Buttons & Lace Read online

  “How much?”

  “Another button.”

  She pressed her lips together as she considered her next move. She only had seven buttons left in her jar. How much would she spend? “Answer my question.”

  “You already asked me this weeks ago.”

  “And I want to know if your answer is still the same.”

  She needed reassurance I wasn’t a liar. When she’d asked me that question, she didn’t know me as well as she did now. “No, I never have.”

  “Were you ever going to rape me?”

  I made two attempts, and I failed both times. “It wasn’t from a lack of trying. When I walked into your bedroom that first time, I had every intention of doing it. But I couldn’t.”

  “Why not?”

  That was a complicated question. “I don’t like to make women cry. I don’t like to cause them pain. The fear you showed and the tears you shed...those were from fear. I’m not into that. I want a woman to want me—and to want me to hurt them.”

  “Then why did you come up with this button arrangement?”

  “Because I could tell you wanted me. You needed an excuse to be with me. You’re too proud to give in to your captor, even if you’re attracted to him. I had to give you a reason. And freedom was the only way to do that. I was willing to lose you as long as I got to have you first.”

  “So you really will let me go?”

  She’d asked enough questions. “You moved to the next tier. It will cost you three buttons to continue.”

  She sighed in irritation. “This isn’t fair. You don’t need to ask me anything because you know everything about me. But I don’t know anything about you.”

  “Who said life was fair?” I countered.

  She glared at me. “I shouldn’t have to pay for your answers.”

  I shrugged. “That’s how it goes.”

  She glared at me again.

  “How about this? I’ll keep answering your questions until we reach the number of buttons you’re willing to pay. And tonight, you’ll work them off.” We were in the perfect room to accomplish the task. “We’ll be even.”

  “But you’ll make me do something crazy.”

  “I’ll never make you do anything you don’t want to do.” She knew me better by now. She was never forced to do anything against her will. Not now and not ever. Well...except being my prisoner.

  “Fine. Will you really let me go?”

  “When you pay your debt?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m a man of my word—through and through.”

  Relief filled her eyes. “I’ve been debating whether I should trust you or not.”

  “You know I’m an honorable guy, an honorable criminal.”

  “I didn’t know there was such a thing.”

  “Now you do. Anything else?”

  “If you’re a good guy, why do you sell weapons to criminals?”

  I never said such a thing. “What makes you think I sell to criminals?”

  “You’re an arms dealer. Who else would you sell them to?”

  “Our company creates weapons to sell to governments for their defense. When Bones releases a new prototype, we design something to counteract it. Countries are always prepared for whatever’s headed their way.”

  She stared at me with a dumbfounded expression, realizing she’d assumed the worst. She usually covered up her weakness like an expert, but this time, she couldn’t hide her misstep. “Seriously?”

  “When have I ever lied to you?”

  “I just thought... I’m confused.”

  “Clearly.”

  “Why do you do that? Why do you sell weapons to governments instead of the highest bidder?”

  “Sometimes the good guys are the highest bidders.” That was my answer, but only part of it. “I don’t know about you, but I like feeling safe in my country. I have friends all over the world, and I want them to be safe too. Bones is the type of enemy that will try to rule the world. If he succeeded, that would benefit nobody. Besides, it pisses him off. And I like pissing him off.”

  She still looked confused, unable to process the truth. “So...you aren’t really a criminal.”

  “I wouldn’t say that.” I’d done my fair share of terrible things. I was far more evil than I was good. “Don’t forget you’re being held against your will. I make you work for your freedom—by fucking. I’m definitely a criminal.”

  She felt the sheets underneath her fingertips, deep in thought. “I wonder—”

  “You’re at five buttons. I’ll keep going if you’re willing to pay the price.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Your answers weren’t worth that much.”

  “I disagree.” She knew a lot more about me.

  “But I have more questions...”

  “Go ahead. But you’ll have to pay for them.” I loved manipulating her into sex. I loved getting her to pay me with her pretty mouth and slick pussy.

