Player - The Elite Part Three Read online

  She shook her head, her dark hair swinging. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Henry didn’t tell you about our fight?”

  “Fight?” Her dark eyes were wide and concerned.

  “After the auction.” I lowered her hand, but kept a hold on it. “We got into it in the parking lot. If this guy hadn’t pulled me off, Henry’d still be in the fuckin’ hospital.”

  She pulled it away. “After the auction, Henry was in a terrible mood. He didn’t want to talk about it though. That’s why I went out dancing with my friends. To get away from him.”

  I nodded, but her answer only filled my head with more questions. Had he hurt her? Was he the type to take his anger out on her in that way? If so, that would make it my fault…What would he do if he found out about what else I’d taken from him that night?

  “Henry was only at the auction to get that plane. Well, that and to be seen with all his filthy friends,” she scoffed, waving her hand dismissively. “He probably bragged about that plane all day…”

  “So, when I won it…”

  Talia’s eyes flashed back to me. “He was angry. He felt slighted, I suppose.”

  “Then, why didn’t he bid higher? Surely his pockets are deeper than mine.”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. He probably didn’t want to make it look like a struggle. Easier for him to try and buy it from you after the fact. In a few weeks, no one will remember that he didn’t win the auction. Just that he got what he wanted.”

  “Why are you with a guy like that?” The question ran away from me before I could remind myself that I didn’t care. Talia had been a one-night stand—a helluva good one—but regardless, I had no business getting tangled in her personal life, especially not her love life.

  “Why not?” She answered, shrugging off the question. “He’s rich and he fucks like a god.”

  I snorted at her answer. “Well, okay then.”

  After that, I left it alone, reminding myself that it was none of my business. But, her answer annoyed me. Talia was hardly the type of woman to just let life happen. She must have been getting something from Henry. Money was the obvious answer, and maybe that’s all it was. She’d already said that she’d had affairs, and Henry had his own. She didn’t seem broken up about his wandering ways…

  I shook my head to clear the thoughts from my mind. “Let’s get out of here.”

  She smiled and came back to my side. She snaked a hand around my waist and up my back. I sucked in a breath as her fingernails pierced into my skin through my shirt and sparks danced over my skin. I hadn’t checked in the mirror, but I was fairly certain I still bore the scratches from the night before.

  The way Talia smiled up at me, her eyes dark and filled with lust, let me know she had the same suspicion.

  Her lips were begging to be kissed, but the sound of a metal door clanging against the hangar, jarred me, and I jumped away from her. One of the museum employees entered, retrieved a box from the wall that served as overflow storage space for things like brochures and business cards, and left again, without so much as a nod in our direction.

  I wanted Talia, but I wanted her alone—without interruption.

  Especially from her boyfriend.

  Normally, I asked my client which plane they would like to take, but with Talia, I knew it didn’t matter. Neither of us was going to be thinking about the thrill of the ride, or the beauty of the ocean views below. I picked the Cessna 185 that had two side by side seats in the cockpit, and an autopilot feature that would allow us a little more…freedom.

  I blazed through the pre-check routine, and within minutes, we were in the plane, and making the way to the runway.

  “I always hate this part,” Talia said as I pushed on the throttle, preparing to take off. She reached over and gripped my thigh, her nails threatening to leave more scratches in my skin. Although, this time they were from terror, instead of ecstasy.

  “Almost there,” I said, smiling over at her. “Trust me.”

  She made it through take off and I climbed up into the sky as quickly as I dared. I was eager to get my hands back on her, but wanted to make sure everything was smooth, and that we wouldn’t be interrupted by a malfunction alarm halfway through.

  Once we were stabilized in the air, things moved quickly.

  I set the controls as fast as I could, a task made much harder to focus on as Talia’s fingers crawled up my thigh. “Fuck, what are you trying to do?” I gasped, when her fingers stroked down the shaft of my hard cock through my jeans. She didn’t answer, but within seconds, she had my zipper loosened and was working, one handed, on the button.

