Master No (Masters and Mercenaries, #9)(70)

“Well, at least that’s honest,” she shot back. “You’re mad. You’re pissed off that I put myself in danger again and now I won’t listen to you.”

“Don’t forget the fact that you questioned my intelligence.” Really more like his sanity, but hey, he wasn’t being picky.

She nodded. “I did. I did all those things and if you had tried to tell me how to treat a patient, I would have told you to go to hell. I tried to tell you how to do your job.”

He attempted to relax. He didn’t want to escalate past where they were. He was angry about a lot of things she couldn’t really control. “You’re not my client. How about we agree to leave business out of things. I’ll back off.”

“You won’t. You’ll be more careful next time though.” She eased her way around the desk. “If you really think I’m in danger, you’ll do whatever it takes to protect me.”

He moved back, sliding the chair away from the desk so he could face her. “Maybe you don’t know me as well as you think you do.”

She took advantage, easing down into his lap. His cock responded immediately, lengthening, hardening, preparing for her. She looked up at him, those innocent eyes kicking him in the gut. “I think I know you pretty well. You’re one of the good guys.”

She was either incredibly na?ve or she knew exactly what to say. No. She was na?ve. He was going to stop fooling himself. She wasn’t involved. She wasn’t some agent who would stab him on the way out the door. She wasn’t Dawn. She was Faith, and despite the fact that she would pick her family over him, he didn’t want to see her hurt.

“The fact that you can say that proves you don’t know me at all, darlin’. I’m not a good man, but I’m your man for as long as you want me.”

Her hands found his face and she seemed to be looking for something there. “Do you mean that?”

Every word. He simply happened to know that she wouldn’t want him for very long. “I do. I have zero interest in the relationship ending. I would like more time with you. Maybe even more time away from work. Why don’t we go somewhere? We can invite Erin and Theo and go relax somewhere. No work. No problems. Just you and me and some friends.”

As he said the words, he realized he really meant them. In that moment, if she’d said she wanted to go to the ass end of Thailand, he would have gotten on a plane with her.

“We could go out to the island,” she offered. “If we wait, it’s going to be crowded with family and my dad’s friends. If we leave in a couple of days, we’ll have the place all to ourselves for a week or so.”

He let his hand slide along her thigh, his mind already fuzzy from lust. “I’ll pack tomorrow. I want to be with you, Faith. And no, you don’t have to agree with me. I’m sorry for how I reacted.”

“Me, too, Master.”

He felt the shift in her. Her eyes softened, her body curling into his. She wanted to play, needed to play.

Fuck it all, so did he. He needed this. It started as a cover and he’d gone through the motions with the submissives he’d trained on, but it had rapidly become something he craved when it came to Faith.

He let his hands curl in her hair, loving the soft feel of her tresses against his palm. So soft. And he was hard. In every way possible. He tightened his fist, watching her eyes. He saw the moment her scalp started to burn. That much and no more. He only wanted to give her the pain that was required to jump-start her pleasure. She liked having her hair pulled. He would tug on it and those eyes would soften, her pupils dilating in a way that let him know she was responding.

“You want to play with me?”

She nodded. “God, yes, Master. I always want to play with you.”

“And if I’m feeling rough tonight?”

“I think I can handle it. I’m sure I can. I think it would be a good way for both of us to relieve some tension. I could help you with your stress, Tennessee.”

Oh, she certainly could. He tugged at her hair, eliciting a sweet moan from the back of her throat. “You’ll do as I tell you to, Faith. Who’s the Master here?”

“You are.”

He let go of her hair. “Take off the shirt.”

She obediently tugged it over her head and sat naked in his arms. She was so f*cking beautiful, and every inch of her was his—for now. He shoved that thought out of his head. It didn’t matter. Time was meaningless. He was going to live in the now, and the now included playing with his hot sex toy.

“Sit on the desk.” He reached over, shutting the laptop and moving it to the side. He kept a neat desk with nothing on top but his computer, a lamp, some pens, and a pad of paper. They were easily shifted to make a place for his toy.

Faith moved to the desk and sat down, never questioning him, never showing any sign that she was uncomfortable in her skin. To the contrary, she always seemed to calm when he got her clothes off. He’d taken to ordering her to be naked during the day. When no one was around, she would relax and read without the encumbrance of unneeded clothing. He would work and catch glimpses of her, heart-stopping sightings of her breasts or that pretty *. He made sure there was a robe or a pair of her yoga pants and a T-shirt always around in case someone knocked on the door.

It was a nice way to live.

“Lean back and spread those legs.”