Stroke of Sapphire (10 page)

Topaz rubbed her hand over her forehead and narrowed her golden-brown eyes. “If he hurts you again—” she began.

Sapphire smiled and cut her sister off before she could come up with a suitable threat. “I know. You’ll beat him up.”

A laugh escaped her sister. “You bet your ass I will.” She paused and then smiled. “Better yet, I’ll get John to do it for me.”

Sapphire hugged her sister, hard and fast. “Thank you. I know it’s not easy for you to take a step back, but this is between Jake and me. And I don’t want what happens between us to affect your and John’s relationship.” Sapphire worried a lot about that. Jake was going to be Topaz’s brother-in-law and if things didn’t work out between him and Sapphire, relations could get very strained.

Topaz shook her head. “I’ll do my best. That’s the most I can promise.”

It would have to be enough. “Okay, how about we grab a coffee and head to the shop. I want to get a better look at the size of the stockroom we’re thinking about converting into a new retail space.”

Her sister gave her a pointed stare that let her know she knew Sapphire was trying to change the subject and that she was allowing it. “I’ve got a sketch of the room and what it could potentially look like when it’s done. I also have some ideas about the color scheme for the walls and signage.”

“Of course you do.” Sapphire wasn’t surprised in the least. Her sister was one extremely organized lady. A shiver crept down her spine and Sapphire glanced over her shoulder. People were crowding the sidewalk, heading to work or wherever they had to go. No one seemed to be paying particular attention to them, but she couldn’t shake the notion that someone was watching her.

“You okay?” Topaz was frowning again and that was the last thing Sapphire wanted.

“I just need another coffee. My breakfast was interrupted so I didn’t get to finish mine.”

Topaz linked her arm with Sapphire’s. “We can take care of that with no problem.” Together, they resumed their stroll down the sidewalk, but Sapphire couldn’t resist glancing over her shoulder once more.

Ivan Gregor watched the two women from a doorway across the street. It was sheer luck he’d seen her strolling down the sidewalk. Sapphire Jewel…her name suited her. She was dressed casually in slacks and low heels, but was a vibrant butterfly in a sea of dull gray.

There was something about her that drew him. She had an air of innocence that he longed to fuck out of her. She owed him for the time and attention he’d bestowed upon her, and he planned to collect. It was only a matter of time.

He pushed her from his thoughts, pulled out his phone and scrolled through his calendar for the day. His day was packed with important appointments, but he would eventually find time to deal with Sapphire. Once he’d had her, he could put her out of his mind and move on.

Satisfied everything was as it should be, Ivan stepped out of the doorway and strode toward his first appointment.

Jake’s phone rang just as he and John stepped inside a coffee shop. He took one look at the number and turned to his brother. “I’ve got to take this.” Not waiting for a response, he turned and walked outside. “Go.”

“Your guy was watching the woman this morning. She was with another woman, a tall good-looking woman.”

“Her sister. Did he approach them?” Jake’s hand tightened around the phone and he had to fight the urge to race through the city until he was by Sapphire’s side.

“Negative. He looked, but didn’t approach.”

Jake blew out a breath. “Keep an eye on him.”

“Will do.” There was a slight pause. “You’re going to have trouble with him. I saw the way he watched her. He won’t walk away from her.”

Jake took the warning to heart. “I suspected as much. I’ll deal with him.”

“Roger that.”

Jake knew he had to cover all bases. “But keep your eyes open. If he approaches, move in.”

“Will do.”

The phone went silent and Jake carefully slid his phone back into his pocket. Once he finished having coffee with John, he needed to head to work. He had some illegal hacking to do.

Chapter Ten

Jake’s fingers flew over the computer keys. He’d hacked into Gregor’s cell phone records and was making note of the people he talked with. There were some numbers that were untraceable. He figured those belonged to the more savvy criminals. But there were always those greedy bastards in positions of power who didn’t think they needed to bother with such security protocols. Either that, or they were too stupid to even think about such things. Made his job easier.

It was surprisingly easy for him to connect the dots and he was soon hard at work hacking into bank records, both for Gregor and several of his associates. He shook his head, amazed at the idiocy of some people. Several high-ranking civil servants had deposited money in their accounts on the same day that Gregor had removed the exact same amount from his account.

Arrogance and entitlement would trap them all. The police might be hampered by their need to get proof through legal channels, but he had no such constraints on him. When he was done, he erased all traces of himself. Those he couldn’t erase, he buried beneath myriad layers. If any officials cared to dig that deep, they’d trace the signal back to an old woman in Hungry via twelve different other people scattered over the world. No way they could trace it back to him here in New York.

By the end of the day, Jake had several envelopes filled with information—phone records, bank account records and more, every document carefully handled to ensure there were no fingerprints on any single page.

Several of Gregor’s projects had been on the verge of being derailed when suddenly they’d been passed. He had copies of the documents signed by certain city officials, along with copies of their bank accounts that showed they had suddenly gotten much richer.

