“Thanks, baby,” she murmured.
He didn’t reply.
He dropped the basket into the fryer, flipped its lid closed, went out to check the brats he’d put on the fucking grill like he was the modern-day Ozzie who liked his bare ass slapped to her modern-day Harriet, who got off doing the slapping.
Christ.
And then she’d given him better, which made it worse, because with that, it was done. She didn’t settle into a mood, pout, act bitchy, give him looks, turn distant.
Nothing.
They’d had their words.
And when it was done, it was done.
Jesus.
She was a dream come true not just in reach but sitting beside him on the couch, tucked to him in sleep, and he still couldn’t live the dream that was her.
He wasn’t a submissive masochist.
He was just a fucking masochist.
Because just like everything else she gave to take him there, he was getting off on living a dream that he couldn’t allow to be real.
Which meant now he was cooking her brats and coming home to her after going out to drinks with the guys, getting his kink better than he’d ever imagined he’d have it, and they’d slid so deep into normal, into easy, they were in discussions about whether she should get a cat or a dog.
Yes, they fucking were.
A cat or a dog.
And fucking fuck him, like they were normal, like they were easy, like they could have mutual friends that were a part of their lives, this was involving Amélie and Olly because it was Leigh who was pushing it with Angie, seeing as she intended to adopt from the vet where Leigh worked, and Leigh wanted her to get one of each.
Considering how often she was away from home, Angie just wanted a cat.
For her protection, Branch wanted her to get a dog.
Olly, colluding with his woman, was pressing Branch to push Evangeline into getting both.
This included Olly pushing it last night, right in front of Barclay, who motherfucking jumped right on Olly’s bandwagon, doing it grinning like an idiot the whole time, like Branch and Angie were out with who they were and what they had together. When they were, both men knew about him and Evangeline.
They were also not.
And neither man knew that or, if Branch explained (something he didn’t do), they wouldn’t get it and would likely get up in his shit about it.
It also included Amélie texting his ass to try and convince him to convince Evangeline she needed to add a variety of species to her family.
All of this giving Branch ammunition he knew was weak to put off leaving her until he knew she’d made the right decision and got herself a dog, a scary one, even if she got one along with a cat.
Not to mention, once he’d accomplished that, he couldn’t go until after she got the dog, he knew the beast was trained and would do his job, that being more than hanging around panting while Angie lavished him with her brand of love but instead after Branch was certain the canine would rip anyone limb from limb who might look at Angie wrong.
Yeah.
Fucking fuck him.
He shoved all this shit in his brain aside, made himself a bagel (also shoving aside the fact that the minute Angie knew he liked those in the mornings, she made sure to get some and then keep them stocked), poured himself some coffee and scowled through her abundance of plants at the window in her cozy, busy, homey kitchen out to the backyard.
He did this reminding himself he needed to check the levels on the pool like he’d been doing weekly after he caught her doing it and he told her to quit because he’d be doing it from then on.
Oh yeah.
Fucking fuck him.
His phone rang, and to get him away from his thoughts he was happy to talk to whoever was on the other line, he didn’t give a shit it was Pol Pot risen from the dead, so he nabbed it from the counter and looked at the display.
Unknown caller. No number. No location.
Gerbil.
Damn.
They hadn’t spoken since Branch lost his shit with his friend weeks before.
He took the call and put the phone to his ear.
“Yo,” he greeted.
“Brother.”
Gerbil said no more but he didn’t have to say anything, the whipped-dog tone of his voice said it all.
“Listen, man, I was a dick,” Branch declared. “You didn’t know and I threw it in your face like you did. Should have touched base, let you off the hook with that because I know you felt crap and you’re my brother, deeper than blood. I owe my life to you and you saved it more times than getting me out of that hellhole, before and since. So you got my apology, Cameron. I left it too long but I shouldn’t have let it happen at all.”
“We all live our lives and the people around us, even those close to us, John, have to understand there are things they don’t know and proceed thoughtfully and with as much grace as they can. Because we never know the demons people are battling, be it the reason why they’re a pain in the ass in line ordering coffee or sitting homeless, baking in the sun, because they’ve lost touch with humanity. I didn’t give you that. I went in hard and I should have kept my mouth shut. And for that, John, you have my apology.”
He didn’t deserve it but he knew Gerbil enough not to fight it.
“Then we’re done with that,” Branch muttered gratefully.
“We’re done with that and I mean it when I say that, even when I end it by asking, you still with her?”
That surprised him.
“You don’t know?”
“Disabled the GPS tracker on your truck and phone, man. Got no trace on you, like no one can get a trace on you. I know when she’s home and everywhere she goes. You, no clue unless my facial recognition catches you and it doesn’t when it does her, so no. I don’t.”
And so he was keeping her clean.
At least that was a relief.
“And just to say,” Gerbil carried on, “you got a way with avoiding CCTV. At least you’ve kept that skill sharp.”
The skills they’d drilled into him would stay sharp until the day he died and not because of the training. Because of the extent and extremity of the practice.
