Red Collar (9 page)

“Yes…of course, Clayton,” the surprise clearly noted in his assistant’s voice.

Clayton had tirelessly worked every day of the week in the last ten years, managing to keep appointments and networking through social events. He had come to understand the power of networking very early on in his career, building his business and raising it to an insurmountable height that surprised even his father.

It was expected that he would branch away
from his father, preferring to stand alone in the matters of running his company. His father had foreseen that his stubbornness would stand in the way of teaching Clayton anything in addition to the continual rift that floated between them since Clayton was a child.

Clayton poured out a glass of orange juice. His
appearance at social events would have to be changed. There was Kate Ripley to consider. And he knew she was just as stubborn as he was. He downed his juice, strategizing. He was a ruthless businessman and even a more ruthless lover. Kate was going to pay for the hours of torment she had caused him all morning. And for his torturous wait until seven.

*****

Kate walked with a determined stride through the doors of Clayton’s luxurious full service building, her chin in the air, her arms swinging angrily at her sides.

No longer did she pause to admire the beautiful interior of the reception a
nd the foyer. Nor did she care for the curious looks of the modish patrons gracing the lobby. Her old jeans and grey tee probably was a prêt-a-porter from a discount store, but she was proud of them.

She hopped into the first available elevator. She glared at the prudish couple undecidedly staring into it.
The woman with the little, white Maltese dog in her arm held onto her husband’s elbow, silently restraining him from stepping into it, her blue mascara laden eyes affixed on Kate’s outlandish tee shirt slogan.

Kate looked down at it.
Ran into my ex- Put it in reverse and hit him again!
“Got it from Sam’s Mart,” she snarled. “I’ll give you the address.”

The woman
looked at her, flabbergasted.

“So are you coming or not?” Kate asked, impatiently.

The woman stepped back, aghast and open-mouthed, pulling her husband along with her.

“I guess not,” muttered Kate to herself and pressed the button to Clayton’s penthouse.

She didn’t get much trouble with Libby when she left. Libby had been strangely quiet since their morning tussle. She relayed instructions to Libby and repeated them to Rudy for good measure.

“I’ll be back in a few hours,” she had said.

“So you’re not working today, then?” Libby remarked, sarcastically.

“No,” Kate replied in a forcefully calm tone. “I don’t think this job would be right for me. I intend to quit but I need to be there to tell them why. So, if you don’t mind holding the fort while I’m away, I’d really, really appreciate it,” she ended with equal sarcasm.

Libby glowered at her.

Rudy stepped in quickly and assured her they would be fine.

And
Kate left her apartment, a little relieved that her accursed association with the contemptuous Clayton Reid was coming to an end.

*****

She marched to his door and pressed onto his doorbell. When he failed to answer it as fast as she wanted him to, she hammered onto his door in an irascible fit.

It opened, and she swung it hard. She stood in the entrance of the hallway
, while he stood at the other end. They stubbornly stared each other down in an ire-filled standoff.

“You want some wine?” he offered, breaking the silence.

“I didn’t come for wine,” she snapped. “You said there were some fine prints we needed discussing.”

“Hmmm,” he muttered, walking away, ignoring her which only riled her more.

“I don’t know how it is you normally treat your employees,” she growled through clenched teeth. “But I will not be allowed to be humiliated or be bullied any more by you.”

He spun around in anger. “Humiliated is what you did
to me this morning. I woke up in the hopes of having you in my arms again- only you weren’t there to hold.”

Her eyes inevitably
ran down his pants and she grinned. “I guess we can call it even, then,” she said cheekily, enjoying her imaginations of how he must have been tormented to have her again.

He arched an eyebrow as he read the slogan on her tee-shirt. “Is that meant for me?”

“I thought it was appropriate in light of our circumstances,” she replied snidely.

“Except that I’m not your ex.”

“No, you’re not. And neither are you my anything. But it’s close enough and well worth wearing if you get the message.”

He etched dangerously closer to her. “I am your lover and you are my mistress. It’s time you learnt that fast.”

She scissored back, her pulse racing, her emotions caught up in a confounding storm again. She despised the man but each time she confronted him, she’d lose herself in his spellbinding gaze. She fought with her inner spirit, trying to convince herself she wasn’t attracted to him. She couldn’t be. He was an egotistical bastard, a narcissistic, pompous, self-centered…

He pulled her hard to him, his mouth reached for her neck as he began kissing the end of her jaw-line, stimulating her erogenous zone. He cupped her buttocks and pinned her firmly against him, feeling his arousal against her tummy. A moan escaped her lips.

“A beautiful, gorgeous, living Greek god,”
she trailed in her thoughts.

He pulled up her tee shirt, throwing it as far as he could. He made a mental note to dispose of it. He picked her up and she wound her legs around his hips as he carried her to his bed. He laid her gently on it, his eyes laden with a heated desire. He lowered himself down on her and cupped her breasts, kissing her nipples, tugging at it softly with his lips.

He trailed her midriff with his mouth and nibbled at her pelvis. She squirmed delightfully under him, grazing his erection. He gave a low, growling moan.

He fiddle
d impatiently with her jeans, and finally pulled them off her slim legs with a little help from her. He stepped out of his clothes hurriedly in an eagerness to have her. He reached down to her dark curly mound and eased a finger into her wetness.

She thrashed from the sensuality he was arousing in her. And when he replaced his fingers with his carnal mouth,
she wound her fingers into his hair, forcing him to taste further into her.

