Lace and Bullets: A Hitman Romance (17 page)

“I’m sorry, Tate.” Her words came out in a breathy whisper. “I don’t know what more you want me to say.”

“I don’t want you to say anything.” He leaned in, eyes wide open, and kissed her.

His lips pressed into hers and she melted. A pat of butter sizzling on burning steel. Tate swiped her lips with his tongue, closing his eyes as she opened her mouth. She let him in on a moan and he took advantage, raking his tongue over hers, flicking against her teeth and teasing.

Reaching up, she palmed his chest, spreading her fingers across his tense muscles, reveling in the strength beneath his shirt. But as she slid her hands lower, he groaned—a rumble from deep inside—and pulled her hands away.

He broke their kiss and pressed her arms into the wall. “I didn’t say you could touch me.”

Oh, god
. Why did he make her so crazy? Reckless and desperate for his body all over her. No man had ever turned her on so fast. So easy.

She whimpered as he edged forward, pressing her back into the rough brick as his chest grazed hers. Despite her heels, he still towered over her, a testament to male strength. Dipping his head, he kissed her collarbone, snaking his lips and tongue up her neck until he nipped the sensitive skin behind her ear.

“Tate!”

“Yes?”

“What are you doing?”

“Kissing you.”

“We’re in a parking lot.”

“I know.”

“So let’s go. I’ve caused enough of a scene already.”

Tate grumbled but stepped back, lifting her hand up to his lips. He kissed her knuckles and smiled. “I thought you liked me being in control?”

“I do. But not when you’re being reckless. Take me home and I’m yours. Any way you want me.”

Tate’s eyes widened and he smiled. “Then what are we waiting for?”

He escorted her to his car and opened her door before walking around to get in. Excitement and nerves all flitted inside Jessica, turning her heart into a hummingbird. Did he really mean it? Was he done fighting their attraction? Tate slid into the driver’s seat and revved the engine, backing out of the space and turning onto the street.

A few miles and she would find out. If she could remember to breathe.

T
ate unlocked
the door to his place and ushered Jessica inside. She’d dreamt about this moment—hell, she’d given herself an orgasm next to his bed. Why was she so skittish?

The door shut behind her and she jumped.

“Nervous, much?” Tate slipped his arms around her and spun her to face him. “If you don’t want—”

She silenced him with a finger on his lips. “It’s not that. It’s just…I can’t stop thinking about what you said before. Is it really that wrong to be together?”

“Honestly?” He pulled back and mashed his palm into his face, bowing his head as he rubbed his temples. “I don’t know anymore.”

“Then maybe we shouldn’t…”

“No. Jess, I don’t care. So what if people talk. Or our parents freak out? You’re right. We aren’t related. Not really.”

“But you left…you walked out on me.”

“I know. And I was stupid. I walked in and you were there, in my room, blindfolded and beautiful. Everything I’ve ever wanted. And I panicked.”

“That makes two of us. When you caught me, I thought you’d throw me out. I’ve never been more embarrassed. I’m sorry I went through your things.”

“It’s okay. I’m glad you did. If you hadn’t—if I hadn’t seen how much you wanted it—I wouldn’t be doing this.”

He stepped forward and wrapped her up in his arms, bending to kiss her neck. Jessica sighed and let the nagging worry go. She could regret it all in the morning, but she needed him in every dirty, wicked way she could get.

“If you don’t want something, tell me to stop and I will.”

Jessica nodded, afraid her voice would quiver and give away her nerves. Despite the longing that throbbed inside her, part of her was scared as hell. Would she freak out and change her mind? Realize her cravings weren’t meant for real life? She didn’t know. But she wanted to find out. With Tate.

He led her into his bedroom, stopping on the far side of his bed. Running his hands up her sides, he slinked her dress up, exposing her nude thong and matching bra. “All night I’ve wondered if you had anything on under that dress. It drove me mad, you know.”

Pulling it off, he tossed the dress on his chair and turned back to her, kneeling in front of her to open his drawer. His fingers flitted over cuffs and ropes and other restraints, pausing on a set of black silk cords thicker than a jump rope. He pulled them out and set them on the bed.

Jessica bit her lip as she watched, trying not to gasp as he made his decisions. She couldn’t wait to feel the coiled fibers wrap around her body, cinching tight and rendering her helpless. Her pussy ached and a pool of wetness spread across her panties.
Damn
. The anticipation was killing her.

“Tell me, Jess. How far down this road have you gone before?”

She swallowed and managed a small smile. “Not very. I’ve never found anyone who’s really been into it. The few guys I’ve mentioned it to have kinda freaked out. One…” She paused, embarrassed to be talking about other men with Tate.

“One what?”

“Tried to do what I wanted. He used a tie and, um, tied my wrists. But he was so afraid he’d bruise me and ruin the shoot—we’d met at a week-long swimwear gig—it didn’t work out. He left before it got very far.”

