His Secret Treasure Read online

  Pushing her up against the bolted door, I claim her surprised lips in a kiss. She’s so warm, her startled stiffness giving way to a delicious softness that I want to sink into.

  Her hands go around my neck, and I grip her waist and lift her, pulling her up to my level and pinning her against the door. She parts her legs for me, wrapping them around me as if instinctually as I deepen the kiss, slanting my mouth over hers and pushing my tongue into her sultry mouth.

  She answers with her own, and her fingers stray to my hair, mussing the unruly strands even more as I press against her body and feel every curve she has to offer. My cock is demanding I take her here and now, but I focus on her mouth, on the way she tastes, her scent, the hard pounding of her heart against mine.

  When I move my hands lower and cup her ass, kneading lightly, she moans into my mouth, and I swear I’ve never heard a sexier sound in my life. My hips rock forward, everything inside me howling that I have to make her mine.

  I pull back. “I need to be inside you.”

  “Gaines,” she gasps, her tongue darting to her swollen lips.

  Sliding a hand between us, I feel her wet panties. “Tell me you want me right here, as deep as I can go.”

  She makes a strangled sound, her eyes rolling back before she meets my gaze again. “Gaines,” she whimpers.

  “Tell me it’s my treasure. Just for me.” I nip at her bottom lip.

  She darts her eyes up, then stiffens. “Who--”

  “Well, isn’t this a delightful surprise?” Mrs. Pettyford’s amused voice has me biting back a curse. Her giggle may force me to end her.

  9

  Pandora

  “These are the best cookies I’ve ever eaten.” I shove another warm chocolate chip cookie into my mouth. Mrs. Pettyford tops off my glass of milk. I don’t know what’s wrong with Gaines. He didn't even take a cookie for himself. He’s just sitting there with a grumpy look on his face.

  “Where are you from, dear?” Mrs. Pettyford asks, pushing the plate of cookies closer to me.

  “Louisiana,” I answer with a full mouth.

  “That so?”

  I snap my head over to Gaines. Damn it. This Mrs. Pettyford is good at getting information out of people. Her secret weapon is clearly cookies. I’ll have to remember that.

  Maybe Gaines is grumpy because he was interrupted before he could get my cookie. He was all but staking a claim to it. I’d almost let him, too. That mouth of his is dangerous. I need to remember why I’m here. To get my box. Not for him to take my treasure.

  “For a while. I enjoy moving around,” I lie. It rolls right off my tongue. I’m getting good at this. The truth is I never left home until I lost my grandma. Then I went in search of my box. I could barely cover getting myself here and finding a place. But I know it’ll all be worth it.

  “Gaines enjoys traveling from time to time, but then he’s right back home like a hermit.” Mrs. Pettyford speaks like Gaines isn’t sitting right here watching my every move.

  Yes, when he’s not collecting other people’s treasures--ones that don’t belong to him--he mostly stays home. That’s why tonight was so important. There aren’t many opportunities to run into him. His social life is pretty much non-existent. So I need to make the most of the opportunity I have. I can’t keep getting distracted. Not by cookies or his amazing mouth.

  “All he does is work and stay holed up here,” Mrs. Pettyford fusses.

  I nod. She’s absolutely right. It’s why it’s been so hard to meet the man. “I mean, yeah, he seems as though he’s a homebody. I wouldn’t really know,” I rush to add. Crap. I need to remember I’m not supposed to know anything about this man. They both stare at me, not saying anything for a moment.

  “Pretty much. He never even brings anyone here for me to meet. So this must be a special occasion.” I can see the little smile she gives Gaines.

  “This place is beautiful. I don’t know why you wouldn’t show it off.” I wipe some errant milk from my chin.

  Gaines doesn’t take his eyes off me. He has all of these beautiful things in his home, yet he can’t take his gaze from mine. Is he trying to lock me away as he does with all his treasures? I don’t know why. There isn’t anything special about me. Unless he’s on to the necklace. I’ve seen his eyes go there a few times. He might recognize it.

