Kiss of Ice (St. James Family) (12 page)

She dropped to her knees, taking his jeans with her. He slapped his palms on the countertop. “Turn around,” she said.

“Annie,” he warned. She dragged her teeth across his left ass cheek and bit down, lightly.

“
Turn around,” she repeated. He turned, finally, his delicious erection at her eye level. She leaned forward, closing her mouth around the head of him. She licked him like a lollipop, swirling her tongue around him. His fingers tightened on the edge of the countertop, his knuckles whitening. He stared at her, his face pained.

“
Watch me,” Annata whispered, then sucked him so deep in her throat she almost gagged. She felt warmth wash over her as he filled her. She was completely under his control, and yet, he was completely under hers.  He let out a jagged breath, his stomach taut. His cock was heavy and big in her mouth. She closed her eyes, savoring the feel of him. He bucked against her, and a thrill ran through her.

She felt his fingertips on her cheek. She let his cock thrust against the inside of her cheek, so he could feel himself inside of her. She didn't realize she was holding her breath until her lungs felt like they were going to burst. Then she reared back and let him drop from her mouth. Christy gave a throaty groan and his cock jerked in front of her. She ran her tongue up the length of him. Then she sat back on her heels.

“
Will the food be here soon? I'm suddenly starving.”

“
Annie,” he said through gritted teeth.

“
What? We have all night.” She said.

“
Don't.”

“
Don't what?” she asked. She pushed herself to standing and reached around him, making sure her arm brushed the skin of his side. She took a wine glass and put it to her lips. “Mmm,” she moaned. “It's good.” He watched her, a dangerous look in his eye. She turned from him, swinging her hips as she headed back toward the living room. She heard him behind her before he grabbed her, but she was still unprepared for the force with which he threw her on the bed. Somewhere, the wine glass broke. She landed on her stomach, her heart pounding in her throat.

She felt his weight on top of her, fingers digging into her hips as he angled her against him. She bucked, wanting him so bad she ached. And then he thrust into her so hard and deep it took her breath away.

“Cock tease,” he said, his voice rough. He shoved into her again. Her cheek scraped against the duvet as he fucked her. He closed his hand over hers, his face pressed into her hair. She spread her fingers, and he tightened his, their hands intertwining.  A scream ripped from her throat as he thrust again and ground his hips into her ass. He stilled. “Am I hurting you?” he said, out of breath.

“
Don't stop,” she moaned, tightening her grip on his fingers. He swept her hair off of her neck and kissed her there, softly.

“
You do this to me,” he said. He dug his knees into the bed, further forcing hers apart. Then he plunged into her ruthlessly, again and again. She grit her teeth against the onslaught, her body screaming for release. “Only you.” He whispered against her skin. Another cry of passion escaped her lips as he rammed into her, filling her completely until there was no room for clear or rational thought. She could feel herself being sucked into the black hole where only she and Christophe existed.

She heard a muffled scream and she felt him jerk and spasm inside of her. “Tell me you love me.” She breathed. If she didn't come, her heart was going to explode out of her chest, she just knew it.

“I love you. Oh God, I love you,” he said hoarsely, and she came apart. She felt his come filling her as stars burst behind her eyelids. She throbbed around him, her body humming with the force of her orgasm. One last cry ripped from her throat and then they collapsed into each other, sweating and breathing hard.

“
Dammit, Annie,” he breathed before he rolled off of her onto his back. She felt a giggle rising to the surface and she couldn't contain it. Soon, she was laughing hysterically into the duvet. A tide of joy swept over and she couldn't help it. Maybe it was the jet lag? She didn't know or care. She was too happy.

Christophe rolled her over onto her back in a quick movement. “I'm going to try not to take it personal that you're laughing after I just fucked you,” he said. She threw her arms around his neck.

“Oh Christy.” She gasped between giggles.

“
What?”

“
Nothing,” she said. A smile spread across his face.

“
Was it that good?”

