Claiming What's His (32 page)

             
“Now, where is that mask Dallas Dae gave you?” he muttered to himself as he searched around the room.  “Ah!  Here it is.” 

             
The mask sat on top of the nightstand next to her side of the bed.  She had kept it there next to the bed, secretly hoping that she would get to use it one day and it seemed like today was the day.  Though she had wished she wasn’t in her current position.

             
He covered her eyes with the mask, the elastic band sitting firmly around her head.  Then the bed moved.  She opened her eyes and through the lace she vaguely saw him leave the room.  She needed to come up with a plan to get out of this mess before he came back which didn’t give her much time.  She tilted her head back and observed the knot on her wrist and at the bedpost.  The one on the bedpost end looked to be a square knot and the one on her wrist seemed to be a slipknot. 

             
Then she heard the shower turn on.

             
He left her like that while he showered?

             
Minutes passed and she heard the water shut off.  It was only a few seconds later when she heard the rustling of something in the cabinets and then the rattling of the ice maker.

             
Ice?  Why would he need ice?

             
Was he now making himself a drink?

             
She needed to work faster.  She was losing time.  She wiggled one arm, hoping something would come loose and she could free herself.

             
She could hear his footsteps against the hardwood floors in the hallway and she knew he was close. 

             
Through the mask, she saw that he had a towel wrapped around his hips and she saw the sparkling wet drops of water across his chest which meant that he didn’t even bother to towel off.  Alex returned with a bowl in his hand and a towel on his shoulders.  He shifted onto the bed and sat next to her.  She took in the objects he had with him.

             
“What’s with the bowl and towel?” she asked.

             
“Punishment,” he told her.

             
She stared.  “Are you’re going to gag me with the towel and beat the bowl over my head?”

             
His eyes flickered.  “Tempting, but no.”  He reached back and placed the bowl on the nightstand, tossing the towel on the pillow.  He slowly unbuttoned her shirt, opening it up, and revealed her lacy bra. 

             
A low groan rumbled in his throat.

             
Sam smiled on the inside.  She knew that he would like it.  She had recently upgraded her panties and bras to lace right when she graduated as the second present from Mitch.  He had known when he saw his Visa bill the following month.

             
He pulled her skirt up, bunching them around her waist, and yanked the extra delicate materials of her panties on the both sides, tearing the straps, making her gasp. 

             
It was so barbaric, so erotic. 

             
And she was definitely turned on.

             
He threw the panties over his shoulders and reached back behind him.  When he righted his position, in his hand was a piece of ice.  He took the ice and lightly touched her body with it, slowly gliding it up and down her sternum.

             
She sucked in her breath, pulling on the restraints as the cold sensation burned her body to the core.

             
He touched it against her lips and she touched it with her tongue, slowly licking it back and forth, the water dripping to her jaw and down her neck.

             
“Open,” he commanded.

             
She opened.

             
He pushed it in her mouth, allowing her finish it off.

             
She heard the rattling in the bowl as he grabbed another piece.  He took this one and traced it around her breasts, then her nipple.  She sucked in another breath and shivered.  He removed the ice and clamped down with his mouth, sucking hard.

             
A loud moan escaped her lips.  He sucked, licked, and teased her.  Then he moved to the other side and did the same thing.

             
He lifted his head and he looked at her face.  She didn’t release what he was doing until it already happened.  He placed the ice in her belly button which made her breath a little heavier. 

             
He bent to her ear and whispered, “Don’t move.”

             
Sam closed her eyes.  She couldn’t keep them open with this wild sensation running through her body.  She was so turned on and she need to release it somehow.  She felt him leave the bed.  Then she heard the soft thump of his towel hitting the floor. 

             
The ice melted, creating a pool in her belly button, dripping down her side as she slightly shift.  It all of a sudden grew quiet and remained that way for a few minutes. 

             
She opened her eyes to see him staring down at her. 

             
He was naked. 

             
Deliciously naked. 

             
And he was hard, everywhere.

             
It made her heart melt.  She opened her mouth to ask if he would join her when his mouth slammed down on hers, kissing her dizzy.  His tongue teased and tangled with hers.  He released her mouth, moving towards the foot of the bed.  The bed dipped as he placed his knee down on the mattress, coming up and laying in between her legs, his face inches from her core.  She felt his warm breath exhaling against her skin.  It was really erotic.

             
“Alex, please,” she whimpered.

             
“Not yet.”

             
Sam didn’t know how much more she could take.  She needed release. 

             
And she needed it now.

