James gives her a pained, muffled groan and says, “Keep quiet and spread your legs for me.”
Then his hand snakes from the outside of her thigh to the inside. Then higher, until it grazes over the lacy material of her panties. She jumps, latching onto his shoulders as he leans in to claim her lips once again. In a deft flick of his fingers, he’s inside the material, sliding through the wetness. He moans into the kiss as he teases her. He’s barely dipped a finger inside and she’s so close.
“Stop toying with me,” she demands.
Just as she’s about to thrust her hips forward to get more of his delectable digit, his other hand grabs her hip, bracing her against the door.
“No,” he growls. “If you want me to do it, then let me.”
When she stills, he rewards her, pressing in until two fingers are fully submerged in her heat. When the heel of his palm brushes her clit, she jerks, biting his lower lip. She can feel him grin against her lips as he repeats the motion. “You’re so delicious, K8. So soft. So perfect. I’ve been dreaming of touching you like this.”
After a few delicious minutes of his steady rhythm and the intoxicating words he’s raining down on her, bliss pulses through her. He doesn’t stop until her pleasure recedes, cupping her sex until she fully comes down. Finally, when she glances up at him in the dim light, he slips his hand from her panties.
He lowers her dress, and she’s already reaching for the bulge in his pants.
As he pulls her hands away, he mutters, “K8.”
She’s so startled, she blurts out an undignified “What about you?”
“Not here,” he says.
Her stomach drops. He still doesn’t want her. Did he not like what he felt? Was she too eager? Her thoughts are a tumble. She might be sick.
James captures her jaw in his clean hand. “K8.”
“Why?” Zephyr, she refuses to cry in front of him again.
He releases a breath, and she braces. “I’m afraid if I dive in, I won’t be able to get out long enough to be useful.”
That doesn’t sound like he doesn’t want her. But she doesn’t understand. “Why do you need out?”
“Because I’ll spend all my time drowning in you, and I have things I need to do before I can make that happen.” He tips her chin up so he can stare into her eyes. “K8, believe me, there is nothing more I’d like to do.”
“But—”
“But I must get this business off the ground. I know you have the next payment covered, but I need to secure our future if we’re going to do this. Once it’s established and we’re out of the woods, then I promise you I’ll get irrevocably lost. I plan to take the time to earn you. Make sure you have no reservations about me. Okay?”
K8 nods. He’s thinking of a future that includes her. He wants to earn her. That sure sounds like what she thinks it does. Does he intend to give her companionship? It’s too good to be true. His words almost make her feel safe enough to let hope swell. Now that she’s chosen to explore liking him, she can barely control it. She feels lightheaded enough from his words and her very excellent orgasm that she has to grip his waist. Also, she should probably make a mental note to do something about her Worldbank account balance so she can make month four as promised. “Okay.”
As they leave the broom closet, K8 smooths out her skirt, memorizing every word of James’s promise. She’s waited this long. Surely she can wait a little longer. Because if he’s offering what she thinks he is, she plans to hold him to it.
29 – Identity for Hire
James
November 27, 2390, Day 30.
James glances across the food court to where Kate is making animated small talk with a woman in a striped and furry gray-and-black one-piece. The woman even has little cat whiskers painted or tattooed on her cheeks like his first boxing opponent.
Oro1 notices him staring. “Tattoos. She’s the leader of a small cult that worships cats, like the ancient Egyptians.”
James clears his throat as if that isn’t the strangest thing he has ever heard. And he’s pretty sure the Egyptians didn’t actually worship their feline companions. “When do you want to finish the testing on the PalmPrint prototypes?” heasks.
It’s been two weeks since they set their plan into motion, and they’re both eager to make some tangible progress. The longer he relies on Kate, the worse his guilt is. She may be okay with it, but he can’t seem to get his mind to accept the idea. Especially since the night of Lessa’s conception party. The space between her thighs and the promises he made. The former, a memory he’s caged and stuffed in a secure vault to be reopened once the business is launched. That is why he needs to stay focused.
“Since the PalmPrints are working in the SAT garages, we need to try somewhere with more stringent security measures,” Oro1 says.
“Anywhere with a live person to accept the reading. We want to make sure they don’t sense anything is off,” James adds.