  “That’s better,” she purred, when the button gave way and she got her hand inside the front pocket of my boxer briefs.

  I hissed and hit the buttons quicker, eager to get the plane into autopilot takeover mode.

  Talia worked my cock like a pro, her fingers giving the perfect amount of pressure and speed. I was dying for her lips to get around me, as they had the night before. I’d received plenty of in-flight blowjobs, but Talia’s would be the sexiest by far.

  With a sparkle of mischief in her eyes, she released my cock from my pants and leaned over. I was trembling before her lips even touched the tip.

  “Holy shit, Talia!” I gasped, weaving a hand through her thick, dark hair. I moved her head up and down, letting her twirl and flick her tongue along the sensitive skin.

  She dragged out the mix of pleasure and torture to perfection, only letting me release when I was on the verge of begging for it. My cock was so tight and ready, that I shot my load with a vibrating moan of sheer relief. Talia lapped up every bit, licking her lips as she sat back in her seat.

  While I was still gasping and heaving for air, she lifted the hem of her dress up, wiggling in her seat to reveal herself to me.

  “You are one naughty girl, aren’t you?” I growled.

  She wasn’t wearing panties.

  Her bare, slick pussy was ready and waiting for me.

  She bit her lip and looked up at me as she spread her legs as wide as she could within the confines of the co-pilot seat. I didn’t need more of an invitation. With a quick glance at the controls to make sure everything was on track, I reached over and stroked up the inside of her silky thighs, teasing my way up. She shivered and bit her lip harder with each inch that I gained. I wanted to bury myself inside her, and my cock twitched back to life at the idea.

  “Aaron,” she breathed, her voice low and husky, when my fingers finally reached her slit. I ran my finger down the center, and groaned at how hot and ready she felt.

  “Fuck, Talia, you’re so fuckin’ wet,” I pulled my finger away, leaving her whimpering, and sucked the sweet juice from my fingertips. “God, I want to taste you again.”

  Why hadn’t we stayed on the ground?

  Talia reached for my hand and placed it back between her thighs. I smirked over at her and began working her clit, using my thumb to draw tiny circles over the tender bud. Talia closed her eyes and lay her head back, even as her body shuddered and squirmed in the seat.

  Her eyes popped open with a gasp when I buried two fingers inside her. She shuffled to spread her legs wider. She urged me on with wide eyes and whimpering moans. I toyed with her sweet G-spot over and over, until she relaxed back again. Her hands gripped the seat and I watched as her knuckles went white. Her hips began to buck wildly in her seat, rolling in hungry, desperate urgings.

  I drove into her harder and harder, until juice was pouring from her. “Oh my—” Her words cut off in another moan. I slowed my pace, not ready for her to release yet, and she melted back into the seat with a sigh.

  “You like that? You’re so fuckin’ naughty, Talia.” I leaned across the seat and nipped at her ear and then licked and nibbled my way down her neck.

  “Aaron, make me come. I’m ready,” she begged.

  I traced my thumb back over her clit and she shivered and whimpered. Her eyes opened and found mine. They
were wide and pleading and I smiled down at her. “You wanna come all over this seat?”

  “Yes, Aaron, you can do it. Please!”

  I dove my fingers back into her and rubbed the spot inside of her, my thumb gently tickling her clit, her smile darkening when she swore under her breath, the rest of her words dissolved into a muck of nonsense as she shuddered and sparked.

  Talia moaned and the walls of her pussy went tight, seizing, before pulsing into gripping waves around my fingers that were still buried inside of her. She bit back the sounds of her pleasure, and I smiled up at her as her eyes pressed tightly closed.

  “That was insane,” she panted. Talia was still shuddering against the leather seat, her body coming down from the orgasm that had ripped through her moments before.

  I pulled my fingers from her and pressed a final kiss to her lips.

  “Aaron?” Lana’s voice came over the radio, and Talia and I both jerked to attention at the invasion of the intimate moment.

