Chapter Twelve #4
His tongue darted in and out, tongue-fucking me to distraction.
I writhed on top of him, not even trying to hold back my cries.
Every point of contact from him to me was water thrown on live wires.
The current surged and exploded out of control—building and building—until it overwhelmed and shorted out my senses.
I was hot and tingling and hoarse. My vision blurred, and my hips rocked, moving back and forth on his mouth—riding the fuck out of that beautiful face.
I couldn’t believe I ever wasted a sweaty, unsatisfying second with any man who wasn’t Rhodes or Micah.
All those guys were the stingy appetizer.
The ground-up, under-seasoned beef on a piece of stale bread.
Rhodes was the main course, the dessert, and the sweet, fruity cocktail that washed it all down.
He was good, caring, and generous. He seemed so serious and buttoned up when we were in school, but the whole time that was because he was serious—serious about making the world a kinder place.
The sexy, quiet confidence made me want him in high school.
But the quivering in his voice when he talked about creating GloryBoi for his family, and then had to watch that creation destroy them.
.. it was that open, naked vulnerability that made me love him.
“You’re everything I want, Rhodes,” I rasped. “You always have been and always will be... everything.”
Our eyes connected, communicating so many things we’d never say out loud—because we didn’t have to.
Rhodes latched on to that bundle of nerves and sucked hard.
“Yes!” I bucked, flinging my head back. Fireworks exploded in my mind, sparking bright spots dancing in the air like I stared into the sun. He flicked and teased my helpless clit—giving it no escape and me no chance to catch my breath.
I came so hard I doubled over, almost tumbling over his head.
Rhodes held me fast—steady and strong as wave after wave rocked me, spreading pleasure to every corner of my soul.
Chest heaving, I collapsed on his chest. Rhodes caught and kissed me deeply, sharing the taste of me on his tongue.
“You’re everything too,” he whispered. “You weren’t always... until you were.”
My heart compacted, and then burst into confetti. The man couldn’t just say something like that and then walk out of these woods without my pussy juices on his dick.
I slid down, grasping his length and pressing it against my entrance.
My eyes rolled up in my head as I took all of him—a deep, satisfied moan escaping from my chest.
I let myself adjust, steadying myself on his chest, and then I was off.
I saw why they called this riding because I was bouncing, bucking, heaving, and hopping on Rhodes’s dick like a bronco rider.
Rhodes held tight to my hips, meeting me dip for thrust. We were throwing up leaves with our wild, frantic lovemaking—plunging us both in a warm, woodsy, natural world where nothing existed but the leaves, the trees, the quiet, and us.
My lower belly tightened—core melting like wax over the flame. We were both at our limits. This was never going to be anything but hard, quick, and dirty.
I screamed, legs snapping together and anchoring me to Rhodes—connecting us for now and ever.
We both came hard, exploding on and in each other to a chorus of gasps and moans.
Pitching forward, I dropped into his waiting arms, snuggling my forehead in the crook of his neck. “Wow,” I breathed. “That was incredible.”
“Whew, baby.” I was very proud of myself that Rhodes was just as breathless as me. “That topped our record by miles. Best fucking sex we’ve ever had by far.”
“Yeah?” I flipped onto my back, taking him shocked and blinking with me.
I grinned, draping my arms around his shoulders.
“Well, let’s see if we can go higher than number one.
But first...” I reached over his head and rescued my phone.
Turning on the recorder, I held it to his chin.
“If you wouldn’t mind repeating after me: I, Rhodes Newbury, am willingly and knowingly. ..”
WE STUMBLED BACK TO the manor in a light and giggly mood.
“Well,” Rhodes drawled, throwing his arm around my waist. “We didn’t run anywhere but we got in quite the workout. I definitely felt those calories burning, baby, how about you?”
I giggled, hiding my face in his shoulder. “My kind of early morning workout, for sure. I especially loved how it’s turned you into a horny teenager.”
He laughed, tickling my side until I squealed and ran around to his other side. “Blowjobs have that effect on a man. You should see how badly I devolve after anal.”
Grinning, I winked at him. “Okay.”
“Wait, wha—?” His slack-jawed gaping got another giggle out of me. “Are you serious?”
“Sure,” I said, throwing my arms around him in turn. “I mean, what’s the point of being married to three hot guys if we’re just going to have vanilla sex. That’s all the judgment of the alternative lifestyle without all the deviant fun.”
“Uh, that’s the fucking spirit,” he cried, scooping me up and into his arms. “Deviant fun!” Rhodes straight took off running. “Here we come!”
“Right now?” I was laughing my head off. “But we just had deviant fun in bear-infested woods! Seriously, what is the rebound time on your jack-in-the-box penis?”
“You obviously wanted to find out, or you wouldn’t have dangled the promise of anal sex over my head.” He leaped over a fallen branch, sprinting a shrieking me back to the manor and a waiting bed. “No chance I’m giving you time to change your mind.”
Rhodes burst through the trees, and skidded to an abrupt halt. Both our mouths dropped open.
“Okay,” he murmured, gently putting me back on my feet. “You may have been right about us going overboard on the party.”
I would’ve agreed, but at that point it felt cruel to rub it in.
Christie had reconfirmed the appointment the night before—with me and Alex so I couldn’t get away with canceling—and she promised that it would just be a quick catch-up to go over the details, show the caterer the kitchen she’d be working in, and the flyers’ manager the ceiling they’d be swinging on.
