He followed shortly after, coming inside of me. He didn’t remove himself from me. He remained buried within me as he wrapped his arms around me and tugged me down against the cushion of the couch. Tucking my back against his chest, he kissed me on my shoulder and said, “Like I told you, doll, it’s just you.”

Eight

Borden

Old people.

The most judgmental people of all. And now he had to endure a bloody dinner with an old battle axe that was probably going to try and tear his balls a new one. He wouldn’t blame Darlene when the time came to it. After all, he was fucking her granddaughter – thoroughly, he had to add – and he was certainly no knight in shining armour.

She’d probably witnessed the bruises on Emma’s skin. Probably frowned in disbelief at Emma’s constant lame explanations when she showed up to her house with his men in tow. Probably listened to her granddaughter defend him every time the battle axe warned her away.

In Darlene’s eyes, he was most likely an abusive stalker with severe control issues, and so good with words, he’d brainwashed her granddaughter into defending him like the good little slave she had to be to want him in the first place.

In other words, this was going to be fantastic.

He smirked at his little alley cat, sitting next to him with her face practically pressed against the window. She was alert, all fogginess from this afternoon’s time at the bar had diminished. She was dressed in this sexy little ensemble: form fitting grey mini-dress with white tights. He would have liked the pants gone, in his opinion. Would have been glorious access to her supple little pussy, one that he hadn’t properly savoured in the club. That was an anger bang he needed to get out of his system before he did something stupid, like seriously injure Hawke. He wasn’t sorry about dismissing him. He knew a look of want when he saw it, and it was blazing out of that bearded asshole’s dark eyes. It was for his own safety that Borden told him to get the fuck out. If he’d stood around a moment longer, staring at Borden’s woman with that look, Borden would have shot him. In hindsight, he should have picked up on Hawke’s softening side toward Emma. He should have noticed the tolerance the asshole had begun to extend to her, remembered the remarks that were made about her in passing, but he’d never actually dwelled on them.

He’d take care of him later.

He continued to observe Emma. If she wasn’t currently so dejected like she was going to her death, he might have put up the divider between the front and back seat and had a taste of her. Unfortunately, with her face covered in worry lines, that wasn’t going to happen.

Because old people.

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” he asked her. “We can turn the car around any time you like, doll.”

“That would be worse,” she quietly answered.

“Not really. You can tell her I’m busy. That I have body bags that need filling.”

Emma’s eyes widened in shock. “Borden!”

“Maybe some people to torture then? You know, any one of those things she’s probably convinced I’m doing in my evil lair ten stories beneath the earth.”

“My grandmother is very old and frail, and I need you to be a gentleman.”

“Do you honestly think I have a gentlemanly bone in my body, doll?”

“Grow one because I need you to be likeable. Is that possible?”

“Abso-fucking-lutely.”

“And no fucking swearing, either!”

“I’ll leave all the swearing to your dirty little mouth, then.”

He continued to smirk at her, licking his own lips as he stared down at her nervously bitten ones. He could bite them for her. He’d take that bottom lip into his mouth and nibble it gently, until her breathing spiked and her skin warmed. As if sensing his wicked thoughts, she turned away and resumed being miserable. She clasped and unclasped her hands over and over again, and the amusement in Borden faded as he realized just how terrified she was.

“Emma,” he said softly. “It’s going to be alright.”

She glanced at him dubiously like she was waiting for the punchline. Was it so hard for her to believe he was genuine?

He slid down the leather seat and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He brought her close to him, turning her small face into his chest. She reluctantly let it happen, and when her head was buried against him, she finally wrapped her arm around his waist, holding him tightly. Like she was clinging for dear life. Borden let out a breath, surprised by her vulnerability. Fucking hell, this was a big deal after all.

She may have lost her parents, but her grandmother was her world, and he didn’t want to take that lightly. This shit needed to be handled with care, and he needed to…care.

He ran his hands through her long black hair and absently stared out into the night as Graeme began to manoeuvre past older houses. These were streets Emma walked along countless times as a child. He’d have given anything for a peek inside her life before him. To see her as a child, alone and confused. There was a twist in Borden’s chest just then. He recognized the emotion. Sympathy. He didn’t want his little firecracker to be so distressed.

“I’ll be the perfect gentleman,” he sombrely promised. “Because it matters to you, and I want to make you happy.”

She pulled away from his chest and her warm brown eyes met his.

“Serious?” she asked.

“Of course,” he answered.

She relaxed against him. “Thank you, Marcus. I’ve never asked you for a favour, but I think after all the shit you’ve pulled on me, I deserve just this little one. My grandmother is going to be hard on you, and you’re going to get angry by it, but I need you to be composed. To just…take it.”

“I can handle a little abuse.”

She eyed him carefully at that, a small smile curling her lips.

He chuckled dryly. “Don’t read too much into that. You know what I mean.”

But that smile didn’t falter.

“Emma, the abuse would have to come from you for it to be acceptable. I don’t have a thing for old ladies.”

“No?”

“No.”

She pressed soft kisses up his neck, and when she reached his ear, she did what he had done so many times before. She took his earlobe into her mouth and bit gently. He felt it all the way to his dick, and his breath thinned at her brazenness.