His Prize (The Cleaners Book 1) (3 page)

Susie’s shoulders slumped. She started trembling, but she did nod.

“Excellent. Enjoy your prize, Ren. You’ve certainly earned it today.” Owen regarded the trembling woman through dispassionate eyes. “It would be far easier to simply kill this one, too. I know you like a challenge…”

“Please, I’ll be good. I don’t want to die.”

Owen waved a hand in dismissal, and Ren threw his newly acquired bundle of curves over his shoulder. She struggled, so he swatted her ass several more times in quick succession, until she went limp against him. Her sweet feminine musk hit Ren’s nostrils, and he winked at Owen while adjusting himself with his free hand.

“Like I told you earlier, pumpkin, if I wanted you dead, you’d be floating in the canal already. Now be a good girl, and thank Mr. Huntly for taking care of you.”

Something sounding suspiciously like a muffled
Fuck You!
came from the girl flung over his back, and Ren pinched the ample thigh under his restraining arm.

“I’m waiting, pumpkin,” he said.

“Thanks for nothing.” The sassy reply made Ren grin, and his boss shook his head with a wry grin in his direction.

“Have fun taming that one, Ren,” Owen said.

“Oh, I intend to.”

Chapter Three

Being carted out of the club, flung over Ren’s shoulder as though she was nothing more than a sack of spuds, shouldn’t be a turn-on, especially after the way both Ren and Huntly had talked about her as though she was nothing more than an object of payment. Damn the sorry lot of them, and damn her hormones. Maybe it was just the threat to her life that made her act so out of character. They said that, didn’t they? Sex was life affirming, after all, and with all your senses heightened it made some sort of convoluted sense that she was turned on … maybe?

Susie gave up trying to make sense of it as she bounced over Ren’s shoulder. She couldn’t see much with her hair obscuring her vision, which was probably just as well. She didn’t want to see other people’s smirks at her humiliation, especially as she found the rhythmic clenching of Ren’s ass cheeks a far too arousing view. Her work uniform consisted of nothing more than a tiny skirt and low cut blouse, and with his hand clamped firmly under her ass, he would know how embarrassingly wet she was getting at this blatant caveman act. It spoke to the deeply buried submissive part of her, the one that was always attracted to the bad boys. The one awakened by her ex. The one that had meant he’d taken full advantage of her need to please him. Little had she known it had all been an act to groom her to bend to his will, and when that hadn’t worked, he’d run up debts in her name she would never be able to pay off in her lifetime, unless she did what he wanted her to. As she wasn’t prepared to do that, the circling loan sharks had forced her out of her home and into seeking refuge here at this club and with Huntly. Talk about jumping from the frying pan and into the fire.

She’d known Brian was bad news, hadn’t she? Just like she knew Ren was even worse news, yet that thought just turned her on even more. She was turning into a fucking cliché, and there wasn’t a thing she could do about it, even if she wanted to.

Her life was spiraling out of control and down the proverbial drain at a speed that left her breathless. Cold air hit her exposed flesh when they left the club behind. A car alarm beeped, and in the next instant she was on her feet. Ren’s hand dug into her elbow, as he wrenched open the door to an old, silver E-type Jaguar. Susie didn’t know much about cars, but she knew this one had to be worth a fortune. From the brief glimpse she got, before he pushed her inside the plush interior, it was in pristine condition. Her heart turned into a jackhammer when he reached across her to strap her into the seatbelt.

“Don’t even think of trying to make a run for it, pumpkin. While it would be fun to chase you, it wouldn’t end well … for
you.”

He smirked at her sharp intake of breath and tightened the seatbelt over her breasts. She screwed her eyes shut when he ran his fingers over her nipples. His hot breaths ghosted across her face, bringing with it the faint scent of tobacco, mint, and a whiff of whatever cologne he used. Something dark and spicy, dangerous like the man himself. Susie couldn’t stop her whimper of need when he pinched each of her nipples. Even through the fabric of her blouse and the thin lace of her bra those traitorous points responded and sent darts of need down to her clit. That little bundle of nerves contracted, and her pussy muscles clenched, further soaking the gusset of her knickers with her arousal. Heat stained her cheeks, and she shook her head in denial at his breathy words.

