Her Knight in Dusty BDUs

Men Out of Uniform 2 

Her Knight in Dusty BDUs Eden Xavier needs a hero after her brother’s truck runs out of gas in the middle of the night. As she is walking back to her combination sex toy boutique and tattoo/piercing parlor, Bailey Hawke rides to her rescue. Bailey is not sure he wants to get involved with anyone, but something about Eden grabs hold of his heart and won’t let go. He is a Dominant in need of a very special submissive woman who can survive the long separation without turning to others. When Eden’s ex-husband causes trouble, Bailey sees Eden’s strength. When she willingly submits to his demands, he realizes he might have found the woman he has been looking for. But will Eden’s ex ruin everything? Will Eden submit to him in all ways before he leaves? Will he be able to return and prove he is Her Knight in Dusty BDUs? Genre: BDSM, Contemporary Length: 28,228 words

HER KNIGHT IN DUSTY BDUS Men Out of Uniform 2

Cooper McKenzie

EROTIC ROMANCE

Siren Publishing, Inc. www.SirenPublishing.com

ABOUT THE E-BOOK YOU HAVE PURCHASED: Your non-refundable purchase of this e-book allows you to only ONE LEGAL copy for your own personal reading on your own personal computer or device. You do not have resell or distribution rights without the prior written permission of both the publisher and the copyright owner of this book. This book cannot be copied in any format, sold, or otherwise transferred from your computer to another through upload to a file sharing peer to peer program, for free or for a fee, or as a prize in any contest. Such action is illegal and in violation of the U.S. Copyright Law. Distribution of this e-book, in whole or in part, online, offline, in print or in any way or any other method currently known or yet to be invented, is forbidden. If you do not want this book anymore, you must delete it from your computer. WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. If you find a Siren-BookStrand e-book being sold or shared illegally, please let us know at [email protected]

A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK IMPRINT: Erotic Romance

HER KNIGHT IN DUSTY BDUS Copyright © 2011 by Cooper McKenzie E-book ISBN: 1-61034-917-2 First E-book Publication: October 2011 Cover design by Jinger Heaston All cover art and logo copyright © 2011 by Siren Publishing, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission. All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

PUBLISHER Siren Publishing, Inc. www.SirenPublishing.com

Letter to Readers Dear Readers, If you have purchased this copy of Her Knight in Dusty BDUs by Cooper McKenzie from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.

Regarding E-book Piracy This book is copyrighted intellectual property. No other individual or group has resale rights, auction rights, membership rights, sharing rights, or any kind of rights to sell or to give away a copy of this book. The author and the publisher work very hard to bring our paying readers high-quality reading entertainment. This is Cooper McKenzie’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Ms. McKenzie’s right to earn a living from her work. Amanda Hilton, Publisher www.SirenPublishing.com www.BookStrand.com

DEDICATION Dedicated to the heroes who keep the home fires burning…military spouses.

HER KNIGHT IN DUSTY BDUS Men Out of Uniform 2 COOPER MCKENZIE Copyright © 2011

Chapter 1 “That’s it. I give up. I’m done. I’m raising the white flag and swearing off the male of the species. Men officially suck pond scum,” Eden Xavier said as she flipped the lock on the front door of Adam’s Place and then turned off the neon Open sign. “What’s up?” her older-by-three-minutes twin brother, Adam Xavier, asked as he wiped down the long wooden bar of the pub they co-owned. Though he sounded interested, Eden knew she held less than half his attention. The rest was focused on Tawny, the waitress he had been dating since the week after she had started working for them a month ago, and who had volunteered to help clean up. “That guy you set me up with, Josh? He texted me about twenty minutes ago cancelling tomorrow’s coffee date. Again.” “So you’ll get together with him another morning.” “Nope. This is the third time he’s put me off. He’s history. Then there’s this text from Wade,” Eden said, referring to her ex-husband. “He’s decided that I owe him money.” “You owe him money? You were only married to the abusive shithead for a year and a half. You’ve been apart longer than that, and

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the divorce was finalized a month ago.” “He says, and I quote, ‘I think you should give me back the divorce settlement money to repay me for what I spent renovating the house,’ end quote,” Eden read from her cell phone screen. “You’ve got to be joking.” “It’s not enough that I didn’t fight him when he wanted to keep the house and furniture. Now he thinks I’m going to pay him for the renovations he decided the house needed, too.” Eden deleted the message then read the next one. “In this one he says if I can’t pay him a lump-sum payment, he’ll take a couple hundred dollars a month since I’m doing so well now and he’s been laid off.” “You’re not going to do it, are you?” “Of course I’m not. Every cent went into buying this building and getting Eden’s Garden up and running,” she said. “He thinks I’m going to cave like I used to. He hasn’t figured out that I’m not the same person I was when we were married.” When the owner of the building that housed Adam’s Place and Eden’s Garden decided to sell, she had jumped at the opportunity to buy it. At least this way she would not have to worry about sudden rent hikes that had happened at the last place she had had her little tattoo-piercing parlor and sex shop. She also no longer had to worry about the landlord caving to the super religious public sect as they tried to put her out of business. She also did not have to worry about people finding out she lived in the back of the shop because the building came with two upstairs apartments. As soon as she finished fixing her place up, she planned to fix the second place up and rent it out as well, which would help pay the mortgage. “Adam? Honey, are you ready to go?” Tawny crossed the room toward the siblings. “Two minutes, sugar. Eden, can you drive my truck home?” Eden drank the last of her ginger ale then tossed the plastic cup into the garbage can. “No problem. I can bring another load of stuff

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when I come back in the morning to finish painting the apartment,” she said as she led the way out of the bar into the parking lot. “Sleep well, little sister,” Adam said. He set the alarm and locked the front door before walking with Tawny to her car on the far side of the parking lot. Eden climbed in and started Adam’s truck. When she saw the low gas light on the dashboard continued glowing red as she pulled out of the parking lot, she swore softly. The one gas station on the five miles between the bar and the house she and Adam shared closed at ten o’clock each night. The only all-night place she was comfortable going to after dark was five miles in the other direction. She said a silent prayer that there was enough gas left in the tank to get home and back to the bar in the morning. After that, it would be her brother’s problem. She was halfway home when the engine sputtered and died. She wrestled with the now defunct power steering to guide the truck far enough off the two-lane highway that it would not cause a traffic hazard. Once it rolled to a stop, she shifted it into park and turned off the engine. Climbing out, she checked the bed of the truck, but the half full gas can her brother usually carried there was missing. “Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn,” she said as she stomped around the truck. She paused to kick all four tires as she passed them. Her stiletto-heeled ankle boots were sexy, but provided little protection against the hard tires. Calling her brother, she was not surprised when the connection went straight to voicemail. Knowing Adam, he either left his phone in the bar or turned it off as soon as they had left the bar. “Your truck is parked by the side of the road about two miles from the bar. When you come and get it be sure to bring a couple of gallons of gas, as it is bone dry. If I die walking home, I will come back and haunt you for the rest of your life.” Sliding the phone back into her pocket, she retrieved her carryall from the passenger’s seat then locked the truck. She looked down the

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road toward the bar then up the road toward the house. Then she took a deep breath and sighed. With only the full moon playing hide and seek in the clouds overhead for light, Eden debated a moment. Two miles back to the unfinished apartment or four miles home. Looking down at her feet, she decided heading back into town was the better of the two options. “Adam, you are one dead brother when next I see you,” she muttered as she started walking, moving to the middle of the road after she stumbled and twisted her ankle in the uneven ground and tall grass beside the road. Barely a hundred yards into her hike, she stopped to pull off her shoes. After tucking them in her carryall, she continued on. The road was cool and hard under her bare feet, but she made better time without the high, high heels. As she walked, she mulled over an appropriate retribution for her brother’s negligence. She thought of several great ways to get back at him before admitting to herself that she did not have either the backbone or the guts to hurt her twin. Instead, Eden changed her focus. She began to list what needed finishing in her apartment and map out the renovations she needed to make on the second apartment before she could rent it out. Mostly the place just needed a good cleaning and new paint to go with the new soundproofing carpeting she and Adam had laid down throughout the upstairs. Eden was so lost in her thoughts it took a moment to recognize a motorized roar that quickly grew to drown out the sounds of night. Looking over her shoulder, she saw a single headlight coming toward her. She crossed to the other side of the road then stepped into the grass and froze. Maybe, if luck was with her, the rider would not notice her. Luck continued to elude her. The roar of the engine changed and slowed. The big motorcycle passed her then circled back. It stopped just a few yards away, blinding her with its headlight. At that moment, Eden wished she would have stayed and slept in Adam’s

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truck. She would have no doubt woken up with a kink in her neck, but at least she would have woken up alive. Her heart jumped into her throat as she squinted and tried to see past the bright light. All she could make out were broad shoulders and a motorcycle helmet. Obviously male, but was he friendly or looking for trouble? She began to tremble when the rumbling engines suddenly went silent. The headlights shifted to the ground as he set his kickstand and dismounted. She wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go. Town was more than a mile and a half away and the truck was too far to reach before whoever this was caught her. **** “What the hell?” Bailey Hawks said aloud as something in the road ahead flashed at the lead edge of his headlight. That flash of something red and sparkly was not a deer crossing the road. Not at three o’clock in the morning. Bailey eased up on the gas pedal as he passed a truck that looked brand new. It had not been there when he had taken off on his midnight ride a couple hours earlier. He would remember something that nice parked beside the road as if recently abandoned. The bike continued to coast as he kept a lookout for whatever it was they had seen. “There she is,” Bailey said as they rode past. A small woman with a big bag over one shoulder stood frozen by the side of the road. “What the hell is she doing out here at this time of night?” He turned around and rolled back to where the woman stood by the side of the road. In the harsh light from his cycle’s headlight, the woman was strikingly beautiful, though she appeared frightened. As well she should be, Bailey thought as he set the kickstand and took off his helmet.

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He found he could not take her eyes off her. Her body was lusciously curved in all the right places, and she rocked her black jeans like he had not seen in a coon’s age. She wore her hair short and spiky and looked cute as all get-out. His cock perked up as he took in the total package. Could this be the woman he had been dreaming about since breaking up with his last girlfriend? “Miss? Are you all right? Do you need a ride?” he asked as he began to walk toward her. When she took a step back and looked around as if ready to run, he stopped and waited for her to relax.

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Chapter 2 The man’s voice was deep, gentle, and oddly soothing, but he was big, powerfully built, and very, very male. When he began to walk toward her, she took a step back as all the lessons she had learned in her self-defense class evaporated from her memory. “I’m fine, thanks. Please, just go away.” Eden made a shooing motion with both hands then turned and started walking again. She winced and fought down a cry when she stepped on a sharp rock. Hearing quick, heavy steps behind her, she knew there was no way she could outrun him. He was too big and no doubt in better shape than she was. Taking a deep breath, she decided a strong offense was called for, no matter how fake it might be. Turning, she found herself facing a man who was more than a half foot taller than she was wearing what looked like a desert camouflage uniform. “Go away. Please,” she said, wincing when, instead of strength, she heard stark fear in her voice. “I can’t leave you out here all alone, miss,” the man said. “It’s not safe. I’m headed to Cherry Point and would be glad to give you a ride wherever you need to go.” “You’re a Marine?” “Yes, ma’am. Captain Bailey Hawks at your service,” he said with a half bow. His accent was not that of eastern North Carolina, but he was definitely Southern by birth and breeding. Something about this encounter felt oddly out of time. Eden’s anger toward men in general evaporated as he waited patiently, his expression hopeful yet resolute. A small seed of hope grew in place of

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the anger as she studied him. It felt as if they had slipped back through time to an era where men were chivalrous toward women, protecting the weaker sex from any and all harm. “Eden Xavier,” she finally responded, her Southern belle mother’s etiquette lessons kicking in. “Charmed. Now, Miss Eden, where would you like to go?” Bailey stepped forward and offered his right arm as gentlemen of generations past might. Concern about her physical safety waning, Eden wrapped her fingers around his forearm. Her breath caught for a second at the strength she felt there. “I’m headed back to my shop. It’s on your way to the main gate.” Eden allowed Bailey to escort her to his motorcycle. “Have you ever ridden before?” he asked as he helped her put on the helmet he had unstrapped from the back of his bike. “A time or two,” she said with a smile. If he only knew about the antique Indian Chief motorcycle that her grandfather had left her years ago. She had secretly restored it during her marriage, and it was currently taking up room in the garage behind Adam’s house. “Nice bike.” “Thank you.” He leaned closer, and the scent of hardworking man and dust filled her. In response, her nipples stiffened and her pussy spasmed. The sensible side of her brain chastised her body for the sexual reaction, especially since she had sworn off men less than an hour before. Bailey took her carryall after she retrieved her shoes out of the bag. He stowed it in one of the saddlebags on his bike while she put her shoes back on. He then he climbed on his bike. Then he helped her settle in behind him. Once she settled, he pulled her body forward until her front pressed tight against his back. She wanted to move back and put some

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air between them, but before she could move, Bailey took her wrists and pulled her arms around his chest, keeping her in place. “What’s the name of your shop, and how do we get there, sunflower?” Bailey asked. “Eden’s Garden. Down this road on the left less than two miles ahead,” she said. Bailey nodded. In the next instant conversation was impossible as the motorcycle’s engine roared to life. In the next heartbeat, they were off. Just as Eden began to relax into being a passenger instead of the driver, Bailey turned off the road into the parking lot in front of her building. He parked in front of her little shop and dismounted, pulling off his helmet as he did so. Before Eden could climb off, he turned and wrapped large, strong hands around her waist. She gasped as he lifted her off the motorcycle as if she weighed nothing. She grabbed at his shoulders when he did not set her down but instead carried her up the front steps. He held her close to his body as he lowered her to the porch. She felt rippling muscles and a thick rod of male erection as he slid her down his body. “Thank you,” she said looking up at Bailey. “Thank you,” he returned with a smile that sent a shiver of heat through her to settle low in her pelvis. “For what?” “This,” he murmured just before he leaned down and kissed her. **** While he questioned the sanity of his actions for a single second, Bailey could not stop himself from pressing his lips to hers. The soft, gentle touch of her holding on as they had rode made him want more. Then his brain shut down as all the blood in his body raced to fill his long-neglected cock to just this side of the bursting point. It had been two months since he had been this close to a woman.

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He probably should not start something now since he was a couple weeks from heading to the Middle East for a six-month tour of duty, but he did not care. There was magic in the air, and kissing this woman felt as right as anything he had ever done in his life. His body had been on high alert ever since he pulled her arms around his chest, and all he could think of was what he could do to keep her. He parted his lips and licked at hers, tasting minty lip balm and woman. Then her lips parted. With that he deepened the kiss until their tongues danced from her mouth to his and back again. He wrapped one hand around the back of her neck to tilt her head farther back to take the kiss even farther. His other hand slid down her spine to her high, tight, muscular ass. Shifting, he pressed his painfully hard erection into her belly, and suddenly his body was no longer his own. His hips thrust forward three times and his balls clenched. He groaned as jets of semen shot from the head of his cock. Bailey lifted his head and stared down at Eden. Horror and embarrassment filled him as he realized that he had just gotten off from hugging and kissing a woman he knew nothing about except her name. What in the hell was wrong with him? He was a ten-year Marine getting ready to head into combat for God’s sake, not some green recruit with no self-discipline. He watched as the pretty woman in his arms opened her eyes and stared up at him, looking as stunned as he felt. He had to grab for what was left of his quickly shredding control with both hands when she licked her lips. “Are you all right?” she whispered. He nodded without a word then gently kissed her again as he eased his lower body away from hers. Sex juice oozed down his lower body and soaked into his boxers. His cock twitched, wanting more as her tongue swiped over her lips again. A car driving by reminded him they were out in the open and he could not strip them both and kiss every inch of her. Cupping a hand around her cheek, he tilted her head so she looked up at him.