  “Well, I’ll leave you two alone. I hope to see you again soon, Pansy.” Guilt settles in my stomach at her using my made-up name. I hate lying to people, especially ones that remind me of my grandma. But I push it aside, reminding myself that I wouldn’t have to do this if Gaines hadn’t stolen my box. This is all his fault.

  “Thank you for the cookies,” I say again. “It was really sweet of you.”

  “Come back, and I’ll let you try my brownies. I put Oreos in them.” She winks at me before leaving the kitchen.

  I lick my lips. I’m once again alone with Gaines. I feel shy all of a sudden. I let out a squeak when he grabs me and pulls me into his lap. He does it with such ease. Compared to him, I’m all but a doll. Small and dainty. That really shouldn't turn me on. Nothing good can come of this attraction. Even now, I’m digging my fingers into his shirt not wanting to let go. Oh no. What if I’m a clinger? I wouldn’t know, since I’ve never been this close to a man before.

  “I told you I’d get the stain out of your dress.” He runs his thumb across the mark.

  I’d forgotten all about that. I also need to be out of here and back to the store first thing in the morning. I’m a real life Cinderella. Needing to get back before the truth is revealed. Too bad Gaines isn’t a prince. No, he steals from them and loots their castles, the same way he did with my box.

  “I’ll need to have it laundered.” His lips feather across my ear.

  “Are you trying to get me naked?” I tease, ignoring my body's reaction at the thought of that.

  “I gave you my word.” He stands with me in his arms.

  “Do you work out a lot or something?” I slide down his body until my feet hit the floor. I’d kicked my heels off under the kitchen island.

  “I work out, yes.” He takes my hand and leads me out of the kitchen.

  I almost have to run to keep up with him. It takes me two steps to match his one.

  “Sorry.” He turns. In a blink of an eye, I’m in his arms as he takes the stairs three at a time, carrying me as though I’m as light as a feather.

  My eyes eat up everything around me. This place really is beautiful. It’s filled with wealth I could never dream of. I’m going to have to sneak out and look around. I’ll just have to figure out a way to get away from him for a while. Not sure how I’m going to do that. If he’s not looking at me, he’s touching me.

  I could fake falling asleep. He can’t steal my necklace, so it’s safe. Unless his plan is to cut my head off while I sleep? Which I doubt by the way he looks at me.

  “Is that a cat?” I almost jump from Gaines’s arms and forget about everything else. “He’s so adorable!”

  Gaines reluctantly lets me go. I rush over to the fluffy cat. He’s sitting on the end of the giant bed. His green eyes are full of cuteness and curiosity. Then he falls over, giving me his belly. I reach out to pet him but stop. I’ve seen this trick before on Tik-Tok. I reach out my hand tentatively to pet him, waiting for him to strike, but he doesn’t. He continues to lie there bared to me. “I think he likes me.” I rub his belly, which earns me a loud purr.

  Gaines gives his cat a look.

  “Don’t glare at him. He’s a sweet sugar kitty. Yes he is.”

  Gaines folds his arms over his chest. I continue to rub the big fluffy furball.

  “I can’t believe you.” I look up from what I’m doing, thinking Gaines is talking to me, but his eyes are focused on the cat. “He always tries to lure me in by displaying his belly to me. Yet, every single time I wind up with a nice scratch from him. Little traitor.”

  I smile, loving the fact that the cat is allowing me to pet it. “You’ve ha
d enough of her attention, Shah. Save some for someone else.”

  I turn to look at Gaines. How am I going to keep this man at arm’s length? Maybe a little bit of kissing wouldn't hurt. It will distract him. Make him think I’m into him. Which I’m totally not.

  “The dress,” Gaines says. Before I know what’s happening, he reaches behind me and pulls the zipper down. It falls to the floor, leaving me in nothing but my plain white cotton panties. Crap. They’re the one thing I hadn’t even considered upgrading. I guess I still have a lot to learn in this game of seduction. But by the look on Gaines’s face, you’d never know it.

  10

  Gaines

  She stands in front of me like Venus rising from the waves, one arm draped across her breasts as she finds me with her big eyes. “Whoa!” Reaching down, she pulls her dress up and holds it against her chest.