Regardless of what Gerbil said, he knew that so Branch didn’t comment on it.
He said, “I’m still with her.”
There was a long pause before his friend’s reply of “Good.”
“Gerbil—”
“Just good, John. That’s all. It’s temporary or you find it in you to take it further, even if you have a little bit of what you deserve, it’ll make me happy.”
“I need to end it.”
It didn’t feel good sharing that but he needed to say it out loud and do that giving it to someone he trusted.
Gerbil said nothing.
“I know I gave you reason to keep your mouth shut, but like we said, we’re done with that,” Branch told him.
“You giving me permission to ride your ass?”
Was he?
Was he asking his friend to give him more reasons to stay right where he was?
“Forget I said anything,” he answered, lifting his mug and taking a sip of coffee.
Coffee he’d bought at the store.
With the Italian cream creamer Angie used that he’d learned he liked that he’d also bought when he saw they were running out.
Christ.
“You know where I stand with that,” Gerbil reminded him.
“Yeah,” Branch mumbled.
“And I’m glad we’ve worked this through, brother. I called to do that. I also called because things are going down and I couldn’t delay any longer.”
Branch grew alert. “What things?”
“Twice since we last talked, they nearly got a lock on Raines. I intervened. But I can’t do that too often, John. They’ll put two and two together and they might not get Gerbil, but it still puts me out there.”
“Fuck,” Branch murmured.
“So, you wa
nna play with him or you wanna get the deed done, it’s time to get the lead out.”
He thought of Angie.
He thought of coffee with Italian creamer.
He thought that he needed to clean her pool, check its levels, make sure it had enough chlorine.
He thought the motion sensor lights she’d ordered online were going to be arriving and he needed to put them in.
He thought he had to work on her to push her to get a dog and then he had work to do with that dog.
He thought all this would be happening with him in her bed.
And he had enough blood on his hands, he wasn’t going to bring more into her house.
Not hers.
Not Angie.
“I wanna play with him. End game, they can have him.”
“You got something in mind?” Gerbil asked.
“Pissed himself last time he saw a ghost. He’ll lose his mind, everywhere he turns, that ghost is lurking.”
Gerbil sounded like he was smiling when he declared, “Always liked the way you think.”
“We need to plan it. I fuck with him, when I’m done, you lead them to him.”
“I’ll have that covered,” Gerbil promised.
“Great.”
Gerbil didn’t miss a beat. “Permission to ride your ass, Lieutenant?”
Branch closed his eyes but his mouth moved. “What?”
“That deed gets done, that massive dickweed wiped from the earth, it’s behind you, John. It’s behind me. It’s over. We can finally lay the team to rest. We can finally both move on. And when I say that, I’ll hazard to say what I actually mean is, if you’re still there because she’s making you happy, I hope you move on with her.”
Branch didn’t reply.
“At least think about it, brother. Just promise me that,” Gerbil pushed.
Maybe for himself, maybe for Angie, maybe out of guilt for losing it with Gerbil, maybe because he owed Gerbil everything, maybe because of all that, Branch gave it to him. “I’ll promise you that.”
“All I need.”
He drew in breath and he didn’t want to give Gerbil his next, but to organize maneuvers, he had to.
“I need some time with Evangeline. Need to tell her I’m going to be out of town. Once that’s done, and I’ll do it tomorrow morning, Gerbil, I’ll connect and move out.”
“Got it.”
“Coming to you when it’s over.”
“Say again?” Gerbil demanded.
“We lay the team to rest. Together, brother. So I’m coming to you when it’s over. When I decide a location, I’ll tell you where to meet me.”
“Don’t know how to fold the flag, John.”
“No one to hand them to so it doesn’t matter, Cam. I’ve got Di, Piz and Rob’s tags. Lex and Benetta…” He didn’t finish that. Gerbil knew their tags were necessarily left in the mess that was made of their bodies when they’d been blown to goo. How he finished was, “We’ll make do.”
“That we will, my brother. Like we always do.”
“Right.”
“I’ll wait for you to connect.”
“Right. Later, Gerbil.”
“Absolutely, John.”
They disconnected.
Branch ate his bagel, drank his coffee, ran upstairs to change into street clothes, back down to make himself a travel mug, cleaned out the coffeepot and hit the road.
He went direct to his unit where he stored his gear.
And he collected Di, Piz and Rob’s tags.
He grabbed another set of tags too.
He put them in his glove compartment, ready to roll when he was.
Then he went to his condo to change his clothes.
After that, he took on his day.
But he got home to her house in plenty of time before she’d get home in order to clean the pool and check its levels.
It needed chlorine.
So Branch fed it chlorine.
* * *
Christ, she could work him.
And he gave her that info by grunting behind the silk gag she had tied around his mouth.
That wasn’t the only thing she’d tied.
