The Prize (6 page)

Chapter Eight

We were closest to the hotel Amy and Cade were staying in, so they got out first,
leaving the limo to take the rest of us home. Unfortunately, Cheyenne and Riley fell
logically next, which left Parker and I in the limo alone.

He stared at me after I gave the driver my address. Not speaking a word. His face
was unreadable. Serious.

I fidgeted in my seat, wondering why he chose this time when we were finally alone
to avoid touching me. I was pretty sure it was the first ten minutes of the evening
he’d gone without driving me to distraction.

When we pulled up outside my building, he got out behind me and leaned in to tell
the driver we wouldn’t need him anymore and thank him.

I opened my mouth to protest, but Parker shut the door to the limo and grabbed my
arm to rush me inside out of the cold. “Don’t even think of trying to send me away.
It’s not going to happen.”

I nodded, my hand shaking as I pressed the button between the elevators.

Parker didn’t touch me. That alone was alarming and unnerving. The smoldering one-way
sex in the bathroom was a mood I understood. The jovial teasing at the table was a
side of him I’d seen too.

This quiet, reserved, serious man wasn’t someone I had met.

When we entered the elevator, I reached for the pad and touched the button for my
floor. Twelve. We rode in silence. Uncomfortable silence that made me squirm.

What the hell?

The ping that signaled our arrival made me jump.

Parker set his hand on my lower back as we exited the elevator, and I led him down
the hall, aware of nothing but the layers of clothing between his palm and my skin.
Too many layers. I almost couldn’t tell he was still touching my coat.

My hands shook as I extracted my keys from my purse, and I dropped them as soon as
I lifted them toward the handle.

Parker bent to pick them up, easily selected the one for my door, and opened it for
me.

I hesitated. I never brought men to my apartment.

Never
.

And here I was entering my space with a man at my side who distracted me to no end.
He made my panties wet. He made me laugh. He made me moan. And he currently seemed
rather angry with me.

Why was I letting him into my space exactly?

This was a bad idea.

Parker pressed on my back and ushered me forward until we stepped inside. He closed
the door behind us and reached for the light switch next to the handle.

The room lit up. Too bright.

I winced. This was not the kind of home he lived in.

I didn’t meet his gaze. I couldn’t. I was rather embarrassed about my home for the
first time in my life.

We stood there, not moving an inch, for several moments.

Finally, Parker inched forward, faced me, and unbuttoned my coat. He eased it down
my arms and reached to hang it on the little coat tree I kept by the door. My apartment
didn’t have a closet in the living room.

He cupped my face and tipped my head back. “Talk to me.”

I stared at him.
And say what?

He set his forehead against mine. “Talk to me.” His voice was gentle. Lower.

I licked my lips. “I’m not very materialistic,” I offered as an explanation for my
surroundings.

“Do you think I care?”

I shrugged.

“I meant every word I said earlier. You’re sexy, funny, and intelligent. Why wouldn’t
I be attracted to you?”

“I’m not submissive,” I replied.

“Mmm.” He righted himself and turned to pull me farther into my apartment, easing
out of my space slowly until all he held was my hand, and he finally dropped that
too and meandered around my living room. He took in everything, as if memorizing my
world.

When he shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it over the back of the couch, I admired
the stretch of his broad back beneath his starched white shirt.

He loosened his tie and pulled it off next. And then he tipped his head back a few
inches, elongating his firm neck to unbutton the top button on his shirt. He stopped
there, his arms dropping.

His fingers trailed along the back of my secondhand couch as he moved toward the kitchen.

I held my breath, willing him not to decide to sit on the uncomfortable sofa.

The only sound in the room was his breathing. And it was surprising I could hear it
over my own.

“Give me a tour?”

That broke the serious spell because I had to chuckle. “A tour? You’re looking at
it.” I pointed at the two doors to my right. “Bathroom. Bedroom. That’s it.”

He nodded and leaned his ass against the kitchen counter, crossing his legs in a way
that made him look like a relaxed cover model. “You have secrets.”

I sucked in a sharp breath. How could he know that?

“I won’t pry. I can respect your privacy.”

