Chapter 21
Amonth. Thirty whole days. Giselle had been at her new job for a full month, and she still hadn’t identified the people involved in the theft operation. She’d figured out the how and the when, but not the who. Or…not all of the “who”.
Frustration burned through her as she poured over data day after day, working closely with Tommy and his security team, but the leader of the scheme remained elusive.
She and Tommy had uncovered four of the culprits.
His team had even refrained from arresting them, wanting to track their next moves.
But those men were just the foot soldiers, the ones physically pulling boxes from the shipping containers and setting them aside.
Tommy had tapped their calls, emails, and texts, so they knew exactly when the merchandise was being rerouted, repackaged, and given new shipping labels.
But that was where the trail went cold.
The packages never arrived at their fake destinations, and the shipping labels changed constantly, preventing tracking.
Tommy’s crew was running all over the country, trying to intercept shipments that kept vanishing.
They’d even placed tracking devices in a few boxes—only to watch those signals blink out somewhere along the way, disappearing without a trace.
“This is driving me insane!” she announced, stomping into Dimitri’s penthouse that evening. She tossed her purse—a gorgeous new leather tote she adored—onto the entryway table and marched straight for the kitchen, where Dimitri was cooking.
Fisting her hands on her hips, Giselle glared fiercely at Dimitri. “I can’t figure it out. You need to fire me and hire someone better.”
In response, he leaned in, his hands coated in batter, and kissed her. Gently at first, then more firmly, then teasing. She moaned, pulling him closer by his shirt, needing more.
She parted her lips, deepening the kiss, pressing closer, silently urging him to finally take the next step.
His mouth lingered. Warm. Tempting. Promising.
Then he pulled back just enough to brush his lips against hers.
“Hello,” he murmured against her mouth. “How was your day?”
Giselle eyed his hands, then a wicked idea struck her. She slid her palms up his chest, her fingers curling slightly over the hard ridges of muscle.
“It was frustrating,” she purred, her eyes flashing up to his. “What are you going to do about it?”
His breath caught.
A low growl vibrated in his chest as he stepped closer, still holding his messy hands away from her. His eyes darkened, heat flaring so intensely that her pulse jumped. For one dangerous second, she thought he might finally lose control.
Over the past month, she’d become far more familiar with Dimitri’s body. They hadn’t had sex. Yet. But every night, he would pull her into his arms and they would kiss until they were gasping for release.
However, Dimitri wouldn’t go any further than kissing. He wouldn’t touch her bare skin. He wouldn’t let her slide her hands under his shirt. He controlled their make-out sessions with ruthless precision.
And it was driving her insane.
His gaze dropped to her mouth, then lifted again, simmering with restrained hunger. His hands flexed slightly, as if he wanted to grab her but forced himself not to.
“Are you saying you want me to make love to you?”
Giselle held his gaze, letting him see the frustration, the heat, the growing desperation she could no longer hide.
She thought about it for only a moment. Then she nodded firmly. “Yes. Yes, I want to make love with you. I want to lose myself in the way you kiss and touch me, Dimitri. I want to know… all of you.”
His jaw tightened. The heat in his eyes flared hotter, but instead of pulling her closer, he held himself rigidly still.
“Is that because you’re frustrated about your day?”
Giselle nearly hit him.
Her eyes flashed, heat turning sharp with frustration. She stepped away from him, her emotions finally breaking through. “No!” She spun around, tugging at her hair. “No, I don’t want to have sex with you simply for the physical release.”
She turned back just as he moved to the sink, washing his hands with maddening calm while she paced.
He dried his hands and took a step toward her, but Giselle held up her hand, stopping his momentum with an angry, desperate glare.
“We’re not kissing anymore, Dimitri. I can’t take it.
I’m barely sleeping at night. And if I do, I’m dreaming of you finally making love to me properly.
It’s not fair! You torment me every night.
And,” she put a hand to her chest, not trying to be dramatic, but she was.
Desperate, that is. Shaking her head, she felt defeated. “I can’t stand it anymore!”
“Are you saying that some of this… vitriol,” he finished with a sly grin as he relentlessly pulled her into his arms, “…is because of sexual frustration?”
And she let him. Because this was Dimitri and she loved feeling him hold her. But she wanted so much more.
“Yes!” she snapped, then tried to push him away, but her efforts were weak and pointless. “I’m done! You drive me wild every night, but refuse to take things further! I’m exhausted and so… crazy!” she finished, pulling at her hair. “And then, you tempt me all over again the next day.”
Dimitri chuckled, then jerked her hips closer. “I’m frustrated as well,” he informed her, the physical evidence of that frustration pressing against her stomach. His voice dropped, rougher now. “I told you a month ago that we needed to take this slow, Giselle.”
“Yeah, but this is a glacier’s pace!”
“So, you’re ready to take things further?” He leaned down, nibbling at her neck. The control in his voice was thinner now, roughened with need.
After a month of sexual torment, Giselle wasn’t afraid any longer. Not even shy.
“Yes.” She leaned her head against his chest. “Please, Dimitri. Don’t make us wait any longer.”
In response, he tangled his fingers in her hair, tilting her head back. Then, he kissed her, and Giselle realized that this was the first “real” kiss she’d had from Dimitri. It was power and demand, crushing her lips against his own before gentling, then shifting to demand all over again.
The kiss made her head spin with desire and Giselle clung to him, her fingers sliding up his chest until she could wrap her arms around his neck. He lifted her clear off her feet without breaking the kiss.
She heard a soft thud, but was enjoying herself too much to look around.
So, it was a surprise when she felt the soft bed against her back.
