Page 88 of His Own Heaven

Confusion furrowed her brow. “If she was estranged, why did the school let her see you?”

“Dad never told them she was estranged. As far as he was concerned, she was out of our lives and that was that. And the admins at school only asked us if she really was our mother, and with no note in our files to say we couldn’t go out with her, they allowed it.”

Toby swallowed against the thick lump forming in his throat. “She told them she’d have us back by dinner time. She lied. Isobel drove us to the Gold Coast, to some warehouse in an abandoned industrial complex. The people she owed money to had made her a deal. If she couldn’t pay them in cash, she could pay them in kids. If they liked what they saw, they’d cancel her debt.”

Lucy sniffed and Toby knew she was trying not to cry, his brave girl. Her words came out strangled and wet. “Did you—” She tried again. “Were you—”

“No, baby,” he cooed, tucking her under his chin and holding her close. “We were lucky. We were terrified, but we were very lucky. The men making the deal were just middle men. They had no interest in young boys in private school uniforms, and one of them, the one who shoved us in the back of a van and told us to keep quiet, was an undercover cop. He saved us that day.”

Lucy burst into tears and wrapped her arms around him so tightly, pressed her body so close he could feel her heart thudding against his own.

“The next thing we knew there were cops everywhere, swarming the place, and Isobel was arrested along with everyone else. Dad arrived about three hours later and I don’t think he’s ever hugged us as tightly as he did that day.” And then another memory swirled to the surface and Toby smiled, slow and wicked.

“In the middle of the police station, surrounded by cops, Uly told Isobel if she ever came near his kids again, he’d kill her, and no one, not a single cop blinked.” He shook his head, the disbelief still raw and fresh. “It’s the only time I can remember my mother looking scared.”

Then Toby sighed and got to the point. “She shows up every few years looking for money, but this time feels different. Desperate. Like she was back then. But we’ve decided, Charlie and me, we’re not giving her any more money. It’s time to end this once and for all. It’s time to say no.”

Lucy was quiet for a long time, then said, “How old are Charlie’s girls?”

He knew she’d get it, knew she’d read between the lines and understand. “Thirteen. Only a year older than we were.”

“They don’t look thirteen.”

“We didn’t look twelve. Apparently that’s part of the appeal for these sick fucks.”

“No.” Lucy clung to Toby’s shoulders, her grip strong and sure. “Fuck no. And fuck Isobel,” she snarled. Then she pinned him with a determined stare. “What do you need me to do?”

Toby ground his erection against the apex of Lucy’s thighs and she moaned so loud she’d feared the rest of the house would hear her, then she remembered this crazy rabbit-warren of a house had seven bedrooms and in all likelihood she could scream until her throat was sore and no one would be any the wiser.

“Right now I just need to be in you, baby,” Toby said, his voice a low rumble, thick with desire. “This is going to get rough but I need it. I need you hard and fast and dirty.”

And then to prove his point, he shoved two fingers in her pussy and made her gasp, “Yes, Master.”

Rolling so he was on top of her, he took her mouth in a long, deep, life affirming kiss. The type of kiss that waged war and slow danced and made love all at once as their tongues teased and their lips plucked and their teeth clashed and they breathed the same breath.

Lucy drowned in her Master’s passion, came alive in it. He possessed her totally and she surrendered completely, she gave him everything, her body, her mind and yes, her heart.

Her heart was his. Toby’s. Utterly his. And she no longer cared if it was too soon to say it. Two weeks or two years, it made no difference to how she felt. The moment he broke the kiss, she whispered, “I love you.”

Toby stilled above her and her breathing stalled as she waited for him to speak. The dark seemed to close in on her and time slowed to a standstill, then his deep voice rumbled through the darkness, so bogged down in doubt it made her heart ache to hear him speak. “Say it again.”

Threading her fingers through his hair, she tugged him closer, close enough her lips brushed his once more. “I love you,” she said again, louder this time so there could be no confusion. No doubt.

He traced the tip of his nose along her scarred cheek, making her shiver with need. “I don’t deserve you,” he said quietly. “You know that, right?”

Lucy tried to sound serious but failed miserably. “Oh, absolutely,” she said, giggling softly.

And for the first time all night, Toby relaxed and chuckled too, his big body bouncing against hers. “Good, because I love you too, baby. I’ve loved you from the moment we met.” Then he flipped her over on her hands and knees and took her, slid his cock deep in her pussy, his fingers deep in her arse. “Play with yourself,” he demanded. “Let me feel you fingering that juicy little clit.”

Lucy reached between her legs and touched herself, circled the tip of her finger around the sensitive tiny nub of flesh and gasped at the feeling of total abandon.

“Yes,” she hissed, her pussy contracting around Toby’s thick cock.

He was in so deep and pushing deeper. It hurt, burned. She wanted more. She wanted all of it. She felt all of it. Toby’s body was so big, his skin so hot. His fingers curled around one hip and dug into her flesh, just like he had before, and Lucy welcomed the bite of pain.

“More,” she cried, the warped receptors in her brain switching her pain to pleasure. “Please, Master. More.”

Toby slowed his pace, tortured her with measured thrusts of his hips instead of the furious fucking he’d promised, knowing it would irritate her. Then he laughed when she snarled at him, when she swore and slammed her fist against the mattress where it bounced ineffectually and made a mockery of her frustration.

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