Page 45 of D-Day

He looked at the woman and she cowered, backing up. Lando, his face sullen, nodded. D-Day was thankful for Butler’s reputation. It was the only thing keeping the warlord in check. If he burned Butler, there would be repercussions from his people, and Lando didn’t want that kind of heat. The realization that he’d just let his emotions control him made D-Day take a hard breath, then let it out. Needing to keep his thinking untainted by another shot of fury, he glanced away, trying to get himself back into mission mode. Lando was always going to jack him over regarding the triggers. D-Day was going to have to take matters into his own hands and force the issue with the warlord, but right now, he needed to follow through with Helen. His only hope was that she got something out of Lando’s twin.

Helen stared at his erection tenting the loose fabric of his pants. Not a thing about this turned him on. He had to let himself grow hard for the show while he’d held her, the flimsypants hiding nothing. “Look, no hard feelings about the triggers. We’ll let bygones be bygones.”

“Okay, deal.” Lando glanced at Helen with a hateful expression but looked quickly away. “Make her suffer.”

“You both are despicable,” she said, lifting that defiant chin, the stark understanding of what was going to happen to her in the sick expression on her face. She was very convincing, and he hated the thought that she had to go through this.

“I have something you can do with your mouth,” he said, grabbing her hair, but mostly cupping her scalp as gently as he could. He dragged her with him as he propelled her down the hall, her distress evident. “Have something ready to eat when I’m done with her. I’m sure I’ll have an appetite.”

He opened the door, let them see him shove her onto the bed, then with his heel, he slammed the door shut, then locked it.

He leaned his back against the door, opening his arms as she flew into them. “We’re going to have to go through with it, aren’t we?” she asked softly.

“What? Fuck no!”

“We have to, Drew, or you’ll look tense and unfulfilled. We can’t afford to allow them to get suspicious.” She cleared her throat. “You’ll have to rough me up a little bit, so it looks convincing.”

He groaned softly in refusal, and she cupped his jaw. “It’s all right,” she said smiling. “I know what kind of man you are and that nothing about this arouses you.”

He closed his eyes, telling himself that this wasn’t a violation of Helen. They were lovers, but there was still something unsavory about taking her here and making it sound like he was raping her. It went against everything he stood for, but he suspected she was right. There were just some things a guy could hide, but blue balls weren’t one of them.

“Only you, darlin’. Just you. I’m sorry about this shitstorm. But I am forced to agree with you. I’m a pretty good actor, but not that good.” He pushed the ripped T-shirt material from her body, tossing it away, his eyes going to her sweet, firm breasts. He searched her chest thoroughly, relieved he hadn’t broken her skin, not even a scratch.

She slipped out of her pants, then reached for the tie at his waistband. He held up a hand, and slipped by her, grabbing his sidearm. He walked to the bed and set it down on the nightstand.

She looked up at him. “Locked and loaded in many different ways.”

He had to bite back a smile. “This isn’t funny, Helen.”

“I know,” she said from under her lashes, “but I can’t think rationally around you.”

Catching him by the back of the head, Helen closed her eyes, and he crushed her closer. “Tell me no, and struggle, scream, whatever you think works for this sham.”

She ripped out a scream and started to push him away, and he grabbed her arms, knowing he was too rough, and he was going to leave bruises. Her heady, feminine scent wrapped around him, infusing his every breath. He wanted to take this slow, but rape was fast and brutal, not long and gentle.

“Please, no,” she screamed as he pushed her down to the bed, and after grabbing her wrists in a punishing hold, he reached down to check her sweet core to make sure she was ready for him.

His aching erection was cradled against her bottom, and he groaned when she wrapped her hands tight around the straining length. His entire body shuddering with the pleasure she gave him, he pushed her knees apart, spreading her wide, and swept his hand down her smooth stomach. He was relieved to discover that she was already incredibly wet and aroused. Unable to prolong this performance, he moved up and overher body and felt the head of his dick glide along her core as he pinned her beneath him. Their eyes met and held, hers filled with something so sweet and soothing, and he shoved inside, thrusting into her. She gasped, then cried out for effect. He grabbed her hips again more roughly than he wanted to, ravaging her breasts with his mouth and teeth, making her cry out again. His rough stubble turned her skin pink. With her knees bracketing his hips, the urge to possess her in the most elemental way possible overwhelmed him. Tangling his fingers in Helen’s soft, thick hair, he held her head in his hands and slanted his mouth across hers in a hot, deep kiss.

Her hands slid to his shoulders, and her fingers dug into his muscles as he surged into her, again and again, tearing a moan from the back of her throat. His strokes came faster, longer, ruthlessly demanding, and wholly raw. With each thrust he felt himself grow harder, thicker, until lust and need collided into white-hot heat.

Lost in the rush of sensation, lost in her, he wrenched his mouth from hers, tossed his head back in pure ecstasy, and arched into her one last time, high and hard and infinitely deep. A guttural growl tore from his throat, and his entire body shuddered as he came.

His scorching release went on and on, wringing him dry and leaving him weak and panting. He buried his face in her neck as he gradually recovered.

He lifted his head and slipped to the side, and she turned to him. He gathered her up and drew her head onto his chest, a heavy tightness unfolding in him. In spite of everything, that one unconscious act affected him like little else had. He snuggled her head closer and reached for his sidearm, racking the slide and chambering a bullet, then he set the gun back down.

“I take it you didn’t get the location of the triggers.”

She shook her head, her eyes sad. “No, he didn’t know.”

D-Day had a nearly uncontrollable urge to go after Lando right then and there. Locking his jaw against the rolling sensation in his belly, he clenched and unclenched his teeth, trying to bring the new burst of anger under control. The hot violent surge of adrenaline finally abated, and he looked at her, affecting a calm he didn’t feel.

Every step of the way through this whole masquerade, Helen had played her part so well, but he was humbled by her instinctive trust, wincing inside at his inability to fully trust her. He hated that, wanted to give her every last bit of him, but he held back. He had to. He hadn’t settled anything in his mind or his gut. Until he faced what he needed to face at home, he was in limbo in this relationship.

For a few minutes, he worked at trying not to back off but push himself to the brink.

She lifted herself up on his chest, turning his head toward hers. “Why do you get that bruised, haunted look in your eyes, like now? What is it?”

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