Lick & Devour (Monster Novelette) (3 page)

“I swear, he did. The man stood there and hit on me, knowing good and damn well he’s married! And get this, he was like ‘my wife is of no concern’. You know we’ve had our share of experiences with icky men, Jen, I mean just imagine the clientele at Crazy Pussy and you’d have this asshole pegged. He practically implied that I was going to sleep with him!”

“What did you do?”

“Got the hell out of there,” she murmured, grabbing her fork and twirling the Spaghetti on her plate. “I’m probably going to have my ass handed to me at work tomorrow, but that man gave me the creeps.”

“You gonna tell, Dominic?”

Now wasn’t that the question? It wasn’t like there was anything to hide. But Eden knew Dominic and she knew just how territorial, alpha male he got when it came to her. She could just imagine the reaction she’d get if she told him about this guy. Not only would he become doubly protective, but he would feel it in his right to sic the bodyguards on her. And that was something Eden would not have.

Eden shrugged, “It wasn’t really a big deal. But do you think I should?” she asked peering at Jenna expectantly.

Her friend took a bite from her plate before replying, “I say for the sake of honesty you should. Why keep it from him if it wasn’t a big deal? Besides, I’m pretty damn sure Dominic gets hit on plenty of times. You guys might just have a good laugh over it.”

Eden doubted Dominic would find any sort of humor in this particular situation. But then again odder stuff had happened in their relationship, she mused silently.

With dinner soaking up the majority of the alcohol Eden drank, she made her way safely home thirty minutes later with a Tupperware full of heart shaped cupcakes Jenna had baked for her little
butterball
Liam.

The multi-million dollar mansion that had once upon a time been Eden’s prison, was now a haven that was everything a home should be. The horrible memories that had once permeated from the ivory walls, was now replaced with joy and laughter. The shadows of animosity and anguish was replaced with love and happiness and little Liam Bennett Armstrong was at the center of that. Eden could hear his laughter the minute she walked into the mansion and it brought an instant smile to her face. She found him and Jacqueline in the second floor living room. He was in his pajamas, giggling uncontrollably while his chubby arms and legs flailed in his attempt to wriggle free of the raspberries Jacqueline was blowing on his stomach. It was only when Eden moved within his line of sight, falling to her knees at his side that he managed to pull free and crawl to her. “Mama!” he cheered, throwing himself into her loving embrace.

“Hey there, kiddo!” she dropped kisses on top of his dark head before cupping his face to smooch his lips. “Did you miss me?” she asked, not expecting a reply but laughed happily when Liam nodded. “Did you have fun with, Jacqueline?” Eden greeted the housekeeper/nanny.

“Would you like me to make you something, Mrs. Armstrong?” The matronly woman asked after returning Eden’s greeting.

Despite her insistence that Jacqueline either call her Eden or Ms. Mercer, the housekeeper continued to use her married name to address her. Eden assumed it had more to do with habit than stubbornness, but that didn’t make it any less irritating.

“No thanks. I already had dinner.”

Jacqueline nodded. “Very good. Liam had his dinner and a bath, so he should be ready for bed soon. Would you like me to put him to sleep?”

“I’ll do it. Thanks, Jacqueline.”

Twenty minutes of playtime with Liam before he was conked out. Eden settled him down gently in his crib, pulled the soft, fleece monkey blanket over him before she pressed a kiss to his forehead. She showered and slathered on her favorite lotion and before crawling into the gargantuan bed she shared with Dominic, Eden retrieved her phone from her purse. She did a little bit of work, answering emails and memorized her appointments for tomorrow. The thought of calling him barely had time to take root before her fingers where done dialing the last digit of the number she knew from memory. There was a thirteen hour time difference between Hong Kong and the U.S, and while it was nearing midnight here, Dominic was already well into his day at eleven, which probably meant that he was in meetings, making the likelihood of him answering her call very slim. But Eden made the attempt anyway and was stupidly disappointed when the call went straight to voicemail.

