Chapter 14
Chase: Any of you assholes up for a drink tonight?
Logan: Can’t. Family birthday party.
Chase: Can I come?
Zeke: No.
Chase: Scared I might steal your girl?
Zeke: Pretty sure she already turned you down once.
Chase: Yeah, but I'm persistent.
Logan: Like herpes.
Chase: Exactly.
Chase: Wait, no.
Mason: Exactly like herpes.
ZEKE
I wince and readjust my dick in my pants.
It practically hasn’t gone down since I saw Chloe in the pool yesterday.
That first look at her with her head tipped skyward, and a free and full smile on her face as she enjoyed the rain on her skin snatched the breath right from my lungs.
And then there was the little matter of her body.
Slim, with curves in all the right places, and expanses of alabaster skin barely covered by two scraps of fabric.
I almost keeled over when I saw the light dusting of freckles on her full breasts, water cascading and tracing every pathway I wanted my tongue to take.
For normal people, it wouldn’t be a problem to be this attracted to their fiancée, but for me? It’s a complication.
Giving each of my cuffs a tug and adjusting my cufflinks, I lean my head back and sigh deeply.
We need to leave in ten minutes and I’m fucking restless.
The last time I went up there to see if she was ready, I was told through a closed door that the more I bugged her, the longer she would take.
My knee bounces, the heel of my dress shoes tapping out a muffled heartbeat on the carpet.
Okay, that’s it. I heave myself up and head for the stairs, running a finger around the tight rim of my collar. I’m halfway down the hall to her bedroom when I hear soft, muted voices. Stilling, I incline my head. Light spills out from her cracked door and I trace silent steps closer.
“That’s it, now just pop the back on like this,” Chloe says in the softest voice I’ve ever heard from her.
A small giggle gives away her companion and I fight the urge to roll my eyes as I glance at my watch.
Kid should have been asleep hours ago. “Here, you try,” she urges, and I silently push the door open a few inches.
Chloe is kneeling patiently on the carpet and Diego is perched on the edge of the bed.
A long mane of fiery auburn hair drapes across her right shoulder because she’s leaning toward him, allowing his pudgy fingers to reach her ear.
The curve of her long neck catches my eye, and I trail my gaze down her body.
She’s practically poured into a floor length black dress that glitters with small crystals.
Although the neckline is modest, the back…
it plunges almost to her rounded ass, which is hugged by the material like a second skin.
Slim spaghetti straps hold the dress in place, exposing her creamy skin.
Peaches and cream. My dick leaps to attention again and I roll my eyes.
“I got it!” Diego sounds like he’s just reached the peak of Mount Everest and places his pudgy hands on each of Chloe’s cheeks.
She beams at him, her face lighting up, and the moment almost feels too private to be watching.
“They’re very pretty,” he says, tilting his head at the dangling crystal earrings he’s just helped her put in.
“You’re very pretty,” he adds quietly, his cheeks flushing a darker tawny.
Oh boy, my son has it almost as bad as I do.
“Diego,” I admonish quietly, the thought of how he will be affected when Chloe inevitably leaves urging me to interrupt.
He squeaks and flings himself at Chloe, knocking her backward as his arms clamp around her neck.
I’m sure he thinks if he buries his head in her hair, I somehow won’t see he’s out of bed.
“Woah kiddo!” Chloe laughs, glancing apologetically at me.
“Alright, you two. Time to move.” I push the door open and walk over to them, prying my son off Chloe and throwing him over my shoulder.
He squarks and struggles against my grip, descending into giggles.
Clamping him in place with one arm, I offer the other hand to Chloe to help her up.
She takes it without hesitation, sliding her soft palm over mine.
Big mistake. I flash her a smirk and pull her up to stand, but before she has a chance to move, I’ve snatched her up and thrown her over my other shoulder.
“Zeke!” She is writhing almost as much as Diego, and I grin as the side of her ass presses against my face. Resisting the urge to administer a swift bite, I start to move.
“You’re both on the naughty list, time to go.”
She scoffs and slips her hand beneath my suit jacket to deliver a sharp pinch. “Put me down! I don’t even have my shoes on!”
I turn swiftly, making Diego squeal. “These things?” I manage to swipe the pair of six-inch black strappy sandals off the bed with a finger and my dick throbs painfully as I glare at them. It’s going to be a long night.
“Zeke, you’ve made your point. Put. Me. Down!” She peppers each word with a hard slap to my lower back, but it only makes me grin wider.
I carry them both to Diego’s room under protest and gently place him down on his bunk bed. “Go to sleep, mi chico angel. Maria is in the kitchen if you need anything.” I swipe my hand over his rosy cheek and offer him a wink before I leave.
Chloe makes a hell of a racket the whole way down to the car, and even though I shouldn’t enjoy it, I fucking do.
Every time she tries to escape me, her curvy ass presses against my jaw.
My driver looks on at me with raised eyebrows as we approach, but I don’t acknowledge the woman writhing in my grip as he opens the back door to the stretch Town Car.
“I’ll take it from here. Just give us a moment, thank you, Bates. ”
He returns to the driver's side and slides in as I all but throw Miss Devlin into the back seat.
She lies sprawled in shock for a moment, dress ridden up, her pillowy lips parted in outrage and her cheeks rosy.
I take advantage of her shock and snare one of her petite ankles in my grip, tugging her roughly toward me so that her dress rides up a few more inches on her thigh.
She yelps and I inwardly groan as I catch a flash of deep plum lace.
She attempts to snatch her ankle back, but I hold it in place and take one of the shoes that will be making my life difficult tonight and slide it onto her bare foot.
Jesus fucking Christ, even her feet are sexy.
