Rogue (14 page)

“You look fucking gorgeous in this outfit.  There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. 
But even if you don’t know that, you’re not telling me everything.”

I did the only thing I could: I told the truth.

“I want you to touch me, Derek.”

Leaning forward, I caught his low growl on my lips before he could refuse me.  Passion
erupted within me at the touch of his mouth upon mine.  I had craved him for so long,
and the bliss of his kiss was a sweet mercy.

But Derek had no mercy for me.  He instantly responded with a ruthlessness that took
my breath away.  His lips crushed to mine, and his tongue demanded entrance.  I parted
for him willingly, and his penetration mirrored the roughness with which he would
fuck me.  He didn’t sample or explore, he took.  He had wanted inside me, and now
he kissed me as though he would never free me from his possession.

I tried to turn my head away so I could draw breath, but his hands closed around either
side of my head.  His fingers tangled in my hair and his thumbs hooked beneath my
jaw, tilting my face up so he could go deeper.  His hard body pressed me into the
wall, and he ground his thick erection into my belly.  I wantonly rolled my hips against
his thigh in response.

My head started to spin.  I needed air, but I didn’t care.  I was drunk on Derek.

He released me just as my knees buckled.  In a move faster than my oxygen-deprived
brain could follow, he bent and caught me around the waist.  My world spun, and suddenly
I was facing the ground.  Derek had slung me over his shoulder.  His hand gripped
my hip to hold me in place, and his fingers curled into the soft flesh of my thigh
just below my ass.

Instinctively, I struggled.  The sound of his hand smacking my bottom was almost as
shocking as the sting that flared on my skin.

“Don’t fight me,” he growled.  “Not now.  I’ve waited too fucking long for this.”

Derek strode through the door to one of the private rooms.  His boot entered my vision
when he kicked if closed behind us with such force I was surprised the wood didn’t
shatter.

The man who held me now wasn’t the carefully controlled Dom who had trained me and
teased me with the most innocent touches for weeks.  This man was wild, a ravenous
predator who had been starving.  And he held me like I was his captured quarry.  The
beast was voracious, possessive.  I had no hope of escaping him.

And I didn’t want to.

Mattress springs groaned as Derek’s considerable weight fell down upon it.  My world
flipped again, and when it solidified I found myself staring at the ground again. 
Only this time I was much closer.  Derek’s hard cock pressed into my stomach, and
my legs dangled over the other side of his lap.  I twisted to look back at him, but
his long fingers instantly ensnared my wrists, pressing them into one large hand to
bind me as securely as an iron manacle.

“Don’t fight me,” he demanded again, his voice a low, feral rumble.  “You’re going
to accept your punishment like a good girl.”

Punishment?

“Derek, wait.  I-”

His hand came down on me again, and I gasped at the sharp impact.

“You asked for this, Sharon.  You asked me to touch you.  I’ll touch you how I fucking
want.  And right now I want to punish you for making me wait.”  Pain flared again
as he reinforced his complete control over me.  “And you’ve forgotten how to address
me.  Now, you’re going to be a good girl for me, aren’t you?”

The slap landed on my sensitive thigh.  “Yes, Sir!”  I cried out.

He lightly stroked the enflamed area, and I shuddered at the contrasting tenderness. 
I had thought I was lost in Derek before, but our previous sessions had been nothing
compared to this.  There was a true connection in the pain he was giving me that had
been absent even when he flogged me.  His hand upon me was what I had craved, and
my body didn’t care if his touch brought me pain or pleasure.  It just wanted
him.

When he spoke again, his voice was smoother, calmer.  As he asserted his control over
me, he sank into his control over himself.  It was something he desperately needed,
that control.  I would give him what he needed.  I would please him.  The prospect
awoke a glow in my chest that was hotter than the warm pulsing of my stinging skin.

“I’ll go easy on you this first time.  You get ten for making me wait.”  His tone
turned sweet, caring, even as he prepared to give me pain.

The pain
was
caring.  He cared enough to communicate his desires to me, and to correct me when
I did something wrong.  I didn’t have to guess what Derek wanted from me, and he would
grant me immediate absolution if I ever did disappoint him.  Fear of making a mistake
or guilt over failing him would never haunt me.  It was exactly what I needed.  Stability,
honesty, forgiveness.

When the first hit landed, I cherished my first taste of discipline.  Things between
Derek and me would never be the same after this.  I would never be the same.  I would
be better, stronger, without the constant pressure of striving for perfection.  Derek
didn’t want my perfection.  He wanted me to be my true, genuine self, even if that
meant acknowledging my shortcomings.

By the time the fifth crack smacked against my flesh, sweet tears pooled in my eyes.

“Thank you, Sir.  Thank you.”  I didn’t realize that the whispered gratitude left
my lips.  All that registered were his low words of praise and approval as I took
his discipline.

