Freed (Bad Boy Hitman Romance) (56 page)

“She’s a kid, she’s grieving.”

Glancing up into his eyes, I saw that he was uncomfortable. “What don’t I know, Tanner?”

“Nothing.” He fingered a lock of my hair, twirling it around his index finger. “She’s talking out of anger. It’ll smooth out.”

I continued to hold his gaze and relented. He was right. Rebecca had always been one to react. It would smooth out. She didn’t know what I knew. “Promise me something.”

Releasing my hair, he pulled me in to him again. “If I can.”

Pulling my legs up and onto the swing, I settled in to him, closing my eyes, taking comfort in the gentle, rhythmic thumping of his heart. “Promise it’s all going to be okay.”

“Your life is yours again, Emily. And I promise that for the rest of your life, I’ll do everything in my power to ensure nothing and no one ever hurts you again. So, it’ll be okay. Give it time and it’ll all be okay again.”

And I believed him.

~*~*~*~*~

Tanner

“How are you doing?” I asked, looking over at Emily sitting in the passenger’s seat watching her parents’ house as it disappeared from view.

“It’s weird, you know?”

I frowned, glancing at her then quickly returning my focus on the road. No, I didn’t really know. “What do you mean?”

“All those people at the funeral. Saying all those wonderful things. Praising him. As if he were a saint. But…” She sighed, placing her elbow against the door and placing her chin in her hand. “I know the truth. Is it bad that I wish I didn’t?”

“No, of course not.”

“I wish I didn’t know.”

I nodded.

“I just don’t understand. I mean, I can almost grasp that he was a killer, almost, but he was going to kill me. His daughter.”

God, this was awkward. And for the hundredth time since her father died I felt powerless. I wished I had the magic words to make it all better, but I didn’t.

Her hand rubbed at her chest, over the bandage, and then began to claw at it.

“Whoa, stop.” Grabbing her hand, I laced my fingers with hers and placed our hands on my thigh. “You’ll pull out the stitches.”

“Every day. Every time I look down, I’ll see that scar. Mother is lucky, she gets the good memories. I get—” she snorted. “—scarred. A lifetime reminder.”

“We can find a tattoo artist once it’s healed, maybe have a nice chest piece done. You’ll never know it’s there.”

Her full attention reverted back to me. “You don’t cover your scars.”

I shrugged. “But the past doesn’t haunt me, sweetie.”

“Lucky bastard.”

Laughing outright, I gave her hand a squeeze. “You can only move on, love. You’ve reconnected with your mother and she doesn’t seem angry you were gone, only glad you’re back. If you want me to take you to see her every day, I will. But I’ll be honest, I’d rather buy you a car and have you drive yourself. But if you want me to play chauffeur, I will.”

She smiled, the first smile I’d seen from her all day. “You really are trying to play Prince Charming, aren’t you?”

“Considering I’m now out of a job, I don’t have anything better to do to occupy my time.”

Her smile faded. “What are you going to do?”

Flynn came to mind. I had yet to get hold of Flynn and find out the price for taking care of Pastor William for me. I was sure whatever it was, it wouldn’t be cheap and it wouldn’t be money he’d want. I owed him twice over now. We’d work something out. I didn’t give Emily any indication of what I was thinking; instead I smiled and shrugged. “Well, I’ve got enough money to last us our lifetime over if we’re careful. Retire. We could travel. I could take up playing
World of Warcraft
. Dunno.”

She giggled. “I don’t see you as a gamer type.”

Giving her a wink, I replied, “Oh honey, you should know by now I love games.” I was given an eye roll in response for that. Truth was, I honestly didn’t know. I hadn’t been thinking long term for the past few weeks now – things were happening so fast all I could think of was the here and now.

“Come on, be serious.”

“Let’s just play it by ear. From here on in, it’s going to get better, I promise.”

Chapter 30

~ Six months later ~

Emily

“Emily! When I get loose, you’ll be sorry,” Tanner bellowed from the other room.

I bit down on my lower lip to keep from laughing. His threats at one time would have sent a bolt of fear through me, but not anymore. His words were meaningless, but his predicament wasn’t. I’d drugged him – nothing major, just a little sleeping pill in his evening brandy – then tied his hands to the bedposts while he slept and inserted the vibrating anal plug into his ass. It would take some time for him to get free. He would – eventually – and be severely horny and pissed. Then the games would begin.

Forcing myself to remain calm – if I laughed it would break the scenario I’d set up – I strolled into the bedroom and over to his bedside. He was naked, his cock rock solid, and he was yanking with such force at the bindings that his wrists were becoming raw.

