The One, page 12
I guess I was flattered that he’d wanted me so much that he couldn’t even wait, and that feeling added to the bliss of what we just shared put me in a very good mood. So good, I forgot all about my ex-monster-in-law.
MACE
I’m going to need a new couch. There’s pussy juice everywhere, all over the top and back of this one, but at least she was happy, and no longer had that hunted look on her face. We’re gonna have to have a conversation, though, so she knows that I won’t be putting up with any outside interference when it comes to our relationship, least of all from her ex-anything.
When Jaxxon put the bug in my ear about what was going on, I was a little mad that she hadn’t told me herself. Usually, when my guys started their gossip shit, and you’d be surprised how much of that there is when running a club, I’d shut them down. But now, this setup is just perfect. Jax gets the information from her girl, freely given and not provoked, and passes it on to me. It’s a win-win.
Some of that shit I could do without; I hate hearing about her asshole ex and the way she was treated. Nothing I can do about the past; just as long as I have her for the future, she’d be set. I’ve asked Jaxxon not to mention that prick to me again unless he had bail money ready.
I’m glad I didn’t shut him down this time, though, because I was busy when he walked into the office with his latest little tidbit. As soon as he was done talking, I’d left to go get her, mad as all hell that somebody was messing with my girl. She doesn’t get it yet, I don’t think, what it means to be Mace Donovan’s woman. She’s about to find out; they all are.
MACE
“For crap’s sake, Steph, aren’t you ready yet?” This was my third time asking.
“One more minute, no two, maybe three.” I rolled my eyes and walked away, muttering to myself, she’s got me there already, and we’re not even married yet. I’d made the mistake, stupid me, of telling her that my sister was going to be at the club tonight and for some reason, that made her change outfits twice.
I fussed at her, but really, I was pleased to see how flustered she was over whether or not she’d make a good impression. That she wanted to make an effort was good enough for me, but apparently, it wasn’t the same for her. The first couple of things she tried on were perfectly fine, but apparently, her man has no say and no idea what he’s talking about. I wonder who it was that was balls deep in her not more than two hours ago.
After I had my fill of her, we’d scrounged around the kitchen for something to eat. Since I barely keep anything edible around here, it was slim pickings, so I planned to feed her at the club later if she’d get the damn lead out. “I’m counting to ten; then I’m coming in there after you.” Funny, that seemed to do the trick because she was out in less than five.
“Babe, I told you I gotta get to work right.”
“Yeah, I’m ready.” She smoothed her hands down over the front of the black Lycra-looking thing that seemed to wrap around her body in twists and turns, putting the whole package on display. I wanted to ask her where the fuck she thought she was going dressed like that, but my tongue got twisted up when I saw what she’d done to her face and hair.
Don’t get me wrong, Steph always looks like a team of makeup artists had put her together, and her clothes are always fashionable with that special flair that is all her. But tonight, she’d gone the extra mile. “You don’t like it.” She looked defeated, and once again, I wondered how all her brain cells had ended up between her thighs.
“Come here, let me show you how much I hate it.” She got the hint when I was close enough to grab her, but her little girl squeal and last-minute effort to escape my hands were in vain.
“Mace, don’t do anything. I don’t think I could get back in this dress a second time.” She’s so adorable.
“That’s fine since you’re not wearing it outside this house.”
I busied myself running my hands up and down her sides, feeling her tight, compact body beneath the stretched material that clung to her in all the right places and showed off her curves to perfection. “Turn around, let me see.” Have mercy; her ass has never looked better. She tried squeezing her thighs together around the hand I’d slipped up between them, but it was too late.
With her back pressed into my chest, I sent my hand on a foray and was glad I did before we left the house. “Where the hell are your panties?” I bit her ear, kinda not so gently, waiting for the answer.
“I can’t wear any with this; it’ll show.”
“You’ve lost your damn mind.” Since I wasn’t about to let her walk out of here with that thing on for all the world to enjoy what’s mine, I wasn’t too careful when I pushed it out of the way to free her breasts which spilled over the half bra she had on.
She fussed and complained when I hefted her tits in my hands while fighting to get my slacks undone. This time I took her all the way down to the floor right there outside the bathroom door and did her dirty from behind. She was a heaving, heavy-breathing mess by the time I pulled out and got to my feet to get myself together.
“Mace!” For someone who was just purring like a well-fed kitten, she sure sounded disgruntled.
“Now go put on the first thing you had on, and let’s go.”
“You did that on purpose.” I didn’t bother to answer because I kinda sorta did. The fuck was she going in that.
“If you don’t want to get taken down and mounted, don’t wear that kinda shit around me.” I guess that was the wrong thing to say because she lectured my ass about some crap while getting out of what was left of the dress and into the other one, which was way more suitable to me. This one didn’t cling as much, and her tits didn’t look like they were an offering, but I noticed that the material swayed in a kind of way that showed off her thighs and ass when she moved. I’ll just make sure she sits her ass down all night.
“You got on drawers under there?” She pouted and nodded and started in on her shit again, but I grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room behind me.
