Knights of the Boardroom (22 page)

Who am I kidding, my brain was floating in so many happy endorphins I couldn’t make a good decision to save my own life.
She felt Brodie’s chuckle rumble through his chest as he pressed against her back, “Pet, you never need to concern yourself with safety when you’re in our care—that’s our job. You only have one responsibility right now—submission is all about letting go and enjoying the ride.” Brodie followed up his words by biting down on the tender spot where her shoulder curved into her neck, the claiming gesture wasn’t lost on her.

“It’s a freefall into pleasure, baby. Let go, we’ll catch you.” Lawton’s words further distracted her just enough that the sharp pinch of the second clamp was muted for several seconds. Her next breath was followed by a screaming orgasm that slammed into her with such force her knees buckled, if Brodie hadn’t banded his arm around her waist earlier, she’d have crumbled to the floor in a sated heap.

“You drenched my fingers, pet—I can’t tell you how much that turns me on. And feeling your vaginal muscles lock down on my fingers before pulling me deeper as you came apart for us was one of the hottest scenes the club’s ever seen in the main lounge.” From everything she’d read, Cressi knew most scenes in a club’s main lounge area were arranged well in advance and advertised to members to drum up interest. Having that background information made her appreciate how far the two of them had stretched the club’s usual protocol in order to make her first scene appear so totally spontaneous she hadn’t had time to worry herself into a frenzy.

By the time her brain was fully back online, she realized people were starting to move away, but many were nodding their approval and offering words of thanks for such an inspiring scene. It struck her as funny to be thanked for having a public orgasm that had her practically screaming the walls down, but at the moment she was still too boneless and replete to muster up enough energy to even snicker about it. She also wasn’t able to offer up any resistance when Lawton scooped her up into his arms and walked confidently toward the bar.

*****

Tristan had been watching the scene between two of his best friends and Cressida from the window in his office when Dozer paged him for help. More than a little curious as to why a man Dozer’s size would need his help, Tristan made his way down the hall toward the lobby. Damn, he hated being called away just as his friends were starting to steam up the one-way glass he often used to monitor what was happening in the club’s main room. It didn’t matter that he had an entire bank of monitors behind a hidden panel near his desk—sometimes there was no substitute for seeing things with your own eyes. Walking swiftly down the hallway, he heard the agitated voice of a woman coming from the reception area, “I’m telling you I will take this place apart if you don’t let me in to find her. You may be bigger than I am, but I’m dead-ass tired and worried sick—not a pretty combination. And besides, I’ve started taking Krav Maga classes and I’ll bet I could…well, I could give you a hell of a bruise at least.” The woman was clearly running out of steam fast and Tristan had to cough in order to cover his snort of laughter at the look on Dozer’s face. The man standing behind the front desk had retired from the NFL after blowing out his knee—twice, he stood six and a half feet tall with shoulders so broad he often had to turn to the side to walk through doorways. He was also the only staff member allowed to use a nickname—truthfully Tristan knew he’d never be able to call the man
Terry
with a straight face.

Tristan stepped just inside the room that doubled as a reception area and lobby, watching in fascination as she read the man looming over her the riot act. Tristan would have recognized the woman even if he hadn’t seen her photograph hundreds of times over the past couple of years simply because—except for the difference in their heights, Carli and Cressida Walker were practically mirror images of one another. There were subtle differences, but the most noticeable was the contrast between Cressida’s calm, in-control persona as opposed to Carli’s almost frantic energy.

For a split second he wondered how on earth she ever stayed still enough to have her photograph taken, but thinking back on the pictures he’d seen, Tristan wasn’t sure he’d ever seen one where she had seemed posed. All the shots that came to mind reminded him of a candid moment where a lucky bloke with a camera got a lucky snap of a woman as she breezed past him. For several seconds he just stood rooted in place watching her nervously biting her bottom lip, he could practically hear her mind spinning as she tried to figure a way to get to her sister. Catching Dozer's eye he nodded to the door silently speaking Parker’s name, the man nodded and looked all too relieved to exit through the double doors as Tristan stepped forward.