             
She felt the burn coldness of the ice touch her labia and she gasped.  It was a sensation that was nearly unbearable to her.  He slowly ran it down her slit and she continued to suck in her breath with each stroke.  He removed the ice and stuck his tongue against her clit, teasing and flicking it repeatedly, driving her even crazier.  She pulled on the restraints, arching her back and moaning.  His mouth came down and sucked her clit, harder than ever.  She was climbing higher and higher and right when she was about to climax, he released. 

             
She thrashed out her frustration against the pillow, struggling and pulling on the ropes.

             
“Stop it,” he demanded.

             
“I need to come,” she breathed heavily and gritted her teeth.

             
“Are you going to going to trust me next time?”

             
“Next time?  How many more times do you expect me to see you kiss other women?” she asked in a shouty moan.

             
He stuck a finger in her, stroking quickly as she moaned again.  “There won’t be any other women.  Only you.  And for the last time, she kissed me.”  He stated as if reading Sam’s mind.

             
She bobbed her head, agreeing with him.  “You’re right, I’m sorry.”

             
He stopped.

             
“What are you doing?  Don’t stop!” she snapped.

             
He stared at her.  “What did you say?”

             
“I said don’t stop.”

             
He shook his head.  “Before that.”

             
She sighed.  She knew what he wanted. 

             
Her apology for doubting him.  “I’m sorry.”

             
He shook his head again.  “The other one.”

             
Her head did a jerk. 

             
The other one? 

             
And, she froze.  Did he mean the part where she said that he was right? 

             
His smile grew and she knew that was it.

             
“I hate you,” she declared, even if she wasn’t sure if she meant it (especially if it meant she wasn’t getting her climax).

             
He chuckled.  “No, you don’t.  And I know I’m right, even if you don’t say it.”  Then he stuck two fingers in, rubbing it back and forth.  She climbed again and as she was about to come, he pulled his fingers out.                Before she could yell at him, he replaced his fingers with his cock and thrust inside, increasing his pace, driving her all the way home.  She screamed out her release, never having such a powerful climax before.  It was so powerful that it was painful and a tear (or two) escaped her eyes.

             
She felt Alex shift as he released the restraints around one leg, then the other.  He grabbed both legs and wrapped them around his waist, pumping in and out of her, increasing the power of his thrusts, making her come a second time as he buried his face in her neck, groaning his release. 

             
He glided in and out until every last drop escaped him.  Then, he collapsed his weight onto her, his face still in her neck, as he reached up to release the ties at her wrists. 

             
Hers hands dropped on the bed with soft thumps like dead weights. 

             
Grabbing my wrists, he pulled them down, lifted his head, and gently kissed the insides where the ties were bounded.

             
“Did I hurt you?” 

             
He did hurt her.  It wasn’t a physical hurt as such.  It was more of an emotional hurt of him punishing her sexually that resulted her in a powerful (and painful) climax.  It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, but she didn’t like the way he took control out of her hands and made decisions like that on his own.  That was the first time she had lost control, ever.

             
So, she lied and shook her head.

             
“Don’t ever doubt me again, Sam.  If I ever gave you that indication, I’m sorry.  But next time, I want you to talk to me and not run away.  If we’re moving on together, you need to be able to talk to me and me to you.”

             
Easy for him to say.  He wasn’t the one who tied her up where she was helpless and couldn’t do anything on her own.

             
But for him to apologize had to have been big for him too.  Sam never had never really known Alex to apologize often (though this was the second apology she had gotten from him).  It was still one of those rare moments where she kept it to herself.

             
She kept her eyes closed and her face averted and nodded.  She just wanted him to stop talking so she could get some sleep.

             
He gently massaged both wrists, relieving the slight ting of pain that sat momentarily.  Once he stopped, she turned her back to his front and settled so he couldn’t see her face.  He pulled the blanket up and over them and settled to bed by sliding one arm underneath her neck and the other over her waist.  His lips moved to her ears and he softly said, “I’m sorry I hurt you.  It won’t happen again.”

             
He knew she cried and he apologized.  And, just like that, she forgave him.

             
Was there ever anything that he didn’t know?

             
Not long after, she felt his body relax and his breathing steadied.

             
As her eyes grew heavy, she thought back of how far they’ve come from six years of no communication to all of a sudden living together within a week of his return with people shooting at her apartment and crazy men chasing after her and trying to kill her.  This was the beginning of her crazy life as a PI and living with a Neanderthal bossy guy.

             
Her eyes shut and she fell into the early stages of her sleep. 

             
That night she had a dream. 

             
She dreamt that Alex had asked her to marry him.

             
And, in that dream, she said yes.

              Sam was in the same position she fell asleep in when she heard the phone rang.  She felt Alex shift behind her, the hand over her waist and the warmth against her back leaving her as he reached for his phone. 

             
She didn’t move. 

