Karen had to admit, she liked the smooth ride of the car. It required little effort to accelerate and the gentle humming of the electric engine made her appreciate the fine mechanics. By the time she arrived at her house, Trevor was parking in front of his trailer before stepping out of his truck and briskly walking over to her place, she could honestly say that she fully appreciated the car and Trevor's effort. There was only one unsettling thing about it.
"I'll have the rest next week," Karen said to Trevor a minute after he stepped through her front door. She placed a beige bag on the kitchen table. "There's seven grand in there. Count it if you want."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Trevor held out his hands, pushing away the bag as though it contained something highly offensive. "Where is this coming from? You just keep seven grand in a bag in your house like that?"
"I saw the price on the paper. Fourteen thousand," she said loosening the drawstring on the bag. "I'll have the other half next week."
"Fourteen was only the sticker price. A lot more went into the customizing."
She gave him a stony look. "How much more? Ten grand?"
"What? No. Not that much."
"Well, how much then? Let me know."
Sighing, Trevor sat at the kitchen table, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I thought we went over this, Karen."
"No, you told me what you did and thought I'd be okay with it. I'm not. Did you really think I'd be okay with you probably harassing my former boss in order to attain a vehicle? The asshole barely wanted to pay me for the work that I was doing."
"I know, I know," he blurted out. "I remember hearing something about it from Franklin. But look what he was able to do for you with just a little bit of persuasion. Besides, I don't care if the front of his shop was smashed up. He should care a little more about the people who used to work for him."
He could still see the hesitation in her expression, and he tried to think of something more to ease her mind about it.
"You're nice, Trevor. A sweetheart to me, even. But I can't accept something like that. I've known you for less than six months. People that I have known all my life wouldn't dare give me something that costs so much."
"Then maybe you have the wrong people in your life," he said quickly, noticing the flash of anger that came over her face. "Look, I didn't do this to make you mad. It was never in my mind to just buy you a car, not until you told me there was something wrong with your truck." He looked down at his hands folded atop the table. "I know how much you love your truck, and I just wanted to give you something that you would enjoy equally as much."
Karen looked down, almost ashamed at the strong reaction she had. But she couldn't completely wipe her convictions. She had never accepted charity, from anyone, and she wasn't going to start now.
"If it bothers you so much, I'll return it. I'm sure Simeon can get as much out of it as I had put in it," Trevor continued, feeling stupid.
"If you agree that I need to pay you back for it, I'll keep it," she said, hand on her hip.
Trevor's odd hazel-brown eyes landed on her, hoping that her hand would expose just a tiny bit of the delicious skin of her hip. If he wanted a payment, another night with her would certainly make things even. He tempted fate with his crude sense of humor.
"So, what? You mean, sex?"
Despite wanting to smile, she didn't. Her eyes narrowed, although her face stayed soft.
"Next job we do, you take my cut."
"No," he immediately said. She tilted her head up, letting him know that she refused to budge in this deal. His shoulders sank with another sigh. "Fine. Then you have paid me back and I don't want to hear nothing more about it."
"Good," she said with a nod. "Now what do you want to eat?" She moved towards the fridge, opening it to see what she had already made. "Do you like chicken salad?"
"Oh, I want to eat," he practically growled out, "but I don't want chicken salad."
She stood straight, staring at him wide-eyed. "What?"
His hands were on her body before she could say another word. His lips smashed against hers as his hands roamed over her curves.
"Naked, on the bed, or I'm going to fuck you right in this kitchen."
Startled by his words, her hand pressed against her chest. Amused by her reaction, he posed a question to her.
"Do you want me to fuck you on the counter or the floor? Your choice."
"Stop being an animal, Trevor," she told him, her eyes still concentrated on him.
He pulled her close, biting on the side of her neck. "I am an animal, dear."
Her first reaction of closing her eyes and relishing in the feel of his hot breath so close to her skin surprised her. Yet she hoped that his teeth would sink into her flesh once more. A heavy sigh escaped her as he pressed his body against hers again, his rough hands squeezing her padded hips.
"Sometimes I wonder why you act the way you do," she breathed out. "You can be caring."
He cupped his hand around the back of her neck, his low rumble of a voice in her ear.
"I don't want to be caring tonight, my love," he rasped. "I want rough and hard. Brutal and violent. I want to take everything that you are and make it my own." His hand snaked up the back of her neck to her hair, grabbing onto her hair and yanking her head back. "I don't care if the others know anymore. You are going to be mine."
