Pawn Read online

  Julie reached for a shiny red apple, bringing it against her shirt to polish. Declan’s eyes followed the hem when it rose slightly as she rubbed the fruit. “I’m more than willing,” she said in what she hoped was a purr, before taking a bite of the apple.

  His Adam’s apple bobbed visibly when he swallowed. “Great. Do you want to chop or use the wok?”

  Shrugging, a pose that lifted her breasts higher, she said, “I don’t care. I’ll do whatever you want me to.”

  He seemed to choke and it took him a moment to clear his throat. “I… Why don’t you chop?”

  “Fine.” Julie took another bite of the apple before setting it on the counter so she could take the knife he extended. She licked her lips slowly to cleanse them from the juice. “Sticky.” Again she trailed her tongue over her lips, watching his eyes follow the action. Her gaze darted lower, taking in the swell of his cock pressing against the seam of his khaki slacks.

  He turned abruptly, seeming to abandon any pretense of oblivion. The microwave timer’s beep had come to his rescue and he kept his back to her while he chopped the defrosted chicken before adding it to the wok. Julie divided her attention between the vegetables and him, watching his posture for any clues to his state of mind. Several minutes later, she hadn’t gotten a glimpse into his thoughts but there was no mistaking his physical reaction to her teasing. The way he constantly shifted his weight from foot to foot clued her into that. His pants must be about two sizes too small right then. Definitely progress.

  “I’ll do the dishes.” Julie bounded to her feet before Declan could rise, leaning across the table to scoop up his empty plate, while displaying a generous amount of cleavage.

  “The dishwasher’s about half full. No need for anyone to do dishes besides washing the wok.”

  “Okay, I’ll load while you wash.” Efficiently, she gathered the dishes and utensils into a stack before carting them into the kitchen. Declan was only a couple of steps behind her and she could almost feel his eyes caressing her ass in the silky pants that molded her buttocks, leaving little to his imagination.

  She put them on best display while loading the dishwasher, leaning over at an exaggerated angle so her buttocks jutted into the air. Regret filled her when she had to stand up after drawing out the process as long as she could. Julie met Declan’s eyes, finding them burning with banked desire. Good. If things went as planned, he wouldn’t have to dampen his yearning for long. She wanted him in her bed that very night. Why waste even an hour when she had no idea how long this surreal interlude would last? Global politics shifted at lightning speed. Today’s enemies might be tomorrow’s friends, with old alliances crumbling as new ones were forged. Her father’s situation could be resolved in hours, either through intervention from the CIA or other means.

  Julie lifted her arms over her head, stretching to her full height while thrusting her breasts forward. “I’m so tense.”

  Declan focused on his appointed task, washing the wok with what seemed to be enough force to wear a hole in it. “It’s been a long day.”

  “Um hmm. I think I’ll go to bed soon.” She hesitated, hoping he would suggest joining her, but destined to be disappointed by his silence. With a small sigh, she turned toward the doorway.

  “Wait.”

  Julie turned back to face him, holding her breath with anticipation.

  “I’d like you to speak with your father first to assure him you’re here and safe. He calls about the same time every night and is due to ring any time.”

  Julie nodded, hiding her frustration. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to speak to her father. She just would have preferred letting her body talk to Declan’s all night. At least they might say something. The conversations with her father were always short and stagnant.

  As soon as Declan dried the wok and his hands she followed him from the kitchen, down the hall, and into a study after he opened the door. The room was a marked contrast to what she had seen of the rest of the apartment—stark, masculine, and old-world. Declan seemed equally at home among the heavy wood and rich fabric as he had in the ultramodern kitchen.

  He had barely settled into the leather seat behind the desk and opened a computer screen when a piece of equipment beside him issued a beep. “That’s your father, no doubt. Right on time.” Declan pressed a button, presumably activating the speakerphone. “Lee?”

  “Poe, you’d better tell me something I want to hear—”

  “Of course, Lee. Here’s some good news for you. Julie is standing in my study.” He gestured to the microphone. “Say hello to your father, Julie.”

