The Price of Pleasure Read online

  “Jesse…please…”

  The sheen of perspiration over her skin excited him almost as much as her softly spoken words.

  He sat back on his haunches. Not moving nor offering her the release she needed ate at him. Beneath the blindfold, her parted lips, the darting motion of her tongue, and her erotic flush beckoned him closer. Called for him to finish what he started.

  A wisp of sulphur emanated from the bedside table after he struck a match from his tray of goodies. One part ambience, one part amusement drove the decision to light the tapered scented candle that just previously enjoyed the privilege of being inserted between her thighs.

  Her giggle and sigh of recognition robbed him of the joy of telling her what he’d used. No matter. Her glow in the flickering candlelight brought him another kind of joy.

  “Lay back against the bed, Eden.” His attention darted to the glistening flash of her slit when she repositioned. “Hands behind your back again.”

  He knelt between her thighs and his cock twitched. Just viewing the contrast of his tanned skin against the rich hues of hers made him so hard it was almost painful. Jesus. He was so close to her core and yet, as the saying went, so God damned far away.

  Placing the graceful arch of her foot against his shoulder, he dropped his head to her calf. The salty tang of her skin exploded on his tongue as he ran it up to the back of her knee. Only one thing could be sweeter.

  Gently, he pushed her leg to the side. His tongue continued its journey from behind her knee, sliding along until his nose tickled the delicate skin of her inner thigh. There was a sharp intake of her breath when he nuzzled her curls to inhale her heady scent.

  With one long stroke, he slid his tongue over her swollen lips. Her hips bucked beneath him, but he held her down. He slid down the other side of her labia, and for the first time, tasted some of the nectar he lusted after all evening.

  That one little taste did him in.

  With a low growl, Jesse forewent all thoughts of teasing and dipped into the entrance of her pussy. He worked his mouth against Eden and drank her in. Tasted. Explored. Worked his jaw greedily against her.

  Somewhere in the back of his mind, he heard her desperate breaths. Heard his name panted out as she arched towards him.

  Her taste. Her beautiful fucking taste. Everything he knew she would be.

  He didn’t want to touch her clit. Not yet. He just wanted to—hell—he didn’t know any more. All rational thought fled. Her drugging effect consumed him. His desire for more made his simmering blood reach full boil.

  The increasing pitch of her cries brought his mind back from the euphoria it drifted toward. Pulling away from her took the last vestige of willpower he possessed. He slammed his eyes shut and struggled to breathe even as the pounding of his heart threatened to burst through his chest.

  “Jesus, Eden,” he gasped. That was too close. He would get her there, but not like this. Not the first time.

  He climbed over her body on shaky limbs until he rested only inches from her face. Gently, he tugged the blindfold away. He eased her arms from behind her back and felt a twinge of regret when she groaned from the movement. It vanished when he glanced into her face.

  With smoky eyes, she looked on him with desire that words could not duplicate. Every curve of her body echoed the sentiment. He dipped his head toward hers and pressed a gentle kiss against her mouth.

  “Ready for me, beautiful?” he asked when he pulled away again.

  She said nothing as she shivered beneath him. Delicate hands flattened against his chest and curled into his hair. Picking her head up, she raised herself until she touched his lips with hers.

  “Jesse, wild horses couldn’t drag me away from this bed right now,” she said huskily.

  Did he even have to ask if she was ready? Primed as she was, it wouldn’t take much effort on his part to tip her over the edge.

  Eden’s fingers trailed over the hard lines of his chest and fanned out over his tight abdominal muscles. His stomach clenched and his entire body jerked when her fingertips grazed the smooth tip of his cock.

  His hand explored her reverently, finally—at last—rubbed a thumb over her aching nipple. Another bolt of energy streaked through her.

  Jesse continued to succeed in arousing her, always backing off when she was so close to release. He played her body like a maestro, resulting in sensations building and ebbing, flowing and dancing through her.

  She wanted him inside of her, not just for her ultimate release. This connection that sparked from the first time he touched her this morning, to the raging storm he caused within her now needed to be calmed. She knew of only one way…one way to stop the maddening urges coursing over her.

  She reached down, grazed over his hips and gripped his hard length. Tilting her pelvis, she brought herself to him. Her whispered, frenzied words broke through the silence. “Please, Jesse…please.”

  Her heart stuttered when she felt him at her entrance. He pushed forward—sweet heaven—until only the head of his erection nestled inside of her warmth.

  Eden swallowed reflexively and breathed hard through parted lips. “Oh God, Jesse…I’m gonna…I’m gonna…”

  “Don’t you fucking dare,” he hissed. “Not yet, Eden. Not yet.”

  Sweat rolled from his brow onto her. Poised on his forearms, he trembled as if some fever consumed him.

  His biceps flexed and she shot each a glance. Her fingers dug into his flesh, sinking in while she staved off the looming orgasm. The white, blood-deprived areas reddened instantly when she let go.

  Without regard for the pain she must have inflicted, in a soothing voice he said, “Neither of us is gonna last long. Just—just hold on for me. Wait for me. Okay?”

  She nodded and Jesse slid forward into her folds.

