Chapter 13
13
T his time, Cole decided to take his car, even though the meeting point wasn’t far. But given what had taken place less than two hours earlier, he thought it wise not to spend time outside in the middle of the night when it could be avoided. His wounds were still raw, though they were healing with astounding speed, but he wasn’t ready to fight a vampire yet. However, for self-defense, he’d broken a baseball bat he’d used as a kid, and fashioned it into a rudimentary stake. He hid it in the inside pocket of his jacket.
Cole was only about three blocks away from Alta Plaza Park, where he was supposed to meet Drake’s contact at the bottom of the stairs, when he had to stop at a light on Pacific Avenue. As he sat there, waiting for the light to turn green, he noticed a red Lamborghini stop outside a majestic Victorian mansion on Pacific Avenue. He was surprised to see a car like that in a city like San Francisco with its narrow streets and steep hills that weren’t suitable for a race car like that. As he admired the sleek lines of the car, the light inside it came on, revealing the driver and his passenger.
Shock coursed through him. Vanessa was the passenger in the car. She smiled at the handsome young man before hugging him. A moment later, she opened the car door and got out, while the driver remained in his car, the engine running. But he didn’t leave.
Vanessa scurried up to the entrance door of the Victorian house, but Cole couldn’t see what she was doing there, because a tree blocked his view. He barely noticed how the light turned green. He crossed the intersection, then pulled to the curb. Now he could see the door to the Victorian. A young woman walked down the steps, but it wasn’t Vanessa. She got into the Lamborghini and smiled at the driver. A moment later, the Lamborghini drove past him, and Cole turned his face away toward the sidewalk as if he was waiting for someone.
When the Lamborghini was gone, Cole stared back at the Victorian house that Vanessa had disappeared into. What was she doing there? And who the fuck was the guy in the sportscar? A client? Had she slept with him? Was he a regular?
Fuck!
Something inside him made him ball his hands into fists, ready to beat the guy to a pulp. He’d touched Vanessa. Damn it, he’d probably fucked her. The thought ate him up. He should have made it clear to her that he would pay anything to have her be with him the entire night. But he’d been too distracted by the aftereffects of the attack that he hadn’t reacted fast enough.
How could she sleep with another man after she’d been in his arms, after he’d made her come with his mouth? The intimacies they’d shared had led him to hope that there could be more between them—as stupid as that sounded. And Vanessa? She’d immediately gone back to have sex with somebody else.
Cole was fuming, his stomach turning into tight little knots. He knew what was going on inside him. He wasn’t stupid enough not to recognize the feeling that had burst to the surface so quickly that he hadn’t been able to suppress it.
He was jealous!
How the fuck had that happened? He’d frequented prostitutes for years, and known that once his hour with them was over, they would go to their next client. It had never bothered him before. In fact, he’d liked the arrangement, because it meant he didn’t have to deal with the inevitable problems of a romantic relationship. He’d gotten what he wanted—sex—, and he’d never looked for more.
Until now.
Until he’d met Vanessa.
This shouldn’t have happened. He should have never developed feelings for a woman who sold her body to anyone who could afford her. And by the looks of it, the young guy—who was at least ten or fifteen years younger than Cole—had plenty of it. Owning a sportscar that wasn’t even practical in a city like San Francisco was the privilege of the rich and entitled, the trust fund babies who’d never done an honest day’s work.
Cole hit his fists against the steering wheel in frustration. He needed to do something, before this situation got any worse. He had to stop Vanessa from servicing any more clients. That was his first priority. Just like tech companies hired talented engineers so that their competitors couldn’t hire them, he would hire Vanessa so that nobody else could hire her. Yes, take her off the market first, worry about what to do later. That was the best plan he could come up with right now—because for sure his brain wasn’t functioning properly.
He was livid that Vanessa had slept with another man—even though he had no right to demand exclusivity. But he was determined to change that.
Aware that the engine was still running, he switched it off, then reached for his cell phone. He unlocked it and scrolled to Vanessa’s number. His index finger hovered over it, his heart pounded like a jackhammer, and he breathed erratically. Fuck, he had it bad.
Get a grip, man!
Why was he so nervous? Was he actually worried that she wouldn’t agree to see him?
Coward!
He tapped on the number and put the phone to his ear. It rang twice.
“Cole?” Vanessa’s melodic voice made his heart gallop even faster.
“Vanessa, I need to see you.” Way to start a conversation. An elephant in a China shop showed more finesse than him.
“Is something wrong?”
Lots of things were wrong, but none of them were suitable to be discussed over the phone. “It’s important that I see you right away.”
“I can’t get away right now. Has something happened?”
“It’s really urgent. Please, Vanessa. I need to talk to you.”
She sighed. “I can’t get away. I’m—”
“It can’t wait. Please.”
“You’re making me worried now. All right. But I can’t come to you. You need to come to me.”
“No problem.”
“The address is 2447 Pacific Avenue in Pacific Heights.”
“I should be there in about five minutes.”
“See you then.” She disconnected the call.
He shoved the cell phone back into his pocket and leaned back, forcing himself to breathe evenly. He looked across the street at the Victorian mansion Vanessa had disappeared in. It was the number she’d given him. That she was willing to receive him there could only mean that she wasn’t with a client at the moment. But before this news could calm him, another question arose. What if this mansion was just like the one Vera ran in Nob Hill? What if this was a different brothel, and Vanessa split her time between this place and Vera’s? After all, a beautiful young woman had left the mansion just after Vanessa had arrived, and had gotten into the Lamborghini. What if she was a prostitute too?
