23. Dani One, Luke Zero
Dani One, Luke Zero
Dani
"I’m going to strangle you with your tie and drag your lifeless body down Queen Street behind my piece of shit Honda!" I holler.
"You mean it, truly!" Luke yells sardonically.
It has been nearly a month since Luke asked me to come back, and things have gone from okay to clusterfuck. We have been at each others’ throats for weeks, and on top of that, Josh has been calling and harassing me over Mason. I am in one hell of a pissy mood and Joni Dobson's case isn’t helping.
"Damn right I do." I say from behind Luke’s computer.
I’ve been scribing for him for the last five hours. Typing and retyping what he has been dictating. Why, you ask? Because the asshole deleted the original when this whole shitstorm hit.
"I'm tempted to make you use the dictate function on here and do your own fucking work." I bark.
"Then I wouldn't need you, would I." He snaps back.
The tension in the room is as thick as fog rolling over a lake. I’m waiting for some knife wielding manic to bust in and stab me. Which I would welcome with open arms. We have been working long hours the last few weeks to get ready for court and I may or may not have threatened to do bodily harm to Luke a few dozen times.
"Maybe if you made a copy of the original, we wouldn’t be in this mess, Daniella." Luke snarls.
I fire out of his chair and lean over the desk. "Don’t you dare put the blame on me for this!" I shout and shove papers off his desk like a child having a temper tantrum. "I asked you if you wanted me to make a hard copy and you said, and I quote ' Not necessary Daniella .'" I mimic his voice.
Luke drops his fists on the desk and leans in. "You should’ve made a copy anyway." He growls.
"Oh no. No, no, no." I wave my hands in front of his face. "Around here it’s 'do as I say.' I try to do something different, and you rip a strip off me for hours. This is your fault, you douche nozzle."
He pushes off the desk and starts pacing the room.
Dani one, Luke zero.
I sit back down and wait for him to begin dictating. After five minutes of him just pacing the office, I reach into the drawer in his desk and grab a handful of elastic bands. "Do you plan on continuing or are you practicing for your runway show in Milan." I deadpan.
"Don’t start with your smart mouth, Daniella."
I shoot one at him, catching him right in the chest.
"Stop."
I fire off another one and another. Both bounce off his hard chest and stomach.
"Enough!" Luke roars.
I drop the rest of them on the desk and stand. "You know what? I’m done. It’s almost ten-thirty, I haven’t seen Mason in weeks. I’m tired and I’m going home." I say, marching around his desk and towards the door. His arm snags me around the waist, knocking me onto the couch.
I bounce and nearly fall off. This couch does not get used much. There isn’t even a butt groove for me to land in.
"You leave when I say you leave." Luke seethes.
A shiver runs down my spine. I hate the way I love when he gets like this. How deep his voice gets when he’s angry. I’ve been sex deprived for way too long.
"You can’t keep me here," I say.
"Can and will."
I slip my shoe off and propel myself off the couch, shoe in hand when he spins and corners me against the wall, next to the door.
"You better not be thinking what I know you’re thinking about doing with that shoe Ms. Carter."
Luke grabs both my wrists with one large hand, making me drop my shoe and pins them over my head, smashing his fist into the wall next to my hip, creating an indent. I feel the vibration from the force through my whole body and my nipples harden instantly.
The brute strength of this man is unreal. I’ve only ever seen someone do that on TV, in movies or read about it in books and to be honest, it’s hot.
"You have no idea what I’m thinking," I say, my voice thick with need.
His eyes heat and my stomach clenches in the most delicious way. Heat pools between my thighs, and I slam them together trying to stop the throbbing that started the minute Luke pinned me to the wall.
A smile breaks out on his face, flashing those delightful dimples. He leans in; his lips brush mine when he speaks. "Tell me, Dani, what are you thinking?"
I shiver at his words. "I’m not telling you shit," I say but the smirk on his face tells me he knows I’m lying.
"Are you thinking about what I said a month ago or the kisses we shared over the past weeks?" Luke asks.
My eyes widen as his hand grips my hip and squeezes, sending fire through my veins. My tongue darts out to wet my lips. The hand on my hip moves slowly down my thigh and under my skirt. He grips my bare skin and a moan escapes from me.