He was motionless on his back on her spanking bench. His arms tied down to his sides, those bonds also securing him to the bench from hips to shoulders. She’d then shifted up his legs so they were high and tight, open against his sides, the sting of the stretch at the backs and insides of his thighs driving right down to his balls. And last, she’d trussed his calves from ankles to knees to the backs of thighs.
She’d also tied another scarf round his eyes.
He couldn’t move at all. Touch. Speak. See.
Only feel.
And what he felt was the only thing she’d given him after tying him down, the entirety of her focus on his ass, balls and cock. She didn’t touch him anywhere else. Not even a brush.
She’d started by taking all of them with her mouth. She’d also taken her time doing that.
When his breath was seriously labored behind his gag, she’d then harnessed his cock and balls, strapped his ass open and lashed it with a flog that felt like it had wide, black suede tails that were soft but packed a serious bite and had a wide range so she tagged his balls too.
Fucking amazing.
Only when his skin was burning, his balls were hanging heavy in their harness and his dick resting on his stomach felt ready to explode did she insert the lubed toy inside him and turn it on low, the thing filling him and thumping inside, forcing his cock and balls to push the boundaries of their restraints, an agony of beauty.
She’d done all this without talking.
Branch only knew how all she was doing was affecting her when she finally released his dick from its harness, grabbed hold and shifted the vibrations up his ass to overdrive.
His body bucked in its bonds, his hands fisted, his ass clenched in an effort to thrust—something that failed due to his restraints—this making all the brilliance he was feeling absolutely fucking phenomenal.
And he heard her whisper in the husky, reverent voice she got when she was seriously turned on, “God, you’re amazing.”
He was fucking thrilled she thought so.
But Branch needed her to jack his dick.
He needed to come.
All he could do was grunt behind his gag and convulse against his bonds, enjoying the fuck out of everything she was giving him.
“Hold it, baby.” She was still whispering, stroking his cock like she’d just started the scene and had all night.
He growled against his gag, testing the limits of his ties not only with his body’s natural reaction to her work but also reflexively trying to break free so he could get what he needed.
“Hold,” she urged, her tone far past husky. She was close herself, he could hear it, and the straps started loosening even as she kept jacking his cock. “Good, handsome, hold,” she ordered quietly, more bonds loosening, her hand at his dick going faster, tightening. “That’s it, baby, keep holding for me,” she cooed, and he felt the vibrations up his ass roll up higher, making magic.
His body jolted and his mind cleared of everything.
Everything but the toy thumping up his ass, her hand on his cock, his balls straining their harness.
So when he was only held down by two straps at his chest and shoulders, he slid under them, freeing himself, and heard her soft gasp.
He tore off the blindfold, yanked down the gag, and vaguely saw her bent over him.
He hooked her waist with an arm and lifted up, taking her with him. He turned and slammed her down on her back on the spanking bench. Hitching a leg over to straddle the bench and tower over her standing, he held her down with one hand tangled in her hair.
His other hand was at his cock, fisting it and pumping brutally.
“Baby,” she breathed, her eyes gazing up at him burning, her hand gliding up the side of his hip, her other hand going to cup his balls.
“You want my cum down your throat or o
n you?” he grunted, still fisting his dick and now thrusting through his hand.
God.
Fuck.
Brilliant.
“What do you want?” she gasped.
“I wanna see me all over you.”
“Then do it.”
He gripped her hair tighter, pulling it back, bowing her neck, and heard her sweet whimper.
“Hand in your panties,” he grunted.
She immediately shoved her hand down her panties and he hoped she was there because if she wasn’t, he couldn’t hold much longer so he’d have to take care of her after.
She was there.
The instant her hand slid into her panties, her entire sweet, little body arced off the bench and her moan rolled through the room with her orgasm.
It cost him, especially watching that, but he let her have it and only when her back relaxed and her hooded eyes hazily sought his did he blow all over her belly, chest and dark blue lacy bra, his spine arching, his head shooting back, his cum coming and coming and coming.
He thrust through it, grunting with each drive, until his body started to shudder with the aftershocks, his surges of cum weakened and he felt her hand glide along his hip and the toy up his ass stop vibrating.
He gave himself one look at her covered in his cum before he dropped down on her but only to gather her in his arms, roll them and land on his back on the floor with Evangeline on top of him.
She lifted up her knees to straddle him, giving him most of her weight, snuggling closer, nuzzling her face in the side of his neck.
In return, Branch wrapped one arm around her, the other hand he shoved in her panties and cupped her ass, and he lifted his own knees to take the pressure off the toy up his.
His voice came rough and grating when he declared, “You’re getting a dog.”
Her body stilled on his for several beats before it melted and she nuzzled her face closer. “Okay, honey. But can I have a cat too?”
“Just as long as you get a dog.”
“Okay.”
“A big one.”
“Right.”
“I’m gonna help you pick.”
Again, he felt her body react to his words before she snuggled deeper, her hand gliding up his chest to his neck where she curled her fingers around.
“All right, Branch.”
“We clean up, grab my cock ring before we go up, babe. I’m gonna do you vanilla with spice in the morning.”