“Problem, Master?” I cocked an eyebrow at him and waited for his gaze to meet mine.

“Emily. Let me go.”

I shook my head. “Nope.” First would come the bargaining, then the threats. It had become a routine.

“Let me go and we’ll forget this ever happened.”

I reached down and grasped his cock, stroking him until a drop of pre-cum pearled at the tip. “Nope.”

He groaned, fisting his hands above his head and struggling with more force, his gaze becoming fierce.

Releasing him, I straightened back up. “Sorry, Sir.” He hated when I used Sir and Master with condescension in my tone. But I needed him frustrated and angered – it made the games all the more exciting and satisfying in the end.

The first couple of times we’d done this, I’ll be honest, a part of me had been scared I’d pushed him too far and he’d end up taking his rage out on me. Playing this game was like unleashing an angered tiger and expecting it to go back into its cage. But he never did. No matter how much I screamed, clawed, bit, when he eventually caught me, he never hurt me. Though the scars on his otherwise beautifully muscular body, put there by my hand, were increasing.

When he caught me he did punish me, but it wasn’t with whips or canes or anything of the sort. No, none of that, but he would make me scream, over and over again until we were both exhausted to the point of falling asleep in each other’s arms wherever it was that he’d caught me.

These games seemed to feed the beast within him and kept him docile. I’m sure that there are dozens of shrinks who would love to have us in their office, questioning the mental health of both of us. To most our mock capture and rape scenarios would be sick and perverted, but to us it was all a game, an essential addition to our already varied sex life.

“Emily. I swear to whatever God you foolishly believe in…”

I almost lost it right then and bit down on my lip once more to keep from laughing.

“Master, I hardly think we need to bring our lord and saviour into this.”

His dark eyes narrowed at me. “Slave, I’ll have you on your knees praying to my cock when I get free.”

I cocked a brow up at him, crossing my arms over my chest. “That so? Considering you’re the one tied to a bed, I’d hardly call me the slave, Master.”

My eyes scanned the length of his body and landed on his dick again. Heat flared up between my legs and it was taking all my strength to keep from saying to hell with the games, stripping and riding his cock until I’d had my fill.

You know what? I think I will
. I looked at his bonds again. Still secure. It would take some time for him to free himself. Yes, I definitely had time to ride him, get off and make a run for it.

“What are you doing?” He eyed me with suspicion as I undid the delicate pearl buttons of the sheer white blouse I was wearing and then shimmied out of the black pencil skirt. Reaching behind me, I undid the clasp on my bra and last but not least the matching pale yellow lace panties slid down my legs to puddle at my feet with the skirt.

“Taking what I want. Try and stop me.” Giving him a cocky grin that received a scowl in return, I climbed onto the bed. Swinging my leg over his hips, I settled onto him, his rock-solid cock peeping out between my legs. Sitting up, I ran the head of his dick between my moist folds and savoured the sound of his anguished groan.

“Fuck, Emily, when I get loose…” He struggled at the bonds again, with greater force, shaking the entire bed.

“
If
you get loose.” I stroked him for another minute, as my juices pooled between my legs, and positioned his shaft at my entrance. Keeping my gaze locked to his heated stare, I slowly sank down onto him, moaning softly and relishing every sweet inch as his cock stretched me. I loved the power and control I had over him when he was like this.

I slid my hands up his abdominals, tracing the lines of muscle as I began to slowly move on him. I ground my hips against his, moving so the head of his dick stroked my inner wall, stroking me in just the right spot to send wave upon wave of pleasure through me.

“Mmm, I love how well you fit in me. So good.”

“Emily. Dammit, Emily, let me go.”
 

Arching my back and closing my eyes, allowing my head to fall back, dark hair cascading down my back, I gripped his thighs in my hands and began to move faster. My moans mixed with his groans of pleasure as I focused on the feel of him inside me. I needed to come before him, bringing him to the brink but not allowing him to climax.

My fingernails dug into his thighs as I came closer and closer, my movements increasing, my breasts bouncing. My mind began to cloud as the pleasure became more intense. He began bucking up and into me, meeting every rotation of my hips.

“Tanner, ok god, Tanner!” My stomach clenched as I came closer and closer, the need and anticipation becoming almost too much to bear. And then I was there, cresting and then falling into an abyss of pleasure and relief.
 

Screaming out, I released his legs and I fell forward on him, placing quick, frantic kisses on his chest as a gush of my juices greeted his cock. I gave myself a moment to come down. It was so tempting to remain there on him, but I could feel the pressure building within him, could feel his muscles tightening just as they did when he got close to release.

