The door opened easily and I slipped inside. The shower was like the rest of the place. A ratty plastic curtain hung on a rod running the length of the tub. It was clear with little swirly designs that did nothing to hide the muted outline of Cade's body. I took a deep breath of the hot, humid air and reached for the curtain.

Cade half-turned as I climbed into the shower behind him and, for once, he didn't even try to hide his surprise. He tilted his head back as he finished turning, letting the last of the shampoo rinse from his hair. My eyes followed the suds down his body and I tried not to let my gaze linger on his tattoo. He'd made it clear that his mom was off limits.

“Decided you wanted to go first after all?” he asked.

I shook my head. Now that I was here, I found I didn't have the words to say why I'd come. I supposed that meant I'd have to show him. I took a step toward him, the warm spray caressing my body and sending rivulets of paint running down me. I reached out and ran my hand over his chest. I felt his breathing hitch as my fingernails scraped across his abs, and then my hand wrapped around his cock and he swallowed hard.

Ronald had been the kind of guy who needed at least eight hours of sleep before he could manage to get it up again, but considering what Cade did and how well he was paid, I had a pretty good feeling he could handle a second time. After just two strokes, I had my answer. I felt him begin to thicken in my hand.

“Not that I'm complaining,” he began. “But what prompted this?”

I looked up, blinking against the water. “One of the things you're trying to teach me is to get what I want, right?” My hand continued its steady up and down movement and he continued to grow.

He nodded.

“Well, this is what I want.” I lightly squeezed his cock.

He made a sound that was very much like a growl and grabbed my upper arms, pushing me back until I was against the cool tile wall. I stared up at him. I had a moment to glimpse a wild expression on his face, a look so foreign it should have frightened me, but then his mouth came down on mine and nothing else mattered.

His body leaned against mine as his tongue pushed past my lips to plunder my mouth. I moaned as my nipples rubbed against his chest and he swallowed the sound. His tongue curled around mine, drawing them both back into his mouth. I dug my fingers into his wet hair as he sucked on my tongue, sending a bolt of pleasure straight through me. The wet between my legs had nothing to do with the shower.

He was hard against my hip and I knew I had to have him inside me. I hooked my leg around his waist, shifting our position so that his cock was rubbing against my bare pussy. My eyelids fluttered. Fuck that felt amazing.

Cade groaned, his mouth tearing away. He rested his forehead against mine as he grabbed beneath my knee with one hand and reached between us with the other. I braced myself, but even knowing what was coming didn't stop me from wailing as he entered me with one swift thrust. I started to shake as my body tried to adjust. It was too soon after the last time and every nerve ending was still raw. I cried out as he withdrew, then slammed back into me. The base of his cock rubbed against my too-sensitive clit and I whimpered. I was on total overload. Each sensation was too much.

The cold tile on my back and ass.

The water pounding down on us.

The feel of skin against skin as he drove into me.

My eyes opened.

Shit.

“Cade.” I pushed against his chest but he was solid muscle. I grabbed the back of his neck, pulling him toward me, and said the only thing I could think of. “Yellow! Yellow!”

He instantly froze and looked down at me. “What's wrong?”

I could hear the stress in his voice, but I knew as soon as I told him, he'd understand why I'd stopped. I lowered my leg and he let me go, taking a step back. I watched his eyes flicked down as his bare cock slid out of me.

“Oh, fuck.” He took another step backwards, his eyes wide… disbelieving.

For the first time since I'd met him, there was no mask and I could see how horrified he was to have lost control.

“I'm sorry, Aubree,” he apologized as he struggled to regain his composure.

I shook my head. I wasn't going to let this end. I closed the distance between us and grabbed his cock. His entire body shuddered. “We're not done yet,” I said.

“But I don't have any condoms in here,” he started to protest.

“There are other ways we can finish this.” I smiled up at him as I reached for his hand with my free one. As I moved his hand between my legs, I felt a rush of power. This was what he'd been talking about. This was what it was like to know what I wanted and take it.

As I stroked him, his fingers slid between my folds, finding me slick and open and ready. Two fingers slipped inside as his thumb began to circle my clit. I looked up at him, my breathing quickening as I saw the lust in his eyes.

“What do you want, Aubree?” He spoke in a low voice.

Not second-guessing myself, I leaned forward and ran my tongue over his nipple. He moaned and I smiled against his skin. When I scraped my teeth over it, his cock jerked in my hand and he swore.

“Do that again.” His voice was hoarse.

I nipped at the dark flesh and his breathed whistled from between his teeth. His free hand buried in my hair, holding my head in place. As he pushed a third finger into my pussy, my hand tightened around his cock and he groaned. His dick pulsed in my hand and felt him spurt between us, his warm cum coating my hand. His fingers twisted in my hair, sending a jolt of pain through me as he ground the heel of his hand against my clit.

I cried out as I came, my pussy clamping around his fingers hard enough to make him swear again. The hand in my hair dropped as he wrapped his arm around my waist, holding me up as my climax rolled over and through me.

As we came down, he moved us further under the spray, letting the water wash away everything. When I could finally stand on my own, he released me and then handed me shampoo. We finished showering in silence and while I knew Cade had enjoyed himself, I couldn't help but feel that something about what happened was bothering him. I didn't ask about it though. If it was something I needed to know, he'd tell me. Otherwise, I was going to just keep on with what we were doing. As unconventional as it was, it seemed to be working.

Chapter 9

When Adelle called me Saturday morning and asked if I wanted to come over for brunch, I hadn't been sure it was a good idea. I pushed aside my hurt and remembered I was trying to work past our issues. I didn't agree with how she'd done things, but I could no longer deny that hiring Cade had been a good idea.

Still, things were awkward between us as we ate the crepes and strawberries her chef prepared. I'd asked her once, shortly after Morgan had died, why she kept the huge house in Chicago's most affluent neighborhood as well as the entire staff. She'd always told me she felt uncomfortable having people do things for her, and she'd always thought the house too opulent. Her answer had surprised me. She told the staff that if they wanted to look elsewhere, she'd give them a great recommendation, but that she wouldn’t leave any of them without a way to care for themselves and their families. Everyone had stayed and I knew they all thought of each other more like family than employer and employees.

Adelle had a good heart, no matter how her plans screwed up her intentions. It’s part of why we remained such good friends through the years, and I hoped it would be enough to get us past this current obstacle. I was pretty sure it would. Adelle felt horrible about what she'd done and she was doing a great job of keeping her thoughts about my hiring Cade to herself.