  This moment in time made everything—her initial hesitation, her embarrassment, her racing pulse—made it all worthwhile. This moment before they would achieve ultimate bliss…where they truly connected for the first time, would forever remain locked in her memories.

  He began his slow drag inside of her and Eden cried out as he pumped with long strokes. Together they moaned through the agonizing ecstasy.

  As he predicted, the pressure that built from her center and traveled swiftly to her limbs would not be stopped. Behind closed lids, a colorful display of fireworks began to play just for her.

  Jesse stroked harder. Faster.

  His mouth dropped down over hers and he drank down her moans. He sucked in her lower lip with a growl and then bit down as his body tensed.

  That delicious bark of pain caused Eden to explode in a firestorm of sensation. She screamed his name with a hoarse excitation that only lovers know and pulled him into her.

  Jesse’s cock surged a moment later and the warm jets of his seed coated the walls of her womb. Each pulse excited her body into wanting more from him, greedily taking his offering.

  He rested his forehead against hers and then wrestled his struggled breathing under control while puffs of air caressed her face. Eden trailed tickling fingers up and down his back, reveling in the corded muscles that still trembled at her touch.

  His eyes slipped closed and he murmured, “That’s one.”

  Chapter Seven

  Her eyes flew open to meet the fading darkness. The warm body pressed against her brought back every second of the evening in a heady rush of emotion.

  Jesse.

  Oh God…what had she done?

  She needed to go. Now. This was not right. She couldn’t stay here another minute.

  When he reached for her again later in the night, he slipped inside her body and they melted together. Jesse took her to soaring heights, and they held each other tightly as they rocked toward oblivion. She didn’t allow herself to think. She just gave herself over to him and trembled beneath his tender hands as the minutes, and then hours passed.

  In the hints of daylight, her mind regained control.

  And, she needed to go.


  Eden turned slowly to find the clock radio without arousing him. The rhythm in his soft breathing broke, but then settled when she paused.

  Several minutes must have passed, but after many starts and stops, she managed to slip out from beneath his arm. She peered down at his form beneath the blanket and smiled before bending to retrieve her clothing from the floor. Her shoes were…ah…downstairs.

  She turned the knob and winced when a soft squeak sounded through the air.

  “Eden?”

  Not good. Not good. “Go back to sleep. I—” What was she going to tell him?

  Light flooded the bedroom after he switched on a bedside lamp. His gaze flitted from her face to the bundle of clothing in her arms. From where she stood, she could see his sleepy hesitation turn to curiosity bordering on anger.

  “Going somewhere?” He waited with quiet reservation. The answer to his question already lay with the stealthy way she tried to sneak out of his bedroom. He must have known the answer, but wanted to hear it from her mouth.

  Her shoulders slumped. She couldn’t meet his eyes, and kept her gaze focused on her rumpled clothing. “Thank you for a lovely evening, Jesse, but I really have to go.”

  “You were going to leave without saying goodbye.” It was not a question. “What about…”

  “I’ve already returned the money—“

  He cut her off. “This is not about money. It never really was and you know it.”

  “Jesse, please. Don’t make this something other than what it is.” With that statement, Eden made up her mind. She met his accusing eyes without flinching. “Money was exchanged. We fucked. Nothing more.”

  He needed to let her go, so she threw the words carelessly. She had to make it sting. Whatever it took for him to think that the evening meant little. That he’d been used. Anything but give him a clue that he managed to touch her emotionally. That she wanted to crawl back into his bed and into his arms.

  A chill swept over her as she watched him stiffen. They locked stares while her heart hammered wildly.

  “What’s going on Eden?” He spoke softly. The venom she expected to be there was surprisingly absent. “You’re not the same woman I was with last night. Certainly not the woman I wanted to spend today with. I don’t understand…What aren’t you telling me?”

  She wanted to tell him My brother, Gavin, is trying to destroy your business. She also wanted to tell him I’ve sold my soul to give Gavin a chance to inch ahead of you. She finally wanted to tell him I’m so sorry.

  Instead, Eden said, “I have to go.”

  With that, she turned and walked out of the room.

  * * * *

  Jesse froze in place until he heard the closing of the front door downstairs. What the hell happened? He replayed the night’s events over and over in his mind, but couldn’t come up with a reason for the complete one-eighty she pulled.

  The sun hadn’t completely broken the horizon, but more light cascaded into the room. At this unusually late hour—at least for him—trying to go back to sleep would be impossible and foreign. In frustration, he threw the sheets back only to have a thin film of cherry blossom aroma waft over him.

  A rush of memories almost made him stagger back, but he strode with purpose to his closet. After slipping on a pair of shorts and running shoes, he crossed to his treadmill. The rhythmic movements he found after warming up after a few minutes didn’t provide the release from his thoughts he craved.

  He kept replaying everything. Every detail he could recall prior to going upstairs looped through his mind. When that yielded nothing, he backtracked to yesterday morning.

  The report from the private investigator was inconsequential. Reviewing their conversation where Eden first informed him of his security lapses yielded even less. Although…

  He could think of one thing. Kevin Carmichael. Maybe he had some answers. The voicemail hinted at something amiss. Nothing important enough to cause concern, but perhaps something that might reveal why Eden had run scared.

