Love's Taming (The Love's Series) Read online

  “Doc, you’ve got a look about you that you haven’t had since I met you.”

  Suzanne’s lips twitched upwards as she stood next to Leon.

  “And just what look is that?” Annie asked.

  “Honey, you’ve got well-kissed lips and sex hair.”

  Annie’s hand immediately went to her hair, unconsciously smoothing it back down into her ponytail. “I don’t know what you are talking about,” she protested.

  Leon laughed as he walked to her, leaned down to kiss her forehead, and said, “Don’t worry Doc. You haven’t had a man since I’ve worked here and it is high time you got some!” With that, he headed out to the front desk.

  Annie’s eyes latched onto Suzanne’s face. “Does it really show?” she whispered.

  Suzanne walked over, following Leon’s direction. “Annie,” she said, remembering to not call her Dr. Donavan, “It only shows to those of us who know you. You look great. You just look…happy.” She squeezed Annie’s hand and walked to the front rooms.

  With that revelation flowing through her head, Annie began seeing the scheduled patients. Monday wasn’t surgery day, so she just needed to get through the rooms of appointments.

  By lunch time, she was tired and hungry. “Leon, are you going to the deli?”

  “You want me to pick you up something?” he asked. “Suzanne, you want something too?”

  Just then the front door opened and Leon swung his gaze around. Seeing the tall, well-built man entering without an animal, he quickly said, “We’re closed for lunch. But can I make an appointment for you?”

  “I’m just here to check on my dog, see if I can take him home.”

  Leon’s eyes widened, as did his smile. “So you’re the mystery man?”

  Stoney looked at him, lifting an eyebrow, not saying a word.

  Leon nodded, his smile getting even wider. “You’re Sarge’s owner. The one Dr. Donavan helped over the weekend. Makes sense now.” Looking down at the bag Stoney was carrying, he saw the familiar logo from the deli. “And you brought her lunch. I’m liking you so far, Mr…?

  Stoney, lifting the deli bag in his hands, said, “I brought sandwiches for everyone. And the name is Stoney.”

  Suzanne walked from the back and came to a stop next to Leon, staring up into Stoney’s dark eyes. She wasn’t smiling. Instead, she seemed to be evaluating him, measuring him, trying to figure him out.

  “I’ll get the doc,” Leon said. “Suzanne and I can eat here where we can keep an eye on the front and you can have lunch with doc and Sarge.” Leon headed toward the back rooms, calling, “Hey, Doc. Guess who’s here for lunch?” in a sing-song voice.

  Stoney swung his gaze back down to Suzanne. She definitely wasn’t giving off a happy vibe. Tall, beautiful, with long black hair and piercing blue eyes, she seemed to still be deciding on him.

  “You must be Suzanne. Annie told me about you. Said you were friends as well as co-workers.”

  “Yes,” Suzanne said softly. “Don’t hurt her.”

  Surprised at the words that just left her mouth, he cocked his head to the side. “You think I want to hurt her?”

  Her eyes looked back into his face as though she were struggling with something. “Maybe not intentionally. But she has a lot going on and you seem like…pardon me, but you seem like trouble.”

  Softening his voice, he assured, “I appreciate your concern for her. I don’t want any trouble. And if any comes her way, I’ll take care of it.”

  Suzanne nodded. “Yes, you seem like a man who could do that. But my experience is that men bring trouble, don’t stay around long enough to fix it, and then they’re gone.” She looked past his shoulder as her mind drifted off somewhere, another time, another place.

  “I plan on sticking around. And I plan on taking care of anything that comes her way. Keep that in mind. No matter what it may seem like. Keep that in mind.”

  Suzanne swung her gaze back to him, her brow wrinkled at his cryptic words, but before she could question him further, Annie walked in from the back rooms.

  Smiling at Stoney, she walked over to him as he leaned down to press a simple kiss on her lips, cognizant of their audience.

  “Come on back. Sarge is up and around, eating and drinking. He’s doing great.”

