Stingray Billionaire: The Complete Series (An Alpha Billionaire Romance) (34 page)

CHAPTER
TWENTY-THREE

Dax

I
could smell
Brooke's perfume as I leaned across the table and asked her if we were talking
business or flirting. She smiled and looked down at her plate as she tried to
decide just how far our little linguistic flirtation was going to go. I'd kept
my guard up as she questioned me, both wanting to let her know who I was and
also being very aware of the fact that I was out on a date with someone who
knew the ins and outs of the law better than I ever would.

That was the
problem with my line of work – I had to always view every new person as a
potential breach in the wall of security. I couldn't let my guard down and
allow any small detail to slip, or I'd find myself quickly sinking into the abyss
of the legal system. So, I told her the clean version of who I was and left the
dirty version buried underneath the truth.

I knew she didn't
quite believe what I was telling her, but I also knew that she was fighting her
attraction to me because I was fighting mine as well. Getting involved with a
lawyer, even one as incredibly beautiful as Brooke Raines, was risky business
and with Lydia dead, I couldn't afford to slip up. I wanted to take Brooke home
and peel off her dress so that I could see her in all her naked glory. Then, I
wanted to own her body in a way that I'd never wanted before. It scared me to
feel this way; it felt out of control.

"Would you
care for some dessert?" the served asked as he cleared our dinner plates
and swept the crumbs off the table into his hand. "Coffee? Espresso?"

I looked at Brooke
and she nodded, so I said, "Yes, please, tell us what you have for dessert
tonight."

The server went
over the substantial dessert menu and Brooke ordered an exotic fruit tart with
layers of whipped cream while I chose the rich, dark red velvet cake. I smiled
at her as I ordered it, and although I couldn't see the exact color of her
face, I knew she was blushing when she smiled and turned away.

"So, what
about you? What about your firm? You have a law firm, don't you?" I asked.

"Oh yeah, we
do. There are three of us, we all went to school together and decided to make a
go of it after we realized that we hated working for the big firms," she
said with a sigh. "It's hard to run your own firm, probably a lot like
running your own club."

"So you
aren't doing well?" I asked and immediately felt the air between us chill.
I'd hit a sore spot and she was either going to let me in or freeze me out.

"We're doing
okay, not great, but okay," she replied as she fiddled with the napkin in
her lap. There was something she wasn't telling me, but since she'd given me a
pass on my brother, I'd let this one go.

"It must be
difficult running a law firm," I tried to sympathize.

"It's a lot
harder than most people think," she agreed. "What's most difficult is
drumming up consistent business. We're not a tax firm or a corporate mergers
firm that can count on repeated business year after year. We're criminal
lawyers who rely on word of mouth and reputation, you know?"

I nodded as an
idea began to take shape in my brain. It was too soon to be thinking this, but
it was still there. I needed to run it by Riza before I decided anything. She'd
tell me what was insane about the idea of hiring Brooke Raines to replace
Lydia.

"I mean, it's
not like we can count on our clients to keep getting in trouble," she said
with a rueful smile. "It's awful to think of it that way, but that's what
we do. We get people out of all kinds of terrible trouble, and we deal with things
that most people would rather not have to deal with."

"It's got to
be rough," I said. "I mean, dealing with people in trouble."

"That's not
so bad," she said. "The hard part is knowing how many people there
are in trouble on any given day and not being able to reach them. We're good
lawyers and we know how to manage problems, but we're not like the big firms
who can take out tons of radio ads and put big billboards all over town so that
their firms' names are in people's brains."

"I see,"
I said as my phone went off again. I looked down and saw that it was Kesha. I
shot Brooke an apologetic look and got up to take the call away from the table.
"What is going on over there that you can't handle the club for one
night?" I hissed.

"Boss,
something is weird about the shipment in the basement, there are four new boxes
down here that weren't here when I checked in the inventory for this
week," she said, then added, "And they're not part of the backup
stock either."

"Alright,
well, take some pictures and send them to me. Maybe I'll recognize the
boxes," I said. "And for God's sake, do not call me again unless the
club is burning down or you yourself are on fire!" Kesha laughed in my ear
as she hung up.

I returned to the
table and apologized for the interruption.