“
Shut up!” She giggled, burying her face in his chest. God. It was almost as if she'd never had sex before—but sex with Christophe was in a completely different category than any sex she'd had before. It was as if their bodies were made to fit together.

He pinned her hands above her head. “You're going to pay for that.” He kissed her hard and deep and she felt herself melting all over again. The buzzer rang suddenly and both of them jumped. “Shit.” He slid off of her. “Don't move a muscle.” Annata sat up, alarmed, as she remembered the wine glass, broken somewhere on the floor.

“Watch out for the glass!” she called out. He glanced at the floor, and sidestepped  an area around the couch. She vaguely hoped the wine glass—and the wasted wine— wasn't too expensive. He blew her a kiss before grabbing a robe from the bathroom door on his way to the elevator.  She sat forward, dropping one foot to the floor, intent on cleaning up the mess. He caught her with a look.

“
Ah. Don't move.” He smiled. She rolled over, pulling the duvet with her, covering herself. She heard Christophe talking to the delivery guy and smiled.  Christophe was right, they still had all night. And she didn't plan on wasting it.

Chapter 15

Christophe woke to an errant light shining him in the eye. A crack between the curtains was the culprit. Grumbling, he rolled over onto his stomach, settling his arm over Annie. Aftershocks of the sex that had taken place the night before shot through his body. He shuddered as his sensitive dick brushed her thigh. Remembering the events of the night before, he couldn't help but smile. He had made her come three more times before they collapsed from exhaustion. Annie slept naked, on her back, with the blanket down around her hips. Palming her supple breasts, he wondered if she was cold. He pulled the blanket up over her chest. He kissed her collarbone and nuzzled her neck before closing his eyes again. He didn't know what time it was and he didn't care. Nothing was getting him out of the bed they shared.

He was finally drifting back to sleep when he heard his phone vibrating on the bedside table. He ignored it. Eventually, it shut up. Then Annata's phone on her side of the bed began ringing. A loud, annoying, business-like ring. “Fucking son of a bitch,” he grumbled. Annie rolled over, reaching a blind hand for the phone. She answered it without even opening her eyes.

“
This is Annata St. James.” Her voice was remarkably clear. Was she ever less than perfect? He tossed himself over on his back and flung his arm over his face. Obviously, he wasn't going to be getting anymore sleep anytime soon. “Hi, William,” she said. He felt her moving beside him. He snuck a peek. She was sitting up straight, her eyes open. “The flight was fine,” she said. “When do you want to meet?”  She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. “Dinner will work. I look forward to it.” Then she hung up and flopped back onto the pillows. Christophe rolled back over, snuggling his head against her breasts.

“
The Old Man wants a play by play of Paris?” he asked.

“
Of course.” She ran her hand through his hair. He closed his eyes, the rhythm of her breathing and the warmth of her skin lulling him back to sleep. “I'm sure he wants both of us to be there.”

“
Do you want me there?” he said.

“
No,” she said, sighing. “One look at us and he'll know we've been fucking.”

“
Maybe he will, who cares?”

“
I care.” She traced the line of his cheekbone.

“
He and everyone else will know soon enough,” he mumbled.

“
What? What do you mean?” Her hand stilled.

“
When I tell him, he'll know. And then Miranda will know. After that, everyone will know,” he said.

“
You can't tell him,” she said, matter-of-factly. He pushed himself up and stared at her.

“
Are you being serious?” he said, wanting to gauge her mood. She looked at him, wide-eyed.

“
He can't know. Not until he makes the CEO appointment.” Annata checked the time on her phone. “Jesus, it's already 3.” She slid her legs over the side of the bed and stretched her arms above her head, her back to him. He watched her, debating whether or not he should be pissed. The pissed side won out.

“
So I'm supposed to pretend that we're not together.” He laid back and crossed his arms behind his head. “Maybe I'll bring a date to dinner. I'm sure The Old Man would love that.”

