Hard Bargains Read online

  Today had been that day! Or, at least, Thursday had been, and now she had a brand-new puppy crate in her back seat, her chequebook in her pocket and a whole weekend stretching ahead of her to bond with her new puppy.

  She was practically bouncing in her seat as she turned her little Corolla into the long driveway that led up to the breeder’s home. The house was a pleasant green colour and the front door was so richly brown that it almost looked bronzed in the morning sun. She went up the porch steps, ready to meet her new puppy, but the sound of a gate slamming made her turn before she reached the door.

  A guy who had somehow escaped her lewdest daydreams walked around the corner of the house, causing her to freeze in place. He stopped too, his head cocked and his eyebrows raised, and she realised that she was staring. And that her mouth was maybe open just a little bit.

  She shut it with a snap, cleared her throat, and said, ‘Sorry, you startled me. I’m looking for Leonard?’

  ‘You caught me,’ he said, and the smile that came with the words made her a little dizzy.

  ‘Oh, I was— um—’ expecting someone three times his age, based on that name. This guy couldn’t be much older than she was. ‘Sorry, I’m Sage. We had an appointment?’

  ‘I get that a lot. You can call me Leo.’ He looked like he was holding back a laugh. ‘Come this way and meet the puppies.’ He extended one perfectly bronzed arm to gesture for her to follow, and she trailed in his wake as he led her back through the gate and then into a garage that had been converted into a kennel.

  ‘This is Audrey,’ he said, gesturing to the exhausted-looking Border Collie dam who was sprawled along the edge of a small enclosure. She thumped her tail a couple of times at the sound of her name, but didn’t look up, probably because she was half-buried in squirming bundles of black and white fur.

  ‘Oh, my gosh,’ Sage breathed.

  ‘And these are the puppies. They’re almost all—’ He broke off when the phone rang from inside the house. ‘Damn. Do you mind?’

  ‘Not at all.’

  ‘Feel free to get right in with them. I’ll just be a minute.’

  He went into the house, the door shutting behind him, and Sage stepped over the low wire fence and sat. The puppies, sensing something new to explore, tumbled over each other to sniff her knees, climb into her lap, and chew on the trailing end of her ponytail. She laughed as she ran her hands over their soft coats and let them lick all up and down her arms.

  One puppy in particular, took pride of place in the centre of Sage’s lap, hopped up to rest both paws against her chest and held her gaze with liquid brown eyes. Then the puppy stretched to its full height and licked her once on the chin. Sage cooed and scooped the puppy up, snuggling it close.

  She was still cuddling the precious beastie and playing with her puppy’s littermates when Leo returned.

  ‘Oh, ah …’ He wrinkled his perfect nose and scratched lightly at his chin. ‘I was trying to say, before the phone rang, that they’re almost all available except for one. That one that you’re holding. I’m keeping her back for breeding.’

  Sage felt her heart drop straight into her stomach. ‘But she’s perfect.’

  ‘That’s sort of the point.’

  ‘No, I mean perfect for me …’ Would it be too weird if she declared to this near-perfect stranger that she and this beautiful puppy were in love?

  Leo reached down and took the puppy out of her arms, and she immediately felt the loss. He tried to direct her attention to one of the others, but they all paled in comparison. In his arms, her puppy whined.

  ‘Maggie wants to come home with me,’ she told him.

  ‘Boy, you sure move fast.’ He looked bemused more than irritated. Exasperated at the worst.

  Sage stood and idly brushed off her jeans. ‘You run this place all by yourself?’ she asked.

  ‘What? Um, yes.’ Good. And she hadn’t noticed a ring, either.

  ‘Offer me some coffee.’

  He blinked, looking confused.

  ‘While we discuss the puppies?’ she prompted.

  ‘Um. OK? Would you like some coffee?’

  ‘Why, yes, thank you.’

