THIRTY
It was nearly ten a.m. before Kayne returned home from taking the kids to school and finally called the alarm company. Thick cloud coverage had fooled everyone into oversleeping. It had been a lazy morning with no one in a hurry to be anywhere.
The alarm company had put him on hold to wait for yet another representative. The last four hadn't shared his concern over his perceived glitches in their state-of-the-art system.
Kayne gave Jess a lingering kiss goodbye. “Be careful.” She still looked exhausted, but he'd been unable to talk her out of her volunteer work.
“These are for you.” Jess handed him a box of checks and an envelope. “Just stop by the bank and fill out a signature card.”
His head began to throb. For Christ’s sake, she wouldn't even cash the damn checks he'd been writing her each payday, and she expected him to have access to her money on top of it?
He shoved the box across the counter. “I don't think so.”
They were going to have to have a serious talk about finances. Didn't she understand that he already felt like he’d failed his first family? Now he felt like some damned Shih tzu-hound being taken care of by its mistress. The reality was she didn't need him. For anything. And that stung.
She gave him an indulgent smile as she picked them up. “Be reasonable, Kayne. Use it for household things and stuff for the kids, at least.”
Kayne narrowed his eyes, studying her. “How much are you giving me access to?” Hell, he had no idea how much money she even had. By looking at the house, it was quite a bit. As if any of that mattered. Some of the happiest moments of his life had taken place in a three-bedroom house that was bursting at the seams with kids.
Jess shot him a mischievous smile. “There's already a Vanquish in the garage.” His jaw slacked in shock, and she laughed. “But I suppose there's room for that custom Harley you were drooling over that day at Westgate.”
Damn that had been a nice bike.
Kayne shook the thought away. “That's not what I meant, and you know it. Is that seriously an Aston Martin?” He really should have looked under the cover if that was the case.
The light in Jess’s eyes dimmed. “Yeah, it's a 2007 two-plus-two with the V12. Jarred bought it with trust fund money before his parents cut him off. I should have sold it long ago, but Cody begged me to keep it.” Jess frowned thoughtfully.
It seemed to finally be sinking in that Cody had tried to control Jess's life all under the disguise of friendship. Kayne was certain Cody had simply been biding his time until he could step in and take over the life he’d all but created for Jess and himself.
Jess studied the box in her hands then sat it back down. “You should take it for a spin.” She looked up at him. “It only has a couple thousand miles on it; it's a shame for a really great piece of equipment to go to waste.” She eyed him appreciatively.
Nice attempt at distraction. He laughed. “The car you talked me into. This, however…,” he reached over and tapped the box of checks, “we're going to talk about later.”
Jess raised a challenging eyebrow. Apparently she didn’t agree. With a sigh, Kayne turned his attention to the supervisor who'd finally come on the line.
Thirty minutes later, they'd assured him someone would be out first thing in the morning. Not the answer Kayne wanted, but at least he'd be home tonight, and he wouldn’t be taking any midnight callouts this time.
***
Jess stood in the shadows outside the living room, fighting really hard to keep from laughing. She’d come to let Kayne know she was home, the older two kids in tow, but the sight before her stopped her in her tracks.
This morning Kayne had promised Isabelle and Gracie that if they’d sit and color while he did house work, he’d do something fun with them afterward. Isabelle had asked if she could paint his toe nails, and he’d reluctantly agreed. Now, Kayne was sitting on the couch, a cold beer in hand, his pants legs haphazardly rolled up, as the two little girls blew on his glittery, Pepto-Bismol pink toenails.
She must have made a sound because Kayne looked over his shoulder. He patted the chair. “Hey, baby, come see what the girls have done.”
Jess sat one hip on the arm, then leaned down and kissed him. “Nice nails.” She giggled when he pulled a face. “Traded in your man card, huh?”
Kayne looked at the little girls. “Go ask Maddy to give you a snack.”
“Okay!” Isabelle shot to her feet and was off.
“A’Kay!” Gracie echoed, her little arms and legs pumping for all they were worth to keep up.
“I'll show you my man card.” Kayne surged to his feet, ducked, and threw Jess over his shoulder. He ignored her protests and smacked a firm hand down on her butt. Jess stilled, shocked that whether he'd intended it or not, it turned her on.
His hand stroked down one firm globe and across her inner thigh, where only two thin layers of material barred his hand from her quickly dampening sex. He petted her ass again and again as he walked. Stopping in the shadowed alcove under the stairs, he let her slowly slide down the front of him. Her thighs brushed his straining cock. Her nipples rasped against his chest before her toes touched the ground.