"Do you want me to own your pussy, Sweetheart?" his voice dips low as he nuzzles my neck.
I nod because I can’t speak. His hand slips between my legs and up the inside of my thigh until his knuckle drags along my soaking panties. Another moan passes my lips, ending in a whimper when he applies pressure. He lifts his head to watch me as a finger works its way under the thin piece of barely there fabric and slides along my wet pussy.
"Please." The word burst from my lips.
Luke smiles before removing his finger and sucking it into his mouth. I almost lose it right then.
"You taste…dangerous." His mouth crashes into mine in a kiss that has me arching my back and moaning into his mouth. Something I’ll be embarrassed about tomorrow, but right now; I don’t give two sweet fucks. I can’t remember the last time I was kissed like this.
The ones we shared in the last few weeks were soft and gentle. This is a powerful kiss. It’s passionate, bruising, and hungry. He kisses like a man starved and I’m his last meal. Luke slides his hand and squeezes my upper thigh, right under my ass cheek, as he releases my wrists.
I grip his shirt, tugging it from his slacks and yanking the sides open causing the buttons pop off, bouncing along the floor.
"Holy shit! I didn’t think that was possible." I giggle as I break the kiss.
"Apparently it is," Luke mutters, bringing his mouth back to mine.
A deep rumble comes from his throat when my fingers connect with his bare skin. The hard muscles flex under my fingertips. I take over then, licking at his mouth and flicking my tongue in. His tongue tangles with mine in velvety soft, mind-bending strokes. My knees buckle when he tilts my head, deepening the kiss. I have never been kissed like this; I feel desired. Needed . As if he would die if he stopped.
He steps closer to me, pinning me in place with his warm body and does something with his tongue that has me rolling my hips into his. He tears his mouth away from mine. His chest raising against mine with an unsteady breath.
"I want you, Dani. I want to taste you. It’s all I think about." Gripping my ass, he lifts me and my skirt, placing my bare ass on the cool leather of the couch.
Kneeling in front of me, he drags his tongue down my neck before sucking over where my pulse is pounding. "Do you want that, Sweetheart? Do you want me to taste you." Luke says against my neck. Sucking, biting, licking the sore skin.
I nod and Luke’s mouth is on mine again, softer this time around. My hands dig into his incredibly soft hair, pulling it, and earning a deep growl. He climbs on top of me, pressing me down on the couch, the weight of him is thrilling. Pressing his body between my thighs, Luke shows me just how badly he wants me.
Sweet baby Hades, this man is thick, lengthy, and hard.
So hard.
My hands tear at his shirt, pushing it off his wide shoulders. His skin’s warm under my cool hands. The ridges of muscles move as I rake my nails across his back. His fingers make quick work of the buttons on my shirt. Luke sits back on his knees, opening the shirt. I grab the two sides and cover myself.
"Let me see you, Sweetheart."
"I…I can’t."
"Is it because of the scars?" Luke questions. "I don’t care about those. I want to see you ."
I suck in a sharp breath. He sounds sincere, but I’m unsure. "No one has ever been able to see past the scars." I admit.
Luke slips his hand under my shirt, his fingers skimming the raised skin. "You are beautiful to me." And to prove his point, he kisses the one along the side of my face.
The one he constantly touches.
At first, I thought he was doing it to remind me that it’s there. But now I realize he’s doing it because it’s part of me. It’s something that will forever be there as a reminder of the hell I went through.
I release the sides of the shirt and let him move the fabric away. Luke stills. His eyes heat with both lust and promises.
"I have never seen a woman as beautiful as you are right now," he says.
Heat floods my face as he traces the marks with his fingers and there are many of them. Luke pulls the cups of my bra down. His head dips and he takes one of my nipples in his mouth. My back curves from the sensation of his hot, wet mouth on my sensitive skin. A moan breaks free as his tongue swirls around the aching bud.
"Luke," I moan.
He releases my breast and moves to the other one. Repeating what he did before. His fingers skim down my round belly and over my hip.
"Fuck you’re good at this," I moan.
"I should be, I’m an Aries." Luke mutters against my skin.
A laugh bursts from me. "No you’re not, you’re a Leo."
