Strictly Confidential Read online

  “Sorry to disappoint.” The snark in his tone said he wasn’t. “But I had some details to iron out.”

  “Such as?”

  Trevor wandered the small space, gaze tracking over every surface before he stopped by the window. The view of the asphalt parking lot and large warehouse behind them offered nothing like the gorgeous city sightlines Trevor’s office provided.

  He turned, nailing Matt with a hard stare. “Like how you know Kennedy and what that means.”

  Matt resisted the urge to cross his arms. The defensive gesture would gain him nothing. “And you have those details now?”

  His lips pinched just a tad before they flattened out. “No.”

  Surprise caught him before he could school his expression. He sat on the edge of his desk and gave up on caring what Trevor thought as he crossed his arms over his chest. “What do you want to know?”

  Trevor’s eyes narrowed. The authoritative air that never left him tracked a path across the room to prickle over Matt’s ingrained habit to stand at attention before a superior, especially given his own dressed-down state. But Trevor was nothing more than a business associate. One Matt had hired.

  “First, I hope you remember every line of the contract you signed before walking into that room.”

  He resisted the eye roll that would’ve outdone any his daughter dished out. “Yes.”

  Trevor absorbed his short response with a slight flick of his chin. “Second, you fuck with Kennedy, you fuck with me.”

  That had the hairs on Matt’s nape dancing in predatory warning. “And why would I want to fuck with Kennedy?” He wasn’t playing into Trevor’s hands, no matter who he was or what influence he held.

  “I have no idea. Just don’t.”

  “I wasn’t planning on it.” Now fucking her again, quick and hard or long and slow, he’d gladly be on board for. And another fuck wasn’t all he wanted.

  Trevor studied him. Matt stared right back. He had nothing to hide. “Good. She deserves to be treated with respect.”

  “Doesn’t everyone deserve that?”

  “It doesn’t mean everyone gets it.”

  “True.” Unfortunately. Matt gave him that point, adding, “I have nothing but respect for Kennedy. I would never ‘fuck with her,’ as you put it.”

  The tension lengthened between them until Trevor huffed out a sarcastic laugh. “I sound like an ass.”

  Matt raised a brow but kept silent. A response wasn’t required for the obvious.

  Trevor shoved his hands in his pockets. The last of the stiffness that’d held his shoulders back drained out on a visible exhale. He hung his head, inhaled, his combative demeanor gone when he looked up. “She doesn’t let men do that, you know.”

  Matt frowned. “Do what?”

  “Touch her like you did. Especially in a scene.”

  She doesn’t let men touch her. But she’d let Matt, in more than the physical sense too. His pulse increased, a whisper of relief easing through him when he had no right to feel it.

  Trevor turned back to the window. “She opened up to you in a way I’ve never seen before. I don’t know why or what it means, but you should understand exactly how rare it was.” He paused, the importance of his words sinking into Matt. “As in every man in that room couldn’t believe what they were watching.”

  The significance settled over Matt, humbling him. What it meant exactly, he didn’t know, but the possibilities teased his imagination. He braced his hands on the edge of his desk, a swath of nerves skittering down his spine.

  Kennedy. His world had been turned upside down by her, and they’d only met twice. What would happen if he gave into his urge to call her up, ask her out. Seeing her again would only strengthen the strange bond pulling them together.

  And she clearly wanted nothing to do with it. But he’d said the same thing.

  Trevor leaned his shoulder on the window, his focus never leaving Matt. The corner of his mouth ticked up when Matt remained silent. “She’s hard to figure out. At once strong and independent yet somehow vulnerable. But don’t ever say that to her. She’ll chew you up and spit you back out before you realize she attacked.”

  “Did she learn that from you?”

  He snorted. “She didn’t have to.”

  No, she probably didn’t. “Why are you telling me this?”

  His frown held a hint of confusion. “Honestly, she’d smack me down if she knew I was here. But…” He raised his shoulder. “She gave you liberties in an open setting that went against everything I know about her. I couldn’t let that go until I was certain of you.”

  “Certain of me?” Matt didn’t know how to feel about that. “I would’ve thought you’d made that determination before you invited me into your group.”

  “I did. But I have to reassess with every new piece of information. It’s how I stay ahead of the game.”

  There wasn’t an ounce of contriteness in the man standing before him. He acted and owned what he did without hesitation. And apparently, he guarded the Boardroom with the same ruthlessness he applied to his business and friends.

  Matt respected that loyalty even though it dug at his own. Sharing anything about Kennedy went against his personal honor code.

  “And now?” he asked, straightening away from his desk. He eyed Trevor as intently as he was being eyed. He could take his little group and walk for all Matt cared, but he’d be pissed if Trevor also walked away from his business.

  “Now…” Trevor shifted away from the window. “I hope my trust isn’t misplaced.”

  He wasn’t about to reassure him like a lackey seeking his approval. What he had with Kennedy was between them, not Trevor, no matter how close he was to her.

  Trevor turned to leave without another word, but he halted his abrupt departure at the door. “Look for an email that’ll have a link to the Boardroom app. It’s password protected and only given to members. You’ll need to set up a profile and a picture before you can sign into a scene.” He waited for Matt to nod his understanding. “I’m also sending you an invite to a benefit I’m hosting to start the holiday season. I’ll reserve you a seat. Kennedy will be there.”

