Page 59 of Suspicion

“Yeah.” Fucking her from behind meant Tucker hadn’t even noticed. “She has.”

“That’s all they’re good for, ain’t it?” Bennett snorted as he slammed the flute down onto the glass table behind him. “Tits and three holes.”

The blonde on her knees mewled at his quip, her mascara-smeared eyes widening as though she’d only just acknowledged who she was locked into the penthouse suite with.

“Where are the others?” Bennett yawned, gazing out at the cityscape of the stretched panoramic windows.

“I don’t know.”

Tucker couldn’t care less. He struggled to count any of them as allies. Friends were an accessory his life didn’t require, and if his plans came together, then his future in the military would be a lot simpler than their current lifestyle of depravity.

“The bedrooms, perhaps?” Bennett peered around at the numerous doors leading from the suite’s main lounge. “I’ll go and see if anyone wants another line.” He pulled a small bag of powder from his trouser pocket. “I take it you don’t?”

“No.” Tucker shook his head. “I don’t touch the stuff.”

“I still don’t get it.” Bennett’s smile was wry as he licked his finger and stuck it into the bag. “This is good stuff.”

“It’s poison.”

Tucker yearned for a humbler existence. Not that he expected a meathead like Bennett to understand that. Men like Bennett would never stop. He’d snort, fuck and gamble his way into hell. Tucker just hoped he wouldn’t be there to see it.

Tucker had his eye on a clearing in the middle of nowhere. There, he planned to build his own cabin and live out his days in peace. No drugs, no alcohol, and no whining Bennett. The only problem he’d yet to resolve was how to live without the sex. Chastity wasn’t a way of life he longed for.

“You’re an idiot.” Bennett shook his head as he sucked on the drug-covered digit and skulked off toward one of the bedrooms. “But it’s your loss.”

“Hey, what about her?” Tucker gestured toward the woman inching away on her knees.

“What about her?”

“What am I supposed to do with her?” Tucker was getting a headache. Couldn’t Bennett clean up his own mess?

“Whatever you like,” came the reply. “I’ll be back for your brunette soon.”

Snapping out of the memory, Tucker realized he’d paused between two parallel trees with Ella still in his arms. His throat dried as the memory of her father’s behavior echoed in his mind. He wasn’t much better, of course, and Bennett had known as much. He’d seen the way Tucker treated women. Hell, he’d been even more of a repugnant jerk.

The swirling memories merged to reveal the one screaming question that had plagued Tucker since he’d pushed Bennett to repay what he owed.

“Why would he have given you to me?”

True, Tucker was a different man from the one who’d hung out with Bennett, but her father hadn’t known that. Aside from the time he’d come pleading for cash, the two men had barely even associated with each other for more than a decade.

Tucker had learned to not only live without women but not to miss the sex. Until Ella, his libido hadn’t bothered him one iota, the fresh air and wilderness more than compensating for any alleged loss. On the odd occasion when his arousal amplified, he dealt with the matter, but he hadn’t needed a partner for a long time.

Hadn’t even thought about having one.

Until her.

Ella. With her long legs, tempting breasts, and sweet smile. Ella with her smart mouth and neverending sass.

What was he going to do with her?

It didn’t seem to matter that she loathed him or was at least intimidated by his presence. If he was honest, her fear had become an aphrodisiac in its own right.

It was time he truly gave her something to be afraid of.

Chapter Four

Free Fall

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