I only knew my spanking had come to an end when he pressed his hand against my ass
at the final blow, holding the heat in so that it sank into my throbbing flesh.

His fingernails bit into my reddened cheeks, raking tingling lines across my skin. 
Little sparks spread from his touch to find my core, and my inner walls fluttered,
desperate to be filled.  The high of his touch had gotten my sex hot and needy, even
as my body registered pain.

His fingers dipped between my thighs, swirling in the wetness he found there.

“So fucking perfect,” he groaned.

I whimpered and pressed back against him, silently begging for him to penetrate me.

His hands were back at my waist, flipping my body so that I was cradled against his
chest, staring up at him.  His eyes bored into mine as he slowly raised his fingers
to his mouth.  A strangled moan eased up my throat when he sucked them between his
lips, tasting me.

When he removed them, he traced the upper swell of my breasts, leaving little trails
of wetness there.  I shuddered, trapped by the weight of his burning stare.

“Please, Sir,” I panted out the little puffs of air my corset allowed me to draw in. 
I rotated my hips, begging.  “Please.”

His expression turned fierce just before his fingers penetrated me roughly.  My ecstatic
cry gave voice to the explosion of pleasure that ripped through me when he immediately
found that secret spot at the front of my inner walls.  His thumb pressed against
my clit, rubbing in hard, demanding circles.

“Come for me.”

I didn’t need his order to comply, but the knowledge that my submission pleased him
sent me flying higher.  My eyes rolled back in my head as I was overcome.

“Look at me.”  My eyes flew open, and the savage pleasure I found in his joined with
my own, magnifying my bliss.  “Good girl.”  His praise mingled with my scream as he
stroked me through my orgasm.

I was still obediently staring up at him when I came back down.  But this time, I
didn’t drop.  Derek held me up, tethering me to my residual joy.  My grin was wide
and foolish, and his was lazy and satisfied.

“Thank you, Sir.”  The words left me on a shuddering breath.

He tenderly kissed the top of my head.  “You’re more than welcome, sub.”

I suddenly became aware of his hardness pressing into my bruised ass, and arousal
stirred back to life.

“What about you?”  My voice was thick, almost sleepy.  I felt utterly drained, but
I wanted to give him what he had given me.

His thumb traced the outline of my mouth.  “I’ll sink my cock between these perfect
lips soon enough, but tonight is about you.”

My breath caught in my throat.  Would I ever get used to his dirty mouth?

Grief bled into my happiness.  I wouldn’t have the time to find out.  Selfishly, I
snuggled into Derek.  I would savor each of the precious hours we had left before
I had to betray him.

Chapter 11

“Can you do me another favor?”  I watched Clara in the mirror as she helped me into
my corset.  My plan relied on her good intentions.  I needed to get in Derek’s office
again, and having the Domme assist Reed in distracting Derek would buy me more time. 
Audio picked up by the bug after I had planted it the night before had recorded talk
about a shipment.  I hoped I might find some of the product in the office.

Clara returned my careful stare as she pulled my corset laces taut.  “What do you
need?”

“Could you talk to Reed and Derek for a while?  I need extra time to get ready.” 
I gestured to the locker room around us, indicating my need to stay there.

Clara pursed her lips, considering me.  She knew I was lying, but I had anticipated
that.  And she read it in my expression.

After a moment, she sighed.  “All right,” she agreed.  “But you and I had better be
on the same team.”

I nodded.  “I hope so.” 

With some trepidation, I watched her saunter out of the locker room.  In truth, it
didn’t matter what team the Domme was on, so long as she distracted Derek.

If all went well, this would be our last night in Decadence.  Unfortunately, Derek
had been part of the discussion about the shipment.  Kennedy was all but certain of
his willing involvement.

The idea made my heart hurt.  How could the man who had been so intimately honest
with me be a criminal?  Surely my instincts were better than that.

I can’t trust my gut.

I hardened my heart.  I would do my duty, no matter how much it pained me to betray
Derek.

Time to move, Silverman.

The product was stored in Derek’s office.  I had picked the lock once before; I could
easily do it again.

I took as deep a breath as I could manage with the damn corset squeezing my lungs,
and headed down the hallway.  The end of the corridor came far more quickly than I
was prepared for.  With every beat of my pulse, guilt oozed through my veins.

I shook my head sharply.  I didn’t have time for guilt.

The lock clicked open within seconds.  I turned the knob quickly and eased through
the door.

Shock slammed into me along with the hard body at my back.  It propelled me into the
office, and a hand fisted in the back of my hair before the door thudded closed behind
me.  My heart stopped when I took in Ortiz’s scowl.  He stood far too close, a wall
of muscled chest just in front of my nose.

“I told you
la puta
was up to something,” Reyes’ deep, accented voice came from behind me.  His fist tightened
in my curls, and I winced.