He nuzzled her ear, nipping the lobe. “Are you wet for me?”
“Yes.” She shook her head in denial. How could this man who swore he'd never love again make her feel so cherished? So wanted. How could he turn her on with just a word or a heated look when the man who said the words, “I love you” on a regular basis had never been able to? What was the problem? One had repeatedly said the words and never meant them, and the other would never say the words, but would treat her as if he did for as long as he chose to be with her.
Perhaps that was it. With each passing day it felt like the clock ticked faster—
faster to the end, like the timer on a bomb, and when it reached zero, her world would explode. Damn!
No, not now! She was close to tears even thinking about it. The thought of goodbye constricted her chest and brought an ache to her throat. “Touch me.” God please, just touch me.
Kayne cupped her face with his hands and studied her for a moment. Did he see all that she was fighting to hide? Did he know that he had the power to destroy her world with a single word? If he could see the love she felt for him, would he acknowledge it, or would he throw it in her face? The truth was, she had nothing to offer that would bind him to her. Jess shut her eyes with the pain, remembering another man, another moment.
“I'm sick of this shit.” Jarred picked up a ceramic container and threw it, shattering it against the kitchen wall.
“It's not enough for me anymore.” He looked right through her. “You're not enough. I hate this goddamned life we're living. I hate us pretending I'm not fucking someone else because you don't like having sex. God, Jessica, do you have any idea how that makes me feel? You're the sweetest person I know, but I don’t know how to love you. I hate coming home at night. I sit out in that damn truck and have to talk myself into getting out and walking in the door. I need out before I end up hating you.”
He took her in his arms for a moment, and she was too stunned to do anything to stop him. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. “I'm so sorry. I thought I could do this. I thought I wanted this life, but I don't. I never meant to hurt you. I never meant for it to end this way, but it's over. I want a divorce.” With that, he picked up his keys and walked out and never came home again.
“Jess?” Kayne tilted her chin up.
No, no no! She didn't want to hear worry or concern in his voice, she was fine. She. Was. Fine!
“Touch me.” She pressed her trembling lips against his.
***
Kayne wasn't sure what was wrong, where Jess had gone for that moment. She'd looked at him as if he’d reached in and ripped out her heart, and his own constricted in response. He closed his eyes, brushing his lips against hers. Slowly he made love to her with his mouth, all the while his hands never leaving her face. Each time Jess tried to deepen the kiss, to speed things up, he slowed it back down. Jess whimpered her frustration, but he refused to be rushed. He refused to let whatever ghost was chasing her come between them.
He traced the shell of her ear with the tip of his tongue. “Unbutton your blouse,” he whispered. “Just a little, enough for me to suckle your sweet little nipples.”
Though her hands quaked, she instantly complied.
“Oh, yeah, that's it, baby,” he praised, even as he brushed aside her bra and palmed her breast. “You have to be quiet.” He ducked down, taking one tight rosy nipple into his mouth and sucking ever so gently. More a caress of lips and tongue than actual suckling, still she whimpered.
“Please.” She cupped his head, holding him to her, arching into him. There was a desperation in her voice Kayne didn't understand.
“Baby, talk to me.” He reached under her skirt and eased her panties aside. He gave her one long stroke, parted her silky folds, and circled her clit before plunging a finger deep.
“No.” She shook her head even as her hips rocked against his hand. “I need you, Kayne. Please. Inside me. Now.”
“Tonight, baby. I promise tonight, just let me take the edge off for you—”
“No.” She shoved his hand from between her thighs. “No,” she said again, but she didn't let go. Instead she brought his glistening fingers to her lips and enveloped them. He watched in a haze of lust as she sucked them into her mouth one by one, licking every drop of herself off.
Kayne leaned in and kissed her, loving the taste of her on her lips. “I just want to watch you come for me, baby.” He wanted to hold her in his arms, hear her sexy little kitten noises as she lost control.
Jess grabbed his hand, dragged him into her office, then closed and locked the door. She reached for the intercom before he could ask her what she was doing. “Maddy, take Isabelle and Gracie down to the playroom. You and Ash can do your homework there while they play. I'll double all of your allowances for the week if you can behave for the next hour.”
That received an enthusiastic round of “Yes, ma'am!”
The second Jess switched off the intercom, Kayne had her on the edge of her desk, his mouth devouring hers. Christ, everything she did made his blood boil.
“It’s such a fucking turn on to know you can't wait,” he murmured against her neck.
Kayne trailed hot, open-mouthed kisses across her exposed skin. He wasn't foolish enough to think they had unlimited time. They had fifteen, maybe twenty minutes tops before a referee would be needed. Yet still he had to taste her, touch her.