I opened my mouth and hesitated before I spoke. “You’re astute. Why do you think I
keep pushing you away?” It was more than I wanted to reveal, but I didn’t have much
of a choice but to toss him something.

He glanced around again. “I don’t give two fucks where you live or how you live or
how much money you have. You know that, right?”

I did. Deep down I knew he wasn’t that shallow. But it melted me a little to hear
him say it. Why did he always have to make it so hard for me to turn him down?

He wasn’t stupid. He knew I had a good job and made decent money. So, he had to draw
his own conclusions about my lifestyle choices. Maybe I like to hoard my earnings.
Maybe I was worried about an apocalypse. Maybe I had a dying relative who bled me
dry. He could think whatever he wanted, but he’d never know the truth. And that was
all that mattered.

“Come here, Meagan.”

I hadn’t moved from my single step into the apartment. I rubbed my arms, suddenly
chilled. The heat in the room was fine. Material things weren’t my style. Heat was
not something I would do without.

I inched toward him while he waited patiently, not commenting on my slow approach.
When I reached him, I would surrender to him in a nanosecond. That was how I was with
him. Every time.

As I got close, he spread his legs and then reached for my hand and pulled me between
them. His cock pressed into my belly.

He brushed a few curls from my forehead and tucked them behind my ear, his face clouded,
serious. “I’m sorry about earlier. I swear I didn’t mean to out you like that. I know
you didn’t want your friends to know.”

I nodded. “My fault too,” I muttered.

“Not really. I knew what I was doing. I could have stopped it.”

A slow smile spread across my face. “So you’re saying you’re impervious to my presence
and I’m the only one who loses her mind with arousal when we’re in the same room?”

He chuckled. “Not even close. But I’m a Dom. I should control myself better. I broke
your trust. It wasn’t fair.”

“Is that why you’re being so standoffish now?”

He shrugged, tracing a finger down my face and around my mouth before tapping my nose.
“You grew agitated when you realized I was going to come home with you. The fear was
palpable. I want to know why.”

“I did?”

He nodded. “Definitely. If we hadn’t already had sex numerous times, I would have
thought you were nervous about being intimate with me. But that’s not the case, which
means you were stressed about me coming into your apartment.”

“I don’t bring men here.”

“Ever?”

“Nope.”

“You mean I’m the first man to enter this apartment?” He sounded incredulous.

“Except for my Dad.” I pursed my lips. What would he read into that?

“Why?”

I cocked my head to one side and narrowed my gaze. “I’m embarrassed?”

He smirked. “I know that isn’t it. You’re using that as a cover.”

“So, you’re a psychologist now?”

He ignored that jibe and started another angle of questioning. “When was the last
time you slept with a man, before me I mean?”

I chewed on the inside of my cheek for a second. How much did I want to divulge?

He tipped my chin up to meet my gaze more directly. “Meagan?”

“I don’t know.” I took a deep breath. “It’s been a while.”

“A while as in two months? Or a while like five years?”

“Somewhere in between.” That would have to be good enough.

He sensed I wasn’t about to give him more info and changed the subject again. “You’re
a mystery.”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be. I told you I like a challenge.”

“And I told you to be prepared for disappointment.”

He smiled, his face lighting up as he grabbed my shoulders and squeezed. “I have no
intention of being disappointed. Every minute with you is exhilarating.”

Really? I hadn’t ever thought of myself that way.

My turn to change the subject. “You realize we didn’t get away with anything, don’t
you?”

“You think not?” He lifted a brow in jest.

“Amy and Cheyenne are probably on the phone right now trying to figure us out. They’ll
be in my face before nine in the morning.”

He chuckled. “I can assure you Cade and Riley aren’t spending one second thinking
about who I might be fucking. They’re both currently pacing while they wait for your
girls to stop yapping and submit to them.”

His choice of words reminded me who he was at his core. A Dom.

“I’m not a submissive,” I repeated.

He drew a finger down my neck and traced the edge of my dress, skimming my cleavage.
“Everyone is a little submissive. Some more than others.”

“Except those who are dominant, you mean.”

He grinned. “Of course.”

“So, you’re insinuating all
women
are submissive?” My spine stiffened.

