Role Play (Plaything Book 4) Read online

  Cradled in my lap, she rocked against my hand as my fingers dipped deeper. I realized there was nothing more I wanted in the world right then but for her to come hard, sitting there cradled in my arms, writhing against my hand with her perfect ass rubbing seductively against my cock. Even if we didn't make it past this moment on the couch, I would die unhappy if I didn't bring her to a hot, wild climax right then. It might have been a part of that same unexplained possessive, protectiveness I'd felt about her, but I wanted badly to master her body. I needed to know that I could satisfy her, even fully clothed and sitting on the couch. I wanted to make her come.

  Her body responded to my touch as I thrummed my thumb over her clit. "Aidan," she moaned and then she brought her thighs together tightening her grip on my hand. She pressed her face against my shoulder, stifling her cry as her pussy clenched around my hand.

  I badly wanted to strip her naked and carry her to my room, but I stopped myself. I didn't want to move too fast. She sighed contentedly and relaxed in my arms, curling against my chest with a soft sound that was close to a purr.

  A knock on the door startled us both.

  She climbed off my lap and quickly buttoned up as if we were teenagers getting caught by parents. "Are you expecting someone?" she asked.

  "Not me. Do you think your ex came back?"

  "I don't know. I doubt it. He looked pretty scared when he stumbled away."

  I went to the door and opened it. Milo, the building supervisor, a guy with a double chin and a massive belly nodded hello. "I thought I might find Jane Briggs here."

  Jane came around the door. She had smoothed her hair and straightened her clothes. "Yes, I'm here."

  "I've got good news. The door came early. We'll be installing it tomorrow morning." He sneered my direction. "I'll send you the cost for the door and labor."

  "That's fine."

  The nosy old shit stood there for a second longer, shooting his shifty gaze back and forth between us.

  "Anything else?" I asked.

  "No, no. That's all."

  "Perfect. Good night." I swung the door shut in his face.

  Jane stifled a laugh with her hand.

  "Why are all building supervisors such goobers?" I asked. "It must be a part of the job description. Non-goobers need not apply."

  This time Jane didn't bother to cover her laugh.

  "I'm glad I'm getting a door, but I'm kind of bummed too." She stepped into my arms, and it already seemed as if that was exactly where she belonged.

  "Well, I could always walk through your door again."

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jane

  The audition had lasted a lot longer than I expected. I felt good about it and they seemed happy with my reading, but it had made me an hour late for my job at Bulk Mart. And the day manager, a woman named Hilda, was not easy going like the night manager.

  I slipped into the employee room unnoticed and quickly opened my locker. My phone buzzed with a text from Russell. "How did it go?"

  My fingers flew over the screen. "It went well but I'm an hour late for work. And Horrible Hilda is on the floor."

  "Shit, that's not good. Good luck with that." Another text came through before I could put the phone in my locker. "How is it going cohabitating with the big handsome guy who barreled through your door?"

  I smiled down at the screen. Russell's text had brought back the cheek warming memory of my erotic escapade in Aidan's lap. It had been awhile since I'd felt that good in a man's arms. I don't know what took me so long to leave Brock. I had been so complacent about it all, as if I'd decided that passion wasn't all that big a deal. Aidan had reminded me that passion was indeed a big deal, and I had been missing it. I needed desperately to make up for lost time. And then, as if my thinking about him had triggered it, the phone rang.

  Aidan's name was on the screen. It had been the first time his name had shown up on my phone. Instantly I felt that thrill you felt in a brand new relationship when you got the first phone call. I looked around. Aside from two of the warehouse guys eating lunch, the room was empty.

  "Hello."

  "Hey, how'd it go? Did your excellent practice partner help you nail the part?"

  "Well, it's a little more complex than that. This was only the first read. I have to wait to see if there's a call back. But if it helps my practice partner's ego, I think he made it a very successful first read. Now I'm late for my drudge job. I've got to get out on the floor before my boss comes in and drags me out by my ear."

