Bound to Serve (Dangerous Liaisons #1) Read online

  She gave the slightest hesitation, then pressed against him and arched her neck to give him access. “But it’s only simulated sex.”

  Was that regret he heard in her voice? Or was it only wishful thinking on his part?

  “Is it?” he growled and pulled her close. She all but melted against him. Her unexpected surrender drove him wild. He pressed his hard-on against the warm juncture of her thighs. “It sure as hell feels real to me.” He rocked against her and drank in her whimper as she pressed back against him. “What do you think of that?” he managed to mumble.

  “Oh, yeah, very real,” she said, trembling against him.

  He groaned, captured her lips, and tasted sweet cherries and passion. Her tongue came out to mate with his, and he was lost, pressing against her, letting her feel what she did to him. She cried out and arched against him, gasping. He broke the kiss to nibble her nape and taste her sweet flesh. She was positively the most edible woman he’d ever put his mouth on.

  He groaned and grabbed her ass to pull her sex closer and drink in the little mewing sounds pouring out of her mouth. When he heard the elevator doors open with a ding, he managed to pull himself back and note the heated expression in her emerald eyes, her lips swollen from his kisses. He’d learned what he needed to know. She had the passion to carry out her role. Now he’d just have to teach her the discipline.

  “Come,” he said and took her hand.

  “I almost did,” Bridget whispered in confession and hurried to keep pace with Condor’s long stride. What the hell had he done to her? Her body was still tingling, her heart still racing, and she found it hard to walk a straight line. Never had a man affected her this way. He might be a dinosaur, but Condor knew how to kiss like nobody’s business. Her lips still felt swollen. She missed the pressure of his hard manhood against her body.

  She took a deep breath trying to slow down her racing heartbeat. This needy reaction had to be caused by her shock about the slave bracelet. Certainly not by Condor himself. The disreputable ghost agent wasn’t her ideal man. Far from it. She wanted a tolerant man she could handle. Not one whose idea of fun was spanking women. What kind of man carried a slave bracelet in his pocket? She had an excited, shivery feeling that she was going to find out soon.

  Maybe the bracelet was company property, only part of the role he was playing.

  “When are you going to brief me on the case?” She bit her lip, and her breath caught when he slanted a firm look her way. His eyes darkened when he looked at her mouth, and she shivered. Was he remembering the kiss? Wanting to do it again?

  His expression instantly turned shuttered when he felt her scrutiny. “I’m not. From now on, I’m putting you on a need to know basis, and you don’t need to know.”

  All her steamy thoughts imploded as his blunt statement sunk in. It was outrageous and very unfair. It was her case after all. “What?”

  “You heard me. You can’t let slip what you don’t know.”

  Don’t lose your shit now.

  He was a ghost, used to working alone and outside normal channels. She’d have to bring him up to date on office protocol. “You might not understand how things work inside the department. It’s standard procedure to fully brief team members at the start of any mission.”

  “Ah yes, but then I’m a dinosaur who doesn’t work well with others,” he said with a devilish grin.

  Her mouth compressed into a frown. What a jerk. When he started to tow her past her cubicle, she jerked her arm out of his grip and said, “Let me get my purse.”

  He kept going but said over his shoulder, “No time. Leave it. You won’t need it where we’re going.”

  She rolled her eyes and ran to catch up to him as he breezed out of the building. Her bag would be fine in her desk, and she wasn’t about to let him get away. It was a typical case of a man trying to make up for his shortcomings by being a bully. Although from what she felt when his hard body was pressed against her, Condor didn’t have anything to worry about there. “Won’t you at least tell me where we’re going?” she asked, exasperated.

  He pulled out his cell phone. “We’re airborne in an hour, which gives us half an hour to pick you up some gear.”

  Like what? They had access to the tops in technology, plus a fully stocked arsenal right here. The gear must be unsanctioned, maybe even illegal, if they had to go somewhere else to get it.

