Blackmailed Read online

  “Let her go, Wyatt.” Cole’s breathing nearly became as labored as Brianna’s by what he saw. Her delicate wrists were manacled in her father’s beefy fist, her hands nearly purple with the force of his grip. She gasped in and out, each breath wheezing with more force than the last. Cole was used to having a woman tied up, but not into manhandling. This produced only fear and pain, not the pleasure that was supposed to go along with being held tightly. He gritted his teeth and willed Brianna to look up at him.

  A pair of very scared, startled sky-blue eyes finally peered at him from a pale heart-shaped face. Hair the color of a wheat field was tumbling out of her ponytail as she fought to be released.

  The look on her face clawed at his heart, and yet his cock hardened to near bursting.

  His thoughts raced to having her under him, his cock buried in her tight, wet heat, those eyes glazed over in passion, not fear. He imagined her on her knees, those thin, little wrists tied behind her back while she sucked him off.

  “Jesus, must you make that hideous noise all the time?” The harsh words snapped Cole out of his fantasy. Wyatt flung Brianna away from him. She would have fallen to the ground had Cole not grabbed her as she stumbled backwards. “I hope you’re proud of yourself…”

  “Where’s your inhaler?” Cole led her to the couch, concern gnawing at him. He knew instinctively she was having an asthma attack, having seen his little brother battle the disease for years.

  “My p-poc-ket.” She was dressed the same as he, butter-soft jeans and a pale blue T-shirt. He patted both the front and back pockets of her jeans, found it in the front, and dug two fingers in. He lowered her to the cushions and crouched in front of her. With one hand he held the inhaler to her lips, grimacing at the charge he got when her two wobbly hands gripped his forearm. His other hand went to the nape of her neck, caressing and calming.

  His fingers missed nothing as he stroked her. The softness of her skin, the silkiness of her hair. Thank God he had the mental wherewithal to remember her father was still in the room, because he wanted to lean in and lick at the tender vee of her throat where her pulse beat erratically.

  Again, he wondered how she would look when aroused and nearing an explosive climax only he, or Tyler, could give her. Her breathing jerked his mind out of the pleasure gutter.

  “Come on, Bri, slow down, take a deep breath.” His heart hammered as she tried to suck the albuterol into her lungs. “That’s it, let the medicine work.” Her eyes connected with his, both thankful and fearful, and Cole felt like he’d been kicked in the gut. Where the urge came from he didn’t know, but he leaned forward and placed his lips on her forehead. At the same time, he delivered another puff of the medication.

  Her body stiffened and then relaxed into the curve of his shoulder. Cole became aware Wyatt was still in his demeaning diatribe behind them, seemingly unaware of the trouble his daughter was having in fighting for a true breath.

  “…Aww, isn’t that sweet. You two have already hit it off. I apologize for this disgraceful episode.”

  She jerked in response to her father’s words.

  Cole remained in his squatting position and hissed over his shoulder. “Get the fuck out of my house, Wyatt.”

  Wyatt’s mouth opened and closed like a fish, and a red stain crept up his thick neck. The man had obviously never had anyone give him a direct order before. Cole would make sure he knew who was in charge of this whole scenario, right now.

  “You can’t talk to me like that.”

  Cole passed his lips over Brianna’s forehead once more and glimpsed an astonished look plastering itself to her delectable little face. Then he stood and faced a man who shouldn’t be allowed to be a part of the human race.

  “I’ll talk to you any goddamn way I want to.” He stabbed the egotistical bastard in the chest with his finger, another action Wyatt was clearly unused to. “This is my home, and you will not treat anyone within its walls with anything less then respect. Now get out.” His teeth hurt he was gritting them so tightly.

  “Wh-what about the contract? It has to b-be signed,” Wyatt stammered.

  Cole reached a hand around Wyatt’s neck, grabbed the collar of his shirt, and squeezed the material in his fist. “You’ll get your fucking contract in a week. No sooner.” Cole twisted his arm so Wyatt was forced to turn around, and pushed the older man toward the door.

