"you're already a disrespectful little baggage. and no, don't call me sir. it makes me sound like your father and i already have enough reservations over our age differences to not want to draw even more attention to that parallel."

she lifted herself up, her hair falling over his chest as she stared down at him. jesus, but she was beautiful. all that gorgeous hair spilling over him. suddenly he was beyond the playful-banter stage, and he was seized all over again by the need to roll her underneath him and fuck her for another four hours.

"does my age bother you so much? if it does then why would you want...this. i mean us."

he sighed, resigning to control himself at least a few minutes longer. his dick was screaming at him, but mia was in the mood to talk and he'd accommodate her for now.

"it bothered me in the past. it doesn't bother me as much now. but there are fourteen years between us. you're much younger. a whole world away from where i am in my life."

she frowned a bit and a pensive look entered her eyes.

"what are you thinking?" he asked, curious at her hesitation.

her chest rose with the forceful inhalation of her breath. "you've hinted that you've wanted me for...a long time. how long, gabe?"

he was silent a moment as he pondered how to put his words. the entire conversation turn made him uncomfortable, but he'd pursued the question in her eyes. he couldn't very well refuse to give her an answer when he'd encouraged her to ask.

"i think it was when you came back from europe, when you took a break in your studies to go overseas. i hadn't seen you much as it was. just on the occasion when you were with jace or at holidays. and then when you graduated college. no longer did i see you as a girl, jace's baby sister. i saw you as a desirable woman. one i wanted to possess. it caught me completely off guard."

"why now?" she asked softly. "if not then, why now?"

he had no answer for that, other than seeing her on the street the day he'd taken the photo. it had been a fist to his gut. all of the desire and need he'd suppressed had come roaring to the surface. she was an itch under his skin he couldn't rid himself of. even now that he'd had her, the itch wasn't alleviated. it was more intense than ever.

"it was time," he said simply. "and you, mia? when did you decide you wanted me?"

she flushed and averted her gaze. color bloomed in her cheeks making them a delightful shade of pink. "you were my teenage crush. i've fantasized about you for years but you've always been so far out of my league."

something in her tone alarmed him. it shook him. and he realized just how disastrous this could be if she weren't able to separate her emotions from their physical relationship. perhaps it was why he'd held off for as long as he had. aside from the difference in their ages, there was the fact that she was a girl. a young woman who hadn't had the emotional experience that the other women he'd associated with had.

"don't fall in love with me, mia," he warned. "don't take this for anything more than it is. i don't want to hurt you."

her lips twisted in scorn and her eyes narrowed. she leaned back, putting more distance between them. he didn't like it. he wanted her close. touching him. where he could feel her softness and warmth against his skin.

he leaned up, curling his arm around her, and then pulled her back until she landed against his chest. she had no liking for that. too bad. she could say whatever she wanted to say with him touching her.

her mouth scrunched into a frown. it was adorable and cute, but it would only piss her off if he said as much. his own mouth twitched, threatening to smile, but he quashed that urge and stared expectantly at her as he waited for what she had to say.

"that's awfully presumptuous of you, gabe. not to mention arrogant and assholish. you've been clear in your expectations of our arrangement. i'm not an idiot. do you assume every woman you meet falls head over heels in love with you and can't live without you?"

he lost the battle not to smile, and she didn't look pleased with the result. she looked like a pissed-off kitten whose claws had just come out. relief settled into his chest. yes, he'd gone out of his way to make certain she knew the terms of their agreement, but he still didn't like the idea of hurting her. and his friendship with jace may not ever recover if gabe broke mia's heart. he didn't want to break her heart. she was more than just another woman he had sex with.

"point taken," gabe conceded. "i won't bring it up again."

she cast him another frown and inserted her hands between them, pushing back so there was space between them. oh hell no. he pulled her back down so she landed forcefully on his chest once more, her mouth just inches from his.

he kissed her and then growled when he found her lips stiff and unyielding. he slid his hand down her belly, between them, and into the soft, velvety flesh of her pussy. he stroked over her clit until she gasped, opening her mouth to his tongue.

"that's better," he said against her mouth before ravaging her sweet lips once more.

"what about your driver?" she gasped out between kisses.

"we have time."

he reached for her hips, lifting her and then positioning her astride him. he tore at the sheets, pushing them out of the way. his need for her was fierce. painful.

"put your hands on my shoulders and push yourself up," he growled.

when she complied, he grasped his cock and placed his other hand on her hip, guiding her down onto his straining erection.

"ride me, mia."

she looked so uncertain that he moved his hands to her waist and then arched up, thrusting deeply into her. holding her in place, he guided the rhythm, helping her find her own. he knew it would be quick, hot and out of control. he didn't seem to have any control when it came to her.

"that's it, baby," he breathed. "perfect."

he loosened his hold as she gained more confidence and began to take over. she was hot, liquid and silky soft around him. so tight, squeezing him like a vise. son of a bitch but he was ready to come now, and he knew she wasn't even close.

as if reading his mind, she leaned down, for the first time taking the initiative, and kissed him. and god it was so sweet. he could taste her on his tongue, feel the luscious softness of her lips against his. hell yeah, she was his. no doubt about that. and he didn't have any plans to let go of her until he was completely and utterly sated.