“You can lecture me in the car; we’re late.”
“And whose fault is that?” She didn’t stop bitching until I’d strapped her in and taken the wheel.
“You’re nervous, aren’t you, baby?”
“A little bit. How could you tell?” Because believe it or not, I can read you like a book already. It felt good to think that way. As complicated as my girl likes to think she is, she’s about the easiest person I’ve ever dealt with in my life when it comes to relationships, that is. That sweetness with a hint of innocence that she tries so hard to hide beneath her tough girl act is one of the things I love about her.
I’m sure maybe to the rest of the world; she seems aloof, secure, and sure of herself. But I see the truth, and maybe I’m the only one who can, and that’s a good thing, I guess. I held my hand palm up for her to take as I drove, and that seemed to settle her down a bit.
My kid sister was there already with some friends as usual when we walked in, as well as Nat, who was holding her seat by the bar and waving her over as soon as she saw us. I held up a hand for her to wait as my sister headed toward us with her usual smile. She threw herself into my arms the way she always does, and I felt Stephanie tense up beside me. I guess my little pep talk earlier had gone in one ear and out the other.
“Hi, why are you so late? I thought you’d be here at least an hour ago.” My sister pouted and stepped back as her friends came up to join us.
“Sorry about that, something important came up. Roz, this is my girl Stephanie, Steph, my little sister Roz.” I gave her a look to let her know that I knew what she’d been thinking, and she had the decency to look contrite.
“I didn’t know you had a girlfriend; mom didn’t mention it when last we spoke.”
“That’s because they haven’t met yet, but she knows, I told her.” This time Steph’s reaction was one of surprise since she didn’t know that I’d told my parents about her. I was holding off until I thought she was ready, but I guess that cat’s out of the bag.
“Why don’t you go hang with Nat, baby? I gotta go upstairs and take care of some stuff. I won’t be long. Roz, you and your friends enjoy.” I didn’t have to tell her that everything was on the house since that’s the way it’s always been. I walked Steph over to Nat and left her with a kiss on her cheek before switching gears to business.
I’d promised my friend on the force to keep an eye out this weekend since there was some kind of event that was supposed to draw the young and delinquent into the city, and they had yet to catch the perp that’s been going around snatching young women from the clubs and bars in the area. It’s funny now that I think of it that that was the reason for me installing the cameras and audio recorders in my place, and had it not been for that, I never would’ve eavesdropped on Steph that first night, and we wouldn’t be here.
That’s a sad freaking thought, all things considered, because more and more, it’s beginning to feel like life would be empty without her. I even smiled my way up to the office, which is something I haven’t done in years. Somehow with her here, things that had become dull and mundane now held new light. She made looking forward to the next day enjoyable again, something I’d lost in the day-to-day grind.
I found myself wanting to head back downstairs to her and leave everything until later, but a promise is a promise. That in itself is a huge tell for me since I’ve never let anything stand in the way of business. With me, the more I achieve, the hungrier I get; now, I have a new hunger that seems hellbent on overriding my business acumen.
Her shit must be lined with gold because nothing comes between me and the bottom line. After growing up poor and having a close relationship with needy, I’ve trained myself to stay on top of the game, to never ease up and always move forward, always looking for the next big deal, the newest venture that was sure to keep me in the black for life without worry.
Now I’m leaving work early because somebody hurt her feelings and leaving shit undone because she forgot to eat, and I have to go feed her. Which reminds me, I need to do some research on her ex. I wasn’t planning to because, well, he’s an ex. Steph never mentions him, and if not for the few reminders here and there from Jaxx and Nat, I’d have forgotten that she was once married.
Now that I think about it, maybe I should’ve asked more questions. Maybe the hurt was so deep that she couldn’t bring herself to even mention his name. Wouldn’t that mean that she’d loved him deeply? What the fuck? I zoomed in on her on camera and got caught up in her smile. I doubt she knows how she shines when she’s like that. When there’re no shadows in her eyes and her smile is wide and true. That smile made my heart sing and my cock drip.
I’m happy! Shit, when did that happen? I’m also fucked in the head because I sat there like an idiot for a good few minutes before getting to what it was I was supposed to be doing. I pulled up the cameras and did a quick once over before turning my attention to the paperwork I had waiting for me on the computer.
I mindlessly reached over and turned on audio in her sector just to make sure she was okay while I was preoccupied and came to a standstill. “So, I guess he’s got you pretty much dickmatized, huh,” Nat asked Stephanie as she slurped down her colored water concoction with the pretty umbrella. Girls!
“Pretty much, damn, I think he took my virginity; twice.” They both howled with laughter, and I shook my head and went back to work.
I came up for air about an hour later when there was a knock on the door. The security cameras showed Roz and one of her friends standing there, and I buzzed them in, not really feeling it since my sister knows I don’t like strangers up here. But with things being the way they are, I wasn’t about to take any chances. “What’s up? Did something happen?”
“No, you’ve been gone for too long. I brought my friends to meet you, and you haven’t even given us a minute of your attention.”
