Louisa Neil (10 page)

As they entered the large space, their voices and footsteps echoed through the empty rooms, the hardwood floors magnifying the sounds. Dane dropped her hand and let her wander. To the left was a sitting room that led into what she assumed was supposed to be a dining room. To the right was a formal parlor with another stone fireplace. The staircase was huge along the center wall, the mahogany railing and steps well worn. She wandered down the hall through a butler’s pantry and into a newly remodeled kitchen. Behind the kitchen was a glass atrium. While it was currently void of plants, she could instantly imagine how it would look filled with greenery.

“I’ll admit it does have a certain wow factor.”

“That’s what I thought, too.” Dane seemed to beam with pride. “There’s a library through here, as well as a guest bathroom, and a small office.”

They wandered the rooms, and she fell in love with the library. “Do you have any books to fill all those shelves?”

“Actually, I do. I still believe in the feel of a book in my hand and the print on my fingers. I’ve collected books for years. They’re all in storage, but this would be a perfect place for them.”

“It sounds like you’ve already made up your mind.”

“Come see the upstairs,” he prompted and showed her a back staircase to the second level. “These will be guest rooms,” he told her, opening doors to empty rooms and baths over the right side of the house. Across the main hallway, the left side of the second floor was the master suite. The room was huge, along with a walk-in closet, white marble bathroom, and a sitting area overlooking the atrium.

“I’m sold. Buy it,” she told him, running her hand along the marble mantle in the main bedroom area. “What are you hesitating for?”

Dane stood a few feet away, staring at her. She began to get a strange feeling and knew in that instant he hadn’t brought her just to see the house.

“I wanted a second opinion.” He took a few steps toward her and reached into his back pocket. He handed her an envelope and wandered to the windows overlooking the front lawns and street.

Diana unfolded the envelope and took the pages from it. They were medical reports from this last week, all proving he had no communicable diseases. By the time she was putting them back in the envelope, he was behind her, his hands on her shoulders. His lips kissed the back of her neck, sending a chill through her whole body.

“Thank you for the results.”

“No condoms,” he said and used both hands to run along her sides. Down her hips and thighs, as his hands rose up, her denim skirt was between his fingers.

Diana knew what he wanted and decided to let him take it, especially since she was still so horny from last weekend’s dream or whatever it had been. She remembered how her body had felt after the dream and knew she couldn’t consider it a dream. She smiled, knowing Dane’s cock wouldn’t fill her as the creature’s fingers had. But he was there, and she was interested in the relief he’d bring her. She reminded herself she’d set the rules of their relationship, sex with no romance or ties. A small part of her wanted him to test her limits, but the rest of her just wanted sex. Diana reminded herself, once emotions entered into a relationship, it changed the dynamic and usually became tedious to her. She didn’t confront him when he made the pass a second time, his fingers hooking under the elastic of her panties and pulling them down her legs. Dane stood and took her hands, drawing them to the windowsill in front of her.

“Just relax,” he whispered, running his tongue along her throat.

She knew he was lowering to his knees behind her. She allowed him to lift each foot and rid her of the underwear. From that second on, her pussy began to pulse with anticipation, and she had no regrets. He palmed her buttocks while nipping at her skin. When he grasped her waist, he pulled her several steps from the window, widening her stance. She could feel his hot breath on her pussy lips from behind and then higher on her anus. Next, she felt his tongue licking her from front to back. It was hard not to squirm at his attention. She knew since she’d made the decision to come see his new home, she’d accepted they would end up fucking. It was what she wanted, even if it could prove detrimental to her career.

“Put your fingers in my pussy,” she told him, and he instantly filled her with two of them.

From that moment, she allowed him to do what he wanted. He licked her pussy and reached up to fondle her nipples through her shirt with his other hand. She didn’t know how long this went on, only that it felt wonderful. When he slid a finger in her ass, she sighed, and when he pulled his hand from her body, she growled.

“Fuck me, Dane,” she told him, still not turning around to look at him. She could hear his zipper behind her and the sound of his belt buckle hitting the wood floor. His cock was in her pussy instantly, taking long and then short strokes inside her.

“Faster,” she said, and he complied wordlessly.

His lips went to her shoulder, and she knew there’d be a purple mark there tomorrow and didn’t care. On one outward stroke, he paused and pushed higher in her body, sliding into her anus.

He fucked her harder and faster, and all she could do was hold on to the windowsill. His thrusts were deeper than the last time, and his cock felt larger inside her.

“That’s it. Make me come, Dane. Fuck me until I come.”

“I’ll fuck you until I come,” he told her almost breathlessly.

Diana didn’t know how long they stayed there, her holding onto the windowsill while he fucked her ass from behind. She had several small orgasms and didn’t care that he saw her lift her hand to her own breast, pinching her nipple.

“That’s gonna make me come,” Dane told her, and she felt him grasp her hips, his fingers biting into her flesh.

Diana pushed back against him, taking him as deep as he could go, and she felt his body shake when he came. He stroked her a few more times, his cum dripping from her body each time he withdrew. Finally, he paused behind her, his head on her shoulder, his breath out of pattern.

“Thank you,” he whispered before pulling from her completely.

“Did you just fuck my ass in a stranger’s home, or are you going to buy it?” She glanced at him over her shoulder.

“It would be one way to get around hotel fees,” he teased, straight-faced for only a moment before he smiled. “I’ve put in a bid,” he told her as he lifted his weight from her. “Time will tell.”

“Then we’ll consider this a christening of sorts,” she told him, turning back to the garden view after flashing him a smile.

“You should do that more often, Diana. You’re lovely when you smile.”

“Just keep fucking me until I come, and I’ll smile every time.”