  He punched a number on speed dial. “Hi, Cecilia, I need a bundle, the usual. Yeah put in the usual toys and—” he looked at Bridget “—add something special. Stars, I think.”

  Who was Cecilia? She didn’t recognize the name from Delta’s payroll. It was confirmation that he was going off the books to get his gear. His friendly tone with the other woman indicated that he’d done business with her for some time, that they were friends. The abrupt change in his demeanor was startling and he was ordering something special for her. Foolishly, she couldn’t help feeling just a little bit flattered.

  This is just another mission for him, girl. You’re both playing a role. The sooner you accept that, the better.

  Even so, she couldn’t stop the tremulous feeling she got when she stared at the gold and intricately worked slave bracelet on her wrist.

  They exited the agency building into a bright sunlight that made her shield her eyes for a moment, but soon they adjusted. Condor led her to the parking lot, where he pocketed his phone and stepped over to his Harley.

  She scrutinized his every move and watched him tuck the Perez file into a saddlebag. Need to know basis indeed. The minute his back was turned, she’d read it and commit it to memory.

  He tossed a spare helmet at her. “Put this on, if you’re going.”

  She caught it, hoping he hadn’t noticed the direction of her stare. Her mouth went dry when she watched him mount the bike, all fluid, masculine power. What would it feel like to have him over her, in her? To her shame, playing his woman wouldn’t be that big of a stretch for her, but it was going to be tricky mounting that motorcycle wearing a skirt. That didn’t matter. She wasn’t going to let Jennifer Harrison take her place. She put on the helmet and climbed aboard. She wrapped her arms around his firm middle, conscious that her skirt was now riding high on her thighs, but there was nothing she could do about it.

  He revved up and took off. She held on for the ride of her life and wondered where her well-ordered career plans had gone wrong.

  Condor steered them through rush hour traffic, his moves quick and precise. Her breasts rubbed alongside his back and budded into hard, tingling peaks. Her sex pressed against the vibrating seat, and she gasped at the unexpected stimulation.

  He chuckled. “It’s one of the perks of riding with a biker. Relax and enjoy it, sugar.”

  She hissed as they went over yet another bump. Her hands drifted down and made accidental contact with his bulging crotch…warm leather over hotter man. His wicked chuckle washed over her and made her blush and jerk her hands away from his tantalizing package, but not before she noticed his rousing erection.

  The guy must go around semi-hard most of the time.

  Or was it just because of her? Because they’d kissed? Whatever was going on between them, it wasn’t all playacting on his part.

  They pulled up to a building called Dangerous Liaisons. She closed her eyes and let out a mortified groan. It wasn’t a secret arsenal. It was a high-end erotica shop that catered to a select clientele. She’d heard rumors about the place. And Cecilia was inside with something special for her. Oh goodie.

  “You have got to be kidding!”

  He gave her a firm look over his shoulder. “One thing you’ll find out, I never joke about my work, sugar. Go fetch our bundle.”

  “You expect me to be your gofer?” she said, annoyed and not liking the junior role at all.

  “Who’s the agent in charge here?”

  “You are,” she grumbled and tried to get off his bike. It wasn’t easy, and she soon had her legs tangled with his and her skirt up to her
ass.

  Condor let out a growl and got off the bike, and Bridget let out a little smile. She hadn’t deliberately tried to be clumsy, but she wasn’t above taking advantage of the situation either. Now if he’d go get their gear, she could take a sneak peek at the file in his saddlebag—

  His hands instantly wrapped around her waist and made her gasp with shock as he unceremoniously jerked her off the bike. She glared down at him from midair, dangling from his hands, before he firmly set her down on the sidewalk.

  She wrinkled her nose and spat out, “Jerk.”

  “Go,” he said, and he pulled her into the cradle of his legs to give her a sharp spank on the bottom.

  She yelped and backed away, his handprint still burning her backside, even through her skirt and panties. Heat rushed through her as she met his laughing eyes.

  He arched an imperious brow. “The choice is yours. Go. Or should I get a new submissive partner?”