“I’m working here, kid, and besides, I’ve already met your friends.”
“Not Naomi; this is the first time I’ve brought her here.” She pulled the blonde model type next to her with a smile.
“Hi Naomi, pleased to meet you.” I held out my hand and didn’t get it until she lingered way too long holding onto it. I gave my sister a look which she pretended not to notice. “Why don’t you two head on back downstairs? I’ll be there in a minute.”
“Promise? I haven’t seen you in a while; you have to spend some time with me.” She gave me that pout that has been getting her her way since the age of three, and I tugged on the ends of her hair playfully before shooing them both from the room and going back to finish what they’d interrupted.
“Your brother really is hot; you didn’t lie.”
“Told you!”
“And he’s just my type, older, distinguished, wealthy.” The Naomi chick giggled as their voices came through the recording as they reached downstairs.
“But wasn’t that his girlfriend with him when he came in?”
“Oh please, you’ve seen my brother. Do you really think he’d go for someone like her? She’s probably some groupie who’s clinging onto my brother. She’ll be gone in a week, if that. And if I have anything to say about it, she won’t last till the end of the night.” The fuck!
“Thank goodness, because that would be a waste of one very fine specimen.” I was out of my seat and through the door before my mind had fully processed what had just occurred. I knew one thing, I was never so pissed about anything in my life, and to think, I thought her ex-mother-in-law was going to be the first casualty on my hit list.
MACE
I made a quick call to my general manager on my way down. “Skeet, no one is allowed in the VIP section tonight.”
“Ah, your sister and her friends were….” I guess my dead silence was answer enough for him to get his shit together.
“I’m on it, boss!” I hung up the phone and took a deep breath to calm myself down before heading the rest of the way down the stairs.
For some reason, although nothing was said to suggest it was even a possibility, I was terrified of them approaching Steph with that shit. I’ve seen and heard enough in our short time together to know the way she's been treated by other women over the years and had seen some of it myself firsthand. I don’t know where the fuck they get off, these assholes with no substance, but I’ll be damned if a member of my own family was going to get away with that shit.
I’d promised myself the last time I saw her face fall because of some overheard dig that the other party had intentionally said within hearing distance that I’d destroy the next one who did it. That time I’d just given the woman a look that had sent her scurrying, but that’s only because I wasn’t well prepared. Now I am.
I’m no hypocrite; I won’t shield her from strangers while allowing those close to me to do whatever the fuck they want… Calm down, calm down, calm down, she’s your little sister, the little girl you watched grow up in pigtails. Fuck that!
As soon as my feet touched the landing downstairs, Roz came sauntering over with a smile, looking like the sister I know and love and not the monster I’d just overheard talking shit about my woman. “Hey, what’s going on? Your manager wouldn’t let us in the VIP section; what gives?”
“You disappoint me.” The words were cold as ice with none of the warmth I usually had for her. I always treated her with kid gloves, always went above and beyond because she was the baby. How did she become like this?
“What? Why?” She had a bewildered look on her face as I walked away. I didn’t stop walking, not even when she ran to catch up. “What’s going on? Why are you so angry with me?”
“Think about it; let me know when you figure it out.”
I guess it took her mind a few seconds to put it together though she could have no way of knowing how I’d heard her or even what I’d heard, but she knew there was something, and it was not good. That something being the fact that my little sister is not someone I’d have liked if we weren’t blood. Right now, I couldn’t even bring myself to look at her.
There are four of us, and Roz is the baby. She came along just about the time things were starting to get good, so she doesn’t know the hardships that me and the other two endured; in other words, she’s a bit spoiled, and I’m guilty of that more than anyone else.
I always thought it was a good thing, giving her the life the rest of us never had when we were her age, and there’s been plenty of times when the parents said no to something she wanted, and I went to bat to get it for her. Like the overpriced college I’m tempted to stop paying for, which would be a dick move on my part, but isn’t it warranted? To think that all my years of giving had turned out like this was a bitter pill to swallow, but I’m glad I know how she felt before it was too late. Thinking of her smiling at my woman with those thoughts in her head made me see red, and all I can say is that this girl is lucky she’s my mother’s daughter.
She’d stopped following me once she caught on to why I was upset, which was for the best. I don’t know what she said to her friends, and I know she was embarrassed by my actions, but I couldn’t find it in me to care one damn. My mind now was solely focused on Steph because even though she hadn’t heard what was said about her, it pains my heart that it was said and by someone I love no less.
“Hey, you two, let’s go have some dinner.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and smiled down at her next to her half-drunk friend. Steph squinted up at me with a grin. How the hell did she get this tipsy in an hour, give or take?
“We just ordered some bar food.”
“I’ll cancel it or have them send it over to our table; let’s go.”
Jaxxon came out of nowhere to walk his girl over while I helped my lush, who looked happy as she clung to my arm. I had a quick aside with Jaxxon as we walked, getting ahead of the game. “No one is allowed to approach us tonight for any reason, no matter who it is.” His look was full of questions, but he just nodded and carried on walking.
