Chapter Twenty-Four
Mama must have ESP.
I swear that’s the case, because the moment we step through the door
of Penthouse Cabin One, my personal phone rings.
“You going to get that?” Henry tosses his jacket onto the chair and
then, as if thinking better of it, he hangs it up on the entranceway hook.
“It’s just home calling. And I have a pile of things I have to do for
you.”
“Go ahead and answer.” He strolls past me, tossing his wallet and
room keys on a side table and heading for his bedroom.
I heave a sigh. May as well get this over with, I guess. “Hi, Mama.”
“Oh, you’re there! I thought I’d be leaving another message.”
“I know, I’m sorry. It’s been a zoo around here with the hotel
opening.”
“You can make ten minutes for your mama, Abigail,” she scolds in
that stern voice.
“Yes. I know.” And I could have, easily. She doesn’t get that she’s as
much the reason I needed to get away as Jed is, and I don’t have the heart to
tell her.
“And why am I just hearing about this new job of yours? What
happened to landscaping?”
I roll my eyes, playing through various degrees of separation between
Mama and Lucy. Mama doesn’t usually go to the feed mill and she doesn’t
like my childhood friend enough to strike up a conversation. Who am I
kidding? She probably heard it from Jed. “It was a sudden change, but it’s
good. I’m making a lot more money.” And enjoying it immensely.
“And this man that you’re working for?” She spits the word out like it
tastes bad.
“What about him?”
“I don’t like the looks of him.”
“You don’t like good-looking men?” I laugh.
“That’s exactly what I mean, Abigail,” she snaps. “Men who look like
that only want one thing from women.”
I’m used to Mama’s unfair judgment, but hearing it directed at Henry
irritates me. “He’s my boss, Mama. I’m here to schedule his meetings and
keep him organized, that’s all.” Unease slips into my shoulders. I didn’t
hesitate to lie to her. I don’t know that I’ve ever lied to her before. But she’s
overbearing, and I’ve had enough.
“Until he starts lookin’ for more. ‘Wolf.’ What a name.” She lets out a
derisive snort.
“He’s been nice to me.”
“I’m sure he has. That’s because he hasn’t shown you his teeth yet.
You be careful around him, you hear me? I’ll bet he’d love to take
advantage of a girl like you. I knew this was a bad idea, you going up
there,” she grumbles. “You should be back here, where you belong.”
“He would never take advantage of me.” I glance over my shoulder to
make sure Henry isn’t standing behind me.
“Like I said. You can’t be trusting men like that. They lie and cheat
until they get what they want. Mark my words: if you give him what he
wants, he’ll have you on the first plane back to Pennsylvania. You and him
are from different worlds.”
“He doesn’t want that from me, Mama!” I say this with as much
conviction in my voice as I can, even as I stare at my reflection in the
mirror, my cheeks still flushed, and my body sore in all the best ways. I feel
like a different person.
“I know how the world works.”
“How? You’ve only ever been with Dad. You’ve never left
Greenbank!” How worldly can she possibly be? I struggle to hide the
growing frustration as that little voice in my head, the fearful one, asks if
she could be right. What if she’s right? Do I really think this is going to
continue for four months? Only days after he hired me, I’ve already given
my virginity to this man. Days. Will this last four days, let alone four
months? Will he keep me around for that long? What if he gets bored with
me?
I have to give Mama one thing: we certainly are from different
worlds.
I’m scowling at my reflection. Leave it to her to introduce worrisome
thoughts into my consciousness after a day of bliss.
“You already don’t sound like yourself. Don’t you be losing your way
up there.”
Losing my way. Since this whole turmoil with Jed, she has been afraid
that I’ll “lose my way.”
I need her off this topic before she weasels the truth out of me, like
only Mama can do. “How’s everything at home? How’s Dad? Managing the
farm all right without me?” Dad will be turning forty-one this November
and, while his health is leaps and bounds better than hers, he’s not nearly as
spry as he once was.
“Oh, you know your father. He’s complaining about a sore back but
won’t leave the grain for the workers. Says they work hard enough. Jean’s
daughter had her baby. Eight pound girl. They named her Rosalina.”
