Dazzle her: Laws of Seduction Book 3 (7 page)

I grip the edge of the sink tightly. Images of my burned-out office flash through my mind. Is someone trying to scare me, or is this an actual threat? Is someone out to get me, or am I being paranoid? The drugging incident at Bleu Ciel stands out in my mind. Had someone tried to drug me so that they could seriously harm me? Recalling Tobin’s ghastly photo that looked so much like me, I can’t help but feel it was some kind of omen. This card is tangible evidence that, at the very least, someone is playing with me.

With shaking hands, I return the card to its envelope and place it back in my bag. Taking a few deep breaths, I look at myself in the mirror. The person who put that card in my bag could be out there waiting for me to react. I refuse to give them a show. I take a few more moments to collect myself by going through the ritual of applying fresh lip gloss. When I think I have myself firmly under control, I exit the restroom. Glancing around the foyer, I don’’t see James. It has been awhile since we agreed to meet at the entrance, and I can’t imagine what could be keeping him. I find myself looking around every few seconds as if expecting someone to pop up at me from behind a potted plant, and realize that I am being ridiculous. Whoever had written that note obviously wanted their identity to remain a secret.

I carefully review all the people that I have come into contact with this evening. With so many people here, it wouldn’t necessarily have to be someone I had spoken with directly. This event was the perfect opportunity to slip something into my bag. Since the only thing of real value to me in the bag had been my driver’s license, I had not worried about leaving it at the table while I danced. Anyone would have had access to it. Somebody could have even paid one of the members of the wait staff to do it. Slipping a note to someone would seem like an innocent request.

These thoughts are whirling around in my head as I see James walking towards me at a quick pace. “I’m sorry that took so long. It was harder to get away than I expected.” I can’t seem to come up with an appropriate response. James places his hand on the nape of my neck and leans in closer. I feel a rush of comfort at the feel of his fingers rubbing gently against my skin. I watch as a look of concern spreads across his face. “Lainey, you’’re as pale as a ghost. What’s wrong?”

Unwilling to risk losing my composure in such a public place, I ruthlessly tamp down on the temptation to turn into him. “I just want to go. Is the limo waiting for us?”

“It’s right outside.” He slides his hand down so that he is cupping my elbow. Guiding me outside, he repeats his original question. ““Are you going to tell me what has you looking this way? Something has obviously upset you.”

Gary sees us coming and jumps out to open the back passenger door. I slide across the seat, and James gets in behind me. He presses a button and the privacy divider comes down, leaving us in our own little cocoon. I am not ready to broach the subject of the note, so I tell him about my encounter with Jenna instead. After I have finished, James leans back in his seat and faces forward. Our only point of contact is our hands, which lay intertwined on the seat between us.

The regret James feels is palpable. His thumb rubs the back of my hand, and the rhythmic motion is soothing. “What did she say when you asked her why I am not with her?”

“She said that you liked to play the field, and that you would get tired of me soon.”

“I hope you didn’t listen to a word she said.”

“I know I shouldn’t, but confrontations like that upset me.”

James opens his arms, “Baby, come here.”

I undo my seatbelt and move closer, and he pulls me so that I am sitting sideways across his lap. He holds the back of my head with one hand and runs butterfly kisses down the side of my cheek. His other hand rests on my hip. Pulling back, he looks down at me. “Don’t let jealous bitches like Jenna upset you. They are all a part of the past and mean nothing to me.”

I wrinkle my brow. “One thing confuses me though.”

“Tell me,” James commands.

“She kept mentioning your mother like they are best friends. I thought you said you met her at a sex club.”

James groans and lets his head fall back against the seat behind him. “That is why Jenna was a colossal mistake.” He raises his head again and looks down at me. “I did meet Jenna at a sex club, but she is also friends with Carrie Hudson. From your description that is who she was with when you ran into her. Carrie is also a close friend of my mothers. To make a long story short, when Jenna discovered the connection, she became friendly with my mother. I have told my mother to stay away from Jenna because she is only using her to get close to me, but as usual, she doesn’t listen.”

“Your mother would like to see you with Jenna?”

