Virgin Dancer (9 page)

She was carried away by a sea of emotions that swamped over her, turning her into a creature that was born to love, to desire a man. She hardly felt it when he opened her robe and let it slide down her body, to the floor. Being naked in his arms left her unable to hold herself back any longer. Suddenly, she had her hands all over him, too; stroking the back of his head, his neck, strong shoulders and back, drawing him closer to her.

Jade tugged at his shirt and drew it over his head, impatiently. Several buttons flew in every direction, and he laughed, but sighed when her breasts pressed against his naked skin.

"I want you so much, Jade. I need you," he said hoarsely, while he lifted her up in his strong arms. He grabbed her upper thighs and placed her long legs around his waist. Then he brought up her arms over her head, pinning them against the wall with one hand.

"You know, I wanted you from the moment I first saw you in the club," he continued. "When you finally looked at me, your beautiful eyes were on me, all the time. They seemed to beg me to make love to you, to take care of you. I've never felt like this before. You drive me crazy, Jade, and I don't seem able to stay away from you, no matter how hard I try. You bring out the cave man in me. I want to own you, possess you. Last night was a first-time experience for me too, in a way."

"Alrik," she whispered, but threw her head back and moaned as she felt the head of his cock probing her womanhood, rubbing against her before he entered her, very slowly while he held her safe in his strong arms, her naked back pressed to the wall.

Kissing her again, he started to move within her, going deeper with every single thrust. She closed her eyes and hid her face against his neck. He was large, and it felt incredible to feel him filling her, stretching her gently until her tight inner walls gave way.

Struggling to restrain himself, he stopped for a moment, fully embedded inside her. "You want more of this?" he asked but held her close to him so she couldn't move with him inside. She enjoyed feeling the strength of his male body, and the exciting feeling of being dominated. His wonderful male scent made her want to lick his body from head to toe, and she started with the side of his neck.

He shuddered with pleasure, but waited patiently until she nodded. Only then he began to move again, shoving himself up and down inside her body, nailing her to the wall. When she begged him for more, he chuckled and carried her to the Jacuzzi, still joined with her. Then he took her down into the warm, bubbling water and sat down with her straddling his lap, never breaking the contact.

"Hold on tight to me, Jade," he ordered before he began to move seriously. She held on to his wide shoulders while he kissed her breasts, at the same time thrusting into her, harder and harder. She cried out when he hit just the right spot. His hands moved all over her body, playing her like an instrument only he knew how to master. His lips and tongue were everywhere, on her face, her mouth, her breasts, devouring her like a delicious dish.

They moved so wildly that water splashed out of the Jacuzzi with each one of his heavy thrusts. When he was sure that she had adjusted to him, he took her like a wild beast, burying his fingers in her curls. He grabbed a fistful of them and pulled her head back, to place tingling kisses all over her neck and throat while he loved her with a quick, hard rhythm that made her drown in overwhelming pleasure.

They came together, at exactly the same moment. She had felt it building up gradually, making her fly higher with every one of his thrusts until she felt like exploding, shattering into a million pieces. When she contracted around him, her body shook violently, and the force of her desire left her breathless. Alrik groaned into her hair and pressed himself up into her depths, staying there until the spasms of his body had ceased.

They stayed like that for a long while, surrounded by the soothing warm water while they gradually came back to their senses. Finally he lifted his head and searched her eyes, piercing her with the clear intensity of his gaze. The sincerity of what she saw in them made her tremble, and she suddenly felt like crying.

Please, don’t send me away, not yet, she thought.
You'll find out soon enough that I betrayed your trust, and then you'll hate me forever. 

*****

Later that day, Alrik left to meet with some sponsors, leaving her in the apartment. Before he pressed the button to the elevator, he leaned down for a last lingering kiss. Jade melted into his arms. “I have to go home and dress for ballet school. There is an important dancing lesson this afternoon,” she breathed.

 He wrapped one of her auburn curls around his finger, smiling. “I'll miss you, little virgin,” he said.

 “Not anymore.” She grinned. “Thanks to you.”

 “Jade,” he began, hesitatingly. “I must be honest – I don't know where this will lead to, and I can't promise you anything like a steady relationship right now. But … but I'd like to see you again. Very much so.” He cleared his throat. Jade watched him, mesmerized by his expression. Was it possible that this tall sex god actually was quite shy when it came to having a real date with a woman?

"Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?" he finally asked. There's a very nice restaurant I'd really like to show you."

She smiled. "I guess you’ve found out where I live by now. I'll be ready at eight."

He flashed her a grin of boyish triumph, and her heart beat faster. God, how she wished she had met him under other circumstances! It was so hard to believe that he was involved in criminal activities, but he evidently was. But what if it wasn't true, if this Ascobar had lied about doing business with him? She just had to find out what Alrik had to hide. When he was gone, she searched his office a second time. Invoices, credit card statements, offers from a real estate agent - apparently Alrik was looking for a house in New Jersey, far away from the city -, copies of the barkeeper's order list - but damn, nothing useful she could present to Ascobar, in the hope he'd stop threatening her brother.

Giving up, she was about to leave the penthouse when her gaze fell upon a book on the table by the couch. It was about Italian architecture, one of these oversized volumes people used to decorate her living rooms with but never so much as peeked into. However, this one had recently been read since a slip of paper poked out, probably serving as a book mark. Curious, she picked it up and opened it to retrieve the paper.

It was a page torn from the New York Times, dated two weeks ago. She was surprised that Alrik read newspapers; she had taken him more for someone who read his news on the internet, or a high-tech tablet, perhaps.