Jake planned to send the envelopes to the media and the cops. If Gregor had some dirty cops in his pocket he’d still get fried in the court of public opinion. He’d be much too busy to even think about Sapphire, which was Jake’s ultimate goal.

That work done, he sat back and picked up his coffee mug, grimacing when he tasted cold coffee. Still, he drank it down. Caffeine was caffeine, cold or hot.

A tap came on his door. “Come on in.”

John stuck his head through the door. “I’m heading out to meet a client.”

His brother had been bearing the brunt of the work these past few weeks. Jake freely admitted his head hadn’t been in the game. “Thanks, man.”

John grinned at him. “No problem. I expect you’ll be kept busy when I’m on my honeymoon.”

Jake laughed. “Decided where you’re going yet?”

His brother leaned against the doorjamb. “Not yet. I want to go somewhere warm and secluded. I keep telling Topaz all she’d need to pack is a bikini.”

“Bet that goes over well.”

John laughed. “Some days it does. She wants to tour Ireland, which is fine, but she’s not going to wear a bikini while we’re there.”

“Good luck with that, bro.”

John hesitated and shook his head. “Be careful with Sapphire, okay?”

“That goes without saying.” Jake shoved away from his desk, walked over to the large safe in the corner of his office and stuffed the envelopes inside.

John motioned to the envelopes. “Anything I should know about?”

“No.” Jake didn’t want his brother involved. “A private project. Nothing major.” He shut the safe door, locking the evidence he’d collected inside.

“If you need help…”

“Thanks, man.” He knew that John was there for him, would help him without hesitation. He was lucky to have a brother like him.

“Have a good evening.” John left him alone in his office. He felt tense and out of sorts all of a sudden. He needed to talk to Sapphire. He grabbed his phone, brought up his list of contacts and hit the top button. Her phone rang several times before she answered.

“Hello.”

“Hey, babe.” Some of the tension bled from his muscles the moment he heard her voice. That was the kind of power she had over him. It should worry him, instead it made him feel more grounded, as if he had a place he belonged, or at least someone he belonged with.

“How was your day?” He could hear the smile in her voice.

“Good. I’m on my way out now.” He shut down his computer and left his office, locking the door behind him. “Want me to pick up something on my way to your place?”

“Hmmm,” she answered absently. He could hear her doing something in the background, but couldn’t quite figure out what it was.

“Babe? Food? Do you want me to pick up food?” He engaged the alarm and locked the door to Knights’ Security, making sure everything was shut down tight for the evening.

“Sure. That would be great.”

“What are you doing?” He took the stairs down from the second floor of the three-story building.

“Oh, I’m working.”

That made sense. Sapphire got lost in whatever she was doing when she worked on her jewelry designs. He couldn’t wait to see her latest work. “How about Chinese?” He knew what she liked from his time working as her bodyguard.

“No. I think I’ll make something instead. I’ve got some chicken marinating. Won’t take me long to throw something together when you get here.”

“You sure?” He didn’t mind springing for dinner, but his mouth watered at the thought of eating something she made for him. Sapphire was a very good cook.

“Positive. I just need to finish up what I’m working on.”

He smiled, taking the hint. “I’ll let you go. See you in about forty minutes.”

“Okay.” Her soft voice sank into him like a hug and he smiled. He ended the call and stopped before he stepped out onto the sidewalk. Old habits died hard. He checked all around him to assure himself there was no one watching him. When he was satisfied, he headed out. Sapphire was waiting.

Sapphire stared down at the piece of jewelry she’d finished. The design had come to her yesterday—a bracelet that featured the logo of Jake’s company Knights’ Security. The logo consisted of a shield with two crossed swords on top of it. She’d made the piece out of a combination of silver, brass, copper and steel. She planned to set the pommels of the swords with small sapphires. But that was for tomorrow.

Pleased with the amount of work she’d done so far, she packed away the unfinished piece and the design, not wanting Jake to stumble across it if he came into her office. He always seemed interested in what she was making, and it wasn’t feigned either. When he’d been her bodyguard, he’d spent hours watching her work and asking questions.

She left several pieces from her new line sitting on her work counter. She could show him these if he asked to see how she’d spent her day.

Her workspace tidied, she stood and stretched, her back muscles complaining that she’d been sitting in one spot for far too long. It was an occupational hazard. When she got into her work, hours could pass in the blink of an eye. It was only when she tried to move she’d realize just how long she’d been sitting in one spot.

Sapphire ambled to the kitchen, trying to decide what to serve with the chicken. Maybe some fried rice with veggies. The apple pie she’d made after lunch was cooled and sitting on the kitchen counter. She knew Jake particularly liked apple pie.

Maybe it was silly, but she wanted to cook for him. She had the feeling that Jake hadn’t had a whole lot of home-cooked meals in his life. When he was guarding her, he’d always seemed to appreciate every time she made a meal and shared it with him.