“Please pass on my congratulations.” Jean has been working on our
farm for as long as I can remember. His daughter, Jennifer, went to school
with Jed and me.
“And Roger, over at the mill, his son’s wife is expecting their
second.”
I tune my mama out. Three years ago when I told her I wanted to go
to college, she pushed back and it was as much to do with me leaving home
and getting an expensive education just to come back and run the farm, as it
was because it would delay her goal for grandbabies. Now she makes sure
to point out every person having babies. At least she’s not talking about Jed,
I guess.
“You wouldn’t believe who came to Sunday service with that girl.”
Spoken too soon.
“They sat right up in the front, holding hands, in church!” She tsks.
“You’ve made yourself too easy to forget for that boy.”
Will she ever let up? “He forgot about me when I was right in front of
him.”
“Maybe you didn’t give him enough attention.”
“You mean a blow job?” I snap.
“Abigail Mitchell! What on God’s green earth has gotten into you?”
I hear the sound of the tap running in the en suite.
Henry. That’s what’s gotten into me. Well, that’s who’s gotten into me.
I take a deep, calming breath. “I don’t want to hear about or talk
about or think about Jed anymore, Mama. He left me. He screwed up. She
can have him.” I sound more confident than I feel.
Silence hangs over the receiver. “You will have to come back to
reality, and that reality is your family, your church, this farm and, yes, Jed.
Don’t be coming back with regrets, Abigail.”
Five minutes on the phone with her and I’m emotionally exhausted.
“Call you in a few days.”
We hang up and I simply stare at my reflection for a moment. As
much as I want to push her words aside, I can’t help but weigh her warning.
Today has been incredible. Magical. Like nothing I could ever have
predicted. It’s happened fast and unexpectedly. But did I just flip an
hourglass on my time here at Wolf Cove?
I’m still pondering that worry when Henry emerges.
“Is she still pushing for the big reconciliation?”
I turn to find him filling the doorframe, his dress pants already
fastened, his button-down hanging open over a simple V-neck t-shirt. He
wet and combed his hair back, and it’s settling into a sexy mane of waves. I
simply stare, mesmerized. How someone was placed on Earth looking that
perfect, I’ll never comprehend.
There are a lot of things I won’t ever comprehend as they relate to
Henry.
Mainly, why he wants me.
A frown creases his forehead. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing.”
“You’re a terrible liar.” He sighs and I don’t miss the hint of irritation.
“Remember what I said before? The only way this will work is if we trust
each other.”
“My mama doesn’t like the look of you.”
“The look of me?” He holds his hands to his chest in mock horror, his
lack of concern almost comical. “That’s odd. I don’t think I’ve met a
woman yet who didn’t like the look of me.”
“You ass.” I giggle at his cockiness. “You’re too handsome. She’s
convinced that you’re going to try to sway me with your good looks and
charm and lure me away from my Christian values.”
“Your mama sounds smart.” He pauses. “You denied that, of course.”
“Of course.”
He watches me for a moment, his perceptive gaze picking up my
unease. “What else?”
I hesitate. “She warned me that if I ‘lose my way’ and commit the
ungodly sin of premarital sex, you’ll only fire me after.”
“And do you believe that?”
I know I don’t want to believe that. “I’m still here,” I answer
halfheartedly, not convincing at all.
He heaves a sigh, and that steely hard jaw takes over. It reminds me
of the first night when he carried me drunk from the dock. “Follow me,
please.” An edge has crept into his tone, and I’m afraid that it’s
disappointment in me.
I perch on the edge of the bed to watch him dress. Another last
minute-surprise a la Belinda, who caught us on the way up from the docks
to tell us that the governor of Alaska was here and she’d arranged a dinner
meeting on Henry’s behalf.
He fastens the buttons on his shirt and I pout as his collarbone
disappears from view. It’s possibly one of the sexiest parts on him. No...
who am I kidding. Every part of him is sexy as hell, down to his toes.
