Читать книгу The Dare Collection January 2020 - Lauren Hawkeye, A.C. Arthur - Страница 19

‘ANY SECURITY ISSUES from last night? Clarence mentioned something about a waitress.’ Everett sounded impatient. ‘Quickly. I gotta flight to catch.’

I was standing on the terrace, scowling at the detritus from last night’s party: empty glasses and plates strewn everywhere, a glittery high heel on top of the pool diving board, someone’s boxers shoved under one of the outdoor couches and various other clothes lying discarded on the tiles. There seemed to be a spray of glitter with a balloon lying in the middle of it near the pool. Fuck, if any had got in the water, there’d be hell to pay.

‘I dealt with it.’ I gripped my phone and turned around, staring at the view of Kowloon stretched out before me instead, the scents of rain and pollution, flowers and garbage hanging in the sticky, humid air. ‘And if you have a flight to catch, why the hell are you calling me?’

‘Because it’s important,’ Everett growled. ‘In fact, you of all people should know how important it is.’

Yeah, I did. Coming from the backgrounds we did—none of us had had easy childhoods—security was always going to be vital and any breach had to be taken seriously. So, why I was getting pissed off with him, I had no idea.

Black and White had its share of enemies—the bigger we got, the more we had—and anything that put either our business or our staff at risk needed to be dealt with and fast. Especially with the launch of the new non-profit coming up.

We all wanted this to be a success and even minor issues, such as a thief who’d managed to get herself where she didn’t belong, needed to be contained.

Thea.

She’d given her name to me so unexpectedly, like a gift, and that was how I was treating it. Because a woman like her, all guarded and watchful, wouldn’t simply give a piece of herself up to just anyone. Yet she’d given it to me. I didn’t know whether that meant anything or not—I certainly didn’t want it to mean anything—but, whatever, it certainly fucking changed things.

Last night, I’d been intending to tell Everett all about her but now some protective and territorial instinct had me not liking that idea one bit.

She was mine to deal with, and if either of those two bastards found out she’d breached Everett’s security, especially considering the launch, they would not be happy. They might want to contact the authorities and that would not be happening.

If anyone wanted to question Thea about how she’d got in and what she was doing, I would be the one to ask her, not the cops. And certainly not my fucking friends.

Since when have you got territorial about a woman before?

Pretty much never. I didn’t get territorial about people because getting territorial implied that they mattered and I didn’t want anyone mattering to me.

I already had my little sister, Morgan, to worry about and I didn’t need anyone else. She worked for Black and White, managing our PR, but I’d made sure she based herself in London rather than anywhere near me.

It was just easier that way. For both of us.

And anyway she worked with Ulysses, whom I trusted like I’d trust family, and he was there to look out for her.

Ulysses and Everett might not be my blood, but they were my brothers just the same.

‘Yeah, I know how important it is.’ I forced down my irritation and tried to keep it casual. ‘But, like I said, I dealt with the issue. Would you like me to repeat it again in American so you can understand?’

Everett ignored that. ‘You disappeared for a long time last night.’

‘Because I was busy fucking an extremely beautiful woman. If you want the details, I’m more than happy to supply them. Hell, I’ve even got the video if you want to check up on me.’ Not that I’d ever send him a video even if I had one—too easy for that shit to fall into the wrong hands.

‘Someone mentioned an issue with one of the catering staff,’ he went on, as if I hadn’t spoken, being the usual Everett bulldozer that he so often was. ‘A last minute replacement.’

Christ, the guy could be relentless. He was ex-military, systems-oriented and detail-obsessed, which made his security expertise legendary. It also made him a pain in the arse to deal with. I honestly didn’t know how Freya, his best friend other than Ulysses and me, managed to deal with him without wanting to punch him in the face.

Maybe she did want to punch him in the face. I certainly wanted to on a regular basis. But it wouldn’t do to get irritated with him. He’d just want to know what the problem was and that might lead to other questions I didn’t want him to ask.

‘And I checked out all the staff,’ I said easily. ‘You know how anal I am about making sure only people who are actually cleared to be there are there.’

