Melodic Madness Read online

  “Does this feel like a dream to you?” He gently nipped my lower lip and cupped the back of my head, taking control of the kiss. It was fully impassioned, amplifying the need to have him inside me.

  I kissed him back with the same hunger, lowering myself down onto his cock with a satisfied moan. The delicious stretch and burn as I adjusted around him caused my walls to clench.

  I rolled my hips, taking my time to ride him.

  “More,” he broke our mouths apart to command. He knotted a hand in my hair and crashed his lips back against mine, gripping my hip to force his cock deeper inside me. He thrust upward every time I came down until I was fucking him faster. “Fuck, just like that, baby.”

  His term of endearment broke through my breathless, pleasured haze. He released his hold on my hip and in my hair to grab hold of my ass and play with my clit. He pushed deeper inside me, squeezing the flesh of my ass to hold my body in place, rolling the swollen nub faster.

  “Alaric.” I grabbed hold of his shoulders as the rush hit me suddenly. My muscles tensed, rendering me immobile as the climax pushed a wave of heat through my entire body.

  I hadn’t finished coming when he dropped me onto my back, placing my legs over his forearms. He took over, fucking me so hard his balls slapped against the groove of my ass. I could feel come and arousal rapidly coating his cock and drenching my inner thighs.

  “You feel so fucking good, Cat,” he soughed, leaning down to fully bottom out.

  He grabbed hold of my throat, his sweaty fingers tightening to maintain their grip. I couldn’t seem to catch my breath. Another orgasm was building at an accelerated speed.

  A flurry of screams and curses flew from my mouth as a deep burning sensation whisked down my spine to the tips of my toes. My back arched off the bed. I dug my nails into his shoulders and squeezed my eyes closed, trembling beneath him.

  He dropped my legs and with his cock still inside me, flipped me onto my stomach. He grabbed a fistful of hair and pulled until I was arched and no longer flat on the bed. He pushed himself to the hilt, bringing his sweaty chest flush with my back so that he could whisper in my ear.

  “That was two. Let’s go for seven.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  The clatter of a plate had my eyes flying open. I lifted my head from the island and shot Alaric a glare. I became even more annoyed he was showered and so put together already. I’m sure I looked exactly how I felt—thoroughly fucked and bedded.

  “Don’t look at me like that. It’s time for breakfast.”

  “It would be better if it was time for sleeping.”

  “You can take a nap when you’re done. I have to work and run some errands, so you’ll be home alone.”

  “Hom--?” I restructured my sentence at his impeding glare. “I think I can handle being by myself.”

  “Your mouth has yet to be filled with my dick, Cat. Keep getting smart and you’ll be swallowing a different kind of breakfast.”

  I didn’t want to go near his dick for a solid twenty-four hours. My entire body was singing praises and curses for what he put it through until nearly six in the morning. I looked at the steaming eggs and mounds of French toast with a scowl. How did he get them so fluffy?

  “Where’s Demitri?” I asked, suddenly remember the man of few words. I couldn’t recall the last time I saw him.

  “He’s here and there. He’ll pop in randomly, so before you get any hair-brained ideas, consider that.”

  I rolled my eyes and scooped some eggs up with my fork, shuffling them into my mouth. They were nice and hot, not too runny or overcooked. If this were drugged, then I would deal with it then. I needed food.

  My stomach was in painful knots the entire time he’d been cooking. I reached for the syrup and drizzled some all over the food, mixing everything together afterward.

  Another dish, a smaller one loaded with turkey bacon was placed beside my larger plate followed by a glass of OJ and a tiny white pill. I swallowed a combination of syrupy egg and French toast, pointing at the pill with my fork. “What’s that?”

  Alaric frowned at the mess on my plate. “It’s medicine.”

  “What kind of medicine?”

  “For your body.”

  “But I thought I didn’t need any prescriptions?” I couldn’t keep the mocking bitterness from my tone.

