24. Hunter

TWENTY-FOUR

HUNTER

I 'm irritable.

That's the only way to describe the persistent annoyance I feel behind my eyebrows as I look up at the radiant face of the woman currently giving me indigestion.

"Winter, I love you, but there is absolutely a less than zero percent chance that you are coming with me."

We're in my office, where I'm seated behind my desk, and Leo stares at the two of us with his hand over his mouth. Probably to control his laughter.

"There is so much wrong with this situation. Like why I had to hear from August that you're planning on leaving the country for some undetermined amount of time."

I sigh, loosening my tie. Leo and I had meetings today on Capitol Hill with a few senators and the appropriations committee chair. The meetings were long, tedious, and draining—and a waste of time. We went in with hopes that we could circumvent the FDA somehow. Of course, that's virtually impossible, but we wanted to try.

Managing BwP, hunting down my father, and now doing Misha's bidding has me feeling all kinds of things.

Control. Get yourself in control .

"I was going to tell you tonight, Sunbeam," I murmur, standing to hug her. She vibrates with anger, but there are also tears welling up in her eyes.

"Right before you boarded your plane?" Her nose turns rosy, and I hate to see her so upset. "If I can't go, then I don't want you to go," she says with a squeak.

"Baby," I say softly, cradling her cheek.

"And on that note," Leo breaks in, and we both look at him as he stands up from his chair on the other side of my desk. "I'll leave the two of you to hash this out. H, I'll see you on the tarmac tonight."

He gives us a two-fingered salute and leaves the office, closing the door behind him.

"Wait, so Leo gets to go?" Her gaze is flinty, staring me dead in the eye.

I sigh. "Come here," I say, pulling both of us down into my office chair.

She sits stiffly on my thigh.

"Relax, baby."

She sniffs, crossing her arms over her chest. "No," she says haughtily. She looks away from me, and I slide my forearm behind her knees to scoop her up, forcing her to rock back so that I cradle her.

"H, stop!" Her arms circle my neck.

"I've got you, Winter." Always.

She relaxes a little.

"That's better," I say. She lets out a cute, frustrated snort.

"I didn't tell you sooner because the plans weren't finalized until today—just a few hours ago, actually. I told August first so he has time to adjust to the development. Me leaving tonight will be a lot for him to process, so I wanted to be here in case he struggled with it."

She sticks her bottom lip out in a pout, and when she stands up, I let her go.

She tries to walk backward from me and the desk, but I turn her so she's sitting on the mahogany surface, and I'm positioned between her legs.

"Where are you going? Why are you going? How long will you be there? Is it dangerous?" She asks all this with her arms crossed, but her legs open wider and wider as I scoot closer.

"I'm going because it's something for Misha. I plan on being gone a few days, tops. As for if it's dangerous," I skate my hands up the flesh of her thighs, the split in her long skirt making the job easy. "I'm a dangerous man. I can handle myself."

"I don't—I don't like it, H," she says with defeat. After a moment of heavy silence, she pushes me back from her body with her bare foot to my chest and crosses her legs.

I lean back in my desk chair. "Winter, to steal your phrase, ‘be forreal.' Do you think I'd ever intentionally put you in a dangerous situation?" I arch my eyebrow at her.

"I could stay on the plane? Or in a hotel?" She rolls her lips inward, and a tear falls down her right cheek.

"Baby, this isn't a regular business trip." I stand up, putting my hand on her cheek again and forcing her to look at me.

"What's really going on?"

She clamps her lips tighter before saying, "I'm scared!"

"Scared of what?"

"We haven't been apart since I came back." She covers her mouth with her hand and looks away.

Ah.

I kiss her forehead, giving her a moment to cry before I pull back, looking at her directly.

"Winter," I say in as clear and calm a tone as I can muster.

She meets my gaze.

"Rio and a team of thirty other guards will be here with you at any point in time. You will be safe here while I'm gone." I hold her gaze, willing her to accept my words .

Her shoulders relax and she leans forward, putting her head on my chest. "I'll miss you too much," she mutters into my shirt. I rub her back.

"Is there such a thing as too much?"

"Yes, there is. Because I already feel like I'm suffocating, and you haven't even left yet." She inhales sharply and tries to exhale, but it's a stuttering breath.

"I love you too, Sunbeam."

She wraps her arms around me tight. We stay like that as the minutes tick on. Eventually, I say, "I'm going to miss you like hell too."

She kisses my chest and then hops down from the desk with a long sigh. "I'll let you get packed then," she says, sauntering toward the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" I ask, dropping my voice low.

She looks back over her shoulder. "I'm going to lick my wounds in the rose garden," she says.

"Hmmm, well, I want to lick you," I growl. She turns all the way around at that. Her nipples are hard points against the thin, silky camisole she's paired with the calf-length color-block skirt. Even though her arousal is apparent, she lifts her chin, crosses her arms, and says, "No, thanks."

A slow smile forms on my lips. "Come here. Now." I infuse my voice with danger and warning as I place my palms flat on the desktop.

She pretends to think about it for a moment. "Hmmm, no, I don't think so."

"You wanna play, baby?"