“Not at all. Men can be too. Even Doms. Some couples switch.” He shuddered. “Don’t
get any ideas. I don’t switch. But I will concede moments.”

“Huh. Moments. Like instances where you let me think I’m in control.”

“Yep.”

“Uh huh.”

“Do you realize how cocky you sound?”

“Sure. But do you realize how wet your pussy is?”

I flinched. Damn him.

“And do you know how hard it was to concentrate after you removed that scrap of material
you call panties and sat down at the table bare under your dress?”

“Noticed that, did you?”

“On second thought, maybe it was your fault we got caught. If you hadn’t sat down
with your pussy bare and leaking next to me…”

“Don’t even try to go there. You wouldn’t have known I ditched my panties if you hadn’t
wiggled your fingers between my legs and forced them into me.”

“Forced?” He chuckled again. “Says the woman who was moaning and grabbing my hand
to ensure I didn’t remove it from her parted legs.”

My eyes went wide. “You have a vivid imagination, Mr. Darwin.”

“Sir is fine. You don’t have to be so formal.”

I rolled my eyes next. “And your ego…”

“My ego is fine. I’m just a guy struggling to prove to a girl that she’s his. You’re
not making it easy.”

“Do you want me to be sorry?”

“Hell no. I love it. I told you I was up for the challenge.”

“Then we’ve come full circle, because I told you to be prepared for disappointment.”

Chapter Nine

We stood there in silence for several long moments, Parker staring into my eyes as
if he could see my soul, or wanted to.

I guarded myself as best I could, shivering internally from the unnerving thought
that perhaps he
could
see my deepest secrets with just a look.

“Submit to me.”

I giggled, breaking the intensity. How many times did he intend to use that line with
me?

He didn’t move, his face unwavering.

I swallowed. He was serious.

“We’re so good together.”

I nodded. That was indisputable.

“Give it a chance.”

“I did.”

“Give it another chance.”

“What if I say no?”

He slowly lowered his hands down my arms and reached for my waist. And then he lowered
them farther to cup my ass. He held my gaze while he gathered my skirt up inch by
inch with his fingers until my ass was half bare.

I held my breath, willing him to touch me. Willing him to make me feel like he always
did. Willing him to chase away my demons if only for a moment.

With one hand, he held my dress bunched in his fingers. He smoothed the other hand
over my ass and reached between my legs from behind to stroke his fingers through
my folds.

My knees buckled. I tipped my head back and let my lips fall open. His touch unarmed
me every time. Like a trigger. I fell under his spell. Was I submissive?

I separated my legs farther without him asking. I didn’t care anymore. I had nothing
to hide from this man. My body craved his touch however he would offer it. If I made
it easier for him, so be it. I refused to be embarrassed.

He pushed two fingers into my tight channel, infuriatingly slowly.

I moaned, a sound that came from deep within me. My knees gave out.

He held me up with his other hand, wrapping it around me in a heartbeat without removing
his fingers from my pussy.

My vision blurred as I stared unseeing at my ceiling, savoring his touch. Memorizing
every motion as he fucked in and out of my pussy using a pace nothing like the frenzy
of our earlier bathroom tryst.

I sucked in a sharp breath as I reached the edge, and his fingers disappeared from
my sheath.

“No,” I blurted, jerking my head upright and trying to focus on his face. “Oh God.
Parker. Please. Don’t stop.”

“Admit you’re submitting to me.”

I shook my head. “Please,” I begged, my voice lower.

He lifted me by my thighs and hefted me up to his waist. “Wrap your legs around me.”

I did as he asked, grabbing his shoulders to keep from falling backward.

He pushed off the counter and padded across the room toward my bedroom. He pushed
open the door and continued across the room until we reached the bed, never breaking
eye contact.

As he lowered me onto my back across my queen-size bed, I hoped he wouldn’t mind that
my mattress was less than perfect. It was good enough, probably the most expensive
item I owned. But not top of the line by any stretch.

He said nothing as he pushed me farther across the bed by the waist and crawled up
between my legs. He was still fully dressed. Hell, so was I.

Except for my panties.