Dimitri started stripping off her clothes, starting with her pants.
She’d worn a pair of black, wide leg slacks, which slid down her legs in a whisper of material.
Dimitri reached out and ripped her blouse open, smiling in satisfaction at what he revealed.
“Dimitrie that was…!” she gasped, staring down at the shreds of her blouse.
“I’ll buy you ten more,” he promised, grinning. “But I’m going to do that every time.”
Giselle thought that was a pretty hot offer, so she didn’t argue. She didn’t particularly like that blouse anyway. It wasn’t anything special. Plus, the sound of the fabric ripping was…exciting!
She didn’t have a chance to contemplate that though.
Because Dimitri was staring down at her, taking in the silky bra and panties she worn beneath.
They hadn’t been anything exciting; she’d found the set at a discount store.
but lingerie was something she adored. Giselle’s secret addiction was pretty bras and panties, thigh high stockings and garters.
When the world was going insane around her, feeling the silk and lace caress her skin made her feel… in control.
“Damn, Giselle,” he growled, slowly sliding his hands up her bare thighs, pausing briefly at the juncture between.
She gasped, feeling her body react. His fingers continued their exploration, leaving trails of fire in their wake, sliding higher.
When his hands finally reached her breasts, Giselle gasped in surprise at how much she liked it.
His thumbs stroked her tight nipples, drawing a line of red-hot desire from her chest to her core.
“You’re still wearing your clothes,” she murmured as she looked up at him.
“You want me to take them off?”
“Yes!” she gasped, writhing under him. “Please?”
He grinned. “Well, since you asked so nicely,” he replied, then pulled away.
She hissed as his hands left her breasts, but he distracted her by pulling the sweater over his head and dumping it on the floor. His pants and boxers went next and, when he stood up, Giselle was able to admire all of his rippling muscles. They were everywhere!
Before she could properly take in the glory of him, he returned to her, sliding her panties down her legs. “As much as I love these, they need to go.”
She lifted her hips in agreement. She was starved for his touch and wanted no barriers between them.
She even lifted up and released the catch on her bra, tossing it aside before she grabbed his hands, pulling them back to her breasts.
The sensation was so intense, she closed her eyes, then opened them with a gasp when his thumbs rubbed her nipples.
“Your breasts are perfect,” he growled, licking the aching tip before taking one in his mouth and sucking.
Lightly at first, flicking his tongue against the tip, then harder, making her cry out.
He gave the same treatment to the other tip, while stroking the first one with his fingers, gently pinching and tweaking, then soothing while he sucked her breasts.
“Too much!” she cried out, her back arching as she pushed his head away and then pulled his mouth back to the first nipple, silently demanding more. Dimitri kept teasing until she shook her head, saying, “No more!”
His response was a deep, sexy chuckle as he moved lower, kissing and licking his way down her stomach. Any other time, Giselle would have laughed, but she was too turned on. Too ready for him to make love to her.
She supposed in theory, he was doing that already. But she was ready for the main event, had been thinking about nothing else for weeks! She didn’t want foreplay.
“Dimitri, could we just–”
“No,” he replied, interrupting her. “I’ve been dreaming about this, wondering what you taste like ever since I saw you adjusting your lace thigh highs.”
She groaned, but something about his comment didn’t make sense to her. She pushed the thought aside as his fingers found her core. She was already throbbing, aching for his touch. Dimitri glanced up her body with a grin, and then leaned down over her.
She jerked at the heat of his mouth against her. He sucked as she moaned, wrapping her thighs around his head. His tongue flicked against that sensitive nub as Giselle writhed with desire. He tried to move away but Giselle’s thighs held his mouth in place, her hips shifting against his mouth as…!
She cried out with her first orgasm, her back arching as she held him right there, her body throbbing with release. When it was over, when he gave her one more lick before kissing his way higher, Giselle collapsed, her breathing ragged.
“That was beautiful!” she whispered. He kissed her lingeringly and she could taste her juices on his lips.
“I agree,” he told her, then pulled her leg up so that her hips cradled his. “You mentioned wanting me to go faster.”
She thought that finally, she would get to experience the full power of Dimitri.
But no! He shifted slightly, rolling protection down over his throbbing erection.
Only then did he come back to her, poising himself right at her opening.
Then, he paused, admiring the picture she made, open and waiting for him.
“Dimitri, this isn’t fair!” she cried out, sliding her hands over his arms, shoulders, and neck, then back again.
He pinned her hands over her head with one hand while sliding his other behind the small of her back. “You’re so tight, mia cara,” he groaned, slowly pressing his length into her. It took several tries, her body’s arousal allowing her core to stretch to embrace his length.
When she was finally filled, Giselle gasped with the beauty of the moment.
“Ready?” he hissed, holding himself very still.
Giselle pulled her hands from his grip, dragging her nails down his chest. “More than ready.”
He pulled out, then thrust into her, trying to be gentle. But Giselle didn’t want gentle. She didn’t want tepid lovemaking. So, she slid her hands higher, her fingers diving into his hair, pulling him closer. “Dimitri,” she whispered, arching until she could nip at his earlobe.
That seemed to fire him up and his thrusts came faster now, more demanding. He growled, pulling her closer as he took her body higher and higher. She felt as if she were poised at the precipice, hovered there for an endless moment until…!
“Yes!” she screamed, arching her back as he thrust faster and harder. Her body shattered into a cloud of pleasure. Dimitri’s climax followed hers and he held her close, his movements gentling as he slowed, froze, thrust one final time before collapsing against her.
She held onto him tightly, not wanting to ever let go.