“So responsive, pumpkin. I’m going to have fun torturing these, until you beg me to fuck you.”

“Never.” Even to her own ears that reply was far too breathy, and sure enough his dark laughter washed over her. She breathed a sigh of relief when the air displaced with his retreat. Her car door slammed shut, his opened, and the car dipped as he slid into his seat. Seconds later the powerful engine throbbed into life. Country music filled the space, and Susie cautiously opened her eyes. A grim smile played around his lips as he pulled away, and she knew her mouth fell open when he startled to whistle along to the tune of an old Dolly Parton song. He glanced over to her and reaching across snapped her mouth shut for her. The devilish wink which accompanied those actions made her insides clench. Whether in fear or arousal she wasn’t entirely sure, but in the close confines of the car, his sheer masculine presence was overwhelming. It made breathing difficult, especially when he slid his large hand down to her thigh.

“Open up, girl.”

She didn’t even think to disobey that clipped command, and goosebumps broke out over her skin when he murmured his approval at her compliance.

“Good girl.”

He slowly slid the calloused pads of his digits up her thighs, until he reached the sodden crotch of her underwear, and his smirk deepened.

“Such a naughty girl, too.” Susie bit the inside of her mouth to stop herself from moaning as he traced the seam of her slit through the cloth with maddeningly slow strokes, designed to drive her insane. “Take them off for me, pull your skirt up, and let me see what’s mine.”

“Wh-at?” Her squeak of an answer seemed to amuse him, and in the next instant, she screeched when he slapped her hard across her pussy.

“Let’s get one thing straight, girl. When I tell you to do something you do it, and the correct address is Sir. Are we clear?”

The ache in her cunt turned to a soothing caress when he rubbed his palm up and down her slit, before he released her with a sharp pinch to her inside thigh.

“I’m waiting, girl. You’ve already earned yourself a punishment, so don’t make this worse for you.”

“Yes, Sir.” Susie ground the words out through gritted teeth, and his low laughter washed over her as she shimmied out of her embarrassingly wet knickers. Heat stained her cheeks when she handed them over and saw him lift them to his nose.

“See, that wasn’t so hard now, was it? We’ll get along just fine, as long as you do as you’re told.”

Suzie thought it wisest not to comment on that. She crossed her arms instead, and stared straight ahead, determined to ignore him. It was only when they pulled up in her street, that she broke her silence with a groan. Her front door was open, the living room window was broken, and some of her clothes were strewn all over the garden path. By far more frightening, however, were the painted words across the door.

Time to pay, Bitch.

She felt rather than saw Ren’s whole demeanor change. One of his large hands clamped down on her shoulder, and she didn’t need his harsh command to stay rooted in her seat to comply. There was no way she was going anywhere until she knew whoever had done that to her house wasn’t still there.

The locks clicked on the car, and in the next instant, Ren had disappeared inside her grandmother’s house like a hulking shadow of doom. When he reappeared moments later, he looked even more furious, if that was possible. She cried out in pain when he wrenched her out of his car by her arm and propelled her into the wrecked interior of her house. Tears filled her eyes at the devastation she saw. Everything had been turned upside down, anything valuable stolen, and on the inside of the living room wall was another message.

Pay up or die.

“What sort of shit are you involved in, girl?”

Ren’s voice had dropped to a deep growl, and the fingers still clamped around her forearm tightened painfully. She would have bruises there tomorrow, for sure, yet she felt oddly safe with him.

“Answer me, dammit.”

Ren gave her a shake, and when she looked up it was the concern she saw in his amber gaze that made her answer. Besides, what else could she do? He would find out sooner or later, anyway, and she was as good as dead anyway.

“I’m not, it’s Brian Monk. He’s my ex, works for…” She flinched when Ren ran a hand through his hair, and shook his head.

“The Priestly brothers, right?”

Ren swore softly when she simply nodded. Susie stumbled as he gave her a shove away, as though he couldn’t bear to touch her right now.

He kicked what had been her grandma’s favorite armchair with so much force the stuffing flew in the air, and clasping her arms around her midriff, Susie screwed her eyes shut. The only consolation was that her beloved grandma was not here to see how far she’d fallen into the criminal underbelly that ruled these streets. There was some comfort in the fact that her grandmother’s mental decline had meant she had been blissfully unaware of the estate’s fall from grace, as so aptly witnessed by the state of the place. No doubt the neighbors had been through the place, too. Certainly none of them would have come to Susie’s aid, had she been here when the loan sharks had turned up. The fact that she was truly alone hit her hard, as did Ren’s next words.

