He heard the smile in her voice and bent closer to inhale her fragrance. Sometimes he wanted to take her happiness into his lungs, to fill his body, his bloodstream, to keep for his own. He didn’t know how to be happy. He was fiercely protective, maybe too much so to be happy. He had built an empire, and he guarded it ferociously, but he was always aware his enemies were circling. Emma had gone through a terrible ordeal, yet she still had the capacity to love, to tease, to find happiness and fun.
“I don’t have a bad temper. I just like things done a certain way.”
She made a little moue with her lips and his heart lurched. His blood surged hotly and his cock jerked, hot and hard and fully awakened. Jake took a breath and let it out, sliding his palm down her arm to tangle his fingers with hers so he wouldn’t cup the temptation of her breast. He had to go slow, let her get used to the idea of a man in her life again. She hadn’t been ready, but he’d planted the seed and hopefully she’d let go of Andrew, and Jake would be there for her.
Truthfully, he’d been with her much longer than Andrew. She’d known her husband only a couple of months before they’d married, and she’d been with him five months before his death. Emma had shared Jake’s life for more than two years. Andrew had been a boy, not a man, and as sweet as he’d been to Emma, she needed a man.
Jake could tell she was fairly inexperienced when it came to sex. He’d bet his life that she’d been a virgin when she met Andrew. The things he wanted to do to her would probably shock her. He brought her hand up to his mouth and chewed on the tips of her fingers.
“You’re very oral,” she whispered, amusement in her voice.
She sounded sleepy, and he knew she was drifting or she never would have made the uncensored comment, and she sure wouldn’t have told him about the way her parents had died.
“You have no idea, honey,” he whispered, deliberately wicked, and leaned in close to tease at the soft, vulnerable spot where her shoulder met her neck. His tongue licked at her warm skin, filling him with her taste so that he couldn’t resist rubbing his lips over the spot.
She lifted her shoulder slightly, but she had already drifted too far into sleep to do more than that slight protest. Jake allowed his teeth to scrape back and forth before biting down gently. The leopard in him urged him to do more, to leave his mark on her, to proclaim ownership, but Jake lifted his head enough to give himself breathing room.
“Sleep well, honey,” he whispered. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
9
“DADDY, what’s illoment mean?” Kyle asked.
Jake frowned and looked up at Emma for an interpretation. She seemed to always know exactly what the children were saying. She was leaning in the doorway, watching him unwrap the small presents from the squealing children while he sat on Kyle’s bed with them. Andraya threw herself into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging like a monkey, while Kyle stared earnestly up at his face.
Emma looked good enough to eat, and since he’d lain awake most of the night thinking of her lying on her bed clothed in her thin pajamas with nothing else beneath them, he found himself very hungry. She stirred and looked uncomfortable, shrugging her shoulders and giving him a small shake of her head.
“Is everyone ready for breakfast?” She sounded cheerful—too cheerful.
Jake’s gaze narrowed on her face. She knew exactly what Kyle had asked. She didn’t want to answer. He turned back to Kyle. “Who said that word to you?”
“The bad lady.”
Jake jerked his head up again and glared at Emma. “The bad lady,” he echoed, looking at Emma instead of his son. “What bad lady?”
“Kyle,” Emma intervened.
Jake held up his hand, signaling Emma to silence as he slowly stood with Andraya still in his arms, his large frame dominating the room. “What bad lady, Kyle?” Jake asked, his voice deceptively gentle.
“The one that makes Mommy cry.”
There was dead silence in the room. No one moved, not even Andraya. Jake fought down the volcano that threatened to explode. He took a breath, counted to ten and let it out. “Susan?” He raised his voice, calling out into the hall, never once taking his eyes from Emma’s pale face.
The teenage girl came running, her face glowing with near worship, eager to help him. “I’m sorry, am I late for breakfast?”
“Not at all,” Jake said pleasantly. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you we’re glad you’ve come for a visit. I’d like you to take Andraya and Kyle down to the kitchen and feed them.”
Susan looked a bit flustered, opening her mouth several times to respond, but nothing came out. She held her hands out to the children. Kyle slipped his hand in hers, but Andraya clung to Jake.
Emma turned away, but Jake’s hand snaked out, fingers settling around her wrist like a bracelet. “Oh, no, you don’t. You’re not going anywhere.” With one hand he removed Andraya. “Go with Susan. There’s a good girl,” he murmured.
Andraya studied his face for a moment to determine if a temper tantrum would do any good, but when she saw the inflexible set of his jaw, she went willingly with Susan. Jake waited until the children had gone down the stairs.
“I have a standing order in this house. We don’t have visitors unless I okay them first. I said Senator Hindman and his daughter were welcome to come occasionally, I don’t recall ever giving permission for anyone else. Unless Susan is considered the ‘bad lady’ and has made you cry, that means someone else has been on my property and in my home.”
Each word was distinct, bit out between his teeth, his voice lower than normal and rumbling with menace.
Emma stepped back—she couldn’t help herself—but he followed, step for step, like a macabre dance, until her back hit the wall and she couldn’t go any farther. Jake planted his hands against the wall on either side of her head, effectively caging her in. Up close he was quite large and intimidating and he knew it, and he didn’t mind this time that she looked up at him with a touch of fear in her eyes. A good scare might do some good.