On Her Master's Secret Service (22 page)

She would say anything he wanted her to. “Yes, Master.”

A second finger joined the first. She could feel the thick line of his erection against her ass. Was this what he was planning on doing for the next several weeks? Was this his idea of keeping her in line? Because it was totally working.

“Come for me.”

Three words said in that low, gravelly voice of his and she went off like a shot. The orgasm rolled over her and Alex shifted, hugging her tight, his tongue licking the shell of her ear as she rode out the pleasure.

She sagged against him, every muscle soft and relaxed. Maybe this was his new version of working out.

“That was excellent, pet. You can get up now.” His arms came out from around her, and she felt the loss of his warmth.

With wooden legs, she moved from his lap. She’d kind of expected him to turn her around and order her to ride his cock. She smoothed out her robe and hoped she wasn’t too disheveled. “All right. I’ll go and get ready for the day.”

She sniffled a little as she moved toward the door. She’d tried to be kind, but she was confused as to where he was. He’d been professional, but then he’d gotten so intimate. Intellectually she understood the point of the exercise, but her heart was racing and her hands shaking and she just wanted to be held again.

“Eve?”

She turned back, every nerve wary. “Yes, Sir?”

“Master,” he corrected, his voice firm.

He obviously wouldn’t give her an inch. “Yes, Master?”

“I know we haven’t worked together in this capacity before and that might be a problem.”

He seemed intent on beating a dead horse. She huffed a little. “I’ll fulfill my duties.”

“That’s not the problem.”

God, what was he going to throw at her now? She just wanted to run inside and take a shower and put her armor in place again. Control. She needed to get back into control. “What is the problem, Master?”

He moved behind her, his front to her back and she could feel the erection he pressed to her ass. “I find you very attractive. I’m struggling to keep the relationship on a professional level. It’s going to be hard for me. We’re going to have to live together, to sleep together, to have a D/s relationship. I can tell you it’s going to be very difficult for me to remember where the operation stops and reality begins.”

She turned, anger rising. “Alex, what the hell kind of game are you playing?”

His hands came up, cupping her face the way he had the night before. She could smell her own arousal on those fingers. Yes, they were getting very intimate. More intimate than they’d been in years. “You told me to let go. I let go. We have a problem, angel. The new me is just so fucking attracted to the new you. You’re so fucking gorgeous. I want you. I thought you should know. I’m going to do exactly what you asked of me. I’m going to find the new me. I already know one thing about the new Alex McKay. He wants Eve St. James.”

He hadn’t really listened to her the night before. He’d placated her. “This isn’t going to work.”

He backed her up, giving her no space. He very deliberately sucked his fingers into his mouth, tasting her, his tongue working to gather every bit of cream she’d left on his hand. “And you taste like heaven.”

Just like that her pussy started tightening again. Control. She had to find some. “You can’t just pretend like we don’t know each other.”

“It’s what you wanted. New you. New me. New start.” His mouth hovered above hers. “And if last night was a kiss good-bye, then I want my hello kiss. And I’m going to have it.”

This was no sweet brushing of his lips against hers. Alex pressed his mouth to her with deadly intent. He forced her jaw to open and his tongue surged inside, sliding alongside hers. He cradled her close, rubbing that big erection against her belly as he took her mouth again and again. One of his hands came up and tugged on her hair, fisting it.

“Yeah, I like the longer hair, pet. I’m going to love to hold onto it while I fuck your ass,” he whispered along her cheek. “Oh, did you think I would forget the fact that you haven’t let me inside your ass in forever? I’m the Master again, and I’m going to have you every way a man can possibly have a woman. You want me to get to know you all over again? I’ll be thrilled to. Now go and get ready. Meet me in the weight room in ten minutes. If you’re not there, it’s twenty smacks. Every minute you keep me waiting is another ten. So be late, if you like. I would love to see how the new Eve handles my discipline.”

He stepped back and opened the door wide, holding a hand out for her to enter first. She forced herself to move.

What the hell had just happened?