Before his mind could spit out even more questions and scenarios, he got out of the car and locked it. He crossed the street and walked up the stairs to the entrance door of the stately Victorian.
He stood there, unsure of what he would encounter inside. He sucked in a loud breath, then let it out through his nostrils, while he chided himself in silence. This wasn’t how one closed a deal: by showing fear. No, he had to go in there and be assertive, lay out what he wanted, and what he was willing to pay to get it. It was a simple negotiation. A business deal. Vanessa was in the business of selling sex, and he was a willing and able buyer. Nothing more, nothing less.
Cole rang the doorbell and heard it chime inside the house. It only took a few moments, until the door was opened, and light was shining into his face. He blinked. Vanessa stood in front of him.
“Hi.” Her voice sounded like a faint echo as if she were an apparition, but her eyes sparkled in that intoxicating green that made her look like a fairy who would make all his wishes come true.
He had it bad. Really bad.
“Vanessa.”
She stepped aside, motioning him to enter. Cole walked inside, and he heard her close the door behind him, while he assessed his surroundings. With the eye of a discerning buyer who’d viewed many properties when he’d been looking to buy a home in San Francisco, he realized that while the style was most definitely quintessential Victorian, this house was newly built, which must have cost a fortune. The other thing he noticed was that it was quiet. He heard neither footsteps nor voices.
Vanessa turned to him. “Why did you need to see me so urgently?”
Cole reached for her hand and took it into his. “With everything that’s happened the last two nights… the attack… you saving me. I’ve been thinking…”
Fuck! Why was it so difficult for him to ask for what he wanted? He was an experienced negotiator in business. He knew how to convey to his associates what he needed. Yet with Vanessa standing so close to him, he felt like a shy sixteen-year-old kid asking the prettiest girl from high school to the spring dance. He wasn’t that boy anymore.
“What is it?” She inched closer. “What’s wrong? Are you in pain? Are the injuries—”
“It’s not about the injuries. I’m healing. Rather quickly, actually. No, it’s about you, and about what happened between us.” He cleared his throat. “I want to hire you exclusively.”
It was finally out.
“Exclusively?” Vanessa asked, her forehead furrowing.
“Yes, an exclusive booking. You won’t be able to see any other clients. You’ll only sleep with me.”
Her eyes widened. “I… uhm… I need to clarify something…”
“You can name your price. I’ll pay whatever you want.”
She let go of his hand. “I don’t understand, Cole.” She shook her head. “Why would you want me exclusively? You haven’t even fucked me.”
He wasn’t prepared for her question, or for her to state the obvious. “I want you. I like being with you.”
“Without fucking me? I’m sorry, but I can’t do that. If you want to have me exclusively, you’ll have to actually have sex with me. And I don’t mean you going down on me. Hell, I haven’t even seen you naked.” She went toe-to-toe with him. “I want your cock inside me. But if you can’t or won’t do that, then it’s a no.”
He shoved a shaking hand through his hair, trying to buy himself some time. But he couldn’t come up with an excuse of why he couldn’t sleep with her, why he couldn’t undress in front of her.
Only one answer would have the desired result. “All right. We’ll have sex.” His cock was certainly ready for it, growing hard and heavy.
“Prove it.”
“What?”
“I said prove it. Fuck me now.”
“Here?”
“Here. We’re alone.”
He glanced around, hesitating. A look into Vanessa’s eyes told him that she was dead serious. He had no choice. “Ah, fuck it!”
Cole shrugged off his jacket and tossed it over the railing of the staircase leading up to the second floor. Then he reached for Vanessa, and pulled her into his arms, kissing her passionately.
Vanessa’s lips parted, and she welcomed him, while she tugged on his shirt, her hands sliding underneath it. Feeling her touch him ignited a fire inside him, one that he could only extinguish by plunging his cock into her. There was no backing out tonight.
Cole tugged on Vanessa’s top and severed the kiss to pull it over her head. Her white bra covered her firm breasts that were already topped with hard nipples. But this time, he couldn’t spend time on them. He had to give her what she wanted, or he would lose her.
Again, he captured her lips, while he opened the button of her pants and slid the zipper down. He shoved her pants down over her hips as far as her knees, where her boots prevented them from sliding down any farther.
Breathing hard now, he let go of her lips. “Turn around, brace yourself against the wall.”
Excitement flashed in her eyes, and she spun around, while he already opened his own pants and shoved them down together with his boxer briefs. He hooked his thumbs into her panties.
“You want me to fuck you?”
“Yes!”
Cole pulled her panties down, then gripped her left hip and adjusted himself. Vanessa pushed her ass back at him, and he reached in between her thighs, his fingers feeling the juices that coated her pussy.
He guided his erection to her pussy, and without preamble, he thrust into her to the hilt.
“Fuck!”
Vanessa gasped. “Oh, God. You’re big.”
“And you’re tight.” While her position certainly had something to do with it, he couldn’t help but notice how tightly her interior muscles squeezed him. Heaven couldn’t be any better than this.
Cole began to deliver thrust after thrust, reveling in the feeling of her pussy enveloping him like a velvet glove. “Is this what you wanted?”
She turned her head to the side, and he brought his face to hers.
“Yes, Cole. This’s what I want from you.”
Everything inside him rejoiced. “Then tell me you love my cock.” Because he needed to hear it.
“I love your cock. I love how you fuck me.”
Vanessa moaned, and her body moved in synch with his, intensifying each of his thrusts. Her body glistened, and for the first time in his life, he felt happy. This felt right.
“Damn, babe, you’re so hot,” he murmured, his mouth at her ear.