby. I almost roll my eyes at myself for worrying about him. He certainly didn’t worry about me when he was working with Andre for a deal. I take a nervous breath. “Did you tell your dad yet?”
“No. Let him sweat it out. We fixed this. He’s safe now, so he can wait.”
Slowly, I nod. “Still sucks that I’m out of work again, but I’ll take that over being Andre’s stooge any day.”
Anderson loops his arm with mine, and he guides me to the couch to sit there instead of our breakfast bar in the kitchen. “I will take care of you, June. It’s literally the least I can do after all you’ve done for me.”
“Thank you, but you know how I feel about that.”
He smiles. “What I mean is, until you get your feet under you, I’ve got you. Just like you said—you sacrificed for me, and I am happy to do the same for you.”
“Thanks.” But I still feel weird about sharing money before we’re married for some reason.
“You look like you’re thinking too hard again.”
It makes me laugh. “Stop being a hyper-observant weirdo.”
“Never. Not when it comes to you.”
“Yes, I’m thinking too much again. Happy?”
“How about I help you shut down that big brain of yours, and we celebrate properly?”
I’m not sure what he means by that. “You want to go out?”
“Not even a little.” He digs into his pocket and produces the biggest sapphire I’ve ever seen. At first, it steals the show, but then I realize it’s attached to a glass butt plug.
A big one.
“Are you out of your mind?” But even as my mind says the words, my body warms up from the inside, telling me she’s on board.
“You can take it. I know you can. You’ve taken my cock. I know you can take this little thing, and I think you’d look fucking hot as hell with that jewel right there, flashing at me.”
I bite my lip, trying to restrain myself for some reason. But that reason is quickly dissolving into nothing. “I don’t know?—"
“If it hurts or you want to stop for any reason, then say ‘Sapphire,’ and I will remove it, and we do whatever you want to instead. I promise.”
“Even if what I want to do is watch some super scary movie?”
He smirks. “Yes. I will watch whatever fucked up horror movie you have in mind. But you’ll have to rock me to sleep tonight.”
I snort a laugh at the thought. “Oh, I’m sure the man who faced down Andre today is scared of a little ghost and some gore.”
He holds up the butt plug, and the fake sapphire glints in the light. Admittedly, it is pretty. Somehow, it takes all the focus in the room. “So, are you game?”
Okay, now it’s my turn to be scared. I gulp audibly. “Um?—"
Anderson kisses me, but it’s more like he’s devouring my mouth. His hand runs up and down my body until it slips beneath my tee shirt. His thumbs graze over my nipples, and I jump from the stimulation. It verges on too much, and he stays right there, making me squirm.
I peel my mouth from his. “I’m still not sure about this.”
“Honestly, baby, I just want you. Toy, no toy, I don’t fucking care. I want to bury myself in you until I feel you milk my cock as you come. I want to earn your screams. And tomorrow, I want to see you step wide because I made your tight little pussy sore.”
How is this handsome man, this pillar of society, such a filthy boy?
I wrap my legs around his waist and pull him on top of me, reveling in the weight of him on me. He crushes me into the couch, and his kisses are demanding and hungry. His hard cock presses on me through our clothes, rubbing my clit as he dry humps against me. I grind up against him like that, sending pleasure through me. This is getting me so damn wet. But fuck, I ache for more.
I want this. All of this.
“You really want to put that thing up my ass?”
He swallows. “Yes.”
“Let’s try it.”
A new hunger invades his handsome face. He rears back, grabs my legs, and flips me over onto my stomach before he scoops me up at my waist and pushes me over the padded arm of the couch. When he yanks down my yoga pants, he bites my ass cheek just enough to hurt. I yelp, and he murmurs, “Sorry, love, couldn’t be helped. I need to mark this ass and make it mine.”
This is going to be a night to remember.