Holding her body close to him, he took her to the bedroom, where he pulled on her hair just enough to make her fall onto the bed. He didn't hesitate in quickly undoing the button of her jeans, pulling them off around her legs. The skimpy panties she wore underneath didn't hide much of herself from him, but he nearly tore those off as well, tossing them somewhere behind him.
He let out a dark moan. Seeing Karen bared to him made him feel like his body was on fire. Leaning before her on the bed, he spread her thighs wider and traced his tongue over her warm slit. The noise that came from her only urged him to do it again. His tongue found its way to the sensitive nub, flicking over it. Karen sucked in a sharp breath, her hand reaching down to his head.
"Trevor, please," she begged, and his golden eyes looked up at her.
He was pleased with the sight of her shirt stretched over her breasts, ecstasy etched on her face, and when he saw her teeth bite down on her plump bottom lip, he lost any shred of control he had. Standing, he shed his clothes quicker than Karen could blink, and he took to pulling her up just enough to grab a hold of her shirt.
"Get rid of the bra," he ordered as he pulled the shirt off her body. "Or it will be ripped in many places."
She reached behind her to unclasp the bra, Trevor impatiently yanking it away and throwing it to the floor on the side of the bed. She was just able to move up on the bed before Trevor was over her again, placing his body between her legs. Karen learned that he wasn't lying about being rough when she felt the intrusion of him entering her hot core without much of any warning. A hearty whimper soon turned into exquisite cries, and Karen just about lost herself in the hard, steady rocking that Trevor executed within her body.
When he leaned up, his hand roamed up her body, feeling her soft skin before stopping on the side of her neck. His mind was clouded with the pleasure of thrusting inside of her, and he barely realized his hand had clutched her neck. The other hand soon joining, it wasn't until he felt Karen's hand over his did he realize he was clenching at her throat, constricting her breathing as he ferociously drove into her. She scratched at his hand, but didn't seem to want him to stop.
"Yes, Trevor," she gasped out, her nails digging up his arm. "Yes, papi."
"Oh, yes, honey. Call me daddy."
Karen tried stretching her neck out as his hold on her became tighter. "Yes, daddy!"
The noise of her bed slamming into the wall faded as Trevor continued his sensual, gratifying assault on her. She somehow managed to strangle out a cry as her body began to tremble and she felt that tightness in her break. Her hand pushed against his chest out of reflex, but Trevor remained stable above her. It was one strong thrust into her that sent him over the edge, his cock swelling before shooting his seed into her. One hand of his let go of her neck to grip her thigh as he drained himself.
The realization that he had choked her hit him hard. It was such a natural instinct, he couldn't stop himself. He could just barely see the redness of where his fingers had been embedded on her skin. As firmly as he'd been pressing, he wouldn't have been surprised if his fingerprints were imprinted into her flesh. An awkward sense of pride came over him as he thought of the fact that he had marked her, branding her as his. The way she looked up at him as she tried to catch her breath made him believe that she genuinely enjoyed his actions.
He didn't give it another thought as he rolled to her side, allowing her to get up. She disappeared out the bedroom door, Trevor hearing the sink in the bathroom as he laid on her bed with his arm over his eyes. He was waiting for the other shoe to drop. For her to come back from the bathroom and explain to him that he was just too fucked up for her to even consider a real relationship with him. That she didn't want to spend the rest of her years putting up with his absurdity and bullshit. Now that he'd had a taste of her, he didn't know if he could really let her go. He couldn't just let her walk out of his life as if she didn't mean anything to him.
"What are you thinking about?" her voice softly asked. He looked down at the foot of the bed to see her neatly folding up their clothes. She placed them next to the closet as she coyly looked his way. She flashed him a smile before she reached for the red robe hanging from the corner of her closet door.
He shook his head, patting the mattress next to him. "Bring yourself over here naked as you are, Kitten."
She stood there a moment, studying Trevor. She never knew the extent of the scars marking his body. Knowing that he used to be heavy into drugs cast a sadness over her heart. What was it that made him not care about himself? She and Franklin had only been filled in with bits and pieces about the history between Trevor and Michael, and from what they had been told, through the two old-time friends arguing, was that Trevor felt betrayed. She knew exactly how betrayal felt. It didn't have a low level that could be looked over. It just was there in the lives of the people who suffered from the actions of people who were too cowardly to admit their doings and too busy saving their own asses.
She had been through more betrayals than someone her age should even have to know about. The last one, that led her to travel cross-country, landed her here. In her room, bare naked, and staring at a man she would probably never fully figure out. As much as she might like to, she would never learn of all the things that went through his mind. All she knew now was that he wanted her. Maybe it was because she was an easy companion that he also happened to be able to sleep with. Perhaps he really did want something deeper.