  “Is that really all you care about? Sex?”

  I didn’t answer the question because I didn’t understand it.

  “Do you ever have relationships?”

  “That sounds like another question.”

  She rolled her eyes. “You know you can get sex from me just by asking. Do you really need to get buttons out of it?”

  “Yes.” I held her gaze without an ounce of sympathy. “The more buttons I get, the more sex I get before I’m forced to let you go. It’s not any different from cash in a bank account. I spend wisely.”

  When she didn’t ask any more questions, I knew she’d reached her max. She didn’t want to do a sexual act that cost more than five buttons because she knew exactly how much it was worth—since she did it once before. “Alright. I’m done.”

  “Good. Now for the good stuff.” I left the bed and grabbed the instrument I’d been thinking of. While she asked her questions, I thought about how I wanted to take her. Seeing her sitting on the bed in my very own playroom got me hard and bothered. My mind immediately went to dirty places—really dirty places.

  I came back to the bed and set the rod on top. My mouth moved to hers so I could get the foreplay started. Getting women wet was the part I despised the most. I was hard up and wanted to be inside her. But with Button, I didn’t mind. I loved kissing and touching her. I loved the quiet noises she made when her lips parted. She writhed in my arms because she wanted me, and I could feel her thighs press tightly together in longing.

  “Uh, what’s that?”

  I eyed her lips, irritated that she stopped me. “A butt plug.” I crushed my mouth against hers again and guided her to her back. I ripped my jacket off and tossed it on the ground. The fact my brother wanted to fuck her made me want her even more. She was mine, and I didn’t share anything that was mine.

  “Whoa, what?” She pressed her hand to my chest and pushed me back. “A butt plug?”

  “Yeah.” A purple jewel sparkled at the end so when it was in her ass, I could see it sparkle under the light. It would look sexy between her cheeks. “Now stop talking.” I grabbed the back of her neck and forced her lips on mine.

  She pushed me off again. “That thing is not going in my ass. Forget it.”

  She was apprehensive before I slapped her with my belt, but she enjoyed it. She would enjoy this too. “Trust me.”

  “No.”

  “You’ll enjoy it.” I was at a crossroad. I was irritated when she argued with me, but I absolutely loved it at the same time. I had a partner who rivaled my strength. I had a partner who was just as headstrong, argumentative, and stubborn. “You enjoy being whipped, and you’ll enjoy this.”

  “There’s one thing I don’t do and that’s anal. It’s off the table.”

  My cock hardened at her disagreement. Now her ass was even more desirable to me. The fact I couldn’t have it, or at least she thought I couldn’t, made me want it more. “Button.” My hand snaked into her hair, and I held myself on top of her. “When have I ever done anything that didn’t feel good?�
�� I was rough with her, but I never did more than she could handle. And this was very tame.

  She softened under my touch, loving the gentle side of me because it was so rare. “Bones did that a lot with me, and it was the most painful experience of my life. More painful than being hit with a bat. More painful than being cut with a knife. Crow, I don’t want to do it.”

  It was the first time I felt something similar to sympathy. Imagining her being hunted down and beaten sent rage through my spine. The fact she suffered alone without any comfort pulled at my heart. It was a sensation I didn’t think I could feel. But somehow, I did. “Let’s get something straight. I’m not him. I’m nothing like him. If you compare me to him again, I’ll slap you so hard you’ll be knocked out for days. You understand me?” My moment of weakness made me ice-cold. I didn’t want to be caring or compassionate. I didn’t want to care about anyone or anything. Every time I did, they disappeared.

  She saw the flames in my eyes and immediately nodded.

  “This is happening. I know you can do it.” She was made of thicker stuff than the rest of us. Nothing could knock her down. She was like Superwoman, but sexier.

  “Crow—”

  “Button.” I held her gaze and commanded her to cooperate.