“I have a luxury hotel to see succeed, and an entire corporation to run
from this remote spot in the world. I have a lot more on my plate than most
men do. My stress levels are high. You’d agree, yes?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I also like to fuck.” The blunt, crass statement makes me blush. If he
notices, he doesn’t let on, his expression and tone serious. “It’s one of my
favorite things to do, especially when I’m stressed. I don’t see myself not
being stressed while I’m up here. And you—” He throws a black tie around
his neck and wanders over to me. He doesn’t need to ask anymore; I stand
and gladly reach for the ends automatically. “—are my very capable
personal assistant who I hired to take care of my needs while I’m here for
the season.” He reaches up to gently squeeze my bottom lip between his
thumb and index finger. “You have these pouty, pink lips and big, beautiful
tits that bounce and the sweetest, tightest pink hole that I’ve ever slid my
cock into.” The muscles inside it clench automatically. His grin is devilish.
“And I don’t care what you or your mama or anyone else may say. You also
like to fuck. Don’t you?”
I swallow hard, the feel of his hands on my skin, of his weight
pressing me into the mattress, of him stretching and filling me so
completely, still firmly emblazoned in my mind.
And nod.
“I enjoy fucking you.” He pushes his index finger against my teeth
and I open, allowing him access, sealing my lips over him to suck. “And I
don’t see that changing anytime soon. Okay?” His gaze drops to my lips
and for a moment I think—I hope—that he’s going to lean in and kiss me.
“I have to go now. I can’t keep the Governor waiting, or I’ll never hear the
end of it from Belinda.”
Belinda. “You and her... Was it serious?”
He heaves a sigh. “I don’t discuss my past relationships, Abbi.”
I nod, feeling chastised.
After a long moment, and perhaps because of the look on my face, he
offers, “It was one night, two years ago. I was drunk and under a great deal
of stress and she made herself available. I’ve regretted it every day since.
But I didn’t fire her after. So hopefully that puts your mind at ease.”
“It does. Thank you.” It also strikes me with a moment of insane
jealousy, knowing those lips that have devoured me have also devoured
someone else. Someone for whom I have a face and name. But I have to
push that aside because I’m sure Henry has been with many women. That’s
the reality of a man as powerful and beautiful and seductive as him.
“What time do you want me to get here in the morning?”
“I don’t want you here in the morning.” He says it so coolly.
I frown, confused.
“I want you waiting for me when I get back.”
Tonight? My heart skips three beats. I get more time with Henry. “I
guess I have enough work to keep me busy.”
He pushes strands of my hair off my forehead, tucking them behind
my ear. “Do whatever you want. Order dinner, watch a movie, take a long,
hot bath.”
I moan at the sound of that last option, my poor body sore from
overuse.
Henry slides his hand down the front of my leggings and into my
panties, to push a single finger inside me again. “Make sure you spend a lot
of time thinking about what I’m going to do to you tonight when I get
home.”
I instantly grow slick around his finger and it slips in and out of me
easily.
I stifle my whimper as he pulls his hand away and sticks the finger
into his mouth, sucking it clean. The sight is so intimate, so depraved. So
erotic.
He smirks. “What’s that look?”
“Is this how all men are?”
He considers that for a moment, and then takes a step forward, his
hand finding purchase on my ass and pulling me in to him until his erection
presses hard against my stomach. “I don’t know other men. I know me, and
I want to violate every square inch of this tight little body when I get back.”
He plants a contradictory peck on my nose, and then releases me.
With a casual wave over his head, he heads out the door to meet the
governor of Alaska. With an erection.
Leaving me with hours to kill.
~ ~ ~ ~
My eyes crack open to take in the low glow of the fire. It was burning
bright when I made myself comfortable on the living room’s lush shag rug
with a plate of squash soup and a raspberry mousse, courtesy of room
service. How long ago was that?
Turning to check the clock on the wall, I gasp at the sight of Henry
sitting in the armchair a few feet away, his tie undone, his shirt unbuttoned,
his shoes kicked off, a crystal glass of amber liquid—alcohol, I’m assuming
—balanced between his fingertips.
Simply watching me.
I move to rub my eyes, and then remember my contacts. That’s why
my eyes are so blurry. Crap. I never planned on falling asleep. The rug was
so soft, the fire so warm. “What time is it?” Darkness looms beyond the
windows.
“Almost midnight.”
I allow a yawn to escape and then wince as I adjust my body. Every
square inch of me is sore. “When did you get home?”
“An hour ago.”
I frown. “Why didn’t you wake me?”