“She likes Jenna. She and Jenna are a lot alike in many ways, so she understands her.

You also have to understand something about my mother. She didn’t have much to do with me when I was growing up. Small children didn’t fit into her jet-setting lifestyle. When I went to college, she started taking more of an interest in me. By that time it was too late. I was used to doing things on my own, making my own decisions. She has never understood that and even now tries to control me. She doesn’t like that I work for Houghton Mills. She thinks I should use my money and connections to go into politics, and that I should marry someone with a similar background and connections to further my career.”

“Does Jenna come from a wealthy background?”

“Her uncle was a senator from Massachusetts, so my mother thinks she has a lot of potential as a politician’s wife.”

“Do you want to go into politics?”

“Hell no. I like working behind the scenes. I would hate all the notoriety. I get enough of it as it is.”

“Does your mother know how you met Jenna? Frequenting a sex club doesn’t seem like the ideal behavior for a politician’s wife.””

“I don’t discuss my sex life with my mother. The only thing she knows is what Jenna has told her.”

The limo pulls over to the curb in front of James’s building. Gary opens the door, and I step out as gracefully as possible. Given that I have to climb off James’s lap, this is no easy task. After wishing Gary goodnight, we walk through the lobby and onto a waiting elevator. James inspects me there with disturbing thoroughness. In a self-conscious gesture, I touch my hand to my face. “What?”

“Your color is back.”

“Oh, is that all?”

The elevator doors open, and we enter his apartment. “Do you want something to drink?”

“Only if you are having one.”

James reaches up to loosen his tie before removing his jacket and laying it over the back of the sofa. “I can think of other things that I would rather have.”

Anticipation makes my knees weak, and I cock my brow. “Such as?”

James walks towards me with a predatory look in his eyes. Reaching up, he takes down my hair. “You.” He runs his fingers through my hair. “It feels like silk.”” He brings a handful up to his nose and inhales deeply, “And smells like sunshine.”

“I didn’t know you were so poetic,” I tease.

“Me either.” I get a glimpse of his dimple when he smiles. “Do you feel like playing?”

“What did you have in mind?” A surge of pure desire rushes through me at the tantalizing thought.

“Turn around and close your eyes.” I pivot so that my back is facing him.

He moves my hair aside and kisses the back of my neck. “Mmm, you smell so good.” I am disappointed when he steps back, but then I am surprised by the feel of cloth against my face. James holds something over my eyes, and I realize that it is a blindfold. ““If you open your eyes, can you see anything?”

I open my eyes experimentally, and everything is dark. “No.”

“Good.”

Both his hands are at the back of my neck, and he pulls down the zipper of my dress. Bending down, he kisses a trail down my back before easing the dress off my shoulders. “This is a beautiful dress, but I like what’s underneath even better.””

I imagine him looking at me standing in my nude stilettos, black strapless bra, and the wisp of lace that serve as my panties. He runs his hand down the curvature of my waist. “Your skin is so soft.” His light touches make me yearn for something more. He takes my hand. ““Come with me.”

Blindly, I let him lead me. Coming to a stop, he turns me around before reaching behind me to unclasp my bra. He moves his hands to my breasts, and a groan of pleasure escapes me. “Like that, do you?” I am startled when he sweeps me up in his arms before laying me down on the bed. ““I think I would like that drink after all. Don’t move.”

What? He’s leaving me here now? I raise myself up on my elbows to object when I realize that he has probably already left the room, and I lay back down. The faint click of ice against glass is the only warning I have that he has returned. The bed dips. There is a pause, and then James presses an ice cube against my lips. “Suck.” He instructs.

I open my mouth and swirl my tongue around the chunk of ice. There is the faintest taste of scotch. Pulling the ice from my mouth, James circles my lips with a cold edge before following it with his tongue. My cold tongue meets his hot mouth, and I moan with pleasure. My hands meet hard muscles and warm skin, and I run my fingertips down his body. He must have taken off his shirt. Moving back, he trails the ice down my chest and abdomen. I gasp in surprise as cold touches my sensitive breast. My nipples pucker to attention as James circles first one nipple and then the other, leaving a path of cold wetness that he follows with his hot mouth.

