Slave To Love (11 page)

If she could find that kind of understanding quality in a man, she would be set. Until then, she would have to kiss a lot of frogs, or rather get spanked by a bunch of toads.

****

It had been a week away from home. Jace had never thought he would be the homesick type, but he wanted the comfort of his own bed. As he sat in another waiting room for a meeting with another real estate developer, his mind wandered to that picture of the submissive for Ananda’s new show.

He didn’t even get her name, but her eyes and those lips remained in his thoughts. Each night he went back to his hotel room and, as soon as he closed his eyes to go to sleep, he thought about her. Knowing that the beauty would be in his home drove him crazy.

Jace had to get his mind right. He had to focus on business. Work had been stable, but he wanted more. Stability couldn’t last forever. The housing market needed to bounce back sooner than later so that his portfolio could look more attractive to potential partners. No way would he be behind Titus.

“Mr. Morton,” the male receptionist said from his desk by a set of glass doors. “Mr. LaMarca will see you now.”

Jace stood, straightened out his tie, and headed into the office. Mr. LaMarca sat a desk large enough to qualify as a false representation of his manhood. Jace kept his expression pleasant as he headed toward the mature man with graying dark hair and overly tanned skin.

He stood from his desk once Jace got closer.

“Thanks for meeting with me, Mr. LaMarca.” Jace shook his hand.

“Please, call me Rich.” He smirked after saying the line.

“Good, then call me Jace.”

“I had planned on it.” Rich pointed to a chair in front of his desk. “Have a seat.”

Jace’s insides tightened immediately from the three lines he’d said to him. If he felt this uneasy already, he didn’t think the meeting would go well for him.

“I’ve read your proposal. You’ve done some exceptional work in Virginia. You really built your business into something special.” Rich put his hand on top of the business proposal Jace had sent to him. “Is there any reason you haven’t gone to developers out in the east like New York? Why come to Arizona?”

“Why not? I’ve read about you. Humble beginnings. Brought yourself up from nothing to this.” Jace raised his hands up to show off Rich’s top-level office in the high-rise building that carried his name. “I only want to associate myself with the best.”

“And capture a west coast market, right?” Rich leaned back in his chair as he looked at Jace.

“That wouldn’t hurt, either. I’m looking at expanding. I hope my proposal convinces you to partner with me.”

“Actually, it does.” Rich pointed to Jace. “You have got some big balls. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a proposal like this from anyone asking to partner with me.” The more he spoke, the more his Mexican accent became prominent. “What truly impressed me were your numbers. What you’ve managed to do on your own is wonderful.”

Jace smiled. He might be able to cut his trip short after all. This had been his third meeting this week. He had planned on doing this again when he went to Florida next week, and going to a builders association meeting the following week. He felt tapped out until Rich gave him a boost.

Rich stood. “But like my mama always said, if something is too good to be true, then it probably is.”

Jace felt his smile slipping down his face. “Excuse me?”

He came around his desk to stand beside Jace. “I’ve been doing this a long time, son.”

The son tag made Jace bristle. He continued sitting and listening to what Rich had to say.

Rich leaned back against his desk and looked down at Jace. “I did a little research. The quality of your work is impeccable. No complaints from buyers or customers. I’d be a fool not to want to associate myself with you and your work.”

Jace felt a “but” coming.

“However, the real estate market is down. No one is buying so these new homes you’re building are sitting there, collecting dust.”

Jace gritted his teeth for a moment before he spoke. “I admit that turnover has been slow. But it’s always steady, and I always make a profit.”

“Yes, you do. Another reason I found your proposal attractive. And you’re a fighter. I like that.” Rich patted Jace on his shoulder. “I’d like some time to consider your offer.”

Jace nodded, but inside he wanted some confirmation that he had this deal. “Is there anything you need or want to know in order to agree to this union?”

Rich sighed. “You had mentioned my rise from my humble beginnings. You are correct about that. I’ve worked hard to establish an honest and spotless brand. I don’t want that perception tarnished. I’d be more than willing to work with you as long as you do nothing to put a stain on my brand.”