  Stoney followed Annie to the back area where the kennel cages for post-surgery animals were housed. He couldn’t help but notice her ass swaying in front of him as she walked. How can an ass covered in scrubs be that scrumptious? Looking down at her croc covered feet all the way up to her copper ponytail with tendrils falling out, he was struck once again by her beauty. And she has no clue. His attention was quickly diverted when he heard a familiar bark.

  “Hey buddy. Good to see you,” he said as he knelt to the floor, grabbing his dog’s head in his hands. Ruffling his fur, he gladly accepted the dog licks to his face, knowing that he was alive and well.

  Annie knelt down next to him smiling, as she also reached out her hand to Sarge. “He’s doing great. Fever is gone. Incision is fine. He’s anxious to go home with you.” This last statement was made softly, as though Annie felt that the only connection between them was the dog at her clinic.

  Stoney leaned over and touched his lips to hers, keeping it light knowing that Suzanne or Leon could come back at any time. “Let’s eat,” he said to her lips.

  Sitting at her desk in her tiny office, Stoney unwrapped the deli sandwiches and they shared lunch. Annie looked over at him whenever he would focus on Sarge sitting at his feet. ‘Stoney’ doesn’t quite fit him. He’s quiet, but only when he doesn’t need to say anything. She stared at his mouth as he spoke to Sarge. God, he can kiss. She found herself touching her lips, remembering the tingle from a night of kissing. I wonder…

  Just then, Stoney lifted his dark eyes to her, noticing the look on her face. “Baby, you keep lookin’ at me that way, and I’ll find a way for us to get creative right here on this desk and won’t give a fuck if Suzanne or Leon are outside listenin’. You got me?”

  Startled out of her daydreams, Annie jumped. “Stoney! Hush, they may hear you!” Then she couldn’t help but smile at the thoughts she had been having. “Are you taking Sarge home?”

  “Yeah. But I’ll be back tonight. It’ll be late. I’ll use the alley stairs, but baby?” He waited until he had her attention. “You don’t open the door until you know for sure it is me. Got it?”

  Annie nodded at the change in his demeanor.

  “Annie. I wanna hear it. You got it?”

  “I’m not dumb, Stoney. I don’t ever open that door to anyone.”

  “Didn’t say you were stupid, doc. I just don’t want anything bad to happen, so I gotta hear that you get me.”

  Sucking her lips in as she attempted a glare his way, she agreed. “Yes, Stoney. I will only open the door when I’m sure it is you.”

  Chuckling, he leaned over and captured her lips in the kiss. One that started out slow, then he shifted so that he could pull her body over into his lap and the kiss deepened. When he slanted his head for deeper access, the kiss went wild. Tongues tangling, fighting for dominance, until Annie couldn’t remember why she was irritated.

  Pulling back, he said softly, “Got to go, baby. Got shit to take care of today, but I’ll be back tonight.”

  As Annie walked he and Sarge out, Leon looked up from the front desk. “Damn, man. You don’t waste any time. You’ve been back there with lunch and I can see our doc has been kissed thoroughly again!” Leon was smart enough to see the warning glare in Stoney’s expression. “Don’t worry, man. It’s high time this beautiful lady met a man who could give her something to think about other than this place!”

  Smiling in understanding, Stoney gave a head jerk to Leon, said goodbye to Suzanne, and planted a big kiss on Annie right in front of them all. “See you tonight, baby,” he whispered against her lips. Then he and Sarge were out the door.

  * * *

  “Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me?” Stoney asked
the man standing near him. “I bring you the shit, lay it out for you, and you want to dick with her?”

  “You know how it is. Can’t take any chances. It’s gotta be done.” The man talking looked at Stoney’s face for a moment, before leaning in close. “Are you fuckin’ her? Oh, Jesus. How fuckin’ crazy are you? You can’t leave her tail alone?”

  A growl was all the man heard before he was pressed up against the wall with Stoney’s hand around this throat. “Don’t call her tail. Don’t speak of her.”

  “Calm the fuck down, man,” another voice came from the side. Stoney let him go.

  “Hope to God you know what you are doing, ‘cause we’re on the brink of the biggest deal we’ve ever scored and you can’t fuck this up ‘cause you can’t keep your dick in your pants.”