Quickly, before I had a chance to change my mind and remain right where I was, I pulled off him and scrambled from the bed and raced naked across the room to the door. At the door, I paused and turned back to look at him.
 

~*~*~*~*~

Tanner

Just as I was about to come, the pleasure ended and she was gone. A loud growl of frustration erupted from me as I opened my eyes and glared at Emily as she dashed across the room. I gave the bindings a tug so hard I heard a crack as the bedframe started to give out. She stopped and looked over her shoulder at me. When our gazes locked, the little bitch had the nerve to wink at me before bolting from the room.

The rage, the anger, the frustration, it all exploded within me. One, two, three more forceful yanks and instead of the bonds giving way like the plan had been, another crack and the rung she’d tied me to snapped and I was free.

With a roar of triumph, I sprang upright on the bed and within seconds freed my wrists from the bindings. Sliding off the bed to the floor, I didn’t even give the broken bed a second thought – my one and only focus was the chase and relieving the torment in my cock. She’d scream, she’d beg and by God I’d have tears.

“Emily, I swear to God, when I get my hands on you…” I bellowed, reaching the doorway to the bedroom and racing down the hallway. I stopped in the foyer. I looked to the left, which would lead me to the living room and kitchen, and then down the stairs, which would take me to the wine cellar and showroom. The dogs hadn’t begun barking, as they always did in anticipation of seeing her, so she hadn’t gone outdoors.

Down. I knew it. It was like I could sense her presence downstairs. I lunged at the stairs, taking two, sometimes three at a time, reaching the bottom floor at record speed. At the bottom floor I headed straight to her room. It was an easy choice. She refused to go into the showroom and my playroom, so it didn’t leave many other options.

“Come out now and beg forgiveness and I’ll take it easy on you.” Making my way to her old bedroom, I grasped the door handle and it turned in my hand. She was trapped. There was nowhere she could hide in there, not really.

When I opened the door, the room appeared empty, but I could feel her presence. I didn’t hesitate. Crossing the room to the bed, I crouched down, reached under the bed and instead of grabbing her arm or ankle like planned I came up empty. I was about to remove my hand to bend and look under when a surge of pain raced up my hand.

“Motherfucker!” Snatching my hand back, I looked down at it. There were teeth marks, but she hadn’t broken the skin – she never did. With one hand I grabbed the bed and tipped it on its side to see her hunkered.

She leapt to her feet, but I was faster, grabbing her around the waist. “Nooooo. Let me go!” Despite my grasp on her, she somehow managed to squirm free of my hold and run past me and out into the hall, turning in the direction of the stairs.

“There’s no escaping, Emily!” I yelled after her, intentionally giving her a few-second head start. I looked at my throbbing hand. She hadn’t broken the skin, but it was going to bruise. My body had more cuts, scars and bruises on it than it ever had in my entire lifetime, all put there by Emily. I’m sure most people would consider mixing sex with violence like this to be highly toxic, but for us it was just the opposite, it was therapeutic.
 

At the doorway I turned in the direction of the staircase and rushed through it. As I reached the bottom of the staircase, she hit the top step and span to look down at me. “How’s the hand, Master?”

I lunged. She screamed, turned and ran.

I caught up to her a second time in the living room, and I had no intention of letting her go this time. Tackling her to the floor, I shifted my body so I landed on my back with her on top of me. No matter how much damage my body took from our games, my priority was to keep her safe. It was the trust that we shared that kept the darkness at bay while keeping her from getting hurt.

She screamed and she fought, her fists beating on my chest as I flipped her onto her back. Grabbing her wrists I pinned them above her head as I settled between her legs. She bucked and squirmed under me and somehow I managed to get even harder. She was a brilliant actor, playing the victim perfectly. Had it not been for the fact that her pussy was drenched and ready for me, I’d have thought this was real. But one thing that was very real was the feel of her heel making contact with my lower ribs. I groaned, but the pain only amplified the need to be in her, filling her with my cum.

“I hate you!” she screamed, glaring up at me, but her eyes said differently.

“But you want it,” I countered.

“Fuck you!”

I grinned. Slipping my cock between her legs, my lips came crashing down onto hers as I slammed into her in one hard, violent thrust. She moaned against my lips, but her struggling stopped. Instead she wrapped her legs around my waist and pulled me in, arching her pelvis and taking me deeper. This was where the lines between the game and reality merged. My need for the violence and pussy morphed into her need for the affection and lovemaking. The dark and the light mixed and merged, the two halves becoming whole.