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“So very pretty,” he murmured as he lowered his head and brushed his lips over hers again. She moaned softly and shifted, sliding her hands around to his back and pulling him back against her again. Bailey took a deep breath and returned his lips to hers. Though his lower body was slick with his juices, he snuggled her even tighter to his chest. Parting her lips with his tongue, he thrust deep. His cock reinflated and went hard enough to crack diamonds. He smelled Eden’s arousal as he thoroughly explored every inch of her mouth then invited her to do the same. When she tried to pull away several minutes later, Bailey loosened his hold but refused to release her. When another car drove past and honked, he broke the kiss and pressed her cheek to his chest as they caught their breath. **** Eden stared across the parking lot in shock. Bailey Hawks was indeed wearing a military camouflage uniform, or BDUs, as those associated with the military had called them for decades even though the military now called them by some other name. Someone had once jokingly explained to her that BDU meant Battle Dress Uglies. Eden did not think the uniform looked ugly on Bailey. The loosefitting canvas material with the tan and brown patterns just made him appear bigger, stronger, and more powerful. She could not wait to see him in a T-shirt and jeans, or better yet, nothing at all. That thought stopped her in her tracks. How could she have such thoughts about a man she had just met when just an hour before she had sworn off all men? But this man was not a mere man. He was a Marine. Tilting her head back, she looked up and found Bailey staring down at her with a hunger in his expression she wondered if she could satisfy. That had always been her ex-husband’s biggest complaint,

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that she was not good in bed. Of course, the fact that he sucked at anything that did not involve his own self-gratification was one of the reasons their marriage only lasted a year. Pushing out of Bailey’s arms, Eden moved so her back was to the shop’s door. What would happen now? Would he climb on his mechanized charger and ride away never to be seen or heard from again? Or would he want to come upstairs with her? She could not invite him upstairs tonight. She was not looking for a one-night stand, but for a relationship, something that would last over time and grow stronger, not fizzle and die when the sun came up in a few hours. “Um, thanks for the ride.” “You are most welcome, Lady Eden. I’ll be back to see you again, very soon,” Bailey’s deep voice rumbled, sending a dark thrill of sexy pleasure through her. She frowned at him when he did not climb on his motorcycle and leave. “Go inside, sweetheart,” he instructed. “I can’t leave you standing out here all alone.” Eden nodded. Of course. He was waiting for her to go inside. Somewhere, sometime in his life someone had taught him some very impressive old-world manners. She fumbled to get the key in the lock, but finally opened the door. “Good night,” she said as she stepped through. “Good night, sweet lady. Sweet dreams.” He waited until she closed and locked the door. Peeking through the front window, she watched as he walked off the porch. He climbed onto his motorcycle and, after filling the silent night with the roar of the motorcycle’s powerful engine, rode off toward the main gate of the Marine Corps base. She had a feeling that as magical as the encounter had been, she would never see Captain Bailey Hawks again.

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Chapter 3 When the bells hanging on the front door jangled late the next afternoon, Eden swore softly as she looked up from the paperwork she was trying to decipher. Though she needed the sale, she did not need the interruption just when she was on the verge of figuring out what the fuck the government was trying to tell her. “Take a look around. I’ll be with you in just a minute,” she called, trying to sound pleasant and not frustrated. “I’ll get it.” Crow, the tattoo and body-piercing artist who rented the body art booth in the shop, popped his head around the corner. Crow was his own best advertisement. He had tattooed most of his body, or so he claimed when he had come in for the job. The colorful art started just below his ears and went down his body. He also wore enough metal on his body to set off any metal detector in the county just by walking within five feet of it. But he paid his rent on time and was a strong set of arms when she needed muscle and had a work ethic similar to her own. “Thanks,” Eden said, returning her attention to the tax paperwork that had arrived in that day’s mail. Crow clomped down the hall in the heavy work boots he wore every day with oversized jeans and one of his endless collection of black T-shirts with insulting or disrespectful sayings on them. A few minutes later, she heard the front door bells jangle and heavy footsteps returning to the back of the store. “You didn’t scare them off, did you?” she asked without looking up. “No, but the tattooed guy wanted me to tell you that he’s gone for

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coffee,” a deep voice replied from the doorway. Eden’s head lifted and swung around so fast she was surprised she did not give herself whiplash. The tall, broad-shouldered man leaning in the doorway had not been far from her thoughts in the last twelve hours, and now here he was in person as if she’d conjured him up from her many vivid daydreams. In the full light of day, she saw he truly was beautiful. She found herself swallowing hard to keep from drooling all over the black leather vest she had chosen to wear with her short denim skirt and over-the-knee boots. Bailey’s dirty blond hair stood straight up from his head, adding another inch to his height. The apple green polo and worn blue jeans hugged his body, showing off broad shoulders and a lithe, muscular swimmer’s body. From where she sat, she could see his eyes were a soft dove gray as he stood with his hands behind his back. “Bailey? What are you doing here?” “I had to come back and make sure you were real. I also wanted to bring you this,” he said. Straightening from the doorway, he pulled a large sunflower from behind his back as he took a step into the cramped room that served as both her office and storage for the store. Eden stared at the flower then lifted her gaze to his. “You brought me a flower?” He took another step, which brought him to within a few inches of her. “Yes. Is that okay?” Eden nodded, caught up in the heat and intensity she saw in his eyes. Her nipples beaded, and she felt her pussy grow damp as she continued to stare at the gorgeous, thoughtful man. “I…um…I guess it’s okay. It’s just that…well…no one has ever brought me flowers before.” “Well, that was their mistake. A beautiful woman like you should get flowers on a regular basis.” He took her hand and put the flower in it. Once she held the sunflower, he wrapped his hand around hers.

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Then he moved their hands out from between their bodies so he could take the last step that separated them. “Thank you,” she said softly. “Thank you,” he said as his lips moved closer and closer before stopping with less than an inch between them. “What’s going on with us?” “I’d say it’s magic, but I’ve never believed in magic before,” he whispered in response. “Would you go out with me tonight? Dinner? Movie? Walk on the beach? You name it, and we’ll do it.” “I’m sorry, I can’t. I have to tend bar next door tonight.” “What time?” “Six to close.” “You work here and there?” “My brother owns the bar. I’m filling in for the evening.” Bailey nodded. “Guess I’ll just have to come there and keep you company.” “Why?” Eden asked as his lips brushed across hers. “Because that’s where you’ll be and I want to get to know you,” he said. “I barely slept this morning because of thoughts of you.” Before she could respond, he tilted his head and kissed her deeply. It only took a few seconds before all she wanted was to crawl into his skin and become a part of him. Instead, she lost herself in the kiss, forgetting everything except the man who held her pressed tight to his chest. “You smell like paint,” he panted when they finally pulled apart several long, hot minutes later. “I painted my apartment this morning so I could finish moving in.” “Why didn’t you call me? I could have helped.” “Even if I had your phone number, I don’t know you well enough to impose like that,” she said. “Where’s your apartment?” Bailey’s free hand worked its way down her body to caress one cheek of her ass then the other through

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her skirt. “Upstairs,” she breathed as he brushed his lips over hers once again. “Really?” He smiled, sending a sexy shiver straight to her pussy. “Can I see it?” “Um, I don’t think that’s such a good idea. You and last night—” Eden said. Her brain and heart fought a short and intense duel as to whether she should take him upstairs and fuck his brains out or do the proper thing and send him on his way. Her chest shifting against his heat and the hard arm that tightened around her back short-circuited her brain. Her body won the fight by default. “Yeah, you’re right. But I’m not sure I can wait until you finish work,” he said as he continued massaging her ass cheeks. “Mmmm, yes,” she moaned, canting her hips forward to feel his long, thick erection press into her belly. “God, you feel so good.” “Mmmm, you do, too, sunflower,” he said. He lowered their entwined hands, still holding the flower to her desk. He pried her fingers from around the stem so it dropped to her desk. He then danced them the few feet across the room. He shoved the door to the rest of the shop closed and twisted the lock. Once they had privacy, he pulled her even closer as they shuffled back across the room to her desk. The need for skin-on-skin contact made Eden pull the back of his shirt from his jeans. Sliding her hands up under the fabric, she smoothed her palms up his back on either side of his spine. His skin felt warm and smooth with just a dusting of soft hair. She sucked a breath when he slid his hands through the oversized armholes of her vest and unhooked her bra. Pulling her lips from his, she laid her cheek on his chest and tried to catch her breath enough to slow down what she knew was about to happen. But she did not want things to slow down. All she wanted was to strip this man, throw him to the ground, and fuck him until neither of

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them could move. Sliding her hands down to his waist, she then slid her fingers under the waistband of his jeans and underwear to cover the cheeks of his ass. She sighed as his muscles flexed and released under her touch. “Magic,” he murmured. As he continued to kiss her, his hands stroked their way from her back around her sides to the front of her chest. He pushed her bra up and out of his way and cupped her full, sensitive breasts. Eden breathed a sigh as warm palms brushed over her erect nipples. She could not find words to respond, but nodded her agreement. Her need for this man grew higher and hotter as Bailey massaged her breasts with the callused fingertips of a working man. Hot electricity raced from nipples to pussy as fingertips circled her nipples. She could not fight back the high-pitched humming sound that emerged as he began to tweak them. “Please,” she heard herself say into his mouth. “What does my pretty sunflower want?” He lifted his head to study her, his gray eyes glowing silver as they met hers. “I want…I need you. I know that whatever this is between us is insane, but I can’t wait until tonight. I need all of you right now,” she pleaded, blinking back tears that sprang out of nowhere. Pulling her hands from the back of his jeans, she worked them between their closely pressed bodies. Dropping her forehead to rest against the front of his shoulder, she struggled to open his belt. She whined when Bailey released her and took a step back. She tried to follow, but his hands on her shoulder kept her where she was. “Shhh, don’t beg, baby. I’ll give you whatever you want. Do you have a condom?” Eden stared at him as if he were speaking some alien language. It took a few seconds for her brain to process his words and understand that he had asked her a question. “Condom?” she asked as her brain slowly put things together. He wanted a condom. He was not going to leave her in this state.

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Did she have condoms? She frowned as she thought about the question. Well, duh. Of course she had condoms. She did run a sex toyshop. She had condoms coming out her ears. “Yes, sunflower. Condom. Rubber. Latex raincoat. Prophylactic. Protection against pregnancy and STDs. Do you have one or maybe two or three?” he asked. She finally discovered the secret of his belt and opened it. Running her hand down the front of his jeans, she smiled as his erection twitched in response to her touch. “Oh, yeah, I have condoms. What would you like? Plain or patterned? White or colored? Flavored? Lubed or non-lubed? Latex or natural?” She waved to the wall of shelves to her right where dozens of boxes of condoms were stored. “Or maybe you’d like to test a variety?” She pointed to a wicker basket on another shelf where she threw the condom samples her various suppliers gave her. When she threw sex toy parties, she used the condoms as door prizes. This was the first time she had ever had to go into the basket herself. Bailey turned and followed her pointing arm. “Oh, wow, you do have a condom, don’t you?” Stepping away from her, he retrieved the basket and brought it back with him. Looking up from the colorful and varied contents, he looked a bit overwhelmed as he picked up a handful of the small square packets and let them rain back down into the basket. “What do you think? Should I just reach in and pull one out like a lottery? Or do you have one you recommend for situations such as this?” Eden tried not to be offended at his insinuation. But his questions made her wonder if he thought she fucked men in her office on a regular basis. Her arousal cooled enough she could think somewhat coherently. “I’ve never done something like this before.” She heard the sharp note in her tone and tried not to wince when Bailey shot her a glance.

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Chapter 4 “Of course you haven’t. I knew from the moment I saw you standing by the side of the road that you were a good girl, a true lady,” Bailey said as he put the basket on the desk and wrapped large, strong hands around her shoulders. “I’m pushing things between us too hard, too fast. I’m sorry, though I now understand how soldiers during past wars met and married their women within days then stayed together for a lifetime. Especially if they’d met a woman like you. It wouldn’t be hard for me to fall in love even though I don’t know anything beyond your name and the fact that you own the sexiest store I’ve ever been in.” Eden blinked at his beautiful and, she could tell, heartfelt, words. The anger she tried to work up melted away like ice cream on a hot summer day, leaving her pussy wet, sticky, and wanting more, so much more. Reaching into the basket, she grabbed a random condom. “Lottery it is,” she murmured. Going up on her toes, Eden lifted her arms and wrapped them around Bailey’s neck. Pulling his head down, she tilted her head and kissed him, not bothering with pleasantries but going straight for a soul-deep, tonsil-hockey kiss. Pressing her body against his, she began to rub back and forth, suddenly so hot and needy she wondered if she would burst into flames before she could get the man naked. Bailey seemed to feel the same way. In less than a minute, they were right back to their pre-condom-discussion arousal. He eased back enough to reach between them and fumble with the buttons of her vest. Not sure how long she would be able to hold off her own climax,

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Eden tore her lips from his and stepped back. “Get naked,” she demanded. “Yes, ma’am.” He smiled at her and pulled off his shirt at the same time he toed off his sneakers. She dropped her vest and bra to the floor at the same time his shirt dropped. She paused to watch as he quickly dealt with the buttons of his jeans. Her mouth went dry when he pushed them down to midthigh. He was gorgeous all over. The first thing she noticed was a bird tattoo on the inside of his left arm. It took a heartbeat for her to realize it was a stylized hawk that appeared to fly as Bailey moved his arm. Then her attention moved on. The skin of his body was a paler shade than his face and arms and stretched tightly over a body that rippled with muscles. A light dusting of hair the same color as his buzz cut covered him from collarbone down, growing thicker at his groin, but continuing down his legs as well. His cock’s size and girth was almost intimidating as it bobbed above a set of balls that she wanted desperately to play with. Forgetting about everything else, she knelt so that she was eye to eye with his erection. The shaft was ivory with blue and red veins pulsing just beneath the skin while the head was an angry crimson color. As she watched, a drop of pre-cum oozed from the slit at the tip. Eden licked her lips in anticipation as she lifted her right hand to his chest. Brushing her hand from chest to belly to cock, she smiled at the soft, silky feel of his body hair. For a microsecond, she wondered if she would ever get a chance to snuggle up against him and feel his soft furriness against other parts of her body or if this was all they would have. Then the scent of aroused male filled her nostrils and all thought was gone, leaving her to act solely on instinct and need. Wrapping her hand around the base of his cock, she dragged the tip of her tongue across the head of his cock, causing him to suck in a breath at the intimate contact. She could not help the happy moan that

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escaped as she tasted him for the first time. She swirled the tip of her tongue around the head of his cock then took just that much of him between her lips. She tilted her head back and looked up his body to gauge his reaction. His eyes met hers, and she read need, hunger, and something more in his. Then his eyelids drifted shut as she closed her lips around the glans and sucked gently. “Oh, sunflower,” he moaned. “You feel so good.” Eden smiled as she took more of him in, sucking gently as her tongue swirled against the shaft. When she had taken as much as she was comfortable with, she swallowed on the length before backing off again. That earned her another groan. His hands wrapped around her head, fingers tangled in her hair as she began to slowly bob up and down the top half of his shaft as her hand began to stroke the bottom half. “Stop, Eden. I’m too close,” Bailey said after another minute of her oral ministrations. She looked up at him and winked, but did not stop. His hips thrust three times before his hands clenched around her head and he came. His cock pulsed, and jets of semen filled her mouth. She swallowed quickly, savoring the taste. Once he finished, she licked him clean, then held him gently until he pulled away and knelt as well. He kissed her then licked at her lips. “I should put you over my lap and spank you,” he said, though there was no heat to his threat. “Oh, really? Why would you do that?” “Because I said stop and you didn’t. I wanted us to come together.” “We’ll come together next time,” she promised, reaching down and taking hold of his cock. “Or are you done for the day?” **** “Oh, hell no, I’m not done,” he growled as his cock began to

