The Price (21 page)

“Oh, my,” declared Kate, catching the energy of his heat.

“
Oh my
is right, baby,” he said in a husky voice as he pressed his hard body against hers. “I’m so riled that I am going to do so many disrespectful things to you til’ you beg me for more.”

“Right here in Mother’s study?” she said coyly, feeling him oozing all over her and liking it.

“Yes, here!” He took her hands and raised them high over her head, pinning them to the wall. “You’re mine, Kate. All mine and I won’t share—not with your mother—and especially not with Paul!”

His lips were inches away from hers and she grew heady from his breath. He nipped at her flesh, tugging at her pink lip with his teeth as a growl echoed in his throat. He sucked on her bottom lip, feeling the heat of her blood come to the surface.

Before Kate could take a breath, he slammed his mouth against hers and kissed her hard. He penetrated her with his tongue, devouring every inch of her mouth. A ripe tone of pleasure trickled up her throat and Jack happily consumed it with his tongue. God, he loved kissing her, feeling her respond in a sweet purr. She was like a never-ending thirst that he tried to quench by drinking from her delectable lips, only making him thirsty for more.

Jack placed his leg between her thighs and lifted his knee, pressing upward on the spot he knew was already wet. Kate gasped and a sweet surge formed where he was pressing.

“That’s it, baby. Let me make you feel good,” he groaned by her mouth.

He rubbed her until she started to squirm. By impulse her leg lifted and began running a heeled toe along his pant leg. Jack shifted his hands, holding both her wrists in one as the other was now free to roam at will. He ran hungry fingers down her side and between her dress slit, caressing the feel of her silk stockings until he found bare flesh. He parted her, fingers searching for the tiny mound that always made her moan. He circled it, watching the heavenly expression on her face that was silhouetted by the moonlight beaming through the large bay windows.

“Oh, Jack,” she said in a sweet moment of pleasure as her body heightened in blissful arousal.

He slid two fingers inside her and rubbed her wet flesh, searching higher for the secret place of ecstasy.

“Don’t come yet, baby. Just feel it,” he groaned, and kissed her again.

He was relentless in his delightful torture and her body soared to the point of release. She began to quiver, her legs trembling beyond control. He continued his assault, knowing at any minute she would be pushed past the brink and plummet over the rapturous edge of desire.

“Hold it, baby,” he whispered, grinding his teeth along the lobe of her ear.

“I can’t,” she cried, feeling her body wanting to give way to a magnificent convulsion. “Jack, please…”

“You want to come for me?” He tormented her, breathing his hot breath along the base of her neck.

“Yes…oh God, yes-”

“How bad do you want to come for me?” He questioned, already knowing the answer as he continued to stroke and then thrust.

“Bad,” she whimpered with sweet painful pleasure. “Real bad!”

“Say you’re mine, baby,” he growled, and went deeper. “If you want me to make you come, say, you’re all mine.”

“I’m yours,” she pleaded. “All yours!”

“Say it again.” He demanded, and he expertly brought her to the edge. “Say it louder.”

“I’m all yours.” She panted in a high pitched growl.

That was all Jack needed to hear.

“Then come for me, Kate,” he commanded. “Come on baby, soak my fingers!”

By his single command and stroke of his hand, Kate felt her release. She cried out as he slammed his mouth against hers and took her groans inside him. Jack released her hands and Kate flung her arms around his neck. Grabbing his hair, she kissed him hard. She was ravenous of him, devouring his manly lips, and not caring that the invisible whiskers on chin and cheek burned against her skin.

“I want more, Jack,” she said in between rasps of frenzied breath. “Give me more!”

“You want me inside you?” he asked feverishly.

“Yes, oh God, yes!”

That was all Jack wanted to hear. He lifted her toes off the ground and walked them to the edge of the desk. With one sweep of his hand, he cleared the desk, leaving it smooth against her back as he laid her on its surface. She lifted on to her elbows and watched in anticipation as Jack lowered his trousers. Seeing his arousal, she felt a wild rush inside her.