Diana stayed where she was with her skirt bundled around her waist and his cum starting to drip down her thighs. He gently took her skirt and pulled it down over her. She waited while he pulled up his pants, the noise unmistakable. When she figured he was settled, she turned, and he kissed her full-out, tangling with her tongue and pumping her breast with his large hand. A car door slammed in the distance, and they broke apart. It seemed their mood had been broken.

“I’ll take you back to the market,” Dane said, reaching to pick up her panties. When she thought he’d give them to her, he smiled and pushed them into his pants pocket.

The ride back to the center of town was silent. She simply said, “Thank you,” and left his car. She picked up a few groceries, feeling his cum drip onto her thighs with each move she made. When she came out of the store, a cab was waiting for her.

“I’ll drive you home, miss.” The driver took her purchases and helped her into the backseat of the air-conditioned cab. Arriving at her home without being told the address, he carried her bags to the front door and refused the tip she offered.

That night Diana primped as she might for a date, sliding onto the cool sheets with anticipation. She didn’t pull out her toys, rather forced herself to sleep. It never came. She tossed and turned all night, no dreams or dream lover. The next day she lay around the house hoping to nap, but she didn’t. That night she dropped on the bed, exhausted. The next morning she woke more disappointed than she could ever remember. Now that she wanted to embrace her
bête noire,
he was absent from her subconscious. She was lethargic and annoyed, not to mention sleep deprived. Now she had to go back to work. While she wasn’t embarrassed about her actions with Dane, she was a bit apprehensive. Holding back her burgeoning feelings for him was tougher than she’d expected, and she was surprised by the tears that fell onto her cheeks. She hadn’t cried in years, yet here she was stifling emotions she held back. Was this her new reality? In the last years, she’d kept herself distant from men, using them for sex as they had used her in the past. Adapting herself to past lovers’ habits, she’d come to detest emotions and just wanted the completion of the actual sex acts with them. She was looking for fulfillment, not a permanent mate. Was this a backlash of how she had dealt with the men in her past?

In the past, men had been disposable. Deep inside, she didn’t want Dane to fall into that category. It had been years since she had found a man she was attracted to and wanted to fuck. Now that she had, she knew she’d be crushed when she saw him with another woman. And ultimately, every man she’d ever liked or wanted left her for someone else, a woman who wasn’t so aloof. She let out a sigh and knew she had to push forward with her everyday life. There were no other options. Being enamored with a man who didn’t feel the same wasn’t productive. Diana cursed Dane for stopping by that first Saturday, and she cursed herself for letting him touch her. Once they had consummated the act, she had known he’d consider her a conquest and move on to another woman when he found one he was attracted to. It was a fact she’d dealt with all her life, one she apparently would continue to deal with. On that notion, she decided to forget about Dane. She’d known sleeping with her new boss wasn’t a good idea, even if he was handsome and charming, and knew how to make her body come alive. It dawned on her she could change the dynamics with Dane, but that would send her into uncharted territory she wasn’t sure she was ready or willing to commit. “Damn you, Dane.”

“I guess I’ll go back to my toys and self-satisfaction.” She spoke to the empty house as if it were an old friend letting her work through her situation. At least she knew ultimately she’d find her own path again, one she controlled along with her orgasms. That didn’t mean she couldn’t use Dane’s image to bring her to her peak. Right about now, she wanted to find her dream lover again. She knew if she did, he’d bring her to a new level of sexuality, even if it was only in her sleep. Diana still didn’t know where the original nightmare came from, but lately she wasn’t viewing her Minotaur as a monster but rather a lover she could never have again. She was disappointed but realized she’d have to move on with her life instead of stagnating over things she couldn’t change.

* * * *

For two more weeks, work and her private life continued on this way with no visits from Dane or her dream monster. Even though she felt secure in her position, it was difficult to see her coworkers suffering. Coworkers she’d never been concerned with before. She hated that the whole atmosphere was endangered and hated her inner sense that kept telling her things weren’t as they were being presented. Exactly four weeks to the day Dane showed up, Sloan arrived, or so she assumed it was Sloan. He was there when she arrived, in the office talking with Dane. Both men nodded as she passed. At that very instant she felt sick, as if someone had punched her in the stomach and hit her in the head at the same time.

Hurrying downstairs, she made it just in time to lose her breakfast in her small bathroom. Splashing cold water on her face, she forced herself not to look in the tiny mirror above the sink. It was hard but necessary to go to the workroom and turn on her equipment. As she set up the first pile of work for the day, she did so by rote, her mind wandering back to the man she’d seen with Dane.

He was tall and dark. Standing next to Dane, he was a head taller, his shoulders wider. He had black hair that brushed his shoulders. He wore a black shirt and pants with a black jacket, all ensconcing him in darkness. While she hadn’t been able to see his features, she knew they would be pronounced, his cheekbones defined, his chin strong. Without actually seeing them, she knew his eyes would be black. All she could picture were the images from her nightmares. Nightmares she realized had stopped as abruptly as they’d started over a month before. Stopped before the afternoon she’d had sex with Dane in the empty house.

“Oh God,” she said, continuing to copying process. “Sloan was the man in my dreams. I must have caught a glimpse of him around the office and never realized.”

“What dreams would those be?”

The voice behind her had an accent, British or Australian, she thought. She didn’t need to turn around to know it was Sloan. Her face heated with embarrassment when she realized he’d heard her. Her whole body went hot then cold and clammy. The only other time she’d felt that way was passing a horrible car accident on the road when she was a child. No, you won’t be sick, she reinforced. Once today was enough. Turning in her chair, she noted how tall he truly was. Standing at the bottom of the stairs, he was surveying her workspace and her.

“Can I help you?” She tried to sound professional, but to her own ears she sounded weak.