Chapter 23

Laine

Iwake up content, which for me is unsettling.

Growing up, there was never time to lounge around. The neighborhood was a challenge to be navigated, as was life itself.

As a law student, I was driven to excel. It wasn't good enough to do well in my classes. I wanted to be at the top of my game.

And since marrying Marco and working my way up in the firm, I fought to never be seen as the trophy wife I sometimes felt they saw me as.

So, I would get up, work out, dress to impress and I would strut those four-inch Louboutin heels down the marble corridors of the courthouse and turn heads.

But lying here, I'm strangely content.

"Knock, knock. Are you decent?"

I sit up in bed, my heart tripping at the sound of Tag outside my door. "Come in."

The door opens, and he slides inside like the dreamy, dark shadow he is. He's devastatingly handsome in all black, his ebony business slacks and dress shirt highlighting how finely toned his body is beneath.

He catches me drooling and a wily grin spreads across his perfect face. "I hope I didn't disturb you?"

"Not at all. I was just laying here wondering when last I woke content to simply greet the day."

He closes the door behind him. "And what answer did you come up with?"

"Honestly, I couldn't remember a time when I ever felt so at peace. Weird, right? Given the mess that is my life on two continents, it's bizarre that I woke up rested and relaxed."

He strides over and climbs onto the other side of the bed. "Maybe the universe is telling you something." I don't miss the suggestive tone in his voice as he stretches out on the bed beside me. "Maybe for right now, you are exactly where you're meant to be."

I lay back down and roll onto my side to face him. "What's this? Tag Quinn is a romantic?"

He chuckles. "Not usually, no."

"Then why do you care? I was a bar fling that went sideways. No fault. No foul. You have enough going on in your life right now that it would be smart for you to send me off so you can focus on what you need to do."

I hear the words coming out of my mouth and while I believe them, the idea of walking away from this man makes something ache deep in my belly.

He raises his fingers and plays with a long strand of hair along my temple and cheek. "You are more than a bar fling gone sideways."

I wouldn't be if he'd let me walk away.

His finger trails along my cheek to my lips and when he brushes across the seam of my mouth, I open and give him a little nip. "I'm a stranger."

"Aye, perhaps, but you are also intelligent, beautiful, and forgive me for saying, but a bit of a work in progress. I like that about you."

I chuckle. "You like that my life is a shitshow at the moment? You have strange turn-ons."

He shifts his touch over the cotton sleeve on my shoulder. "Speaking of turn-ons. Why are you sleeping in my shirt?"

How do I answer that? It makes me feel safe… closer to you… a little naughty…

"It's very comfortable. You don't mind, do you?"

He makes a grunting sound low in his throat and pegs me with a heated look. "It might be caveman of me, but it feels a bit like being invited into your bed even when I wasn't."

I swallow. "We both know it wouldn't take much to change that, but I appreciate you giving me a little space to think."

He dips his chin. "I've never felt a pull like this, Laine. It's as excruciating as it is exquisite. I want to push. I want to strip you naked and learn the smell and taste of your skin, but I know once I do, I'll never be able to let you leave."

Fire licks the inside of my belly and warms my core. Would that be so bad? Flirting on the fringe of organized crime left me vulnerable, but if I were part of the power structure, men wouldn't break into my bedroom at night to shoo me out of my life.

They'd have Tag to contend with.

Something dark flashes in his eyes. "You like that idea."

"You're imagining things."

I move to roll out of the bed, but he lunges across the covers and pins me to the mattress. "No. I definitely did not imagine it. There's something about staying here with me that you are warming to. Tell me and I'll make it a reality."

With his weight pressing me into the mattress, there's no mistaking the hard length of his cock straining for me. "You don't know me, Tag, and there's a good chance if you did, the mystery would wane, and your interest would fade. Been there. Done that. Had the empty bed to remind me night after night that I'm just not all that."

His gaze darkens. "I'm going to kill the bastard."

A rush of self-consciousness hits and I squirm to get out from beneath him. He's too strong, so I get nowhere. "Forget it. Forget I said anything."

"I won't." He's angry, but I'm not sure exactly why he's so angry. When I stop fighting against his hold, he eases back and throws the comforter to the side. "The woman I've gotten to know over the past three days is confident and self-assured. She's powerful and knows what she wants."

