Eruption (The Hunted Series Book 3) (22 page)

He kept his hand on my knee as if he was worried I would
flee. He was probably right. I didn't think this was how our conversation would
go. I thought he'd tell me what happened right away and say how sorry he was.
Instead, he was acting like nothing had happened.

"I asked you not to..." his voice trailed off and
he shoved his free hand into his pocket. "Really?" He looked down at
me. "I mean...I doubt it will change their minds, but it would be great if
you tried." A smile had spread across his face. "Thanks a lot,
Isabella. Let me know how it goes. Bye."

Isabella?
My stomach seemed to churn. "I thought
you asked her not to contact us?" I already knew she wasn't listening to
his request because she had been contacting me via terrible pictures. But I
didn't know she had been contacting him too. I set my coffee down. My hands had
started shaking and I didn't want to spill the coffee all over myself.

James hung up the phone. "Actually, she called me Friday
night before I was kidnapped." He laughed. "And she apologized
again...about how the engagement party went. She said that my parents had
invited her and that it wasn't her idea to ambush me. She really seemed sorry.
She wants me to be happy."

Bullshit.
I had noticed his pause after claiming she
had apologized. Was she apologizing for the kiss they shared last week instead?
I took a deep breath. "Okay, but why are you talking to her now?"

"She just told me that she's going to try to talk to my
parents. She wants them to come around."

"And you believe her?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I want to. My mom loves her.
If anyone can convince my parents to come to the wedding, it's Isabella."

"Is that it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Is that the only reason you're talking to her? Because
she's claiming she's going to help you?"

"Of course."

"Do you still have feelings for her?"

He laughed. "No. Penny," he grabbed my hand and sat
down next to me again. "If you're worried about me getting cold
feet...it's not going to happen. I love you and only you. You have nothing to
worry about."

Stop lying.
"I don't want you to talk to her
anymore."

"Isabella?"

"Yes, your ex wife. She's...toxic."

"She's actually been really nice recently."

To you maybe.
Was that her plan? To torture me and
weasel her way back into James' heart? She was an evil genius, because I was
falling apart and he was calling her nice. "Did you always plan on moving
back here?"

"What?"

"Ian said that you paid him a year's salary so he
wouldn't have to work for Isabella when you moved to Delaware. He said you were
coming back in a year. You never told me that."

"I thought I'd come back, yeah. I just needed a break
from this lifestyle. When I left New York, I never imagined I'd meet someone
like you."

"But you did meet me. And you never told me about your
master plan."

"It wasn't a master plan. The date wasn't set in stone.
It was tentative. My life was a mess. I couldn't plan that far ahead. I was
still figuring out what I wanted."

"Because of Isabella. And now what? You want to be
friends with her?"

"It wasn't because of Isabella. Our marriage had never
been good. I knew she had been cheating on me for months before I caught her in
the act. I was a mess because I had my own issues to work out. I needed to find
a purpose, something to live for."

"But you loved her. It must have torn you apart when you
found out she was cheating. Right? Because it hurts to find out that someone
you trust is fooling around behind your back? Especially when you have to find
out instead of them telling you."

"I never trusted her. And our relationship wasn't built
on love. You know that."

Liar.
All those notes he had written to her flashed
through my mind. Just thinking about them made my chest hurt.
Can't you see
that you're killing me?

His eyes softened slightly as he watched me slowly fall apart
in front of him. "Penny, what's going on? Are you having second
thoughts?"

"I don't know." I immediately saw the flash of
doubt on his face. It was the same way he had looked at me back when he was a
professor. Like he didn't believe I could possibly love him. He wasn't supposed
to be the one feeling hurt right now. He was the one that cheated on me. If he
was scared of losing me, all he needed to do was apologize.

"Hey." He put his hands on either side of my face.
"Whatever doubts you're having, please just tell me. Whatever you're
worried about, I know we can work it out. I love you with everything that I
am."

He still wanted to be with me? Maybe I was blowing everything
out of proportion. Men did stupid stuff during their bachelor parties all the
time. I had seen movies where guys did way worse than bang a random girl before
committing to someone for the rest of their lives. James wouldn't fool around on
me behind my back when we were married. It was just because it was his last
night as a single man. And he had Rob and Mason egging him on, and who knows
who else. James had told me he never cheated on Isabella. He wouldn't cheat on
me either. He loved me. The way he was looking at me couldn't be faked. I had
to trust him. "You promise?"