  Keeping my hands to myself is a feat. “If you want the stain gone, you’ll have to hand over the dress.”

  “I can’t just hand over the dress. I’m naked!” She kicks her chin up, then seems to rethink, because her eyebrows draw together. “Naked, right. I’m naked. That’s good.”

  “I agree.” I step closer to her.

  “I should give you this dress.” Her breaths quicken.

  “Yes.”

  “Because that’s seductive.”

  I nod. “Absolutely.”

  Shah rubs against her legs, his whiskers sticking straight out.

  She chews her bottom lip. “Do you have something else I could wear maybe?”

  As much as I want to strip her white panties off and get a taste of the treasure that lies hidden beneath them, I also want her to be comfortable. Given her current lip-nibbling, I can see she needs a bit more time.

  With an inner groan, I nod, then walk past her and into my room.

  She follows me as I hurry into my closet, stop for a moment to adjust the front of my pants, then grab a button-up from the nearest hanger.

  “Thanks.” She takes it from me, then turns around, drops her dress, and slips the shirt on. It’s far too big, but I like the way it looks on her. My fabric. Her body. I lick my lips and pick up the discarded dress.

  Taking it to Mrs. Pettyford isn’t an option. I can’t let my treasure out of my sight. So, instead I send the widow a quick text and drape the dress outside my bedroom door, then close it with a heavy click.

  “This room is bigger than my grandma’s house.” She spins, her gaze lifting to the vaulted ceiling. “My room could probably fit in your bathroom. And Grandma could park her old beater in your closet a few times over.”

  “You’re close with her, your grandma?” I approach her again, my need to be near her verging on obsession.

  She stops spinning, and her chin drops. “I was.”

  I pull her into my arms and hold her too tightly, but I can’t help myself. Those two words from her lips carried more grief than she should ever have to bear alone.

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper into her hair as she wraps her arms around my waist.

  She lets me hold her, her breath hitching for a moment before she gets herself under control. I want to tell her that she can cry, that there’s nothing she could do that would turn me away from her, but I don’t want to spook her. I may be under her spell, but I’m clear-eyed enough to realize that the powerful feelings surging through me could scare her off. Hell, they scare me.

  “It was her time. That’s what she said.” She turns her head so her cheek is against my chest. “She seemed to know. And then she was gone.”

  I stroke her hair. “I’m sorry.” It’s all I can say.

  “She was a pistol.” She sighs. “And I miss her so much.”

  We stand there for a long while, and I’ve never felt more needed in my whole life. Just the way she trusts me to be here, to comfort her--it’s a heady feeling, one I never thought I’d want, much less enjoy. But I do. I want it all from her.

  “Okay, that’s enough of that.” She backs up and wipes her eyes with the back of my sleeve.

  “You can tell me anything. After all, I want to learn more about you. All I’ve got so far is that you’re from Louisiana and used to live with your much beloved grandma.” I stroke her cheek.

  She leans into my touch, seems to remember herself, then pulls away. I move with her, as if pulled by a magnet.

  “So.” She clears her throat. “Mrs. Pettyford said you collect things. What kind of things?”

  “Art, jewels, ancient totems, things that may not have anything more than cultural value, and some things that are beyond priceless.”

  “You take things from people?” She turns in a slower circle, examining my room more closely.

  “No.”

  “No?” She looks up at me, a touch of defiance in her eyes.

  “No.” I meet her gaze. “I don’t steal anything. Not really. I remove items that would likely be destroyed without my intervention.”

  “Your ‘intervention,’ huh?” She crosses her arms, which makes her hard nipples press even harder against the fabric of my shirt. “Well, who died and made you king of ‘items’?”

  “No one. I just have an interest in maintaining the world’s greatest treasures.”

  She narrows her eyes. “Then where are they? I saw some pretty stuff in the halls, but nothing that screamed ‘priceless artifact’ to me.”

  “I keep them stored safely until I can either return them to their place of origin or make arrangements for the Smithsonian or other institutions to keep them until such time as they can be repatriated to their rightful homes.”