  I wiped my hand off on my jeans and grabbed for the radio. “Copy.”

  “ETA on touchdown?”

  I rolled my eyes. If it was up to me, Talia and I would head up the coast a little longer, maybe touch down a little further, and find some hotel to finish what we’d started.

  “Mr. O’Keefe is here,” Lana added, her unspoken meaning obvious.

  Henry was back and wanted to know where his girlfriend was.

  With a long look at Talia, I pressed the button on the radio. “Fifteen minutes. Headed back now.”

  Talia arranged her dress and fixed her hair back into place as I turned my attention back to the controls.

  It was fun, but it was time to go put an end to the fight over the F-4, and send both Henry and Talia back to LA where they belonged.

  Chapter Seven

  When Talia and I returned to the front desk at the entry of the museum, her entire demeanor changed from the strong, confident, sexy-as-fuck woman I’d just been finger fucking at ten thousand feet, into a demur, quiet, backdrop character in some soap opera. She melted into Henry’s side, and he automatically wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her in a way that sent a clear message:

  She’s mine.

  “Aaron, this is Henry O’Keefe,” Lana introduced, her expression something of an innocent, yet overeager, golden retriever.

  I’d barely even noticed she was standing there at the desk.

  I grit my teeth into a forced smile and extended my hand—the one that had just been plowing into Talia’s dripping wet pussy—and shook his. “Aaron Rosen.”

  Henry nodded, his grip tight and commanding on mine. “I apologize for my absence,” Henry said, his voice the polished, smooth version of his parking lot rumble routine the other day. There was still an edge of hostility to his demeanor, but I doubted that anyone looking in from the outside would be able to spot it. He was very subtle. But it was still there. “I trust you showed Talia a good time.”

  I dared a glance at Talia, the echoes of her moans still playing through my mind. “Oh, yes, we had a grand old time,” I replied, finding it hard to fight off the grin that was forming.

  Henry dropped his eyes to Talia, who immediately plastered a smile on her face, and nodded. Her transformation was startling, as she smiled up at the asshole with wide, adoring eyes. “It was so beautiful. I think this would be the perfect place to…” her words trailed off as Henry’s eyes shifted from steel to ice.

  “Not now,” he said, his voice tight. Controlled.

  She smiled over at me again, but was visibly shaken.

  What the hell is going on here? Something was definitely off. Who was the woman standing in front of me? She looked like the woman who had been so powerful and hypnotic, but everything else about her was different, even her voice sounded different.

  My eyes flashed to hers, silently begging for a sign that I wasn’t going insane, that something was wrong. But her brown eyes were hollow and listless as she met my gaze.

  Henry interjected my thoughts, launching into a conversation, as he started to wander deeper into the museum. “So, am I to assume this is where your new prized plane will go?”

  “You mean the F-4? Yes, that’s where it will be displayed.” I pocketed my hands in the back of my jeans and followed a few paces behind him as he started down the aisle, making comments about each plane he encountered. The other patrons moved aside as he walked through. Whatever waves of power he was sending off were clearly read by everyone around him.

  I hated him all the more for it.

  “You have quite an eye,” I complimented, internally gagging on the words. “What started your interest in planes?”

  Henry—still gripping tightly to Talia—turned and smiled at my question. He reminded me of a used car salesman, in a better suit. “I went to aviation camp one year as a child and was absolutely captivated.”

  I nodded. “How interesting.”

  “Yes.” He pivoted and rounded on me. “I wonder if there might be some way we could speak alone.”

  Talia’s eyes flashed and the pit in my stomach tightened. She’d warned me that Henry would offer to buy the F-4, and she’d also added that he wouldn’t take kindly to losing it—again. The idea of getting alone with him didn’t seem to be in my best interest. I knew that I could take him, in a physical fight, but as Bennett had pointed out, that was a sure fire way to get a team of lawyers crawling up my ass.

  Something neither I, nor the museum, could afford.