  “So you’ll do it? You’ll get Brianna pregnant?”

  “Oh, I’ll do it all right.” Cole’s voice was deadly soft in the older man’s ear.

  Somehow, Wyatt seemed to miss the menace behind Cole’s quiet words.

  “Let’s go, Brianna.” Wyatt’s voice was almost giddy with excitement.

  “No. She stays with me.” Cole ignored the gasp coming from the couch. “I don’t want you anywhere near her until next Monday. You got that, Mr. Wyatt?”

  Brianna cringed when the door slammed, knowing how her father would react to a command. His face would darken, the vein at his temple would grow and pulse, and his nose would flare to the point you could lose a marble in one of his nostrils.

  The two men continued to argue about their “arrangement” behind the closed door, although Brianna couldn’t understand anything from the garbled but heated conversation.

  She stared, shocked and dazed, at the floor and kept her hands fisted in her lap, fighting the urge to touch her forehead where Cole had slid his lips ever so gently over her skin. Twice. Her current panting had nothing to do with her asthma.

  The man was gorgeous, with unruly, light brown hair framing his tanned face. His eyes were the color of the sky just before a storm, a sort of deep blue-gray. Beneath his T-shirt she had detected a flood of quivering muscles from his pecs to his abdomen. His jeans rode low on his lean hips, and even between gasps of shaky breath, Brianna had wanted to explore what was hidden underneath the snug denim.

  Her heart thudded, aiding the rush of blood to volatile parts of her body. Her very utilitarian white cotton panties were damp. She squeezed her thighs together when a hint of her essence wafted to her nose, and closed her eyes, praying Cole wouldn’t notice when he returned.

  Maybe he wouldn’t come back. He’d done his duty and played the white knight. Sympathy, tenderness and genuine concern had oozed from his pores, but had she seen any real interest on his part? And why would it offend her if she hadn’t? She’d known from the start she would never be a temptation for him, no matter how eager she was to jump him.

  This lustfulness was an alien feeling to her since she was hardly ever around men. Maybe it was a virgin’s reaction to a mouthwatering body. Maybe her clock was ticking.

  Didn’t matter. She shook her head and contemplated why he had told her father he would go along with this stupidity.

  And what had he meant when he’d said, “She stays with me?” She couldn’t leave Scottie. There was no telling what her father would do to him if she wasn’t home. Perhaps she could somehow convince Cole to help her. With what exactly? She nibbled her lip. Why would a gazillionaire help her with her brother? She didn’t have anything to offer him in return. Or maybe she did, if the moisture between her legs was anything to go by. Of course, that would make her a whore.

  She shuddered at the image of lying beneath Cole, naked as he touched her everywhere. She had to get out of here before her fantasies took over and she made a fool of herself in front of the richest man in St. Louis.

  Brianna twisted and looked around the room for the first time. They had not gone up any steps, except those leading to the front door, so the ground couldn’t be more than a few feet away. She launched herself off the pale leather couch where Cole had seated her and dashed to the wall of windows opposite her.

  She yanked on the cord controlling the blinds and sucked in a frantic breath when the oak-colored wood slats shot upward with an alarming racket. Her gaze flew to the door and held for longs seconds. When it didn’t open, the breath she was holding whooshed out of her lungs.

  Disappoi
ntment soared as she looked out on the immaculate courtyard. It was a gigantic adult-sized play land, complete with tennis court, swimming pool, trampoline, putting green and bar. Beyond that, in the distance, was a spectacular view of the valley containing the Missouri River.

  The problem was that the estate was a walkout and she was at least ten feet, if not more, above the ground. Heights had never been good for her.

  God, she wished she’d taken those yoga classes years ago. Some relaxation techniques would be good right about now. If ever there was a more desperate situation to get out of, the time was now.

  “Just close your eyes,” she mumbled and attacked the latch.

  “Going somewhere?” The deep, amused voice rumbled from behind her.