"I promise. What's bothering you?"

"I...it's nothing. If you still love me..."

"Penny." He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss
against my lips. "I'll never stop loving you. You are the only thing I'm
ever sure about. It's you and me. It'll always be you and me."

I put my arms around his neck and breathed in his familiar
scent.
You and me.
I needed to let this go. If he wasn't talking about
it, it was a mistake. It was a one time thing. I bit my lip. That's what he had
said to me when we had crossed the line of being a student and her professor.
It was never a one time thing and it was never going to be.
Don't cry, don't
cry.

"So, about me caving..."

"I should probably get back to work." I pulled away
from him and stood up, grabbing my cup of coffee. I wanted to forgive him, but
I needed more time. Right now the coffee in my hands was the only thing keeping
me from being bent over his desk. I gripped the cup even tighter.

"Are we okay?" He look dejected.

"I don't want the other interns to think I don't do any
work."

He nodded, but he still looked upset. "Let's go to
Totonno's Pizzeria for lunch."

"Not today. I wanna bond more with Sierra. She just
moved to New York and I wanted to see how she's adjusting. I was in her place
not too long ago."

It looked like he wanted to say something, but instead he
pressed his lips together.
Just say it, James. Tell me what you did. Tell me
that you're sorry.
It would be so much easier for me to move past this if
he owned up to his mistakes.

I turned away from him. "I'll see you after work."
He still didn't say anything. I quickly walked out of his office and closed the
door behind me. 

Monday

"Hey, Rob," I said as soon as he picked up the
phone. I had eaten lunch as quickly as possible with the other marketing
interns. Now I was standing outside the office, hoping I could get some
answers.

"Hey, sexy, what's up?"

I rolled my eyes, even though he couldn't see me through the
phone. "I was just calling to see if you had fun during James' bachelor
party."

Rob laughed. "That's a ridiculous question. It was
fucking awesome."

"So, what did you guys do?"

"Well, I won over the hottest girl there and Matt acted
like a bitch about it."

I laughed. "Congrats on your conquest. What about James
and Mason?"

"They were super lame. They sat by the pool all
day."

"And what about at night?"

"Are you trying to find out if we hired strippers, got
him wasted, and then he engaged in tons of unprotected sex with strangers and
now has a baby momma?"

Jesus.
"Did you? Did he?"

Rob laughed. "You'll never know. But you know how he
gets when he's off the rocker..."

"Rob." My voice sounded strangled. "Seriously,
did James cheat on me?"

"If he did, it was with Mason."

I sighed.

Rob laughed. "No, he didn't cheat on you, Penny."

"You're sure?"

"I mean, I didn't watch him every second. But he barely
participated in everything we had planned. The only sex he had was probably
with his hand while he stared at a picture of your beautiful face."

I shook my head. This conversation hadn't made me feel any
better. "Okay, thanks, Rob. I'll see you on Friday."

"Wait. Penny, are you really worried about this?"

"Yes. And I'm pretty sure you wouldn't tell me even if
you did know. So I'm sorry that I called. Please don't tell James. I'm just
freaking out over nothing."

"That's not true. I like you way more than I like James.
I'd tell you anything. I really don't think he did anything stupid this
weekend. Despite all of our best attempts."

I laughed and looked across the street at Central Park. There
was more bothering me than just what did or didn't happen this weekend.
"Do you know if he still has feelings for Rachel?"

"Rachel?"

"The girl he dated in high school?"

"Oh. That Rachel."

How many Rachel's has he dated?

"No, I don't think so. He was pretty torn up when they
called it off, but he was just a kid. Everyone romanticizes their first love.
No one holds onto it, though."

James was my first love. I was holding onto that. This conversation
wasn't calming me down.

"Are you getting cold feet or something?"

I looked down at my feet. "No. I'm worried that he
is."

"He's not. If there's one thing I'm sure about, it's
James' addiction to you. I mean, like, obsession." Rob cleared his throat.
"Sorry, those weren't the best words. What I mean is that he loves
you."

"So, you think that's true too?" Isabella had said
that to me. It was different hearing it from Rob. I believed Rob.

"That he loves you? Yes, he's crazy about you."