             
The lamp came on and she squeezed her eyes shut to prevent any peep of light to seep into her eyes.

             
“Yeah?  What?  Did you run it?  You’re kidding. 
Fuck!
  Are you sure?  Alright, alright, we’ll be there as soon as we can.”  He disconnected. 

             
“What did he get,” she mumbled.

             
“He got the plates.  Ran it.  Even went the extra step and combine it from the one you got last week and guess whose name came up.”

             
She rolled to her back and open her eyes, barely.  “Who?” she croaked.

             
“Lynn Summers.”

             
Her eyes popped open, not sure if she heard it correctly.  She blinked several times to readjust her vision, then requested, “Repeat that.”

             
“The plates belong Lynn.  Now I’m thinking that your appearance at the park may have been a set up after all.”

             
“Yeah, apparently.  But why?”

             
“I don’t know.  But we’ll find out.”

             
“Do
we
have to go in?  Can you go on your own?”  Sam whined, her eyes still tired as she burrowed her face into his chest.

             
He chuckled and kissed the top of her head.  “You stay, get some sleep.  I’ll go in and check it out.  I’ll be back.  I’m sure Corey would like to get some sleep too.”

             
He kissed her head once more and rolled out of bed.  She flipped on her stomach, tucking her bent arms to her side as he walked into the bathroom.  He returned to get dressed, kiss her shoulders, turned off the lamp and left.

             
Within seconds, she fell back asleep.

*******

              Sam felt the bed dip and hands roaming her body. 

             
His lips pressed to her shoulders and she rolled to her back, revealing her breasts to him.

             
“Everything okay?” she muttered without opening her eyes.

             
“Yeah.  I’ll tell you about it in the morning.  Go back to sleep.”  He pulled and tucked her to his side, her arms over his abs, her legs thrown over his and she instantly fell asleep, again.

*******

              Sam stirred.

             
Alex was pressed closely at her back.

             
She shifted out of bed, grabbing his tee shirt and pulling it over her head, and padded to the bathroom.  She turned on the lights and blinked a few times, readjusting her eyes to the light.  With her eyes still drooping, she reached out her left hand to grab the scrunchie that was sitting on the basin.

             
She stopped.

             
On her finger was a diamond ring.

             
A huge diamond ring.

             
A huge cushion-cut diamond ring.                The base of the ring was surrounded all around the ring with tiny round diamonds and they sparked against the bathroom light as Sam twisted and admired her hand.

             
Her eyes widened and her breath hitched. 

             
It was beautiful.

             
The dream.

             
She remembered the dream.  But, it wasn’t a dream at all.

             
She stood, frozen in nothing but Alex’s shirt and a diamond ring on her finger.

             
She wasn’t sure how it happened, but it had happened.  She was engaged to her high school crush, but she didn’t recall him telling her that he loved her.  They were temporarily living together, although that was never discussed between them either.  More like demanded.  But whatever any of this was, it wasn’t discussed between the two of them like the adults they were. 

             
“Sam.”

             
Her name being called brought her out of her thoughts as she looked up to her right to see Alex standing in the doorway, watching her.

             
“You okay?”

             
She couldn’t speak.  She had forgotten how.

             
Apparently Alex didn’t like it so he made a move to her.  He walked up and wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulders. 

             
“What’s wrong, Sam?”

             
“The ring,” she whispered, finding her voice.

             
“The ring?  You don’t like it?  If you don’t like it, Sam, we can go pick out another one.  But, I had Maggie help me pick this out and she told me that this is the cut you like.”

             
Maggie helped him pick out her ring?  She knew about this and didn’t tell her!  Sam couldn’t wrap her head around the fact that between the times she fell asleep to the time she woke up she was engaged, let alone her best friend knowing about this and keeping it from her.

             
Sam shook her head.  “No, that’s not what I meant.”

             
“Then what did you mean?”

             
She might as well tell him everything now.

             
“I mean, you’ve only been back less than a week.  We barely know each other and I just moved in due to the unfortunate circumstances that my apartment was filled with bullet holes.  And, someone’s trying to kill me.  Yet, through all of that, we have not once discussed the extent nature of our relationship except you telling me that you want there to be an us.  You haven’t even told me you love me and I wake up with a diamond ring on my finger.  I thought I had dreamt that, but apparently it was real.  Don’t you think we should discuss this?  I mean, isn’t this moving too fast?  Perhaps we should get to know each other a little better?  And when did you go buy it?  You and I are practically together all the time.”

             
Sam saw a vein jump on his neck as he clenched his jaw tight.  His eyes went hard and they were alert-flashing angry.  He was pissed.