  Brianna spun around, a guilty flush staining her cheeks. Cole Masters lounged in the doorway. The door she hadn’t heard open. His feet were crossed at the ankle, his arms across his chest. A lock of hair had fallen over his eye, and she itched to brush it away. A mischievous grin played at his incredibly sexy mouth. He could have been the model for the “David”.

  Brianna licked her suddenly dry lips. Cole’s face tightened and took on a look of what she could only describe as hunger.

  “Why are you here?” He was blunt, if nothing else. He shoved his body off the doorframe and stalked toward her.

  How much should she tell him?

  “Why would a beautiful, young woman bow down to a crazy man?” He held up his hand just as she opened her mouth. “He is crazy, Bri. No sane man would whore his daughter for the sake of an heir.”

  She gulped as he drew closer to her body, his hips swaggering, drawing her eyes to the very yummy region of his body. He’d used the exact word she had in describing her situation. Whore.

  She straightened, determined he would not see her as a cowering little girl who did everything her father told her to do. She’d never done so before, mostly because he’d never asked anything of her, and she wasn’t going to start now. Somehow, she’d find a way to protect Scott and get out of this ridiculous arrangement.

  Besides, she could give as well as he could. “Why are you doing this?”

  Cole snorted, startling her, and shrugged carelessly. “I can’t even begin to imagine why. I was ready to throw your old man out the door when I saw you struggling behind him. Now you’ve peaked my interest, and to be honest, there’s something about you I can’t resist.”

  “What?”

  He leaned in close to her face, and whispered, “You want me.”

  “I do not.” The lie sounded pathetic even to her.

  He squashed her lips with a lean forefinger and nodded. “Yes, you do. I could read it in you the minute I laid eyes on you. You just don’t know it yet.”

  Didn’t she? Hadn’t she had dreams of being tied up and screaming with pleasure as a man took her? This man.

  Brianna swallowed. He sounded so tender, not demanding the way her father did. He began to slowly circle her, his arm never breaking contact with her body. She shivered in response as he grazed along her back and shoulder blades, then to her front where he passed by her breasts. Her nipples stood at attention, straining against the fabric of her bra and T-shirt.

  Cole leaned back and stared at his handiwork.

  Instinct kicked in and Brianna crossed her arms over herself to cover her body’s reaction to his simple touch.

  “Never.” Cole reached out and grasped her hands, tugging gently to dislodge her arms. “Never cover yourself with me.” His gravelly voice demanded obedience, but didn’t even raise an octave. Brianna found herself wanting to obey anything he asked.

  “Were you running away?”

  The change of subject shocked her, dispelling the intimate sizzle she had just experienced as quickly as it had come. She blinked, returning to reality.

  “Answer me, Bri.” His fingers caressed her arm from elbow to wrist and back again.

  Her eyes popped, her hands fisted. Lifting her chin, she finally answered. “Yes, I was running.” How could she possibly stay here? Scottie. For Scottie she would have to find a way. She would not let her father send him to an institution. Again she thought of simply asking Cole to help.

  “By jumping out the window?” He shrugged as if the whole idea was crazy and stepped closer, his sweet breath tickling her nose. “Seems kind of dangerous to me.”

  “Yeah, well, I can’t imagine you, of all people, would want to have anything to do with sharing your sperm with me so my father can have an heir.”

  Cole raised an eyebrow. “Me, of all people?”

  “Yes you. You know, you being so rich and good looking. You could have anyone. And probably have.” She muttered the last words under her breath.

  He grinned. An honest to goodness, very boyish grin. Brianna slurped the drool back into her mouth.

  “You think I’m good looking?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. Save me from male egos.” She stepped away from him only to have him advance on her again.

  “Do not back away from me, Bri.”

  There was that sensual, implacable voice again. She closed her eyes, savoring it, nearly moaning at the gush of cream flooding her crotch.

  His mouth tickled at her ear. “I can smell your arousal, Bri. I know how turned on you are by me. By the thought of us together.”