  I wasn’t going to risk my father’s legacy over a hot-collared fight with a douchebag like Henry O’Keefe.

  “Of course,” I replied, forcing a smile. “Let’s go to my office.”

  Henry grinned—he thought he’d already won—and followed as I started back towards my office in the back corner of the warehouse. To my surprise, he kept a hold on Talia, and didn’t let her go wander around. I ushered them both into my office and only then, did he release her. She went and sat on my leather couch, and I couldn’t help but follow her legs as she crossed them, one over the other, remembering that she wasn’t wearing anything under her thin dress.

  Henry remained standing, and shifted his body to mirror mine. He was still smiling, but his tone had lost the polished edge it had when he’d spoken out in the museum, “You strike me as an intelligent man, Rosen. So, I’ve no doubt that you’ve already figured out that my visit here today was far from coincidental.”

  I crossed my arms, my mind reeling to peel apart the subtle insult from his words.

  “After our encounter in the parking lot yesterday afternoon, I did a little digging on you, and found out about your little business here, and I decided it was worth coming to take a look around.” I bristled at the way he said little, but kept my anger in check. “It’s a nice thing you have going. I understand that the F-4 would have a nice place on display, possibly even get some time in the sky. However, I also see that to you, it’s just another piece in your collection, and that means one thing…”

  “Really? And what’s that?”

  “That it can be bought,” Henry explained, still grinning. “So, you’ve had your fun. But it’s time to end the game. How much for the plane?”

  Even after Talia’s explanation in the hangar, I still couldn’t grasp why Henry was so hell bent on the F-4. Surely there were other ones available that he could buy. He had unlimited resources. If his net worth was what Lana had said, then he could afford an entire team of people scavenging the globe for planes and whatever else the greedy little prick desired.

  “The F-4 isn’t for sale,” I replied, my tone firm. Set. “I’m sorry you’ve wasted the time to come all the way out here.”

  “Everything has a price, Rosen,” he countered. “There must be something you want. Oh! I know…”

  In a sickening, heart stopping moment, he rounded to face Talia who was sitting casually on the couch, watching the exchange. “It seems that you’ve taken a liking to her.”

  Talia’s face didn’t cha
nge. She wasn’t shocked, disgusted, or even surprised by Henry’s suggestion.

  “What the fuck is going on here?” I demanded, throwing my glare from Henry to Talia.

  Henry chuckled, the sound grating on every nerve in my body. “I know that you and Talia had a little…fun…last night. So, you want her?”

  I shook my head. “This is insane. I don’t have time for this. The plane is mine. You can have her. I’m not interested.”

  I flung the door of my office open and stared out into the abandoned hallway, no longer willing to maintain eye contact with either of them.

  Henry took a step towards me. “Rosen, I’m trying to be the nice guy here. I’m only offering something you want—in exchange for something I want. That’s just good business.”

  I dragged my eyes back to his, sickened further at the amused look still lingering there. “Business, huh?” I looked past him, to Talia, as she stood from the couch. “I didn’t realize you were a simple commodity. You struck me as the kind of woman who would have her own voice.”

  Talia cut a glance at Henry, who stared back at her with steely eyes, and she backed down.

  “I think it’s time for you both to leave.” I pointed at the open doorway a second time. “Now.”

  Henry jerked his chin at Talia and she followed as he strode out into the hallway. I followed behind, prepared to escort them until the tires on their car were off my driveway. “So, this is a good spot?”

  Talia turned to look at him, and I caught a flick of her eyes back in my direction. “From what I saw, yes.”

  Every instinct wanted to demand what they were talking about, but I kept my mouth shut, and my jaw clenched tight.

  At the door to the museum, Henry stopped short, and turned back to me. He extended his hand, wanting me to play along, but I didn’t bite. His extended arm held for a second, and then he dropped it back by his side with a huff “I’m sure we’ll be in touch soon.”

  “I don’t think that will be necessary. My answer won’t change.”