  Matt stared at the open doorway after Trevor left. He should’ve walked him out, but all thoughts of courtesy had been swept away at that last tidbit.

  Kennedy will be there.

  He should decline, yet he already knew he wouldn’t. The networking at an event like that would be a huge business opportunity. He couldn’t pass it over because one woman might be there. Right. He could position it all he wanted, but he’d be going mostly because Kennedy would be there.

  He dropped into his chair behind his desk, an exhausted sigh gusting out. He plowed his fingers through his hair before scrubbing his face. Kennedy continued to hound his thoughts no matter how hard he tried to dismiss her. She was a puzzle full of traps that could bury him if he didn’t watch his step. But he was very aware of where he was going and what he wanted.

  He’d given over a decade of his life to his children. Everything he’d done had been for their benefit. And now…

  He needed something more.

  He couldn’t pinpoint when his focus had shifted. Or was it expanded? Kennedy hadn’t been the trigger, but she’d become the focal point to what was missing in his life. Could he scratch the itch without it overtaking everything?

  In the eyes of his ex-wife, he hadn’t taken his dominance far enough. She’d wanted his total control in all aspects of their life, and he’d unwittingly provided it, unware of what he was doing—until it was too late.

  Kennedy wasn’t anything like his ex.

  An image of her spread across the table, her sultry gaze leveled on him as she’d raised her fingers to his mouth, had his dick hardening. Just what he needed at work. He’d shaved his beard off when he couldn’t get her scent out, yet one long inhale had the aroma floating through his mind.

  Bold and strong, like her.

  She wouldn’t be overwhelmed by him
or anything he dished out. She’d held her own since that first meeting. Why would that change?

  He’d made the drastic step of cutting off all dominant sexual play for the safety of his children, but at what cost to himself? Was abstinence still the best path? Especially now, when he’d found a woman who was just as strong, just as confident in her life and desires as he was?

  One who haunted his thoughts and had him thinking of more than sex? She intrigued him as no other woman had, and he wanted to explore the potential, and not just sexually. There was something about her he couldn’t articulate or define that made her different.

  He’d been aware of that since she’d taken a seat beside him in the bar. Only then, she’d been a brief escape. A flirtation he’d engaged in because of the anonymity. But now…

  There was nothing to hide behind.

  He wanted Kennedy.

  Even now, when there was so much at risk. When his past could repeat, and his secret wants could destroy all he’d worked to secure.

  But he was smarter now. Older. Not so naïve and unaware.

  He could give her something she didn’t seek from others. He had given it to her. Twice. That alone was a draw he found hard to resist. Especially when just the thought of her satisfied smile or throaty purr or the soft plea in her voice when she whispered his name had his desire crashing forward.

  And that was only one part of the entire package.

  Kennedy Keller had broken through his restraint on a laugh and broad smile, but she’d charged through his denials on feisty retorts and breathy pleas. And now her gentle vulnerability ate at the long-held rules he’d established to protect his family and himself.

  Was she worth it? He’d never know if he didn’t try, and to not try was quickly becoming impossible.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Kennedy lifted her glass of champagne to toast her friend. “Here’s to a pleasant evening.”

  Dani shot her a quick scowl before she clicked her glass to Kennedy’s. “What kind of a toast is that?”

  The bubbles tickled over her tongue as it slid down her throat. “A safe one.”

  “Since when has safe ever been a concern of yours?”

  She hid the pinch in her chest at her friend’s casual dig. The mark hit too close to home when she’d spent the last week assessing the risks she’d taken. At what point did they hurt her instead of bolster her?

  She stared out the tinted window of the limo at the passing scenery. None of it registered as she tracked through the exploits of her past. From the outrageous parties of her youth, to the clubs of her twenties, up to the Boardroom. Sex had always been a tool for her, one she wielded with precision to get that untouchable high she reveled in during her public masturbation scenes. The high that’d always been enough—until Matt.

  “Ken.”

  She turned to Dani, her curious smile in place. “Yes?”

  Dani frowned, her brows drawing into a pinch of concerned worry. “What’s going on?”

  What wasn’t? Yet nothing outright startling had happened. She’d had sex again with Matt. In the Boardroom. The group was supposed to be her sanctuary. A private domain for the privileged and sexually deviant. And Matt had been there. But more than his presence, was what she’d given him, even there.

  Her control.

  The one thing she protected with every breath she took.

  She fiddled with her glass, taking another sip but not tasting it this time. Her stomach had been snarled in a knot of unaccustomed doubt since she’d watched him walk away. It’d been the right thing to do—if she wanted to maintain her autonomy.

  But what if she could have it, Matt and what he offered?

  “You’re officially starting to worry me,” Dani said, cutting into her thoughts. She laid a hand on Kennedy’s arm.

  She glanced to her. Indecision wrestled with the openness that usually existed between them. Dani exuded the very strength Kennedy strode to emulate, and she’d succeeded for the most part. So why was she faltering now? Over a man?

