Naomi 

 

I eyed him suspiciously after his comment but ignored it. There were more important things to tend to at the moment, like inhaling the awesome burger. Thankfully, he felt the same way and we ate in silence. Oddly, since we’d just met, the quiet that the room held as we ate wasn’t uncomfortable.

The only thing I found unsettling was when I caught him watching me. I did find the nerve to look up at him once and when I did my heart totally stopped, yes, stopped. It had to, because I felt all the blood drain from my head, leaving it a hazy mess when, with his eyes to mine, he licked his lips.

I watched his tongue come out, slowly tracing his top lip, doing the same to the bottom one, and it was a vision that I knew would stick with me for the coming years. Then as I moved my eyes from him in fear of having an orgasm right there, my brain quickly floated to what that tongue would feel like on my body.

Maybe idle conversation was better than complete silence.

I wiped my hands on a napkin as I asked, “Could I use the printer now?”

He did the same and tossed his into the empty box on the counter in front of him and muttered, “One second.”

Then I watched him walk, no, saunter with his delicious ass encased in black jeans down the hallway and stop at one of the closed doors. My eyes moved to his hands, and I stared as his fingers began to press numbers on the keypad on the wall beside the door.

Stop staring at him! But, that body and eyes and… body.

As if he heard my thoughts, he glanced my way and caught me gazing at him. As if it couldn’t get any more unnerving than him finding me watching him, he winked at me before disappearing through the door.

Oh for the love of all things holy. He fucking winked at me. I grabbed the edge of the island as my body began to teeter and steadied myself on the stool.

Then it got worse.

Because I was trying to erase the image of him winking at me, I still had my eyes focused on where he’d stood. As I had an inner battle with myself, he leaned the top half of his body out the door. His lips were half open like he was going to say something, but then they shut, and… we stared at each other.

He held me to my spot with his blue penetrating eyes.

The conflicting emotions that coursed through my body prompted a million images to flip through my head like a slide show. Braydon’s reaction when he was served divorced papers. Grace’s smiling face when I told her I’d filed for divorce. Chase slowly walking toward me. Then us under a waterfall, naked, his strong arms wrapped around my body, kissing me—

“Wow.” His rough whisper broke me from my own head and I blinked. “Love to know what that last thought was that went through that pretty little head of yours.”

“What?” I mumbled, still caught in the trance his eyes held me in, as he moved to the outside of the door and leaned up against the jamb.

“Your last thought, No, what was it?” 

Before I had a chance to stop it, I whispered, “A waterfall.”

He nodded slowly and tipped his lips up into a grin that could have many meanings behind it. And I couldn’t read any of them.

“Printer,” he muttered.

“Oh.” I jumped from the stool, causing it to wobble and crash to the floor. “Shit,” I murmured as I crouched to pick the stool up, because as any women knows, bending in a fitted pencil skirt wasn’t an easy task.

But I didn’t have a chance to lift it, since Chase was right there doing it for me. I looked up at him, way up at him as he towered over me. And for some reason the way his blue eyes darkened had my heart rate picking up speed. His intense examination initiated a shiver across my body and caused my belly to flutter.

All the air was sucked out of the room as I watched his chest move as he drew in a deep breath. I gasped, searching for oxygen to fill my strangling lungs. My breasts started to swell and my nipples went painfully hard. But painful in an extraordinary way that felt amazing. I watched as something flashed across his face as his hands moved to his hips.

Anger? No

Pain? No.

Want? Maybe.

Dominance? YES!

His lust-filled eyes narrowed, piercing mine. His hands planted on his hips, lips set into a hard line, chest moving with steady breaths, and nothing but sheer masculinity stood in front of me. I knew then without a doubt; it was nothing but pure control that radiated from him. And that had my panties flooding with wetness I’d never experienced before.

Even as my ankles began to sting with the strain they held, I couldn’t move. I was in a trance. A spell that only he had the power to break. I gazed up at him with burning desire, silently giving myself to him, waiting for his command.

Chase broke the thick hunger-filled tension and firmly whispered, “Knees.”

I didn’t question or hesitate, I don’t even think I flinched when I easily moved to kneel before him. The fabric of my skirt spreading to its limits. 

“That’s my girl,” he coarsely muttered.

Raging emotions came over me and my lids fluttered to hold back the stinging tears. He instantly crouched before me, taking my shaky hands in his. “You trust me, Naomi?”

“Yes,” I breathed.

He nodded, placing my hand on my thigh, and he raised his to brush it across my cheek. The gentle touch of his rough hand had me leaning into it and closing my eyes. He squeezed the hand he was still holding, causing my eyes to flick open.

With his hand cupping my cheek, eyes on mine, he began to slowly lean in. My tongue automatically came out to trace my lips. His eyes dropped to my mouth and watched its movement. When they lifted to mine, he gave a throaty growl. The dampness between my legs seeped onto my thighs and the pounding in my chest radiated throughout my body.

I straightened my back and braced for the lips of Chase Black to meet mine.