Annata shot him a look over her shoulder. “Do it, see what happens.”

“You're not getting jealous are you?” He said.

“
No.” She stood and went to the windows. She flung open the curtains. He groaned and rolled over, shielding his sensitive eyes.

“
Dammit Annie!” he yelled, his voice muffled by the mattress. He heard her laughter echoing through the loft. He felt his cock hardening at the sound. A mixture of anger and arousal wove its way through him. He wanted everyone to know that Annie was his girl. But he should have known that she would be less than excited at first to declare their coupledom to the world. He punched the mattress. Part of him said he was being stupid, that Annie just needed time. But the other part, the possessive, crazy-in-love part, wanted to take her down to the courthouse and marry her that instant.

He felt smooth hands running over his back and he arched his back into her touch. “Let's not be angry,” she said. “It's only for a little while.” He turned his face to look at her.

“Why should I go along with it?” he said.

“
Because you love me and you want me to be happy?” She kneaded the muscles in his back.

“
Try again,” he said. She continued massaging him. He forced himself to lay still  and not touch her. He reminded himself that he was angry with her, not turned on, even though her hands felt amazing. And she was naked. Gloriously naked. She sighed heavily and plopped next to him on the bed.

“
I'm worried William will think less of me for sleeping with you,” she finally said. “He'll think that I'm being manipulative or backhanded, or an interloper. Or worse, a gold-digger.”

“
He's your friend, right? Why would he think those things of you?” He couldn't resist reaching out and stroking the smooth skin of her thigh.

“
Christy, don't be so naïve.” She moaned, dropping her head into her hands. “He's my boss! And you're his son. They're going to take one look at you and me, and automatically think the worse of me.” She sighed. “Not to mention the fact that I'm me and you're you, and people are going to talk.”

“
Who gives a shit?” he said. None of those things mattered to him. He heard her snort, but the sound was more exasperated than humored.

“
Christy, of course you don't care. You don't care about anything, right?” In the blink of an eye, he pushed himself up and tackled her. She squealed as he knocked her on her back on the bed.

“
I care about you. That's it.” He dropped his head and brushed his lips across hers. “None of them matter.” She moved her lips against his, kissing him back, softly.

“
But—,” she started.

“
None of them matter,” he repeated, then kissed her harder. He wanted her to agree with him, that no one else mattered. He loved her, and he didn't want anyone to take that away from him. He
wouldn't
let anyone take her away from him. But he realized that she needed time. And that was something he was willing to give her. As far as he was concerned, they had nothing but time.

“
Okay,” he said, his forehead against hers. “I won't tell him. Yet.”

***

“William!” Annata enveloped her mentor in a hug after navigating her way through the dark dining room of the steak house. William loved old-fashioned restaurants, where the menu hadn't changed in 50 years and black and white photos of celebrities dotted the walls. Today, in light of the holiday season, blinking lights and sprigs of evergreen also decorated the wood-paneled room. The effect was homey and also intimidating, as if the ghosts of patrons past were haunting the premises. William smelled of tobacco and peppermint, like always. She smiled at the familiar scent. He patted her lightly on the back, then pulled away.

“
Allow me.” He took the collar of her wool coat as she shrugged out of it. He hung the coat on the hook just outside of their private booth. William held out a chair for Annata, as Miranda eyed them, sipping her red wine.

“
Paris agreed with you, Annie.” Miranda drawled. “Did you have a good time?”

“
It was lovely,” Annata said, her voice sounding fake to her own ears.

“
The snow didn't put a damper on it for you?” William asked, leaning back in his chair.

“
Oh, you know me, I love inclement weather.” Annata smiled as the waiter filled her wine glass from the bottle chilling on the table.

“
Christy wasn't too much of a bother was he?” Miranda asked, her eyes shining.

“
No.” Annata took a sip of her wine. “He proved himself to be very...” Annata searched for the right word. “Capable.”

“
Good to hear.” William said.