"No, that he's addicted to me."

Rob paused. "You know it's different. You're actually
good for him. Perfect, really. The two of you together just makes sense. He's
good now. He's happy. You did that."

For some reason, hearing that made me feel like I could
breathe again.

"Trust me, James isn't having cold feet. All he did all
weekend was try to get his phone back so he could call you. By the way, were
you okay? You called him like a million times. You're awful at being
alone."

I am awful at being alone.
"Yeah...I just...it
doesn't matter. I really have nothing to worry about?"

"Nothing. Except for me trying to be your last hurrah
before you get married on Saturday. But really you should just be looking
forward to that."

"Rob, I'm not sleeping with you."

"Can't blame a guy for trying."

I laughed. "Thanks for calming me down."

"You know what else is good for calming nerves..."

"I have to get back to work. Thanks, Rob." I hung
up before he could tease me anymore. I felt a million times better after
talking to him than I did after talking to James. But maybe it was because
James really hadn't done anything. Isabella was just fucking with me.

Monday

I walked past Nita's desk and straight toward James' office.
The blinds were still closed from earlier, which usually signified he was in
some kind of meeting, but I didn't care. I knocked on the door and opened it
before James had time to respond. He looked up from his desk. He still looked
as upset as he had when I had left him this morning.

I quickly closed the door and went straight toward him.
"I cave too." I sat down on the edge of his desk.

"Penny, if there's something bothering you, I think we
should talk about it. Please just talk to me. Tell me what's wrong." He
put his hand on my knee.

"The only thing bothering me right now is that you're
not fucking me." I pulled off my blouse and tossed it at him.

"If you would just tell me what it is..." His words
stopped when I unhooked my bra. I let it slowly slide down my shoulders.

"Is this what you want, Mr. Hunter? To fuck your new
intern?"

His Adam's apple rose and fell.

"Because that's what I want. I have a huge crush on my
boss." I put my high heel on the edge of his chair, right between his
thighs. "I know it's wrong, but I can't stop thinking about you." I
knew he was horny. And I knew he'd love this scenario. Him sitting at his desk
with his glasses on reminded me of being in his class. He had stared at me like
this during his lectures. That thrilling, terrifying feeling that someone might
catch us made me feel alive. This put us right back where we had been at the
University of New Castle. It felt so right.

He stood up and put his hands on either side of me on the
desk. "Everyone's going to know that you're fucking your boss. Everyone's
going to know that you're mine."

"If that's what you want, you better make me
scream." I grabbed his tie and pulled his face to mine.

His tongue invaded my mouth, claiming what was already his. I
began unbuttoning his shirt, trailing my fingers down his pecks and six pack.
God I missed him. And I missed bending the rules, or breaking them completely.
It made me want him even more. This dynamic never felt wrong. I was never not
enough for him like this. I was his escape and he was mine.

I pulled back. "Just this once, Mr. Hunter." I was
panting. I couldn't even remember the last time I had been this turned on. It
was the same reaction that I had when he said it was going to be a one time
thing when he was my professor. It just made me want him even more.

"Just this once?" He raised his left eyebrow.
"I better make it memorable, Miss Taylor." He pulled my ass to the
edge of his desk and ran his fingers up the insides of my thighs. "You'll
never be able to forget me. You'll never be able to scream another man's name."

I whimpered at his words. My whimpers quickly turned into
moans as he pushed my thong to the side and slid a finger inside of me.

"Fuck you're so wet." His voice was deep and
alluring. I could hear how much he missed me in his words. I was the one he
needed. Not Isabella or Rachel or some random girl. He wanted me.

I bit his lower lip and grabbed his belt. "We can skip
the foreplay." I unhinged his belt and undid his pants. "I need you.
Now. Before we get caught."

He bunched my skirt up around my waist and quickly pulled my thong
down my legs. His hands moved back to my ass and he thrust himself deep inside
of me.

Oh God.

The groan that escaped his throat sounded more like a growl
than anything.

I grabbed his tie again so that his mouth would be back on
mine. His fingers dug into my skin as his length moved in and out of me.

It felt like forever since I had felt like this. I had missed
this feeling, being so full and so loved at the same time. And all I needed was
more. "Harder, James."