  He pressed into her, effectively trapping her between the wall at her back and his delectable body. His cock was hard against her much softer belly. She groaned and dropped her head to his chest, unable to break the spell he was casting on her.

  “I know why your father brought you here. What I can’t understand is why you, an adult woman, would come willingly. Or is it just you thought you could get a piece of me?”

  The air hissed through her lungs when she sucked in a breath. “Do you want the truth?”

  “No, I like it when my blackmailers lie to me.” The sarcasm dripped from his perfect lips. The perfect lips just inches from her own. The lips that pressed against her, asking for more, the tip of his tongue rubbing along the seam of her mouth.

  She gasped as his words sank into her mushy, lust-filled mind and broke the contact. “Black… My father’s paying you. If anyone is being blackmailed here, it’s me.”

  Cole’s face twisted in disbelief.

  “It’s true,” she insisted.

  He folded his arms over his chest, tucked his chin, and peered at her from beneath lashes long enough to make any woman jealous. His eyes clearly shouted, “Yeah, right.”

  Time to come clean.

  “Okay, the whole truth.”

  “And nothing but,” he said gruffly.

  She swallowed. “He threatened to put my brother in an institution if I don’t go through with this ridiculous scheme.”

  “Brother?” he shouted. “There was no mention of a brother.” He ground his hands over his face. “Try a different story.”

  Brianna’s mind whirled. “What do you mean, no mention? You had me followed,” she said in sudden realization. “You knew all about this and were willing to go along with it?”

  “Hell no. And yes, I did a background check so I could have all the facts before I was blackmailed.”

  “But, I already told you, I’m the one being—”

  “Yeah, yeah.” He waved her off. “I know, you’re the victim here.”

  “Clearly.” She was sooo pissed. How dare the man think she would have something to do with this.

  “So, please keep telling me your lie, I mean, the truth.”

  “Oh, you are so gonna feel bad when you see for yourself I’m telling the truth.” She would have liked to smack the arrogant beast, but he still had her pinned to the wall. She had no chance whatsoever of getting a good angle on him. And was it just her imagination, or had his penis gotten even bigger?

  “Like I said, I have a brother, Scottie, well Scott. He was born when I—”

  “Wait a minute,” he interrupted. “If you have a brother, why in the hell does daddy need
an heir so bad.”

  “If you’d let me finish, I’ll tell you.”

  “Sorry.”

  He didn’t look or sound the least bit sorry. She cleared her throat. “He was born when I was ten.”

  “So he’s what, sixteen?”

  She growled as he interrupted yet again. “Yes. During the labor, and right after, he had a series of small strokes. They left him blind and deaf in his right ear. Anyway, my daddy thought he would never be good enough to continue the business.” She lifted her chin. “I’ve been raising Scottie from day one.”

  “So Scott is a secret? Which explains why Tyler didn’t find anything on him.”

  Aah, now the man was catching on. She nodded. “Who’s Tyler? And yes, a secret. My father hates that his only son isn’t perfect. If he’d only spend a tiny amount of time with him, he’d see what a great man he’s going to turn into. Physical limitations and all.”

  She started to get excited. She loved talking about her brother, not that there were many people to whom she could talk about him. Especially since she was never allowed to mention him. Her father would kill her if he could hear her now. “I’ve been home-schooling him. Scottie is really smart, extremely lonely, but very intelligent. You’d like him, he’s a great kid.”

  “You love him, don’t you?” Cole’s words were laced with compassion.

  “Yeah, I do.” She sighed, letting her shoulders relax half an inch. “He’s why I’m here. My father asked me if I would go for a ride with him, something he’d never done before. Curious, I said yes, and that’s when he dropped this little bombshell. I tried to make him see reason, that there was no way to guarantee anyone could give him a boy. But he laughed and said he’d researched your family and there hasn’t been a girl born for generations.”

  “Hmm. I guess he didn’t research well enough, or he would have known I’m adopted.”

  Brianna choked and then, ridiculously, started giggling.