Pain explodes across my backside.
I scream. "You spanked me, what the bloody hell—?"
"Language, Bird." He smacks my butt again.
I howl. No one has ever smacked me before.
I haven’t let anyone get this close to me. Certainly, no one in the revolving door of foster homes had cared enough to admonish me. So, how had I put myself in this position with this intolerable asshole?
I strain against his hold and he leans more of his weight on my back. I kick out with my leg as he spanks me again, and again. Five, six… ten. "Stop." I wheeze.
"Learned your lesson yet?"
"Get off me, you brute." I yell, and he slaps my arse so hard that my entire body jerks up the table.
"Sinclair."
"What?" My breath stutters; the pain sinks into my blood, coils in that empty space between my thighs.
"My name, little Bird." He cups my butt, "My name's Sinclair."
Moisture pools in my core. Why the hell is my body reacting this way?
"Say it." His voice lowers to a hush.
I tremble, open my mouth, wanting to oblige him. Do it. Give him what he wants.
"No."
Whack.
"Now." He growls.
My skin stretches; my nerve-endings pop.
"Sinclair." I huff.
His large hand palms my butt. "See, we get along so well when you obey me."
Right. I swallow, firm my shoulders. "This is not about a boyfriend."
He stills, but his body is braced for action. Dense clouds of energy vibrate off of him.
I turn my head so my cheek is flat against the table. "My sister." I peer up at him. "She’s unwell, I can’t leave her."
"Not my problem."
Anger threads my veins, "She’s not well you... nincompoop. I can’t leave her."
"Too bad."
The blood pounds at my temples. Until now, I hadn’t’ realized how protective I feel about her. Me? I can deal with shit. But Karma? No way am I going to let her suffer because of this. I twist my torso. His grip loosens. Enough for me to pull free. I scramble up on the table, raise my hand,
"Do it and you lose this account, and your home. You and your sister will be on the streets."
I pause, "You wouldn’t."
He raises an eyebrow. Of course, the asshole would go all out to destroy me.
Then another thought strikes me, "You already knew?"
He leans back, straightens the cuff of his jacket. "You don’t think I’d let you walk in here without running preliminary checks on you?"
"You had me investigated?" My gut churns. The thought of this man searching out the nooks and crannies of my life? My butt throbs. Every fingerprint of his seems to be etched into my arse.
I clamber off the table, glad to put the width of the barrier between us.
"Didn’t take too long, by the way." He straightens, his tone already preoccupied. No doubt he’s moved on to other things already. He’s dismissed me in his mind. Me and my petty little life. I am inconsequential, not even a blip on the expanse of his beautiful life. I hate him… No, loathe him.
I am going to find a way to avenge this humiliation.
Ensure that he feels as helpless as I do in this moment. I smooth my skirt down my hips, then square my shoulders.
"Good-bye, little Bird." He pivots, struts to the door.
His large body cuts out the sight of the doors. That’s how massive he is. Slim waist, jacket stretched across a firm butt. Powerful thighs that ripple with each step he takes away from me. More wetness pools between my thighs. It's not fair that the devil has such an irresistible body.
If he leaves, I can forget about my fledgling business, or paying next month's rent... And if Karma's condition were to flare up..? No, she is stable. That's what her last examination showed, but I have to be prepared for the worst. I can't afford to be selfish anymore..
"Wait."
He continues walking.
"I’ll do it."
He reaches the door, "Tonight. 8 pm. I'll send my chauffeur to pick you up"
"I can’t drop everything…"
"Don’t tempt me to change my mind."
Hate him. Hate him. Hate him. I press my lips together, hold up my middle finger, then for good measure stick out my tongue at his back. Childish, but what he’s done to me, how he’s coerced me into this situation, is nothing short of crazy; like, completely out of this world, unbelievable.
"Why are you doing this? This entire set up... It's too elaborate, smacks of desperation."
He pauses at the threshold.
"What is it you really want from me, Sinclair?"
He draws himself up to his full height, "I'll tell you when the time is right."
My heart begins to thud. OMG... that... didn't sound ominous. Not at all. The hell is he hiding from me? I bite down on my lower lip. Not yet. Now is not the time to throw more questions at him. I can play his game. If he can bide his time, so can I.
"Oh, and Bird? That spanking today, was nothing." He pushes open the door, holds it open for a beat, "Next time, your rudeness won’t go unpunished."
9
Sin
The door shuts behind me. Something hits against the barrier; I ignore it.
She's angry. Good. I flex my fingers.
So far, things are going smoothly. In fact, it has been too easy. I frown.
I can’t believe she allowed me to spank her. I’d expected her to run out of there screaming, maybe reach for her phone and dial for help… which, of course, I’d have stopped her from doing. It hadn’t taken much coercion to bait her, actually.
I stab my finger on the elevator button. Max butts my leg. I glance down and he darts toward the stairs. Why not? My office is a floor above.
And after that run in with that little spit fire... My cock hardens. The shape of that gorgeous arse is burned into my palm. For someone I’ve spent most of my life hating… Too bad her physical attributes are so enticing.
I clench my fingers into fists. All a ruse to tempt me. Bet she’d dabbed on that infuriating perfume—jasmine and something more complex lurking below. Notes of pepper that had twisted my guts and had tested my patience.
I hadn’t meant to lose control, honestly… but what’s done is done. I square my shoulders. Next time I won’t veer from my plan. I will not give in to my hate… It hadn’t been hate. Far from it. There had been something in the air between us. Something that had annoyed me, had squeezed my chest and hardened my balls until I couldn’t stop myself.
Not again. One slip up… one more than I have allowed myself in any other project. Nope. I have to look past that enticing face, to the darkness that taints her. The darkness, so like mine. The fuck?
I shake my head, prowl toward the stairs, hold the door open for Max. He darts ahead and I follow him up the stairs to the floor above.
I shove the door open and he breaks out in a flurry of barks. No one in the foyer looks up. My staff is too well-trained to show any signs of recognition. I shove my office door open and he darts in, jumps onto the rug in the corner. When I’d brought him here the first time, he had headed for it and claimed it as his. I’d been mildly amused, enough to allow him to own it.