Jack positioned himself between her legs and tugged her down the wooden surface. He entered her hard, causing her to cry out in pleasure, feeling his sharp penetration inside her. Jack leaned over, pressing his torso against her. He entwined her hair in his hands and lifted her head from the desk top. He kissed her hard as he matched with the same intensity, slamming deeper into her.

Kate came again, exploding into a heightened orgasm. Jack groaned, feeling her tightening around him and a rush of sweet liquid slicked him.

“God, you feel so good,” he growled, jerking her head back to nip at her chin.

“I want you deeper,” she cried, lifting her legs over his hips and feeling the edge of the desk cutting into the small of her back but not caring.

“If you want me deeper, baby, then you’re going to have to lie on your belly.” He almost combusted on the spot.

“I want it.” She grabbed him by the hair and looked demandingly into his simmering green eyes.

“Turn over,” said Jack, and he stepped back.

Kate did as instructed. Sprawled out on her belly along the wooden top with her feet positioned on the floor. She clung to the edge of the desk, her hands gripping the mahogany rim as she felt him enter her again. A sweet groan escaped her lips feeling his penetration deep inside her.

“Is this the way you like it?” He growled, placing his hands on her hips and steadying her.

“Yes,” she moaned with gratification, and her body began to build into another frenzied outburst.

“You going to come for me again?” he coaxed her.

Before she had a chance to answer, her body exploded in a powerful release. Kate let out a cry of ecstasy, moaning her verbal pleasure of what Jack was doing to her insides.

“Shh…” Jack couldn’t help but be amused. “Not so loud, baby. You don’t want everyone knowing what we’re doing in here.”

“I don’t care,” she said, caught up in a world of sexual frenzy. “Just keep doing what you’re doing!”

“I have no intentions of stopping,” he said, pounding harder against her flesh.

He continued until he saw her head fall against the desk and he knew she was spent. He changed the pace and steadied himself for his own release. Several more strokes and it was Jack’s turn to groan as a rugged growl came barreling from his lips and echoed Kate’s name. The orgasm rushed down from his belly and he filled her with the last of his pleasure.

Jack fell on top of her, trapping her between his drenched, white shirt and the mahogany desk. He pulled back on her hair and lifted her head then planted one last long kiss, savoring her sweet mouth as an aftertaste of their love making.

“God, I love you,” he whispered in her ear after the kiss ended.

She laid her head on the desk and smiled an exhausted smile, feeling too satiated to move.

“Kate, don’t fall asleep.” Jack nuzzled her ear.

“Why not?” She practically purred.

“Because we have to go back to the party before your mother comes looking for us.”

“Since when do you worry about my mother,” said Kate, shutting her eyes and basking in the glow of overheated flesh and cool mahogany wood to her cheek.

“I don’t care what she thinks of me,” said Jack truthfully. “I was thinking more about you.”

“To hell with what my mother thinks.” She released a tired laugh out-loud. “I’m not about to let her spoil what I’m feeling right now.”

“What are you feeling?” His mouth quirked up as he could only imagine.

“I am feeling like the luckiest woman on earth,” said Kate with a smile on her brow. “I have just been loved so perfectly right by the man who rocks my world.”

“I did just rock your world, didn’t I?” Jack grinned.

“Oh baby, you so did,” she said, in hailed elation of his performance.

“Oh, that was the wrong thing to say to me.” He felt an encore rising to her verbal applause. “You just made me hard again.”

“Oh, my,” said Kate, lifting her head and giving him a sweet smile of encouragement. “What are we going to do about it?”

“I know what I’d like to do about it,” said Jack. “But not here. “

“You think we could sneak upstairs?” Her eyes went a violet blue.

“It’s worth a shot,” said Jack as he lifted himself from Kate and stood.

He bent over to retrieve his pants from around his ankles just as the door opened and the light from the hall illuminated across his bare flesh.

“I just had the study re-decorated and the mahogany desk imported from Italy,” said Marnie with guest falling in behind.

She turned on the light, and there right before their eyes, was a pair of firm male cheeks, finer than any masterpiece she could import from Italy. Jack wasted no time in hiking up his pants and then zipping them, while Kate jumped from the desk.

“Oh dear God!” Marnie stopped abruptly inside the room along with the woman Jack had earlier confessed his marital secrets to.