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harden again in her hand. “But this time I’m in charge, sunflower.” “Don’t tell me, you’re a Dom, aren’t you?” He grinned. “I’m a Marine, sunflower, of course I’m dominant. Is that okay with you?” “Mmmm, okay,” she said against his lips. He cupped one breast with one hand, and his other stroked down her back, over her ass, and down the back of her leg to the hem of her skirt. His hand slid back up her thigh under the edge of the skirt. He pushed the denim up until it bunched around her waist, baring her ass and pussy. Once the skirt was out of his way, he cupped her ass cheeks with both hands. “You’re not wearing any panties,” he whispered as he pulled back to look down at her. “Thong,” she breathed as his hands rubbed circles over her lower cheeks. His right hand slid around to find that her mons was covered. Pulling away a few inches, he leaned back and looked down. His breath caught when he saw a lacy black fabric triangle with white dots hiding her pussy from him. His cock surged to attention once again. “Pretty,” he said. Releasing her, he stood then lifted her to her feet. It took a few seconds he was not sure he had, but he finally dealt with the hooks and zipper of her skirt. Shoving it down, he saw the thong was really just skinny pieces of elastic holding the pussy shield in place. Taking hold of the elastic around her waist with both hands, he jerked, breaking it easily. “Hey, I liked those,” she groused as he tossed the scraps over one shoulder. “I liked them, too, but they were in my way.” He grinned at her. “I’ll buy you another pair…hell, I’ll buy you a dozen pair because I don’t think this is the last time I’ll be tearing your clothes off of you.” “Mmmm, that sounds promising,” she said as he guided her backward until her bare ass came into contact with her desk. “Oooo,

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that’s cold.” “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you stay warm.” Bailey leaned in and kissed her. He leaned over the desk to help her lay back across the metal surface. She hissed as she settled on the desk and the cold touched her from ass to hairline. “Damn,” she swore softly, “it’s cold.” Bailey chuckled a dark, sexy sound as he began to kiss his way down her body. When he reached the middle of her chest, he made side trips to each breast. He spent long, heat-inducing minutes licking, sucking, and nibbling on her nipples. Then he continued farther down her body. At her bellybutton, he stopped and swirled his tongue around the indent, sending Eden into giggles that turned to moans as he then moved down between her legs and blew hot breath across her pussy. Then he moved closer, his intention clearly to drive her straight out of her mind and make her forget there was any other man on Earth. **** When Bailey’s tongue parted her lower lips and traced up and down playfully, all Eden could do was bite her lip and try not to scream with the pleasure he induced. She wasn’t sure if Crow had returned from his coffee run or not, but the wall separating her shop and the bar was tissue paper-thin, and if she made too much noise, Adam might hear and would be over here in a minute. Eden spread her legs wider to give Bailey all the room he needed. Her arousal spiraled higher and higher out of control until there was no way she could control it. Grabbing onto the edge of the desk, Eden moaned, a long, low sound that reverberated around the room, drowning out the gentle Celtic jazz she played on the shop’s stereo system. Just as she was about to tip over into orgasm, Bailey pulled away.

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“Nooooooooo,” she moaned, reaching out to grab at him but missing. “Don’t go.” “Shhh, Lady Eden.” He smiled at her as he stood tall and proud between her splayed legs. She lifted her head and watched as he sheathed his cock in the condom she had pulled from the basket. The latex was patterned, and when he finished, he looked at her with a grin. “So what do you think of my barber pole?” he asked as he pulled his cock up against his belly so she could see the red and white stripes that now decorated his shaft. “Mmmm, pretty,” she said. She sat up and reached for the cock, but again, Bailey stepped out of reach. “But I want,” she whined. “And you shall have, as soon as you lay back down,” he ordered, a thread of power in his tone that he had not used before. Eden lay back, but could not help but trying to cant her hips forward, though without her feet on the ground, she had no leverage. She watched as Bailey moved closer and closer. Her breathing stopped for a second when warm, callused fingers spread her pussy lips. She barely sucked in a breath when the head of his cock brushed up and down the track from entrance to clit and back again. “Please,” she breathed. He smiled down at her then lifted her legs to press her thighs against her chest. “Hold them, sunflower.” She lifted her arms and wrapped them around her legs while he adjusted her, pulling her closer to the edge of the desk. Holding her hips, he brushed the head in circles over her clit before dragging it down to touch her wide-open entrance without penetrating. Leaning over, he looked into her eyes. “Comfortable?” “No,” she pouted. “I need you to fuck me.” She had barely gotten the words out when he surged forward and his cock filled her. His hips snapped back and forth several times

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before he pushed as deep as he could go and stilled. “Better?” She tried to form words, but the size of his cock, longer and wider than any other she had ever been with, sent her brain offline. She made a high-pitched keening sound as her hips hunched, trying again to fuck him without success. Forcing her eyes open, she met his silver-eyed gaze and made another sound of need. He smiled and his eyelids dropped, giving him such a sexy look that her pussy clenched in response. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He eased out until just the head remained inside her. His next stroke was slow and easy, which proved just as devastating to her three remaining functioning brain cells as the other had been. “You’ve got me so wound up, I don’t know how long I can hold it,” he said as he began to fuck her with a steady in-and-out pistoning. Eden began to pant as her arousal spiraled even higher than before. “Harder. More. Now,” she begged as the muscles in her body began to tighten in preparation for something humongous. Her words seemed to snap the last of Bailey’s restraint. He leaned farther over the desk, which changed the angle of his thrusts, and suddenly she was there. Conscious of their surroundings, she tried to keep from screaming and panted her way through the orgasm that rolled around and through and over her. Her eyes on Bailey, she watched his face tighten as his hips slammed into her twice more before holding deep inside her pussy. At the same time, she felt his cock swell and jerk as he came with only a long, drawn-out groan of ecstasy. Then, like a marionette whose strings had been cut, he collapsed forward to rest his forehead between her breasts. “Oh, my God,” he panted as he kissed her sweat-slicked skin before turning his head and kissing his way up the mound of her breast to lick at her knotted nipple.

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Eden still had no words, so she simply nodded in response. Release her hold on her legs, she wrapped her arms around the man, trying to convey her own feelings. It took several minutes for them to catch their breath, but when he finally did, Eden saw a peacefulness in him that had not been there before. Before she could comment on it, though, the phone rang. “Shit,” she muttered as she fumbled for the receiver before getting her hand to work and pick the handset up and bring it to her ear. “Good afternoon, Eden’s Garden.” “Are you all right?” Her brother’s voice on the other end of the phone immediately stiffened the muscles Bailey had just relaxed into goo. “I’m fine, why?” “My truck was sitting by the side of the road this morning, and Tiny says you haven’t shown up for your shift and you were supposed to be there ten minutes ago. He also said Crow is sitting on the porch looking bored. Crow told him you’ve been in a meeting for the last hour and really can’t be disturbed. What’s going on?” “Hour? Oh, shit, what time is it?” “Almost six fifteen. Are you working tonight, or do I need to tell Tiny to cover?” “Give me ten minutes,” she said before hanging the phone back on its base with a bang. “Ten minutes, huh?” Bailey lifted up and looked at her with a naughty grin. “I don’t think I’ll be finished with you by then.” Eden looked at him, and tears filled her eyes. “I’m sorry, but I can’t. I have to go. I was supposed to be next door fifteen minutes ago.”

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Chapter 5 When the rest of the bar’s patrons headed out at closing time, Bailey remained where he sat in the corner at the end of the bar. The waitress and bouncer had given him the same questioning looks they had given him since his arrival six and half hours earlier. The same looks he had been ignoring all evening. Watching Eden for the past few hours, he wondered how she remained upright. She had been up for more than a day and a half by his best estimate. He was exhausted just watching her work. He was amazed that she kept smiling the entire evening as she pulled drafts, opened bottles, poured wine, and evaded a countless number of passes, from men and women alike. The only thing she had no time for was him. “Okay, buddy, we’re closing. Time to go home. Do you need me to call you a cab?” the neckless human mountain who imitated a bouncer said as he approached. “It’s okay, Tiny. Bailey’s waiting for me,” Eden said as Bailey tried to come up with a plausible reason why he could not leave. “Really? But you’ve been ignoring him all night.” Tiny sounded skeptical as he looked over his shoulder at her. “I was hoping he might go away, but it seems I’m stuck with him.” She met his gaze and one raised eyebrow with a smirk as she continued wiping down the bar. Bailey heard the tired strain in her voice and made a decision he was sure Eden would consider Dominant. “Tiny, do you think you and Holly can do whatever else needs to be done to close this place up for the night?”

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He met the mountain’s eyes steadily until the other man blinked and looked away. Then the big man nodded. “Yeah, sure. Not a problem. But as her brother from a different mother, I gotta ask, you planning on sticking around awhile?” Bailey heard the unspoken threat in his voice. “I’m here for as long as she’ll have me.” “Good answer. If you’re only with her for a short-time, good-time roll in the hay, I’d have to tell Adam, and then we’d have to hurt you.” Bailey thought of the paper in his wallet ordering him to Iraq. He had to report in just eight short days. “I’m here for as long as she wants me,” he repeated, hoping they had enough time to build something that would last through the six-month separation. “Good enough. Try to get her to sleep more than three hours and eat something healthy, will ya?” Bailey nodded though the other man had walked away and was putting chairs up on tables. Then he turned his attention to the woman behind the bar. She had the cash register open, but was staring at its contents as if she had never seen money before. Bailey ducked under the bar and slowly approached his tired woman. He pushed the register drawer closed and wrapped one arm around her shoulders. “Come on, sunflower. It’s time to go home.” He kissed her hair when she leaned against him. He turned them and guided her out from behind the bar and toward the front door. “But I’ve got to cash out and restock the bar,” she said, though her voice held no conviction. “Tiny and Holly are going to take care of closing up tonight. You’re going to take me upstairs to your apartment and show me your CD collection.” “Huh?” Bailey smiled as he guided her out of the bar. She was so exhausted she was asleep on her feet. Once they crossed the porch to

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the front door of Eden’s Garden, he stopped. “How do we get to your apartment?” he asked before brushing a kiss on the head that rested heavily against his chest. “Upstairs,” she said softly. “Where are the stairs?” “Behind the building.” “How do we get to the stairs, sleepy girl?” He was surprised when she lifted her right arm and showed him that she held a single key between two fingers. In less than a minute, they had the door unlocked and were inside. He secured the lock again before following her through the dimly lit shop to her office. “Better bring the basket,” she murmured as she pushed open the back door. “I like the way you think,” he said. He picked up the basket before following her out the door. He watched as she pushed the door closed then tested it to confirm it had securely locked. Then she took his free hand and led him up a metal staircase next to the door. Once they were on the balcony at the top, she led him to one of the doors and opened it using another key from her key ring. Then she turned to him and held out her right hand. “Thanks.” Bailey took her hand in his but then walked toward her, forcing her backward into the apartment. Once they were both through the doorway, he closed and locked the door then threw the deadbolt for extra security. Turning back, he found Eden staring at him in confusion. “What’s wrong, sunflower?” “You’re not going home?” “Now why would I do that when here is where I belong?” he asked as he toed off his sneakers and kicked them into the corner. “Uh, because you don’t know anything about me? Because you don’t live here? Because I’m not even sure I live here?” Eden returned as she took off her stilettos, sighing once she was barefoot.

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Bailey looked at her and knew that any serious conversations needed to wait until they both got some sleep. In his own dominant, alpha-dog way, he decided to take over. Taking her hand, he led her across the living room. He moved slowly, careful to avoid several boxes and a chair. Once they reached the bedroom, he flipped the light switch just inside the door. Small lamps on either side of the queen-sized bed came on, giving him more than enough light to see. “Okay, sunflower. Go brush your teeth and do whatever else you need to do,” he said. When she just stared at him, he turned her toward the bathroom and patted her ass. “Bathroom. Now. Go use it.” **** Eden nodded and moved as if in a trance. Once the door closed behind her, Bailey went around the room, closing curtains and pulling the covers down from the neatly made bed. Then he pulled off his Tshirt and jeans, leaving his boxers on to keep his erection from getting the wrong idea. Eden stared at her reflection in the mirror and wondered where her brain and strength of will had gone. All she wanted was to curl up and sleep for the next two days, but the man in her bedroom prevented that. Would he be understanding when she told him sex was out of the question as she had been awake and busy for the last thirty-six hours and was beyond exhausted? “Eden? You okay in there?” Taking a deep breath, Eden opened the door and pushed past the man without looking at him. If she did, she would try to find enough energy to fuck again even though she had nothing left. Keeping her back to him, she wrapped her arms around her waist. “I’m fine. I think you should go home because I’m too tired for sex tonight. I’m sorry.”

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She jumped when warm hands covered her shoulders. They gently massaged the sore muscles there before turning her around. She kept her head down, staring at Bailey’s chest so she did not have to see the disappointment or anger in his expression. “Sweet Lady Eden, I would love nothing more than to love on you in every way I could for the rest of the night, but even more, I would be honored if you would allow me to simply hold you while you sleep.” “Just sleep?” she asked, lifting her head to look at him in surprise. “Yes, sunflower. Just sleep.” He pulled her in and hugged her gently, kissing the top of her head. She sighed and leaned more heavily against him, feeling what was left of her energy quickly drain down and out of her feet. Just as she was about to tip over into sleep standing up, Bailey squeezed her tighter. “Let’s get you tucked into bed.” She nodded against his chest in agreement. When he released her and took a step back, she swayed then took two staggering steps toward the bed, not concerned that she probably looked like a drunken sailor. On the way, she stripped off her clothes. By the time she reached the bed, she was naked. She fell onto the mattress then rolled over and smiled sleepily at Bailey as he pulled the covers up to her chin. “Go to sleep, sunflower. I’ll be here when you wake up.” “Okay,” she sighed as her eyes drifted shut and sleep claimed her. **** Bailey used the bathroom before sliding into bed next to the woman he believed stronger than ever was made just for him. As soon as he settled on his back, Eden rolled over and snuggled up next to him. He sighed as her body fit against his perfectly. Yep, he thought, Eden Xavier was the woman he had been looking for since he was old enough to know the difference between men and women.

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He lay for a long time just holding Eden, breathing her womanly scents and wishing he did not have to leave for the other side of the world in less than two weeks. If he had his way, he would stay right here with a warm woman by his side for the rest of his life. He smiled and petted Eden’s head when she shifted against him, snuggling even closer. “You’re mine, sunflower,” he whispered to the dark. “Mine, mine, all mine.”

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Chapter 6 “What the holy fuck is going on in here?” Eden woke with a jump and a squeal. She tried to roll out of bed to face the intruder standing, but a thick, hard bar across her back held her tight against the warm, hard body she was half lying on. When she considered things in the next second, that was probably a good thing. She was, after all, naked. Opening her eyes, she found that her brother stood in the doorway looking like his head was about to pop off. The last thing he needed right now was to see her in all her curvy nakedness. Shifting against the man, she felt soft cotton separating her upper thigh from his erect cock. “Good morning, Adam,” she said, trying to ignore the hand that was slowly inching its way down the side of her body back to her hips then across her ass. “That’s all you have to say to me? Good morning, Adam? Eden, who the hell is that guy, and what the fuck is he doing in your bed?” “He and I were sleeping quite soundly until you so rudely woke us up. What do you want?” “It’s two o’clock in the afternoon, and you haven’t been in the shop today. When I checked downstairs, Crow said he hadn’t seen you today. Since you didn’t come home last night, I got worried. Eden, who the fuck is that guy?” Eden lifted her head so she could wink at Bailey without her brother seeing. “Who did you say you were again?” “Eden, you didn’t bring home some stranger!” Bailey met her gaze and grinned back at her, ignoring her brother.