In life, yes, but not behind closed doors. "I don't want to think about him. Not here. Not with you."

Tag holds my gaze for a long moment and then nods. "Don't give that asshole one more moment of power over your self-worth. He's a fool and not a real man at all."

Logically, I know that, but there's always that little part of me, that insecure girl that wonders what I could've done differently to hold his attention or to inspire his passions.

"Laine, look at me."

It takes me a moment to brace myself for the intensity of Tag's gaze but when I do, the anger is gone, replaced by heat and hunger.

"Even if the two of you ended up in different places in your marriage, him stepping out and making you feel less about yourself shows his weaknesses, not yours. Don't give any man the power to tear you down."

"I'm fine, Tag. Honestly."

He looks down the length of my body, my legs bare beyond the hem of his t-shirt I'm wearing. "Aye, you are more than fine. So, lay back while I take a moment to prove that to you."

Starting at my feet, he kneads between my toes and presses a kiss to the pad of my foot. "You've got the legs of a high-heeled warrior, your calves toned and built for strutting your stuff."

I moan and flop back onto the pillow as his massaging hands pay homage to my feet and legs.

"And look at these thighs. My god, they're beautiful. Not so skinny that I'd worry I'd break you like a twig, but sturdy enough that I can see us hiking the Cliffs of Moher and then me laying you down in a patch of heather to spread them to have my way with you."

He caresses my thighs—kissing them with a reverence that I'm not sure I've ever experienced, nipping the sensitive flesh as he makes his way up to the crux of my body.

"And this pussy. Mmm, you've got the prettiest pink folds and the loveliest scent. If my life were my own, I'd do nothing but keep you naked and on your back so I could spend my days feasting on you."

Goosebumps rise across my skin as a shiver races down the length of my spine.

Easing back, he shoves the fabric of his t-shirt up my ribs and over my head. My hair falls free from the collar and his gaze follows the mahogany tresses down to the peaked tips of my breasts.

"And look at those lovely ladies."

I suck in a breath as he bends to suckle on one of those nipples before moving across my sternum to the other.

By the time he's made it up to my neck, I'm practically panting. His breath is warm against the shell of my ear as he kisses and nips the tender flesh.

"There is nothing about your body that isn't stunning, luv. You are utter perfection. And if I need to take inventory of the highlights every day until ye believe me, I'm happy to do it."

I swallow, closing my eyes to stay fully in this moment. "I thought we were trying to keep it simple."

"I think we both know there's no chance of that. From the moment our eyes met across the pub, I've known where we were headed."

So have I.

It's crazy but everything about Tag Quinn draws me in. Logically, I know it's a terrible idea, but the moment he looks at me with those emerald eyes and touches me…I'm lost.

"Maybe we just need to get it out of our system."

He nips my earlobe, his hand dropping back down my body to grip the mound of my mons. "Aye, we can try that, but I have a feeling I'll just become more addicted."

Giving up any sense of resistance, I grip at the buttons of his black dress shirt. "You've had me bare to you twice now and both times you've been fully dressed. I want you naked, Mr. Quinn. Naked and fucking me like I've imagined since the first time we met."

Tag

If I were as smart as everyone credits me for being, I would finish Laine off and walk away with my sanity intact. Because I wasn't kidding when I said once I've had her, I will be addicted.

I'm almost beyond the point of return now.

Making quick work of my clothing, I strip down, grab the condoms from my pocket, and am back in bed with Laine, wondering where to start.

But then… she already told me.

"So, what have you imagined me doing to you, luv? Tell me and I'll make sure every one of your fantasies is fulfilled before we leave this bed."

She blinks up at me, her dark eyes filled with curiosity and hunger. "I want passion, not vanilla. I want you to steal my breath and possess me. I want a little dark…a little rough."

And that's why I love spending time with her.

Because despite the sleek package she appears to be, she surprises me every time.

And her wish list? It won't be a problem.

If she wants off the rails and a little taboo, I'm exactly the right man for her.

"I hope you aren't too hungry for breakfast because I'm a man who takes a challenge seriously." I lift my hand and let the string of foil packages tumble toward her bare belly. "You aren't the only one who has been imagining things. I've been dreaming of covering your body in my cum for days."

A feminine moan escapes on an intake of breath and then she's grabbing my shoulders and pulling me in closer.

Fine by me.