“I see. So we’ll go easy, okay?”

“Okay.”

Tate pulled the blindfold out of the drawer and stood up. He smiled as he brought it up to Jessica’s face, unfurling the black satin to its full length and slipping it over her head. The world went black and Jessica sucked in a breath of air.

Her heart thumped in her chest and her blood whooshed through her veins, echoing around inside her ears. She couldn’t see what Tate was doing, but she could listen and feel. He stepped away from her and the metallic tang of his belt and rough scrape of his jeans told her he was undressing.

A few beats later and his hands touched her thighs. She jumped at the contact and he chuckled. “Relax, Jess. I’d never hurt you.”

“I know.”

Tate hooked his thumbs inside her panties and slipped them off. They fell in a heap on top of her heels and before she could step out of them, he was there, crouched beneath her and lifting her feet out of her shoes.

Then his hands were back, traveling higher and higher, up her thighs, over her hips and behind her back to her bra. A flick of his fingers and her bra unclasped. He slid it off and she was naked. Naked and blindfolded and unable to see his reaction. It was empowering.

She made her living being poked and prodded and stared at. Cameras click-clicking all day while make-up artists critiqued her face and photographers critiqued her body. But now, in the silence of Tate’s bedroom, she had no idea whether her belly was flat or her butt dimpled.

“You are so fucking beautiful, Jessica. I don’t deserve you.”

She smiled a mile wide. “Yes you do.”

He stepped behind her and took ahold of her arms, pulling them behind her back and clasping them together. The cord slipped around her wrists and he knotted it, tight enough to sting, but not hurt. Then he tied another knot a few inches higher. And then another. With every knot and caress of his fingers, her arousal grew.

She squirmed, pressing her thighs together as wetness spread over her swollen lips. By the time Tate finished, he’d trussed her arms together and she couldn’t move them at all. He kissed her bare shoulder and she sighed.

“Climb up on the bed, babe.” He turned her body toward the bed and helped her get on. “Good. Now sit right on the edge. That’s it.”

She scooted right to the edge and Tate took her knees, spreading them wider and wider, pushing her legs taut and parting her slick folds. With one hand on her ankle, Tate tied another cord around it, cinching tight and looping through something behind her leg. He did the same with her other leg.

When he finished, she tried to move, but couldn’t. Her legs were fastened to the bed, spread eagle. Her entire world was his for the taking. Any way he wanted to.

“You’re so wet already. Your pussy is begging to be filled with cock. Is that what you want?”

Jessica whimpered. She didn’t care what he did as long as he did something. Anything.

“Hmm. I don’t think so, I don’t think you’re ready yet.”

She heard movement and bit her lip to keep from begging. When his lips brushed across her knee, she cried out, unable to hold back anymore.

He trailed his kisses higher, each one ripping a tortured moan from her lips. She struggled in the bindings, pulling on her arms and legs, frantic for more.

“Tate, please. I can’t take it.”

“I thought you wanted me in control?”

“I do, but…”

“Then stop fighting it, Jess. Let me lead. You’ll come so hard you’ll cry.”

She bit back a groan and he resumed his teasing, adding a lick of his tongue across her taut tendon. Her whole body shivered and as he planted kisses above her dripping slit, a wave of pleasure knocked the breath out of her.

He took advantage, slinking lower and thrusting his tongue inside her without warning, pumping in and out and fueling her desire. She’d never been so high so fast. So close to an orgasm without a single flick against her clit.

His tongue caressed and lapped and his breath blew hot over her folds.
Oh, god
. Without sight or freedom of movement, all she could do was feel. Being bound forced her to let go of the worry and anxiety of performing. No more
‘Am I doing it right? Does he like this? Does he want that?’
Just enjoyment. Pure, unadulterated enjoyment.

Jessica let out a keening moan and Tate grumbled his reply, sliding up to find her clit. Rolling his tongue across it, he sent bursts of ecstasy shooting through her.

Again and again he flicked the hard little nub, working her into a frenzy. She panted and gasped and bucked her hips into his mouth, pulling against the bindings on her ankles and wrists, loving the feel of the cord bumping over her skin.

As the beginnings of an orgasm grew in her core, he pulled back, leaving her clit throbbing and needy. She wailed in protest, but before she could speak, he crushed his lips into hers. Thrusting his tongue inside her mouth, he forced her to taste how hot he made her.
God, he must be soaked
.

He broke their kiss and left her, mouth open, tongue licking air as he bent to suckle her breast. Pleasure sparked through her again and she wasn’t sure she’d survive.

G
od
, damn
. She was everything he’d ever wanted. Every woman he’d ever created in his own mind. Her body opened up to him as soon as he took away her sight. And when he tied her up in knots, she soared.