But when she began to scan the article about human trafficking and modern slavery, a passage caught her eye, and she forgot to breathe for a moment.

Some months ago, activities of a new syndicate of modern slave traders came to the attention of the FBI. Using Prague and most recently, Stockholm as a staging post on the smuggling route between East and West, teenage girls are being kidnapped from their homes in the Ukraine and smuggled into the USA to be sold as sex slaves, or exotic dancers. Once in the States, the girls - some of them no older than fifteen - are held prisoner in brothels or massage parlors, beaten and raped before they are forced into prostitution. Interested customers can buy them for six to seven thousand dollars each.

"A new delivery from the Ukraine. And Sweden as a staging post," she whispered. This couldn't be coincidental. "What have you gotten yourself into, Alrik?" And even more importantly, what had
she
gotten herself into?

She shivered, feeling guilty for even allowing herself these thoughts. If her lover actually participated in such horrible crimes, then she was the worst judge of character ever. She just could not, would not believe that he had anything to do with it.

But how well did she know him, apart from a few hours of passion and an afternoon spent kissing on a ship?

   A single tear rolled down her cheek and dropped on the article, smearing the printing ink. If the nagging suspicion that had begun to form at the back of her mind proved to be true, she'd never be able to recover from this blow, never dare to trust anyone again. For now, it was too late to turn her back on this situation, even if Ascobar was pleased with what she had found out and let her go. She couldn't just leave anymore. She loved Alrik. He hadn't been proven guilty yet, and she wouldn't give up until she found out the truth about him, even if he'd never forgive her.

She fetched her small handbag and took out Ascobar's cell phone, selecting the only pre-installed number. Silent tears were streaming over her face when he answered.

"What do you have for me?" he said.

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she began to speak.

*****

Chapter Seven

When Jade left ballet school the next day, Alrik was already waiting for her, leaning nonchalantly against a huge black jeep, just the sort of car she'd imagined him to drive. Smiling, she met his eyes while she was chatting with her friends. He winked at her.

"Um, I think there is a man who wants to talk to you," Amber said. "If I didn't know better, I'd say it's Alrik Larsson. Now that's strange. Beth, didn't she tell us that she only talked to him for a while and didn't see him again?"

Jade blushed. She just couldn't help it.

Beth gasped, throwing a glance back over her shoulder. "Wow, I think she's right, Jade," she said with widened eyes, pretending to be shocked. "Since we all know that Jade's a virtuous girl who doesn't engage in any improper relationships with men, this gorgeous Swedish guy over there …"

"Sex god was the term we used for him last time," Amber interrupted her.

"Now,
sex god
from Sweden over there must be waiting for another woman. Oh, here he comes," she said with mock astonishment. "What could he possibly want?"

When Alrik reached them, he placed an arm around Jade's waist and pulled her close against his side. He used his free arm to shake hands with the other girls, introducing himself.

"You must be Beth … and Amber, right?" he said, flashing them a bright smile. Jade was satisfied to see that they were able to blush, too. At least Beth did.

"Well," she said, "I hope Jade didn't tell you any of our dark secrets. But it seems that she has some of her own," she added with a meaningful look.

"Maybe," Alrik said, grinning.

Jade boxed his side. "I think we’d better leave now before this little chat takes the wrong direction. You guys can get to know each other another time …" Abruptly, she shut her mouth. She talked about Alrik meeting her friends again, making it sound as if she had some relationship with him. "Let's go," she added gently, suddenly wanting to escape the curious glances of the other girls.

  "It was a pleasure meeting you," Alrik told them before they went to his car. He opened the door for her before he folded his endless legs to get behind the driver's seat.

"You are quite the charmer, right?" Jade said sarcastically.

"You can bet on it," he said, grinning. "I bet your friends have something to talk about now."

"Don't tell me you picked me up from dance school so I could impress my friends," Jade said dryly.

"Of course not. I couldn't wait to see you again," he declared, planting a kiss on her lips that made her feel tingly all over. "And I want to take you shopping. A friend of mine has a beautiful little boutique just a few blocks from here. Just one look at you, and she'll choose the perfect evening dress. She has a talent for …"

"Just a moment," Jade said. "An evening dress? What for?"

Alrik laughed as he started the engine and began to drive. "Sorry. I should have called you earlier and told you. I'd like to take you to this charity event tonight, at the Museum of Natural History. It's a classical concert with the usual meet-and-greet afterwards, and I've been invited. From time to time I attend such festivities to meet possible sponsors for the club, or talk to business partners. It's quite a hollow thing, however, mostly to become acquainted with the right people and make small-talk. I would very much enjoy your company tonight, and I thought you might like it," he said, taking her hand and kissing her palm.

Jade frowned. "Thank you for the invitation, Alrik, and … yes, I'd like to accompany you. I just don't understand why you should wish to buy me an evening dress. It's not that you and I have some serious relationship, right? I don't want you to buy me designer clothes and stuff like that. I'm not one of the …" the word
strippers
came to her mind, but instead she finished: "… women you've dated before."

He looked at her earnestly before directing his gaze back to the traffic. They were silent for a while.

"I'm sorry, Jade," he said finally. "I didn't want to offend you with my offer. You know, I just happened to acquire wealth by making some business choices that turned out to be very profitable. Seriously, money doesn't mean much to me. This is why I wouldn't even think about sharing what I have with you. I just thought you'd love to do some shopping before we go to the museum, so I …"