Finally, when he knew she couldn’t take
it any more, he snaked up her length, and plunged into her, deep and fast until a spasm of sweet pleasure rocked their bodies into an erotic stillness.

*****

Kate moaned from an internal throb in her femininity. She last knew she had fallen asleep in the arms of the man she was forced to accept she had more emotions for than just despise.

Her eye lids fluttered open t
o find the night was all over. The amber rays of the twilight morning was pervading through the blinds of the bedroom. But the embers of their desire were still alive and burning.

Clayton had nibbled down to her
taut stomach and a wave of heat engulfed her body. He found the nub in the moist petals of her woman hood by the tip of his tongue and drove her body to a quivering height of pleasure-filled insanity.

She moaned and trembled, completely under his power.

“I want you, Kate,” he muttered. “You are mine. Only mine.” And he parted her legs with his thigh, pulling her closer to his hips.

“I can’t let you go,” he breathed huskily. “Never again.” And he drove into her deep and hard, like a man possessed. “I’m sorry I can’t do more for you, Kate. But I waited so long… you made me wait so long,” he mumbled savagely.

His words, entwined with his hard, invading length, burning her in her sensation as she moved in unison with his savage rhythm. Finally, they both let out a cry of intense pleasure, drowning into a sea of climactic bliss.

*****

“We need to arise, my sweet Kate,” he said, tenderly. “After I shower, and have breakfast, I would love to eat you all over again. But breakfast first. We need all the energy we need to maintain the stamina.”

She blushed. They had sex all night last night, managing only with at least five hours of sleep.

“Clayton,” she whispered. “What we did… it was a mistake.”

Clayton swung his legs to the sides of the bed. “No, it wasn’t. H
ow could it be when I wanted it? And so did you, so don’t deny it.”

“We wanted it but that still doesn’t make it any less of a mistake.”

He turned around at her and pulled her tightly into his arms. He held her hair roughly, pulling her head back so he could look into her eyes. “I’m going to have a shower. When I return, I expect you in this apartment, where I can find you. If you run, I’ll hunt you down. I’ll find out where you live and I
will
drag you back here to ravage your body all over again. Understood?”

Her eyes glazed with the tears she was holding back, a heat-wave rising in her core again. She raised her hand to trace his jaw-line. But instead he threw her back roughly onto the bed.

“Not now, my darling,” he muttered, thickly. “I’m afraid if I give in to you now, I’ll never make it out of bed until tomorrow.”

He rose up and strode into the bathroom.

Kate fell back, her hand on her head in disbelief. What had she had gotten herself into? Why couldn’t she control herself around him? What spell had he put her under? All her planning to say this and that and whatever  not, meant nothing when he stood before her, his steely gray eyes peering into her soul, his lushes thick hair invoking an urge to run her fingers through them. She couldn’t believe that her lustful desire for his body was so strong that it rebelled against all her sensibilities.

Sensibilities… it was then it occurred to her that she hadn’t let Rudy and Libby know she was sleeping out. A guilty pang filled her as she envisioned them scared and alone, worried about her safety.

She sprinted naked to the living room to wear her tee. She searched the floor and was puzzled she couldn’t find it. In haste, she reached for her bag and pulled out Clayton’s shirt she had borrowed yesterday. She had washed and pressed it with every intention of returning it.  However, it seemed she had no other resort but to borrow it once again. It was either that or parade
au naturel
in Clayton’s apartment. Not that Clayton would have minded the latter, she was certain.

She dialed her
home number. Rudy answered.

“Rudy?” 

“Kate,” he said in a thankful sigh. “Where are you?”

“Rudy, honey
, I’m so sorry. You okay?”

“We’re all fine. But what happened? I thought you were coming back in a few hours.”

“I thought I was. But I got caught up… with work. You didn’t worry, did you?”

“No, I thought just as much. And Mom assured me the same. Don’t worry about us.
It’s Saturday, so it’s gonna be a lazy day at home. And even if it weren’t, we still could have managed. We’ve been doing so for a long time, Kate. So yeah, don’t rush and take your time. Are you coming home now?”

“Honey, I have to spend the day with a friend. I need to sort some things out. But I will return home tonight. I promise.”

“Okay. Not a problem. By the way, Lily wants to speak to you.”

She heard Lily scrambling for the phone before she spoke in her little, cute girly voice.  “Kate?”

“Hello, pumpkin,” Kate said, tenderly. The corners of her mouth lifted. Lily always made her happy even in her most trying of times.

“I miss you.”

“I miss you too, honey.”

“Come home soon. Bye.”

“I will, baby. Bye hon.”

She switched the phone off and looked lovingly at the river in the distance. She never felt happier in her life.

In the corner of the hallway, Clayton grit his teeth, his face darkened with fury.

She had a family. A partner and a child. How could he have made such a grave error? Why didn’t he run a background check on her personal life? He had assumed… just assumed that if she was an escort, she must not have been burdened with a family. He had principles, one of which was engaged women, particularly those with a family, were strictly off-limits. He never waived in his principles and he was not going to deter from them even now.

But he would give her a chance to explain. He would give her that much. And if she continued to deceive him, he was going to show her the door. But first he would teach her a lesson. A vital one she would remember for the rest of her life.

*****

He strode
casually into the living room. She turned to him, her brown eyes lighting up on seeing him. He recognized his shirt on her. And when she rose from her chair, it fell short of her knee. He never had seen his shirt look as good as it did on her. Seeing her in it hardened him immediately, despite all rationality of what he had heard earlier.