A flush appears on her cheeks, and a slight shiver causes her shoulders to flex.

She takes one step back and then another. "Catch me and see."

And with that, she whirls around, sprinting out the door.

I smile outright now, hungry for a taste of her. Removing my tie and unbuttoning the first few buttons of my shirt, I roll up the sleeves of my button-down. Then I remove the dress shoes and slippery socks. The better to catch her with.

Having given her a thirty-second head start, I calmly leave the office and turn toward her escape.

The thrill of hunting her does something to me, turning my arousal into a sharp point at the base of my spine. It's heady, intoxicating.

When I find her, I'm going to fuck her so hard she'll need the days I'm gone just to recover.

I check our bedroom, taking a moment to go through our drawers. I check the sitting room and kitchen. She's not in the pantry. I finally check the game room. It's close to dusk, and August barely acknowledges my presence before I close the door again.

Hmm, baby really wants to play.

I move through the house and back outside to the rose garden. I walk to the pavilion and look from that perspective since it's at the garden's highest point. She's not out here.

Where are you, sweet girl?

Across the path, the window coverings flutter in the never-used solarium. It's on the west side of the house, and our living quarters are on the east side.

Gotcha, baby.

I take my time walking over to the room, choosing the outdoor entrance rather than looping back through the house.

I step into the sunroom. It's dark—nearly pitch black, with the drapery drawn along all three glass walls. The staff keeps this space clean, but there's not much in here besides the furniture and a few tall plants.

Closing the door behind me, I step into the room on silent feet. I inhale as deep as my lungs will allow to catch Winter's rose scent. Running my hand along the curtain nearest the door, I keep my arm extended, touching the material as I walk the length of the room .

When I reach the far corner where the glass wall meets the house, I pull back the curtain and find Winter grinning like the Cheshire cat. A shaft of light from the now-present moon illuminates the room.

"Found you," I say. My voice is deep and husky, thickened with lust. I bring her close to me, crashing my lips down on hers.

She groans against my mouth, attacking me with as much ferocity as I'm attacking her. I push her against the wall, pulling her leg up to my waist.

"I'm so mad at you, H," she growls. Her hands run through my hair, tugging hard on the strands.

The movement causes my cock to jump.

"Be mad then. You're still not going."

She snarls, and I slap her ass cheek.

"Be good," I say against her mouth.

"I can't," she whimpers.

I push her skirt up so that it bunches around her waist, and I slide my hand down to her pussy. My knees damn near buckle when I feel how drenched she is.

"It's okay, baby. It's gonna be torture for me too," I say, and I slide a finger into her, taking time to feel her.

She mewls, her back curving as she tilts her pelvis closer to me.

"Let me make it better," I whisper against her mouth, and she nods slowly.

I drop to my knees. She's the only person I will kneel for. Only for her. Only for Winter.

I waste no time putting my lips on her hot, wet cunt, eating at her so wildly that her essence is all over my chin. She rocks against my mouth, pulling at my hair as she rides my tongue. I push two fingers into her, reveling in her guttural moan when I add a third.

If I were on death row, I'd only want her as my last meal .

She pants, her moans rising in volume and pitch until she trembles around me, coming hard, my name on her lips.

"Good girl," I say. She groans, biting her lip.

I don't let her come down before I spin her, leaning her back on the low L-shaped sofa.

"Give me another one," I say, kneeling in front of her. I undo my pants in a second and push her legs wide.

"H, I can't," she says on a moan.

"I disagree," I reply. Then I slowly lick at her, pointing my tongue from her pulsing hole up to her clit. She moans low and long, her head rocking back and forth.

"H—"

"Relax into it," I say, taking my time. I fist the base of my cock to make this last longer.

It takes a few minutes for her to get ramped up again, but I relish taking my time. Just when she starts climbing toward her second orgasm, I pull away, pinching her clit between two fingers.

She shouts, her back coming off the sofa before slamming back down.

"Flip," I command. She whimpers but then turns over to her stomach.

My good girl. My love.

I pull both of her legs up, butterflying them so that she's spread wide. Then I tease her lips and clit, sliding the head of my cock against her core.

"H, please. Fuck me, please ," she pants out.

"Patience, love," I say.

"Ugh," she says, collapsing her chest and head down on the sofa cushions.

Slowly, torturing the fuck out of myself, I push into her. The slow in and out—stroking until I'm balls-deep and pulling back until I'm almost out of her—nearly drives me insane .

She clutches the cushions, trying to push back harder and faster against me.

She can't with the position of her legs.

Right when she's ramping up again, rocking and rubbing against the cushions to get more pressure on her clit, I pull out all the way.

"Hunter, mother fucker !" she yells, and I laugh. "I should leave you with blue balls for your whole trip," she grinds out.

"Baby, patience," I say, amused. "I promise, you're gonna come. You're gonna come so hard. Relax." I rub my hand over her lower back, massaging the tension there.

She slowly relaxes, melting into my touch.

I pull out the gift I snagged during my search from my pocket. When she hears the click of the bottle opening, she looks over her shoulder.

"What is that?" she asks.