  “It’s covered,” Stoney answered to both men.

  “She know who you are? She know what you do?” the first man asked. “You sayin’ she is more than tail, then you gotta know when this shit blows and she’s is in the dark, you’re gonna lose big.”

  “Told you. It’s covered,” Stoney replied again. “Now, let’s get to work. Tonight, it happens.” In more ways than one.

  * * *

  That night, just as he said he would, Stoney showed up at the back door about eight o’clock. Annie’s back door had glass in the top half that she had covered with curtains. Pulling them back so that she could see who it was, she smiled when she saw him. She opened the door but never got out a greeting before he pushed her inside, kicked the door closed, and pulled her close latching on to her lips.

  “Been wantin’ to do that since I left here this mornin’.” He snaked one arm around her back and the other hand held the back of her head firmly. Moving his lips over hers, he wasted no time in plunging his tongue deep inside, eliciting moans that went straight to his dick.

  Pulling away, Annie looked into his eyes, wondering once again how it was so hard to read his expressions. Before having a chance to ponder that thought further, he scooped her up and headed to her bedroom.

  She pulled his tight black t-shirt up and he jerked it off as quickly as he pulled her camisole off of her. She moved her hands to the waist of his jeans, but he moved them out of the way as his hands went to her shorts and he pulled them down. Once again, she found herself completely nude, but strangely felt no shame.

  Stoney cupped her jaw, rubbing his rough thumb over her lips, watching the emotions cross her face even as passion lit her eyes. “Baby, feelin’ the need to be adventurous. Can you take it?” Seeing her questioning look, he leaned in. “Wanna eat you first…been dyin’ to taste you. Then want you on your back and then on your knees. Want you to come so hard you’ll feel me long after we’re done. Wanna make it so that you remember this night and who I am. You with me?”

  Annie felt the jolt between her legs at his words. Licking her lips, knowing the most adventurous thing she had ever done in the bedroom was…well, she couldn’t think of anything but plain missionary sex and that was only with a couple of partners.

  “Yeah,” she whispered. “I’m with you.”

  That was all the encouragement he needed. He backed her up to the bed until she felt the mattress, and then he gently pushed her down. Pulling her to the edge of the bed, he lifted her legs to his shoulders and brought his mouth to her. Diving in, he licked her wet folds, reveling in the taste of her, using his talented tongue while the fingers of one hand rolled her nipple and the other hand pressed her stomach flat on the bed to keep her in place.

  Wanting to move, Annie protested. And then begged. “More,” she panted, feeling the orgasm building. She could feel his chuckle vibrate through her pussy and it was the most amazing feeling. Higher and higher she climbed as she tried to move her hips closer to his face, but his hand kept her still. Finally with one last deep suck on her clit she arched her back as the tremors shook her from deep inside radiating out. Lying on the bed, sated, she barely registered that he had removed his jeans and towered over her. She opened her eyes just long enough to see him lick his fingers.

  Before she could move, he leaned in, grabbing her knees to spread her legs as wide as they would go before slamming into her. Leaning up as he pounded into her, he watched her breasts move up and down with his thrusts, enflaming him even more. “I own this, baby. Just me. Remember that.” With those words, he leaned down, capturing a nipple in his mouth and sucking deeply.

  Annie had never had a man tell her he owned her, but she was too far gone to protest. If this is what it means to be owned, then hell yeah! She didn’t think she would be able to have a second orgasm so closely to the first, but she could tell it was coming.

  “You close, baby?” he asked, his voice rough with need.

  “Yes, yes,” she panted back.

  Suddenly he pulled out, leaving her bereft. Her eyes flew open to question, but before she could think, she was flipped over onto her stomach.

  “Up on your knees, Annie. Stick that sweet ass in the air.”

  She obeyed quickly, because the thought of what she was about to experience overrode any thought of protesting against the alpha-man-in-charge. She felt him plunge from the back, hitting a place deep inside that had never been touched before. This angle was her new favorite position, but before she could express this, she felt a hard slap on her ass, then it was quickly smoothed by his hand.