  "OK, I'll let you go. I just wanted to see if you'd be interested in going to the beach on Sunday. The company beach house is mine for the weekend. I know you have to work on Friday and Saturday, but I thought we could get away for a day."

  "That sounds amazing." I heard angry clacking footsteps outside the locker room. "I've got to go, Aidan. My boss is coming."

  "All right. Have a good day." He hung up.

  "Briggs!" Hilda's sharp tone rattled the lockers.

  I tossed the phone into my locker and grabbed out my smock.

  "You are sixty-eight minutes late."

  "I know. I'm sorry. I had an audition."

  She loomed over me as I buttoned the smock. "I don't care where you were. We were short out on the floor, and that's your fault. Three times last week, you were back late from lunch because you were busy studying those silly scripts."

  I turned to face her. "I was never more than two minutes late."

  "Two minutes that the other employees had to cover for you on the floor. This time I'll have to write you up."

  I nodded. "Yes, I understand."

  "Don't let it happen again. There are at least thirty names on the waiting list to work at this store. You can be replaced with one phone call."

  I took a deep breath to keep myself from saying something I'd regret. "Yes. Fine. Should I get to my post now?"

  Her nostrils flared at my impertinent tone. She stepped aside. "Oh, and I need you to work Sunday," she grumbled as I passed by.

  With my work at the Murder Mystery event, Sunday was my only day off. And I was about to spend it at a beach house with a guy who was starting to sneak into my daydreams. Hilda knew it was my only day off. She grinned. "Well?"

  I couldn't risk losing my job. "That's fine. Sunday is fine."

  Chapter Fourteen

  Aidan

  I was just finishing up paperwork when Macy tapped on my open door. She held up a pink bakery box. "I need an expert's opinion on my new butterscotch cupcakes."

  I cleared away the paperwork. "You're in luck. The expert is in."

  She approached my desk. The aroma of brown sugar surrounded me as she set the box down. She pulled up the chair and sat. "If you approve, I'm going to make them a Thursday special."

  "Little chance of me not approving, especially when I'm already salivating just smelling them." I lifted out the first cupcake. It was topped with a mound of shiny butter yellow frosting. "Have I mentioned how pissed the other guys are that I was appointed official Sweet Spot taster?"

  She smiled. "Well, you are the true expert."

  I took a bite and rolled my eyes in ecstasy. "Fucking amazing."

  "Hey, boss, I need your signature." Heath stepped into the office and stopped to stare at the cupcake in my hand. He looked at Macy. "What the hell? Why is he tasting cupcakes? I'm family."

  "Yeah but I'm the boss." I lifted my pen and motioned him over.

  Heath leaned over and glanced into the pink box. "Oh look, there's a second one." He reached for it.

  I covered the box. "Touch that second cupcake, and you'll be eating it through your nose."

  Heath reluctantly withdrew his hand. "Greedy ass. That's all right. Macy will set me up with some cupcakes later. Right?" He winked at Macy.

  "Come by the shop on your way home."

  Heath felt vindicated. "See, so there." He walked out with the paperwork.

  Macy leaned back. "Chase told me you met someone."

  "Yep, I me
et a lot of people. You two should find more interesting things to talk about."

  Her brow arched. "You know what I mean. I think it's great. Chase mentioned you were taking her to the beach house this weekend." Her face turned a shade darker. "I still remember my initiation at the Plaything beach house."

  "Is that right? The place is definitely an asset when you want to impress a lady." I wadded up the first cupcake wrapper. "Unfortunately, Jane had to cancel. She has to work."

  "That's too bad. So her name is Jane." Macy put her elbow on my desk and rested her chin on her hand. "What else?"

  I stared down at the cupcake in the box. "Something tells me I'm not really taste testing these cupcakes."

  The twinkle in her eye told me I was right. "That's not a new flavor. I was just curious about the new lady friend. Georgie was too," she added quickly as if that absolved her of her trickery.

  "That's it, throw the friend under the bus, all in the name of getting information out of the big guy. How come you didn't send the investigative reporter to do the leg work?"