"don't wait for me," she whispered.

he palmed her face, holding her in place as their mouths fused hotly. he arched his hips, wanting more as she rose and then slid back down his cock. his hands fell and he grasped her hips, knowing she was going to wear the marks of his possession the next day. but that idea only fueled his desire even more, until it was a raging inferno burning him from the inside out.

he erupted within her, his release painful in its intensity. he could barely contain his cry, a roar of satisfaction, of victory. as if he'd conquered his prey. she was here, in his arms, his dick buried inside her. his. no more waiting. no more primitive obsession. he'd captured her completely and now she was at his mercy, his to do with as he liked.

they were crazy thoughts filling his mind, swamping him. images of her tied, hand and foot, as he slaked his lust, of him taking her from behind, of sinking into her mouth, of consuming her until she had no other thought than the fact that she belonged to him.

he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her down so she was flush against his chest. she rose and fell with the force of his breathing, her hair tangled on his face. he slid one hand down to cup her behind and arched once more, seeking to go even deeper, keeping them connected in the most intimate way possible.

god, but he had no defense against a desire this powerful. he'd never experienced anything that compared and he wasn't sure he liked it. it unsettled him and made him unsure of himself. made him second-guess all his intentions.

he was a selfish bastard. there was no question about that. he took his pleasure, took what he wanted. always. but mia made him want to be...better. he didn't want to be this savage monster that took without giving. he wanted to be gentle with her, to ensure her pleasure above his. he wasn't sure he knew how, but damn it, he wanted to try.

if she didn't run from his bed after tonight, he couldn't imagine why. he'd ravaged her, not once but twice. fucked her almost brutally without consideration, and the second time she hadn't even found her own satisfaction.

he closed his eyes and tried to collect himself, and he lay there with mia atop him, his arms full of sweet, soft woman.

finally, he rolled, taking her with him, slipping from the heated clasp of her pussy. he kissed her forehead awkwardly, not knowing what to say, and so he didn't say anything at all as he retreated from the bed.

her gaze followed him as he stood, naked, by the bed. he couldn't discern anything from her stare. there was no judgment, no condemnation, but neither was there acceptance. she simply watched, and that thoughtful gaze made his skin prickle.

he turned away, saying as he reached for his clothing, "stay here. i'll get your things when they're brought up."

"okay," she said softly.

he pulled on his pants, knowing he must look a wreck. far from the remote, untouchable persona he always projected. he didn't want anyone to see him this way. especially not mia.

chapter ten

mia had dozed off, sated and in her warm, hazy cocoon, images of gabe vivid in her dreams. and then she was roused from sleep as the very real, not-dream gabe pulled the covers from where she'd tugged them up to her chin.

he had this look, a completely and utterly delicious look in those piercing blue eyes that made her stomach clench, and her immediate reaction was to clamp her thighs shut to alleviate the instant ache that bloomed.

"on your knees."

holy hell, but the way he made that command made her go weak.

she wasn't entirely certain what he meant. did he want her literally on her knees, like upright? or did he mean hands and knees? and if he meant hands and knees...she shivered as she imagined the hands and knees option.

when his eyes narrowed with impatience, she hurried to roll from her back to her side and then onto her belly. before she could push herself up to her knees, he planted his hand in the middle of her back, holding her firmly against the mattress.

"stay there a moment. it will be easier if i do this now."

do what now?

her heart thudded against the mattress and she squinched her eyes shut, figuring if she wasn't looking at him that it was okay for her to close her eyes.

gently he pulled at first one wrist and then the other, tugging both hands behind her until they rested at the small of her back. her eyes flew open when she registered that he was coiling...rope...around her wrists, binding them together.

oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. he hadn't been kidding about the bondage and restraint stuff she'd read in the contract!

she hadn't realized how tense she'd gone until gabe leaned down, his lips brushing the back of her ear.

"relax, mia. i won't hurt you. you know that."

that whispered promise made her muscles go lax again and she melted into the bed, her brain in overload. she was excited, nervous, scared, but mostly really excited. her senses were on hyperalert. her nipples were hard, poking into the mattress, and her pussy had clenched, quivering in anticipation.

then he hoisted her ass up so that her knees went beneath her, and he positioned her so her cheek was down on the mattress while her ass was perched in the air, her hands solidly bound behind her back.

his hands smoothed over her behind, caressing and soothing, and then his finger trailed down the cleft of her ass, pausing just at her anal opening. his voice was gravelly, a rough edge to his tone when he spoke.

"i'm looking forward to fucking this sweet ass, mia. and i will. you're not ready yet, but you will be and i'm going to enjoy every second i'm balls deep inside your pretty ass."

she shivered uncontrollably, chill bumps dancing across her exposed flesh.

"for now, i'm going to fuck your pussy, that tight little ass perched high while i imagine it's your ass i'm fucking."

she bit into her bottom lip as lust rolled hot through her, leaving her flushed, excited, desperate for his touch and his possession.

then the bed dipped and his body pressed into her. his hands glided up her back and then down to settle on her bound wrists. he stroked her clenched fingers and then tugged experimentally at the rope as though he were checking to make sure she was securely tied.

she couldn't breathe. couldn't process the bombardment of sensations. she was utterly helpless and yet she knew she was safe. knew he wouldn't hurt her. he wouldn't take her too far.

keeping one hand securely around her bound hands, he slid his other hand between her legs to cup her pussy. then he left her long enough to position his cock, the tip teasing her entrance, spreading it as he pushed in the barest inch.