  “That okay for you, baby. Won’t do if is you don’t like it, but gotta’ say, I like to play.”

  She nodded because as surprised as she was at the spanking, she felt herself tingle all through her core and wanted him to do it again.

  “Don’t just nod, baby. You want it, I need to hear you say it, so there’s no mistake.”

  “Yeah, honey. I want it.”

  The words had no sooner left her mouth than she felt another sharp stinging slap. Several more rapid spanks followed, then the sting was smoothed by his rough hand.

  “Goddamn, you’re tight. I can feel your pussy grab my cock every time I spank you. Are you close again?”

  “Yes,” she panted out once more, desperately hoping he was not going to pull out again. She was not disappointed. His thrusts increased and as he leaned over her back to roll her nipple once again, she screamed out his name as she came harder than she had ever come. A few more thrusts and he joined her, his head thrown back, neck muscles straining as he released into her body.

  They both collapsed, he almost crushing her until he could roll to the side, pulling her with him. Hearts pounding, they lay silent for a few minutes until the fog of bliss slowly lifted.

  Turning to face him, she raised her hand to his strong, stubbled jaw, and then she placed the softest kiss he had ever experienced on his lips.

  Staring into her green eyes, he said, “Annie, I need you to remember this. No matter what else happens, this, right here, between us, is real.”

  Her brow crinkled, but before she could ask any questions, he reiterated, “Got shit in my life. Shit I have to deal with. And I’m trying to keep that from you. But you gotta know that this is real. What we’re doin’. What we’re feelin’. It’s real. You with me?”

  Not sure what he was talking about, she knew that she felt the same way so she simply agreed. “Yeah, Stoney. I’m with you.”

  He closed his eyes tightly as he pulled her head into his chest, tucked under his chin. Wrapping his other arm around her, he pressed her into him as he held on as though his life depended on her.

  “Baby? I’ve gotta go take care of some business. I don’t know when I’ll be back, but as soon as I can, I’m comin’ back to you.”

  She jerked her head back. “You’re leaving? Where are you going? For how long?” She could hear her voice rising with each question. I’ve just found you and you’re leaving me?

  “Shhh, baby. It shouldn’t be long. I’ve got some work I need to take care of and hopefully it will be done soon. Then I’ll be back. I promise. And we will continue this, only it will be better.”

  H
er eyes searched his, but the darkness staring back at her gave no expression. Knowing he had work to do just as she had her practice to run, she could hardly blame him.

  “Are these some of the problems that you fix?” she asked.

  “Yeah, baby. These are definitely problems that I have to go fix, but it will end soon, and then I can devote my time to lettin’ you know you are the one.”

  Still not knowing what he was talking about, she allowed him to pull her head back into his chest. Relaxed, sated, warm next to his body and tired from a long day, sleep overtook her.

  Stoney lay there, listening to her easy breathing, knowing that this may be the last time he held her. I come out of this alive, I’m comin’ back, baby. We come out of this unscathed, we’ll be together and stronger. Kissing the top of her head, he slid out of bed. Grabbing his clothes, he slipped out of her apartment, making sure to have the door lock behind him.

  Then once again, he moved through the shadows, his survival depending on him staying out of sight. Rubbing his hand over his face, he realized how tired he was of the game he was playing. Finding a woman he cared about…really cared about, made him know the game needed to end. Glancing back down the alley at her apartment, he couldn’t help but wonder. Will we get out of this unscathed? And if so, will she forgive me?

  * * *

  That night, a combined task force of Richland police, DEA, and FBI raided several warehouses arresting a large number of people involved in an organized illegal drug operation. With search warrants in hand, they effectively shut down a huge portion of the gang’s drug activities, including drug sales through prostitution and strip clubs and transporting drugs across state lines.

  Processing the gang members lined up, handcuffed, and being loaded into transports, the officers smiled knowing the hard work and diligence of each of them culminated in a huge investigation finally coming to an end. As they carefully noted the ones arrested, a tall, tattoed, bearded man with dark eyes and his hands cuffed behind him glared back at them just before he was loaded onto the RDP bus.

  Chapter 7