"Grapeseed oil," I say, and I bite my lip to keep from moaning as I stroke it over my cock.

"Uh, H," she says. "And why do you need grapeseed oil?" She bites her lip, but damn if she doesn't rock against the sofa more.

We've played a lot over the last several weeks, and she loves the butt plug I got her before we went to Misha's. I lean over her back, kissing her shoulder.

"Because I'm going to fill you all the way up."

She shivers.

"Flip back over, baby," I say, stroking my cock. When she's on her back, heels pressed to the edge of the sofa, I take a healthy glug of grapeseed oil and drizzle it over her clit. It's gonna be a mess, but I don't give a fuck about what the housekeepers will see. I'll give them a nice out-of-cycle bonus for the trouble.

I pull the other gift out of my pocket: the small but powerful finger vibe. I put it on my index finger and press it to her clit. She arches, her thighs flexing against the onslaught.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck !" She groans, and I pull away again, placing hot, sucking kisses on her inner thighs. She hisses in a breath.

After she calms down, I bring the toy back to her clit, first adding more oil to her. I circle her button, massaging the oil into her and getting her back to the edge. When I see her pussy pulse, I pull my hand away. She roars with frustration.

"Ba- by , please let me come," she begs. She has tears in her eyes.

I smile at her. "You're doing so good, baby." I bend over, kissing her stomach, sucking reverently on the skin beneath her belly button.

Lubing my index finger with liberal glugs of oil, I bring it to her back passage, pressing in slowly so that she squeezes my finger up to the first knuckle.

"Oh, God, H," she says, shivering from head to toe.

"Do you think you can take more, baby?"

She nods, the quick action causing her curly hair to tremble.

I add more lube, adding another finger into her tight asshole. She lets out a keening sound when I press them in and out, stretching her and preparing her for my cock.

"Is it good, Sunbeam?" My voice is a rasp, my lust and desire for this woman unmatched by any experience I've had with any other woman.

It's only like this because it's Winter.

Only Winter.

"It's so good, H," she cries out. Tears track down her temples and into her hair.

I rub my thumb over one of them, bringing the salty drop to my tongue.

"Will you let me in your ass, Winter?" I whisper to her, adding more oil to my fingers and drenching her rosebud .

"Uunf," she says, nodding.

"When I say to, rub your clit," I say in a voice as hard as my cock.

She nods again frantically.

With even more lube on my dick, I remove my fingers and slowly, torturously press into her. And fuck, if it isn't the tightest, hottest clamp around the head of my dick.

I tilt my head back. I feel dizzy. I feel lost and found at the same damn time.

"Oh, holy fuck," she mutters incoherently.

"Stop or go, baby?" I pause, only an inch or so inside her ass.

"Go! Go, go, go, please , oh, my god," she moans. Her fingers flex, and I know she wants to rub herself to get off.

I push into her more, testing sliding back out. I add more lube where we're joined, and soon, I'm rocking all the way in and out of her.

"This is— fuck !" she says, putting her hands to her eyes. Her tits bounce in the camisole, and I rip it, pulling her breasts free from their restriction.

She yelps, palming her breasts, and she nearly screams when she squeezes her nipples.

I'm not going to last much longer. Using my other lubricated hand, I push two fingers into her pussy, then another. When she flutters around me and screams my name, I yell, "Rub your clit now—hard, fast."

Her hand flies to the top of her mound, and she rubs at it frantically, her voice one long, raspy scream.

"Come, baby," I demand, and she does. Her upper body bends off the sofa, her eyes crossed.

Everything, her pussy, her ass, contracts as her orgasm slams into her. I hold her wrist when she tries to stop, slapping the tiny vibrating toy into her hand.

"Keep rubbing your fucking clit, Winter," I growl, pounding into her and pressing up against her g-spot with my fingers. She does what I command. When I feel her draw tight again, getting closer, I yell out, "Baby, I love you." It's a shout; it's a forceful declaration.

"H!" she screams with just as much energy, and then she comes again, her cum soaking both of us and the fabric of the couch. She's crying with the intensity of her orgasm. I come deep inside her ass, blowing the hardest I might ever have in my life.

She keeps massaging her clit with my hand clamped around her wrist, the toy still buzzing against her. When I let it go, replacing her hand with my own, I gentle my movements. She jerks with each pass, and her whole body seems over-sensitized.

I take my time pulling out of her, and she whimpers a little bit when I'm completely removed. I kiss her stomach again, resting my head on her softness. She puts one hand in my hair, running her fingers through it for three passes before her hand falls to her side.

I look up, and she's completely asleep. Passed out.

With one more kiss to her stomach, I move her body to rest fully on the couch, and I grab the clean blanket from the linen closet across the room.

After draping it over her and stepping inside the house to use the half-bath near the solarium, I return to Winter.

I look at her as she sleeps, taking in her features. She's peaceful here, her body relaxed and trusting that she's safe.

This deal with Misha is lopsided, and I'm annoyed that I have to be away from her. But at least I have something to look forward to when I do come home.

I kiss her shoulder after I curl up behind her. Then I set the alarm on my watch for an hour and hold my girl in my arms.