Everett grunted again. ‘There were—’

‘Yeah, Ev... I don’t care what there fucking were.’ I tried to keep the growl out of my voice. ‘Everything was roses as far as I’m concerned. Now, I have a very naked woman in my bed who I’m very keen to get back to, so if you don’t have any other bullshit to talk to me about, why don’t you go get on that goddamn flight of yours?’

There was a long silence.

‘Fine,’ Everett said expressionlessly. ‘But if I hear anything different I’ll be calling you back.’

I opened my mouth to tell him what he could do with his damned call, but he disconnected before I could get a word out.

Shit, this was a problem. If Everett had had reports of a security breach, he wouldn’t stop sniffing round until he’d discovered the truth. Which meant I needed to deal with Thea, and fast, starting with getting some answers out of her.

And then what?

That would all depend on what answers she gave me. Still, I wasn’t going to lie to myself and pretend that all I was concerned about was security. No, last night I’d had enough of a taste of her to know that I wanted more. Our chemistry was through the roof and I wasn’t letting that go in a hurry.

Jamming my phone in the back pocket of my jeans—the first item of clothing that had come to hand when I’d got up to answer Ev’s call—I turned around and stalked back into the apartment, heading for my bedroom.

Getting answers out of Thea might be a problem, given she hadn’t been keen on giving them to me the night before; then again, one thing I’d discovered about her was that she was passionate. She’d been into everything I’d done to her and everything I’d showed her how to do to me. Fuck, she’d been incredible. The way she’d looked at me, the way she’d touched me, as if all of this had been new and exciting to her...

She’d been a virgin, if I wasn’t much mistaken.

I was normally pretty good at judging when a woman was experienced or not, but I had been too busy getting hot for her last night to notice. In fact, it had only been after she’d snuggled down into my arms after our fourth round and fallen fast asleep that I’d had a chance to think about it and her behaviour. To go over in my head the moment I’d first pushed inside her and to see that what had flickered through her eyes had been uncertainty. And a bit of fear.

My memory was good for some things; I’d give it that.

But that was another thing I’d have to ask her about, because she really should have told me. Especially when I’d given her every opportunity.

Feeling not a little pissed about it, I got to the bedroom and pushed the door open, expecting to see her where I’d left her, all curled up in my bed and wrapped in the white high-thread-count cotton sheets I preferred.

Except the bed was empty.

Okay. Where the hell had she gone?

Acting on a hunch, I turned and went back down the hall, heading to my office. And sure enough, when I pushed open the unlocked door, there she was, standing in front of a painting I had on the wall, her hand already on the frame.

Looking for my safe and the Red Queen, clearly.

She must have heard the door open because she whirled around as soon I came in, her dark eyes clashing with mine. She wore nothing but the shirt I’d had on the night before, the black cotton making her eyes look even darker and highlighting the flawless, deep ivory of her skin.

Christ, the more time I spent with her, the more beautiful she became. Especially wearing my shirt and nothing else.

A possessive streak I didn’t realise I had woke up and suddenly I wanted the shirt gone and her naked so I could see again all those luscious curves she’d showed me the night before. Rounded hips and thighs, full tits, small waist. Classic hourglass; fucking perfection.

I could drape her in the black-pearl jewellery I’d bought from a destitute British aristocrat, ropes of baroque pearls, rich and glossy and unique, lying against her glowing skin.

Yeah, black pearls. She’d look gorgeous in black pearls.

Leaning against the doorframe, I folded my arms. ‘Am I interrupting anything?’

Her expression was instantly guarded, but her chin lifted in unconscious challenge. She dropped her hand from the frame. ‘No. I was just having a look around.’

Little liar.

‘Sure you were.’ I grinned. ‘If you want the safe, it’s behind that picture and, yes, the necklace is inside.’

‘I wasn’t—’

‘Yeah, we went through that last night.’ Pushing myself away from the doorframe, I strolled calmly over to where she stood and pulled the picture away from the wall to reveal the safe. The lock was biometric so I put my thumb on the pad and the lock flashed green as it disengaged. I pulled open the door and reached inside for the sleek black jewellery case that held the necklace.