She pulled out pots and pans and started to work. Forty minutes later, she had everything under control and was thinking about changing her outfit when the buzzer rang. Grabbing a kitchen towel, she wiped her hands as she walked to the intercom.

“Yes.”

“It’s me, babe.” Butterflies fluttered in her stomach at the sound of his voice.

“Come on up.” No time to change now. She glanced at herself in the foyer mirror and frowned. Her hair was half up and half down and her makeup had long ago disintegrated.

“Damn.” She stuck the kitchen towel in her back pocket, yanked the clip from her hair and raked her fingers through the curly locks. It wasn’t great, but it was an improvement. No time to do anything about makeup.

A heavy knock came on the door and she took a deep breath, uncertain why she was suddenly so nervous. She checked the peephole, knowing Jake would scold her if she didn’t—the man was very security conscious—and then she opened the door.

As always, the sight of him made her heart race. He was wearing jeans and a dark-blue sweater under his leather jacket that made his eyes appear even paler. He looked big and strong and totally kissable.

“You look good enough to eat.” His husky voice went straight through her, making her toes curl. He leaned down and kissed her.

Their lips clung, lingered. But he didn’t deepen the caress, keeping it light. His tongue swiped across her bottom lip and she shivered as arousal shot through her.

He raised his head and gently tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “I missed you today.”

Those few simple words sent warmth flooding through her body and she had to fight to keep from wrapping her arms around herself in a hug to keep the feeling close. “Come on in.” She shut the door and locked it, using the mundane task to center herself.

Jake removed his jacket and hung it in the closest before removing his boots. He was making himself comfortable, treating her home like it was his. Her skin tingled and she cleared her voice, determined to do something to stay calm. “I’m going to check on dinner.” She headed to the kitchen and, at the last second, remembered to yank the kitchen towel out of her back pocket. That was certainly not sexy. She tossed the towel onto the counter and lifted the cover off the rice. Everything was ready to serve.

She lowered the lid and took a deep breath, hoping to calm her nerves. She had no idea what was going to happen tonight. Would Jake stay with her or would he go home? Would they have sex or not? The not knowing was making her crazy.

Her breasts swelled and pushed against the cups of the lacy blue bra she wore and the matching panties were damp. She’d bought the lingerie set during her shopping spree several weeks ago. The new clothing might not suit her personality, but she found that she actually liked the new undergarments. They made her feel sexy and womanly so she’d kept them.

Strong arms wrapped around her from behind, surrounding her in masculine strength. “What’s wrong?”

She thought about denying anything was wrong, but figured he wouldn’t buy it. She opted for total honesty. “I’m nervous.”

Lips brushed over the top of her head. “Why?”

It was hard to think while his lips were working their way down her neck. “Because,” she gasped when he nibbled on the lobe of her right ear.

“Because?” he prompted, his warm breath sending goose bumps racing down her arm.

She gripped her thighs tight when his tongue traced the whorls of her ear, but it didn’t help ease the growing ache between her legs. “Because I don’t know where we’re going or what’s going to happen tonight.”

Jake turned her until she was facing him, a soft smile playing at the corners of his mouth. His pale eyes should look cold, yet they were anything but. Heat scorched her as he gazed at her. “We’re going to eat the wonderful dinner you made, then we’re going to relax and watch a movie. And then…”

“And then?” Her voice was little more than a breathy gasp of anticipation.

“Then I’m going to run you a hot bath so you can soak away some of the aches from last night.”

She frowned, slightly disconcerted. How could he know she was still feeling a bit sore from last night?

He chuckled. “You should see your face.” He tenderly touched her cheek. “It’s no big secret. You have to be sore the way I was on you like a rutting bull last night. I have to take care of you tonight.”

“We could skip dinner.” Was that really her suggesting they go straight to the bedroom? What a hussy she was becoming. Anticipation shot through her only to crash and burn.

Jake shook his head. “Food first. You need to keep up your strength.” His big hands ran up and down her spine, making her arch into his touch like a well-petted cat. “Then you need to relax, then a bath.”

She gave him a disgruntled frown. “And then?”

“And then”—he gave her a wicked grin—“then I’m going to make you feel so damn good.” He cupped her ass and squeezed, making her jump. “You’re going to spend all evening thinking about what I’m going to do to you.”

He traced his fingers over the seam of her pants. Wet heat flooded her pussy.

“By the time I take you to bed you’re going to be so ready to come that you’ll do it whenever I want you to.” His voice was thick with arousal. She could have told him she was more than ready now. Her body was so primed it wouldn’t take much to push her over the edge.

Jake dropped his hands and took a step back. “Dinner first.”

Sapphire leaned against the counter for support as she struggled to get her body back under control. It wasn’t easy. Every cell in her body was screaming at her to jump on Jake, rip open his jeans and impale herself on his hard cock. And he was hard. There was no mistaking the bulge in the front.