Page 4 of Hampton Holiday Collective
My driver Charlie stops in front of the mansion, and I rise from the car slowly before turning back to offer Tori my hand. The way her cheeks flush and her breathing picks up as she makes her way out of the car is hard to miss, but also perplexing.
A visible shiver courses through her body when I sweep my hand across the small of her back to guide her toward the manor’s ornate staircase.
But I don’t have time to overthink her peculiar behavior before someone is calling my name.
Just inside the entry, we’re greeted by a few board members and their partners, as well as Angelica Kramer, Executive Director of Virginia Voices for Recovery. After we exchange pleasantries, we join the line for coat check. Next to me, though, Tori’s face is screwed up in discomfort.
Discreetly, I drape one arm around her, pausing her forward momentum.
I press my body against hers, my lips skimming the shell of her ear, and whisper, “You feeling okay, V?”
“No,” she chokes out with a full-body shudder.
Panic flares in my mind and my chest goes tight, but I don’t have time to demand more information before she pulls on my arm and takes off at a clipped pace down the ornately decorated hall.
Her heels clack against the polished marble as we rush past catering stations before turning into a private alcove.
I can’t help the questions that tumble out of my mouth when she finally stops, leans against a wall, and closes her eyes, her chest heaving.
“V, you’re scaring me. What’s wrong? Are you sick? Do we need to go?”
Tori doesn’t answer right away. Instead, she blows out a long, slow breath and smooths one hand down the front of her body. I track her movement, adrenaline coursing through me at the prospect of her being ill.
After several deep breaths, she opens her eyes and focuses on me. Except now, instead of the discomfort I was so worried about moments ago, something else entirely emanates from her.
And it looks a hell of a lot like desire.
“I think I made a mistake,” she confesses in a breathy whisper.
I bite down on the inside of my cheek, my mind still teeming with concern despite the heat behind her gaze.
I close the space between us, resting one arm next to her head and hovering over her, as if my domineering presence can somehow cure whatever’s ailing her and protect her from further harm.
Her body responds to mine immediately—instinctually—shifting forward until the slippery fabric of her dress is rustling against my tuxedo. She doesn’t look sick or even uncomfortable anymore. And the way she’s rubbing against me—fuck. I have to suck in a breath between my teeth to fight back a stronger physical reaction.
“What kind of mistake?” I ask evenly, curiosity and concern warring inside me.
Instead of answering, she bites down on her bottom lip—it’s painted the exact same shade of red as her dress—and eyes me with potent desire. Then she reaches for my free hand and slides it across the smooth fabric over her hip and around her body until it’s resting between her ass and the wall.
She shimmies backward, trapping my forearm as I grip a handful of her behind. When she presses back and shifts slightly to the left, we both gasp at the way my fingertips sink between her ass cheeks.
My eyes widen in shock—then amusement—when I land on something hard.
“The kind where I thought I could get through this night wearing a butt plug. Clearly, I wasverywrong.”
Chapter 4
Tori
AnimalisticneedflaresinRhett’s eyes the second I confess my secret. His mouth is on mine a second later.
His tongue dips into my mouth, teasing me while he squeezes my ass and brushes against the plug again. I return his affection with a frenzied onslaught of my own—kissing him so deeply he moans, then grinding my hips forward, desperately seeking more pressure.
“You put this in for me?” he growls, pressing against the plug and forcing a whimper out of my mouth.
I nip his bottom lip before pulling back. Smiling coyly, I nod, loving the way his gray-blue irises darken as both hands travel to my back and spread my ass wide.
“For your birthday,” I explain, before adding, “for when we’re home.”