  "We both figured baked goods were our best bet."

  I picked up the second cupcake but stopped before taking a bite. "She's an actress, or at least she wants to be one." I looked down at the cake in my hand. "I really like her. She's just one of those people who I want to be around. She's funny as hell and cute and I love that she's working so hard to reach her dream."

  "She sounds great. But why am I getting these unsure vibes from you?”

  "After all the women I've—" I stopped. "Well, you know."

  "I do."

  "I just want to make sure I do things right."

  She laughed. "You do realize that you own a company whose main goal is to encourage and assist with romance and pleasure."

  "Yeah, that hasn't worked out so well yet. The first time we met, I invited her into my apartment. My coffee table was filled with the contents of the Yes, Yes box, dildos and all. She ran as if I had fire coming out of my ears."

  Macy covered her mouth in an attempt to hide her smile. "I might have heard something about that. And then there was an interesting story about a broken door?" She peered up at me obviously waiting for me to elaborate.

  "Chase sure is chatty." I shrugged. "I crashed through her door because I heard her pleading for someone to not hurt her again. I thought she was in trouble. Turned out she was practicing movie lines."

  "That is so damn sweet. I love that. See, that would have made me love you instantly. And her reaction to the sex toys on your table was understandable. She didn't know you yet. Frankly, you are kind of a big scary guy. Most people don't know there's a big lovable bear under all that man. And by the way, that Yes, Yes box is a lot of fun." She stood up. "I've got to get back to the bakery. Hey, Trey is still planning on taking the yacht out in a few weeks. Maybe Jane will have a day off, and you can bring her along. I'd love to meet her. In the meantime, Aidan, just be yourself. You're adorable. Women love you."

  "Great. I'm adorable." I lifted up the second cupcake. "Thanks for the treats. And if there's anything else you want to know, I really like those red velvet ones. Extra cream cheese frosting please."

  "Got it. Think about what I said about inviting Jane for a day on the boat."

  "I'll think about it."

  Chapter Fifteen

  Jane

  I pulled the coat around the short, barely there maid costume. I was pretty sure the costume designer bought the thing off a Halloween sale rack. It was the typical sexy French maid costume and rather cheaply made. I was just glad to be strangled, dead and carted off to the morgue for the night.

  I shuffled down the dimly lit hallway to my apartment. I had to admit I was a little disappointed that they had gotten my door back up so quickly. I could have easily spent one more blissful evening in Aidan's apartment.

  There were no sounds coming from his place but then I hadn't expected any. I was certain he was off at the Plaything beach house. I was equally certain he wasn't there alone. I was sure his phone contact list was populated with women's names. I couldn't be upset about that. I had no claims on the man.

  Thanks to my wretched boss, after a long week of work and studying lines I was going to have to spend my one day off at Bulk Mart, and Sundays were the worst. It was free sample day and disgusting frozen foods would be sizzling in toaster ovens all over the store. People would be lined up, clogging the aisles, waiting to get their bite sized chunks of frozen burrito and pizza pocket. And all the while, I would be standing in my ugly smock, keeping the shelves straight and thinking about my big handsome neighbor making out with another woman in his luxury beach house.

  They’d changed the locks on my door when they replaced it, but the new key was not a perfect match. I had to wiggle it a good minute before I could get it in. Then it was another annoying struggle to get it back out. This time it seemed the keyhole was not going to let go.

  "Damn it." I shook the knob and yanked hard on the key. It was stuck. "Stupid, shitty lock." I smacked the door hard in anger.

  Aidan's door swung open. He was wearing a pair of jeans and nothing else. It was the first time I had seen him shirtless. My breath swept right up and out of my lungs.

  "Did I hear someone say they needed help with their door? I'm very good at opening them."

  I smiled, absurdly relieved that he hadn't gone to the beach house with someone else after all. "They did such a bang up job of replacing the door, I can't get my key out."