The soft arch of her foot is lightly freckled and meets small toes painted a fiery red.
She freezes as I secure the strap in place, and I glance down at her. The beast within me snarls his approval to see her propped up on her elbows, cheeks flushed and those sky-blue eyes alight like flame in the dim. Her chest rises and falls in a choppy rhythm. Dangerous, Guerra. This is dangerous.
Despite myself, I drop a light kiss to the top of her foot before I move on to the other.
I send a silent prayer of thanks that my boxer shorts are tight enough to keep my dick from tenting my slacks.
Even so, she’ll know if she looks. When I’m done, I repeat the same process, kissing her foot and dropping it gently to the seat.
The tension between us crackles in the air.
She doesn’t move. Ah, Miss Devlin, speechless—such a rare commodity.
I brace my arms on the roof of the car and gaze down at her.
Every cell in my body is screaming at me to crawl on top of her and fuck that pretty little mouth into submission, but I resist.
“I’m going to touch you tonight.” My voice sounds gravelly even to my own ears.
“Y-you are?” Her eyes are wide, and I smirk.
“For show,” I clarify, watching her glassy eyes come back into focus.
She snaps her jaw shut and looks away as she scrambles to right herself. “Right.” She sniffs haughtily as she smooths her dress back down over her legs. I slide in beside her and close the door. Her scent wraps around me, digging soft claws into the back of my throat as the car begins to move.
“Like this.” I twist in my seat and trail the backs of my knuckles down her bare arm, my lips twitching as her eyes go wide and goosebumps sprout in the wake of my touch.
“And like this.” I lift the same hand to trace the line of her jaw, coming to rest with her chin gripped between my thumb and forefinger.
“Okay,” she breathes, her face so close to mine now, I can feel her sweet breath.
When did I lean in? “And maybe even like this.” Against my better judgement, I dip my head with the intention of brushing a chaste kiss over her lips.
But the moment her mouth meets mine, a spark flares brightly between us.
She sags beneath my touch slightly and a strangled, soft moan escapes her throat.
It’s a siren call to my libido and I find myself mindlessly pressing my lips roughly to hers.
Slim fingers find their way to my hair, gripping me to her as I groan and trace my tongue over those plush lips.
She opens up like she was made for me, and I waste no time thrusting my tongue into her mouth.
My first taste of her is heaven—sweet, hot, and wanting.
No thoughts of why I shouldn’t be doing this exist in this moment, only this woman.
And how I want more. How I want to ravage her with everything I’ve got in me.
How I want to rip off this stupid little dress and take her right here.
She matches every swipe and flick with her own tongue.
I grip her silky hair in my hand, angling her head the way I want it so I can take her deeper.
My other hand trails down the soft skin of her back and she arches into me with a soft mewl.
My cock strains painfully against my zipper.
The heat of her breasts pushing against my chest sends a shock of heat across my skin, straight to my groin.
My hand has a mind of its own, slipping down her legs and hiking up the fabric of her skirt so I can trace every inch of those long, shapely legs, all the way up to…
She moans, breaking our kiss to tip her head back and bare her throat to me as my fingertips crest over the hem of her lace panties. I want to record that sound and play it on a fucking loop. I grit my teeth and grunt, staring at her delicate, flushed features.
It’s the momentary reprieve I need to realize what the fuck I’m doing, and I freeze.
“Fuck,” I growl, removing my hand like I’ve been burnt and dipping my forehead to her heaving chest. Fuck.
Fuck. Fuck. I grapple with my self-control, and she seems to as well as she stills, her fingers tightening in my hair.
“Zeke,” she breathes—a shocked word of warning.
“I know,” I grate out. “Just give me a sec.” We sit there like that for a few beats, both panting, and I’m sure both a little shell shocked at how wildly out of control that got.
Pulling back with a herculean effort, I blow out a deep breath and remove my hands from her.
She jumps away a foot and smooths a hand over her mussed hair as I readjust myself in my pants with a wince.
“That was…” I run a hand through my hair, pushing it away from my face.
“Yep, got it. Mistake. Shouldn’t have happened.” Her voice is curt, but still a little unsteady.
I turn to look at her, annoyance appearing like a heavy rock in my gut. “If things were different—”
She laughs, cutting me off. “Zeke, if things were different, I wouldn’t go near you with a ten-foot barge pole. You’re a womanizer with commitment issues—a walking, talking red flag.”
I blink, and then scowl. She’s not wrong, but I’m not used to being rejected and it stings.
I’m about to bite back but stop myself. Nothing can happen between us anyway, so what’s the point?
Not only is she my employee and will go back to being only that when I have enough dirt on my father, but she’s also not the type of woman to settle for what I can offer.
No, this is a woman who would want it all.
And hell, she deserves it too. But that’s not what I do.
“Well, that’s settled then.” I nod and train my eyes on the raised partition at the front of the car while I gather myself. This is a business deal and nothing more, Guerra. “By the way, have you decided on a pet name?”
“What’s wrong with honey buns?” She’s back to teasing and I’m relieved to be back on surer ground.
“No one will believe I would ever allow someone to call me honey buns.” I snort, casting one raised brow her way.
She smirks and twists her lips in consideration. “Sweetums?”
I groan, dipping my head back. “Hard pass on that one too.”
“Okay, how about…” She taps her lips with a finger. “Love bug?”
“For the love of god,” I mutter under my breath and her tinkling laugh bounces around the car.
“Why don’t we just improvise in the moment? I’m sure I’ll think of something masculine enough not to dent your enormous ego.” She sighs good-naturedly, and I can’t help but smile.
“That sounds like a terrible plan.”