Her pussy trembled between her legs and he could feel the vibrations of her needy little snatch as it begged for him to fill her up. But he wasn’t giving in. Not yet. He wanted her body to sing.

Lapping at her nipple, he pulled the tight little bud into his mouth, suckling and nipping and rolling it around his tongue. Jessica panted above him, squirming against his onslaught and humming in need.

Tate couldn’t deny that she was beautiful—she was a fitness model for god sakes. But seeing her tied up and submitting—begging for him to own her with his touch—fucking unbelievable. He wanted to take her picture in a dirty little photo shoot. Show her who she really was. Who he made her become.

Letting go of her breast, he worked his way to the other side, laving her nipple and drawing sweet little mewls from deep within her. Her legs strained against the bindings and she licked her lips over and over. She was desperate.

He leaned back and smiled. “Are you ready to come for me?”

She groaned in response, hanging her head and exhaling in a rush. “Oh, Tate. Yes. Please.”

“Good. Then come for me, Jess. Come for me now.” He bent down and latched onto her clit, sucking it into his mouth as he thrust a finger inside her empty channel. As he curled his finger inside her, she came. Twisting into a vise, her muscles clamped down around him while her soul flew apart.

Her mouth opened in a soundless scream and he rolled his tongue over her clit, prolonging the ecstasy and driving her higher. After what seemed like forever, she collapsed, slumping on top of him and shaking.

He kissed her knee and she moaned, too exhausted to pull away. With a smile, he bent to her bindings, untying first one leg and then another. When they slipped free, he placed his arms beneath her and lifted her up, sliding onto the bed with her, and nestling her body into his.

She fell onto the pillow, auburn hair matted and soaked in sweat, lips swollen and red, cheeks vibrant pink and glowing. He ran his hands down her bound arms and she shivered. Undoing one knot at a time, he set her arms free. Rings of indentations marred her skin—temporary reminders of what they’d just shared.

She snuggled into him and he tugged the blindfold free. “Hi, Jessica.”

“Mmm. Tate. I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

She scooted lower and her ass grazed his dick. It jumped against her skin—rock hard and throbbing—and he winced out loud.

In languid slow-motion, she rolled over and fluttered open her eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ignore you. You didn’t have to…”

He shushed her and shook his head. “I wanted to.”

“Then let me thank you. Please?”

“Okay.”

Jessica pushed herself up and scooted down the bed, straddling his legs as she climbed over him. She took his cock in her hand, running over the thick length of it as she looked up and bit her lip. “Do you want to use…something? It’s okay if you do.”

He smiled and reached out to stroke her knee. “No, babe. I just want to watch you. Do whatever feels right.”

She smiled back before opening her mouth and taking him inside.
Oh, fuck
. She slid down fast, saliva leaking out of the corners of her mouth as she took him deep. His head bumped the back of her throat and she pulled back, slicking his shaft before stroking him with her hand.

Up and down she bobbed, using her hand to caress the places her mouth couldn’t reach, teasing him with a swipe of her tongue around his ridge. In no time, she’d worked him into overdrive, his cock hardening inside her mouth as the inevitability of his release overwhelmed him.

He came on a groan, pumping his hips up into her mouth, sliding his dick deep as the first shots of cum rocketed past her tongue and straight down her throat. Over and over he came, filling up her mouth, forcing swallow after swallow until she’d milked him dry.

When at last he’d finished, she pulled off him and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. He pulled her down on top of him with a satisfied sigh, kissing her lips and tasting his salty release all over her.

“It’s my turn to thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Rolling onto his side, he pulled her body close, pinning her back tight to his chest. He never wanted to let her go. And if he had his way, he never would.

T
he phone rang
out of nowhere, jolting Jessica awake as she stumbled out of bed and into the living room. Fishing through her things, she found it and answered the call.

“H-hello?”

“Ms. Mallory?”

“Yes. This is Jessica Mallory.”

“Hello, this is Ms. Jenkins from Total Fitness.”

Jessica tried to focus, rubbing her eyes as she searched her brain.
Ms. Jenkins…
“Talent search?”

“Yes. Unfortunately, I am calling about some negative publicity we received in the press last night and this morning.”

“Okay.”

“As I’m sure you’re aware, something like this is damaging to the magazine’s image. As a result, and in an effort to distance the magazine from any fallout, we are canceling the shoot you’re currently in. Due to the terms you agreed upon, you would only be paid and/or featured in the magazine based on a completed shoot.”

“So…are you telling me I won’t get paid and won’t get the spread?”

“Yes. Thank you for your time. I wish you luck in your future endeavors.”

The phone called ended and Jessica stared at the blank screen.
What the hell?

Did she do something inappropriate? Was there some issue with the club last night? All she could think about was Tate punching out that guy in the middle of the club. Could they have found out about that already?