The kiss is savage and, per her request, I don't hold back. There are no gentlemanly butterfly kisses or playful nibbles. I let the beast in me loose to devour her.

Battling tongues and probing hands have us warring for domination and for once, I don't care about being the victor. If she wants to lose herself in lust and claim me, I am all for it.

"That's it. Don't think. Take whatever you want from me. Be greedy. What do you want?"

Her teeth graze my lips, her nails score my flesh. What a fool her husband has been to leave this wildcat wanting. His loss is most certainly my gain.

Pressing my shoulders, she follows by rolling me onto my back while she straddles my hips. "I want to ride you."

Grand. If she wants to take from me and use me as a tool for her pleasure, I'm more than willing.

I scramble in the sheets for the row of condoms and make quick work of tearing the foil packet, freeing the rubber ring, and rolling it into place.

Propping my cock up, I give her a saucy smile. "Yours for the taking."

The anticipation that lights off in her eyes is incredible. Lifting her hips, she bites her bottom lip as she poises her entrance over my cock.

I reach between her thighs to ensure she's wet enough to take me, and groan. "Oh, luv. You're drenched for me."

"Now to put it to good use."

I expect her to take me inside her inch by inch, but once again, she surprises me. With her palms braced against my shoulders, she wriggles her hips a little and then impales herself on me.

"Oh, fuck." I arch my back as she cries out, the fit tight and glorious. Her pussy clenches with the sudden bombardment and I take a steadying breath to ensure I have control.

Pressure builds deep in my balls as heat runs down the length of my spine. It's everything I dreamt it would be—and more.

Still, I need to breathe through it. There's no way I'm going off early after waiting for days for this.

Always surprising me, this one.

"You feel so good," she moans, her head dropping back as she lifts her hips and rides my cock. "Everything in me is clenching you, throbbing around you…"

Aye, I'm fucking aware. Her insides are milking me with a greed that has me on the edge and we're just getting started.

Running my hands up her thighs, I slide my thumb between her legs and find her clit. I won't be the chump who loses his load before his girl falls apart. She needs to realize what a fucking queen she is, and I intend to show her over and over again.

When the fleshy pad of my thumb brushes over her nerve endings, her breath catches, and she loses her rhythm for a moment.

Sweet mercy she's soaking wet.

The soft sounds of flesh on flesh as she rides my cock brings the burning of pressure deep in my balls. She's stunning. With her skin flushed and her breath coming in panting bursts, she's the most fuckable creature I've ever had the pleasure of watching.

And then?—

"Here. Squeeze here." She lifts my free hand to her throat, her gaze filled with both nerves and hope. "I've always wanted to try this."

"How tight?" I ask.

The relief in her is obvious. Did she really think I'd turn her down? If she wants a bit of wild, I'm the man to give it to her.

"I don't know."

"All right. Tap my arm if it's too much. Otherwise, I'll let you lead the way."

I give her a few minutes to sink back into riding my cock with my thumb coaxing her orgasm forward and a light hold on her throat.

When she's good and worked up, I tighten my grip, reading her expression for any signs of panic. Only, there isn't any.

This woman isn't afraid of anything.

"Trust me, beautiful. I've got you."

And I have.

If she wants to be choked or spanked or anything else she's curious about, I'm the man for the job.

I've got her.

"That's my good girl. You're doing so well."

She makes a sound that's a mix between a moan and a purr and I smile inside. All this and a praise kink too. I've won the fucking lottery.

"Come for me now, beautiful. Come hard so that I can fuck you like we've both been dreaming about." Increasing the pressure of my hold and my thumb, I flex my hips and push deeper inside her.

"Oh, Tag!" Her pussy clenches and she comes apart, milking my cock and slicking my hand at her core. Body shuddering, I give her a few ragged breaths for her to ride out her release and then I grip her and swing her down to the bed. "And now to the fucking."

Reaching to the end of the bed, I grab my belt and then sling it around one of the four posts of the bed frame. Giving Laine both ends of the fine leather, I waggle my brows. "Wrap your hands above your head and hold on tight."

Now that I know she likes to be a bit deviant, I have so many ideas of things we can do, but for this morning, I wasn't prepared.

Still, as I lift her legs and stare at her release glistening at her entrance, there's nothing I would change about this moment.

"Now, my good girl, I'm going to show you what it is to be properly fucked."