I expected to meet with three people for said quick catch-up before sitting down with Mrs. Prado.
What I didn’t expect was a fleet of white vans camped out on my brown lawn like the funny farm attendants had finally come to take me away, and they had the place surrounded.
I counted fifteen vans with Baudelaire Blasts on the side, and I didn’t even try to count the dozens of people loading things out and into them.
“Woo-hoo!” A tiny figure in pink waved from the front steps. “There you are, Mrs. Kim. So sorry, we had to start without you, but I know you’ll love what we’ve accomplished so far.” She climbed down the steps and came at me pretty fast for someone in six-inch heels.
I felt my naughty post-romp romp with Rhodes slip away as she hooked through my arm and dragged me away.
“I’m sure you’re going to want to take a quick shower before the fitting.
Absolutely no sweat stains on the masterpiece.
” She laughed to lighten the sentence, but it didn’t work.
I knew a command when I heard one. “While you’re washing up, I’d like to get started on the security scheduling and placement. ”
Christie was a short, slim, young woman with a bright smile, severe nose, and shining chestnut curls teased into a fashionable updo. She was also deceptively strong.
I was putting an embarrassing amount of effort into freeing my arm from her, but the woman had a grip of steel.
“Did you decide on local law enforcement for the party, or will we be providing bodyguards?” she asked. “I should let you know, there is an extra fee if we provide the bodyguards.”
“Bodyguards?” I gave her an insane look. “Why would we need bodyguards? I know my husbands are hot as hell, but those rich bitches won’t literally try to steal them, will they?”
Christie’s laugh was surprisingly loud and honking for such a tiny person. “Mrs. Kim, you are a scream. Absolutely, my favorite client—but don’t let the others know,” she added with a wink.
“Uh, okay, but—”
“No to the bodyguards,” Rhodes sliced in, keeping pace with us easily. “We’ve already spoken to the chief. He can spare three officers on the night to cover all three exits in and out of the ballroom.”
“Hmm.” Christie worried her lip, weaving me through the parade of vans. “I’m not certain that three will be enough. Ideally, I’d like fourteen more officers stationed at the front doors, back doors, and in the hallways.”
“That’s a bit excessive,” Rhodes remarked.
“Unfortunately, it’s not. The jewels Mrs. Kim is renting for the night are priceless. Sanders and Sanderson will want to see we’ve made every effort to protect their property from theft, or they won’t let it out of their sight.”
I opened my mouth to say I didn’t need jewels that came with a side of seventeen cops when something near the front gate caught my eyes—distinct in the fact that it wasn’t a white van, but instead a small, modest blue car that hadn’t changed in ten years.
“Mrs. Prado.” I paused a few feet from the fountain, rising on tiptoe to see. “Is that her? Must be. But is she here early, or am I that late? Is it ten o’clock already?”
Rhodes checked his smartwatch, then shook his head. “It’s barely nine thirty. She’s early.”
“I don’t see her,” I murmured, straining harder to see through the tinted windows. “She must be inside.”
“I’ll meet with her while you and Ms. Baudelaire talk final details,” Rhodes offered. “I’ve still got an hour before I’ve got to get ready for work. Shouldn’t take much longer than that to reorientate a woman who’s lived here longer than me.”
“Are you sure?” Christie was dragging me again, leading me inside. “It’s not just reorientation. She also has a stack of employee profiles she’ll need you to go through.”
“It’ll be fine.” His smile made my stomach do flips. “Mrs. Prado helped me, Micah, and Alex survive Lily’s toddler years.”
I didn’t miss that Sue wasn’t mentioned.
“I learned to shut up and do what she says a long time ago. Just like I’ll shut up and hire whoever she tells me.”
I cracked a smile, remembering all the times growing up that Mrs. Prado chased me from her kitchen, but then always came back and found me later to sneak me a meringue and hot cocoa. Omma never did figure out how I kept getting cavities when she never let us have sugar.
Stumbling up the stairs, I was twisted around talking to Rhodes when light pierced my eyes, making me wince.
What is that? Something white? silver? glinted in the fountain basin—catching the light and beaming it directly into my eyeball.
I put my hand up, squinting to see. Did one of the workers drop something? A watch maybe?
Twisting free, I broke out of Christie’s hold and descended the stairs—brushing past Rhodes and two gentlemen carrying in chairs.
“Mrs. Kim? Mrs. Kim, we really can’t delay your fitting any longer.”
My brows crumpled—feet carrying me closer of their own accord.
When I arrived at the manor those weeks ago, the fountain was nothing but mud and trash. In the following days, autumn stole the greens, reds, and golds from the trees—sprinkling them in the waterless pool and providing a slightly more pleasing sight.
“Greens, reds, and golds,” I whispered, following the glint. “But that red...”
...is different from the rest.
Reaching into the fountain, I brushed aside the leaves, and screamed.
“Sue? Sue!” Rhodes came running.
Christie let out her own scream, jumping half out of her skin when my cries startled the staff into dropping the chairs at her feet.
“Sue, what’s wrong—!” Rhodes skidded to my side, eyes popping when he shared the gruesome sight.
Lying face down in the muddy basin was Mrs. Prado... with a glinting, shining knife sticking out of her back.