  Julie was about to speak, but her father interrupted before she could. “What’s going on there?”

  Declan again pointed toward the mic, so she leaned forward to bring her mouth close enough for Lee to hear her, conscious of the way the tank top dipped to reveal her breasts as she did so. “Hi, Dad.”

  He didn’t reply and the silence grew. With a puzzled look at Declan, who shrugged, she spoke again. “Hello. Are you there?”

  Lee cleared his throat before answering. “Yeah, I’m here. What are you doing there, Jules?”

  Declan leaned forward. “She’s here for protection. We’d hate to see her hurt because of what’s in your possession. It just made sense to keep her close, so I can ensure her safety.” His voice lowered and his eyes seemed to studiously avoid Julie. “You know what some will do to get it back, Lee. I don’t want that to happen.”

  Again, her father maintained a rigid silence and Julie’s confusion grew. She hadn’t expected him to sound excited to hear from her, but nor had she expected him to be upset. Perhaps he was just mulling over all the things that could happen to her. In an attempt to reassure him, she said, “I’m fine, Dad. Declan’s going to take care of me until you resolve whatever it is you’re working on. Take care of yourself.”

  “You too, Jules.” Any trace of warmth disappeared when Lee addressed Declan. “You keep my daughter safe, Poe.”

  “Of course, Lee.” With a look at his watch, Declan reached for a button on the machine. “I expect you’ll call the same time tomorrow night?”

  “You know I will.”

  “Bye, Dad—” Julie sighed as a dial tone sounded before Declan disconnected. She propped her hip on the desk to survey him as he disengaged the connection with her father. “He sure was abrupt. More so than usual.”

  With a nod, Declan rose from his chair to come around the desk. When he stood beside her, Julie took in a deep breath, relishing his cologne. Without thought she swayed toward him, pleased when he didn’t back away.

  “He’s stressed. Things aren’t turning out as he expected.” Shrugging, Declan added, “It’s bound to reflect in his attitude.”

  “Um hmm.” She smiled up at him, grazing the corner of her lip with her tongue. Her thoughts had already moved on from her father, who was aloof on the best of days, and back to her goal of seducing the man standing in front of her.

  “I’m sure he’ll be more talkative once—”

  Julie didn’t give him a chance to finish the sentence. Taking her cue from the dilation of his pupils and faint hitch in his breathing she leaned against him, stretching her neck to place her mouth against his. His lips were hard under hers, seemingly frozen in shock, and she traced her tongue against the contours to provoke a reaction.

  In seconds, his mouth softened, molding to hers. With a moan, she snuggled closer, wrapping her arms around his neck. His hands settled on her lower back, pressing her body against his. The hardness of his cock betrayed his reaction more clearly than anything else, and she gloried in it.

  Feeling bold, Julie penetrated his lips, sweeping her tongue inside to explore his mouth. Their tongues twined and she darted and parried his in an attempt to maintain control. Despite her determination, he soon pinned her tongue between his teeth and cheek. Declan threaded a hand through her hair to cup the back of her head, keeping her locked against him in the position he chose.

  Playfully, she tried to wriggle away, but he wouldn’t let her move. He was fully in control when he bent her backwards, providing her sole support with one hand in her hair and the other cupping her buttocks.

  She groaned when he nudged apart her thighs to step between them. His cock nestled against the crotch of her silk harem pants, seeking out her heated pussy. In an effort to assist, she parted her thighs wider. The move displaced her balance and she fell sideways, ending up clamped against Declan’s chest as he caught and secured her.

  Breathing heavily, she looked up at him, pleased to see a flush staining his cheeks as his chest rose and fell as rapidly as hers. “Wow.”

  Her whisper seemed to break the spell and he stepped back quickly, righting her in a single motion. “I’m sorry.”

  She frowned. “Why? I’m the one who kissed you.”

  With a sigh, Declan took another step from her, as if needing the distance to ensure he didn’t surrender to temptation. That was how she chose to interpret his posture anyway.