  He put her puppy back into the pen with her littermates and led Sage into a cheerful kitchen. ‘What do you like? Flavoured? Dark? I’ve got a bunch of these Keurig—’

  ‘That’s not important. Sit down?’ She gestured to one of the chairs at the little kitchen table and waited while he hesitantly took a seat. He looked confused and off-balance, and she had to fight the urge to laugh at the dazed look on his gorgeous face. ‘Now, I know you don’t want to sell the puppy,’ she began, and held up a hand when he started to speak. ‘And I’m sure you wouldn’t let her go home with just anyone. But she’s the one. I just know that we have a special connection, and you can laugh if you want, but I’m willing to do whatever it takes to change your mind.’

  ‘I’m really sorry that you got attached,’ he said, starting to rise. She stepped close enough that they’d be pressed together if he stood, and he weighed his options and sat back down. ‘The puppies are all really excellent dogs.’

  ‘They certainly are,’ she agreed, ‘but we both know that this one is special, or you wouldn’t be arguing with me.’ He made a sound of reluctant agreement. ‘Which is why I’m prepared to make a very generous offer, on top of your usual adoption fee.’

  His handsome face went stern, and she felt a little sliver of doubt run through her. If he got irritated, she’d be going home empty-handed and broken-hearted too. ‘This isn’t a matter of money.’

  Sage took a deep breath and considered the line she was about to cross. She’d come here to make a professional transaction and that was it, but if she’d met Leo at a bar, she wouldn’t have hesitated to approach him. That fact made it a lot easier to lean forward and run a playful finger down his chest. ‘Then what about a bargain, instead?’

  He swallowed hard, his expression stunned. ‘What?’

  Thank God she’d worn a shirt with buttons. She lifted her hands to the highest fastened button – the one just above her cleavage – and worked it loose. ‘I told you I was willing to be very generous …’ Her heart pounded so hard she could barely breathe. This was crazy. She just knew she was two seconds from getting thrown bodily out of this man’s front door. She licked her lips nervously, and was almost dizzied with relief when his eyes flicked down to follow her tongue and his breath caught.

  ‘What –?’

  He probably meant to ask what the hell she was doing, but she chose to interpret his choked word creatively. ‘Whatever you want,’ she said, and then amended, ‘well, as long as you’ve got some protection handy.’

  His breath huffed out in a wheeze that was either an attempt to laugh or the first sign of a panic attack. Sage bit her lip, worried, but the soft curse that followed only encouraged her.

  ‘You’re not seeing anyone, are you?’ she asked.

  ‘No,’ he said, strangled.

  She let out a relieved sigh; she’d have had to stop if he wasn’t single. There are some lines a lady doesn’t cross. ‘Good. Then why don’t I give you a little taste of what I’m offering.’

  Before he had a chance to say anything, she straddled his lap and made herself at home, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her lips to his. He started out closed-mouthed and just about frozen, his hands clasping the sides of the chair like she was a stripper he wasn’t allowed to touch. She tried not to let it discourage her, kissing him softly and waiting for him to either respond or push her away.

  When she let her tongue dart out and tease across his lips, Leo let out a shuddering sigh and grabbed her hips, pulling her forward and against him. The bulge that pressed against her was impressive, even accounting for all the extra layers of clothing between them. ‘Do you realise what you’re getting into?’ he asked, his voice rough. His fingers dug into her hips and she squirmed against him, making him groan. ‘For a dog?’

  ‘She’s a ver
y nice dog,’ Sage answered with a sassy grin. She pulled back enough to look him in the face, her hands caressing his shoulders and the back of his neck. ‘But I wouldn’t be quite so forward if she didn’t have such an attractive human.’ He laughed, looking surprised, and something in him seemed to ease. She leaned forward and kissed his neck. ‘So what do you say?’

  ‘Take your shirt off.’

  Well, that was one way to answer! She finished undoing the row of buttons, not bothering to make a show of it since he seemed to be in a bit of a hurry. He panted as he watched her, and pushed the fabric impatiently down her shoulders as she freed the last button. Without a word, he reached around her and popped the clasp on her bra, and she let that drop free as well.

  ‘Jesus,’ he breathed, and reached up to cup her breasts, his touch surprisingly gentle after the hard grip he’d had on her hips. He kissed across the top of her left breast and she moaned, pleasure fluttering in her belly. The pleasure swelled and intensified when he kissed his way down, finally sucking her nipple into his eager mouth.

