Chapter Eighteen

Conflicted and confused: those two states described the state of her mind to an accurate degree. Ever since she met Riley, she pretty much felt the same way and now her feelings were even more jumbled up. She’d spent too much time hating Riley and now she discovered he wasn’t that man who she tried so hard to blame for all the wrong things in her life.

 

Seeing him walk towards the door, she was reminded of the time when she spent hours crying because he wasn’t with her, because he wasn’t the man she thought he was. He was more than she’d assumed.

 

“Riley,” she said. “Wait.”

 

He turned to look at her. Was it hope that flitted across his eyes? Did he want to stay with her? “These people…this gang of yours, they have screwed up our lives.”

 

“Yeah, they have.”

 

“If we go away, if we’re the ones who get out of town then they would think we’re scared and that we fled. They might look for us for a while, but since we won’t be a threat, they would forget about us eventually.”

 

He shrugged. “Yeah! I suppose so.”

 

“But nothing would happen to them.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

She stood and walked over to where he stood. “They’re the ones who blew up that warehouse. They nearly killed me, and even you might’ve died in that place. Had we been inside…” She shuddered. It was a thought that crossed her mind a number of times before. “So why should I flee? Why should you do the same? Instead of turning our backs on them, we should face them.”

 

A smile lifted his lips. “What do you intend to do? Confront them? That’s not going to achieve much.”

 

“They are blackmailing you, aren’t they?” she guessed. It made sense. They must want something from him, and mainly that was to get her. In order to issue a command, they must believe that they held some leverage over him. “What is it?”

 

Looking surprised, he folded his arms across his chest. Some of the earlier cockiness that endeared him to her was reflected in his eyes. “It’s not something I can’t handle.”

 

“What is it?” she demanded. “Come on. It won’t hurt to let me know.”

 

He bit his lip as he considered her words. “Fine. If you must know, I was the one who initiated the contact with Xavier. All the initial papers that were sent to him have my signatures, so, obviously, if the police start an insurance fraud investigation, I’ll go down along with others, but there isn’t much proof against them.”

 

“And they want you to bring me in so they can question me or kill me, and if you don’t, they might release those documents to the police.”

 

He shook his head. “They issued that threat, but, of course, I’m not worried about it. How can they get me in trouble while keeping themselves clean? They won’t do it.”

 

“What if we do something that would get them into a pile of shit?”

 

He cocked an eyebrow, perhaps responding to the cold tone in her voice. “What do you mean?”

 

“Why should we run? Why should we hide? They are the ones who started this mess, and they should go to jail for it. I intend to see that they do, and I want you to help me. Together, we can uncover evidence that links them to this plot to blow up the warehouse.”

 

“You’re joking, right?”

 

“I am dead serious.”

 

He stared at her as if she said something incredibly stupid. Sure, on the face of it, the idea was terrible. How could they take on the might of a criminal organization? But stranger things happened, and she was willing to give it a try. “You intend to do this alone.”

 

She shook her head. “No, I want to do this with you. Together, we’re strong. You know them and you can figure out where those weaknesses are. If we search their records, if we go deep down, we will find something that will link them to the explosion and then we can go to the police.”

 

“They don’t trust me enough to give me access to their records.”

 

She tapped her foot on the floor. “They will when you hand me over. Then they won’t have a choice but to include you in their inner rank.”

 

He exploded. She saw the color that flushed in his cheeks, and the gleam of anger that sparkled in his eyes. “Have you lost your mind?”

 

“I haven’t, actually. It’s the only thing that will allow you to access to their inner sanctum and without it, we won’t get anywhere.”

 

“And you would risk your life? Have you gone mad?”

 

“I wouldn’t risk my life because you would keep me safe. I trust you, Riley.”

 

Now she could see the flabbergasted expression on his face. He wanted to take her in his arms, but he was hesitant to do so. She didn’t blame him. In their own way, both of them went to hell but now they were back – and everything would be good once more.

 

“It’s a stupid plan.”