She watched me, her expression opaque, but I could tell by the way she blinked that she was surprised. That was a mannerism I remembered from last night, just as I remembered everything about last night—from the way she’d moaned when I’d licked her, to the sob of release when I’d made her come all over my cock.

The way I was going to make her come again. Maybe soon. And all I could think about was how that guarded gaze of hers had splintered under my touch like a cheap paste jewel, revealing heat and passion hot as lava. She was like my safe. Only the right touch could open her up.

I held out the box to her. ‘This what you’re looking for?’

She blinked again, rapidly, glancing at the box then back at me, but made no move to take it. So I flicked it open so she could see the intricate loops and coils of diamonds that formed the neck piece and the rubies that fell from it like red rain on silver chains. The Red Queen, finally.

Her eyes widened as she glanced at it, then back at me.

‘Beautiful, isn’t it?’ I took the necklace out, discarding the box onto the floor, and held it up, the weight heavy in my hands. ‘It was made for a queen, which is what gave it its name.’ The light caught the rubies, sending them burning, glittering in the fascinating way jewels did, but she didn’t stare at it.

She looked at me instead. Which told me something else about her: it wasn’t jewels per se that she was interested in, not the way some people were. I’d seen enough of that to recognise the glint some people got in their eyes when confronted with a piece they wanted. Greedy. Possessive.

No, my little thief wasn’t looking at the jewel like that at all.

That greedy, possessive glint in her eyes right now was all for me.

Something hot clenched tight in my chest.

I always gave a lover diamonds as a goodbye gift and I’d never had any complaints. In fact, once the diamonds were in their hands, they never looked at me again, which I was completely happy with. I didn’t want anyone getting close. I was in it for a good time, not a long time.

But apparently not Thea. I had the Red Queen glittering in my hand, all brilliant rubies and diamonds, and she was ignoring it as if it didn’t even exist.

She was greedy for me, not the necklace.

Fuck, it turned me on. And it shouldn’t, because I didn’t actually want a woman to be greedy for me. But that didn’t change the fact that the way she looked at me just about stole my fucking breath.

And it told me something else too: she wasn’t here to get the necklace for herself.

‘You’re supposed to be looking at the necklace, Sugar,’ I said gently. ‘Not at me.’

Colour rose in her cheeks. ‘But I—’

‘The Red Queen isn’t for you, is it? It’s for someone else.’ I took a step towards her, then another, stalking slowly closer. ‘Is that what you do? Steal to order?’

She didn’t move, didn’t back away, just watched me advance, her chin lifted. And she didn’t look at the necklace in my hands either; her gaze stayed glued to mine. ‘You seem to know everything already. Do I even need to answer?’

‘I do know everything, it’s true.’ I circled round behind her. ‘I even know that last night you were a virgin and you didn’t tell me.’

She was silent.

‘In fact, there are a lot of things you haven’t told me, Thea.’ I could hear her breathing getting faster and, when I leaned forward to brush my mouth over the delicate shell of her ear, the sweet, musky scent of her arousal caught me, making my already hard cock twitch in response. ‘Any particular reason for that?’

‘No,’ she whispered.

‘Well, you can’t just break into my apartment to steal something of mine then seduce me into bed without telling me vital things about yourself that I might have liked to know in order to enhance your experience.’ I lifted the Red Queen over her head and draped it around her slender neck. ‘Not if you don’t want consequences.’

She went still as the jewels settled on her skin. ‘What...are you doing?’

I fastened the catch, letting my fingers graze against her nape. ‘You wanted the Red Queen. So here it is.’

‘But I—’

‘But you what?’ I brushed my mouth over the sensitive spot just beneath her ear, inhaling her scent. ‘This is what you’re here for, isn’t it?’

She shivered. ‘You said something about consequences.’

‘So I did.’ I reached around to the buttons on the front of her shirt and began to undo them as I kissed my way down the side of her neck, because there was only one way this particular scene was going to play out. ‘You answer every single one of my questions, or...’

‘Or...?’ Her breath hitched as I pulled apart the cotton.

‘Or you don’t get to come.’