Billionaire's Blackmail Bride: Billionaire Brothers Kent - Ridge's Story (The BAD BOY BILLIONAIRES Series) (9 page)

Ridge was on his way to the house when he called Lani from his cell
phone. Like he could have guessed, she was still at the lab, hard at work.

“Do you have a minute?” he asked. “Can you talk?”

There was a brief pause and when she spoke her voice was hesitant.
After what she’d done to him she was probably expecting a shouting match. She
would have a long wait for that one. “I’m sort of busy right now,” she said. “I
can only give you a couple of minutes.”

“That’s all I need,” he said. “You got what you wanted. You won’t
have me around to bother you anymore.”

He heard a soft gasp. “What are you talking about?” she asked.

“When you get home I won’t be there,” he said brusquely. “I’m moving
out.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

“Where’s the flippin’ travel pouch?”

Ridge was muttering to himself as he threw shirts, socks, underwear
and trousers into his suitcase. By the time Lani got home from work he would be
long gone and he couldn’t have made a better decision. He would be far away
from the little witch and he’d finally have peace.

After a few more frustrating minutes of searching he finally found
the pouch he’d been looking for, tucked way to the back of the shelf in his closet.
How that had gotten all the way back there, he couldn’t tell. He’d probably
been in one of his mad moods when he’d thrown it on top of the shelf. Now, with
it plopped on top of his clothes, he could close his suitcase.

But just before he did there was one quick thing he wanted to do.
He’d been wound so tight he’d been sweating buckets all day. He felt too sticky
to go out like this. He glanced at the clock, checking to make sure he had
enough time for a quick shower. He didn’t want to be there when Lani got home
but, knowing her, she wouldn’t leave the lab until the sun had gone down.

Ridge had just shrugged out of his suit jacket and was reaching for
his tie when he heard tires screeching down below. Frowning, he went over to
the window. Shit. It was Lani. How had she gotten home so fast?

Looking like an angry swan with her white lab coat sailing behind
her, the little woman hopped out of her car and tore up the driveway toward the
front porch. Ridge heard when she flung the front door open and then her
footsteps sounded on the stairs.

He shook his head. Why the heck had she bothered to come home? There
was nothing she could say that would stop him from leaving.

He’d turned away from the window and was heading toward the bathroom
as planned when his bedroom door burst open and Lani stood there, panting from
her run. Her brows fell in a frown. “Where do you think you’re going?” Then,
like one of those wrestlers getting ready to rumble, she stood in the doorway,
feet planted firmly apart, and folded her arms across her chest.

If Ridge weren’t so dang tired of Lani and her games he would have
laughed. Did she really think she could stop him? He turned to face her. “I’m
leaving,” he said, his voice stone cold. “You’re driving me crazy. I’m getting
out of here before I do something I regret.”

That should have been enough to send any woman running, but not
Lani. Instead of accepting his declaration and backing down in defeat, her face
tightened. “You’re not going anywhere.”

Now Ridge did laugh. He couldn’t help it. At his six-foot-four
height and brawny build was he really being bullied by a woman a foot shorter
than he was? “You gotta be kidding me,” he said with a snort. “Who’s going to
stop me? You?” It was more a sneer of disdain than a question.

She didn’t answer. At least not in words. Before he even realized
what she was doing Lani was inside the room, standing right in front of him,
her eyes flashing with fury. She caught him by surprise when her hand shot out
and grabbed his tie. She yanked on it hard, almost breaking his neck. “I said
you’re not going anywhere.”

Her hands shot up again but this time it was to grab fistfuls of his
shirt then she was pushing against his chest, pushing with all her might,
propelling him backwards toward the bed.

He could have stopped her. Easy. If he’d planted his feet firmly on
the ground she couldn’t have moved him an inch. But he couldn’t believe it. The
wee woman had him in shock. The little elf had actually gotten it into her head
that she could boss him around.

Ridge was so bemused by his wife’s fearless behavior that he didn’t
notice they’d reached the bed until she gave him a hearty shove in the chest,
sending him tumbling backwards.

Before he could recover she was on top of him, straddling him even
as she pulled at his tie, quickly loosening it and throwing it onto the floor.
Then she was attacking his shirt, not pausing to loosen the buttons but ripping
it open, sending buttons flying.

“Hey, that’s the second shirt in two days.” He didn’t get the chance
to say another word.

Lani clamped his face in her hands and lowered her lips to his then
she was kissing him fiercely, so hungrily that she was like a woman gone wild.
What made it worse, as she kissed him she was moaning like she really wanted
this. Was she faking or was this real? God, she was driving him insane.

Panting now, wanting her like he’d never wanted her before, Ridge
moved his hands up to capture her and lift her off him, breaking the kiss.

“Why did you do that?” she wailed, trying to get back on top of him.

But he wouldn’t let her. He put up a hand to block her attempt to
straddle his waist again. “I can’t deal with this,” he growled. “This damn teasing.
You’re driving me crazy.”

To his surprise, Lani gave him a sly smile. “Who says I’m teasing?”
she asked, her voice seductive and soft.

And at the sound of those words Ridge felt his heart stop and his
hardness swell in his pants. 

***

Lani wanted Ridge so bad her heart felt like it was ready to burst
out of her chest. She’d always known she wanted him but her anger had always
been that brake that kept her from giving him her all. But now, with the threat
of him leaving for good, her anger had to take a back seat. There were other,
more important things on the table right now, like holding on to this man, like
fucking his brains out.

Yeah, she would go there. She’d turned bold, she’d turned forceful
and she’d turned rude. Right now she didn’t give a damn about decorum. She
wanted Ridge here and now and she would have him even if it meant she would
have to turn into a big, bad bitch to do it. She might be small in body but
when it came to getting what she wanted she could be as big and bold as the
best of them.

