Page 37 of Allure
His fingers inched their way up underneath her dress, and her legs widened on their own, giving him access to go farther, but he stayed just out of reach. If she shut her mind down long enough and listened to her body, she’d be able to put an end to the war inside of her—the one that demanded she keep her boundaries in place when it came to him.
“Would you let a stranger fuck you? Would you let him stretch that sweet cunt until you were dripping all over his cock?” Marco grabbed her chin with his other hand, forcing her to face him.
The room fell into an eerie stillness. It made her wonder if she was somehow a part of the performance. She could feel eyes on her, but it didn’t make her shy away—it emboldened her. “You want to watch while I clean my cum off his cock too?” Her voice was barely above a whisper, but Marco’s soft curse made her smile.
Every warning, every rule she wanted to keep in place between them quickly faded. She slowly tried to shut her mind off, wanting to see him come unhinged because of her, wanting him to unravel into the same madness he had taken her into.
“Good girls clean up their messes, estrellita. Of course I want to watch you lick your cum off his cock.” He hummed low, and she felt the heat of someone else closing in behind her.
She tried to step back, and Marco went with her, pushing her into a warm body. She let out a gasp, feeling a thick erection settle into her low back. She squirmed on her feet. The image of two men—Asli and Marco—flashed in her mind, sandwiching her in this exact position, and made her ache. She had no idea where Asli had run off to, but she wanted him here with her and Marco.
“Do you know how good you look right now, Syra? How much better you’d look letting him touch you?” The smile on Marco’s face gave her pause. She wasn’t sure who was standing behind her, but as soon as she felt big hands on her hips, a familiar shiver ran down her spine. She knew before he opened his mouth who was standing behind her.
“Hello, little star.” Asli’s smooth voice tickled her neck, and she refused to think about not only the relief but the excitement that coursed through her at the sound of his voice. “Are you here to play or only here to watch like you enjoy doing?”
Joel winced, flexing his hand—the movement hurt. He cursed, throwing the rest of the bottled water on it, hoping to ease the sting from the bite of heat he accidentally touched. He wasn’t one for getting his hands dirty; in fact, he preferred a more behind-the-scenes role when he wanted to accomplish something. He knew brute force wasn’t always the answer, and sometimes it was more effective to slip in between the shadows to cut his prey down. It hurt more for those who thought they were untouchable. If he hadn’t had such big aspirations, he would have kept to his shadows, but what he wanted required something more—something bigger.
“And now you’re standing here with burns on your hand.” He mumbled, annoyed at how careless he was. He shouldn’t have been here in the first place, but to keep Colton thinking he was the one in charge—the leader with the grit to bark out orders—Joel had to keep playing his part. Though, he was ready to be done with Colton and cut his losses. He was much too volatile and arrogant. His wealth had given him armor that made him believe he was a God, and Joel was itching to knock him off his self-imposed pedestal.
He tossed the bottle and pulled out his phone. He pulled up the old videos he had of Syra. knowing she wasn’t home now for him to watch. He’d followed her to her friend’s home, watching her get in Asli’s car looking like a whore. She never would have worn a dress like that when she was with him—she had known her place, knew that while he enjoyed other people being envious of what he had, he didn’t like her exposing herself.
He fast forwarded the video to his favorite part. She’d just gotten out of the shower and tossed her towel on the bed. Even when they’d been together, she never kept clothes on for long, knowing he liked to look at her—at least when her body was perfect. He ran his thumb across the video, knowing every inch of her skin belonged to him.
“You’ll be back in Ivywood and in your pretty little cage soon enough, Syra.” And once he had her back, he’d make her remove that godawful tattoo on her hip. Stars? Could she have gotten something any more cliché? She already had stretch marks and cellulite and had grown soft around her stomach—she had to ruin her perfection by marring her skin so permanently?
He closed out of the video when she started getting dressed and went to put his phone back in his pocket, but it buzzed in his hand. He looked down at the incoming message, taking a second to realize the unsaved number was from his date tonight. He never added the contact information of the women he fucked, and being back in Lockwood, he made sure to erase all proof of ever having contact with the women after he was done with them.
818-876-5301: We can reschedule if you’re stuck at work. I don’t mind.
Joel: No need. I can pick you up in the next thirty minutes if you’re still up for it. The project was done faster than expected.
818-876-5301: Awesome. I’ll see you in thirty. You still haven’t told me what the dress code is. Should I dress up or is it casual?
Joel: casual but something sexy.;)
He pocketed his phone and got back in his car just as the sound of sirens filled the air. He couldn’t hold back his smile as he made a mental note to grab his date’s phone to scrub it clean of any traces of their conversations. As much as Marco pissed him off, he was appreciative of the lessons Marco had bestowed upon him.
Marco’s quest for complete control when it came to business gave Joel time to learn and pick up a few nifty tricks along the way. It was quite amusing when he thought about it; Marco had set out to destroy him, leave him with scraps he deemed worthy and in the process, Joel would be the one coming out as victor.
He watched as the night sky turned into a violent storm of orange and black smoke and he smiled. There would be no resurrection for Marco coming out of these ashes.
Marco guided Syra to one of the two empty seats on the left side of the room. The side had filled up almost to the max, and he knew it was due to Asli and the two women in the center of the room, Layla and Monica. The three of them had worked together long enough that even a whisper of them being part of a performance drove people out in waves to get a glimpse of the three of them, collectively or individually. Marco had seen them perform together numerous times, and he knew Syra was in for a treat.
The thought of his best friend and his estrellita finally coming together set his blood on fire. He’d shared with Asli before—it was the basis of their teenage and young adult relationships—but something about tonight felt different. Even leading up to Orchard Tree, he’d been on edge, and the anticipation of the night heated his skin, making him painfully aroused. He had taken several cold showers and jerked off to the idea of getting to taste Syra again. It should have lessened his desires for her—for tonight—but nothing seemed to sate him. Not even the shit show going on with his company could dim his excitement.
So long as you don’t think about it for long.
Syra’s fingers curled around his forearm. He could see the hesitation in her eyes, and he waited for whatever question or concern she had. If she wasn’t with whatever went down, he had no issues ushering out of here. Orchard Tree was large, and there was still much to explore.
“I don’t have to participate even though I’m on this side right?” She nibbled on her bottom lip, stealing a glance back toward Asli and the women before she looked back at him. “There’s no rule that says I need to engage?”
He unhooked her hand from his forearm, bringing her hands to his lips. He pressed a gentle kiss to her fingertips before giving them a tight squeeze. “You have all the power here, estrellita. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. Being on this side gives you the option to engage, but as soon as you say no—call the safe words—it stops. No questions asked.”
She licked her lips and nodded. “Okay, that’s good. I’m good.” She sounded certain, her features less wide-eyed and more relaxed behind her mask.
He gently nudged her into her seat and moved to stand behind her. “Wait,” she whisper-yelled. “You’re not sitting down?” She gestured to the empty chair next to her, and he shook his head as he continued to walk behind her.
He leaned down, bringing his lips toward her ear and grabbed both her hands to place them on the arm rests. “This is for you to watch, estrellita. I’ve seen this before, it’s an experience every time but this…,” he murmured, loving the way her breath hitched and she bit her bottom lip, “this is for you to enjoy.”