  “Seven buttons.”

  My eyes narrowed at the offer. “Five. That was the agreement.”

  “I’m not doing this for anything less than seven.”

  “No.”

  “Then we have no deal.” She defied me with the fire in her eyes. She wasn’t scared of me, and she had no problem standing up to me. She knew she could get what she wanted if she pushed hard enough.

  I sucked her bottom lip into my mouth and gave her a gentle bite. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll agree to seven. But if you like it, we go back to five. That sounds fair.”

  She eyed me in surprise. “How do you know I won’t lie?”

  I kissed the corner of her mouth. “Because we don’t lie to each other.”

  ***

  I took her from behind and slowly thrust my dick into her tight little cunt. It was slick and warm, just like all the other times I felt her. She had the best pussy in the world. It constricted around my dick every time I shoved inside her. I could feel it tremble with pleasure.

  She was so wet her slickness dripped down to my balls. My big cock wouldn’t be able to fit so well if she wasn’t this drenched for me. She was carnally desperate for me, just the way I was for her.

  I stared at her tiny asshole and felt my cock thicken. I couldn’t wait to fuck that little hole. I would stretch her wide, making her scream in both pain and ecstasy.

  When I felt her tighten around me, slowly approaching a climax, I slowed down my pace. I didn’t want her to come yet. I wanted to be deep inside her ass before that happened.

  She looked over her shoulder and gave me a moan mixed with a growl.

  That needy look on her face, that plea to make her come, almost made me shatter. I leaned over her back and pressed a kiss to her mouth, devouring her the way my dick wanted to.

  I knew she was ready, so I pulled away and squirted the warm lubricant into her ass. She immediately flinched when she felt the liquid, dreading what was coming next.

  I inserted two fingers inside her ass and moved slowly, still rocking my cock into her. I wanted this to feel just as good for her as it did for me. My other hand moved to her clit, and I rubbed it aggressively, trying to bring her back.

  Once she got used to it, she backed her ass into me again, wanting every possible inch of my cock. She moaned quietly, enjoying all the nerve endings firing off in her body.

  I was barely holding on. I had a beautiful woman backing her ass into me with desperation. Her pussy was drenched around my cock, and my fingers loved the tightness of her asshole. I couldn’t wait to enter her, to feel that tight channel.

  I slowly pulled my fingers out and grabbed the butt plug. I inserted the curved tip inside her ass then slowly pushed it all the way in. It nearly glided because she was so aroused.

  My hand kept working her clit, and I stared at the jewel looking back at me. I’d never struggled to hold my come to the end, but she was making me weak. I’d had a lot of crazy sex in my life, but fucking Button was the best. She had the perfect body, the perfect soul, and the perfect—everything.

  I fucked her for a few more minutes, pausing when she was about to come, and then I kept going. I could give her multiples, but I wanted to save it for the grand finale. I wanted her to understand how enjoyable being fucked in the ass could be.

  When her ass was stretched and ready for me, I pulled the butt plug out then quickly inserted my dick before it could contract again. I slipped my head inside then slowly pushed.

  She tensed underneath me, uncomfortable with my thickness and length.

  “Relax.”

  “You try to relax when a football is being shoved up your ass.”

  Her back talk just made me hotter. I shoved myself the rest of the way inside her until I was balls deep.

  She released a cry at the intrusion. She didn’t pull away, but she stiffened underneath me. “It hurts...”

  “You can use the safe word at any time. Tonight it’s ice.” I always reminded her of that just in case she forgot. I wanted her to be there because she wanted it, not because she had to. “But you better not.” I grabbed the back of her neck and positioned her against the mattress. I put one foot on the bed and bent my knee to get a better angle.

  And then I fucked her ass.

  She moaned in pain as she felt my dick slide in and out. It was a lot to take in, and her discomfort was understandable.