Now it was his turn to ask.
"What are you thinking about?"
She climbed over the comforter, Trevor's eyes immediately going to her ample bosom. Dramatically, she rolled her eyes and then saddled up beside him. "Could you make it a little less obvious?"
His head slowly turned from side to side. "No way."
Falling into his arms, she laid beside him with a content sigh. "You think you're going to ever go back home?" she asked, her hand rubbing over his chest.
"Not if I don't have to." He glanced down at her, seeing that her expression wasn't showing any dislike at the idea. "Besides, I feel like I am home with you."
Karen was quiet for a long while and he was nervous that he had said the one thing that would scare her away. But then her pouty lips parted and he could see the inquiry in her eyes.
"Why?"
He didn't know how to answer her. How could he possibly explain to her exactly how awkward he really was in life. Many things just hadn't gone the way he wanted them to, no matter what he did or how hard he tried. That's why he took his self-made enterprise by the horns. He didn't care if it seemed to be a joke to anyone else. To him, it was serious, and he wasn't going to lay down for anyone. He knew that Karen's hands weren't clean by any means, but she had such an innocent aura about her that he felt drawn to her. Like she would cleanse him. But a dirty rag only spread around more dirt. They would only be able to go so far without having to make that decision of where they would go in life.
"I've had enough taken from me to know what's good and what's not," he carefully said. Taking her hand into his, he ran his thumb over the top of her hand. "You may have done some shady things, but that's simply surviving. Anyone who says that they haven't at least thought of doing something illegal, I'd be quick to call them liars."
She remained silent as she listened to his words, the rumble of his chest calming her.
"Not everyone can be handed things in life," he continued. "Sometimes, we have to take. Take what we know we can do and what we can handle."
Her fingers trailed up his chest, swirling in gentle circles. "Do you think you can handle certain things?"
"I can deal with anything I have to," he said, stealing a glance at her soft face. "There are certain things that I've never really gone through before."
Karen took in her bottom lip, nervously biting on as she debated pushing her luck in asking him more. She wanted to know about his life, about his past, she didn't know just how to go about doing so without somehow setting him off. The rants that Trevor went on weren't nice ones. Despite their odd relationship, she didn't want to upset him by making him think she was nosy. She continued running her fingers along his skin.
"Like being with a woman?" she questioned softly.
His brows arched at her question. "I've been with plenty of women," he told her. "Have I ever taken any of them seriously? No." His hand smoothed down the side of her face. "Not until you."
"So you do want to take this to another level?"
"What level are we on now?"
She took in his scarred face. "I would say people who fuck each other. Is that accurate?"
His felt that twinge of jealousy thinking of another man sharing a bed with her like he was at the moment. "Will you be fucking any other guy?" He looked at her expectantly. "Or girl?"
She couldn't help the laughter that bubbled in her chest. "Can't say I'm into women," she said sitting up in the bed and rubbing her legs. "Although I will admit that I think women are beautiful. The girls down at the club are fantastic."
Trevor turned to his side, touching the soft skin of her leg. "That reminds me," he began, Karen's interest perking up at his business-like tone. "I was thinking that we could hire a few new girls. The same girls have been there since before I... took it over, and it's time to start hiring more people."
Karen tilted her head, nodding. "Some fresh faces would be good."
"Are the waitresses fine? That one has a bit of an attitude, but Shannon seems to really like you as a boss."
She stared at Trevor a moment, taking in what he had just said. "You want me to help run your club?"
He didn't say anything, his blank face hardly giving any answers.
"Trevor, I can't just go into someone's business, guns a-blazing, and do things as though it's my own."
"It's not just someone's business," he quickly said. "It's mine."
"That doesn't make it any better."
"Well... would you do it if... " He looked away from her, hesitant to offer her a job.
"If I was your employee?" she finished. "Yes, if I were on the payroll and it was my job, I would do it." She chewed on the inside of her lip before taking a deep breath with this next question. "Can I be a dancer?"
"Only if you want me to beat you," he answered with the most serious face she'd ever seen on him.
The slightest hint of a smile made her lips twitch. "I guess that would be a no."
"That's a hell no," he said before pulling her close and holding her tightly. "This is mine."
"Oh," she purred out, her hand running over the top of Trevor's head. "That's good to know. I don't have to worry about anyone else now."
Trevor silently vowed that he'd kill anyone who dared to harm her. He wished that this moment, feeling Karen's nails gently scratch at his head and her soft body next to him, would last forever. He couldn't remember the last time he was even remotely as content as he was laying here with her. He hoped that things weren't too good to be true.