Angling us at a diagonal, he inched back down my body, spread my legs with a grip
on my thighs, and lowered his face to suck my clit.

I arched off the mattress, moaning louder than before, instantly back on the edge
of an orgasm that needed release.

Seconds later, his mouth was gone.

I groaned. “Parker. God. Please. Stop teasing.”

“Submit to me.”

This again? I lifted my face. “Fine. Whatever. God, just… please.” He totally misunderstood
my reasons for not turning my free will over to him. I wanted to. Damn how I wanted
to. I wasn’t even opposed to it. And I was super clear I was submissive, at least
with him.

But there was no way in hell I would give in permanently. For more reasons than he
would ever know, the most important of which was that I needed him to believe I was
unwilling so he would give up eventually and move on. I couldn’t keep him in my life
permanently. This had to be a fling. I could enjoy it for a while. I could even submit
for a while. But in the long run, this wouldn’t work. It couldn’t. I would never leave
Atlanta. And I sure as shit wouldn’t go to Charlotte. Not even for a visit. Never
again in this lifetime.

And the thought of going to Parker’s home for any length of time gave me the chills.
Never.

It was a deal breaker. It would be so much tidier to insinuate it was the submission
I was unwilling to acquiesce to than explain myself concerning my real issues. He
was right. I had a secret. A big one. No one but my immediate family, my therapist,
and—in a warped way—Michael Swarth knew my secret.

I intended to keep it that way. For everyone’s sake.

With all this in mind, I licked my lips and met Parker’s gaze.

He blinked at me. “Meagan…” he moaned. “Hon, I don’t like the look in your eyes. You’re
tortured by something.”

I swallowed. “Please,” I begged again. “Please fuck me.”

He hesitated and then lowered his face to lick another line between my lower lips.

I dug my heels into the mattress to lift my hips up toward his mouth.

He removed his lips. “Keep your ass on the bed. Hands above your head. Grab the rungs
of your headboard.”

I lowered my shaking butt cheeks to the mattress and lifted my arms to grab the headboard
as he requested. My nipples abraded against my bra, drawing my attention to their
sensitivity. I bit my lower lip to keep from making any more sounds than I already
had.

“Uh-uh. Let go of your lip. I want to hear you. Don’t hold back.”

This wasn’t the fancy presidential suite of the hotel downtown where he’d taken me
last time. I had neighbors. They were sure to hear my screams.

He pressed my dress gradually up my body, over my hips, and higher until it was a
tight ring of material against my breasts.

I arched my chest when he tucked his thumbs under the material and lifted it over
my breasts and then my head. Instead of hauling it the rest of the way off, he left
the tight fabric tangled around my arms above my head.

My belly dipped when he licked a line down toward my pussy once again. Every breath
I took made my nipples press against the thin lace of my bra.

How long would he torture me? And wasn’t he in a similar state of need? After all,
at least I had come in the bathroom earlier. When he left me standing there, his erection
had been bulging in his pants.

“I need you inside me,” I pleaded.

“You’ll have me inside you. When I say so.”

My chest ached. My breasts felt larger than ever, swollen and in need of his touch.
I didn’t dare make that request. I had already pushed the limit with regard to his
need to dominate me.

Besides, for as much as I fought against him, his actions—or in most cases, inactions—made
me crave him more. Dammit.

Parker eased off the bed to stand at the side.

I watched as he slowly removed his shirt, his belt, his pants, his underwear… When
he stood gloriously naked before me, I stopped breathing.

“Keep your legs open for me.”

I dug my heels into the bed and let my knees fall open farther. Arousal ran between
my butt cheeks. “Please…”

He smiled. “I do enjoy listening to you beg. I’ve never let my submissives talk as
much as I allow you, but somehow it makes me harder knowing how badly you want this.”
He gripped his cock in one hand and stroked it from the base to the tip, and then
he leaned down to grab his pants and extract a condom from the pocket.

I didn’t blink while I watched him tear into the wrapper and roll the rubber onto
his cock.

When he released his engorged length to climb back between my legs, it bobbed in front
of him. Hovering over me, he popped the front clasp of my bra, freeing the swollen
globes and sending goose bumps across my skin. He tweaked both nipples briefly and
then leaned down and sucked one into his mouth.