Grabbing his shirt as it flapped open, Lani heaved, letting Ridge
know that she wanted him to rise.

Thank goodness he didn’t resist. Eyes deep, dark and intense he
raised up from how she’d had him lying flat on his back and when she kept
tugging he got up off the bed.

Smiling with relief but glad he was letting her boss him around Lani
hung on to his shirt and dragged Ridge off to the bathroom. For being such an
obedient little boy – in this case, a really big, little boy – she would give
him a special treat.

As soon as they were inside the bathroom Lani pushed Ridge back
against the sink and dropped to her knees in front of him. She heard when he
sucked in his breath but she pretended not to notice. Instead, she focused on
the task at hand – getting Ridge good and naked.

Lani’s hand flew to his belt and as she loosened it he groaned. She
smiled. What did he think she was going to do to him? Moving quickly, she
pulled the button at the top of his pants then reached for the zipper. Then,
wanting to make him wait, wanting to watch him writhe, she began to pull it
down, her movement tantalizingly slow. Like she knew he would, Ridge groaned
again and now he’d reached behind him and was gripping the countertop so tight
his knuckles were white.

Her smile deepening, Lani slid her hands inside Ridge’s trousers,
her palms gliding over the cotton-covered cheeks of his bottom then she pushed
down, letting his trousers fall to the floor.

She let him step out of trousers, socks and shoes and shrug the
shirt off his back and now he was standing in front of her with only one
insignificant garment blocking her from her goal. Still on her knees, Lani
glanced up, an involuntary smile curling her lips when she saw the look on his
face, a an endearing mix of desire, uncertainty and anticipation. She had him
by the cojones now – figuratively speaking, of course – and if she played her
cards right she would soon have him eating out of her hand.

Lani reached up and hooked her thumbs into the sides of Ridge’s boxer
shorts, ready to pull the underpants down and reveal him to her gaze but then
she paused. Maybe she was a masochist, prolonging her torture, but she decided
to wait just a little bit longer. He was ninety percent naked and she was fully
clothed. How fair was that?

Lani got up from her knees, taking note of the soft hiss that
escaped Ridge’s lips as she moved away. She stifled her chuckle. The man had
complained about her driving him mad. Pity he didn’t know she was about to make
things a whole lot worse.

Her gaze never leaving his face, Lani backed away, almost to the
other end of the spacious bathroom, and it was from that vantage point that she
began her striptease. Unbeknownst to Ridge, this evening she’d decided to be
his very own private dancer.

She started with the coat, which she’d almost forgotten she was
wearing. With a flourish she slid it off her back, twirled it around then
dropped it on the floor. Next, she reached her hands up and slowly undid the
buttons on her shirt, taking note that as her fingers went down the line, from
button to button, Ridge’s gaze was following every step of the way. Within
seconds the shirt was dangling from her fingers and then it, too, was falling
in a heap on the floor, leaving her top bare except for her bra.

By this time Ridge’s eyes were glued on her, taking in every curve,
looking like he was ready to devour her whole.

Lani stepped out of her loafers then dropped her hands to the waist
of her slacks and began to undo the button there, making her moves sexy as sin.
Shirt and slacks weren’t exactly the best selection for a sexy striptease but
she was making all the sultry moves to make up for that and if Ridge’s reaction
was anything to go by, it was working.

The big man didn’t move as he watched her from across the room but
his grip on the counter did not relax and when he swallowed his Adam’s apple
bobbed like a dinghy in distress. She was having an effect on him all right. A
big one.

And Lani meant to keep it that way so, straightening her back to
give him the full impact of her jutting breasts, she reached behind and pulled
the clasp at her back then let the bra slide off her shoulders and down her
arms, exposing her full breasts to his gaze. She was rewarded with his sharp
intake of breath.

Not stopping there, she tilted forward and hooked her thumbs into
the sides of her bikini underwear then slowly she pushed it down, off her
bottom, down her legs and to the floor. When she straightened up and stepped
out of the panties she looked over at Ridge again and this time there was no hiding
his arousal. A sizable tent was jutting forward in his shorts, making his
response no secret whatsoever.

Now, fully nude, the only thing covering her being the hair on top
of her head, Lani moved toward Ridge, finally ready to put him out of his
misery. She knew he wanted her but she also knew he was scared to make a move.
It would be up to her to take things to the next level.

Her movements decisive, Lani went back to stand in front of Ridge,
her eyes just level with the nipples on his chest, and although she was tempted
to pause there, to give him pleasure by licking the stiff buds, she did not.
There would be time enough for that later.

She dropped to her knees again but this time it was to hook her
thumbs into the waistband of Ridge’s shorts and push them down. Immediately,
his manhood popped up, perplexed, purple and proud, as she pushed his shorts
down past his knees and onto the floor. Slowly, she rose up from the floor,
making her movements languid and sensual, and then she reached for his hand.

She couldn’t help but smile at the look on his face, half wary, half
disappointed. He was eager for more but she was the one calling the shots. He
would just have to wait.

Lani led Ridge over to the Jacuzzi hot tub and as it filled with
water she made him climb over and relax in its warmth. Climbing in beside him,
she reached over to grab the bubble bath gel and the soft plastic mesh sponge.
She lathered it then proceeded to stroke his chest, making him sigh and close
his eyes then sink lower into the water. She didn’t let him get away, though.
Her hand slid down, following him, sliding under the bubbly water where she
could continue her caress, but this time along the length of his strong legs.

Ridge was staring at her now and she knew what he wanted. It was
time to reward him for letting her rule.

Her bold nature not letting her down, Lani moved the sponge up to
his private area and proceeded to circle the heaviness that lay there.