  “Fuck, this feels good.” Her ass was even tighter than her pussy. It constricted around my dick so hard it nearly bruised it. I shoved myself inside her and felt my chest ache with pleasure. Her quiet cries turned me on even more. I loved knowing she was in pain from my big cock.

  I rubbed her clit as I rocked inside her, wanting her to start appreciating the sensation in her ass. She immediately relaxed for me, her asshole noticeably looser. “Button, rub your clit for me.” I pulled my hand away and watched her take my place.

  She rubbed her nub with her fingertips. I could see them underneath her ass.

  I increased my thrusts and fucked her harder. I knew the moment she started to enjoy it because her cries turned to moans. They became louder as time progressed. She stopped touching her clit altogether and just enjoyed it.

  “Oh my god...”

  I knew what was coming next. I could feel it as her body tightened.

  “I’m gonna come... I can’t believe it.”

  I fucked her harder. “Come for me, Button.”

  She screamed louder than she ever had before. She exploded like a firework booth and shrieked as the pleasure hit her. She writhed underneath me, her hips bucking in response. Her moans lasted an eternity, enjoying a long orgasm that couldn’t have been reached without a little pain.

  Once she was in the clear, I finally let myself go. I went to town on her ass, fucking her like an animal. My ass contracted with every thrust I made, and my balls slapped her skin as I moved. Her moans turned to cries again because I was fucking her so hard.

  Then I released.

  “Fuck.” I gripped her hips as I depleted inside her, filling her with my mounds of white come. My entire length was in her ass, and I gave her every drop, wanting her to keep it as long as possible. I loved knowing she walked around the estate with my come still inside her, in her ass, her pussy, and her throat. “Button, your ass is fucking amazing.”

  She pulled her cheeks apart just as I slid out of her ass. She winced the second my length was gone because her ass had to adjust. She released her cheeks and sighed on the bed, both exhausted and satisfied.

  I collapsed beside her, my eyes heavy from the orgasm that nearly snapped me in half. Button gave me so much pleasure I wasn’t sure how to accept it. It was better with her than any other woman I’d been with.


  “Five.”

  I turned to her when I heard her speak. Unsure what she said, I kept staring.

  “Five buttons.”

  I grinned then faced the ceiling again, knowing she was going to say that before she said anything at all.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Pearl

  What the fuck was wrong with me?

  I was a prisoner in a beautiful mansion in the middle of a vineyard, and I was having amazing sex—which I thoroughly enjoyed. When Crow was inside me, I didn’t think about anyone but him. I didn’t think about the boyfriend I left behind, the man who still ached from my absence. Our relationship just started to get good again when I was taken.

  I was a terrible person.

  Evil.

  The longer I was there, the less I thought about Jacob, and that realization made me hate myself even more. I was slowly forgetting about him, accepting my new life completely. Italy was now my home.

  What kind of person was I?

  Guilt dragged me down, and I couldn’t breathe. I was drowning in my own selfishness. While Jacob was at home suffering over me, I was trading buttons with a possessive man who would only sell me my freedom—in the form of sexual favors.

  And I liked it.

  I couldn’t continue living like this anymore. When I stopped thinking about Jacob, I felt better. But when I realized I stopped, I would feel even worse. Something needed to be done.

  Crow came to my room that night. I hadn’t come down to dinner or breakfast, and he didn’t chase me. He gave me space when he understood I needed it. But when the silence stretched too long, he made his move.

  He sat next to me on the couch, wearing his sweat pants and t-shirt. The muscles of his body were highlighted in the fabric. Everything about him screamed sexy. He was the most beautiful man I’d ever laid eyes on. “What is it, Button?”

  I wasn’t sure if I should tell him, but I didn’t have any other choice. Crow was the only friend I made since I was abducted. Despite his darkness, he was trustworthy. I could tell him things I wouldn’t tell anyone else. “I feel guilty, and I can’t shake the feeling.”

  “What do you feel guilty about?” He rested one arm over the back of the couch, his warm skin touching the back of my neck.