  “This is different. It’s going to help you in the future. Our future I should say.”

  I studied the pill, rolling it with a finger.

  There wasn’t anything sinister about its appearance, but I couldn’t simply take something he gave me. I didn’t see the point in questioning the legality of this. It was Alaric, after all.

  “It isn’t a drug. It’s not going to hurt you or make you forget. Take the pill,” he commanded softly.

  I didn’t want to.

  But there was a chance my refusal could cause him to switch to the cold and domineering man, I knew he kept hidden behind that charming demeanor. Then this pill would probably be forced down my throat.

  “Is the food and orange juice even safe?”

  “Of course,” he answered flippantly.

  I released a silent sigh and took a sip of OJ, dropping the pill into the sweet liquid before I swallowed.

  “Good girl.” Now satisfied, he turned away and began cleaning up the dishes he used to cook.

  “You’re not eating?”

  “No time. I’m on a strict schedule today.”

  “Oh…then leave those. I’ll wash them.”

  He turned back around with a broad grin on his face.

  “What?”

  “That. What you just did. See how simple it will be for us to be domesticated?”

  The hand guiding a piece of bacon to my mouth froze midair. Domesticated? I just had to ask him if my drink was safe. We were tiptoeing around his bunker of skeletons and dark secrets.

  I glanced towards the basement door. He’d locked it down again, only proving last night was intentional. I knew something happened to those two girls, and that he was responsible for it. But I didn’t know the why.

  “Don’t ruin it.” He stepped away from the sink and came around the island to stand beside me. “We can talk later. Here, want you to have this with you.”

  He reached into the pocket of his dress pants and removed my cellphone.

  I eyed the device as if it were a bomb.

  “It’s going to be a long day. I want to be able to get hold of you,” he explained. “Take it.”

  I reached for the phone and his body swiveled, making it just out of reach.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Tell me what you aren’t going to do while I’m gone.”

  “…call the cops?”

  He tempered a smile and shook his head. “That’s a good answer. Not quite the one I’m looking for.”

  “Runaway?”

  This time he fully beamed at me. I hated his smile directly affected the tempo of my heart.

  “You’re learning.”

  A buzzing sound and a classic by Chopin began to resonate from his other pocket.

  He pulled the phone out and glanced at the screen. “I need to take this.”

  I waved him off. “I’m going to take a shower.”

  “I won’t be here that long.” He took hold of my jaw, turning my head to receive a chaste kiss. “Try to have a good day and do whatever you’d like. This is your house too.”

  I nodded, unsure how to feel about his full-blown displays of tenderness. He answered the call and walked out of the kitchen, going to continue his conversation in privacy.

  I waited for a few minutes longer and then hopped off the stool.

  I dumped the remainder of my soggy food into the garbage disposal and then rinsed my plate before hurrying up the stairs. I couldn’t call the cops and I couldn’t try to escape. That didn’t interfere with me finding out what happened to Chloe.

  I felt like this was the first time I’d worn actual clothes in days. It was only a p
air of terry cloth shorts and a tank-top, but that beat walking around in a robe.

  The wardrobe Alaric had accumulated for me didn’t have a lot of things I would normally wear. If I were a rich socialite that wanted to dine at restaurants that charged top dollar for mediocre chicken fingers—maybe I would feel differently.

  It was going on four in the afternoon, or early evening depending on the preference. I had taken a nap and taken the time to put my hair in two fish-tail braids. It was nearing two when I realized I was waiting around for Alaric to come home like a puppy that had been left in its cage too long.

  He hadn’t called or text once. I felt both annoyed and indifferent about this. I’m sure he was an extremely busy man. With my being here he’d had to tweak his days around mine. Or he did. I guess now that I was staying…

  Wait? What the hell was I thinking right now? I was getting ahead of myself. I walked the expanse of the hall down to where Meg’s room was. There was a small list of things to do inside my head and it had to be done before Alaric got back or Demitri popped up. I stopped right outside her door.