“So much for your protestations of not being a whore.” There was an odd undertone to Ren’s voice, almost as though he was disappointed, and it made her feel even more wretched inside.

“I’m
not
a whore.” She risked a peek up at him, only to find him not paying attention to her. In a fit of madness she picked up one of the cushions and threw it at his back. Ren swung ‘round so fast that she took several steps back until the wall stopped her. Like an avenging angel he stalked her every move, and her stomach hollowed out when he grasped her arms and pinned them high above her head, while he got right in her face.

“Wouldn’t matter to me if you were, but I cannot abide liars, let alone someone working for the competition. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t march you right back to Huntly now and hand you over. You can work off your debt for him, if he lets you live that is.”

The smirk which accompanied those words was utterly terrifying, and Susie shook her head in an attempt to make him see sense.

“No?” Ren laughed, and transferring both her wrists into one of his large hands, grasped her chin. His fingers dug into her cheeks, and she lost herself in the intensity of his gaze. “I suppose, I could keep you and pass you ‘round my boys instead.”

“No, please, Sir. I’m not—”

“A whore, yeah, so you keep saying, girl. Trouble is, I don’t believe a fucking word coming out of your mouth right now.”

He stepped away, leaving her curiously bereft, and Susie did the only thing she knew that might get through to him. Sinking to her knees in front of him, she grasped hold of his ankles, and kissed his boots.

“Please, Sir, let me explain.”

****

Seeing her submit like this should have been a huge turn-on, but this all felt wrong. He was missing something here, and Ren didn’t like that feeling one little bit. Neither did he like the gnawing ache of disappointment in his guts.

Schooling his features into a mask of indifference, he crossed his arms over his chest, and shook the girl’s trembling fingers off his legs. Her face dropped at his actions, and parking his butt on the edge of the chair, he put distance between them.

“Go, on, explain, and you better tell me the truth, girl, or so help me, I’ll leave you here for them to find you and finish off the job.”

Her expressive eyes widened in horror, and she swallowed convulsively as though to hold back tears. A grudging respect rose in his chest for her. She was clearly terrified and in a shitload of trouble, yet she held it together, just like she had when she’d stumbled into the mess with Myrtle. Ren realized with a start that he wanted her to be innocent in all this, and that made his mood darken further. She was just a series of warm holes for him to fill, after all. He would have his fun, and then pass her on, so her past shouldn’t matter to him one iota.

“Please, Sir, I
am
telling the truth. I’m not a whore.”

At his disgusted snort, her mouth firmed into a thin line. She threw her shoulders back, which gave him an even better view down her blouse. Several buttons had come undone in his manhandling of her, and the heavy orbs quivered and strained with the force of her breathing. His fingers itched to test their weight, and to have this woman squirming underneath him, but he wanted … needed answers first.

“If you’re not one of Brian’s girls, then what are you? His
girlfriend
?” He smirked as he said that, but her reaction left him speechless. Red spots appeared on her cheeks, and she dropped her gaze to the floor, her voice so quiet that he had to strain to hear her.

“I was, or at least I thought I was. I met him just after my Gran died, and he was…” She looked up at him, and the moisture lurking in her gaze hit him in the gut with the force of a runaway train. He could read nothing but absolute honesty in her blue eyes right now, filled with painful memories that made him feel like an ass for having doubted her in the first place.

“Let me guess. This was your grandmother’s house.” He made a sweeping gesture around the wrecked room. The torn doilies on the back of the settee and the smashed knickknacks in the dresser took on a new meaning when she nodded.

“Yes, I grew up here, and she’d turn in her grave if she saw what those bastards had done to it. I could kill him, I really could.”

She flinched at Ren’s short laugh in response, and when he held his hand out to her, struggled to her feet.

“You are many things, pumpkin, but a killer you’re not.”

She gave him a half smile, and he rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand in a silent bid for her to carry on talking, while he steered her onto the tattered couch. She swiped a tear off her face, while she attempted to push some of the stuffing back into the seat, and eventually gave up.