“What in the fuck is that all about, Chase?” The male voice had me instantly breaking out from under the spell.

Chase quickly rose to his feet and looked past the island, muttering, “Fuck.”

He held his hand out to me. I took it and lifted to stand on wobbly legs. His hand let go of mine and grabbed my bicep until I steadied myself. My eyes went to where his were staring and I watched as two guys made their way from the foyer hallway to the open space.

They both halted when they saw us.

“Oh shit,” the tall, hot familiar-looking one mumbled and pointed toward the door. “Harry let us up and the door was unlocked.”

The short one opened his mouth to say something but nothing came out. His eyes went to Chase and he winced. Then he muttered, “Fuck, I’m sorry, but it was Lane’s idea.”

The tall man, Lane, stared at me. I stared back and then it hit me.

“Bill,” I uttered. “Bill Flounders?” He looked at Chase, and my gaze followed his.

Chase looked down at me and took a heavy breath, closing his eyes when he did. When they opened they were soft on me. “Come sit down, No,” he said quietly as he pulled on my arm.

“No!” I yelled and ripped my arm from his grip.

“Wait,” the short guy spoke up. “What in the fuck is going on here?”

“Russell, quiet,” Lane or Bill grated out.

“No!” I shouted again and waved a hand toward the Russell guy. “Just like he said, what the fuck is going on?” I moved my arm to point at Bill or Lane as I asked, looking at Chase, “How do you know Bill?”

“It’s Lane, Naomi,” Lane spoke up as he moved to the other side of the island. “Not Bill.”

“Naomi,” Russell uttered, his eyes moving through the three of us.

“Yes.” I spoke loudly and walked on my black stockinged feet firmly toward Russell. The haze that had filled my head and body was now fully gone and replaced with anger and confusion. “Naomi McAllister,” I said.

He took my hand. “Dr. Russell Paxton, nice to meet you.” The first thing I noticed were his beautiful deep brown eyes. Then he smiled and he was just as hot as Lane but in my opinion, neither of them as gorgeous as Chase.

“The same,” I returned, and moved to his side after I let his hand go. “Now.” I looked between Chase and Lane. Chase’s eyes burning into mine only fueled the fire building inside of me. “Since Dr. Paxton and I—”

He leaned in and said, “Call me Russell, sweetheart.”

I gave him a small smile, but that quickly faded when Chase roared, “Step the fuck away from her, now, Russell!”

Russell automatically obeyed Chase’s command and moved to where Lane stood in the kitchen.

“Chase,” I hissed.

“Listen, Naomi,” Lane started, but Chase didn’t let him speak another word.

“Lane,” Chase rumbled firmly, and Lane backed down, hands in the air.

My head swiftly moved from Chase to Lane and then Russell, only to move back through them again in shock. I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing. Fury flowed through me. “What are you? His freaking dogs?”

“No,” Russell answered childishly.

Chase threw him a look and Russell recoiled. Lane totally ignored my question but he looked to the counter and that’s all I needed to see to know his answer.

“Well,” I bellowed with a hand in the air. “You all might be afraid of Chase Black but I sure as hell am not,” I lied.

I didn’t feel threatened around him. He actually made me feel safe.

When I’d pulled into my driveway and seen the front door wide open, I’d panicked. But that fright had quickly evaporated when the vision of Braydon being home entered my mind. Then it had filled with a mixture of emotions. So I’d gotten out of the car and made my way slowly into the house, calling his name. When no one answered and I saw the mess, I knew what had occurred.

I’d raced from room to room, running on pure adrenaline. It hadn’t been until I hit the kitchen and stared out the window that the anxiety of what had transpired set in. And then it hit high peak when a hand came around to cover my mouth and an arm to wrap around my waist, holding me in place. But when Chase’s voice had whispered in my ear, all those worries slipped away.

Now the only threat I felt around him was the chance he had of setting the broken pieces of my heart back into place.

“No, come sit, please,” Chase said softly.

“Holy shit,” Russell mumbled, causing my eyes to go to him. He elbowed Lane. “Did Chase just say please?”

“Keep testing me, Russ,” Chase said, narrowing his eyes Russell’s way, then dangerously rumbled, “I dare you.”

Russell again withdrew and shut his mouth.  

I broke the tension. “Tell me what the hell’s going on, Chase?”

He rubbed the back of his neck before he said, “I couldn’t have you going to Dallas.”

I looked over to Lane, who shrugged. Then over to Russell to view his face twisted in confusion. Probably mirroring my own as I looked for clarity in the situation. The room stood silent for a minute as I looked around and BAM!

“Oh my God,” I whispered in shock. “You had Lane keep me from getting to the airport.”

Chase’s face fell as realization hit me. He took a deep breath, rubbed his head, and opened his mouth.

“No!” I shouted, holding my hand up as my heart dropped into my stomach. I then asked quietly, “Why?”

“I told you,” he said. “I couldn’t have you going to Dallas.”

“Why?” I shrieked, losing my patience.

His head dropped and he replied staring at his booted feet, “Because I’d already been there.”