"Baby, you have no idea how much I missed you." He
thrust forwards, and pushed my back flat against his desk. I heard something
crash to the floor and the sound of glass shattering.

"What was... "

He put his lips around one of my nipples and sucked hard.

"Oh God, James."

He sucked on my nipple even harder and hooked his arm under
one of my thighs. The position allowed him to thrust even deeper inside of me.

Yes!

He moved his hips faster and faster, building that warm
feeling deep in my stomach. Making love to James was sometimes all I wanted.
But this raw intensity was what I really needed. I craved this more than
anything else. I loved how rough he was. And how he knew how to manipulate my
body into putty in his hands. I was always at his mercy. He tilted his hips,
hitting the spot that always pushed me over the edge.

My fingers dug into his shoulders.

Him groaning against my nipple sent shivers through my whole
body. I couldn't hold on much longer. The reminder of how I could make him feel
was almost even better than the friction of him inside of me.

"Come for me, Penny."

"Not yet." I clenched my teeth together. I didn't
want this to end yet. "Don't stop. Please, not yet."

"Don't worry, we're only just getting started. Come,
baby." He lightly bit down on my nipple and tugged.

The sensation seemed to have a direct line to my groin. I
felt myself starting to clench around him.

His grip on my thigh tightened as he continued to move his
length in and out of me, faster and faster. "Now, Penny."

My back arched and all my worries began to float away,
replaced by pure bliss. "James!"
Yes!
I reached out for him.
He grabbed my arm and pulled me back to a seated position as his lips smashed
against mine. There was an urgency to the way he kissed me, a hunger. And I
wanted to satiate that need. He continued to thrust in and out of me, riding
out my orgasm.

I fisted my fingers in his hair to pull his lips away from
mine. "Do whatever you want to me."

His dick swelled inside of me.

"Whatever you were dreaming about when we were a part. I
want it too."

His desk phone started ringing. James pulled out of me,
picked up the phone and yanked hard, ripping the cord out along with the phone.
It immediately stopped ringing. "Give me your hands."

I put my hands out in front of me and watch him wrap the
phone cord around my wrists, tightening it so that it only just dug into my
skin. I looked up at him. "You dreamed of tying me up?"

"I dreamed of having you in every way possible." He
grabbed my ass and lifted my legs around his waist. "But my fiancée is
incredibly horny. And I know you. You're in the mood for more than just making
love." He walked us around to the other side of the desk, set me down on
the edge, and put his lips to my ear. His warm breath made my skin tingle.
"You want it rough and dirty, and I'm going to give you exactly what you
want. Close your eyes, baby."

His words immediately heated me up again. I closed my eyes
and felt something silky drape across my eyes. It must have been his tie, even
though I hadn't seen him take it off. He tied it behind my head and he cupped
my chin in his hand. His thumb ran across my bottom lip. "Do you want to
play a game?"

I felt empty without him inside of me and vulnerable without
my sight. My thighs instinctively moved together, but he was standing between
them. I felt his warm skin against mine, which sent goose bumps down my legs. I
had said whatever he wanted, and now my heart was beating out of my chest. But
it was more from anticipation than fear. "Anything you want."

He placed a soft kiss against my lips and put his hand
between my breasts. "Lay down," he said and lightly pushed between my
breasts until my back was pressed against his desk again. I felt his hands on
my hips, slowly removing my skirt, leaving me completely naked. I heard him
walk around to the other side of his desk. He grabbed my hands and pulled them
above my head. When he released me a moment later, I couldn't move my arms.

He leaned down and kissed the crook of my neck. "Stay
there." I heard his footsteps leave the desk.

"Where are you going?"

"I'll be right back. Stay still."

I tried to move my arms again, but couldn't. "Don't you
dare leave me like this, James." But the door had already closed.

Shit.
This was why people didn't have office sex. I
still couldn't move my arms. What was I attached to? I put my heels on the edge
of the desk and pushed back until I could move my arms slightly. I ran my
fingers along the phone cord until I felt the knob to his desk drawer. The knot
was insanely tight. My fingers fumbled as I tried to untie it.

A knock on the door made me jump.
Fuck!

"Now that's a sight to see," James said.

"James, what the hell?" I pulled on the phone cord
and made the drawer open and slam shut. "Anyone could have walked
in."

