Page 35 of Ashley
"I, well, yes, I mean, it is but—"
"But, what? We are going to have to answer for this later, which I'm quite looking forward to, so why not really earn it?"
"That does make sense…" Her voice trailed off, and she glanced back at the center ring to blessedly see that James wasn't looking at her now. Now he was staring straight ahead at Silas, who was stalking the length of the ring on his end with a scowl on his handsome features. There was nothing of the blond man that exuded the easy charm that had always set her at ease. Now, he was barely containing energy and fire as he waited for the fight to start.
"They aren't going to actually hurt each other, are they?" Ashley asked, grabbing onto Natasha's arm.
The redhead sipped her drink and raised a shoulder. "They have before."
"What?" Ashley squawked.
Natasha snagged another drink from Tony and held it out to her. "Here, drink this. It'll make you feel better. I promise."
Ashley eyed the drink cautiously. She did enjoy a cocktail, but it had been quite some time since she had drunk to not be nervous. Once upon a time, she had relied a little too heavily on the stuff to calm her nerves but now… Now, it was looking pretty damn good.
"A little liquid courage, huh?" she sighed and took the glass from Natasha, who kissed her cheek in encouragement.
"Exactly." Natasha bumped her shoulder and grinned happily. "Have fun now, and have even more fun later."
Ashley blushed at the tone in her friend's voice. There were implications in that tone that was both throaty and wrapped in velvet, in a way that only brought to mind what the crack of James' hands on her ass would feel like. Her skin prickled in anticipation, and she quickly downed half of her drink with a wince. She turned back to the ring and wondered how it was that she was suddenly warming to the idea of going over James' knee—of being punished. Thinking of doing that, having it done to her by another person, giving over that power, would have normally had her refusing to take part. But when it was James? Then, her misgivings vanished in the face of excitement at the unknown. She was nervous, but it had to be worth it to put such a longing and lustful look in Natasha's eyes.
Ashley couldn't help but join in smiling with her friend, who was normally reserved and collected, but now was in full revelry mode. Her cheeks were flushed with drink, eyes bright and laughter ringing as she swayed along with the cheering crowd.
Right, crowd.They were here for a fight. She'd forgotten where she was in all of her daydreaming about spankings and whether or not James would see fit to use his hand or a belt. She clenched her thighs together and had to drown her almost moan in her drink. She had to get it together. In a crowd of people thirsty for James' blood wasn't the place for her to be entertaining these kinds of thoughts.
But as she watched him move, his powerful body colliding with Silas' in a dance that spoke more of control and grace than most ballets she had been a part of, she felt a familiar heat begin to pool in her stomach. She gasped when James exchanged a series of blows with Silas, each man absorbing the hits with barely muffled grunts as the crowd surged around her in excitement. The people gathered for the fight were transfixed by the men battling in front of them, and so was Ashley, but for different reasons. She wasn't here to see bloodshed or for a win, but for the beautiful way James' muscular body moved under the lights of the room, all shadows and sharp planes that she wanted to explore with her mouth and fingertips. She wanted to devour him, to be consumed in turn by the man with storm gray eyes that burned bright with fire. He would take her later, she knew that, his hands rough and gentle on her all at once while he undressed her and pushed her down on the bed, his big body forcing her thighs wide as he settled close to her, breath ghosting over her skin in a butterfly light touch. Those stormy gray eyes she loved would be intent and hot on her as he devoured her and left her begging for more.
It would be amazing. It would be exactly what she wanted. Ashley drained the rest of her glass in time to the screaming crowd that was now going wild at the submission that had just happened. She swallowed hard, seeing James' arm raised in triumph. but he wasn't looking at the ref or smiling in victory.
No, instead, he was searching the crowd, and she froze when his eyes landed on her and flicked to the empty glass in her hand. He tilted his head to the side and gave her a slight shake of his head before he raised a hand and waved one finger in her direction. It was slight and would have been overlooked by the average fan in the crowd, but Ashley couldn't miss it. That one quick flick of his finger could only mean one thing.No.
Glancing to the side, she saw Natasha laughing and impulsively reached out, catching another drink from Tony, who was now making a fresh pass among the crew.
"I knew you were a wild one," he said, tipping an imaginary hat to her when she took the drink. Ashley gave him an impish smile and shrugged, sipping her drink before she turned away and looked back toward the ring. James wasn't watching her, though. His back was turned, and he was striding out of the ring, Silas was hot on his heels, and the blond's eyes were locked on Natasha.
"Maybe we should get out of here?" Ashley asked, poking her friend in the ribs.
Natasha's green eyes lit up and she clapped her hands. "Oh, like a chase?" She glanced to the side and grinned slyly. "I like making Daddy work for it. Come on." She laughed, catching Ashley's hand and moving to the side of the crowd. "Let's get out of—"
"Out of where?" a deep smooth baritone voice sounded at their elbow, and both women yelped.
"Sam?" Natasha jumped and clutched a hand to her heart, her nearly empty glass almost falling to the floor in the sudden motion. "You scared the hell out of me."
Ashley stumbled back in a similar fashion, taken off guard by the man standing in front of her. The handsome, six foot four of pure muscle and good looks, man was giving them both a disapproving look. He had smooth, dusky skin and pillow soft lips that drew her now slightly tipsy attention to the frown he was giving them. He crossed his arms and sighed at them with a shake of his head, and Ashley couldn't help but notice that despite his frown, he had kind brown eyes—they would be sensational when he laughed, Ashley decided.
"Good." The man arched a dark eyebrow at her and shook his head at them. "It's come to the attention of a pair of certain someones," his eyes cut to Ashley, and she froze in where she had been edging away from Natasha and the man, "that the two of you little girls are acting out tonight."
"Oh, it's just harmless fun," Natasha snorted, moving to drink from her glass again, but he snagged it from her in one big hand and tsk-tsked at her.
"I don't think so, missy," he rumbled in a voice that warmed Ashley through.
She rolled her eyes at him. "You never let me have any fun, Sam."
"That's my job, plus, I'm not ending up on Silas and James' shit lists, so don't give me those puppy dog eyes." He flicked a finger at her with his free hand and drained Natasha's drink with a wince. "That's strong, Tash," he chided her.
"Maybe don't be such a wimp," she retorted, crossing her arms and sticking out her lip.
Sam laughed, low and rich, making Ashley think of honey and caramel. Anything that was sinfully smooth and sweet. The man exuded a type of warmth that she associated with Silas and James, and that made it hard for her to keep her distance, even with him chastising them for their behavior. He turned his brown eyes on her and held out his hand.