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“John Hungwell, condom testing panel.” Her brother gasped then growled as Eden began to giggle. “Oh, yeah, now I remember. You were sent to investigate a complaint of condom malfunction, right?” “Yes, ma’am.” Bailey nodded as his grin grew wider. “Can’t have condoms malfunctioning, especially in such a high-use area as this one.” “Eden Eloise Xavier, get your ass out of that bed and talk to me!” Adam growled as he set his feet shoulder width apart and crossed his arms over his chest. “Adam Bartholomew Xavier, get your ass out of my bedroom so I can get out of bed, put some clothes on, and talk to you.” Eden frowned at her brother. “And close the door on your way out.” Adam growled again then turned and left the room, slamming the door closed on his way out. Eden then looked over her shoulder at the man whose hand was now nestled between her ass cheeks with two fingertips tickling the opening of her pussy. “John Hungwell?” She giggled. Bailey shrugged. “All I could think of on such short notice. I thought it was funny.” “I did, too,” she said, stretching up and kissing him. “Good morning.” “And good morning to you, sunflower,” Bailey returned as his fingers left her pussy and began exploring all the interesting places to be found in the vicinity. “If we stay here and ignore him, do you think your brother will go away?” “Eden, I’m waiting,” Adam bellowed through the bedroom door. “Don’t think so. Why don’t you get a shower, and I’ll get rid of him.” She was not surprised when Bailey shook his head. “How about I talk to your brother man to man?” “Because he’s got a short temper and a fast fuse that’s already burning. I don’t want to have to explain to the Marines why one of

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their officers is broken into tiny pieces.” Eden gently extricated herself from his hold and rolled out of bed. Going to the closet, she found an oversized T-shirt hanging on a nail. She pulled it on and smoothed it down, making sure it covered all her bits and pieces. She then ran her fingers through her hair, spiking it high and proud. When she returned to the bedroom, she found Bailey standing beside the bed wearing his jeans with the top two buttons undone. His boxers lay on the unmade bed. She lifted her eyes up his impressively muscles body to a pair of gray eyes that promised sex as soon as they dealt with this intruder. “What happen to your boxers?” she asked. “Took them off. If your brother’s going to jump to the wrong conclusions, might as well let him go all the way around the bend and back again.” Bailey winked. “You’re an evil man, Bailey Hawks,” she whispered as she took his hand. “But I think I like it, you alpha dog, you.” Taking a deep breath, Eden opened the door and stepped into the main room. Bailey followed a step behind. “Okay, Adam, I’m here. What do you want?” “I want to know what the fuck is going on around here. Two nights ago you were bitching that all men were tissue-wrapped turkey turds and now you’re in bed with some jarhead I’ve never seen before?” “Hey,” Bailey said, taking offense at the other man’s tone more than his words. “Boys, if you’re going to fight, please take it to the parking lot so I can sell tickets,” Eden said, stepping between the two men before walking to the kitchen area where she put on coffee. “And, brother, if you must know, Bailey is my knight in shining armor. He rescued me the other morning when your truck ran out of gas. He did it again last night at closing time when I was too tired to make it home under my own steam. So step off and leave him the fuck alone,” Eden said, her voice remaining soft, but intense.

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She met Adam’s gaze squarely, not backing down when he took a step toward her, obviously confused by her actions. “But, Eden, what do you know about him?” “What does it matter to you whether I know nothing but his name, or if I know his entire family history back to before the beginning of time? This is my life, my personal business, and my apartment. I don’t come into your bedroom and demand answers from you and your chickie of the week, do I?” Adam’s cheeks paled. “No and you damn well better not,” he said indignantly. “Then what makes you think you have the right to come in here and throw a hissy fit about who I have in my bed?” she asked softly. Adam looked at her and blinked as his brain processed her reasoning. Then he turned and looked at Bailey, who had remained silent. “You do anything to hurt my sister and I’ll hunt you down and make you regret it for the rest of your life,” he warned. Bailey nodded. “Fair enough, but the last thing I want to do is hurt her. I think I’m falling in love with her.” Eden gasped at the ease with which he made that last statement. As the coffeemaker began its gurgling cycle, she crossed the room and moved to look at Bailey. Only a few inches separated their nearly naked bodies. “What did you say?” She was so focused on Bailey she almost did not notice Adam walk out, closing the door behind himself. “I said that I think I’m falling in love with you.” “But you don’t know anything about me,” she said as fear chased away the initial shock of happiness that such a statement brought. “I know you are a hard worker, put friends and family before yourself, and need a man in your life to protect you and keep you safe.” Bailey wrapped his arms around her back then slid his hands down to cup her ass as he pulled her to lean against him. They both sighed at the full-body contact. When he began to back into the bedroom, Eden followed easily.

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“There are some things we need to talk about, but first, I think some good morning sex is the next order of the day,” Bailey said with a thread of power in his tone. He pushed his hips into hers and rubbed his erection back and forth against her belly. “Mmmm, yes, please,” Eden agreed easily as her pussy dampened in preparation for whatever he wanted to do. As they edged across the room toward the bed, she slowly shimmied her full breasts and beaded nipples back and forth against his chest, causing them both to suck air with excitement. Bailey released her ass cheeks to take hold of her shirt and pull it up her body. This forced her to release him and lift her arms over her head. Once her shirt was off and tossed away, his hands went to her hips and held her where she was as he took two steps back. She whimpered as he looked, then sighed happily when he bent forward and gave her left nipple a kiss and a quick suck. He then did the same to the right before standing tall again. “So damn beautiful,” he murmured, lifting his gaze to meet hers. She wanted to argue, but his expression warned that he would not hear her even if she did. Instead, she dropped her gaze to his jeans. Reaching out, she undid the few buttons holding them on then pushed them down as far as she could. He smiled as he lifted one foot and then the other, kicking them off. “Mmmm,” she said, closing the distance and running her hands up and down his sides before they wrapped around his back. She palmed his tight ass cheeks as she shifted her lower belly against his erection and looked deep into his eyes. “I want.” “And how do you ask for something you want?” “Please fuck me.” “Please, who?” **** Bailey asked the question, wondering how far he could push her

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into submitting before she pushed back. “Please, Sir, may I sit on your cock?” “Oh, I like that idea, sunflower,” he said, sitting down before moving to the center of the mattress. He wrapped his hand around the base of his steel-hard cock, which had begun to drool against his abdomen. “I like the thought of you riding me very much.” He could not help but grin as Eden climbed onto the bed then across it to straddle his thighs. She reached between them and stroked the back of her fingers up the underside of his cock from his hand to the tip as she settled her sweet ass on his thighs. He sucked a breath at her gentle touch. His cock twitched and grew so hard he had to grit his teeth to keep from exploding. His breathing stopped she took the head between her fingertips and just held it. Grabbing her wrist, he pulled her hand off. He lifted their hands and licked the pad of each finger as he stared deep into her eyes. He watched as heat and need shivered through her expression and felt her body begin to tremble. “For some reason being near you makes me quick on the trigger,” he said with a grin. “You make me stop thinking of anything but getting closer to you until we become one,” she responded, dropping her eyes from his as her cheeks blushed a pretty pink. Her admission made his cock throb even stronger with the need to burrow deep inside her, making them one as she wished. Leaning to the side, he grabbed one of condoms out of the basket on the nightstand. Pressing it in her hand, he ordered gruffly, “Put this on me.”

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Chapter 7 It took Eden a moment of staring at the plastic square in her hand to remember what she was supposed to do with it. With fingers that visibly shook, she fumbled to open the package and extract the condom. Then she held it as her eyes sought his. A strong scent of orange filled the air between them. “It smells yummy,” he said when he realized where the citrusyflavored air was coming from. “It’s one of the flavored ones,” she explained, “for people who enjoy oral sex but want to be protected as well.” Bailey nodded understanding. “Okay, sunflower, sheath me.” “I’ve never done this before,” she admitted softly, holding the condom between them. Sure, she had taught women at her sex toy parties about the need to protect themselves, but she had never actually put one on a living, breathing cock before. Men in her past had always done this themselves. Bailey looked startled for a moment before giving her a reassuring smile. “Then I think it’s time you did, don’t you?” Eden paused then nodded, but anxiety knotted her stomach so hard she thought she might be sick. What if she hurt him? Would he laugh if she messed it up? “Okay, sunflower, it’s very easy. Pinch the tip between your thumb and index finger,” he said, “and just unroll the tube down my cock with your other hand.” Eden followed the easy instructions. She felt an inordinate sense of triumph when she sheathed Bailey’s cock without the condom

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tearing or causing Bailey to cry out in pain. “I did it!” She grinned at Bailey, wondering if she looked like a little girl who had just ridden her bike all alone for the first time. “You sure did, but you can’t stop now,” he said, his voice dropping deeper than she had ever heard it before. “What else is there?” “This,” he said, sliding his hands under her ass and lifting her body up and toward his until the head of his cock brushed at the sensitive flesh between her legs, almost, but not quite matching up with her entrance. “Put your trusty steed where he needs to be so you can ride him.” With one hand on his shoulder for balance, Eden reached between them and wrapped her hand around his cock just under the head. Stroking down and then up, she watched Bailey’s eyelids drop and his expression grow even more intense. “Eden,” he growled. The words reverberated through her as a warning that he was nearing the end of his control. Since she was already there just from preparing him, she did not prolong the play. Placing the head of his cock where it needed to be, she slowly sank down over him. She pulled her hand from between them once she slid halfway down his impressive pole and placed it on his other shoulder. Their happy moans harmonized as she settled back into his lap with his cock completely filling her pussy. “Oh, God, you feel so good,” he whispered as his hands massaged her ass cheeks. “Mmmm,” she moaned in response as shivers ran from her pussy out to the rest of her body. Arching her back, she dragged her nipples through his chest hair, sending electric heat straight back to her clit, which pressed against his pelvis. She stilled as her body fought the urge to press closer and lose all control or pull back and try to catch her breath. Her fingers clenched on his shoulders, massaging the tense muscles there as she

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tried and failed to back away from the orgasm that was gathering deep inside her. Finally, giving up any hope of regaining her composure, Eden shifted her legs back and slowly began to slide up then back down the thick cock that filled her. She kept her movements slow and easy, wanting to make it last. Looking at Bailey, she found his eyes closed and his head dropped back on his neck. She leaned forward and kissed the base of his throat, then licked her way up his throat to kiss his chin. “Lay back,” she whispered. His head came up, and he gave her a look she had trouble reading. “Lay back who?” “Please lay back, Sir,” she responded automatically with a growing understanding that even in this, he was in charge. With a smile of approval, he lowered himself down then reached over and grabbed a pillow, which he shoved under his head, his eyelids heavy over eyes that glowed with his arousal. “Ride your stallion, sunflower,” he ordered as his hands brushed up and down her thighs. With a smile, she began to move up and down his cock. The muscles of her pussy clenched around him as she fucked herself. Needing more, she leaned over and ran her hands up his chest until her palms covered his nipples. Bracing herself, she began to ride harder and faster, the tension coiled in her belly winding tighter and tighter. Bailey shifted underneath her as he pulled his legs up, and then he began to thrust his hips up as she slid down and their stroking grew harder and faster and more intense. His hands traveled to the apex of her thighs, and his thumbs pulled her lower lips even farther apart. One thumb then brushed back and forth over her clit in a light motion as his other hand lifted to play with her nipples. “Eden, I’m close, so close.” His words came out as a growl as his hips snapped higher and harder against her.

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Unable to find words, she moaned in response as his fingers closed around her nipple, rolling it tight between his finger and thumb. In the next instant, the thumb at her clit pressed the knot of nerves tight against the bone behind it then began to rub in circles. She screamed as her orgasm, which had been winding tighter and tighter, suddenly released with a nearly audible sproing. A heartbeat later, Bailey’s hands went to her hips and held her tight to him as he roared with his own release. When her muscles finally relaxed, Eden could not stop from melting forward. She ended up sprawled across Bailey’s sweatdampened chest, still panting as if she had run a marathon with a lion chasing her the entire way. His breathing was just as ragged. His hands remained clamped on her hips, his fingers individually pressing into her flesh as if he were playing scales on a piano. She remained boneless and wondered if the world would end if she went back to sleep for another eight or ten hours when Bailey lifted a hand to the back of her neck. The touch of his rough fingertips sent an involuntary shiver through her, which made him chuckle in response. “Hmmm, another trigger, I see,” he said, his words softly slurred. His fingers traced down her spine as if counting vertebra. When he reached her ass, he patted one cheek gently. “Why don’t you have any tats or piercings?” The question rumbled through his chest to her cheek. She did not even bother to lift her head as she asked, “How can you do that?” “Do what?” “Ask questions that require me to think and form words? I’m laying here completely boneless with about three brain cells that haven’t fried, and you’re asking questions about body art?” His chest moved under her cheek as he shrugged. “I’m curious. I mean, you don’t even have pierced ears.” Eden lay quiet for an endless minute before whispering, “I’m

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scared of needles.” Bailey didn’t say anything. His hand started back up her back, then down, stroking her, comforting her without saying a word. “I blame it on my father and Pogo.” “Pogo?” “Pogo was an old mutt my parents had had forever. When Adam and I were four or five, Pogo got hit by a car and had to be put to sleep. Please understand, my father wasn’t a cruel man, just overly realistic in his views of life. He decided we needed to learn about death and dying, so he made us go to the vet and watch as the vet put Pogo to sleep. Ever since then…” **** “You’ve been afraid of needles,” Bailey finished for her. “Even to the point that when the doctor has to take blood or give me a vaccination Adam has to go with me and hold me down.” “But you have a tattoo parlor and piercing studio in your shop. Quite the contradiction, don’t you think?” Bailey wondered if she knew how courageous she was. “Not really,” she said. “It made sense, and Crow said he didn’t want a whole store for himself, just a room to work from, and I had that. I’m also hoping that by being around them and seeing them regularly I might get over the innate knowledge that needles mean death.” Bailey took a deep breath and released it on a sigh as he felt his cock twitch and start to throb again with renewed interest. “That’s very brave of you.” Eden shrugged but did not respond. Obviously, she did not think so. Wrapping his arms around her, one around her shoulders, the other around her hips, Bailey rolled so she lay on her back and he crouched over her. Lifting his head and upper body, he looked down

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and met her wide-eyed gaze as he pulled his arms from under her. “If I was with you to distract you, do you think you could let Crow pierce this?” He reached up and pinched her left nipple, causing her to squeak as the nipple stiffened. He found himself holding his breath as Eden automatically shook her head. Then she stopped and studied him for a few seconds. “Can I think about it?” He nodded. “I think that might be a good idea. Right now, though, we need to get out of this bed before we spend the whole day here.” Eden smiled as she arched her back and rubbed her breasts against his chest. “Would that really be so terrible? I haven’t ever spent the whole day in bed before.” “Another time, sunflower,” he said, gently pulling his half-hard cock from her pussy. Before she could complain, he did several quick pushups. At the bottom of the down stroke, he brushed the front of his body against hers, first left and then right. On the last one, he kissed her lips before pushing himself to roll sideways off her body, across the bed where he landed with his feet on the floor. “Come on, sweet Eden, let’s get a shower, and see what the rest of this day holds,” he said. He scooped her up off the bed and into his arms before turning and walking to the bathroom. **** “Don’t you have to go to work or report or something?” Eden found herself asking two days later as she wandered the store, checking inventory and ordering lists against what was on the shelves. “Um, well, about that,” he said as he settled into the tall director’s chair behind the counter. Eden’s stomach knotted and the muscles across her shoulders tightened in preparation for the big kiss-off. This was it. He was about to tell her he was married or engaged or that she had been a pleasant

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diversion while his girlfriend was out of town visiting relatives. After all, men like Bailey did not fall instantly in love with women like her, no matter how much she wished differently. “Yes?” she said, drawing the word out as she crossed her arms, hugging her clipboard close to her chest, hoping to hold herself together as he broke the news of his infidelity. The last thing she wanted was for the Marine Corps to come after her for murdering one of its officers. “Remember how I told you I understood how soldiers could fall in love and get married all in a few days?” “Uh-huh.” He looked at her as if trying to read her emotions, but she forced herself to keep her expression blank, though she felt tears pressing hard against the backs of her eyes. “Right now I’m on leave before I deploy to Iraq next week.” Eden blinked and swallowed as his words cut through the buzzing that filled her brain. “You’re leaving town next week?” He maintained eye contact as he nodded. His expression remained wary as he watched her. “So you’re not married or engaged or dating some woman who’s coming home the day after tomorrow?” He looked stunned for a moment then frowned at her, his expression fierce. It was enough to make her nervous even before he stepped out from behind the counter. “I don’t cheat, no matter how long I might be separated from my woman. There has been no one in my life for a while now. I figured I’d stop looking until I got back. Then I met this beautiful damsel in distress standing by the side of the road.” The nervousness knotting her body immediately relaxed as she took a step forward. “So how long will you be gone?” “Six months,” he said as he took a step. Before she could ask her next question and confirm that she was his woman, the front door of the shop slammed open with a loud

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jangling of bells. Eden cursed under her breath as the last person on Earth she wanted in her shop walked in as if he owned the place. Instead of the man she had thought herself in love with and married only to find out he was abusive and self-absorbed, Eden saw a lank-haired stranger. This person was someone she wanted nothing to do with, no matter how much he thought things between them should be different. “Hey, babe, miss me?” Wade Owens said as he looked around, his beady eyes widening when he saw the contents of her store.