“Hello, Mother,” said a red-faced Kate as she adjusted her dress and began combing out the tangled mess of hair with her fingers.

“Kathryn!” Marnie turned a bright shade of red as well but not from embarrassment.

She looked at her guest Charlotte Harrington and saw the woman’s jaw had dropped to her chest.

“Perhaps this is not a good time after all to show you my decor,” stated Marnie, trying to remain calm under the circumstances.

“I, for one, am quite impressed with your new décor,” said Charlotte Harrington, thinking she much preferred seeing this over a desk any day. “Exquisite display of the male form as I have ever seen. Why, it is better than the sculpture of Adonis at the Louvre!”

“Thanks,” said Jack, producing his infamous grin.

“You’re welcome.” Charlotte couldn’t help but smile back in appreciation.

Kate could see the rage brewing inside her mother but like any debutant, she remained a steely cool. Marnie flipped on her heels and motioned to Charlotte to leave the room. She turned one last time in the doorway and glared at Jack and then Kate.

“Kathryn, I wish to speak with you in private,” she said through gritted teeth. “I will be waiting in my room. You have five minutes!”

There was an ultimatum in her voice, warning her daughter not to cross her. Kate did an involuntary jump hearing the door slam. She looked at Jack, and he started laughing.

“Oh, you’re in trouble,” he said as if amused. “You think she is going to ground you?”

“No, more like disown me.” sighed Kate, and she leaned back against the desk.

“I’m betting on the former,” he laughed.

“Stop kidding around,” she said, her blue eyes filling with worry. “This is serious.”

“Kate, you’re a grown woman and I am your husband,” Jack stated the obvious. “We may not have been the most discreet, but we didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Tell that to my mother.” She stood on her own two feet and braced herself for what was to come. “I might as well get this over with, otherwise it is going to be a very long night.”

“You want me to come with you?”

“No, I don’t think she wants to see you right now. She just wants to yell at me for embarrassing her.”

“You want a drink from the bar for courage?”

“No, but I might need one afterwards,” she said, making her way to the door.

Jack ran after her and stopped her before she left.

“I love you, baby,” he said, placing a kiss to her lips. “Remember that!”

“I will.” She smiled at him and left.

Kate gave herself a pep talk all the way down the hall and up the stairs until she reached her mother’s room. She wasn’t sure what she was going to say other than a true apology for acting more like a teenager than an adult. She was already feeling guilty. Though why, she wasn’t sure. She was a married woman with a child of her own. She would make no apologies for what she did, but the lack of judgment as to where she did it was a different story.

Kate knocked on the door before entering. She saw her mother standing by the bedroom window looking out on-to the gardens below. It was the first time since being back home that she’d been in her mother’s bedroom. It had been redecorated again since her last visit four years ago.

“Hi, Mother,” said Kate, walking across the plush, white carpet and grey walls that accentuated the Parisian-style bed.

“Have a seat, Kathryn,” said Marnie as she continued to stare out the window and not look at her daughter. A light breeze billowed past, lifting the sheer crape curtains in a slow dance beside the stoic woman that held her gaze to the gardens below.

Kate felt like a little girl, tip-toeing over to the pink satin settee and gently taking a seat. Silence filled the room, and she found herself wringing her hands together in nervous anticipation of the lecture she was about to receive.

“Mother, let me begin by apologizing,” she said, feeling way too nervous to keep quiet. “It was terribly disrespectful of me to put you in that awkward position with your guests.”

“It is not my position that has me concerned,” said Marnie, still focusing on the garden below, “and it is not you who should be apologizing.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Kathryn, I am worried for your well-being.” Marnie turned to look at her daughter.

Kate lifted her chin and saw the genuine concern upon her brow.

“Mother, you need not worry about me,” She responded. “I’m fine, really!”

“No, Kathryn, you are not fine.” Marnie seemed to release a heavy sigh and made her way to her daughter, taking a seat beside her. “After tonight I cannot condone that husband of yours’ disrespectful behavior to you, me, and my home. He is no longer welcome to stay here.”

“Mother, this is not Jack’s fault,” cried Kate. “We are two consenting adults, and I was just as much to blame as him.”