My eyes fluttered shut. Could he not fuck me already?

In a slow path, he nibbled down my belly and around to my thigh, avoiding my pussy.
His lips were warm and left a faint trail of moisture that cooled when the air hit
each spot.

Finally, with no warning, he grabbed my thighs, pressed them farther apart, and lowered
his face to suck my clit.

I saw nothing, the room fading as if I would faint when he pushed me instantly over
the edge. The orgasm had hovered there since the moment he’d discovered I’d removed
my panties at dinner. It didn’t take much to draw it from my needy body. He might
not have intended for me to come yet, but it hit me hard and fast with no warning.

When the tremors subsided, he lifted his lips enough to mumble against my pussy. “So
fucking sexy when you come like that.”

At least he wasn’t mad.

“So fucking sexy…” he repeated, kissing my lower lips, but not spreading them to continue
what he’d started.

If anything, I felt needier than I had before the orgasm. My channel gripped at nothing,
desperate for attention.

Parker grabbed my hips and lifted. “Flip over, hon.”

My heart raced at the request. The idea of him taking me from behind was heady. Even
though he had yet to use any real bondage equipment on me in this strange relationship,
he always managed to take the upper hand. On my belly, I would be at his mercy. The
most basic act of submission.

I awkwardly let him help me to my knees, my hands still tangled in my dress.

He nudged my legs apart, spread my lower lips open, and thrust two fingers into my
pussy to draw out my wetness. Did he think there was a chance I wasn’t soaked and
ready for him? Way past ready?

His touch was welcome and amazing…and gone as soon as it began.

I sucked in a sharp breath, willing him to resume his exploration.

It was unnecessary, however, because he grabbed my hips and thrust his cock into me
so fast, he took my breath away.

I screamed out at the moment of the intrusion, my entire body on fire for him.

When he drew himself almost out and thrust back in a second time, my elbows buckled.

I had to lower my head to the mattress and use my forearms to keep myself from slamming
forward into the headboard.

Parker had a good grip on my hips, though. There was no chance he was going to let
me get away from him.

His cock felt larger than ever in this position, stretching me until I didn’t know
where I ended and he began. My body was one with his.

“You like that?”

“Mmm. God. Please. Harder.”

For once he took my words to heart and fucked me exactly how I craved, his cock pistoning
in and out of me rapidly, thrusting back in deeper with every pass.

I pressed my forehead into the bed and held my breath, trying hard to keep from coming
again yet. I wanted it to last longer. I wanted to enjoy the feel of him inside me.
I wanted to remember it for a lifetime.

But there was no way I could stop the storm. The moment he reached around my body
and rubbed my clit with his fingers, a hurricane slammed into me. I screamed out as
my pussy gripped his cock and milked him.

The low moan that accompanied my own noises was his, and he held himself steady buried
deep inside me while he came right behind me.

For several seconds, time stood still. My ears rang with the intensity.

Finally, keeping himself buried inside me, he eased us onto our sides and spooned
me from behind. With one hand, he reached up to tug my dress from my arms and toss
it aside. I lowered them, but only to have him grip my wrists with his one large hand
and press them between my breasts.

He breathed heavily, nibbling a path around my neck and ear before lowering his head
to my pillow behind me. “And you don’t think submission is for you…” he whispered.

“Never said that. I’m sure I’d make a model submissive.”

“Hmmm. I’m confused.”

“I’m just not willing. There’s a difference.”

“Mmmm.” He sounded sleepy and didn’t comment again.

I felt cherished in his arms, unwilling to dislodge him. Warm. At peace for a moment.

I was almost asleep when he slipped out of my channel and carefully climbed off the
bed. I listened to him in the bathroom, and then he was back, pushing my top leg forward
and higher to wipe between my thighs with a warm cloth.

I snuggled in deeper without a sound when he resumed his spot at my back and pulled
the covers over us, my hands still clasped together at my chest, his hand returning
to surround mine.

“Sleep, hon,” he whispered into my ear, kissing me gently before relaxing into my
back.