Three weeks of committed bliss had never felt so damn good, Mason thought as he cast a glance at Katrina while checking his inventory at his workstation. She was standing up at the front counter of the shop talking to Jasmine while pointing to something on the computer screen that they were both looking at. He took a moment to appreciate how gorgeous and sexy she looked today in her cherry-red pencil skirt, a white button-up blouse, and a pair of leopard-print heels that added a naughty element to the otherwise prim outfit.
So much had changed between them since that night when he’d gone over to her place with pizza, and not just the fact that Katrina was now his girlfriend. God, he loved how that sounded. Loved even more that their relationship was back to normal, except with smoking-hot sex whenever they wanted it. Which was often. He couldn’t get enough of her, and didn’t think he ever would, which was shocking considering he’d spent the past twelve years immersing himself in meaningless hookups in an attempt to escape a painful past. He’d avoided any kind of emotional involvement with a woman, because he’d always feared that the person he was with would eventually see how fucked-up he was and would leave.
But Katrina . . . she’d been through everything with him, and not once had she wavered in her friendship. She knew all about his shitty past and hadn’t run or cut him out of her life. She’d seen him through some of the worst times in his life, had endured his wild and rebellious behavior, and she was still here.
And now, she was his.
How was it that the one woman he’d refused to get involved with because of his fear of losing her was actually the one woman who made him feel whole and complete? Like she was his other half that he hadn’t even known was missing until now. She made him feel calm and focused deep inside. Peaceful in a way that kept him centered and grounded, and she made him want to be a better man for her.
He’d always loved Katrina, but over the past few weeks, he’d fallen in love with her, and it was the single best feeling he’d ever experienced. The rush of emotions she evoked from him every single day was better than any other high he’d ever scored. As sappy as it sounded—and he’d never admit it to either of his brothers—being crazy in love was the best drug ever.
He was waiting for the perfect moment to tell her how he felt, and to suggest that she move into his place with him because that’s where she belonged as far as he was concerned. In his bed. In his life. Every single day and night.
Needing a few supplies for his station, Mason went to the storeroom and gathered up a box of sterile gloves and grabbed more of the biohazard containers they used to dispose of used needles. He tucked a roll of paper towels under his arm, and just as he was leaving the back room, he heard Katrina’s playful laughter, which prompted him to glance in her direction again to see what had amused her.
Not what, but who. Blake Cavanaugh.
The other man was standing up at the front counter, leaning casually toward Katrina, looking as charming and charismatic as always as he spoke to her, and there was nothing Mason could do to stop the shaft of jealousy that twisted in his stomach. He wasn’t close enough to hear their conversation, but it didn’t matter, because all he could think about was the fact that Katrina had dated the other guy—okay, one evening, but still a date—and it was obvious that Blake was still smitten with her.
Back off, fucker. She’s mine, Mason thought possessively as he opened a drawer in his station and put his extra supplies inside. And each time Blake coaxed a laugh out of Katrina, that acid in Mason’s stomach burned hotter, and the Neanderthal inside of him had to resist the urge to pound on his chest and make it clear that Katrina was his woman.
But instead of getting into a pissing match with Blake, Mason decided to handle the situation in a much more appropriate manner later. With Katrina. Thank God he was in between appointments, which gave him plenty of time to properly punish her.
Pulling his cell phone from his pocket, he typed in a text message and sent it to her. Go to the restroom and take off your panties, then meet me in my office. Right now.
Mason watched as Katrina picked up her phone, unlocked the screen, then read his note. Very slowly, she turned her head to look at him, her eyes wide and incredulous with her own silent message, Are you kidding me?
He smirked and tapped out another text. Don’t test me, baby, unless you’d prefer I come over there and toss you over my shoulder in front of God and Blake, and fucking take you there myself. DO IT NOW.
Once she was done reading his second message, she glanced back at Blake and said something. The other man smiled and nodded, then headed over to Caleb’s station for an appointment he must have had. Without looking at Mason, Katrina headed toward the hallway to the restroom, and he went to the office to wait for her.
A large wooden desk dominated the area, but the surface was neat and cleared off, which was Katrina’s doing. She always kept everything orderly and put away, while he tended to leave loose paperwork all over the place. Right now, he truly appreciated her organizational tendencies, since it gave him a flat, uncluttered surface to fuck her on, or against, depending on how things played out.
The thought made his cock throb impatiently.
He opened the middle drawer and pulled out the wooden ruler inside just as Katrina slipped into the office—her face flushed with what Mason knew was the beginning glow of arousal—and shut the door behind her.
“Lock it,” he ordered, as he caught a glimpse of the white silk fisted in one of her hands. “Then come here and give me your panties.”