 

“It’s not.” She took another step forward. Her heart pounded so loud she was sure he could hear it. Sweat beaded on her forehead. “I would tell them that if something happens to me, a friend of mine would give certain information to the police. And I would assure them that all I want is to stay safe, and if they let me go, I’ll get right out of town. They won’t let me go immediately. Of course, they would keep me prisoner for a few days and, in that time, you can ferret out all the relevant information. Then you can go to the police and rescue me.”

 

“What if you’re wrong? They could kill you right away.”

 

“Would they do that?”

 

He walked over to the window and glanced out. She could see the wheels in his mind turn as he pondered over her plan. “I don’t know…I think they won’t. They would want to make sure that what you said was true.”

 

“I would tell them that I’d secretly followed you and took pictures of your meeting with others, and that if that information is released, they will be connected to you and since your name is on those papers…” She was brainstorming without giving it much thought. Sure, the plan was raw and it wasn’t perfect, but if he agreed with her, it would fall into place.

 

“It might just work.” He nodded. Turning back to face her, he ran a hand over her jaw. “But what would your boyfriend say to all that? Surely, he wouldn’t want you to face this mess.”

 

A smile flitted over lips. “What boyfriend?”

 

He blinked his eyes. “The one who…that Jason guy…”

 

“He is not my boyfriend.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“He owns this place and he is a friend. We did date for a while, but that was a long time ago, and we’ve moved on since then. So yeah…he is not my boyfriend.”

 

“Not your boyfriend? As in you guys are not…” He shook his head.

 

She mimicked his action. “No, he is not.” Silence reigned in the room. She didn’t know what to say, and it was obvious that he was at a loss for words.

 

“So are you…I mean, do you…what is…?”

 

She sucked in a deep breath of air. It was time to bare her soul. “I love you, Riley. I don’t know how or when…but I fell in love with you and when I thought that you’d betrayed me, my heart broke into a million pieces.”

 

“I never betrayed you.” His voice was surprisingly heavy, almost as if he was resisting the urge to cry. “I didn’t know what they planned. Yes, I suspected that they were up to something not quite kosher, but since I didn’t have proof, I wasn’t sure what to tell you. That was the only mistake I made. Other than that, everything we did, everything I said, was straight from the heart.”

 

She didn’t take her eyes off him but neither did she move towards him. There was a lot that she needed to hear. “And?”

 

“And I love you, of course.”

 

She sputtered out a laugh. “That should’ve been said first, you idiot.”

 

“Oh!” He rubbed his jaw. “I can’t think straight. Tania, I love you…and there are no other words that describe how I feel about you.”

 

She didn’t know which one of them made the first move. Maybe it was her. Maybe it was him. But soon they were in each other’s arms, and their lips were fused together in a kiss. His tongue delved inside her mouth to taste the recesses of her mouth, and she felt the familiar waves of pleasure and desire zigzag through her veins. It was exactly what she needed, what she’d craved for all these days.

 

He lifted her off her feet and carried her to the couch, but she pushed his shoulder. He raised his head. “What?”

 

“Upstairs, bed. Maids, remember.”

 

He swore. “Damn it. Where is your room?”

 

“Upstairs on the right.” She giggled at his flabbergasted expression. It seemed so long ago that she tasted him, felt his skin ripple under her fingers, or squealed as he pounded into her, but still she didn’t feel shy or self-conscious. Instead, she was eager, determined.

 

He let her go and, hand in hand, they raced up the stairs. She opened the door and they stumbled inside her room. She fell on the bed and he joined her. Immediately, his hands captured hers and his mouth clung to her with a desperation that matched hers.

 

It was far too long, and they couldn’t wait any longer. A fountain of lust spiraled up her spine, and wild sensations gripped her in their fiery embrace. Arousal was instantaneous, strong. Beads of moisture gathered in her pussy and stuck to her panties as he continued to plunder her mouth.

 

Finally, he lifted his head and stared down at her. “This is it. We’re together, forever.”

 

“Of course." She ran a hand over his cheek. “We are together.”