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Chapter 8 “Babe?” Bailey looked at her with one eyebrow cocked high, appearing more than a little jealous. “My ex-husband who never could remember my name,” Eden explained before moving toward the front of her shop. There was no way Wade was getting farther into the store than he already stood. She would die or go to jail first. She stopped several feet away from him but positioned so that he would have a hard time getting past her. “What do you want, Wade?” Instead of answering, Wade closed the distance between them and pulled her against his chest for a hug. The scent of alcohol and cigarettes surrounded her, making her gag. He had been drinking again. She would have thought two DUIs would have taught him that he and alcohol should not share the same space at the same time. She heard a low rumbling growl behind her, and her insides warmed knowing that for once she was not facing her ex-husband alone. Maybe now she could make Wade understand what she had told him time and again since she had moved out. She wanted nothing to do with him and did not owe him anything, now or at any time in the future. All at once, the anger toward him that she usually kept tightly caged broke free. She could do whatever it took to get Wade out of her life once and for all. When he tilted his hips forward, pressing his erect cock against her, she shifted her weight to her left leg. As usual, Wade wrongly interpreted her actions, misreading defensive preparation as interest. When he slid his hands down her back to cover her ass, she slammed

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her right leg up between his, catching him full force in the groin. As she lowered her leg, she took a step back and easily broke away. As she continued to retreat, he made a strangled sound and collapsed, curling into a fetal position on the floor, gasping for air. She hoped he did not throw up or piss himself as she did not want to have to clean up the mess. This was her fight, and she would come out the victor. “What the fuck?” he asked nearly three minutes later as he slowly climbed to his feet. “Why the hell did you do that?” Her anger still racing through her bloodstream, Eden growled then took a deep breath to calm herself. Otherwise she might have kicked him again. “I don’t like to be touched by drunks who don’t listen. Now what the fuck do you want, Wade?” she asked through teeth clenched tight together. Wade ignored her insult. “What am I supposed to do when you won’t answer your phone or respond to text messages or e-mails? Why are you ignoring me? I thought we were friends.” Eden had to take two more steps back to keep from jumping on him and beating him to death. Turning away, she tried to figure out how he made it sound like he was the injured party here. Bailey shifted and drew her attention. He wore a serious expression and seemed bigger than he had until now. He looked like a man who would happily go to battle for her. All she had to do was give him a sign. The anger that had been expanding in her to homicidal proportions drained away like water out of a bathtub. When Bailey lifted an eyebrow in question, she gave a quick shake of her head. Eden took a deep breath and turned back to find her ex-husband looking around with interest with both hands still cupping his groin. In protection, or was he masturbating right there in her store? “Wade, our divorce was finalized more a year ago. It states quite clearly that I don’t have to talk to you, e-mail you, text you, or even

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acknowledge that you were ever a part of my life. That’s just the way I like it.” Eden tried to keep her cool, but found her voice growing louder as her anger mushroomed. “Now I am going to ask this one more time before I either throw you out that closed door or call the cops and have them take you away for your third DUI. What. Do. You. Want?” Wade stared at her, and in the blink of an eye, the good-time, always smiling, used-car-salesman, public persona slid away and his expression hardened. The angry, verbally abusive side she seemed to bring out just by walking into the room emerged just that fast. He became the man she had feared for most of their short-lived marriage. The man who never had to raise his fists to hurt her because his words cut deep enough. The man who could cut her down with a look and make her cry with an offhand criticism. “I’m here for my money,” he stated flatly. “No.” “Excuse me?” He blinked and looked startled. “I don’t know where you got the idea that you could tell me to give you money and I would just hand it over, but you need to go back to Crazy Town and ask for a new one.” With that, Eden turned away, hoping he would drop the subject and go on his way. When a hand clamped on her shoulder, she squeaked at the pain as he spun her around. “No, babe, you don’t understand. You will give me my money. You seem to be doing real well for yourself here, so it’s only right you give me back what’s due me.” Wade stared at her with an angry, wild look in his eyes that she had never seen in him. Before she could respond, Bailey plucked Wade’s hand off her shoulder. In a move so fast Eden could not process it, he twisted Wade’s arm behind him so his hand was pushed up between his shoulder blades. Wade began squealing like an unhappy pig. Bailey looked at her with a warm smile then angled his

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head toward the front door. Eden hurried across the store ahead of the two men to pull it open. “Now Eden has asked you very nicely several times to go away and leave her alone. How about I help you to your car,” Bailey said, his offer not a question but a firm statement as he walked Wade toward the now open door. “Eden, who the fuck is this guy?” Wade sputtered as Bailey pushed him out the door. “My name is Bailey Hawks, and I’m the man in Eden’s life now. From now on, if you want to talk to her, you’ll have to ask me first, understand?” Bailey continued talking in what Eden recognized as his Dom voice. It remained deep and deadly soft as the two men walked to the car parked closest to her shop’s entrance. Just like her ex to not abide by the posted handicapped sign. After all, it was the space closest to the door, and her ex was nothing if not lazy. She could not hear all that Bailey said, but did hear something about how Marines take care of their own and since she now belonged to him, by extension, the Marines, all Marines, would be watching out for her. The fact that he claimed her sent a tingling happiness through Eden, and she couldn’t help grinning. Three young women who walked in at that moment pulled her attention away from the showdown in the parking lot. As the women looked around, she kept one eye on them and one eye on the two men. She saw Bailey release Wade. Her ex turned around swinging, but Bailey easily dodged his fist. In the next second, he planted a fist deep in Wade’s middle, doubling the other man over. Bailey then helped him into his car. He leaned into the car and spoke for several more minutes before returning to the front porch where he pulled out his cell phone and made a call. “We’ve heard you host sex toy parties?” the bravest of the young women asked, dragging her attention from the tall, powerful man standing just beyond the window.

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“Yes, I do. What kind of party are you interested in?” By the time Bailey finally came inside, Eden had scheduled a surprise bridal shower for the woman’s cousin. After the women walked out giggling with excitement, Eden trailed after Bailey to the back of the shop. “So what did you say to Wade?” She wanted to throw herself into his arms, wrap herself around him, and hug him for about an hour. But he was still frowning and looking too serious, so she stopped a foot away and crossed her arms over her middle while looking up at him. “I pointed out that the next time he came back without an invitation, he might find himself facing a platoon of pissed off Marines. He wasn’t happy, but that’s not his biggest problem. He is about to meet up with a police officer and field sobriety test.” “You called the cops on him?” Bailey shrugged, and his hard expression softened somewhat. “He’s the one driving drunk. I just called in an anonymous citizen’s tip about a dangerous driver on the road.” “Thank you for talking to him, but I doubt he’ll listen. He doesn’t hear or remember anything that doesn’t fit with his plans, no matter how twisted they are,” she said. “What did he mean about wanting his money?” Bailey asked as he closed the distance and slid his arms around her back. Eden snuggled closer and wrapped her arms around his waist, relaxing into his embrace. “He thinks because he made some renovations on the house we’d bought after we separated that I should pay him back for them. I tried to explain that since he lived there and I had moved out that I don’t owe him squat, but he doesn’t listen. Adam told me that he’s lost his job, so I’m sure that’s not helping the situation either.” Bailey rested his cheek on the top of her head. He took a deep breath and sighed as he canted his hips forward, pressing his long, hard cock into her belly. Though the action was identical to what

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Wade had done to her earlier, Eden’s response could not have been more different. With Wade, all she wanted was to get away. With Bailey, she just wanted to get closer. “Let’s go upstairs,” she said, shifting her hips left and right, causing Bailey to inhale sharply. “What about the shop?” As if in answer, the bells jangled. Eden sighed as she stepped back. She looked at Bailey and smiled sadly. “Guess that will have to wait, dammit.” Bailey chuckled as she turned and went to the front of the shop. **** For the rest of the evening people wandered in and out of the shop in a slow but steady stream. Between customers, Bailey helped Eden with her inventory. As they worked, they talked, sharing stories of their childhood and other first-date kinds of information that seemed irrelevant considering how far their relationship had advanced past the trivialities. They finished just before she locked the door at midnight. After turning off the lights and the neon “OPEN” sign, Eden took Bailey’s hand and led him through the shop, out the back door, and up the stairs to her apartment. “What’s over there?” he asked, pointing to the other door off the balcony. “A second apartment,” Eden said as she unlocked the door and stepped into her apartment. “As soon as I finish mine, I’m going to fix that one up and rent it out.” “Rent it to me now,” Bailey said as he closed and locked the door.

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Chapter 9 “Why?” Eden looked at him as if he had lost his mind. Maybe he had, but the thought of someone else living in that space sent a red-hot stabbing pain through his chest. He had to take a breath before he could speak. “I hate living on base. I’ve been looking for an apartment, but haven’t found a place I like that’s close enough to base with a landlord I trusted.” It was close enough to the truth, but he hoped she would not call him on it. She turned and studied him, and he met her gaze squarely and did not flinch or look away. What little training in being a Dom he had had as well as his military background came in handy, especially when playing poker or, like now, getting his own way with the ladies. Eden studied him for nearly a minute before shrugging and turning away. “I’ll show it to you tomorrow, okay?” Bailey nodded in agreement at he laid a hand on one shoulder to stop her from walking away. “Want to play a game?” he asked, his voice dropping soft and low. He had watched her all night, his cock hard and demanding relief. He knew she remained unaware of the effect her short summer tank dress and stiletto sandals had as she sashayed around her shop. At one point, she had bent over to pick something off a low shelf, and he almost swallowed his tongue as the hem rode up the back of her legs until he was certain she would flash him. But it stopped just shy of giving away her secret of not wearing panties to work that day. “What kind of game?”

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“The kind where in the end we’re both hot and sweaty and very, very relaxed and happy,” he said just before brushing his lips up the left side of her neck. “Mmmm, I like those kinds of games,” she said, sounding a little breathless. Bailey kissed his way across the back of her neck as he slid his hands under her arms to cup her breasts. All of the sudden he wished he had not allowed her to wear a bra to work. It would have been so much fun to tell Crow to watch the store as he pulled her into the backroom. He could have stripped her bare except for her sexy highheeled shoes just by pulling her dress over her head. “Mmmm, another time,” he murmured as he then licked at the right side of her neck. His fingers circled her breasts, but he growled as the thick padding of her bra kept him from finding her nipples. “What’s another time?” she asked as she leaned back against him. “Something I want to try,” he responded, smiling into her neck before turning his head slightly and sucking a bruise into the skin where neck flowed into shoulder. She moaned when he lifted his head and pulled his hands from her as he stepped away. He watched as she swayed before finding her balance and standing on her own two feet. His cock throbbed in his jeans as the scent of her creamy sex juice swirled around them. “Go change into your nightshirt,” he said once she was steady on her feet. “Without panties.” He smiled but said nothing further when she frowned at him. When she hesitated, he lifted an eyebrow. “Little sunflowers who don’t do as they’re told immediately and without question might find themselves turned over my lap getting a spanking,” he said, making it a statement of fact as he led her another step deeper into the world of Domination and submission. Her frown deepened for a few seconds before she turned and flounced into the bedroom. He smiled when he heard her muttering about sexy Marines and knights in shining armor and never

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understanding men when it came to sex. When she appeared a minute later, she wore her oversized nightshirt. “Happy?” He made a “come here” gesture with two fingers and smiled when she huffed a sigh before crossing to stand in front of him. Without another word, he bent his knees until they were face to face. Laying one hand on the back of her thigh, he slid it up under the shirt until it reached her warm, bare ass. Her eyes widened as he massaged one globe and then the other. Then he slid his hand between her thighs and slid two fingers between her lower lips until they found her puffy clit. He stroked it, causing her eyes to widen as she her cheeks flushed. Pulling his fingers back, he slid them into her pussy before pulling his hand away. “Yes, sunflower, I’m quite happy,” he said before straightening and stepping back. Taking her hand in his, he led her to the small couch. “Have a seat,” he said, not surprised when she did so without an argument but with a frown of confusion. Turning, he unbuttoned his jeans as he crossed the room. Turning one of her dining-area chairs to face the couch where she sat, he stripped off his jeans, sighing as the pressure on his cock eased. He left his boxers on before sitting down. “The game is called Anticipation and Arousal,” he said when she frowned at him. “Why are you all the way over there?” He smiled, wondering if she could tell how close he was to losing it. Though he wanted this game to last until she begged for relief, he wondered if he could hold out that long. For a man who prided himself on his control and skill, both in the bedroom and out, Eden Xavier was proving to be a real test of his skills as a Dominant without even trying. “Because if I sit any closer, the game will be over before it starts,” he admitted honestly.