“Because I like watching you sleep. And because I needed time to
think.”
Something in his tone sounds ominous. Is he second-guessing us? Or
maybe that’s just my paranoia infiltrating my mind, creating issues where
there aren’t any. That this is going to end eventually is not so much paranoia
as fact, though.
I just don’t want that ending to be now.
Swallowing my panic, I make to crawl for his chair.
He holds up a hand, staying me.
I don’t know what to do or say, so I say nothing and sit quietly,
watching him stare first at me, then at his phone.
Finally, he turns it around and shows me the screen.
It’s my profile shot, with the weak gust of wind blowing a few strands
of my vibrant red hair. I’m peering off into the distance below, a faint smile
touching my lips. I’ve never seen myself look like that. “That’s from
today?”
“Hachiro sent me the shots he wants to put forward for the magazine,
for approval. He included this one as a gift to you.”
“That was nice of him.” I feel bad for rolling my eyes at the little
photographer now.
“I know. Maybe I should have agreed to those nudes after all.”
We share a laugh, but the silence that hangs in the air afterward is
deafening.
“Is something the matter?”
His lips purse, but he doesn’t answer.
So I throw his own words back at him. “If this is going to work, we
have to trust and be honest with each other.”
“My father says I make too many selfish, reckless decisions.
Sometimes I wonder if maybe he’s right.” He carefully sets his phone on
the end table. “You are such a wholesome, innocent girl. You’re a people
pleaser. And you came here highly vulnerable. I saw that the moment I
watched that video of you. I’ve exploited it.”
I struggle to keep my composure, to not jump to conclusions. But this
is quite the turn of events. He left here at dinnertime promising to violate
me when he got home. Now it sounds like he’s regretting the last couple of
days. My stomach tightens at the thought of him regretting it. I certainly
don’t regret it.
“Did you know that you wanted this then?”
“To fuck you? No.” He pauses a beat. “I fuck supermodels and CEOs.
Women who tell me they want my cock five minutes into a conversation,
and who don’t give a shit whether others approve. You can’t even get
through a five-minute conversation with your mother without feeling guilty.
You took me by complete surprise. I shouldn’t have acted on it, and yet I
was too weak to control myself.”
“I’m glad you were.” I can’t help the tremble in my voice. None of
this is what I want to hear.
He opens his mouth but falters. Instead of answering, he reaches for
his drink. How much has he had tonight? Is that what this is about? Is he
drunk and pensive? He’s not slurring, but I don’t know him well enough to
judge that.
“I don’t know if this is fair to you. I’m afraid of how I might taint
you,” he says, adding softly, “more than I already have.”
“You haven’t tainted me.” I plead for him to see it in my eyes, if he
can’t believe it from my words.
He settles his forehead against his fingertips, and closes his eyes. “I’m
not so sure.”
I don’t want this to happen. I don’t want him to take away the
intimacy that he just gave me. “Well, then maybe I want to be tainted.” I
can’t believe I’m speaking so brazenly, but if that’s what I need to do to get
this afternoon’s Henry back, I’ll say and do anything.
Nearly a minute passes where we face each other but say nothing,
where he struggles with his internal conflict. I can see it in his eyes. He
hasn’t veiled it behind his usual mask. Finally he sighs, his jaw tensing with
his hard swallow. “Fine. Take off your clothes.” The demand is made in a
soft voice, and yet his gaze is hard as he simply sits there, watching.
I inhale deeply, steeling myself for what I want—to give Henry
everything he wants. Pinching the hem of my shirt between my fingers, I
slowly peel it off and toss it to the floor next to me. Henry watches with
dark, hungry eyes as I reach back and unfasten my bra, letting it fall to my
lap. My breasts spill out, my nipples already tight with anticipation. My
chest heaves with my breaths. Climbing to my knees, I hook my thumbs
under the waistband of my leggings and slide them down all the way to my
knees, taking my panties with them, until I can take a seat on the floor and
wriggle out of them semi-gracefully.
Leaving me naked on Henry’s rug by the fire, my heart racing.
Waiting quietly for him. Still, he makes no move, simply assessing me from
his vantage point.