“
When I needed him, he was there and vice-versa. We made a good partnership.” She heard herself saying, even though she wished she could just shut up.

“
I'm glad you two got along. I knew you were less than enthused about him accompanying you to Paris. But he does have a personal relationship with Jean Pierre and his family,” William said.

“
You don't need to explain yourself to me,” Annata said. She knew perfectly well why William had sent Christophe to Paris. He wasn't fooling anyone.

“
I also wanted to see if he was leadership material,” William said bluntly. “What say you on that front?”

“
I said he was capable.” Annata studied the intricate stitch on the edge of her napkin.

“
Hmmm.” She could feel William's eyes on her, wanting more detail.

“
What do you want me to say, William? He's a Van der Kind,” Annata finally said.

“
Through and through.” A deep voice said to her left. She felt her heart wedge itself into her throat. Christophe hung his coat on the hook beside their table. He gracefully sat in the seat beside hers. Annata avoided his eye.

“
About damn time.” William checked his watch. “I said 7.”

“
Traffic.” Christophe shrugged.

“
Annie was just telling us about the trip,” Miranda said.

“
I was reviewing your performance, actually, before I was so rudely interrupted.” Annata looked at him, finally. He wore all black, his body draped in the chair as if he were sex incarnate.

“
Well, by all means, Annata.” He let her name drip from his tongue and she had a flash of all the naughty things that tongue had done to her the night before. “Continue.”

Annata felt the sudden urge to kick him.

“Christophe has definite leadership capabilities.” She took another sip.

“
Not quite glowing praise, but not completely without hope.” Christophe smiled at her. Miranda flicked her gaze between the two of them.

“
But,” Annata began.

“
There's always a but.” Christophe leaned forward in his chair,  interested in her critique.

“
But the question remains if he is ready and willing to lead, or if he's more comfortable letting others make the hard decisions. He has a habit of running from responsibility.” She finished, looking Christophe in the eye.  William nodded.

“
My own assessment as well,” William said. “So Paris did nothing to answer the question if he is ready and willing?”

“
Yes, did it?” Christophe egged her on, his eyes as dark as his sweater. Annata took her time to answer, taking another drink.

“
Perhaps it would be best to ask him,” she finally said. Christophe chuckled.

“
Well, by all means, let me answer. I'm moving back to New York. For good,” he announced. A slow satisfied smile settled on William's face. Annata felt her heart sink. “I'm not asking for a job. But I'm willing to work. And I'm ready to take my place in my family's company.”

“
Christy, that's wonderful!” Miranda exclaimed. She gestured for the waiter, who returned. “Champagne, please. Four glasses!” The waiter hurried off. William looked over the moon. Annata felt suddenly like she was intruding on a family moment.  She knew he had missed his son while Christophe was away.

“
You've had a spot in the company since you finished school. I was just waiting for you to reach out and take it,” William said. William caught Annie's eye and nodded. She smiled back. She was happy for William, finally seeing the dream of his son stepping up coming true. But she couldn't help feeling that big changes were coming, and she wasn't going to be at all happy with what that meant for her.

***

Christophe watched Annata as she expertly handled her steak knife, slicing into the rare cut on her plate. She raised the fork and wrapped her lips around the prone piece of meat. He watched her eyes close in ecstasy as she chewed.  He felt himself letting go of the air he had been holding in his lungs since the start of the dinner. He hated the way he acted around his father. He felt like a perpetual teenager in the old man's presence.  He wondered if the day would ever come when he could have an on-the-level conversation with his father.

In Brazil, after Christophe had secured the purchase of the manufacturing company, he'd felt a surge of power and confidence in his abilities. Then it had all gone to shit as soon as he had returned for the Christmas party. He wondered if Paris had really done anything to change things, other than bring him closer to Annie. He knew that when working with her, he had allowed her to do most of the work. She wanted it more than him. And he wanted her to have it. But what about him? What did he want?