"No, I'm sorry,"
Brooke said shaking her head and laughing weakly. "This is a date, not a
session with my shrink or my business coach."

"No, it's
okay," I said as the server placed our desserts in front of us and then
went to get our coffee. "Sometimes it's good to just talk about what's
bothering you. Just get it out and then find a way to formulate a solution that
solves the problem."

"Is that what
you do?" she asked as she looked across the table at me. The intensity of
her gaze almost caused me to look away, but I knew better than to show any
weakness right now, so I stared back and simply nodded. Then she murmured,
"I thought so."

"What did you
think, Brooke?" I asked as I reached across the table and laid my hand on
hers. She stared at it for a moment and then looked up at me.

"Latte for
the lady and an espresso for the gentleman," the server announced as he
placed the steaming hot drinks in front of us. I pulled my hand back to give
him room, and Brooke looked up and chirped, "Thank you!" before
digging into her dessert.

The moment had
passed and I was left wondering what she thought I did.

CHAPTER
TWENTY-FOUR

Brooke

"
So
, tell me about the last really fun
thing you did," I said in a voice that was a little too bright. There had
been a moment where we'd almost connected, but the waiter had interrupted
before I could tell Dax that I'd thought he was a thinking man whose thoughts
ran deeper than just an urban club in a large city. Now that the moment had
passed, it seemed awkward to go back and try to reconstruct it, so I kept
moving forward.

"The last
really fun thing I did, eh?" Dax said as he sipped his espresso and picked
at his cake. "Let's see, I think it was taking my boat out and doing some
deep sea fishing."

"How long ago
was that?" I asked.

"Last
summer," he said as he slid his fork into the dark red layers and cut off
a healthy bite of the cake. It looked so rich and decadent, and when he slipped
the fork between his lips I felt a little lightheaded. There was something so
deeply sensual and raw about Dax Malone, and it had been a very long time since
I'd felt a man's hands on my body.

I looked down at
my tart as I avoided his eyes. Without thinking, I swiped my forefinger through
the fresh whipped cream that topped my tart and lifted it to my lips. I looked
up and caught Dax staring, open-mouthed, at me as I sucked the cream off my
finger. The moment I realized what I'd done, I felt the heat creeping up into
my cheeks, and I looked down unwilling to meet his gaze again. Was I after business
or sex? I needed to get my act straight or I'd screw everything up.

"I'm
sorry," I said quietly. "I didn't think..."

"Brooke, it's
okay," he said as he reached over and slipped his hand under my chin and
tipped my face up so that I was looking at him. "It's all okay. I
promise."

I nodded, still
feeling self-conscious as he handed the waiter his credit card and then signed
the bill. "It sounds like they've got a club in the next room!" he
laughed. "Let's check it out, shall we? Just for comparison, you know?"

"Alright, as
long as it's business," I smiled uncomfortably.

"All
business, all the time," he grinned as he reached down, took my hand and
led me into the next room. The music was loud, but it was a throbbing
electronic beat that seemed to invite couples to grind on the dance floor. Dax
looked at me and raised an eyebrow, then looked at the dance floor. I followed
his glance, then looked back at him and nodded.

We moved onto the
dance floor and Dax took my hand as he rested his other hand on my lower back.
I reached up and draped my arm over his shoulder as he pulled me close. I could
feel his hard body pressed against mine and I felt the waves of desire begin
their slow torturous roll through my body. He pulled me closer and I rested my
cheek against his chest as he rested his against the side of my head. We swayed
to the seductive beat of the house EDM, and I felt perilously close to the edge
as I felt Dax's breath in my ear.

I knew that if I
tipped my head even slightly, he'd read the sign correctly and kiss me. And I
knew that once that happened, there would be no stopping the rest of what I
desperately wanted to happen. But I also knew that I had a job to do and that
if I screwed this up, I'd not only screw up my life, but Jordie's and Roger's as
well. And what would happen to poor Alma? No, I had to stay on track and not
get swept up in how badly I wanted to take Dax Malone home and explore his
obviously incredibly fit body.

I sighed deeply
and Dax read it as his sign. He lifted my hair off my neck and bent his head
just as I stepped back and put both palms on his chest.