  “We can’t do this.”

  “Why not?”

  Declan met her gaze, his filled with incredulity. “It isn’t right.”

  Her stomach twisted and she glanced at his left hand. “You’re married, aren’t you?” There wasn’t a gold ring, but that didn’t mean anything. Her father had never worn a wedding band.

  He shook his head. “Briefly, long ago, but not now.”

  Relief swept through her, making Julie giddy. She clutched the corner of the desk for support. “Then what’s the problem? I’m not seeing anyone.”

  “I’m nineteen years older than you.”

  She shrugged. “That meant something when I was thirteen and suffering from the world’s biggest crush. Back then, I knew it was impossible. Thing
s have changed.”

  Declan shook his head. “It isn’t that simple. You’re young—“

  Thrusting out her chest, aware of his eyes settling on her cleavage, she took a step toward him. “I’m old enough to know what I want.”

  He seemed to waver for a moment, but then his expression closed. “And I’m old enough to know better, Julie.”

  Hesitating, she sized up the situation. She could press on, trying to overrule him with desire, but didn’t think that would work. The set of his shoulders reflected his determination to resist as surely as the cool green shielding his eyes from any hint of the passion that had burned in them minutes ago. No, it was better to end her campaign tonight and resume seduction tomorrow. That didn’t mean she couldn’t go out with a bang.

  “That’s a pity.” With a dramatic sigh, she sashayed toward the door of the study, exaggerating the sway of her hips. “I guess I’ll just have to go it alone.” He coughed, and she glanced over her shoulder to smile at him. “If you change your mind, I’ll be in that huge bed, all by myself…except for my vibrator.” Somehow, she managed to walk the rest of the distance sedately, not breaking into a run until she was several feet away from the study.

  It was only when she was certain he wouldn’t follow that she gave voice to a weak chuckle. Julie slumped against a nearby wall as weakness overtook her. She wasn’t shy, but it also wasn’t like her to be that bold, to speak of pleasuring herself as a poor substitute for him.

  But the need burning inside her had to be satisfied. With newfound strength, she stood up and walked toward her room, determined to settle for the mundane pleasure of her vibrator instead of the hot, pulsing length of his cock buried inside her. For tonight anyway. Tomorrow would have a different outcome if she could manage it.

  Chapter Three

  As soon as she was out of sight, Declan hurried to his chair, collapsing into it with a sigh. Tension thrummed through his body and his cock ached for release. Sweat formed on his brows and he balled his hands on the desk, struggling to restore a semblance of calm. All the reasons why he couldn’t accept her sexy invitation whirled through his mind, just barely blotting out his biologic urge to run after her, pin her against the wall and make love to her until they were both exhausted.

  He groaned upon imagining her with her toy. Surely she had just been teasing him, hoping for this reaction. She wasn’t really going to resort to her vibrator, was she? He shook his head, trying to convince himself she wouldn’t even as his mind provided a picture of her working the device inside her pussy.

  Declan trembled as he reached for a panel of switches disguised as a small drawer in his desk. Muttering to himself that he shouldn’t didn’t keep him from opening the panel and pressing the button to raise the wall in front of him. A bank of cameras came into view, but three were dark—the guest rooms and his room. There were no cameras at all in any bathroom in the house.

  “This is wrong. You can’t spy on her.” His finger still trembled over the “seven” button as he tried to fight the urge to press it. “She has a right to her privacy. Imagine her shock if she knew you were even thinking about it.”

  Even uttering aloud all the reasons why it was taboo didn’t help Declan eliminate the urge to see her. Curiosity burned almost as hot as the desire pounding through him. Just a peek. That’s all he needed to confirm whether she was really amusing herself, wishing he were there instead.

  With a sound of disgust, he pressed the button. Immediately the camera for the guest room where she was staying came to life. He squinted to make out her activities on the nineteen-inch screen but couldn’t see everything he wanted to. Touching another button enlarged the image to fill all nine cameras and he caught his breath.