"The door is locked. I never even left." His voice
was getting closer. "I just wanted to see what you did when you thought I
wasn't watching." I felt the tip of his cock press against my lips.
"And you're terrible at following directions." He put his erect cock
into my mouth. "I asked you to stay still."

I couldn't say anything with his dick pressed to the back of
my throat.

"Here's how this is going to work." He slowly moved
his length in and out of my mouth. He tasted like sex and that unique taste
that was all his own.

I tightened my lips around him.

"Fuck." He pulled out of me. "Now, you're
going to stay still." He ran his finger down the center of my stomach.
"This sexy line right here that runs right into your belly button is one
of my favorite parts about you."

I felt something hot spread onto my stomach. I immediately
tried to sit up.

"Stop." He grabbed my thighs to prevent me from
moving. His warm tongue danced along my stomach and down, stopping right above
my clit. "The thing is, I love foreplay. I love seeing you squirm. I love
when you beg me."

He poured more of the hot liquid onto my stomach. This time,
I stayed still. It wasn't burning me; it was warm, almost pleasant.

"Each time you move, I'm going to have to stop whatever
I'm doing to lap up the coffee before it spills on my desk."

Coffee? This was going to make such a mess. I didn't want to
picture Nita's face when James asked her to clean this up. "What are you
going to be doing to me?"

"Teasing you until you follow the rules."

"James, don't you have a lot of work to catch up on? And
someone might stop by to talk to..."

He pressed a finger down hard on my clit.

God.
My back immediately arched.

His finger moved away as quickly as it had come and I felt
his tongue slide down my stomach. "You're so bad at this."

"James."

"Penny." He poured more coffee on my stomach. I
felt it flow downward and pool in my belly button. "How about you tell me
why you were upset earlier." He kissed the side of my neck.

I kept my mouth shut.

He ran his fingers up the insides of my thighs and lightly
nipped the top of my thigh, right beneath where I wanted him most.

I moaned softly.

"Tell me." He kissed the same spot and his hot
breath lingered between my thighs.

I needed him. "You kissed Isabella."

His hands fell from my thighs. "What?" The
seduction from his voice was gone.

I didn't want to tell him about how Isabella had tricked me.
Not when I couldn't see his reaction. Not when I was tied to his desk with no
clothes on. "I saw you," I lied. "Last week when she came here
to talk to you and you ditched me for lunch." I pulled on the phone cord
and made the drawer slam shut again. "I saw you kiss her."

"Jesus, Penny, why didn't you say something sooner? I
didn't fucking kiss Isabella."

He was awfully defensive. The anger in his voice was
palpable. "I saw you." I bit my lip. It wasn't really a lie. I had a
photograph proving it. I tried to move again, but the phone cord dug into my
wrists.

"Stop." He grabbed my arms to make me stop moving.
With his other hand, he ran his thumb along my bottom lip again to keep me from
biting it. "Then you only saw it for less than a second. Because she tried
to kiss me, but I shoved her off immediately. I thought she was hugging me
goodbye."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because there was nothing to tell. Isabella means
nothing to me. I wasn't going to upset you for no reason."

"For no reason? Your ex wife kissed you and now you've
been exchanging phone calls. You said she was being nice. What was I supposed
to think?"
And she's been harassing me.

"That I would never cheat on you."

I pressed my lips together. I immediately felt more liquid
being poured onto my stomach. "James, I don't want to play this game
anymore. Untie me."

"You don't trust me." He didn't ask it, he said it
as a statement.

I wasn't sure if I did or didn't. I wanted to. Rob had made it
seem like he hadn't cheated on me during his bachelor party. And James had just
proved my suspicion that the kiss with Isabella wasn't what it seemed.
Everything that Isabella had sent me was complete bullshit. "I do trust
you."

"You don't. How do you not know how I feel about you
after all this time? After everything we've been through?"

"I'm sorry. I do trust you."

"You trust me with your body." He ran his hand down
the side of my waist and over my hip. "You're so beautiful." His
voice sounded sad.

"James, I trust you."

"Not entirely."

"I do."

"Then prove it."

"What?"

He sunk his finger deep inside of me.

Fuck.
I was just about to arch my back, but he grabbed
my breast hard and held me down against the desk.

"Stop moving." His voice was forceful. He slid
another finger inside of me, stretching me wide, and squeezing my breast even
harder.