I gasped and put a hand to my twisting stomach. Obviously, I’d hired him and he was doing his job. But it was the expression on his face that had me worrying. A numbing warmth coursed through my body and I put a hand to the wall to balance myself.

“Chase,” I called, and his pained sapphire eyes came to me. “What did you find?”

He inhaled through his nose, causing his chest to expand. I looked over to Lane and Russell for any indication that they might have known something I didn’t. All four eyes were soft on me.

“Please,” I pleaded while the tingling in my nose started and my eyes burned.

“Baby,” Chase uttered softly and held his hand out to me. “Come here.”

“Chase,” I started softly and then raised my voice firmly. “Tell me.” My hand smacked the wall. The sound echoed through the room.

“Fuck,” Lane mumbled under his breath. Russell took in a deep breath.

“Come on, baby.” Chase held his arms open to me.

I gazed into his eyes and my feet started taking slow steps toward him. An arm’s length from him, he leaned forward and grabbed my hands. The tears rimming my eyes began to fall and his gorgeous face became blurry.

Holding my hands tightly, he told me, “He was with another girl.”

I saw his lips move, I heard what he said, but didn’t want to comprehend it. A flush of heat crawled through my body and I began to sway on jittery legs. I’d stored everything inside for as long as I could but as soon as Chase uttered those five words, I felt my world crumble. The weight of confining it all in let loose and…I just couldn’t hold onto it any longer. That’s when my body went numb.

He was with another girl.

His lips moved again and he sounded faraway. “Water, now.”

Then I was up in his arms. Everything began to move in slow motion as he cradled me to his body. Steady firm steps brought us to the closed door at the end of the hallway. Again, he punched at a small keypad on the wall beside the door.

He was with another girl.

Chase opened the door and I hazily took in a spacious room with tan walls. He sat on the edge of a huge bed, never letting me go. Breath strangled in my throat and the tears stopped as a flush of warmth heated my cheeks. The chant, still loud in my head, continued.

He was with another girl.

Lane walked into the bedroom, his quick footsteps sounding muted against the wood floor. Gasping for oxygen, I heard a muffled yell from Chase. “Open the fucking water!”

Then another male appeared: Russell. My wide eyes moved around the room, trying to wipe the fogginess from them. Panic set in when my swimming head began to pound.

“Here.” Russell reached into his pocket, then held out his palm in our direction. “Give her this.”

“Breathe, No,” Chase’s soft gritty voice whispered in my ear.

My eyes focused on the blue in his. So soft and gentle. He stared at me and I inhaled a shaky deep breath.

“That’s my girl,” he whispered and took the bottle of water from Lane’s hand. “Drink.”

He held it to my lips, tipped it, and a rush of cold water filled my mouth. I swallowed and took another lungful of air.

“There ya go.” He smiled at me, put the bottle on the night table and I felt my body start to calm. “Now, take this, okay.”

I shook my head because my Gram taught me never to take pills from anyone, especially if I didn’t know what they were. So I shook my head again with a little more force.

“It’s just a Xanax, Naomi,” Russell said sensitively.

I looked to him to see he still had tenderness in his eyes. Grace had talked about her Xanax that she took on a daily basis.

“Bring it up,” Chase said to Russell.

Russell retrieved his phone from his front pocket of his khakis and began tapping the screen quickly. “Got it,” he said and held the phone out to Chase.

“Look,” Chase said, showing me the screen and the pill in his hand. “I would never drug you, No. Remember, trust.”

Taking my eyes from the screen, I glanced at him then back to the screen and pill and saw they were the same. I nodded and put my hand out. He dropped it in and gave Russell his cell back.

 

“Hold it under your tongue till you feel it start to melt. The effects will start rapidly,” Russell told me.

I popped the pill under my tongue and in a matter of seconds it began to melt. The bitter taste flooded my mouth, causing me to scrunch my face. Lane snatched the bottle off the nightstand and handed it to me. I immediately gulped it down.

“It’s just going to make you feel relaxed,” Russell said once the room was quiet for a second.

“If you don’t need us, we’re gonna head out,” Lane said to Chase.

He held me snug to him, nodded at Lane, and muttered, “Thanks, man.”

“Anytime,” Russell answered and Lane agreed with a nod.

Russell turned to me. “You’re in good hands, Naomi. Take care. And if you need anything,” he paused and his deep brown, thoughtful eyes moved to Chase, then came back to me, “Let Chase know. He can reach me.”

“Get a good night’s sleep, Naomi,” Lane said consolingly and my eyes moved to him.

“Thank you,” I expressed weakly as I sensed the serenity settling in.

“Call you tomorrow,” Lane called to Chase as he walked out the bedroom door.

I closed my eyes and rested my aching head against Chase’s shoulder. His clean musky scent that I hadn’t been able to enjoy before assaulted my nose. The heat coming from his body had me slowly sinking.

His voice was low and husky. “How’s my girl?” he asked, slowly rocking us.

“Tired, tired of it all,” I mumbled.

He whispered tenderly, “I got you.”

And he rocked me until I drifted off.