To make up for its silence, my heart leapt up into my throat, pounding at a thousand
beats per minute.  Somehow, I managed to force words past it.

“What are you talking about?  I’m here to surprise Derek.”  My lie wasn’t nearly as
steady as I would have liked.  I could stay cool in a tight spot, but I was unarmed
and taken completely by surprise.

Ortiz took a step closer, hemming my small body in.  He might be considerably shorter
than Reyes, but he still had five inches on me.

“I heard you ask that bitch Dominatrix to lie for you last night,” Reyes informed
me.  “You were gone a long time.  And here you are, breaking in where you don’t belong.” 
He gave another vicious jerk on my hair.  “What are you doing here,
cusca
?”

“I told you.  I wanted to surprise Derek.”

Violence itched just under my skin.  I craved to take these fuckers out.  They were
bigger than me, but I knew more than just brawling.  I knew how to kill a man with
my bare hands.  Too bad we wouldn’t be able to question them if they were dead.  Not
to mention that I would blow my innocent submissive cover if I beat the shit out of
them.

Ortiz reached for me.  I couldn’t allow them to incapacitate me.  They didn’t believe
me, and I could tell by the aggression in Ortiz’s flat black eyes that he was determined
to torture the truth out of me.  He was about to find that I didn’t break easily.

Within a heartbeat, I identified the pressure points I needed.  I chopped down on
the inside of his arm, just below the elbow.  He collapsed forward with a grunt, and
I brought my knee up into his chin.  I jabbed back into Reyes’ solar plexus, and he
released my hair.  Pivoting, I slammed my forehead into his nose.

I heard Ortiz rallying behind me, and I whirled to face him.

But leaving Reyes alive had been a mistake.  I should have shoved his nose back into
his brain and put him down for good.  I was fast, but they were big, and I wasn’t
fighting at full lethal capacity.

Reyes’ arms closed around me from behind, sending me crashing to the floor.  My teeth
rattled and the air was crushed from my lungs as his solid weight slammed down on
me.  It left me dazed for the space of half a minute, and that was all they needed.

By the time I managed to gasp in another breath, my body was thrown on my front over
the desk.  Ortiz stretched my arms out in front of me and pinned them against the
wood with a cruel grip on my wrists.  My hips bent over the edge, and my feet dangled
inches above the floor. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Reyes select a whip from the wall.  He flicked
out its coiled length, leering at me when I jumped at the ear-splitting
snap.

“You’re going to pay for this,
puta.
”  He gestured at his bloody nose as he approached me.  He handed the whip to Ortiz
so he could grip my hips with both hands.

I tried to kick out, but Reyes’ powerful thighs pressed against me, trapping me in
place.

“I never really got this BDSM shit, but her fear makes my dick hard.  What about you,
hermano
?”  He asked his friend with twisted pleasure.

My skirt was so short that his jeans rubbed against the lower curve of my ass.  His
erection pressed against my cleft, and my fingernails scrabbled at the desk in my
fruitless efforts to tear free.

“Derek will kill you for this.”  I channeled my terror into a furious hiss.

The two men laughed.  Ortiz shoved the handle of the whip beneath my chin, forcing
my head up.  “Carter won’t do shit,” he told me with a rictus grin.  “We’re going
to fuck the truth out of you.  If you don’t talk, we’ll use the whip.  Then we’ll
fuck you again, just for fun.  And Carter will thank us for it.”

I did the only thing I could do: I screamed.  I wasn’t stupid enough to let my pride
keep me silent.  Maybe Derek would hear.  Maybe he would come for me.  I couldn’t
allow myself to believe what the Kings told me about his loyalties.

Reyes laughed again.  “Everyone screams in this place, bitch.  No one comes running
to save them.”

The door flew open and hit the wall with a deafening bang.  Before any of us could
register what was happening, Derek slammed into Reyes.  Their solid bodies hit the
floor with a resounding crash.  Ortiz’s hands left my wrists to face the challenge
posed by Reed, but my partner knocked him to the ground before he even got his fists
up.

I shoved myself up.  Reed could handle himself.  He had the same training I did, and
it didn’t look like he intended to curb his lethality.

I scrambled to my feet to go to Derek, but he didn’t appear to need any help, either. 
He had Reyes pinned, and his fist slammed into the King’s face, sending a spray of
blood across the floorboards.

The King shook his head hard and grinned up at Derek through a mouthful of blood. 
“Charlotte will suffer for this, Carter.  We’ll take turns.”  Derek snarled and pulled
his fist back for another punch.  “I’ll make sure to tell her you chose your whore
over her.”  He jerked his chin at me, and Derek’s gaze followed his.

Derek’s features twisted into something tortured, fury and loathing tempered by fear.