  He’d do it, too. Steaming mad, she turned and headed into the store. The scariest part was the damned spank had felt like foreplay. She’d had far worse taps in the gym, but none of them had made her tingle with arousal. It wasn’t a good sign.

  An overhead bell rang when she ventured inside the discreetly decorated and dimly lit erotica shop. She looked around the empty store and noted that it wasn’t all handcuffs and whips. In the front of the shop were gift items, party favors, wrapping paper, and gag gifts. She laughed when she saw a rubber chicken lying limply on a display counter. Condor? Her would-be master wouldn’t be amused if she came out with that.

  Her eyes adjusted to the soft light, and she took in the intriguing array of lingerie she came to next. Silks, satins, leather and lace, in a rainbow hue of colors. Crotchless panties and a cut out bra on a mannequin caught her attention. How would Condor react if she modeled them for him? Stop it, she didn’t want to know.

  Where the hell was Cecelia? She stalked through the shop and noted that it catered to all fetishes. Massage oils and lubes in dozens of flavors, including cherry, her favorite. Paddles and whips, in all shapes and sizes. Condor’s handprint on her ass seemed to heat up while she gazed at them. Not good. A row of vibrators in different sizes and colors caught her attention, and her sex tightened. Playing Condor’s submissive without losing sight of her goals was going to call on all her training as an agent.

  Bead curtains parted, and out walked a beautiful Asian woman, in an orchid-colored Chinese cheongsam that clung to her slim figure. She bore down on Bridget with a determined, businesslike stride. This must be Cecilia.

  “May I help you?”

  “I’m here to pick up a package for Longtree.”

  “Ah yes, Condor.” Her gaze flicked over Bridget and lingered with interest on the slave bracelet. “I see,” she said with a frown.

  Cecilia had sharp little eyes and, if her reserved tone was anything to go by, a personal interest. The bracelet suddenly felt heavy on Bridget’s wrist, but she refused to be embarrassed or try to hide the bracelet. This was apparently all part of Condor’s job, and Cecelia had no doubt seen it all before. What was his relationship with Cecilia, though, that would make Cecilia so jealous? “He’s your best client, no doubt.”

  Cecelia smiled and turned toward the counter without commenting. “Follow me, slave girl.”

  Bridget bit her tongue and forced back the hot denial on her lips. She had to get into the role, and there was no time like the present. Plus, she really didn’t want to know about the competition. Oh, crap, now she was thinking of him as someone to compete over?

  Stop it!

  He was a colleague. And an annoying one at that. Nothing more.

  She turned her attention to the jewelry in the case. Gulping, she noticed the nipple clamps and stared at them in appalled fascination. Would they be part of the role she had to play? What might they feel like? Her breasts tingled and beaded tight inside her bra. Most likely, they’d apprehend Perez and leave before she had the chance to find out.

  She spotted a glint of gold in a showcase behind the counter. She stepped closer and confirmed that they were slave bracelets, and one bore a striking resemblance to the one Condor had put on her. It was slightly wider and bigger, obviously made for a man.

  “It matches his,” Cecelia said, noting the direction of her stare.

  His. Which meant the slave bracelet she wore really was Condor’s property. Just like her. At least temporarily. But it wasn’t real. This was all a game, and she had to keep that in mind. She’d walk through fire to apprehend Perez, even if it meant falling under the spell of the hunk that foolishly thought he had the goods to tame her. Feeling more claimed than she liked, she took the black leather attaché case Cecilia handed her and headed back out to get her man.

  Chapter Three

  Condor walked back into the body of the Delta Star unmarked jet after conferring with the flight crew in the pilot’s cabin. The agency’s private jet bore no government markings and had filed a false flight plan. The flight to the private island would be a lengthy one and would give him a chance to work with Bridget.

  Bridget stood by the counter, his backpack open and the Perez file unfolded in her hands. He smiled. She’d fallen right into his trap. Denying her access to the file had been a small test, one she’d failed miserably. He knew she was going to be trouble, and this confirmed it. Given her training, it wasn’t likely that she’d blow their cover after learning what it contained, but it was imperative that she learn to obey him.