It reminds me of a television program I once saw, of a lone wolf that
sat quietly at the edge of a meadow, watching a doe graze. It looked as
passive as Henry does now, sitting in that chair.
The doe’s tail and ears twitched; she knew the wolf was there,
waiting, calculating. She knew she was in danger. And she also knew that
there was truly no running from that wolf; that run or not, the wolf would
end up devouring her. So she simply tried to enjoy the last few peaceful
moments of her life, grazing in that field.
“Lie back.”
I do, resting on my elbows so I can still see him, flutters stirring in
my stomach as I spread my legs, hoping to entice him over. His gaze over
my slit is searing, and I feel myself growing wet.
“Touch yourself.”
“What?” In front of him? Unease slips down my back.
There is no hint of a smile touching his lips. “You heard me. Touch
yourself like you did that night you made yourself come in your room,
thinking of me.” When I still don’t move, he adds a softer, “please.”
I don’t know why I’m so shy about this after what we’ve already
done, and how much Henry turns me on. I shouldn’t be. He wants this and
he’s asking me for it. Swallowing my nerves, I lie back until my head rests
against the rug and drag tentative fingers over my navel, stalling at the
small strip of pubic hair left.
Closing my eyes, my cheeks flaming, I finally let my index finger slip
down to brush first my clit and then lower down to my slick opening. As
nervous as I am right now, Henry’s eyes alone make me wet. Or maybe it’s
the depravity of this act.
Like a stealthy animal, he slides off the chair to land on the floor in
front of me on his knees, his eyes raking over my naked body beneath him
on the rug. “Don’t stop,” he commands, when my hand pulls away to reach
for him.
He watches me as I draw slow circles around my clit. I desperately
want him to undress but he doesn’t; he simply kneels before me, his lips
parted, his steely gaze on my hand.
“You look sore. Are you?”
“Yes,” I admit in a whisper, because, as wet and turned on as I am,
there’s no avoiding the aftereffects of today.
Finally...
Finally, Henry grabs hold of my slender hips and pulls me off the
ground and up high, until my legs are slung over his shoulders and I’m
staring up at him, his soft breaths skimming across my sore pussy. His
tongue snakes out to take a swipe along my slit. “I should never have been
so rough with you today. That’s what I mean about being selfish. I knew it
was too much and I did it anyway.” He licks again, this time with a flat
tongue, the warmth from it soothing enough to pull a soft moan from me.
My arms are splayed out on either side of me, his fingers digging in to
my hips to hold me up, my back resting along his body, his hard cock
pressed against my spine. It’s not the most comfortable of positions but I
don’t care.
“Watch what I’m doing to you,” he demands, and I do, watching with
fascination as his mouth opens and his tongue curls around and around my
clit.
The moment I start to feel the build in my pelvis, Henry’s eyes flash
with satisfaction. He somehow knows I’m close to orgasm. He guides my
body down and, in with a few quick tugs and pulls, his pants are undone,
his cock is out, and he’s pushing into me.
I cry out at the sudden pressure and the deep angle, with him still on
his knees and my hips pulled up to meet him, but he doesn’t slow down,
hooking his arms around the backs of my thighs and driving into me over
and over again until I’m so wet that his thrusts become noisy with slick
slaps. There’s something different about this time—the look in his eyes, the
lack of words, the steely gritted tension in his jaw—that sets off an alarm
somewhere in the back of my mind.
But I ignore it, unable to focus on anything right now but my
euphoric high.
My orgasm comes on so suddenly that I’m not ready for it, and Henry
is pounding against me so hard and fast that it’s paralyzing in its ferocity.
He follows only moments later, grunting rather than crying out, his
muscular body straining beneath his shirt. The moment I feel the last
jerking pulse of his cock, he pulls out and releases my body to slide down
to the ground like a floppy rag doll, fully spent.
“Get dressed. I’ll walk you home.” He stands and heads immediately
for the bathroom.
Leaving me lying naked on the white rug.
Feeling truly used for the first time, and not in a good way.
I struggle with my confusion as I pull my clothes on.
We walk in complete silence all the way to the staff village, two feet
between us at all times and, when we reach cabin seven, all Henry says is,
“See you at seven tomorrow morning.”
I stare after him until he disappears into trees and darkness,
bewildered .
