Command Me Books One & Two(18)

The elevator dinged, pulling Sarah’s attention to the floor number. Not hers. She went back to staring at her phone and debating whether she should answer now or wait until after work when she got home. Someone grabbing her elbow and hauling her out of the elevator the second the doors opened interrupted her thoughts.

She started to pull away and give the person a piece of her mind when she realized it was Joel—tall and handsome and glaring at her with anger making his dark brown eyes appear black. She blinked at him in confusion. “Joel?”

“What the fuck was that?”

“What?” She glanced at her phone. “If you mean the messages, I just checked my phone.”

“Not the messages. You showed those guys your tits,” he said angrily.

A chill raced over her body. Joel had seen her. When? How? Was he waiting in the garage for her?

No. None of that mattered. She had to get away from Joel before Sir found out where she was. She tried to free her arm from Joel’s grip, which tightened.

“I have to go,” she said abruptly.

“You’re not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell that was about.”

Footsteps on the tile brought both their attentions to the people headed for the elevator. Joel stalked to the stairwell door, dragging Sarah behind him. No amount of her struggling freed her from his grip. Not that she wanted to be free. So long as Joel forced the issue, Sir couldn’t blame her. This was the only way she could talk to Joel without getting into trouble.

Joel climbed five flights of stairs and stopped at the landing in between floors. After shoving her into the corner, he braced his hands on the wall on either side of her head and leaned into her to keep her from escaping. “Talk.”

She wanted to tell him everything. The need to share her burden brought tears to her eyes, but she blinked quickly to keep them from falling. She kept her mouth shut.

“Sarah, damn it.” Joel hit the wall, startling her. “I know what I saw. You showed those guys your tits. Not only that. They acted like they were waiting for you to do it.”

Shaking her head, she whispered, “I can’t.”

“Can’t what? Can’t tell me why you won’t see me or answer my calls? Can’t tell me why the hell you’ve gone from business casual to office slut? Can’t tell me why I keep hearing rumors about you that I know can’t be true?” He searched her eyes. “Tell me they aren’t true, Sarah. I know you. Nothing I’ve heard sounds like you.”

“It’s not.” It took all of her willpower not to tell Joel the truth and clear her name. She could guess what he’d heard. The few men she’d flashed under Sir’s promptings probably weren’t the discreet type. She bowed her head. “I’m not like that,” she whispered.

Joel grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. “Not like what? What is this?”

Since she couldn’t move her head, she lowered her gaze.

“Sarah!”

His tone startled her but she refused to look at him. The intensity of his gaze made her want to confess. She still didn’t know how Sir kept tabs on her—if he could hear her even now. They were in an empty stairwell that no one used. The only sound was Joel’s heavy breathing, fanning mint-scented air over her face.

Sarah inhaled. Joel’s familiar musk and spice scent soothed her nerves despite the tension of the situation. She preferred this to the stress of life under Sir’s command.

“Fine.” Joel shoved away from her and stalked to the far wall. He grumbled something to himself and then growled before coming back to Sarah. He scooped her left leg onto his forearm along with her skirt and lifted.

“No.” Her denial came too late.

Joel stared at her pussy and the two bells dangling from it. He touched one bell. “Fuck.”

“Joel—”

“Is this what you are now?” He dropped her leg and backed up. “No, this is what you always were and you were hiding it until now. You played innocent for me and probably laughed at how I ate it up.”

“No, that’s not—”

“Don’t lie to me.” He snagged the front her blouse and yanked it down, baring her breasts and the nipple ring necklace. “More than a few guys are talking about this and those damn bells. According to what I’ve heard, yesterday it was clamps. The day before it was a pearl thong.”

Sarah crossed her arms over her breasts. When Joel grabbed her wrists and maneuvered them above her head, pinning her to the wall, she squeaked in dismay.

“It’s too late to hide now, Sarah. I’ve seen it already. Not like this, but I’ve seen it. Or is it that you don’t want me to see it any longer? I already notched your belt and you’re moving on to the next guy, right?”