  Aidan crossed the hall in two steps. Immediately, I was hyper aware of the warm heat coming off his half naked body. He was so big and so stunning, I had a hard time not gawking. His big arms flexed as he gripped the key and pulled it out. He handed it to me with a polite grin.

  "I'm surprised to see you home alone on a Saturday night." I pressed my fingers against my mouth, and my gaze shot through the open door of his apartment. "Jeesh, that was presumptive. Maybe you aren't alone."

  He leaned his arm up against the door jamb, highlighting the finely carved muscles of his arm and chest. There was something so erotic about his casual pose, with his arm above his head, I felt a rush of heat swirl through me.

  "The truth of the matter is that I noticed a little too much dust in my apartment. I was hoping I'd run into a sweet little maid." He stared down at the lapels of my coat. His face grew hard as stone as he noticed the red marks on my neck.

  Aidan dropped his arm. "Who did that to your neck?" It was silly, but I loved the protective tone he took with me.

  I reached up and rubbed off some of the makeup, then showed him my red fingertips. "I was a strangling victim tonight. No bullet holes or blood this time."

  "Bad light in this hall." He relaxed his massive shoulders and focused again on the coat. "If there is a sexy maid costume under that thing, I might just fucking lose my mind."

  I felt a blush rise up in my cheeks as I tightened the coat around me. "There might be. Maybe I should get a closer look at this dust problem."

  I pulled my door shut as he grabbed my free hand and led me across the hallway into his apartment. I walked to the kitchen table and put down my keys and purse.

  I decided to tease him a bit longer with the bulky coat. I had on black high heels to go with the costume, and they seemed to be entertainment enough for him at the moment. His gaze was glued to my legs. I decided a little role play was just what he needed. I had lamented all day about him spending time at the beach house with another woman, and he'd been sitting here all evening waiting for me to get off work. That deserved more than a little thank you.

  "Sir, exactly what chores need to be done?"

  "Chores? Right." He'd decided to play along, but I sensed that most of his concentration had been evaporated by the notion of what was under the coat. "You know, I think there might be a lot of dust right over there on the little table."

  I glanced toward the small table that held a lamp. It sat at the far side of the couch.

  "I suppose I can take a look." I unbe
lted my coat and pushed the panels open wide enough to expose part of the costume. It had a lace up bodice over a white, low-cut chemise. The extremely short skirt was flouncy and sitting over several layers of petticoats. I was wearing my nicest pair of black lace panties, knowing full well that when the mystery guests discovered me draped over a chair, my underwear would be on display. My pink polka dot, brief style panties might have ruined the effect of the naughty maid's murder.

  I pushed my coat off and could have sworn I heard Aidan mutter something to himself.

  "What's that, sir? Do you not approve of my maid's uniform?" For the murder theater I had to play a coquettish maid, who was overly fond of the man of the house played by my coworker, Tim. It was a fun part to play, but with my new leading man, it was even more fun.

  "Oh, I approve. In fact, I approve so much, I'm afraid if I move my feet toward you, I might end up ruining the uniform like I did your front door. Sometimes I don't know my own strength. Especially when my heart is pounding in my chest, making it hard for me to think clearly."

  I rested a finger at the corner of my lips. "Why, sir, I'm not sure what you mean. Why don't I check on that dust." I climbed onto the couch and crawled toward the end table, making sure to give the petticoats a good shake. I knew my panties were on full display, and the thought of him staring at them made my pussy tingle.

  Aidan moved amazingly fast and light for a man his size. I gasped as two large hands took hold of my hips. "Sorry, my hot little maid, but I didn't want you to fall off the couch in your attempt to dust my table." I could feel his jeans and the hard erection behind his fly pressing against my pussy.

  "Screw the role play, Jane, I need you right fucking now." He flipped me around and with a gasp I landed on my back on the couch. He loomed over me, shirtless and looking almost feral with lust. "I'm thinking about you night and day, Jane. I could have gone away for the weekend, but I didn't want to leave the apartment. I wanted to be here, near you."