A rumble comes from deep in his throat like a beast. "You bet your fine ass I am."
Luke claims my mouth as his fingers move south to the junction of my thigh and pelvis and across another welt. I wiggle, imploring him to move his fingers where I so desperately need them. Instead, he caresses the skin, causing goosebumps to breakout.
"Luke. Please." I plead against his mouth while rolling my hips.
"Beg me, Dani." He says, moving down my body, placing open-mouth kisses along my skin, taking his time to kiss each individual scar, welt and burn mark.
He makes me feel beautiful. Something I haven’t felt in years. His fingers curl under the band of my thong, pulling it to the side. The long slow slide of his tongue across my clit has my head falling back. It feels like he’s tasting me as if I’m a fine wine. Luke looks up at me from between my legs. My face scrunches up in frustration.
"Beg me, Dani." He commands while he licks me off his lips.
Damn!
I’m liking this side of him and not just because his tongue is in my pussy.
"Please, Luke." I say in that breathy voice he loves so much.
"Say it again."
"Please, Luke."
He runs his tongue along my pussy, dipping it inside. "Please what, Dani."
Oh God . He’s going to make me say it. I roll my hips, hoping that will be good enough but he sits back on his knees.
"I want to hear you say it, Dani. I want to hear you beg me," he inclines his body over mine. "Beg me to eat your pussy. I want you to cum on my face." He growls.
My eyes widen at his words. This is so not the man I work for.
This is a beast.
I grip my breasts, kneading them as I arch my back. "Eat my pussy, Luke." I don’t have to ask twice.
He pulls me up and to the edge of the couch, kneeling in front of me. Hands move up my thighs, fingers hook into my thong, and I hear the tearing of fabric.
He ripped my panties off!
I drop against the back of the couch. The feel of his hands on my skin is like a drug.
"Look at me, Sweetheart." He commands. "I want you to watch as I get you off."
Propping myself up on my elbows, I watch as his tongue begins to swirl in circles over my clit, sucking it into his mouth. My hips press forwards as a finger slowly pushes inside, moving painfully slow.
Luke is teasing me, driving me to the brink. I wiggle as he adds another finger, stretching and filling me. Gasping and moaning, I start growing impatient. I’m right there, right at the edge but he refuses to allow me to fall over. Luke sucks my clit into his mouth again. Hard enough to elicit a strangled cry from me.
Then he finally, finally moves with purpose.
Pumping his fingers faster as he grazes his teeth over my clit, I fall into an orgasm so strong, so powerful that all the air has been sucked from my lungs. Luke rides out my orgasm with his fingers until I’m an oozing mess of satisfaction. Panting and sated, he positions himself over my body, tilting my head and kissing me hard. The taste of me on his lips and tongue, has me rolling my hips again.
The kiss slows then stops.
"I’ve been dying to taste you since the first day you stepped into my office," he says against my lips.
"Well, you deserve a gold star for that performance," I say and slide my hand between us, cupping him through his slacks. "Now it’s my turn." I purr as I push him down on the couch.
My phone starts ringing, and I groan at the sound of Mason’s ringtone. "One second," grabbing my purse, I pull my phone out. "What is it Mason?" I bite out.
"There’s some dude here," he says.
My desire infused daze clears. I move away from Luke. "You didn’t open the door, did you?" I question. Mason is more that capable of taking care of himself, however, I don’t need him playing hero and end up hurt.
"No. Said his name is Josh and he’s my father." Mason grumbles.
My stomach plummets to my feet and I drop my phone.
"Sweetheart?" Luke’s hand lands on my lower back.
I move, my hand shaking as I pick my phone off the ground. "I’m on my way. Do not open the door, do not tell him you’re alone, and whatever you do, do not, I repeat, do not call Auntie Erin." I hang up, throwing the cell in my purse. "I gotta go."
"Is everything all right? You look pale."
"No, ah, no. Everything is not all right." I try to fix my clothes but my fingers tremble too much to hold onto the buttons.
"What's going on?"
I sigh and drop my hands. "Josh is at my place."
Luke begins buttoning up my shirt. His thick fingers swallowing up the small buttons. "Do you need me to drive you home or come with you?"
