Page 75 of Taken

With each thrust, I could feel myself approaching that point of no return. The pleasure of it all was almost too overwhelming for both of us. Maurice’s hand drifted from my hip to my thigh, holding it open for him as I soaked his cock in my arousal.

As my orgasm rippled through me, hard and fast, I gasped for air. Maurice tightened his grip on my throat, only increasing the intensity of the bliss that crashed through my body, leaving no fragment of my being untouched. My pussy pulsed around him, triggering his own orgasm. He tensed above me as he exploded inside of me, his hand releasing my throat to support his weight against the island he spread me out on.

We exchanged no words between us as he pulled out of me, leaving me sore and throbbing. An odd tension rose between us that I couldn’t quite understand—he must have felt it, too. His hand slowly trailed over my cheek, an odd contrast to how hard he had just fucked me.

So uncharacteristically silent, he turned on his heels and left me alone with the mess of my thoughts.

CHAPTER 33

Mercy

MY BODY DIDN’T feel sore when we awoke, which surprised me. The way Maurice railed me against the kitchen island was brutal and violent, despite how my body responded to it. I expected to be bruised along my back and thighs, but there was no trace.

What the fuck is wrong with me?Was it normal for Maurice to treat me like that during intimacy?

I decided not to ask Maurice about the safe or why Jade called himMaster. Honestly, I didn’t want to know. Whatever twisted, fucked up relationship the two of them had or have, I wanted to bury it in my mind like the rest of the memories I couldn’t recall. I didn’t want to know.

True, there was a rollercoaster of emotions that conflicted with each other, and you’d think I’d be jealous, but I wasn’t. One moment my heart ached for the man who cared for me when I awoke from that spell. The other, I feared him and what he’d do to me the next time I got out of line.

My instincts told me everything they’d been feeding me was a lie.

“Can you pour me some more coffee?” I asked Maurice, who held the coffee pot, pouring his own mug. “I didn’t sleep very well last night. As you well know.”

A warm smile reached his lips. “Did I hurt you?” he asked. Maurice’s eyes were tired, defeated. He almost looked as if he felt sorry for me.

Maurice walked to my side, topped off my coffee, and leaned back against the counter after setting it back down on the warmer.

“A little,” I admitted. The smile I gave him seemed to put him at ease.

I sipped my coffee slowly, shifting my gaze up at him. He only stared at me as if he were waiting for me to speak again. But I had nothing to say. I only wanted to see what was inside that safe.

I need to know.

“I’ll be in Los Angeles for the remainder of today, setting up my office. Julian will be in and out, and if you want to explore the city, make sure he’s with you, though,” he said. “You’re not to be alone. Understand?” It wasn’t a request. It was an order.

“What about Jade?” I asked. “Is she not around today?”

I almost wanted her to be here. Jade may have shown her dark side last night, but if I could get her alone, perhaps she’d slip up in the moment and share more with me than she intended.

“You’ll be out in the daylight too long, darling,” he reminded me. “The spell Julian creates is only temporary, you know that. So unless you want her to suffer a very cruel death … Jade will need to stay indoors until dusk.”

“Oh, right,” I said, pretending to have forgotten. Perhaps staying inside the home with her would be wiser than venturing out with Julian. He alone made my skin crawl with each penetrating gaze he threw at me.

He came around the corner again, leaned down, and kissed the top of my head. I didn’t look up. Just the feeling of his lips on my head sent a wave of uncertainty coursing through my mind. After last night, something wasn’t right, and I was going to find out what it was.

Maurice was dressed in a blue silk suit this morning, with a plaid tie, and had even trimmed down his nails, which seemed like sharp little daggers most of the time. He was strikingly handsome, much different from most vampires I remember. At least the ones from the brief memories that seem to creep into my thoughts whenever I’m about to panic again. There was a fleeting moment when he looked back at me by the door, a moment that spoke of power with a threat of violence if I got out of line. His eyes darkened, but he still wore that playful smile on his face that I couldn’t determine if it was friendly or deceptive.

With his hand placed on the door handle, he said, “Oh, and Mercy?” I watched him intently. “Sorry if Jade made you feel uncomfortable last night. This is your home, too. You are to tell me if she gets out of line with you again, so I can punish her properly.”

Punish her. Maurice wanted to punish Jade, and though she was not someone I knew or trusted, it bothered me he’d even consider that.

I nodded in understanding, and as he left me in the kitchen, I said, “Wait, did Julian cast that spell so you can walk to the car safely?”

Why do I care about his safety? Wait, of course, I did, or should. He was my boyfriend. I should love him and care about his well-being.

He chuckled under his breath. “Yes, my love. I only need Julian’s help from the house to the car. The limo has tinted windows, and we’re parking in an underground structure at the office. It’ll be dark when I leave the office tonight.”

“Oh,” I said, not realizing he had planned to be home so late. I’d be at home alone all day.

---