  It still felt like I shouldn’t be going in here, but there was something I needed to check.

  Twisting the knob, I peeked my head into the room and confirmed what I had already suspected. All her things were gone. Alaric had somehow discarded all the boxes and clothing I was here under the guise to sort through. It left Meg’s room more barren than before. It was the final nail in her coffin, so to speak. Alaric had removed every single trace of my sister from this house.

  Feeling like an intruder peering into a stranger’s empty closet, I closed the door and took a step back. I turned and placed my back against the wall slowly sliding down it as I pulled up the search engine on my phone.

  I typed in the name of the salon Chloe worked at and dialed the number listed.

  “Mane and Nails, this is Krista.”

  “Hi, is Chloe in today?”

  “Uh, just a second.”

  She put me on hold with a Bruno Mars song. Not a full three seconds later she clicked back on.

  “Hi, are you there?”

  “I’m here.”

  “Yeah, we don’t have any stylists that go by that name.”

  I shook my head as if the woman could see me. “No, that can’t be right. Chloe’s worked there for almost three years. She has red hair, a little curv--.”

  “I’m sorry, but we don’t have anyone like that here. Maybe she’s at a different salon? If you don’t have any luck and give us a callback, I can get you scheduled with--.”

  I lowered the phone and ended the call. There wasn’t any other salon. Chloe didn’t work at a chain establishment. I contemplated calling my mom again, but she was the last person I wanted to deal with.

  If not for her I most likely wouldn’t be in this position. I tapped the phone against my lips wondering what to do next. Having a light bulb moment, I typed in my home's address and clicked into the realtor information listed for it on one of those rent and buys sites. I read the list, the name at the very top had me closing my eyes for a minute.

  The house was sold nearly three years ago today to an unknown source. I had a feeling I knew who the person was that bought it. I’d had the same landlord all this time and she never once mentioned she was selling her property. It belonged to her late husband. She wasn’t ever going to sell it.

  I could chalk this up to the belief that money talks, but it wasn’t cash we were dealing with, it was Alaric.

  I dropped my head back and shut my eyes. What the hell was going on? Where was Chloe?

  How long had this master plan been in effect? I truly felt like my life was being controlled by everyone but me. I never asked the world for any favors, so why was it treating me as if I’d gotten something and was now paying my dues?

  Could it be Alaric?

  Hell, my mother? I hadn’t heard from her since I ended our call prematurely. Not a text or anything was highly unlike her. She’d gone from calling me every hour or two to washing her hands of me. I wouldn’t say this didn’t hurt, but she’d done it before.

  She dumped me off on my grandma’s doorstep and went to live her life. I was only grateful to her because I adored my grandmother. She was what my mom should have been. Then she randomly showed up and took me back. You can assume I didn’t have the most stable upbringing after that happened.

  A beep echoed through the house, and I jumped. Suddenly alert, I sat forward and strained to hear. What was that? The downstairs door clicked shut and a feminine curse reached my ears.

  I knew this voice.

  Rising to my feet, I strode towards the top of the stairs and peek over the solid banister. All at once, my cellphone began to ring and Rebecca’s icy eyes collided with mine. I didn’t need to see the screen to know who was randomly calling me.

  “Don’t answer that!” she shouted, the desperation in her tone set me on edge.

  “What is going on?”

  She laughed bitterly. “You have no idea and for that I envy you. I really do. You’re so fucking lucky to be--.” She stopped herself and took a deep breath, smoothing a hand through her pristinely styled blonde hair.

  This woman was clearly frazzled.

  All signs pointed to Alaric being the cause. He wasn’t here and she was. It made this spectacle even odder.

  “He’s going to be pissed at you too now. If you want out, you need to come with me. Neither of us can be here when he gets back.”

  “Out…?”

  “Go home, Catalina.”