  “I’m fine,” she reassured her, breezing into the superficial charm mastered by her mother. She squeezed Dani’s hand before dislodging it. The connection was too distinct for the distance she was trying to achieve. “Are you ready for Trevor?”

  Dani scowled at the deflection that shoved her own issues in her face. Her eyes hardened, her ice mask of distance slamming down. “When am I not?”

  “You’re right.” Regret consumed her. It sat on her chest along with the pile that’d been building with the hazardous scavenging of her sexuality. “I’m sorry.” This time she reached for her friend’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “That was rude of me.”

  Trevor was one topic Dani rarely talked about. Open landmines littered the terrain surrounding the subject, and Kennedy respected them.

  “It was.” Dani didn’t give her an inch. “But I’ll ignore it if you tell me what’s going on with you.”

  The blatant blackmail was justified given Kennedy’s lousy attempt at avoidance. Maybe sharing a ride to Trevor’s benefit hadn’t been such a good idea. And maybe she should stop stewing and just own up to her damn feelings.

  “I had another encounter with the guy from Long Beach, Matt,” she finally said, watching her friend for every reaction. Her stomach did a small flip, but a bit of the unease slid away. Talking about the issue was one step closer to resolving it.

  A smile ghosted over Dani’s lips. “And?”

  The openness of her response was so her. She could lead without offering judgment better than anyone Kennedy knew, and it was exactly what she needed.

  “And…it was in the Boardroom.”

  “Oh.” Surprise echoed over her expression. “That’s unexpected.”

  “Tell me about it.” She slugged down the last of her champagne before refilling her glass. Dani shook her head when she offered the bottle to her.

  Nerves started an excited rush that tingled over her skin and trembled through her hands. She gripped her glass tighter, trudging on. “He’s a new member. I didn’t know he’d be there.”

  Dani settled into the seat as the car entered the city. “I’ve never seen you this unsettled over sex.”

  Because she never had been. “He’s…different.” There was the bomb of truth that’d been troubling her since their first interaction. He was very different from any sexual encounter she’d had. And if the draw had been limited to sex, she wouldn’t be this conflicted.

  “Is that bad or good?”

  “I don’t know.” Or she didn’t want to take a stance on it. Defining it would highlight what she was still avoiding.

  She was saved from revealing more when the car pulled up to the theater. Trevor had outdone himself this time. A red carpet was laid out leading to the entrance in an extravagant declaration of opulence. The ticket prices guaranteed only the wealthiest and most influential would attend, and he delivered to expectations.

  White lights twinkled in subdued elegance around the entrance that was also decked out in holiday splendor. Thanksgiving hadn’t arrived yet, but that seemed to be the norm now. The rush to the next sales cycle eclipsed the current one until they were all pushed ahead to an annoying point.

  Dani joined her side once they’d exited the car. She paused, took a deep breath. “Ready?”

  “Are you?” Kennedy asked back.

  “Always.” Dani strode down the carpet with the same confident swagger she’d had since they’d first became friends. Any nerves or insecurities were so deeply buried no one would guess she had any.

  Kennedy chuckled to herself as she caught up to her friend. She admired the hell out of Dani and would do anything for her. She looped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a quick side hug. “We can bail after dinner.”

  “Hmm.” Dani stepped away to greet a man Kennedy recognized from the Boardroom. There’d be a lot of members there, and that’d never bothered her before. One of the luxuries of the group was how no one publicly acknowledged its exi
stence. She didn’t have to greet or mingle with any of them, and they’d never think negatively of her for not doing so.

  She slid by with a brush on Dani’s arm to let her know she was heading in. The grand lobby was packed with loitering guests dressed in their finest. She took in the period décor, complete with looming ceilings sculpted with details from an era long gone, before she spotted the bar.

  Getting drunk wasn’t her intention, but one more glass would relax her enough to actually enjoy the event. The open bar was provided with the hopes that it’d loosen more pockets before the silent auction. It usually worked.

  The benefit was for Trevor’s personal cause, and she was a hundred percent behind it. He’d been a supporter of the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization long before it’d become hip. She’d asked him about it once, only to get a vague response as to why. Of course there didn’t have to be a motivation other than recognizing that nonconsensual sex of any kind wasn’t okay.

  She bypassed a group of her parents’ friends and waved at a business associate but didn’t pause to talk. The energy required to be social, even superficially, was missing tonight. There was no reason for it other than the drag of overanalysis she’d been cycling through for the last week.

  She could’ve called Matt. She had his information now. She’d even looked him up on the internet. His company profile had confirmed her assumption about his military background, but it’d given little in personal details.

  “Kennedy.”

  His voice trembled down her neck before it scampered straight to her core. She sucked in a breath, eyes closing for a moment before she turned. Had she conjured him up from her imagination? A nervous laugh slipped out on that thought.

  “Matt,” she managed with a clear voice. “What a surprise.”

  His brows rose, a smile appearing. “It’s nice to see you.” He extended his hand as if they were nothing more than polite acquaintances.

  She studied the offering a bit too long before laying her palm on his. The rush of warmth coincided with that stupid flutter in her chest. “You too.” Her words came out breathier than she’d intended, but there was no changing it.