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“Would that be so terrible?” she asked with a smile that had him wondering why he didn’t just take her to bed and love her until neither of them could move. She shifted on the couch, leaning back and spreading her legs wide enough he could see shadows between her thighs. He had to swallow hard before he could say, “Humor me.” She shrugged and shifted again, this time arching her back. The innocent move pressed erect nipples against her shirt, making his cock jump with his hunger. “So, how do we play this game?” Eden asked as she lifted one hand and rubbed it up and down the valley between her breasts. “Just keep doing what you’re doing and you’ll win in no time,” Bailey said after swallowing hard. “The challenge is to sit where you are and make me come to you. I’m going to be doing the same thing. The one who leaves their seat first loses.” Eden nodded in understanding. “But what if I don’t want to play? What if I just get up and come to you now?” “I’ll know if you don’t make an effort to try and win. If you give in too soon, I’ll put you over my knee and spank you.” “You’re looking forward to spanking me, aren’t you?” Eden asked. Her tone was conversational, though her actions were anything but. She placed both hands palm down at her waist before slowly sliding them up her body. She sucked a breath as she cupped her generous breasts then brushed her thumbs over her nipples one time. “Would you like me to spank you? Do you want to feel the hot pain and submissive pleasure as my hand smacks your ass until your skin turns pink? Or maybe I’ll spank you until it’s bright red and you have to kneel at my feet because you can’t sit down on a chair.” Bailey watched arousal fill her expression. Her eyes met his briefly before dropping to watch as he adjusted his hard cock to lie more comfortably against his body. Though he really wanted to pull it out and stroke it, he took a steadying breath and forced himself to

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wait. She would break first. **** Eden listened to him talk about spanking her and was shocked at how much she wanted exactly what he was offering. But what Bailey didn’t know about her was that she was stubborn, and when challenged, she hated to lose at anything, from a simple card game to a sexual challenge such as this one he issued. Looking at him stroking his cock through the soft cotton boxers as he watched her, she did not think it would take a whole lot before he joined her on the couch. Then, after he scratched the itch deep in her pussy, she might let him spank her. “No one’s spanked me since I was about eight years old,” she said softly. She gently massaged her breasts and flicked her thumbs back and forth over her nipples. She could not help but smile when his breathing hitched. She sucked a breath before moaning softly when she used just her thumbs and first fingers to tweak and roll her nipples. Hot electricity shot from nipples to pussy, and her hips shifted in response. Looking across the room, she met Bailey’s silver gaze and wished she could touch him. Touching him and being touched by him had become an obsession. All at once, she did not care about the game. She needed him to touch her. “I’ll be happy to spank you,” he offered as he slouched in his chair and spread his legs wider as he slipped his hand through the opening of his boxers “I think I might like to try that sometime.” As her pussy overflowed, she spread her legs. This drew his attention to the apex of her thighs. His eyes grew hooded as he licked his lips. She could feel the heat from his gaze on her pussy and

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wanted the game to end. But she refused to be the one to cross the space separating them. Dropping her hands from her breasts, she ran her hands down the insides of her thighs and then back up, almost to her pussy. Erotic fire streaked from where skin dragged on skin straight to her clit, causing her to take a deep breath to keep from launching herself across the room. Bailey moaned. She smiled at him as her fingers traced the path a second time. “Like that, do you?” she asked, her voice hoarse. “Mmmm,” he responded as he ran his free hand up and down his own thigh. “Your expression is so damn sexy, to say nothing of your movements. Why don’t you come over here?” Eden’s smile widened as she eased the hem of her T-shirt up above the crease of her thighs. “Why don’t you come over here instead?” Bailey grinned and shook his head. “Sorry, sunflower, it doesn’t work like that. But I have to admit you are very good at this game.” Eden shrugged. “Okay, I guess I’ll just have to play by myself then.” With that, she pulled out her favorite neon pink vibrator. Shifting on the couch, she pushed her ass to the edge and spread her legs even wider. She did not want Bailey to miss a thing. She twisted the base, and the small, but powerful, motor began to hum. She sighed softly as she used the buzzing imitation phallus to trace circles around one breast, each one smaller than the last. Bailey looked startled as she started to play. “Where did that come from? I thought you said you didn’t have any toys.” “Bob isn’t a toy. Bob is a single woman’s best friend. And he came from the nightstand.” “Bob? Who’s Bob?” Eden’s smile grew as she indicated the vibrator. “Battery-operated boyfriend or Bob. I think everyone woman should have at least one.

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Especially in this town where their men are gone months at a time.” “Hmmm, I guess it’s okay to have a Bob, as long as there are no other men in your life who aren’t blood relations, except maybe Crow.” Eden blinked at that pronouncement. “I’m sorry, but did you just tell me I could not have any male friends?” Images of Wade flashed before her eyes as her ex-husband ordered her to stop seeing friends, controlled her actions, demanded to know every minute of any time they were apart. She had grown up with parents like that, and now that she was free of Wade, there was no way she would allow someone else to have that much control over her life. Especially since he was leaving town in a few days. Bailey blinked but looked confused and did not answer. Turning off the vibrator, Eden tossed it on the couch and stood up. After smoothing her T-shirt down to cover as much of her body as she could, she headed for the bedroom. “I think you should leave now.”

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Chapter 10 Eden was almost to the bedroom door when Bailey realized something had just gone very, very wrong. He was not sure where her head was, but something he had just said seemed to trigger pain from her past. Something they had to talk about and get her past before he could make any further headway in burrowing his way into her heart and soul. “Eden, stop,” he ordered in his powerful Dom voice. Instead of obeying, she threw him a dirty look over her shoulder and kept stalking to the bedroom. A moment later, the door slammed. In the silent vacuum following the loud noise, he heard a soft snick as she locked the door. “Oh, no, you don’t, little girl,” he murmured as he crossed to the bedroom. As he expected, the door was locked. “Eden, you have five seconds to open this door before I come through it. Either way you are in for a spanking that is going to leave you with a red-hot ass.” As he counted silently, he pulled out his knife with a thousand and one uses and flipped the awl out. At five, he pushed the pointed metal stick into the small, round lock and grinned to himself. As soon as the lock popped, he turned the knob and pushed on the door. The door did not budge. “Sunflower, step away from the door, or I’ll make it so you won’t be able to sit down for a week,” he promised, his voice just loud enough for her to hear through the panel separating them. A half second later Eden jerked the door open. He took a half step back at the intense pain he saw in her expression. She planted her

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hands on her hips as her feet spread. She was clearly taking a stand against something, but he wondered if it was memories of her exhusband’s abuse or something he had done. “What makes you think I’m going to quietly let you take over my life without a fight? Spank me because I don’t do as you dictate? I don’t think so. You think you’re going to tell me who I can and cannot be friends with? No fucking way, mister. I fought long and hard to become more than a human doormat, and I refuse to go back there for anyone, no matter how good the sex is.” He took a deep breath to fight back the urge to find her ex and beat the shit out of him. If he walked out of the apartment before they settled this, Eden would never let him back in again. And that was the last thing he wanted. Something had happened in the last minute and a half that had caused her to have some sort of flashback to her ex-husband’s abuse. Had his appearance in the shop triggered this? Or was it his own fumbling demand of monogamy? “Eden, baby, you can have as many friends as you want, both men and women,” Bailey said, keeping his voice soft and calm. “I didn’t mean you couldn’t be friends with anyone, I just wanted Bob to be the only other cock sharing your bed, touching your body, giving you those orgasms that make you glow.” Bailey took a single step forward as Eden mulled over his words. He watched her anger ease, her pain drain away, before she blinked and looked at him. “Bailey?” Only then did he take the last steps that separated them and gently wrap his arms around her. “Yes, sunflower, it’s Bailey. Can you tell me what happened?” He closed his eyes with relief and sent a prayer of thanks heavenward as she slid her arms around his waist. She burrowed her face into his chest as she clung to him. He held her tighter, laying his cheek on the top of her head, surrounding her as much as possible with whatever comfort he could offer.

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They stood that way for several long minutes before Eden finally lifted her head to look up at him. “We were only married a year, but in that time Wade turned me from a confident, self-assured woman into a spineless shadow who had a hard time deciding what to fix for dinner. I’ve found my way back and cannot, will not, go back there. It’s not right for someone else to determine and tell me what my every move will be. Can you understand?” Bailey nodded. “And my threatening to spank you like a child probably didn’t help any either. I am so sorry. I would never be like him on purpose. I love you just the way you are.” He froze when he heard the words come out of his mouth. Never before had he told women he dated that he loved them. But then again, no other woman made him feel like Eden did. With her in his life, he felt like he could conquer the world singlehandedly, as long as he could come home to this woman afterward. He was not surprised when she did not echo the sentiment. It was too soon to be making such declarations, but he only had a few days left, and he needed her to understand how he felt before he deployed. “Bailey?” “Yes, sunflower?” “I was a bad girl. If you still want to spank me, you can.” **** Fear and excitement shivered through her as she waited for Bailey’s reaction to her offer. His admission that he loved her just the way she was gave her the courage to offer him this opportunity. With Bailey, she found herself willing to try anything he suggested. With Wade, after the first couple of times, she hesitated because he always took taking things too far too fast without discussing things with her before he did. Bailey shifted against her, stroking her back then kissing her forehead. “Are you sure, sunflower? I don’t want you to do anything

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you feel uncomfortable with or unsure about just because I ask it of you.” “But isn’t that what a Dom is supposed to do? Push their sub’s boundaries and limits? And punish them when they’re bad?” “Yes, but—” Eden smiled as she lifted a hand to touch his lips with the pads of two fingers. At the same time, she shifted her hips, pressing them forward as she moved them slowly side to side. The half-hard erection she felt against her lower belly immediately grew larger and harder. “Please, Sir, please punish me for being a bad girl. I ruined your game, and then I locked the door against you. I’ve been a very bad girl and deserved to be spanked.” “Hmmm, that is true. You have been a naughty little sunflower who deserves a spanking. After your spanking, you will apologize by sucking my cock before I fuck you until we both melt into a puddle of goo.” As he shared the agenda, Eden’s pussy juices once again flowed with her anticipation. When he released her and stepped back, she swayed a moment before finding her balance. With the blank expression that she had come to identify as Bailey’s Dom face, he took her hand and led her into the great room. Once out of her bedroom he dropped her hand. He held up a hand and she stopped. He then crossed the room to the wooden chair by the dining table. After pushing his boxer’s off his hips, he sat down and just stared at her for a long, long moment. Eden grew nervous and began to wonder if she should have made such an offer. “Strip bare before you lay yourself across my lap,” he said, his voice soft and low. His tone combined with the serious expression and fire in his eyes sent more shivers of awareness through her. The heat and need settled in the sexual nerve center just behind her pussy. “Yes, Sir,” she whispered after swallowing hard.

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Reaching for the hem of her T-shirt, she pulled it over her head and dropped it to the floor. With her heart in her throat and her skin tingling with anticipation and nerves, she crossed the room to stand beside Bailey’s chair. The view of his hard cock caught her and held her prisoner. She tried to figure a graceful way to lie down across it, but could not come up with one. Instead, she knelt on the floor next to the chair. She then crawled her way up near side of the chair and across his legs. She grabbed the chair on the far side and pulled her body across his lap. She stopped when her pussy rested atop one thick, muscular thigh. She squeaked when Bailey wrapped a hard arm across her back and slid her a little farther across his lap. She sighed when a large, hot hand massaged one cheek of her ass and then the other. The cock pressing into her hip twitched. She smiled as her clit throbbed in response. Without saying a word to prepare her, the hand left her ass and a heartbeat later came down hard on her left cheek. She jumped and tightened her ass in preparation for another. Instead of more pain, Bailey rubbed circles over the punished flesh until she relaxed her muscles again. Instant pain to her right cheek, which he immediately stroked away, once again caught her off guard. The combination of hot pain from the spanking and soothing strokes afterward sent Eden’s arousal spiraling higher and higher. A strange sense of freedom washed through her as he continued to punish her and arouse her by equal measures. She sucked a breath when two fingertips traced between the globes of her ass. When a single digit brushed over her puckered star, she clenched her asshole tight, expecting a pain-filled breeching. “Has anyone ever fucked you here?” he asked as easily as if he were asking about the weather as his finger drew circles around and around the flesh “Wade tried once, but it hurt too much. It was one of the last times he ever fucked me at all.”

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She slowly relaxed as he continued to brush circles around her back hole. Then he brushed his fingertip back and forth directly over her back hole. “Have you ever played with a butt plug before?” Eden shook her head but realized he wasn’t looking in that direction. “No.” “No, who?” “No, Sir.” He patted one ass cheek. “Before I leave next week, I’d like to make love with you in every way possible. But only if you want to try it.” “But it hurts,” she said in automatic denial. “Didn’t he prepare you?” “No. He just decided to try it and shoved in without warning me or anything.” Eden blinked back tears at the painful memory. “Well, we’re going to do it the right way. I’ll stretch your pretty asshole with my fingers and maybe a plug or two from your wonderful little shop before I can take you there. We will also use lots of lube and make it as easy for you as possible. Now take a deep breath and try to relax,” Bailey said as he slid his finger down toward her pussy. His finger slid deep into her open wetness, causing her breath to catch again. He fucked her with it several times, twisting it back and forth as it moved in and out. When he pulled it free of her pussy, she made a whining sound of need. She made a strangled sound when his finger gently but persistently pressed through her back hole to the first joint. Her muscles immediately clenched at the intrusion, but he held his finger steady as his other hand rubbed up and down her spine. “Shhh, it’s okay, sunflower. We’ll just sit here for a little bit before you make your apologies.” Eden took several deep breaths and worked on relaxing the muscles that held the finger too tight for him to move it. It took a

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couple minutes, but finally he pulled it free. “Tomorrow we’ll put a plug in you and get the pretty little hole ready to take me in the ultimate act of submission.” After rubbing his hand over her still warm ass for another minute, he lifted her from his lap. He then helped her kneel on the floor, only this time between his widespread legs. Wrapping his hand around the base of his cock, he moved it until the deep red head was only an inch from her lips. He then slid his hand up and then back again and she watched as a large drop of precum appeared at the slit. “Apologize to my cock for causing it pain,” he demanded gently.

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Chapter 11 Bailey held his breath as he waited for her reaction. Would she submit and give him the blowjob he so desperately wanted? Or would she tell him to fuck off then kick his ass to the curb for being so demanding? She met his gaze for a long moment before dropping her eyes to his cock where slick pre-cum coated the tip. “Mmmm, yes, Sir,” she murmured as she leaned forward. He watched as her lips parted and tongue extended. He hissed as her tongue stroked across his slit, gathering his cream and tasting it. He hissed again when her tongue swirled around the head of his cock, electricity shooting from the skin she touched through his body and then back to his balls. They began to clench and pull up, preparing for a quick release. “This is going to be fast, sunflower. You may use one hand to play with yourself, but you cannot come,” he said as he slid his hands through her hair and cupped the back of her head. Though her mouth on his cock consumed his body, fucking her ass remained at the forefront of his thoughts. But she was so tight, she needed plenty of stretching before he could make that fantasy come true. A quick trip downstairs would give him the toys needed to start the preparations. She swallowed and her tongue and mouth massaged his cock, causing his mind to implode. He started massaging her scalp as he fought to keep his orgasm at bay. Then Eden took him as far into her mouth as she could and swallowed again. The hot rocket that was his orgasm exploded. His cock pulsed hard as sex juice flowed from his balls. His hips snapped forward

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several times as he came. Eden pulled back until just the head remained between her lips and swallowed several times on his cock. The orgasm rocked Bailey from the tips of his hair to his toenails. Once he relaxed, he looked down Eden’s body and found one hand rubbing furiously at her clit. He could tell from the way her hips were rocking against her fingers that she was on the verge of an orgasmic explosion. “Give me your hands,” he ordered gruffly as he held out one hand. She mewed a protest, but lifted her hand from her pussy and laid it across his palm with the other one. “That’s a very good girl,” he praised as he brushed her hair back out of her face. “And that was a hell of an apology. Now, go to the bed and get on your hands and knees in the center of the bed. Once you are in position, you will wait there until I return. Do you understand?” “Yes, Sir,” Eden said as she stood up. Her breasts came into view, and Bailey needed a taste before he ran a little errand. Grabbing her hips, he pulled her closer to the chair. Leaning forward, he licked and sucked at one breast and then the other. She moaned and her hands came around his head as he went back and forth from one to the other, driving her arousal higher and higher. He felt her body tightening, and he pulled away. Turning her around, he patted her bright pink ass. “To bed, sunflower. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.” He waited until she entered the bedroom and was out of sight before he pulled on his jeans and quickly buttoned them. He did not bother with the rest of his clothes. No one who might see him would care, that is if anyone saw him. He pulled her keys from their peg by the door and slipped out the door, making sure it remained unlocked once he was outside, before pulling it closed again. He hurried down the stairs as he sorted through Eden’s keys for the one that opened the back door. Thankfully, there were only a

