Chapter 25

Even as I rolled from my bed, yawning and stretching, the dreams continued tumbling through my sleepy mind. Despite the nude selfie Amy’d sent before going to sleep, and Ruby’s pleading for me to come to her, “ ... and Maddie also misses you,” I’d stayed focused.

But the dreams had been endless. Images of the night to come mixed with future ones. In my castle, Mrs. Goodman, alone, chains clinking as she writhed against that rocky wall. All mine to play with for as long as I wished. While washing and making coffee for momma before she left for work, I was again whistling.

That Saturday morning, it was “Devil Gets Your Soul.”

“It’s time for reckoning. No one will come to your defense,” I sang along beneath my breath while pouring a mug. “ ... Just know your days are numbered, and I’ll be there to watch you fall.”

And the grin I sported didn’t leave me all that endless day. Mrs. Goodman for the entire night. With my pulse racing, my hard-on ached more and more as the day wore on. After arriving at the motel suite, the world was blurring with every thunderous beat of my heart.

Not only a bottle of wine, but two glasses were in my hands. Yeah, real glasses. We’d gone far past the point when she’d harm me.

It wasn’t long after everything was set that a vehicle approached. As I sat in a chair taking a sip of wine, its brakes squealed to a halt. After one last inspection of the room, I stood and headed across the carpet. A long silence stretched before at last a car door closed and the clacking of heels came nearer.

My heartbeat thumped with each steady, rhythmic click.

When the key jangled in the lock, I grinned while placing my glass beside the bottle. Yes, with nothing to hide anymore, she was using the key. But while biting my lip, I still imagined her gaze sweeping around, hoping not to be noticed. Perhaps there’d be fear in her eyes. But only of a passing car recognizing her. Or somebody walking past to get ice. At the lock releasing, I tugged on the knob, pulling the door open.

“Good eve—”

Words failed me as Mrs. Goodman gave me a quick glare before stepping closer. Oh sure, there was the lovely anxiety in those glimmering emeralds that got my cock surging. But wow, she’d gone all out. I hadn’t even asked for “sexy” that time. Blonde tresses done up with curled strands framing rouge-accentuated cheeks. Smoky eyeshadow highlighting her gleaming emerald pools. Yeah, she wore the makeup of a woman heading out for a night on the town.

Plus, the dress painted to her sleek contours had my pulse roaring. Deep pink sequins glimmering, it reached only her upper thighs. Lengthy slits revealed both hips. As she strode inside, the black lace tops of dark stockings were visible. No, not looking for a simple night on the town, a woman in a dress like that was on the prowl.

At the press of supple, warm dampness into my hands, I froze. Her eyes blazed as she passed.

“Fucking detest you, bastard,” she mumbled before dropping a small gym bag onto the bureau.

While closing the door, I looked down into my hand. Silk panties. A matching dark pink, they were soaked. The sweet aroma of her need flowed from them. When she caught me inspecting her bare back and firm behind as she spun in the middle of the room, her brows knitted.

“Hate you—” she started.

But at the raise of my palm, she silenced. After spotting the wine bottle and a full glass, she sighed before sashaying to it and lifting it to her lips. While staring at me over its rim, she took a healthy sip. When I raised my wineglass, her eyes flicked to the bed. Already turned down, its covers lay folded at the foot. As a tremor rippled through her, she started to tilt her glass higher.