“Carli, I’m—”

“I know who you are, Mr. Harris. I’d know all of the Knights from my sister’s descriptions alone, but believe me, I’ve done my homework. I don’t leave anything to chance when it comes to my little sister. She is the reason I am here. I want to see her. Now, if you don’t mind. What are we waiting for?” She’d spoken so quickly it had taken his brain a minute to separate the words from one another and process everything she’d rattled off.

Knowing she was in such a hurry only served to slow down his response—the Dominant part of his personality was straining to gain control of all Carli Walker’s restless energy, and the man buried beneath the Dom was drawn to her like a magnet to steel. From the moment he’d seen her standing in the lobby he’d felt the pull and wondered why Parker hadn’t mentioned it since they were almost without fail always attracted to the same women. He studied her for several seconds, registering the way her breathing hitched as it sped up, her nipples tightened under his scrutiny—pressing out against the navy silk shell she wore over her khaki capris. The sweet pink coloring her toenails peaked out making her flat strappy sandals look dressier than they were intended to be.

Wrapping his hand around her wrist, Tristan drew lazy circles over the inside of her wrist, smiling when her pulse rate accelerated and her eyes dilated—
Perfect
. For several seconds, Carli stood completely still—something he doubted happened with any regularity. He looked look forward to helping her still the restlessness that kept her from truly feeling content—keeping her sexually sated would go a long way to calming the turbulence he saw in her brilliant green eyes. “Come.” He didn’t give her a chance to argue, nor did he release the hold he had on her—the flair he saw in her eyes when she heard his brusque command was enough to send blood rushing to his cock, swelling it to the point walking down the hall to his office was bordering on painful.

Surprising him, she made no effort to pull her slender wrist from his grasp until he turned to close the door behind him. “Wait. I don’t see my sister.
Je ne le connais pas.

Flipping the switch to frost the glass looking out over the club, Tristan tightened his grip around her wrist not wanting to break the connection between them. Her softly spoken last words and lapse into French let him know just how unsettled she was feeling. “You just told me you did in fact know me,
mon cher
.
Jamais je ne te ferai de mal
.” Carli went completely still, Tristan wasn’t sure if it was because he’d referred to her as
my dear
or that he’d noted the fear in her voice and promised to never hurt her. The surprise was easy to see in her glittering green eyes, and he couldn’t help but wonder why she had assumed he wouldn’t understand what she’d said. Carli’s eyes were so similar to those he’d seen staring back at from across his desk less than a month ago—the color was almost identical, but there was a depth of knowledge in this woman’s gaze he hadn’t seen in her sister’s. Tristan was willing to bet whatever weighed so heavily on her heart was the root of her restlessness.

“I don’t know why I didn’t consider that you would speak French.” He smiled at her but didn’t respond. “British, educated, wealthy, titled—of course you speak the language sure to melt the panties off any woman who crosses your path.” Her flip attitude and inability to keep quiet was going to give them endless opportunities to paddle her sweet ass, a challenge he was looking forward to more with each passing minute.

Leading her to the chair her sister had occupied not so long ago, he frowned when she stubbornly stood with her arms crossed over her chest. Tristan doubted she realized how perfectly the gesture of obstinacy lifted her lovely breasts in a delectable display—a challenge no respectable Dom would ever walk away from.

Rounding his desk, he crossed his arms over his chest mirroring her pose and arched a brow at her in question. Tristan was certain Carli hadn’t heard Parker enter the office, from what he’d heard about his friend’s interactions with the woman standing defiantly in front of him, their relationship was adversarial to say the least. What Tristan didn’t know was if their power struggle was genuine annoyance or simply foreplay.