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handful of keys to choose from. After opening the door and slipping inside, he pressed the disable code into the alarm keypad and waited for it to deactivate. Once it was safe to move, he entered the shop and went to the back wall where the butt plug display hung. It only took a minute to find the two plugs and lube he had spotted and decided on earlier in the evening as the perfect toys for Eden’s ass training. He made a mental note to pay for them tomorrow as well as the other toys he had added to his mental shopping list. He hurried back the way he came, resetting the alarm and locking the door on his way out. He slowed as he climbed the stairs as he muscled the plastic packaging off the plugs. Once back in the apartment, he locked the knob, threw the deadbolt, and tossed the packaging into the trash. “Bailey?” Eden called softly. “Hush, sunflower. I did not tell you that you could speak.” He stopped long enough to unbutton and drop his jeans on the floor. He retrieved her vibrator from the couch before continuing into the bedroom. Eden was on the bed as he requested and looking a little nervous. “You didn’t touch yourself while I was gone, did you?” “No, Sir.” “Good girl.” When he laid the larger of the two plugs on the nightstand within view, he heard Eden suck a breath. He knew she wanted to ask questions, and he admired her restraint when she remained silent, though her breathing grew a little more ragged. “I’ve decided I can’t wait. We are going to start training your sexy ass for my cock tonight.” She moaned as he tossed the vibrator, bottle of lube, and smaller plug onto the mattress next to her. Before joining her, he reached into the condom basket and grabbed several. Keeping hold of one, he tossed the rest on the bed with the toys. He felt anxious for a moment as she continued watching him with

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wide eyes, but only for a moment. Then she licked her lips. The hot, heavy arousal he thought released into her loving mouth wound back up again. His cock slammed from half-hard to rock-hard in the span of three quick heartbeats. “Drop your shoulders to the mattress, arms over your head,” he said. He opened the condom packet and rolled the sheath down his erection. She followed his directions without a word, but he heard her breath catch as her erect nipples brushed against the sheet. Once she was in place, he climbed onto the bed and moved into place behind her. Taking the head of his cock in hand, he touched it to the valley of her ass and slowly stroked it down over her asshole, then her wideopen, steaming pussy to her knotted-up clit. She gave a soft moan and tried to push back as he returned to press just the top half of the head into her opening. “Please,” she begged as she arched her hips and tried to take him deeper. “Please, what? What does my beautiful sunflower want?” “Please, Sir. Fuck. Me. Now. Let. Me. Come,” Eden demanded through gritted teeth. **** Even with the short break, she was so close to her orgasm she could taste it. Seeing what Bailey had brought up from the shop only added to her arousal. “Hang on, sweetie. I want to play a little more first. Don’t come or you’ll be getting another spanking, and this time I won’t be taking it so easy on you,” Bailey ordered, sounding tense as he pulled back. Eden heard a pop, and then cold liquid hit her crevice. It took a moment of confused thinking to realize he had dripped lube on her ass. A moment later, Bailey’s finger trailed through the liquid then

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pushed past the tight muscles of her asshole. Her back bowed at the same time her head lifted off the bed. She tried to fight down a moan, but it emerged as a soft cry. Then she began panting as her need spiked a little higher and then higher again nearly a minute later when Bailey began to slowly slide his finger in and out, twisting it as he did. “Hold it tight, sunflower,” he murmured. “Deep breaths and relax those muscles.” He continued sliding his finger in and out until she relaxed. A moment later, he pulled his fingers from her, causing her to make a whining sound at the suddenly empty feel. “Shhh, sweetheart. Now push out while I slide this in you,” he said. One hand gripped her hip as something cold, wet, and hard began to push through the muscles. The plug got wider and wider until she almost begged him to take it out before something bad happened. Then the widest part passed through the rings of muscle and a wider base settled against the skin around her hole. Once it was in place, Bailey ran the palm of that hand up her spine. She panted and tried to relax her ass against the invader as he slid his hand back down again. Just as she thought she might be able to hold onto her sanity, the head of Bailey’s cock pressed against her clit then pulled back until it once again nestled into her entrance. “How you doing, sunflower?” Bailey asked through gritted teeth as he eased just the head into her. “Please, Sir. I’m so close,” she panted. “Okay, sunflower, you can come when you need to, but you’d better come three times before I do.” Not able to speak, Eden nodded with her forehead resting against the mattress. In the next instant, Bailey slammed deep, filling her completely. The orgasm that had been circling her swooped in like an eagle after a field mouse. She screamed as sensations exploded out of her pussy

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and raced through her at light speed. Bailey held his cock still until her orgasm rolled through her. Then he pulled his length nearly all the way out before starting a rapid in-and-out motion. She cried again as her orgasm swelled and peaked again. “Mmmm, that’s two. I do like a sub who follows commands. I’m getting close, sunflower.” As she tried to figure out how he could find enough brain cells to talk, her pussy clamped down on the thick rod filling her like a piston. He rode her hard and fast. She felt his cock swell as he continued moving. She was close, so close that when he reached around her hip and pressed two fingers on her clit, she came with another scream. He followed her over, his cries of release echoing her own. Long moments later, he collapsed forward, driving her body flat on the mattress. Before she could complain about his weight, he slid a hand under her waist and rolled so they lay on their sides, still connected together. “Damn, you are amazing,” Bailey whispered softly just before his breathing evened out and he began to snore softly. Eden tried to answer, but had no words for the amazing sex they had just shared. She sighed as his now relaxed cock fell from her pussy. She laid her arm on top of his and relaxed into his hold, amazed that once again Bailey Hawks had kept his word. They were truly a boneless puddle of goo. She was at the edge of sleep when a deafening siren began to wail.

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Chapter 12 It was a good thing they were no longer connected because by the second blaring beep, Bailey had rolled from bed. Once on his feet, he froze and looked around, as if suddenly realizing he was not wherever he thought he should be. Eden was as well, racing to her dresser and pulling on the first thing she laid her hands on. Then she raced to the windows that overlooked the front parking lot. “What the fuck’s going on?” Bailey asked as he found and pulled on his jeans. Looking down, she swore softly when she recognized the car parked below her window. She fumbled to open the locks on the window then shoved the lower half of the window up and pushed on one side of the screen, causing it to swing open. “That no good son of a bitch Wade is breaking into my store,” Eden said as she prepared to crawl out the window. “And what the hell are you going to do?” “I’m going to stop him.” “Oh, no, you’re not, sunflower,” Bailey said as he pulled her away from the window. “I’ll stop him. You call the cops and then your brother.” “But—” Before she could finish her argument, he was out the window and working his way across the porch roof. Worried that Bailey might get hurt, she raced to the counter by the door where her cell phone stayed when not in use. She called 911 and reported a break-in, then called the bar. Adam was not there, whoever answered the phone told her. He and Tiny had just raced out the front door.

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Once her assigned duty was completed, Eden grabbed her keys and headed out the back door. She unlocked the back door to the shop and then punched the alarm code into the panel to silence the alarm. No need to wake the entire neighborhood up with the noise just because her ex-husband was having some sort of crazy meltdown. She hurried through her office, stopping only long enough to flip on the lights. Once in the main room of the shop, she stopped and pulled her phone out again. “Nine-one-one operator twenty-seven, what is your emergency?” “My name is Eden Xavier and I just called in a break-in at Eden’s Garden. Not only has someone broken in, but they also started a fire. And you might also want to send an ambulance as well.” “They’ll be there in just a few minutes, Miss,” the operator sounded unusually bored considering the chaos that was happening. Though the operator asked her to stay on the phone, Eden clicked her phone off and slid it into the pocket of her shorts before racing into Crow’s piercing studio and grabbing one of the sheets he had on hand for customers. Then she raced back out and began swatting at the fire Wade had obviously started on the carpet just inside the door. Though she would have preferred to find Bailey and make sure he was all right, she had to save her store first. She heard the sirens and men’s voices, but kept swatting at the carpet, hoping to keep the flames from reaching the merchandise. Carpet she could replace easy enough, but she did not want to have to explain to the insurance company how her thousands of dollars of sex toys were ruined. She began to cough from the smoke and fumes, but just kept swatting at the fire When someone wrapped their arms around her middle and pulled her out of the store, she began to fight but could not get herself free. “No! I have to save my store!” she screamed as whoever it was carried her out the front door and into the parking lot. “Shhh, sunflower. The firemen will take care of that. But you’re going to get another spanking for scaring five years off my life.”

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The deep, dark, sexy voice cut through her panic and rage. “Bailey?” “Yes, sweetheart. Bailey. Now what the hell do you think you were doing in there?” “Are you all right? Put me down. I have to see you,” she demanded as she once again began fighting his hold. As soon as her feet touched the ground, Eden twirled around. She looked at Bailey’s face then ran her hands down his arms then over his chest as far south as the waistband of his half-buttoned jeans. “Are you all right?” “I’m just fine, sunflower. I wasn’t even needed. Adam and Tiny got there first.” With that assurance, she threw herself into his arms and hugged him tight. He immediately returned the embrace and kissed the top of her head, something she found as comforting as the strength of his arms around her. “And Wade?” She was not sure she wanted to know, but curiosity got the best of her. “He was so drunk he’ll probably claim he doesn’t remember doing anything, but there are witnesses, videotape, and more than enough evidence to arrest him and keep him in jail this time. And I think I’ll ask that a couple of other charges be added to the list.” “What kind of charges?” “How does stalking and attempted extortion sound for starters. Plus, he drove here on a revoked license and he’s drunk as a skunk. I’m sure the police will be able to come up with a few more besides that.” “So he probably won’t be bothering me again anytime soon?” “I don’t think so,” Bailey said. “But to insure he stays away, tomorrow morning we’re going to the courthouse and ask a judge to issue a restraining order to keep him away from you while I’m gone.” Before Eden could ask if that meant he was planning to come back to her after his deployment, Adam and Tiny joined them.

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“The police need to talk to you, Bailey,” Adam said. “They have questions about what happened.” “Of course they do. A broken front door and fire in the store isn’t enough to convict him,” Bailey muttered. He squeezed Eden tight before releasing her. “Behave yourself.” Eden smiled up at him then wrinkled her nose. “Behaving is no fun.” He winked but did not say a word. He did not have to. His eyes glowed with a heat that told her she might be getting another spanking in the not-too-distant future, whether she behaved or not. She shifted as her pussy creamed in automatic response. “That’s a good man you’ve got there, Eden,” Adam said. He dropped his arm around her shoulders to give her a one-armed hug. “I think so,” she agreed easily as they watched Bailey talk to the uniformed police officer. It was nearly dawn before the police and firefighters finally left. By then Tiny had run to Adam’s house and retrieved a piece of plywood that he, Adam, and Bailey used to fix the door while she started cleaning up. Though the shop was smoky, the only real damage was to the carpet and front of the checkout stand near the door. She wanted to avoid filing a claim with the insurance company because they had not wanted to write her policy to begin with. She was afraid if she filed a claim only three months after opening the shop, they might drop her, and then she really would have trouble. But looking around, she did not see anything major that she or Adam couldn’t fix. She would have to wait a few days for the wood to dry, but she would have to repaint the wooden structure Adam had built. Thankfully, none of her equipment or papers had been damaged by either the fire or the extinguisher used to put it out. She stood staring at the carpet, trying to figure out if she could find another piece to match the rest of the room or if she should do something else, when

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Bailey stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “Come on, sunflower. Let’s go upstairs and try to get a couple more hours of sleep,” She nodded and allowed him to guide her through the shop. After setting the alarm and locking up, he picked her up and carried her up the stairs and through her still dark apartment. “I know we need a shower, but I’m too tired right now. We’ll take a bath later and change the sheets,” he said as he set her on her feet beside the bed. She nodded in agreement, all at once weary to her bones. But she could not sleep yet. She needed to share a few things with this man she had fallen in love with. Seeing Bailey race to her defense then the fire that thankfully did only minimal damage made her realize that all they had in life was this moment. No matter what the future held, she wanted him to know how she felt. “Bailey?” “Yes, sunflower?” He helped her into bed then crawled in after her. They were dirty, sweaty, and smelled like smoke, but she did not care. “I love you,” she said softly as she rolled over to face him then snuggled close. “And if you still want me to, I want to get my nipples pierced.” She peeked up through her lashes. Bailey stared as her as if in shock. “You love me?” “Yes, my knight in dusty BDUs. I love you.” “And you’ll get your nipples pierced for me?” Eden nodded, though her stomach did a little flip in fear. “I want to overcome my fear of needles, but I’m going to need your help. Please, Sir, will you help me?” “Oh, Lordy, I love you, sunflower. And I will help you any way I can to overcome your fears, push your boundaries, and expand your horizons for as long as we both live. Will you be my submissive, my

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woman, my wife?” He ran a hand down her back to her ass. He froze when he realized she still had the plug in place. Pressing against the base, he smiled when she gasped then moaned as his hand reached down further and began to diddle at the entrance to her pussy. “Ooooo, yes, Bailey. Yes, Sir. But can we wait to get married until you get back?” Bailey frowned at her. “Why?” “Because my first wedding was a quick, no-frills deal, and you’ve seen how it ended. With you, I want the long white dress and you in your dress uniform and all the bells and whistles. Because this will be the last wedding either of us will ever have,” she said. Bailey thought about it a moment before nodding. “We’ll have the big brass band wedding when I get back, but tomorrow while we’re at the courthouse we’re going to have the Justice of the Peace marry us.” When she opened her mouth to argue, he covered her lip with a finger. “That way if something happens while I’m gone, you will have my name and military benefits. And I’ll have the knowledge that there’s something more than a dorm room waiting for me when I return.” Eden looked uncertain for a moment before nodding. “All right, but you’d better come home to me and in one piece.” “That’s the plan, sunflower, to always come home to my beautiful, submissive sunflower. Now go to sleep. We have a lot to do tomorrow.”

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Chapter 13 “Are you sure about this?” Crow asked for the third time as he stared hard at the piercing equipment he had laid out at Bailey’s request. “We’re sure, we’re sure. Now get over here and do it already,” Eden said, knowing she sounded nervous, but too excited and aroused to care. She tried not to move as she sat on Bailey’s cock, but it was difficult. She wore a full skirt that hid from Crow the fact that Bailey’s jeans had been pushed down around his hips and she was sitting on his cock with a soft black halter top that would keep her mostly covered as Crow did his work. She clenched her pussy muscles and grinned when Bailey sucked a breath and tightened his hands that were holding her hips. Bailey was leaving in the morning, and this was her parting gift to him. As he wanted, they had been at the courthouse in New Bern the next morning, and after filling out the paperwork for their marriage license, they asked a friend of a friend to issue the restraining order against Wade just before he performed the civil ceremony that joined them in marriage. Eden had posted a closed sign on the shop, and they had spent the last four days at the beach, walking along the ocean’s edge and talking between bouts of seriously hot lovemaking. Her anal training had continued, and as soon as Crow finished piercing her nipples, she had plans that would keep Bailey busy until Adam came to drive them to the base so she could see him off. As Crow came at her, an alcohol pad in one hand and some sort of funky gun-looking thing in the other, Eden clenched her pussy

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muscles again. “Sunflower, you keep that up and you’ll be getting a spanking because I don’t know how much longer I can hold you still,” Bailey whispered in his ear as he shifted under her. He pulled her back to lie against him and wrapped his arms around her chest just under her breasts to keep her still. That move shifted the plug in her ass, causing her to suck a breath of her own. Crow did not say a word as she closed her eyes. He pulled the left side of her top aside to expose her breast. Bailey tightened his hold and murmured words of love and praise for her bravery as Crow quickly swabbed her breast with a combination anesthetic and cleanser. She focused on Bailey’s voice as she felt cold metal slide around her nipple. She squeaked and tensed her entire body a heartbeat after the sharp pain. By then Crow was gently closing the nipple ring and taping something over her breast before pulling her top back into place. She kept her eyes closed but listened as Crow walked around the chair before repeating the procedure on her right breast. “All done,” Crow said a moment later from across the room. “Already?” She opened her eyes as Bailey sat them up. “See, sunflower, that wasn’t so bad now, was it?” Eden shook her head and gave a whining sigh as Bailey lifted her off his cock. “No, it wasn’t bad at all.” “Here are the aftercare instructions.” Crow held a pamphlet out without turning from where he again had his back to them. Eden took the pamphlet and watched as Bailey stood and quickly pulled his jeans back into place, hissing as the material rubbed against his erection. “Crow, can you take a picture of Bailey’s tattoo before we go?” Eden asked, grabbing her husband’s arm and holding it out. He nodded and reached for his camera. He quickly took the picture then went back to cleaning and putting his equipment away.