The contrast of the cold ice against my burning skin has me writhing with desire. Next the ice touches my knee, and I almost come off the bed as he runs it up my inner thigh. I lie still, wondering what he will do next. The only sound in the room are my gasps of pleasure.

The bed dips again, and I feel James’s presence at the juncture of my thighs. Although I brace myself for the touch of the ice, it still takes me by surprise. James runs it back and forth along my labia and around my clit before sliding it inside me. I sit up with a gasp, but James pushes me back down. ““Relax. This will feel good.” He murmurs in a husky voice that sends shivers through me. His mouth follows the same pattern as the ice. He laps up all the melted droplets with his tongue until finally licking and sucking at my clit. I am very close to exploding in bliss when James stops and kisses his way up my body. ““I want to be inside you when you come.”

I hear the sound of a zipper. Then his hard arousal pushes against me, and he sinks into my heat. My breath catches at the feeling of rightness. He begins thrusting into me with hard, even strokes. Our bodies are wet with melted ice and sweat. Wishing that I could see him, I run my fingers up his back and over his shoulders until I feel the contours of his face. Without sight, my other senses are heightened. I relish the sound of his hard breathing and the feel of his handsome face beneath my hands. James drives into me faster and faster, and I move my hands back down his back to his hard-muscled ass and squeeze. James drives into me until an intense rush of pleasure surges through me. I scream my release.

James pushes the blindfold up over my eyes, and I blink up at him in the dim light. I know in this moment that I love this man with my whole heart. There will never be anyone else for me.

CHAPTER 9

Dark, cold water rises up over my body. It starts at my chest and climbs to my neck. I know it won’t be long until it is over my head. I’ve been through this many times before. Help will not come. No matter how hard I try to swim away, I am stuck in the same place. The water is up to my chin now. I thrash and struggle, trying to escape my fate. Then he is there. Seth’s bloated, distorted face hovers over me. “Why did you go? You could have saved me.”

“No.” I scream back. “I tried.” He repeats the same sentence over and over. I wave my hands in front of my face, trying to bat him away. The water’s coldness makes my limbs sluggish and numb, but I stretch my neck, holding onto my life for a few more precious moments. I sob as the water reaches my mouth. Then I see a second bloated and distorted face. This is not how it goes. Confused, I concentrate on the face until recognition hits me. It’s James.

“Lainey, wake up. You’re having a nightmare.” I sit up, taking in large gulps of air. I’’m in bed, not the water. The bedside light comes on, and I blink against the brightness. Remnants of the nightmare linger in the back of my subconscious and weigh on my ability to think clearly. I struggle to come back to reality. Bringing my knees up to my chest, I rest my forehead on top of my knees. James rubs his hand over the back of my head. “It’s that nightmare again. Do you want to talk about it?”

I shake my head back and forth. James runs his hand down the back of my head again, smoothing my hair back. “You might feel better if you talked about it.”

“Fine.” I sit up, throwing his hand off of me. “You want to talk about it? I’ll tell you the whole awful story, but you will wish that I hadn’t.”

James ignores my outburst of temper. “I want to know everything that has happened to you Lainey, even the bad parts.”

“But this…” I break off, feeling a sudden urge to cry. James waits patiently until I once again have my emotions in check. “It happened on the night of my senior prom.” I can’t look at him while I speak, so I stare down at my hands. “Four of us went together. My best friend Chelsea’’s boyfriend, Pete, drove. Our parents let us go without curfews that night, so after the dance we decided to go to the quarry. A bunch of kids were there for a bonfire.” I look up at James, and seeing the warm compassion in his gaze gives me the courage I need to continue. “We went there a lot for quarry diving, especially in the summer. We knew it was dangerous, but we did it anyway. My boyfriend, Seth, was crazy about it. He was a bit of a daredevil.” The image of Seth springs into my mind, blond, blue-eyed charmer, but then I think of his parents and how devastated they were after the accident. “We were driving back from the quarry when Pete swerved to miss something on the road. He drove straight into the small river that we were driving along. I was the only one...”