Parker watched his newest client lift her chin defiantly at Tristan and the answering light in his best friend’s eyes had him leaning against the doorframe to watch the showdown. Tristan’s voice was pure ice as sound, “Sit. Down. Now.” Carli hesitated a split second before she literally dropped into the chair so quickly it scooted backward inelegantly across the polished wood floor. Parker wasn’t able to hold back his snort of laughter at Tristan’s quietly uttered, “Yoga, perhaps.”

Parker wondered if Carli would understand the insult Tristan had just thrown her way—and he didn’t have to wait long for his answer. Carli stood with all the elegance of woman who spent most of her waking hours in front of a camera—whether it was for work or the paparazzi that followed her endlessly. Pivoting gracefully around to face him, her smile was one he’d seen her use for business associates he knew she would rather not deal with—to the casual observer, it would have seemed perfectly polite, but Parker wasn’t fooled. “Mr. Daniels, to what do I owe this unexpected pleasure? Are you here to escort me to see my sister, perhaps? Since that is why I’m here, it seems like a reasonable assumption.” And just that quickly, the ice princess mask slid into place. Tristan’s surprised expression was so fleeting, Parker almost missed it—
yeah, you are getting a clue, buddy. Welcome to my world.

Using his shoulder to shove away from the dark mahogany doorframe, Parker stood to his full height. At six foot four inches he towered over Carli, when he’d made his way to her in measured steps she was forced to look up to meet his gaze. Parker’s years playing collegiate football in Texas as a linebacker hadn’t been enough to earn him a professional career, but it had left him with a lingering passion for weightlifting so he was still in excellent physical condition. The hours he spent working out in the club’s gym not only kept him in shape but also served as a great way to relieve the everyday stress of dealing with difficult clients, like the one staring up at him now.

Parker knew his open-front leather vest and low-slung black jeans left little to the imagination, and he wasn’t opposed to pressing any advantage when it came to dealing with Carli Walker. Her eyes heated in appreciation as they slowly worked their way down his torso. He saw the pretty green shade of her eyes darken as they dilated when she’d seen his erection pressing relentlessly against the well-worn denim. When she’d licked her lips, his cock twitched to paint them with pearly pre-cum before sliding between them to find his satisfaction.

Carli’s eyes ordinarily reminded him of shamrocks in the spring, but by the time her eyes met his once again the irises had darkened so much they looked more like the towering Loblolly pine trees of eastern Texas. “Like what you see, princess?” He knew his words were going to antagonize her, but the truth was he needed to stall long enough for his friends to settle their sweet sub. He had to give Law and Brodie credit, they’d called it perfectly and just pulled off one of the hottest and most intricately choreographed “spontaneous scenes” he’d ever seen. Law had argued Cressida was going to be too nervous and too deep in her own head to enjoy her first night at the club unless they started the minute she walked in—and he’d been right. Now they’d be able to settle her with a bit of cuddling before touring the club. And in the meantime, he and Tristan needed to keep the Ice Princess busy enough she didn’t ruin her younger sister’s first experience at The Knight’s Club.

“Don’t be an ass, Parker. I’m sure you already know the effect you have on most women.” Tristan flashed Parker a smile over Carli’s head making him want to throw something at the man who had been his best friend for more than a decade. The fact she’d excluded herself from the group of women who appreciated his appearance intrigued him because it was such a blatant lie—he’d been a Dom for a long time and knew sexual interest when he saw it, what he didn’t know was why she was so adamant in her denial.

“Lying has consequences, princess—don’t ever forget that.”

“And that includes lying by omission, just so we’re clear.” Tristan’s voice had shifted subtly, moving almost imperceptibly once again from businessman to Dom—but anyone who knew Tristan Harris knew the switch wasn’t one to be ignored. When Carli turned to look at Tristan—her brows raised in question, she sent the silken waves of her chestnut colored hair cascading over her shoulder. The indirect lighting in Tristan’s office emphasized the natural highlights Parker had noticed the first time he’d met her. He knew those variations in color were natural—he’d seen hints of them in her sister’s hair as well, but with Carli everything was magnified to the nth degree, it was no wonder the camera worshipped her.