Jace nodded. He understood, especially nowadays, how perception equaled reality to some people.

“I’ve worked hard to make sure that my customers are satisfied.” Jace continued pushing his impeccable company. “You don’t have anything to worry about with me.”

Rich smiled. “I like hearing that. I’ll like it more when I’ve had some time to digest all of this information and do some of my own research. Make a follow-up appointment with Harvey at the desk for a month from today. I’ll be happy to give you my decision then. Deal?”

The weight of the world fell off Jace’s shoulders. He stood to shake Rich’s hand. “Sounds fair. Thank you.”

“Probably not the answer you were hoping for today, but don’t be disappointed.” Rich stood.

Jace pulled his hand back from him. “I am, but I understand. I would have been surprised if you had agreed right here on the spot.”

“Had I said yes today, would you have told me to think about it some more first?” Rich studied Jace like Jace knew he’d done during countless other business deals.

This shark of a mogul didn’t get to his spot by resting. He swam the waters and kept an eye out for smaller, weaker prey.

“No, I wouldn’t have. Because I know what I’m able to offer. You wouldn’t have been disappointed.” Jace picked up his jacket and case that contained his tablet and papers.

“As long as everything comes back clean on you, in a month’s time, we’ll be doing business together.” When Rich beamed, his gleaming teeth almost blinded Jace.

Jace took a step back. “Thank you for your time.”

As instructed, Jace made the appointment with Rich’s receptionist. In exactly a month, he would be in league with the big boys.

Too pent up to wait for the elevator, Jace took the stairs down from the twentieth floor to his rental car in the basement. He’d never been one to put all of his eggs in one basket, but he felt good about this meeting. Unlike the other meetings he’d had before this one, Rich didn’t say no.

With each flight down, Jace thought about his future. He would no longer live in Eagan’s massive shadow. Jace would be the big deal. He would be the Morton people talked about instead of Eagan. 

As soon as he got back to the hotel, Jace packed up his belongings. To feel some sort of normalcy again he needed to get back home, back to what he knew. If he truly felt that way, he would get back into BDSM.

Kitty had a point. He had turned away from his true self because of some damn book series and his brother. If he wanted to be authentic, he would go back to being Christian Jace instead of Jace, and he would embrace his kinkier tendencies.

Too bad he’d given away or discarded all of his old implements. All the whips had been trashed. His play furniture got new homes with old friends. He even tossed his large black book of play bottoms’ names.

Jace took the next flight back home. With it being last minute, he had to endure long layovers and a very late arrival time. By the time he’d gotten to his house at one in the morning, he went from beyond exhausted to dead tired.

He dragged his suitcase into his home. It didn’t take him long to find all his furniture gone. Large production lighting and cameras sat in the middle of his now empty living room.

“Fuck.” He lowered his head and shook it.

Ananda had already gotten started. He couldn’t blame her. He’d told her he would be gone for over a month and that she needed to get her shoot done by the time he’d gotten back. He had hoped she wouldn’t be this efficient.

As he headed to his bedroom, a place he hoped no one had touched, he heard noises coming from the kitchen. The clanging sounded like pots and pans behind knocked together. If the crew still milled around his home, he would tell them to go on home.

He crept toward the kitchen and stopped at the doorway. He first spotted the white, silky robe that sat on the counter by the entryway before he saw the vision in pink cotton panties dancing around in his kitchen while listening to some energetic song on her iPod.

She had her hair pulled up in a messy bun on top of her head. Since she only wore panties, he wanted to see her turned around to view this stranger’s breasts. Her skin tone looked like finely sanded oak with a golden-colored varnish. She glowed. It didn’t help that with a light sheen of sweat, she also glistened.

The song hit a section with a hard, rhythmic beat that made her jump up and down. Each time she landed, Jace felt his heart pounding in the same beat. He wanted to be out of his stuffy slacks and button-down shirt if for no other reason than to be able to feel her skin against his.

