These women knew Ian, if nothing else, through their husbands. They would have the information she needed to hold the advantage she gained today. And right now, Courtney knew, she needed every advantage she could steal from him.
“She has left with Ms. Conover, sir. Should I have her followed?”
Ian stood silently before the wide windows of his office, his hands shoved in the pockets of his slacks as he frowned out at the dreary, cold day.
“Don’t bother, Jason,” he sighed. “Tally would know they were being followed and she would cause as much of a fuss as possible. ”
“If I may say so, sir. Ms. Mattlaw is proving to be a bit of a wildcard. I believe letting her out unattended could turn into a catastrophe. ”
Ian snorted at the understatement.
“Catastrophe would be a mild word if she learned she was being watched. As long as she’s with Tally, she’s reasonably safe. ”
He was aware of Jason’s bafflement at the initial order of the security measures he had placed Courtney. He had been unable to help himself. The past was a demon he couldn’t seem to shake, no matter how hard he tried.
“Was her safety in question, sir?” Jason’s tone was concerned now.
Ian sighed wearily, pinching the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes and pushed back the need to find her, to order her back to the mansion.
“Her safety is not in question, Jason. ” At least not yet. Not from anyone other than himself and his desires.
“Very well, sir. ” Confusion radiated from the butler. “Shall I inform the Misters Conover, Wyman and Mr. Andrews that you will resume the meeting soon? They have expressed some question as to whether or not the previous business discussions have been concluded. ”
He shook his head, turning back to the butler slowly.
“They’re in The Club?”
“Yes, sir. ”
“I’ll join them there. Please let me know when Ms. Mattlaw returns. ”
“I’m certain the sound of the commotion will reach your ears before I can scurry to your location,” Jason harrumphed.
“I’m certain you’re right. ” An unwilling smile tugged at his lips at the thought. “But make the attempt in any case. ”
“Yes, sir. ” Jason inclined his head before turning smartly and leaving the room, returning it once again to the oppressive silence which had filled it before his arrival.
You’re so depraved, Ian. I sold my soul into hell to be your woman. To what end? This is my end.
Once again, written words seared his memory.
He couldn’t control the need, the hunger. It was eating him alive, as it never had before.
He could see it, he could almost feel it.
Courtney’s sexual appetite was strong, blistering in its heat. He could see her, her eyes dazed, pleasure consuming her as her lips opened in a scream, sandwiched between him and Khalid.
The half-Saudi would complement her passions, his patience. His control would match Ian’s as they drove her past any boundary of pleasure she could have known.
He wanted to play with her. He wanted to watch her writhe on the bed, retrained, pleading, gasping for release as he and Khalid drove her past any restraint, any conscious control. He wanted, fuck, he needed—hungered—to see her reach that point where she climaxed from not more than a breath against her clit, a lick to her nipple. Where her body was so sensitized, so aroused, so perfectly attuned to the pleasure they could bring, that when they pierced her snug channels, the orgasms would roll through her, a continual progression of release that would stroke, milk, convulse around their burrowing cocks.
The need was overshadowed only by the memory of the last woman who had loved him. It was a pleasure he had wanted her to know as well.
He hung his head, breathing in roughly as his shoulders bunched with tension.
He had taken many women to his bed, experienced women, women who sought nothing more than that peak and went eagerly, too eagerly, toward it. He had thought that would be enough. It wasn’t.
Courtney would fight it. She would beg, scream, curse his control and attempt to break it, whether she knew the end result or not. It was a part of her nature. She would never give him that part of herself without a fight, without a challenge to his dominance.