She secured the door, then walked toward him in those hot, fuck-me heels, her pretty eyes filled with excitement and curiosity, too. “Umm, why are you doing this?” she asked, her voice already husky with awareness and desire.
Everyone knew that he and Katrina were together as a couple, but they’d never—surprisingly—had sex anywhere in the shop. Looked like they were about to rectify that oversight, and benefit from the added thrill of doing it somewhere they could get caught. And Katrina certainly wasn’t objecting. But then again, he’d discovered that she loved to role-play. Loved it even more when he got bossy and aggressive and took charge. God, she was so fucking perfect.
He put his hand out, and she automatically dropped the lacy thong into his palm, which he promptly shoved into the front pocket of his jeans. “You seriously have to ask that question?”
A naughty smile curved the corner of her mouth, making him even harder than he already was. “Does this have anything to do with me talking to Blake?” she asked oh-so-innocently.
Mason smacked the wooden ruler against his palm, and right before his eyes, her nipples tightened and pushed like twin pebbles against her blouse. Oh, yeah, she was already turned on. The uneven rise and fall of her chest and the way her tongue absently touched her bottom lip gave her away.
He narrowed his gaze, feigning displeasure. “You were laughing and smiling and flirting with him.”
“He was flirting with me,” she said, her voice breathless.
“And you let him, when you knew full well that I’d see.” He circled around where she stood, until he was standing behind her, and smoothed his palm over the sweet curve of her ass and squeezed. “You need to be punished for being such a tease, and to remind you who you belong to. And because I’m feeling generous, I’m going to give you a choice for your punishment. The wooden ruler or my hand?”
She moaned softly and turned her head to look over her shoulder at him, her eyes glazed over with heated lust. “Mason . . . ”
He grabbed a handful of her silky hair and pulled her head farther back, until his mouth was against her ear. “Choose, or I’ll decide for you,” he demanded sharply, and snapped the wooden stick against her thigh.
She jumped from the unexpected smack as a squeak of surprise escaped her throat. “Your hand,” she replied quickly.
Releasing her hair, he moved back in front of her and put the ruler aside since he wouldn’t be needing it. “Pull your skirt up, all the way to your waist. Show me what belongs to me.”
She started inching up the hem, her gaze heavy-lidded as she revealed her smooth, bare thighs and neatly trimmed pussy, the delicate folds in between those gorgeous legs already plump and glistening with moisture. He inhaled a deep breath. Fuck, he could smell how aroused she was, and the blood in his veins thickened with a sharp, unrelenting hunger.
Holding her gaze, he slowly dragged his fingers up the inside of her thigh, until they sank into the softest, wettest, most decadent heat he’d ever encountered. “Who is all this wetness for?”
“You,” she said, her legs quivering as he delved even deeper, drawing more slick moisture from her body. “Only you.”
“Don’t ever forget that,” he replied gruffly, enjoying the way she surrendered so beautifully for him. He caught her clit between two of his fingers and tugged gently, but firmly enough to make her moan softly. “This is mine. You’re mine.”
Her pretty green eyes dilated with a heat and hunger that matched his own. “Yes.”
He dragged those same fingers slowly through that bit of heaven that was all his, and while she watched, he brought his hand up to his lips and sucked the alluring taste of her into his mouth.
“You are so goddamn sweet,” he murmured, licking his fingers clean. “Like fucking candy. If you didn’t need to be disciplined, I’d already be on my knees with my face and tongue buried in your pussy.”
She started to pant, her expression etched with the same lust that was burning him up inside. He wanted to tear open her blouse and ravage her breasts, suck those tasty nipples into his mouth until she screamed, but she had to leave the office after this tryst, and that meant keeping her clothes intact while he defiled her in more pleasurable ways.
“Turn around and bend over with your arms on the desk,” he commanded in a sharp tone. “I want your ass in the air for your punishment.”
She didn’t hesitate to comply, so eager to please knowing it would ultimately lead to her absolute pleasure. It always did. The fact that she made herself so vulnerable to him, that she trusted him to give her that satisfaction while he controlled how and when, was like a precious gift to him. And one he’d never take for granted. No, this dirty, sexy play was mutual, and shockingly, it brought him intimately closer to her every single time.
Mason stroked his palm over her bare bottom, taking a moment to appreciate the curve of her ass before he lifted his hand and smacked her, firmly enough that her flesh gave a little shake. Her back arched and she gasped at the stinging impact.
“That’s for giving any other man that beautiful smile and sweet laugh that belongs to me.” He swatted the other side, his dick pulsing at the sight of his large handprint appearing in a light shade of pink on her pale skin, marking her as his. “And that’s for making me jealous.”
She whimpered and shifted on her high heels, rubbing her thighs together to undoubtedly ease the ache in between. “Mason, please . . . ” she begged softly.