The offer is sweet, but I can’t, and I’m too pissed to try to be nice. "No. I—I got this." I answer. "I'll text you when I get home."
Luke regards me for a moment before letting me go. Kissing him quickly, I bolt from his office. "And put your shirt on, you slut." I call over my shoulder.
His chuckle follows me as I run out of the primary office, taking the stairs, and running through the underground parking. My heels clicking off the cement.
I open my car door and get in, promising that I would get new brakes out of my next paycheque if it would start, and what do you know, fires up on the first go. I race out of the underground parking and head west on Wellington Street East.
"How did he find us?" I say aloud.
Josh has somehow gotten my cell and work numbers and refuses to tell me how. He has been calling nonstop. Leaving nasty voicemails about what he would like to do to me sexually. I’ve blocked him but somehow, he’s able to leave the messages.
I pull my car next to the curb behind a rusty Ford truck and slam on the breaks. I can see Josh talking through the door.
Climbing out, I yell, "what in the fuck are you doing here!" I step onto the sidewalk and march towards my house, opening the small white gate and up the stone walkway.
Josh turns and smiles, opening his arms. "Hey baby."
I slap his arms away, the smile on his face disappearing. "How did you find us?" I demand. The door opens a crack. " Shut the damn door, Mason!" I yell. The door slams shut, and the lock thrown. "I asked you a fucking question." I hiss, tapping my foot on the small step.
I didn’t get a good look at him when he and his harpy mother showed up at the office. However, now that I’m face to face with him, he hasn’t changed much since I saw him last.
Sixteen years ago.
His hair has thinned out and his once flat stomach is now rounder, but he’s still handsome.
For a knuckle dragging swamp twat.
"I asked you a question. How did you find us."
"That's none of your concern." Josh says, leaning against the front door.
"Leave."
"Why?"
"Because I don’t want you here." I seethe.
His body tenses. "He’s my son, Daniella."
I step up to him. "Then where the hell have you been the last sixteen years, huh? You fuck off after Mason's first birthday party and I don't hear from you until your father called a week later."
Josh pushes off the door, causing me to take a step back. "You know why I had to leave." He snarls.
"Yeah, because daddy said so. That’s such bullshit!" I shout.
His face flushes and his hands curl into fists at his sides. I’m pushing it, but I don’t care. This fuckwit doesn’t scare me anymore.
"If you actually cared about Mason, you would have found a way to see him." I say.
"I’m here now."
"Yeah, sixteen years too late. Do you know what it’s like to explain to your child that his daddy left after his first birthday party because he was told to drop us. The looks of pity and heartbreak from neighbours and friends. You have no right to Mason."
Josh steps closer. "I want to see my son, Daniella."
Knowing that he’s not going to leave until he gets what he wants, I back up and bang on the door. " Mason!"
The lock clicks and the door opens slowly. "Yeah?"
"Come meet your father." I force out.
"Nope. Not happening."
"He won’t leave until you do."
Mason curses under his breath and steps out, straightening to his full height and towering over his father.
"Jesus," Josh mutters as he steps back. "He’s ah," he clears his throat, "he’s a big boy."
Mason drops a heavy arm over my shoulders.
"He is." I cross my arms.
Josh smiles as he glances up at Mason. "Play hockey, son?"
"No." Mason answers.
Josh’s smile drops. "Why’s that?"
Mason shrugs. "Don’t want to."
Josh shifts his eyes towards me. "Is that because you don’t want him to be like his old man." He points an accusing finger at me.
"I put him in hockey, football, and baseball. He didn’t like any of them." I pat Mason’s chest.
"Can I go now, Ma? I’ve got company." Mason asks and drops his arm.
"Go ahead. Who’s over?"
"Clay and Axe."
"Okay, Bubba. Keep Axe out of my room."
Mason doesn’t look at Josh as he shuts the door.
"Goodbye, Josh." I say, reaching for the door handle.
"I want to see him again."
"He doesn’t want to see you."
Josh runs a hand through his thinning hair. "He is my son, Dani. I want him in my life."
I grip the door handle. "Here’s the thing though," I open the door, "he doesn’t want to be in yours."
I slam the door in his face.