  He worked her that way, his hands kneading and teasing as his mouth set her insides roiling and bubbling with arousal. First on one nipple, then the other, he placed gentle kisses and nips that sparked the line between pain and pleasure, and then he sucked and swirled his tongue, the heat and pressure irresistible.

  She was nearly incoherent with desire when he eased back and looked her up and down, the heat in his gaze banked with hesitancy. ‘Please,’ she whimpered, and thank God it was enough. He pushed her pants down and she stepped out of them, toeing off her shoes in the process, using his shoulders to balance. He hooked his fingers in her panties next – she was glad she’d worn cute ones – but instead of pulling them down straightaway he feathered his other fingers against her belly, making her shudder and twitch with pleasure at the gentle, almost ticklish touches.

  He waited until she was practically dancing in his grip, her whole body writhing as she endured the gentle hints of pleasure and waited for something more, before he finally tugged her panties down. He pulled them all the way to her knees, making her gasp at the cool rush of air against the heated flesh of her pussy, then he stood, pivoting with her as he rose. She ended up tipping back over the table, and he grabbed her legs and helped to push her back until she was served up for him, draped across his kitchen table, naked except for a pair of pink socks and the panties around her knees, spread wide and wanton.

  ‘You’re gorgeous,’ he whispered, peeling the panties the rest of the way off. She whimpered in reply, and he chuckled as he kissed the inside of her knee, then her calf, and finally her ankle before easing that sock off. He repeated the treatment on the other side, then placed her heels on the edge of the table and stood between them, running his hands down the inside of her thighs. ‘Do you want this?’

  ‘Yes!’ She didn’t even have to think. It made him smile, and she smiled back, a little amused by her own brashness but mostly eager and hungry – so hungry – for whatever came next.

  The touch, when it came, was gentler than she’d expected, though she should have known better. He traced one finger down her mound, then let it slide softly between her folds and into her slick centre until he found the welcoming heat of her pussy. He pushed that single finger inside, his eyes following its path, intent on her most intimate place. After a few teasing strokes within her, he pulled his finger out and traced his way back up again, this time parting her folds as he went until he finally slipped inside her hood and found the hard bead of her clit.

  Sage nearly flung herself off the table at the unexpected intensity of his touch, but he only hummed a pleased sound and let his finger trace back down again, slide inside her, tease its way back up … She was more prepared the second time, but his gentle touch was no less intense. Her fingernails scraped against the varnish of the table and she gasped, starving now. ‘Please,’ she repeated.

  Leo smiled at her, and the warm pleasure in his dark eyes nearly melted through her. ‘Please what?’

  ‘Anything,’ she said between gasps. His finger found her clit again, and she cried out, the sheer agony of that erotic taunt exploding through her. ‘Just … more! Please, Leo!’

  Something burst into flame behind his gaze when she cried out his name, and he growled in pleasure as his finger journeyed back to her pussy, but this time he bent over her, and when his finger slid inside, it was accompanied by a second finger, spreading her gently open. A moment later, the pleasure of being filled was compounded by an explosion of sensation when his mouth closed over her clit.

  Sage was pretty sure she’d screamed, but she hardly knew what was happening any more. There was no table, no puppy, no questionable decision to spread herself out for a stranger. There was only intense pleasure and his tongue flicking sweetly over her clit. There were his fingers buried inside her, stroking at a sweet spot just inside. There was his moan, washing over her and making everything that much more delicious.

  He released her clit long enough to lick all the way from where his fingers were buried inside her back up again, and then that momentary respite was torn away as he redoubled his erotic assault. She was pretty sure she felt a third finger slide into her pussy, but she couldn’t concentrate on anything except the fire he was stoking with each suck and lick and flick of his clever tongue.

  Her entire body started to tremble, and Sage panted, a little squeaky gasp riding on each exhale. His moans of pleasure grew louder and his pace increased just a fraction, and Sage surrendered to the sensation, letting pure pleasure slam into her. She was burning, or maybe drowning, or was it suffocating? Whatever it was, she was sure no one could survive such a force of nature. It was a hurricane. An avalanche. And all she could do was go limp and let herself be carried away.