“Dom…” she murmured into the phone. With so much to say Eden failed to find the right words to express how much she missed him. At least nothing that felt or sounded right to say over a recording. She craved more than anything to hear his voice right now. “It’s me…” A pause. “I’m…call me when you have the chance. Nothing is wrong. Just call me.” She hung up then and dropped the phone on the pillow beside her. Two more weeks. Eden sighed heavily. Two more weeks of nights like this. Alone in their bed, aching for his companionship just as deeply as she ached for his sexual mastery. How the hell was she going to survive another two weeks?

“Get a grip, Eden.” She admonished herself. She could do this. It wasn’t like she had any other choice. So she needed to figure out how she was going to make it through the next fourteen days without pining. The distraction for this particular evening came in the form of the T.V.

Pure, trashy television would definitely take her mind off of Dominic. But it seemed there was only so much of housewives, hip hop reality shows and C-list celebrity dramas she could take before her mind melted into goo. With an exasperated sigh, Eden found herself growing more agitated as she mindlessly flipped through channels. The instant she turned off the television, laying on her bed in near darkness, her mind instantly reached out for Dominic’s image. Her memories of him so detailed that she only needed to close her eyes to conjure him. Her dark haired lover, with the insanely sculpted facial features and those rapier sharp green eyes that eviscerated her as mercilessly as they stoked the flames of her arousal, stood before her in all his masculine glory. Molded perfection. Broad shoulders, long, muscled arms, sculpted pectorals and abdomen that called for her touch. And Eden wanted to touch him. Needed the feel of his warm, solid skin beneath her fingertips like life depended on it. She wanted to follow the dark treasure trail of hair until she reached the black, springy curls of hair between his powerful, masculine legs and take hold of the very sizeable, very beautiful and mouthwatering dick that jutted there.

Legs scissoring across the cool comforter beneath her, Eden’s skin felt on fire. The scorching heat that blazed through her core like the sweetest slice of torture, rippled up to the surface of her flesh and covered her skin in a fine sheen of sweat. A thick, heaviness pulsed between her legs, the heat liquefying her pussy until she could no longer ignore the all too obvious flood of her screaming arousal.

God, she was so horny. Not only that but she wanted Dominic so badly that it was a physical ache. She needed him here, now, on the bed with her, inside her. Releasing a whoosh of air, Eden popped up to a sitting position. She needed a remedy, something to take the edge off. Practically jumping out of bed and disregarding the fact that she almost broke her neck tripping over her long, partially open bathrobe, Eden raced to the walking closet.

Heading to the back row of shelves neatly stacked with her various summer clothes, it took Eden a few hopping jumps in front of the middle shelf before she was able to reach the square, dark orange Hermes box. The box was a ruse, there was no delicate scarves to be found between the flurries of sexy, lace undergarments she had yet to wear. What the box carried was far more precious than the delicate panties Eden hastily pulled out, discarding them carelessly on the carpeted floor in search of her prize. She found it minutes later and her pussy clenched reflexively as her hand curled around the slightly curved, pink wand made of cured silicone and glass. She had various other vibrators, different shapes, each one built for a specific purpose, whether it was clitoral stimulation or deep penetration, but none of them came as close to total gratification than the wand. It was her favorite and it never failed to bring her the orgasms her body sorely needed when her lover was away.

Back on the bed, she made a little throne for herself with five fat, luscious pillows she propped against the headboard, the sixth one, smaller than the ones at her back she placed beneath her thighs to give her better elevation. Pulling apart the already unraveling bathrobe, she shrugged it off and tossed it on the floor. Unabashed in her nude state, she settled back against the pillows releasing a soft sigh as a cool draft swept across her fevered skin. Her hands were too soft, too small, the pressure from her fingertips not hard enough, not nearly as demanding or satisfying. But Eden eyes drifted shut as she languorously touched herself as her lover would, the caressing exploration of her hand trailing across the rounded mounds of her breasts. A soft whimper passed between her lips as her fingers brushed across one hardened nipple, gently rolling the sensitive bud between her fingertips sent an electrifying jolt to her pussy. Eden did it again, adding a little more pressure this time and moaned as the jolt intensified. Alternating between each taut nipple, her hands squeezed the soft the flesh of her breasts in a way that Dominic would. Needing to alleviate the pulsing heat of arousal, Eden pressed the expertly hidden on switch of the vibrator before bringing it between her legs. The slight shaking of her hand was the only indication that it was on as her knees feel further apart to allow the noiseless toy better access to her throbbing clit. Heart racing, breath coming in and out of her parted mouth in shallow puffs of dragging air, Eden touched the curved, silicone tip of the vibrating wand to her swollen, wet pussy lips and her insides clenched, hungered for the intrusion of that bulbous head.