  “I am…” I trailed off, almost telling her I was home. Ironic how that worked out. I’d gone through a lot of unnecessary struggles to leave this place, failing every time. Now that the golden opportunity was presented right before me, I was hesitating.

  It wasn’t that I had a sudden change of mine. It was my not wanting to leave Alaric.

  He was a wicked man who never did anything to redeem his actions, but those same traits were what made me fall for him. Not his money or his status.

  His cock was a bonus. He was a beautiful man, undeniably, but it was that unapologetic madness of his that I found most enamoring.

  The problem was the secrets he kept and that my grip on reality could slip at any moment with him. There was still the major question of how much of my time here was real and how much of it was a dream?

  I had yet to accept that there was something inside me that got off on the gruesome scenes on a reel inside my head. Yet, I wasn’t devastated by Alaric making two women disappear in his basement.

  I was admittedly fickle and not in the best headspace to make decisions that were morally and sensibly correct. But Rebecca was not an ally or a friend.

  I hadn’t forgotten the dinner comments or all the open hostility she always gave me. She could take me from this house and easily dump me off somewhere.

  I watched a lot of daytime soap operas. I knew women could get a bit looney over good dick and high-value men. Alaric was that and much more.

  I had the obsession she wanted. I wasn’t going to give it up to satisfy her. Besides, it’s better the devil you know. Isn’t that how the saying goes? This was different when Alaric was the one stopping me. I trusted him far more than I did this ice queen.

  “What are you waiting for? We have to go!”

  The front door swung open again before I could reply and tell her she was wasting her time. Demitri walked in wearing his professional attire with an added accessory clenched in his hand.

  Rebecca whirled around in her six-inch heels and placed her hands on her hips. “You stay the fuck away from me!” she snarled.

  He looked up and saw me standing here and gave a nod of acknowledgment along with what I dared say was a trace of a smile.

  “Afternoon, Miss Haven.”

  I gave an awkward wave, flinching when Rebecca started to screech. The taser in his hand buzzed continuously as he held it to the side of her neck. When she collapsed into an unconscious heap, I noticed a
puddle of liquid spreading across the hardwood floor.

  She’d pissed herself.

  Demitri was unfazed by me watching him. He slid the tranquilizer into his shirt pocket and bent down to grab hold of her legs. I watched him drag her back out of the house. Her perfectly styled hair swept right through the urine and a Jimmy Choo heel was left abandoned in the foyer.

  I remained exactly where I was, bewildered by what I just witnessed. My phone began to trill for the second time. I took a step away from the banister and answered.

  “When I call, you answer. I don’t care if you’re in the middle of dying.”

  “If I’m doing that it would probably be because of you…”

  “You love trying to piss me off.”

  I crossed one arm over my chest, pacing back and forth. “Are you not going to explain what just happened to me? Or we’re pretending that didn’t occur too? Just gonna sweep it into your deep dungeon of mystery you won’t let me enter and claim it was all in my head.”

  “Some of it is all in your head, Cat. That’s what I’m working on.”

  My brow dipped in confusion. The last part of that sounded like it wasn’t meant for me to hear. “Huh?”

  “Nothing. Anyways, you don’t sound upset about it.”

  “Which part? The not entering your dungeon. You messing with my head. Or you making one of your close friends piss herself. Why would I be upset? She’s not my problem. I wasn’t the one sleeping with her.”

  “First of all…” he pulled the phone from his ear to give a command to someone else. I caught the word Vitals. “I’m not fucking her. Haven’t in a long time and won’t ever again. I have a gorgeous woman that gets my dick hard just by breathing. I don’t need anything else. You’re it for me. I’ll have a ring for you soon.”

  His confession made my steps falter. He sounded serious. I shook my head and resumed pacing. I couldn’t go there right now.

  “Since you won’t answer anything else I just asked. I know you bought my house. And Chloe. You’re responsible for her silence too, right?”

  “Someone’s calling for me. I have to go. I’m picking you up at seven. Be outside waiting for me.”