  At some point she realised that he’d stopped, and that maybe he’d been stopped quite a while … Her legs were draped over the edge of the table and her arms were splayed straight out to the sides, each one overreaching the table at the wrist. ‘You killed me,’ she rasped, and the soreness of her throat told her she must have been, ah, vocal.

  He confirmed it with a chuckle and a teasing comment, ‘My neighbours probably think so.’

  ‘Oh, God,’ she said, but it was mostly reflex. She was too sated to care what any neighbours thought.

  He reached out a hand to her, so she grabbed it and let him haul her upright, but when she stood, he started gathering up her clothes. It was almost enough to make a girl feel unwanted.

  She tossed them onto the table when he handed them to her and stepped forward, letting her body press against his as she raised her face to his. He kissed her, his arms going around her and pulling her close enough that the evidence of his own unsated desire was undeniable. But when they broke apart, he stepped back and started to turn away.

  ‘What about you?’ she asked, gesturing at his straining cock.

  ‘That wouldn’t be right. I’ll sell you the puppy, of course. You don’t have to do anything else. I’ve taken advantage of you already.’

  Sage was loose-limbed and flushed with pleasure, and … damn, while this had started as a way to force him to the bargaining table, it had become something even more satisfying. She turned to the table, fished around until she was able to pull her chequebook out of her jeans pocket, and snatched a pen off the counter. Then she wrote out the cheque for the full amount of the puppy adoption, tore it off, and handed it to the bemused man.

  ‘Would you say that concludes our business?’ she asked sweetly.

  ‘Um. Yes?’ He was just going to have to get used to her tendency to shift direction in an instant.

  ‘Good. Then I want to make a new deal.’

  He licked his lips, looking torn between laughter and panic. ‘For?’

  ‘Visitation rights.’ He looked baffled, and she chuckled, stepping close. ‘I don’t live all that far away,’ she said. ‘I’m sure we can work something out so that you can still breed Maggie when the time comes.’ Ah
, understanding had begun to dawn. ‘And I’m sure she’ll want to visit her family.’ He grinned and bent to kiss her neck, and a low moan escaped her raw throat. ‘Often,’ she added. ‘But you’d better put on a good show to convince me.’

  ‘Oh?’ He was onto her now, and he ground against her, grinning. ‘What kind of show were you thinking of?’

  She was already breathing heavily again, and her nipples were almost painfully hard. She stood on tiptoe so that she could stare him straight in the eyes. ‘I think I’m going to require something better than fingers.’

  ‘Fuck.’ He reached for her ass and lifted her against him, and Sage obligingly wrapped her legs around his waist, making herself an easier burden. They kissed as he walked out of the kitchen, and she lost herself in the floating sensation of being carried through the strange house. She was therefore more than startled when she found herself falling backwards. She squeaked as she landed on a soft mattress in a darkened bedroom, but she was all smiles as she realised what that meant.

  Leo shucked his clothes off so fast that she could almost believe he’d been naked all the time. Except that she would have remembered seeing that cock before. It was thick and hard, jutting magnificently away from his hips, and she ran her hands down her body in anticipation as she watched him move. He grabbed a condom from the little drawer beside the bed, but, instead of moving immediately to put it on, he lowered his body over hers, finding her mouth and kissing her with consuming passion.

  His cock was so hard against her thigh that it demanded her attention, calling her mind away from the bliss of the kiss to imagine how it would feel to have that thick, hot cock rammed deep inside her. She squirmed against him, whimpering despite herself, and Leo pulled back with a laugh.

  ‘Impatient?’ He was grinning down at her, and she narrowed her eyes, refusing to beg. Again. ‘Is this what you want?’ He shifted until his cock was rubbing against the inside of her thigh, then higher, teasingly close. Then he climbed up until he was kneeling over her instead of lying atop her, took his cock in his hand and stroked it slowly. ‘Maybe you just want to watch me …?’ He stroked and squeezed, his eyes fluttering closed as he enjoyed his one-man show, and Sage let out a yowl of frustrated horniness.