  “Oh.” She cocks her head to the side. “You mean you don’t have them all here somewhere?”

  “No.”

  “Oh.” This one sounds almost deflated, and she steps backwards until her knees hit my bed and she sits.

  “What’s wrong?” I follow her and kneel at her feet.

  “Nothing. I mean.” She huffs out a breath. “I’m just tired. Long night and all. I should just get my dress and go.”

  “Please don’t.” I reach up and cover her hands with my own. “Besides, there’s no way Mrs. Pettyford has finished cleaning your dress.” Of course, I’d buy her fifty of those dresses if she wanted them, but that little fact wouldn’t keep her here. I’m not above using a tiny stain as leverage to keep this woman in my life. No, in my bed.

  “I shouldn’t stay. After all, I didn’t win you.” Her eyes meet mine again, and everything inside me seems to melt. This woman is here for a reason. She came to me, falling into my arms like a heaven-sent gift. I can’t let her go so easily.

  “You may not have won the bid, but I’m all yours, Pansy. Let me show you.” I lean down and drop a kiss on her knee.

  Her breath hitches.

  I move to the other knee and gently press my lips to her skin. Desire races through me, burning a path down my spine, but I temper it, pull it back, and keep slowly kissing her, savoring each contact as I move up her thighs.

  By the time I get to the hem of my shirt, she’s almost panting, and I take the opportunity to surge up and claim her lips in another fiery kiss, one that sears straight to my soul.

  11

  Pandora

  I’m really good at this seduction thing. He can’t keep his hands off me.

  As my fingers dig into his shirt, I think I might have this backwards. I’m the one clinging to him. I should pull away. I’m only supposed to make him want me or kiss him because I have to. I’m enjoying this entirely too much. Nothing has prepared me for the way his mouth would feel against mine.

  I’ve never been kissed like this before. Or at all, if I’m really telling the truth. Now that I’ve had a taste of him, I want more.

  He devours me, and before I know it I’m wrapping my legs around him. The ache between my thighs has grown unbearable as I try to press my body to his to get some relief. My nipples harden. I whimper against his mouth, not sure how to tell him what I want.

  “I’ve got you.”


  My body comes down onto his bed as his mouth trails down my neck. I try to lift my hips, needing to rub against him, seeking the pleasure that I somehow know he can give me.

  “Gaines.” Now I’m the one begging him. I gasp when he pulls at my shirt, and the buttons go flying everywhere. I’m once again naked. This time I find I don’t care, especially when his mouth latches on to my nipple. I should feel shy, but instead I curl my fingers into his hair, holding him to me. I keep trying to rub myself against his big body, but he pins me to the bed. His mouth leaves one nipple, going to the other and giving it the same attention as the first.

  “More,” I demand.

  “Greedy.” He lets go of my nipple.

  I’m not the greedy one; he is. Or I thought he was. His mouth travels down my stomach, and my whole body starts to throb. I think something is wrong with me. Something inside me lights and sizzles as he presses an open-mouthed kiss on the outside of my panties.

  He groans, the sound causing goosebumps to cover my skin. I can feel how wet I am, and I know he can see the evidence of it. I whimper, closing my eyes tightly, praying that he doesn’t stop. That he fulfills the promise his mouth is silently making to me.

  “Eyes,” he orders.

  They fly back open in time to watch his fingers grip the edge of my panties, pulling them to the side. “Breathtaking.” His warm breath tickles against my skin. The throb has only gotten worse. I’m so close.

  “I’ve seen many beautiful things in my life, but nothing can hold a candle to you.”

  My stomach tightens at his sweet words. I’m starting to think he’s the one seducing me now. And I couldn’t care less at this point. The only thing I want is his mouth on me.

  His tongue circles my clit, his fingers digging into my thighs as he spreads me wider to make room for his broad frame. I’m wrapped up in him at this moment, not caring that I’ve gone off course. When he sucks my clit into his mouth, I’m lost. I scream out his name as he gives my body the most intense pleasure of my life. He doesn't stop there. He keeps on going. One orgasm bleeds into another until darkness takes me.