She hadn’t turned around yet, but from behind he imagined her being the beauty Ananda had captured in a picture, the one from his event. As soon as he thought that, she twirled around as part of her dance move and froze when she saw him.

Holy shit. It had been her. She stood there, no bra, small panties, and the cutest expression on her face, only a few feet from him. The Dom in him wanted to approach her. He had to play it cool…for now.

Chapter Seven

The woman in Jace’s kitchen screamed, then peered down at the robe that lay under his hand. Jace had no designs to move his hand or give her the robe. He let the smooth material slide through his fingers. The sensation made him think about her body. Could she be this soft, this smooth, this enticing?

She covered her chest with her arms as she looked around to find something else to hide her perfectly rounded tits.

“Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Oh, my God!” She looked behind herself and grabbed a paper towel from a holder.

Instead of ripping off one towel, she did several pirouettes to wrap the top portion of her body with the paper products. In one of her twirls, she picked up a pan and held it in the air while she gripped the towels close to her body.

Jace liked seeing her ready to defend herself. He had to show her that he wouldn’t hurt her. If he could muster enough strength to do so, he would have smiled. For now, he raised his hand in front of her.

“Take it easy. I’m supposed to be here.” Jace spoke in a low tone to keep her calm.

“I didn’t think anyone else would be here.” She pushed some stray hairs from her face. “The crew left hours ago.” She looked out of breath once she mummified herself in a cocoon of flowery towels.

If he were an unscrupulous man, he could get through those towels and her panties. Shit, he had said he didn’t want anyone associated with this show, especially the lead submissive. What the hell was wrong with him? Had he been that hard up? No, this woman looked that damn good.

“This is my second time meeting you, and I still don’t know your name. Who are you?” Jace asked. He wanted to know this force of nature’s name above anything else.

“Who are
you
?” She pointed to him with the pan. “Are you stalking me? The last group that left said I would have the house to myself. What is a builder doing here?”

Great. She already felt comfortable enough to claim his house as her own. He would have to snap her out of that line of thinking.

“This is the house where the show is being filmed temporarily. You won’t be here that long. Let me ask again. What is your name?” He hoped his tone registered his true feelings.

Jace had had a rough day. He wanted to come home, get a quick shower, and take a long nap. Although he found this woman stunning, he didn’t have time to verbally spar with her like before.

She shifted her weight back and forth before turning off the music. She started to head toward him, but the towels remained tethered to the holder. She ripped off her paper dress from the roll and waddled toward him. “Taren Kerrigan.” She extended her free hand to him while still keeping the pan in her other hand. “I’m part of the show. How are you involved in all this? Are you a contestant?”

When Jace touched her hand, he felt something he hadn’t in years. The softness of it reminded him of the supplest leather from one of his favorite floggers. She stared at him unafraid. If he still trained submissives, she would be a good one. He like subs who knew what they wanted—no balking, not waffling.

Jace didn’t want to lie to her. So he didn’t. “What are you doing up so late?” Avoiding her question would buy him some time.

“I was cleaning up. I do that when I’m nervous.” She put her hand on the robe on the counter.

When she tugged it, Jace leaned on it harder, unwilling to let it or her go. He liked having her off balance.

“How long have you been here in—” He’d almost let it slip and said his home. “How long have you been here?”

“Since Monday.” She pulled on her robe again. “Ananda thought it would be better to get me here now before anyone else shows up. This is an absolutely beautiful place. I would love to live here.”

Her admission weakened him enough to relax his hold on her robe. At that moment, she pulled it from the counter, turned her back on him, and slipped it over her body. To do so, she finally put the pan on the counter. She didn’t bother removing the paper towel dress or picking up her weapon again.

Taren turned back to him. “Are you here checking on the house?”

He nodded. “In a manner of speaking.” He looked over his shoulder. “Have they emptied out the bedrooms?”

Taren held her robe together at the top by her neck and at the bottom in front of her thighs. Damn, did she think he wanted to take her? Okay, so he did. He didn’t want her thinking that though.