             
“First off, we’ve known each other our whole lives.  And just because I’ve been gone for six years doesn’t mean that I don’t know you any less.  The fact that you’re living with me right now is beyond the fact that someone is trying to kill you.  Where we are now, I figure we would’ve gotten here eventually.  The drive-by at your apartment just moved things along.  And that diamond ring is on your fucking finger because when I asked you to marry me last night, you accepted.  I don’t know what your state was in at the time, but I knew where I was when I asked.  I figure you knew where you were since I got a direct answer.  And, I do love you.  You’re the only person I’ve ever loved, outside of my family.  As for whether this is moving too fast,
fuck no
.  To me, it isn’t moving fast enough.  If it were up to me, you and I would be married right now and we’d be working on making our first kid.  And I purchased it yesterday on my errand run with Dean.”

             
Married. 

             
Their
first
kid.

             
Jeez, he had this all planned out.

             
“Alex, you’re only here temporarily.  You haven’t moved here yet.  Don’t you think we should slow it down just a bit?”  She paused while everything sunk in.  “Did you say you love me?”

             
“Yeah, I did.  The distance is only a small factor.  We’ll work it out.  We’ve wasted too much time over the years.  This is going to happen between us, whether how fast or how slow it may be.  But, I prefer it fast.  Really fast.”

             
Oh boy.

             
Now she was
really
in trouble.

*******

Sam knew today would be a busy day.  With the case still active and the Independence Day celebration tonight, there was no time to waste.

             
Sam had never been one to think about marriage.  Ever.

             
Through any of her relationships, she had never once thought if that person was the right person.  She was only focusing on finishing school while, at the same time, having fun.  Not much room to occupy her brain with.  And, marriage and kids would definitely have taken up lots of room for that.

Aside from the engagement and Alex telling her that he loved her, she had other important things on her mind.

              She had been up since five o’clock, going over everything, trying to piece the puzzle together.  Alex was still asleep in bed and obviously he hadn’t notice that she was gone.  She stood in the living room in Alex’s shirt, pacing back and forth.

             
Apparently, Lynn was somehow connected to the both of these.  First, her car had been used as the getaway car in a crime.  It was spotted again off the street when she locked lips with Alex, thinking that no one would be smart enough to grab the street cam feed.  She set her up so that attention was to them and nowhere else.

             
Sam was now sure that it was her car that almost ran her over the night of the fundraiser. 

             
But, how was she involved?  Lynn may have been there during those two occurrences, but she wasn’t actually committing the crime.

             
What was all this about?  Why was Sam the target?  Who were all involved if Lynn had partners? 

             
Sam knew Lynn from high school and she knew that Lynn wasn’t the brightest bulb in the class.  If memory served her correctly, she had barely passed high school.  She had only managed to pass school because her dad was friends with the superintendent.

             
Then, they had Joe who obviously authorized and signed rent checks to a company Conrad had been paying for no reason since Conrad doesn’t have any rent fees.  He mysteriously volunteered to help her with the financial reports right before she get attacked.  And, he tried to bail out Bernie, who did attack her and was placed in jail.  Bernie was the one who called Joe to bail him out that first night but wasn’t successful.  He got out the next morning when Joe returned and bailed him out.

             
Was he, Brown and Lynn partners?

             
Sam picked up the phone and dialed Corey’s number.  It rang twice before he grumbled on the phone.  “‘Lo?”

             
“Corey?  Are you awake?”

             
“Am now.  What do you want?  What time is it?” Sam heard the bed shuffle on the other end of the receiver.

             
“Six twenty.  I need you to do something.”

             
“
Now?
  Jeez, Sam, can’t it wait for a few hours so I can get some sleep first?”

             
“No, you can sleep when you get this done.  I will personally handle all your work if you can do this for me.”

“I don’t trust your work.  It’s mediocre at best.  What do you want?”

“You know the street cam I got you to hack for me?  See if you can find another cam, maybe on the other end of the street that Lynn’s car was heading and see if you can get an image of the driver.  I’m getting really close to solving this.”

He yawned into the phone and muttered, “Got it,
Chiefette.  I’ll call when I get something.”

             
“Thanks, I owe you.”

             
“Yeah, you do.  And don’t think I won’t collect either.”  He hung up.

             
“Who was that?”

             
Sam turned around to find Alex walking out of the bedroom in his jeans with the button and zipper undone.  His hair was messy and his eyes were sleepy.

             
Hot!

             
And with this image, if she and Alex ended up married, she’d be waking up to him like this every day.                She breathed deeply in attempt to control of her hormones (which is quickly failing) and she answered, “Corey.  I’m getting him to pull up camera feed from the other end of the street hoping to get a glimpse of the driver.  Then I’m having him search for any connection at all between Haynes and Brown, other than where they work.”