“Ten minutes,” Alex announced again as he walked past her. She could only stare as he strode back into the kitchen, his shoulders straight and proud.

“Wow,” Kristen said. “The boss looks like a whole new man. Whatever you did to him last night really worked.”

“Yeah,” Eve muttered. A whole new man. A dangerous man. She wasn’t sure she could handle the new Alex.

She rushed to the bathroom to get cleaned up because she was pretty sure she was running out of time—in more ways than one.

Five days later, Alex looked over the men assembled in the VIP section of the club and felt a sense of satisfaction. At least one thing had gone right with this damn operation. Almost a week had gone by and he still hadn’t found a chance to slip into
Chazz’s
office. Security was lax around the club—everywhere except
Chazz’s
office.

But Alex had a plan for that and Jake was right where he should be, his eyes bloodshot and his normally pressed suit just the slightest bit wrinkled. His eyes slid over Alex and then back to Eve. He leaned over to the man seated to his left and whispered something in his ear.

Chazz laughed and leered a little Eve’s way before shaking his head. Alex could just catch the last of the conversation. “I don’t think he’s the sharing type, buddy.”

The VIP section of the club had been transformed into a dining area. Only the kitchen staff was around at this time of the day. The rest of the club was quiet. Chazz and Jake sat while three other men were gathered together talking quietly.

He slid his fingers through Eve’s, completely satisfied with the connection. God, he’d gotten to touch her more in the last several days than in the years that came before. Even though they were in the middle of an operation, he allowed himself to revel in the way her hair smelled. She’d changed her shampoo. She used to favor floral scents, delicate rose and lilacs. Now, her hair smelled like grapefruit, sharp and alive.

He dropped his head close to hers and whispered, “Don’t give away Jake, angel. He’s here for a reason.”

“Yes, Master.”

He was almost disappointed with the blank doll look on her face. He’d gotten used to bratty Eve. He would never admit it to her, but when she’d said she was worried that they hadn’t been as solid as they’d seemed back when they were married, he’d agreed. He hadn’t told her that he’d worried their life had become a dull set of never-ending protocols, and he’d actually resented having to select her clothes for her toward the end. That look on her face now was the one she used to get when she simply agreed to everything.

Maybe they’d both lost themselves somewhere along the way. He’d had five days of getting to know her again. Five days of holding her. Five days of completely withholding his cock.

That had to change.

“Although you could have told me in the car,” she whispered, her whole face turning stubborn and resentful.

And so cute. She was adorable when she thought he was a dumbass. He leaned over and kissed her. She didn’t flinch anymore. She was beginning to openly accept his affection even when they were in private. “I wasn’t sure he’d made it in. I found out about this investor meeting thing yesterday afternoon. Chazz mentioned he was going out to party. I wanted to see just how reckless he is. I sent Jake in to party with him. I hadn’t heard anything since. Apparently it went pretty well because he hasn’t changed his clothes.”

It proved that Chazz was a bit reckless. Jake had partied with him the night before. This was supposed to be a serious, rather secretive business meeting and Chazz had invited a virtual stranger in. Now, Jake had been playing a high roller, throwing money around, so Chazz might honestly think he was going to get something out of it, but there was no way the man had vetted Jake.

And it was also the perfect time to bug the little fucker’s car. Jake ran a hand through his hair and blinked twice. To the casual observer, he would simply look like a man who was a little tired, a little unkempt, but to Alex those two gestures meant the world. Jake had completed two of his three objectives. He’d bugged the car and
Chazz’s
private residence. Jake sniffed and gave him a little shake of his head. It was a no go on the keys to the office.

Damn it.

He was going to have to find another way in. Every day that went by put them in danger.

“He’s going to be obnoxious, isn’t he?” Eve asked, proving she knew how these things went.

And that was another reason he’d asked Jake to play a small role. If he needed to learn something about Chazz, then Alex wanted Chazz to learn something very specific about him. “Oh, yes. He’s going to prove a couple of points about me as well as getting his hands on some financials for us. But I can’t keep him in the game for long.”

