Page 8 of His Own Heaven

Gently, Toby stroked his fingertips over her scarred cheek and nodded. “Him first.”

“Yes, Sir,” she whispered, then turned to face his brother.

Charlie was an expert at seduction, at deducing a woman’s secret desires and making them a reality, but if Toby was right and Lucy was submissive, his charms wouldn’t go far. She’d no doubt find his kiss pleasurable, but he doubted she’d wilt in his arms as so many women had before. Charlie adored women, worshipped them, and he went to great pains to ensure he never hurt them, only ever leaving them in a puddle of pleasure. But if Toby’s hunch was correct, leaving Lucy in a puddle of pleasure would require at least a little hurt. Possibly more than a little.

He watched, openly and unashamed, as his brother slid his hands into Lucy’s hair and held her steady, as his mouth descended on hers.

The usual sounds followed—moaning, heavy breathing—but their body language told Toby more. While Charlie’s hands had travelled down Lucy’s back, one resting at her waist while the other cupped the softness of her arse and pulled her closer, her hands had barely moved, going only from his chest to his shoulders and not in any way that would indicate any urgency or sense of possession. She didn’t cling to him like a drowning man would a life raft, or as though she needed him to carry her out of the darkness and into the light. No, her hold on Charlie looked almost… polite in nature.

The kissing equivalent of a handshake.

Toby wanted to punch the air in victory but restrained himself. Barely. He reminded himself that her lack of reaction towards his brother was no guarantee he’d fare any better. Hell, for all he knew, thatwashow she showed passion, in which case his first impression of the woman was the right one, and the sooner she went over his knee and got a damn good spanking, the better.

His cock hardened further at the thought of laying her over his lap, one hand in the small of her back, holding her in place, the other delivering a series of stinging slaps designed to make her quiver and squeal, to make her bones melt, her mind relax, to let go. Let her know he would take all her worries away and look after her. That he would carry the weight of her world on his shoulders. That he would free her from whatever it was that held her back and show her the true meaning of passion.

Without warning, Charlie lifted the hand cupping Lucy’s arse and spanked her. It was nothing more than one firm whack on one half of her backside, but a muffled whimper escaped her and her fingers curled into his shoulders, pulled him closer. Toby’s gut tightened, the action confirming his hunch, and he shot a glance at Charlie’s face. His brother was staring at him as he continued playing tonsil hockey with the luscious woman in his arms—bastard—and Toby’s jealousy reared its ugly head once more.

“My turn,” he growled.

Immediately, Lucy disentangled herself from Charlie. “Wow,” she said, her voice little more than a throaty exhalation of breath. “You arereallygood at that.”

Charlie smiled down at her, his expression warm, his gaze sensual. “Thanks. You’re pretty great yourself.”

Toby noticed her hand lingering on his brother’s chest and his emotions swelled again. “My turn,” he repeated, snatching Lucy’s hand in his and spinning her towards the truck.

Using his big body, he caged her against the passenger door, pressed his chest to her back, and nestled the thick evidence of his arousal against her arse. With slow and deliberate purpose, he gathered her hair together near her scalp and held it tight in his fist. Then he wrapped his other hand around her throat and gently squeezed. Not to harm her but to let her know what she was getting herself into. To let her see him for what he was.

A sick, twisted bastard who would control her body, her mind, her spirit.

If she let him.

Chapter Four

Lucy leaned into the security of the palm around her neck, let its warmth, its strength permeate her flesh and fill her with a sense of calm she hadn’t known in far too long. Combined with the sharp sting of her hair pulled taut in his other hand, Toby had her wriggling with desire in less time than it took for his brother to wink.

The man hadn’t even kissed her yet and Lucy wanted to climb him like a freaking tree.

Thiswas what she needed. What she wanted. Not that Charlie’s attention had been unwanted, but he’d failed to excite any real hunger for him. His kisses had been enjoyable, certainly, and she hadn’t lied when she’d said he was very good at it—the man’s technique was flawless—but it wasn’t until he’d added that little bite of pain at the end that she’d seen a faint glimmer of hope that he wouldn’t be just like every other man she went home with after one of her speed dating sprees.

Nice enough—if somewhat desperate—but ultimately disappointing.

Charlie was handsome—gorgeous, really—with his neatly trimmed brown hair, pale blue eyes, strong jawline, and lean, muscled physique. Not to mention her own personal kryptonite—dude was tall.So very tall. And Lucy really did love nothing half as much as a man who made her feel short, but all the good looks and aerial postcodes in the world couldn’t make up for his lack of dominance.

Toby’s brother was without a doubt a strong and disciplined man—a body like his didn’t happen by chance—but it was the wrong sort of strong for her liking. The wrong sort of discipline.Annndshe was pretty sure he’d only slapped her arse because he had also noticed a lack of any real interest on her part, and he’d thought to change things up a bit.

It had worked too.

The instant his hand had landed on her arse, her pussy grew wet and throbbed with wanting. But before she could press him for more, Toby had demanded his turn, and that rich baritone had pulled her away from Charlie as easily as if he’d reached out and grabbed her with both hands.

There’d been no way in hell she could have resisted his command.

Immediately, she’d complied with his wishes, but she’d also left one hand on Charlie’s chest, letting him know he wasn’t totally forgotten, just not her main point of focus in that moment. Then Toby had snatched her hand away from his brother like a child who was tired of sharing his toys.

Lucy had half a mind to be mad at him—so rude—but the instant his hand had wrapped around her throat and she’d felt his impressive erection pressed against her arse, her brain had tapped out and let her sadly neglected nether regions take the win.

He gave her hair a tug, and her mouth fell open to expel a harsh breath. Then she felt his lips, soft and hot, where they brushed against the shell of her ear. His heated breath tickled, and her whole body shivered at the ethereal caress. “Mine,” he growled, and then his mouth fell upon her skin.

Breath after breath shuddered in and out of her lungs as he kissed and licked her scars. Up the side of her throat and across to her earlobe, along the edge of her jaw and then back down to nuzzle in the crook of her neck. The damaged flesh was so sensitive to touch it felt as though every erogenous zone in her body had relocated to wherever Toby’s mouth was, pushing the line between pleasure and pain.

---