“Fuck!”  Derek raked a hand through his hair and shoved off Reyes.  He backed away,
watching the King as though Reyes was a cobra who might strike at any moment.  I didn’t
fail to notice that he placed his body between the threat and me.

“Reed!”  He barked when Ortiz moaned.  “Get the fuck off my bartender.”

Reyes pushed himself up, grimacing.  He glared at me.  “She almost broke my fucking
nose.  Give her to me, Carter.  The whore needs to learn her place.”

Reed was suddenly beside Derek, and their bodies formed a wall between Reyes and me. 
“I’ll teach
you
your place, motherfucker,” Reed ground out.  “Get out unless you want me to actually
break your nose.  And if you touch her again, I’ll break your fucking dick.”

Reyes paused, sizing Reed up.  He glanced over at Ortiz, who was moaning on the floor. 
His fists clenched with barely restrained violence, and he spat blood.

“I’ll send Charlotte your regards,” he hissed at Derek.

Derek’s face turned stony, almost cruel.  “You still don’t understand how this works,
Reyes.  Sharon is mine to punish.  She’ll get what she deserves.  Leave Charlotte
out of this.”

My breath caught in my throat.

What?

Reed tensed beside Derek, but he realized what was happening at the same time I did. 
Derek was saying what he had to to get the Kings to leave.  And to save Charlotte. 
Whoever she was.

“The bitch broke into the office, Carter.  She’s up to something.  You’d see that
if you could look past your dick.”

Derek twitched as though he wanted to turn to me, but he kept his focus on the threat. 
“I’ll question my sub, Reyes.  I can always tell when she’s lying.  She’s a stubborn
little thing.  Trust me, she won’t tell you anything.”  He took a step back so he
was standing beside me.  His hand found the nape of my neck and squeezed.  My shudder
wasn’t entirely faked.  “I can handle her.  Now leave so I can get on with it.”

Reyes’ red smile was condescending.  “You’re a perverted motherfucker, Carter.”  He
grabbed his crotch and leered at me.  “Let me know if you need any help.”

“I’ll be here if Derek needs assistance,” Reed said coolly, arrogance dripping from
his six foot four frame.

Fuck fuck fuck.

I hoped to hell this was truly the ploy I thought it was.  The idea of being interrogated
by Derek and Reed was almost as terrifying as being pinned between Reyes and Ortiz. 
I could resist the Kings’ torture, but Derek knew just how to break me.

I shook my head to clear it.  Of course Derek and Reed weren’t going to torture me. 
Well, Reed wasn’t going to.  Derek was another matter.

Reyes shot me one last evil grin before he went to help his bloodied friend to his
feet.  He half-dragged Ortiz out of the office.  Reed had fucked him up good.  I found
vindictive pleasure in that.

My pleasure drained out of me as soon as the Kings left the office.  Derek immediately
turned to Reed.

“You can go, too.”  He squeezed my neck again, making it clear that he intended for
me to stay.

Reed stiffened.  “I’m not going anywhere.  Not without Sharon.”

Derek tensed, his aggression resurfacing.  “You can leave this office now, or I can
have you banned from my club.  Sharon and I need to talk.”

Reed took a menacing step forward.  “And who’s going to throw me out?  Ortiz?”  He
scoffed at the man’s name.  He had shown Derek and the Kings just how much damage
he could do.  None of them would be able to make my partner leave without getting
the shit kicked out of them in the process.

I couldn’t allow Reed to antagonize Derek.  If they fought, we would never be allowed
back in Decadence.  The op would be finished, and we would be no closer to taking
down the Kings than we had been when we first started.  We could arrest Reyes and
Ortiz, but no way were they going to talk.  And Derek was protecting someone named
Charlotte.  It seemed he wouldn’t do anything against the Kings because it would put
her at risk.

One truth penetrated the tangled mess in my mind: Derek was being coerced.  I had
been right all along.  He didn’t want to work with the Kings.  They controlled him
through threatening Charlotte.

Any irrational jealousy I might have felt towards the woman was drowned by my relief
at his innocence.  I wasn’t going to let Reed ruin my chances at exonerating him.

“Leave us, Reed,” I said, my voice deadly calm.  “I can handle myself.”

My partner rounded on me.  “No fucking way.  You’re coming with me, Sharon.”

“No.  I’m not.  I need to talk to Derek.”

Reed glowered at me.  He knew what I wanted to do, and his expression told me that
he thought I was a reckless idiot.  The taut lines of his body let me know he was
barely containing himself from throwing me over his shoulder caveman-style and carrying
me out of Decadence.

“I’m staying, Reed.  Respect that.”

His nostrils flared with anger, but he read my meaning. 
Respect me.  I’m an FBI agent, not just a submissive.

“Fine,” he snapped.  “I’ll be in the bar.”  His dark stare was significant. 
I’ll be here if you need me.