Page 24 of High Stakes

“By seven and a half minutes,” I mutter under my breath, and catch the smirk on Declan’s face.

“I’m not usually in the business of saving lives,” Hayden says with a chuckle. “Usually, I’m only ending them. It was a nice change of pace; plus, I couldn’t just let that go to waste.” He gestures to all of me and I bite the inside of my cheek to try to keep from blushing and getting aroused at the same time.

What the fuck is wrong with me? I need to get my shit together, and fast.

“He’s the best hacker I’ve ever seen,” Hayden continues with a smirk.

My chest deflates, and my heart falls to the floor. He wasn’t flirting with me? Of course he wasn’t. Why would he flirt with me, especially in front of everyone so blatantly? I clear my throat and look back at the director, who has been standing off to the side during our introductions. “So, what are we in for now?”

The director smiles and walks over to the desk, spreading out papers and opening files until the entire surface is covered. “You’re going to Bucharest,” he says and jumps into a detailed description of our next outing.

As his voice drones on, I feel myself slipping back into the abyss. I try to pull my consciousness forward, but the waves of darkness surge forward and pull me under like the tide.

“Hayden!Get your ass back here right now!” Declan’s voice is the first thing I register as I emerge into the memory. I look around and find that I’m crammed into the corner of a surveillance van with six computer monitors mounted on the wall in front of me. The blue lights of the screens make the inside of the van appear washed out and dull.

The comm device in my ear cracks and static is the only sound. Declan rips his device out of his ear and throws it back into the case. “Those are shit and I want new ones ASAP,” he snaps and pulls a gun from the hidden compartment on the back of the driver’s seat. He pulls back and loads a bullet into the chamber with a distinct click. “What do you have for me?”

I click across the screen and pull up the camera feed. “He’s in the west wing of the building. The alarms are disabled so he won’t trigger anything. Most of the targets are in a conference room on the fourth floor on the east side.”

Declan nods and pulls out another gun and multiple full magazine cartridges. “Keep the signal jammed and don’t open that door for anyone. Got it?”

I roll my eyes and salute him with my middle finger. “Aye, aye, Captain.” He glares at me for a few seconds before slamming the door and heading into the dark building.

The static clicks in my ear. “Is he gone now?” Hayden’s voice in my ear makes my skin prickle.

“He’s heading inside now,” I confirm and pull up a different camera feed. “You are such a dick, do you know that?”

I hear him chuckle. “Sometimes he just needs to be taken down a few notches. He’s been pissing me off lately.”

I roll my eyes and put in a few codes. “Don’t do anything stupid,” I say and enter the last few numbers to generate the order. “Explosions set for ten minutes.”

“I’ll get everything done in seven,” he retorts and I watch him through the camera on my screen. He lifts his arm and flags Declan over. They both crouch with their heads close together and I watch their hands move as they go through the details.

Declan looks over his shoulder and scans the area until his eyes land on the security camera that I’m hacked into. He gives me the thumbs up. “Tell him I’m heading to the location,” I say to Hayden, but he just shakes his head. “Again, you’re an asshole.” I click a few keys until the camera shifts up and then down in a makeshift nod.

I sign out of the systems and watch the screens shut off one at a time. As the last one goes out, my vision fades to black and I’m pulled from the memory.

“It’stime for you to show me what else you can do with that sharp tongue.” Her voice awakens something deep inside me, like an ember finally being exposed to oxygen. Heat radiates inside my chest and my heart swells.

Emelia.

I open my eyes and look up at her from where I’m sitting on the foot of her bed. She’s standing in front of me wearing a tight burgundy dress with a slit all the way up to her hip. She looks stunning. Hayden walks into my line of sight and stands just behind her left shoulder. He smiles down at me and a wave of desire rushes through me so hard my toes are curling.

“Take off his tie,” she instructs Hayden, who obeys without a word. His fingers loosen the knot and pull the fabric over my head without touching my skin. “Bind his wrists behind his back.” Again, he obeys without question. My cock throbs heavily against my thigh as Hayden pulls the tie tightly around my wrists. “Now,” she says seductively and puts her hands on her hips, “get on your knees.”

I obey instantly and drop to my knees in front of her. Who wouldn’t? She’s a fucking vision like this. Emelia lifts her leg and places her foot on my sternum. The sharp point of her heel digs into my skin, but I couldn’t care less. “Kiss,” she demands and I drop an open-mouth kiss to the soft skin of her ankle. She puts pressure on my chest with her foot until I lie back. My hands are bound underneath me and my shoulders are aching at the angle, but I hardly even notice. “Good boy,” she murmurs and pulls her dress up until she can sit down on my chest.

The door behind Hayden opens and Declan strolls in. “You should leave,” Emelia says over her shoulder. “I don’t think you want to watch what we’re about to do to your brother.”

Declan pulls the computer chair over and sinks down into the seat. His eyes flash in the low light. “Maybe I want to watch and imagine you doing it to me instead,” he responds darkly, and leans forward to rest his arms on his knees.

She grins and turns back to me. “Take his clothes off,” she instructs Hayden as she stands up and slips out of her dress, revealing a sinful piece of black and red lingerie. My cock jumps as Hayden pulls my clothes off one piece at a time, careful not to touch my skin with his fingers. Damn, this is going to be painful. “Toss him that bar,” she tells Declan and points to the spreader bar on the bed.

Fuck. Me.

Hayden takes the piece and secures it around my ankles. Emelia sinks down until her knees are on either side of my head. “You aren’t allowed to come. Got it?”

I nod eagerly and lick my lips. She frowns, turns her body, and smacks my cock hard. The sharp sting only makes me harder and I can feel a drop of precum oozing down my shaft. “Yes, ma’am,” I correct with a groan as Hayden wraps his fingers around me and squeezes.

---