  Julie filled the frame, her movements slow and sensuous as she shimmied out of the harem pants. His fingers itched to be there, pulling them from her body as he had wanted to all during dinner. The pants had always seemed seconds from slipping off her hips but had clung tenaciously, much to his disappointment.

  Declan groaned when the pants dropped away, revealing her naked from the waist down. His cock twitched with knowing she had forgone panties earlier—that she had been that close to being naked all evening. Only a thin silk barrier had shielded her heat.

  She seemed to be humming and he activated sound to hear the tune. Her voice filled the office and he lowered the volume hastily, not wanting to draw her attention. A tune he didn’t recognize issued from her, and every six beats she thrust her hips forward in time with it. He groaned each time she did so, convinced it couldn’t get any hotter.

  His mind changed when Julie peeled off the tank top, revealing bare breasts that would fit perfectly in his hands. Light pink areolas and erect nipples tempted his tongue to taste them. She couldn’t have given a better performance if she had known he was watching. Moving to stand in front of the mirror, she cupped one of her breasts, tweaking the nipple with her fingers. Declan’s hand twitched and he could almost feel the firm bud.

  He licked his lips when she brought a finger to her mouth to suck it for a second before running the moist digit across her other nipple, making it bead to a hard point. His tongue flickered out of his mouth without thought. He wanted to taste her.

  Instead, Declan forced himself to stay in the chair, knowing he couldn’t go to her. It was wrong under any circumstances, but especially these. The age gap was too wide. Although it didn’t seem to bother her, it weighed heavily on him. Not as heavily as his conscience pressed on him, reminding him yet again why he couldn’t betray her trust while she was under his protection.

  Julie danced her way to her suitcases, tossing one onto the floor haphazardly in favor of the smaller one. She seemed to know just where to find what she was looking for, because in seconds she had unzipped the case, taken something from it, closed it and tossed it to join the other on the floor.

  Overcome with weakness, Declan had to close his eyes when he saw her holding a black dildo in her hand. It wasn’t as endowed as he was, but looked big enough to please her.

  The hint of light-headedness passed and he opened his eyes again in time to see Julie kneel on the bed on all fours, the vibrator beside her on the bed. He leaned forward expectantly as she turned onto her back, propping her hips on a pillow and keeping her thighs parted widely. From the camera’s vantage point he could see directly between her thighs, right into her pussy.

  Declan groaned simultaneously with Julie as she brought a hand between her thighs to caress her clit. Her index finger moved with sure precision around the small bud, coaxing it to harden. Barely able to look away, he manipulated the view to zoom in on the tantalizing sight. Her pussy filled the wall of cameras and his cock spasmed, pressing insistently against his briefs, demanding to come out.

  Julie brought her fingers lower, easing inside her opening one at a time until she had filled herself with three fingers. Her hips pumped against her hand and she let out breathless sounds of pleasure. When she trailed her fingers higher, moisture glistened across her slit, making Declan ache to thrust as far inside her liquid heat as he could.

  The buzzing of the vibrator announced its impending arrival before it came into view. She started by running the tip up and down her slit, pausing to circle it around her clit. Declan fumbled with his belt, snap, and zipper with one hand, no longer able to hold off the orgasm his body was demanding. He grasped the thick shaft of his cock in his hand as she penetrated her pussy with the vibrating dildo.

  Julie cried out as it sank inside her and he echoed the sound as his cock spasmed, close to exploding. Seeing her pump her hips as she fucked the plastic cock increased his urgency and his hips thrust in time with hers. He maintained a tight grip on his cock as he masturbated, unable to hold back a groan each time she moaned or cried out.

  The buzzing amplified in pitch as she flicked the base with her thumb. Her hips increased the speed of bucking and Declan responded in kind, pressing firmly against the V of nerves at the head of his cock as he squeezed and stroked his shaft. A long cry left Julie and her pussy visibly tightened around the vibrator. As she found release, hot spurts of fluid splashed across his hand and thigh, making it impossible for Declan not to cry out too.