Eve cuddled close, keeping her voice low. “Because Serena needs him and we need Adam.”

He ran his hands through her hair, fisting it gently and forcing her to look up at him. He damn straight liked the new hair. Even the color looked good on her, making her skin glow. She’d been a cool blonde for so long that he’d forgotten how the more natural brown shade brought out a flush in her cheeks. He’d made her leave off most of her makeup, allowing only a little mascara and some gloss. She’d been bitterly angry about that. Apparently, she didn’t find the dusting of freckles across her nose and cheekbones as sweet as he did. And someone was walking up behind them. He hardened his voice. “Be a good girl. I need to plant a GPS on one of the fuckers we’re meeting with. I would really like to know where some of the strongholds are. If I get a chance, I’m going to try to slip it into a pocket.”

The tiny GPS locators were one of Adam’s new playthings. He was a tech guru who very likely could have made millions off some of his little toys, but luckily, Adam was damn loyal. The tiny locator was black and would stick to a piece of clothing or a briefcase. He just had to find the right time to tag one of the bastards.

The blank doll face was back. “Yes, Master. I am always a good girl. Not that it does me any good.”

He felt a grin slide across his face and quickly quashed it though he couldn’t dampen the joy he felt. Withholding sex had been hell on earth, but he had a point to prove. She wanted to start over? He could do that, but it would be his way this time, and part of his way was proving he was boss in the bedroom. He slept with her in his arms every night and then showered with her in the morning, washing every inch of her himself. At first she’d stood stiffly in his arms as though it was something to endure. Slowly but surely, she’d softened, allowing him to touch her and comfort her. Somewhere around day three, she’d started rubbing against him. And this morning she’d been damn sullen about the fact that he wouldn’t take her.

His plan was working perfectly. At least the plan with Eve was working. The operation was another story.

“Gentlemen, these are the two I was telling you about. This is Master A and his slave. What should I call her?” Chazz asked.

Mine.
He felt a growl start in the back of his throat because the slimy fucker was practically looking down Eve’s shirt. “Slave will be fine in a dungeon setting or one in which we’re working in high protocol, like today. In a more casual setting, you can call her Amanda. For the purposes of today, I thought we would be formal.”

Chazz nodded. “Absolutely. Everyone is very curious. I’ve seated you at the head of the table and your slave next to you.”

Alex shook his head. That simply wouldn’t do. “She doesn’t need a chair. She sits in my lap or at my feet. And I’ll feed her from my plate. She takes only what I give her.”

She would look very nonthreatening and she would be able to make a careful study of every man in the room. Still, her nails slightly dug into the flesh of his hand even though her expression never changed. She kept her head lowered submissively, but she got her point across. He would pay for it later. Or he would spank her ass for
brattiness
. Either way, he was looking forward to it.

She’d said good-bye on the balcony five days before, and he’d woken up knowing she’d been right. They would never have a clean slate. He didn’t want one. He wanted to acknowledge the relationship they’d had before, but he’d made a shrine of it and he’d been forced that night to really look at it. Their marriage had been far from perfect. He’d made mistakes. She’d made mistakes.

They were starting over.

Because he’d realized one thing. She still loved him. Deep down and underneath it all—Eve still loved him. Still needed him.

He wouldn’t let her down this time.

But he might piss her off. Since they’d come to Florida, she’d received three disciplinary spankings. She’d been late to workouts twice and mouthed off at him when he’d very politely requested that she perform another set of squats. He’d kept her off-kilter all week long.

And he had no intention of changing that.

He led her to the seat they had offered him. Four men sat around the table besides Chazz and Jake. Jesse, the little fucker, already had eyes on Eve. And he wasn’t even trying to hide the fact that he was carrying. Alex could see the round edge of his shoulder holster peeking from under his jacket. The ex-soldier looked a little awkward in a sport coat.

The other three men did not. They were all either South American or Middle Eastern. In the normal course of events, their nationality didn’t mean a damn thing. Alex had known plenty of all-American criminal assholes, but they were here “investing” in Michael Evans’s club.