  He raked a hand through his hair and pushed back the sweat beginning to drip. The hum of the treadmill lulled his mind back to thinking about her.

  Jesus. Why couldn’t he let it go? Like she said, money was exchanged. They fucked. That was the extent of it.

  The concept of enjoying and pursuing a one night stand evaded him, but it wasn’t like he never had one before. Only this time, Eden Simmons didn’t seem like the type. With her too-polished, too-intelligent persona, the image just didn’t fit.

  Something else drove her away in an all too frantic hurry.

  And he was going to fucking find out what.

  He gave the clock a quick glance. Wired from his new mission, he discarded the idea of relaxing this weekend. After the jog, he would shower then shave. That’s all he needed to do before setting out to solve the mystery of the woman who in a few hours had managed to cage his heart.

  * * * *

  The shrill sound of the cell phone jarred her from the memories that taunted her. Eden didn’t recognize the coarse, fatigue-filled voice that came from her mouth. “Eden Simmons,” she answered without looking at the display.

  “Little girl!” The deep rich sound filled her ear. She winced at the familiar greeting that she long since stopped trying to get him to forget. “Tell me something good.”

  “What is it that you want to hear, Gavin?”

  The drive to her house felt interminable. Last night the minutes flew by. Not like now.

  “You told me not to ask for details and I’m sticking to that. But I don’t think I’m asking for too much with an update.”

  She flicked her wrist. “It’s six in the damn morning and you’re calling for an update?”

  He laughed softly. Silence hung between them. After a minute, he sighed. “Well?”

  “Well what, Gavin?”

  “You’re leaving the home of my greatest rival after being there all night, Eden…”

  Only instinctual self-preservation kept her from slamming on the brakes. She chanced a look in the rearview mirror and her eyebrows knitted together. A stream of curses escaped toward the man waving from the car behind her.

  “You followed me?” she said between clenched teeth.

  Again, he chuckled and the urge to mash the brakes if only to cause him to rear-end her and wipe away his grin skittered across her mind. “Why don’t we grab something to eat, sis?”

  She grunted a rude reply that he interpreted as a yes. He named a nearby diner and after she disconnected, changed course for the restaurant. On the way there, she reviewed what to tell him. By the time she pulled into a parking space, nothing came to her. All she could think about was the hurt in Jesse’s eyes when she’d left him.

  She didn’t want to see that again. Her mind obliged somewhat.

  Now fleeting images of the passion displayed across his face while they made love chased her. The way he gazed on her that sent a tremor across her heated body. The way he felt inside of her. The comfort she felt in his arms.

  The fact that she didn’t deserve any of it.

  A sharp rap against the window made her jump. “You coming out?” Gavin’s words were muffled through the closed window, but she nodded and reached for the door handle.

  Blood was thicker than water. She only had to remind herself of that.

  Over and over again.

  With a sigh, she stepped out to face her brother’s inquisition. She started talking from the moment she exited her vehicle and didn’t stop until she told him everything. All of the details she kept from him before, he knew now. His reaction shook her to her core.

  “What in God’s name were you thinking, Eden?” The anger emanated off of him like heat. “When you and I came to our agreement, you were to get into his company, do a little computer magic, and then get out. Why in God’s name would you sleep with him?”

  He gathered his breath just long enough to continue ranting. “You must seriously be trying to go to jail. If that man decid
es he really likes you, really has any kind of feelings for you, and then finds out that you fucked him over, literally, you are through. Through! Do you get that?”

  “Gavin, I have an idea,” she said. Even as she fought it, her throat tightened and tears filled her eyes. “Let’s pretend that I already feel really shitty about this. Okay? This way, you don’t have to remind me of how badly I’ve messed up. After all, I did it for you.”

  His mouth firmed into a thin line as his eyes narrowed. “Don’t you dare blame me. I never asked you to sleep with him,” he snapped. With a deep inhalation, he threw his head back and then sighed.

  “You got me into this mess, big brother.” Her temper flared, the fury almost choking her. Through the tears, she found the remains of strength she still possessed. “You put me here.”

  Gavin looked down his nose at her. “Your own stupidity got you here, Eden.”

  Eden bit her lip to stop herself from saying anything else. He was partially right, of course. Gavin, Sr. was the one who thought she couldn’t handle the family business or even deserved to be there. Gavin, Jr. had always been her fiercest ally until a couple of months ago.

  What ever had possessed her to break into their business and try to prove her worth by messing with their funds she’d never know. Why couldn’t she have left things alone? Just let her brother and father have their stupid business and run it without her.

  But no.

  Eden just had to show dear old dad that she was worth having around. Only before she could finalize the transfer of funds and the manipulation of data, before she had her moment of triumph, her brother found out. He didn’t say anything at first. Just stared at her in stunned silence. Then the wheels of his mind started to turn. She’d never forget the way his eyes lit up the moment he recognized her talent for its true potential. They narrowed in the next instant when he decided she could be useful by destroying his business rival by pulling the exact same stunt. Only at Englund Multimedia, she would have no intention of fixing the problem she created.