Jess was begging by the time he knelt in front of her naked body. Her breasts heaved with desire, her rosy puckered nipples still glistened from his attention, as he buried his face in the juncture of her thighs.
Nuzzling her, he inhaled deeply, lazing in the scent of her arousal. He loved the way she smelled, tasted. She was the perfect combination of sweet and spicy as though she'd been made especially for him. His own personal bouquet. He dipped his tongue between her folds, giving one long firm lick up and across her hard nub. Jess shuddered in response, moaning even as her thighs contracted around his head.
“Easy, baby.” He spread her bare lips with his thumbs. For a moment, he stared at the beauty of her delicate pink skin, at the plumped folds that protected her core, at the swollen little clit hooded from him. “So beautiful. Edible.”
His sweet kitten turned into a wild cat when he leaned in and gently nibbled her glistening pearl. Clamping an arm on her thighs and a hand low over her belly to keep her still, he thrust his tongue into her as deep as he could go and felt her body contract. God, she was close, so goddamn close to the edge, but he wasn't willing to let her go under. Not yet. He tongue fucked her, alternating between shallow quick thrusts and long lingering penetrations, paying close attention to the sounds she made, keeping her right on the edge.
“Please, Kayne,” she panted. “I need you inside me.”
“Turn around,” he ordered, sounding more cop than husband as he surged to his feet. “Turn around, baby,” he whispered in her ear as he physically turned her and placed both her hands on the desk in front of her.
“W-what, why?” She glanced nervously over her shoulder.
Kayne had his pants down around his hips in seconds. “I can't wait any longer, baby.” He stepped up behind her, nudging her legs apart. Settling against her thighs, his cock resting heavy on her tailbone.
“Like this?” Her brow furrowed with doubt, she bit her lower lip.
Was she serious?
Of course she was; she'd never been taken from behind. Kayne wanted to howl as he beat his chest in Neanderthalic satisfaction. Heady indeed.
“Trust me, baby. You’ll like this.” He pulled her back against him, one hand cupping her breast, his thumb and finger teasing an oversensitive nipple while his other hand palmed her belly and pulled her tight, letting her feel his erection nestled between them.
Kayne whispered in her ear, explaining how he planned to take her, building her desire back up, walking a razor’s edge of his own.
“Lean on the desk.” Bending with her, he nibbled her neck, lightly bit her shoulder. A lion dominating his mate before mounting her. He teased her, stroking the length of his shaft through her slick folds, feeling her shudder with each pass over her most sensitive flesh.
Jess tried to shift her hips to take him inside. “Please. I need you.”
Jesus Christ, he needed her too.
He poised, ready to feed his throbbing cock into her swollen sex. “Say my name,” he growled.
“Kayne,” she panted.
“That’s right, baby, it’s me here with you. Only me.” He entered her slowly, sinking further and further with each gentle thrust until he was fully embedded.
He clenched his teeth, fighting for control. “Am I hurting you?”
“No.” Her inner muscles contracted and relaxed. She gasped when he pressed deeper.
“You like?” He flexed his hips.
Jess planted her hands and pushed back into him in response, moaning as she rocked forward, dragging almost off of him before thrusting backward and impaling herself.
With that simple act, all civility left Kayne. He rode her hard. Long drags and deep plunges. His fingers danced across her pebbled nipples. He sucked her delicate skin, marking her neck, and she purred. He bit her shoulder hard, dominating her. Claiming her. Jess bowed up, every muscle clenched and convulsed. ”Oh God, Kayne!”
But he wasn't done with her, not even close. He was thoroughly out of control, and his only thought was mine. She was his, and he was branding her. Marking her as his. Ruining her for all others. There was no one else for her, and by God she was going to realize that.
Kayne pulled out and turned her around to face him. “Hold on to me.” He wrapped her arms around his neck, not waiting for her orgasm-fogged response. His movements were quick, jerky. Rough. He didn't feel gentle, he felt primal, possessive. She needed to know she was his, and he wasn't letting her go. He was done sharing her with a goddamned ghost.
Kayne lifted her, spreading her thighs wide, plunging into her as he backed her into the wall. Fucking her.
Not. Letting. Her. Go.
Jess dug her heels into the small of his back, and Christ almighty, she was clawing the hell out of his shoulders and back. She was as out of control as he was, and he wanted to howl with the pleasure of it all.
He gave no quarter, and she offered none in return, yet his mind fought release. Then she shattered a second time and pulled him into the dark waves of ecstasy with her. Kayne threw back his head and roared in satisfaction.