“Dom,” it was only his name on her lips, punctuated by a deep, feminine groan as she impaled herself with the generous tip of the vibrator, imagining it was Dominic’s impressive nine inches parting through the slickness on her arousal, that beautiful throbbing dick slowly parting her lips until he was buried balls deep inside her. “Dom,” Eden moaned again like he was there, like the breathless utterance of his name would conjure him to her bedside. He failed to appear, but her imagination worked hard to make it feel like he was there. While she thrust the vibrator deeper, her hips moving back and forth to follow the rhythm of her hand, she turned her head to the pillow on her left,
his
pillow and pressed her face into it. His signature cologne had faded some in the last two weeks since he’s been away, but Eden knew it by memory. It was faint, but she filled her mouth with his scent, dragged the intoxicating smell of bergamot, citrus and cedar wood into her lungs like it was the only form of oxygen she needed. She took him into her bloodstream and fell further into the encompassing fog of her fantasy. She fucked herself slowly, deeply, like Dominic would. He liked to prolong her pleasure, make her beg for it while he was inside her. He would stretch out the thrusts, grab her by the thighs in that sinfully rough way that only heightened her pleasure before pulling his dick out to the very tip. He would wait until she begged, until she mewled before he plunged back in. Slow and deep became fast and erratic as Eden breathlessly gasped for air, the vibration from the wand grinding mercilessly against her g-spot. She tried to prolong the building pressure, tried to hold off that inevitable little death, but Eden’s orgasm tossed her over the precipice, sending her freefalling into the abyss of absolute pleasure. Returning to reality was a jarring experience and as she lay in her cooling desire, gasping for air, cheeks burning hot and wet from her own juices and sweat, Eden felt the empty satisfaction of self-gratification and it made her miss Dominic even more. With a sigh, Eden peeled herself off the mattress and made her way to the bathroom. A shower and then a good night’s sleep was definitely in order at this point.

Before crawling back into bed, Eden walked into Dominic’s closet and even knowing just how obsessive the action was, she still chose to spray her entire body with his cologne. She took down one of his dress shirts and slipped into it. It was too big for her, but she loved it because it was the closest thing to being wrapped in his arms. Closing only the two middle buttons, she settled into bed and hugged his pillow close to her bed. This was good, she thought drowsily. At least it
felt
like he was with her now. Sleep took a while to come but when it finally did Eden was all too happy to go because Dominic occupied her dreams.

***

“Bravo, Eden, I wasn’t expecting that.” Allison Warren greeted Eden at her desk the following morning. Puzzled, Eden set down her coffee cup and walked over to her office closet to hang up her coat. She wasn’t given a chance to admire the massive bouquet of blood red roses on her desk or the medium sized black box with the silk ribbon next to it, before the other woman continued, “I completely underestimated you.”

Eden blinked, taking in Allison’s defensive stance of folded arms and scowling face, the severity of her expression contorting her typically pretty features into something uncomely. She looked ready to kick someone’s ass. Namely Eden’s. Right here. Right now. “What do you mean?” she asked with a small frown of her own. Eden had the vaguest notion that this confrontation might have something to do with what happened yesterday with the arrogant Mr. Blake and she was proven right by Allison’s following statement.

“I didn’t realize you were capable of stabbing me in the back. Here I thought asking Kennedy to hand you my client list would keep me from worrying about my clients being poached, but I guess I had it all wrong.”