"I...I...I
can't, I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry," I said as I backed away. "I want
to, believe me. Oh God, please believe me, but I just can't. I'm so sorry,
Dax."

The confusion
flooded across his face as I looked back at him over my shoulder and took off
for the front door. On the street, I hailed a cab and hopped in as I heard him
yelling from the doorway of Beso, "Brooke! I don't understand! Wait, let
me take you home!"

"Drive!"
I yelled at the cabbie who demanded to know where he was taking me. I gave him
my address and when he reminded me that it was a good half hour down the 101, I
told him I didn't care, and threw a handful of cash at him. He drove and I sat
in the back seat, breathing deeply and hoping that I hadn't just screwed both
of my chances with Dax Malone.

CHAPTER
TWENTY-FIVE

Dax

Standing
at the front door of Beso, with a raging hard on, yelling at Brooke to wait so
I could take her home was one of the more humiliating moments of my life. I had
no idea what had happened on the dance floor or why she had pushed me away
before rushing out and hailing a cab.

I drove back to
the club, both worried about Brooke and pissed as hell that she'd rejected me.
The long drive home did nothing to solve the problem in my pants, so when I
walked into the club, I motioned for Diamond to follow me upstairs and once she
entered the room, I asked, "You up for a little rough play tonight?"

"With you,
baby? Always," she grinned as I grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the
wall above her head. I kissed her hard and deep, the way I'd wanted to kiss
Brooke when we had been pressed against each other on the Beso dance floor.
Diamond didn't argue or struggle; she kissed me back just as hard and took a
deep breath as she thrust her large breasts against my chest.

I quickly pulled
off the flimsy top she'd worn for dancing and roughly pinched her nipples
before bending my head and sucking hard. She moaned as I bit down on one and
then moved to the other, and gasped, "Oh God, yes, more, more!" I
rolled her nipple under my tongue and then bit down again causing her to cry
out as she pushed her hips forward. With one hand, I yanked her panties down
around her knees and she let them drop to the floor. Still sucking on her
nipples, I lifted her off the floor and pinned her back to the wall as I
unzipped my pants with one hand and yanked my swollen cock out.

I held out my
finger and growled, "Get 'em good and wet, or you'll be sorry." She
quickly went to work coating my fingers in a thick layer of saliva before I
pulled them away and shoved three up into her already wet hole. She rocked on
my hand as she moaned and I could feel her tensing and releasing.

"Put on your
jacket," she gasped. "No jacket, no pussy, baby. You know the
rules."

I yanked my
fingers out, grabbed a condom from the bowl next to the door and quickly rolled
it down my erect shaft. I slipped my fingers between her legs then coated the
condom with her wetness as I positioned her so that I could slam my cock up
into her hard and fast.

"Oh yes! Oh
yes! Fuck me," she cried as she tried to slam herself down harder and
drive me deeper inside of her. I could feel her building to a strong orgasm, so
I pulled out and rammed my cock back in over and over until she cried out, and
I felt her inner muscles spasm around my cock. I kept slamming into her again
and again as she milked my cock until I came hard. I groaned as I buried my
cock in her one last time and let go.

She wrapped her
arms and legs around me and pulsed as she waited for me to come back to earth
and join her. As I looked up, dazed and sweating, she wiped my brow with her
hand and then kissed it gently, "Thank you, baby, you always know just
what I need to keep me going all night long!"

"Diamond,
I..." I began.

"Baby, don't
even start that ‘I'm’ sorry shit with me," she smiled. "We know what
we do, and it's all good. I don't care why you do it and you shouldn't care why
I do it either. Now, pull out and let me down, I gotta get back to the dance
floor and make some cash!"

I set her down and
she quickly pulled on her clothes, then she looked at me and said, "Better
tuck that thing in or all the girls will be wanting a shot at it, you
know?" She smiled and winked, then disappeared into the club.

I quickly pulled
myself together and then walked over to the two-way window to take a look at
the dance floor. The club was packed tonight as a local DJ played thumping
beats and young dancers disappeared into the back room to get their fix before
returning to the dance floor and grinding against one another. They made it
look so easy. And it made me wonder what I was missing.

What I did know
was that I was now hooked on Brooke Raines and I needed to see her again. I
just didn't know how I was going to convince her to see me.