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Bailey laid twice the amount Crow had quoted him on the table by the door before following Eden through the office and out the back door. “Why did you have him do that?” Bailey asked once they were outside. “I’m thinking about maybe getting a tattoo, and I thought it would be sexy to have the same one my husband has,” Eden said easily. “Then people would know who I belong to.” She glanced over her shoulder and found Bailey staring at her. In his expression she read shock and, as usual, arousal. “Would that be okay?” “Damn, woman, you’d better get that sexy ass into that apartment and naked in the next two seconds, or I’ll be fucking you right here in front of God, your brother, and anybody who walks by.” Eden giggled as she raced up the last few steps and into her apartment. Bailey was half a step behind her. He grabbed her arm as he shoved the door closed and twisted the locks. “Come here, wife,” he said as he pulled her into his chest. She squeaked as pain shot out from her tender nipples. He lowered his hold so his hands held her hips against his, pressing them together and causing them both to begin to pant. “Yes?” she asked as she wiggled her hips against his with a grin. “You really want to get a tattoo? You don’t have to just because I have one.” He grabbed the elastic waistband and pushed it down over her hips. “I know I don’t, and I’m not saying I will do it anytime soon. It’s just something I’m thinking about. Now you’d better hurry up and get busy loving me, or you’re going to miss your flight and the Marine Corps will be mad at me.” She reached between them and opened the buttons on his jeans he had secured just moments before. “Yes, ma’am,” Bailey answered as a good Marine should. With a sexy grin, he began a shuffling walk toward the bedroom. Reaching behind her, he slowly pulled on the strings holding her halter top together. First the bottom tie and then the top one.

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**** He hesitated when the top fell away and he saw the bandages covering her nipples. She had caused herself pain, both physical and emotional, for him. That knowledge humbled him, and he leaned in and kissed her. “Do you know how much I love you, sunflower?” he asked as her hands pushed his jeans down and his cock and balls popped free. “How much?” “So much there’s not a description for it,” he said as he stepped away and stripped off the rest of his clothes. “That much, huh?” “Yes, wife, that much. Now get on that bed so I can show you,” he said, adding just a little Dom tone to his voice. “No, Sir. I want to suck your cock first. Please?” Eden kneeling in front of him caught him off guard. She did not wait for his permission. She leaned forward, one hand cupping his balls as she sucked the head of his cock into her mouth. Bailey hissed as she immediately began licking, kissing, and finally sucking on his shaft. Her fingers began to gently roll his balls, playing with them and making his knees weak. After the aborted sex moments earlier and the talk of her getting a tat, Bailey found himself at the edge of ecstasy in less than two minutes. “Oh, fuck, sunflower. Too close. Gonna,” he ground out between gritted teeth as his semen left his balls and worked its way up his cock. Eden responded by sucking a little harder on his cock and squeezing his balls a little tighter. That sent him flying, and his hips snapped forward as he came in waves with a low growl. Once he stopped shooting, she thoroughly cleaned his cock and then rose again. “That’s one,” she said with a grin that kept his cock

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from going soft. In less time than usual, his cock began to re-inflate. “You know if we’re making this a contest that you will lose, don’t you?” he asked. Bailey made a mental list that before he left that afternoon his wife would not be sitting comfortably for the next several days. “Depends on what the goal of the game is,” she said as she gracefully stood up. He sucked a breath when she reached down and gave his balls a gentle squeeze before tracing one fingertip up the heavy vein on the underside of his cock. Then she turned and sashayed toward the bedroom. Hypnotized by the view, Bailey followed, his cock once again up and ready to play. “Sunflower, have you ever been tied up?” **** Eden turned and looked at him, then slowly shook her head. “Not since Adam and I played cowboys and Indians when we were kids. Why?” “Because I’m thinking we may need to do some more toy shopping when I get back,” he said with a smile that sent a shiver from her hairline straight to her clit. Eden took a step backward and the bed caught her lower leg. She overbalanced and fell onto the bed with a surprised squeak. Bailey was on her in a heartbeat. Kissing her as he picked her up, he laid her diagonally across the bed then moved up to crouch over her. After a long, deep, soul-sucking kiss, he kissed his way down the center of her body until he reached her mons. Eden’s breathing grew ragged as he pushed her legs apart to make room for his body between them. “God, you smell so good, sunflower,” he said as his fingers spread her pussy lips. His words sent puffs of air across her knotted-up, oh-so-sensitive

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clit, halting her breathing. She moaned loudly when he moved even closer. He dragged the tip of his tongue from the top of her slit slowly down between the lips and over her wet, knotted flesh. When he reached her clit, Bailey stopped and licked at the pleasure knot before sucking it between his lips and biting it gently. She cried out softly as the orgasm she had been holding on to for more than an hour finally broke over her like a wild storm breaking over a mountain. The muscles of her belly contracted and pulled her head and shoulders off the mattress. Bailey eased up his hold but kept playing at her flesh with tongue and teeth and lips until a second, gentler orgasm rolled through her. Only then did he release her clit. Kissing both thighs, he then rose up and crawled up her body. “That’s two,” he said smugly as he settled his hips over hers then rested his upper body on his elbows. “No fair,” she panted, still trying to catch her breath. But he didn’t give her the chance. Pulling his hips back, he slid his cock full-length into her pussy on the first stroke. With the larger of the butt plugs in her ass, she felt fuller than ever before. “No condom?” she asked, making sure this was what he wanted. “No condom,” he answered as he slowly pulled his cock out until only the head remained in her. Then he slammed his cock forward, driving the air from her lungs as he filled her again then froze. “Unless you don’t want to try making a baby?” At the thought of a baby with Bailey’s pale blue-gray eyes and sweet personality, Eden moaned and tightened her pussy around his cock. “Oh, yes, please. Let’s try and make a baby.” At the fire that blazed in his eyes, Eden knew she had given the right answer. As his hips began to piston in and out faster and harder, he dropped his head forward and licked at her lips. Knowing how he liked to control her, she pulled her legs up, mindful of pressing her knees against her tender breasts.

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“Fuck me, Sir. Fuck me hard. Give me your baby,” she begged. As his hips moved faster and harder, she grabbed for his arms, needing something solid to hold on to as she quickly found herself at the top of the Mountain of Ecstasy once again. She cried out as her orgasm swelled and washed over her, once again causing all her muscles to tighten. Bailey seemed as hot and trigger-happy as she was, and just seconds after she peaked, he roared as his hips pushed deep into her and held tight to her. She felt his cock pulse and twitch inside her as he filled her with his baby juice. He shocked her by not collapsing down onto her as he usually did. Instead, he shifted his weight to one elbow and reached up with his free hand for the pillow beside her head. He dragged it down to her hips. “That’s three.” He winked at her just before he rose and repositioned himself so he was kneeling between her legs. She made a sound as her hunger heated up again when her back arched off the bed. She smiled at him when he shoved the pillow under her butt. “You’ve been wanting to do that for a while now, haven’t you?” Bailey stared at her with wide eyes as he tried and failed to look innocent as he eased his still erect cock from her pussy. “What? Put a pillow under your butt and fill your beautiful ass? You’re damn right, sunflower. I’ve been waiting for this since the first minute I saw you.” Once he had positioned her to his liking, Bailey reached to the nightstand and pulled a condom and the bottle of lube they kept in the basket. She watched as he sheathed his cock before liberally smearing lube on the latex. He then moved back down to kneel at her bottom. He looked down at her pussy for nearly a minute before lifting his gaze to hers. His smile was sad as he began to play once again with her clit. “How is it that you can make me so hard so fast and in such a short period of time? How the hell am I going to survive the next six

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months without you in my arms?” “One minute at a time. One hour at a time. One day at a time, just like I’m going to survive without you,” she answered softly, hoping he did not hear the tears in her voice. They had been so focused on loving and getting to know one another they had not talked about what lay ahead. But now it was here like a giant purple elephant in the room that no one talked about. The separation. The deployment. The war. The fact that though the chances were growing slimmer by the day, there was always a chance he might not come home at the end of six months. She sniffed as tears filled her eyes. “Shhh, sunflower. You’ve got the number of the head of the deployed-wives group for my unit. She’ll probably be there this afternoon, and I want you to meet her and the other wives. I do not want you to bury yourself here and brood about my being gone.” His voice took on the note of power that made her want to do anything he asked. “I’ll be okay,” she said automatically. Could she fit in with the wives of men her husband worked with? Weren’t they all society women who held teas and who would look down on her because she owned a sex toy shop? She yelped when he slapped her left ass cheek. “You will need their help, sunflower. If you don’t make contact with the support group before I reach my base in Iraq, you’ll be heading for some severe punishment. I may even call Adam and have him come up here every day and spank your ass,” he said, his expression deadly Dom serious. “Do you understand?” “Yes, Sir. I’ll make contact and go to their teas and meetings. But I’ll probably have to buy proper society clothes first,” she grumped. “You might be surprised, sunflower, at how much like you some of these women are,” Bailey said then slowly began to fuck the plug in and out of her ass. “Enough talk, woman. It’s time for me to pop this cherry.”

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“Oh, yes, Sir. Take my ass.” Eden did not know what to do with her hands. She needed something to hold onto, and Bailey was out of reaching distance. She went for her nipples, but remembered as her fingers brushed over the bandages why that was not such a good idea. She grabbed her legs and pulled them tight to the sides of her chest and held on as Bailey pulled the plug from her ass and tossed it aside. She met his heavy-lidded gaze as he moved in and the head of his cock brushed against her back hole. “Deep breaths and try to relax and push out, sunflower,” he ordered softly as he began to push forward, spreading her tissues as gently as he could. Once his head passed the rings of muscle, he paused, allowing her a moment to catch her breath. He remained even after she had adjusted to this new intruder. “Move, dammit. Fill me with your cock,” she demanded, shocking herself with such a dominating, power-filled tone. Bailey did not seem insulted as he pushed his hips forward until she felt the curly hairs around the base of his cock brush against her cheeks. She tightened the muscles down around his shaft as she panted and whined. She needed something more. She was so close to an orgasm that she could taste it, but it remained just out of reach. “Oh, fuck, sunflower, you feel so damn goooooood,” Bailey moaned as he leaned forward and rested his hands on the bed, bracketing her in. “I don’t know if I can hold out long, no matter how many times I’ve come already.” With that, he reached down between them and slid a hard, callused finger over her clit. The sensations of stimulated clit joined with the fullness of her ass, and she began to fly. As Bailey began to fuck in and out, each stroke harder and faster than the last, her arousal hummed through her. The combination of feelings sent her higher and higher. All at once she screamed, “I love you, Sir,” as she came one more

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time. “I love you more.” Bailey’s cry of release harmonized with hers half a heartbeat later. “And that’s four,” he said once his breathing had steadied. Eden could not get her mouth to pucker so she could blow a raspberry at him. She was too relaxed. He had melted her into a puddle of goo that could not even hold him as he eased his cock from her ass then left the bed. She heard water running, but her only thought was to wonder how Bailey had any energy left to move. All she wanted to do was curl up next to him and sleep for a week. Nothing else mattered except that Bailey loved her and she loved him back. She was barely conscious when Bailey returned to bed. As soon as he settled, she cuddled against him with her back to his front. She smiled sleepily as he kissed her hair and wrapped an arm around her middle. “I love you, Eden Xavier Hawks. Forever and six days I’ll love you wherever I am,” he whispered, his words blurry and soft in her ear. “Love you, too,” she sighed. “Forever and six days I’ll be right here loving you.”

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Chapter 14 Six months and eight days later Eden stood in the middle of the New Bern airport terminal as passengers, both military and civilian, passed by on their way to the parking lot. She was tempted to call and see if he had missed his flight in Atlanta when all at once he stepped through the door and her heart began to race with excitement as she broke out in a nervous sweat. Captain Bailey Hawks, USMC. Her husband. Her knight in dusty BDUs was home. “Stop jumping or you’re going to do that baby some kind of damage.” Adam grabbed her arm and forced her to stay still when all she wanted to do was jump up and down and draw Bailey’s attention. “But he didn’t see me,” she whined as she turned to argue with her brother, forgetting about the surprise she had for her husband. She had so wanted to tell him the news, but did not want him to worry about her while he had a job that needed his full concentration. Besides, between Crow, Adam, and Tiny, she had enough men worrying over her every move. “Captain Hawks,” Adam called across the terminal in the same loud tone he used when calling “last call” at the bar. It cut through all conversation, and every head turned in their direction, including Bailey’s. He quick-marched in their direction, and then about ten feet away, he slowed as he looked Eden up and down before his gray-eyed gaze settled on her bulging middle. Then his expression went completely blank.

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“Oh, shit,” Eden said softly before moving forward to meet the man who had taken her heart with him. “I think I’m in big trouble.” But Bailey did not say a word. Instead he grabbed her and pulled her as close as her belly would allow before lowering his head and kissing her. At his touch, Eden relaxed fully into his embrace. He was home. Her knight in dusty BDUs was safe in her arms. They ignored the tittering laughter and bawdy comments from those passing by as their kiss went on and on. Finally, when she thought she might happily die right there in his arms, Bailey broke the kiss and stared down at her, his eyes glowing with heat and the Dom she had missed so much. “Why didn’t you tell me you were pregnant?” “You had enough to worry about without me adding to it,” she answered honestly. “Besides, you had already done the hard part. There isn’t much else you can do until the baby’s born.” “Oh, yes, there is,” Adam broke in. “Maybe he can keep you down off ladders and chairs and stop you from picking up sledgehammers and knocking down walls and painting. And he can make the three o’clock runs to the Zippy Mart for ice cream and potato chips.” She watched as Bailey and Adam shared a look over her head. “Oh, little sunflower, you are in for such a spanking.” “Good,” she said. “Because I’ve been a very bad girl.” Bailey leaned closer so only she could hear his next statement. “It’s a very good thing I had time to do some shopping for cuffs and paddles and a flogger while I was in Atlanta. But I think it might have to wait until after the baby’s born.” “No, Sir. I need to be spanked as soon as we get home,” Eden said, meeting his gaze and giving him a wink. “I also need you to take my plug out and love me every way you can. The doctor said I’m strong as a horse and can continue having ‘relations,’ as he called it, up until I give birth.” Bailey’s eyes widened, and then he began to laugh as he pulled

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her even closer to his side and rubbed his hand over her belly. “Oh, yes, little sunflower, I see now you are in for a lifetime of loving and regular spankings.”

THE END WWW.COOPERMCKENZIE.WEBS.COM

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Cooper McKenzie always thought she had been born a hundred years too late but appreciates air-conditioning, computers, and other conveniences of modern-day living. She enjoys the slower pace of New Bern, North Carolina as well as the history and small-town community found there. In addition to dreaming up her next story, Cooper enjoys reading everything except scary books, singing in her church choir, and needle-weaving.

Also by Cooper McKenzie Ménage Amour: Men Out of Uniform 1: Daria’s Heroes

For all other titles, please visit www.bookstrand.com/cooper-mckenzie

Siren Publishing, Inc. www.SirenPublishing.com