Done teasing them both, he tore open the front of his jeans and shoved his pants and briefs down to his thighs, freeing his erection. “Spread your legs nice and wide for me, Kitty-Kat,” he ordered, and while she braced her feet apart to make room for him in between, he took care of a condom.
Guiding the tip of his cock along her wet crevice, he found her opening and pushed the head inside just a few inches. A needy sound escaped her, and she shamelessly rocked back against him, seeking more of his length.
Giving them what they both desperately needed, he grasped her hips and slammed into her in one driving thrust, burying his shaft balls deep inside of her. She swallowed back a cry as he filled her, and he groaned at the way her body tightened around his cock as he tunneled in and out of her.
She suddenly pushed up on her hands, which angled her back and thrust her hips out farther, made him delve deeper with every undulating grind against her ass. “Mason,” she panted wildly. “I’m going to come so hard . . .I’m going to scream,” she said as her voice rose in volume, along with the orgasm he could feel fluttering around his cock.
Jesus. If they were at his place, he wouldn’t give a shit if she shouted her throat raw—hell, he’d fucking love it. But they were in his office with employees and clients a few yards away, and he wasn’t about to let anyone else hear her cries of passion. They belonged to him, just as she did, and he didn’t share.
Before she could let loose those wails, he reached up and wrapped his fingers gently around her neck, then slid his hand up until he was gripping her jaw and turned her face to the side. His mouth was there, waiting for hers, and he crushed their lips together just in time to muffle any loud noises she would have made. His tongue tangled with hers, her body clenching around his shaft as she came and he continued to plunge into her from behind—fast and hard and deep.
God, he wasn’t going to last long, either. She was so hot, so uninhibited, and he was suddenly overwhelmed by the depth of his feelings for her, that he could want and need and love someone as much as he did Katrina. So openly and completely. She owned his heart. She was the other half of his soul. And he never wanted to live his life without her in it.
The thought sent a heated rush of adrenaline surging through him, triggering an orgasm that was so intense that he was grateful that Katrina’s mouth stifled his own hoarse shouts that would have reverberated off the walls if he hadn’t still been kissing her.
It took them both a little while to recover, but eventually he moved away from her to take care of the condom. She turned around to face him as she pushed down the hem of her skirt so it was properly back in place, but there was no denying the pink afterglow of bliss shading her complexion, or the gleam in her eyes that expressed pure sexual satisfaction.
The words I love you nearly came tumbling out of Mason’s mouth at that moment, but he caught them just in time. As badly as he wanted to share that declaration, he didn’t want it to happen in his office after a round of possessive sex, no matter how good it had been for both of them. He wanted them to be alone and him completely focused on Katrina when he revealed his feelings for the first time. He wanted the moment to be special and memorable. She deserved that.
She tucked in her blouse where it had come loose, a sexy smile on her lips. “If I’m going to get in trouble like this every time I smile at another man, it might happen more often.”
“You’re a goddamn tease,” he said, grinning back at her.
She didn’t deny it. “Can I have my panties back, please?”
“No.” Her mouth dropped open, and it took effort for him not to laugh. “Consider it part of your punishment, baby.” He hooked his fingers into the waistband of her skirt, pulled her to him, and brushed his mouth against hers. “I want you to feel those handprints on your ass every time your skirt brushes against your bottom, or you sit down, and without any panties on for the rest of the day, you’ll be sure to remember who you belong to, and that you’re mine.”
He’d been just about to kiss her again when someone knocked on the door. Startled by the interruption, Katrina jumped back, her eyes wide and her face coloring with embarrassment at the realization of how close they’d been to getting caught.
“Mason?” Jasmine called from the other side of the door, and turned the knob, only to find it wouldn’t open.
“Yes?” he responded casually, while Katrina looked mortified, because there was only one reason they’d lock the door with both of them inside the office.
“There’s someone here to see you,” the other girl said.
“I’ll be right out.” Mason had about a half hour before his next appointment, so he assumed it was a product vendor, which happened all the time.
He waited a solid minute to make sure Jasmine was gone before he spoke to Katrina again. “Are you okay?” For as much as he’d enjoyed what had just happened, he wanted to make sure she was fine before he left.
She arched a sassy brow. “Why, do I look like I’ve just been screwed?”
Screwed was a word he would have used in the past to describe a meaningless fling, but right now, in this moment with Katrina, it wasn’t a connotation he wanted related to her at all. “No, you look absolutely beautiful,” he said, and meant it. He’d given her that flush on her face, that dreamy look in her eyes, and he was damned proud of it.
“I’ll leave first and you can come out whenever you’re ready,” he said, and gave her a quick kiss on her lips before heading out of the office.