  The instant she sensed his presence, she looked up at him and blushed like a guilty kid caught with her hand in the cookie jar. An instant later, her chin rose defiantly and her emerald eyes narrowed. The look charmed the hell out of him, but it was her unapologetic smile that made his heart skip a beat, while he hardened, throbbing to life. Damn, who was the master here? It was going to be a long night.

  “So the creep gets his rocks off at a private island compound called the Retreat,” she said softly, then added in a scornful tone, “I’m not a bit surprised.”

  Her instincts as an agent were sharp, he had to give her that, but he was keeping her in the dark for a reason. Unused to this kind of operation, she might say or do the wrong thing and risk her pretty neck. Given her personal connection to the case, and her need to avenge James Clayton, she wasn’t thinking with her head. She’d want to take over. Hell, she’d already threatened to take over, and it couldn’t be allowed. Not on Condor’s watch.

  Bridget clutched the file and tried to gauge Condor’s reaction. She looked at his firm, forbidding expression, and knew without a doubt that she had crossed an invisible line in the sand. He’d ordered her not to peek, and she defied him. Now she had to pay the penalty. Damn the man. She wouldn’t have to resort to subterfuge like this if he’d share the info like a normal agent, but the troubled look in his eye told her to save her breath.

  He rolled up his sleeves. “Kick off your shoes, take off your jacket and piece, and come here.” He pushed down a jump seat, sat down, and patted his hard lap.

  She gulped, appalled, and at the same time fascinated as he prepared to punish her. He couldn’t mean to actually take her over his knee like she was a disobedient child. The flight crew might overhear. A look at his amused expression told her that he meant to do just that.

  “No.”

  He was a total hunk in a rough-around-the-edges kind of way. Still dressed in his biker leathers, he looked totally indecent and totally devastating. “You did agree to be trained. And I told you it would start immediately.” He arched a brow and said softly, “Unless you want out. Just say the word, and I’ll turn the plane around.”

  “No,” she protested. Still, she stood frozen with shock, her pulse racing, her core tightening. If he’d grabbed her and forced her to comply, it would have been so much easier, but that wasn’t his game. He wanted her to come to him, to submit, and damn—part of her wanted to obey, to find out what it was like to let someone else be in control and take care of her.


  With a sigh, she kicked off her pumps, and her toes curled into the plush carpet when she saw the pleased look in his dark eyes. She shrugged out of the blazer and vividly recalled her bold stripping in the director’s office. She’d been so brave then. She couldn’t act like a chicken now.

  She knew her breasts were a little swollen, the beaded crests visible inside her bra, and Condor’s interested gaze on them only made them tingle and bead harder. She removed her gun and holster, which disarmed her in more ways than one, while he continued to study her like the spy he was. It was just the two of them, and she wanted him. Badly.

  It was like being back in college with a hot crush. Screwing him would give her clarity. Except the stakes were a lot higher than enduring some consequently awkward glances in class.

  Frustrated, she found herself slowly moving forward. “You don’t have to do this, you know. I’m a quick study. I can fake it.”

  He smiled. “Every minute you delay is a demerit.”

  She rolled her eyes. “What are you, one of the nuns at grammar school?”

  “And did they paddle my little hellcat?”

  “Of course not.” No one had ever dared paddle her. One look at his laughing eyes made her flush with heat.

  Condor smiled and crooked a finger. “Come.”

  The demand was calmly voiced, but there was steel behind it. She looked down and gulped. Just the thought of stretching out across Condor’s hard lap made her heart trip.

  “Fine, train me, Dino,” she muttered and carefully draped herself over his lap. At least this way, he couldn’t see her burning face.

  He was semi-erect under her belly. Was it because of her? Maybe. But she was probably deluding herself. This was just another mission to him, no more, no less. It was one of the first lectures new agents were subjected to, and she’d memorized it. Hell, Condor probably had it tattooed on his sheets.