 

There was no need to say anything else. He sat and took off his shirt. She enjoyed the way the muscles rippled on his back. He’d lost a little bit of weight, but, still, his body was as sleek and hard as she remembered. After he took off his clothes, he stood still for a moment as if he was allowing her to burn the memory of his body in her mind.

 

She feasted her eyes on his wide shoulders, his chest, and the long line of dark hair that swept down to the curls that guarded his cock. Moisture leaked down her thighs, and she pressed her legs together in an attempt to control the flow. She’d lost him and that made her miserable – but now they were with each other and nothing else mattered.

 

She wanted to fight the desire and take it slow, but it was a losing battle, especially when he tugged the dress off her. His fingers played with the straps of her bra and then moved back to unhook the delicate material. He threw it aside and glanced down at her firm, heavy breasts that spilled out. He didn’t touch them. Instead, he took off her panties and allowed them to drop on the ground.

 

“I’ve dreamt about this,” he said in a voice that was filled with pain. “It’s been too long.”

 

In response, she opened her legs and beckoned him forward. He didn’t waste any time. His eyes glittered as he joined her on the bed. She wanted to feel his hard, long cock pound into her, to have his warm skin rub against her, and to satisfy the need for release that already careened in her body.

 

He appeared to share her thoughts as he captured her swollen nipple in his lips and sucked with fervor. She arched her back as sensations, strong and hot, rushed through her veins. Her hands rested on his back and she relished the way his muscles bunched under her fingers. His skin was warm, smooth. Hot swirls of desire gripped her as his tongue flicked over her nipple. She was his willing prisoner as he caressed and fondled the hard bud until she was a bundle of frayed nerves.

 

Her fingers slipped down his torso until she gripped his hard cock in her hand. She flicked her finger over the tip of it and was rewarded with beads of moisture that gathered on top. He was as aroused as her. She could feel his need, and it matched hers.

 

The hunger that gnawed through her didn’t allow her to rest. She wanted more and as he feasted on her breasts, she pumped his cock up and down. He raised his head and groaned. Seeing her opportunity, she slipped out from under him. As he flipped over on his back, she kept a firm hold on his cock. When he settled on the bed, she kissed the head while her tongue traveled down the light of it until she found his balls.

 

Tania inhaled the scent of him. It heightened her desire. She licked and fondled his penis until he parted his legs, giving her a great access. Finally, when he was begging under her, she took him deep inside her mouth. His penis throbbed in her mouth and she loved the sensation.

 

Lust hazed over her mind as she continued to caress his organ.

 

Finally, he gripped her hair and forced her to move off.

 

“What?”

 

“My turn,” he said as he flipped her over. Before she could release, he thrust his finger into her pussy. She buckled under him as waves of pleasure careened through her nerves. Gripping his shoulders, she kept herself locked on the edge of sanity while she was swept along the fast current that rushed through her blood. Her hips jerked up and down in tune with his finger, moving in and out of her.

 

His thumb pressed her clit, and the orgasm that rippled through her nearly tore her into two. She squealed as her toes curled. He didn’t give her much time to recover. She could tell he was right on the edge. Instead, he took position over her and, when she parted her legs, he thrust inside her with a loud groan. Her blood boiled with a need that was hard to control anymore. It took precedence over everything. All she wanted was to escape this torture, but, yet, she didn’t have the will to move away.

 

He jerked up, moving his cock all the way out. Her muscles expanded and contracted again when he pushed deep inside her. His pelvic bone ground into hers with enough force to pin her on the bed.

 

She wrapped her legs around him as every cell in her body exploded. He rode her hard and she matched his rhythm. They kept pace together, jerking up and down in motion. Loud noises escaped her lips, but she didn’t care. She was dying – and it was going to be one hell of a finish. Spirals of passion loped and coiled through her gut and tingled into every fiber of her body.

 

The craving for release was a fire in her belly. Her nerves fizzled and burned, and the need was a tempest that held in fast. When the orgasm ripped through her veins, she screamed and shuddered. Her toes curled and she buckled under him. A moment later, he spilled his semen inside her.

 

For a long time they lay still. Life was good. In fact, it was fantastic.