Claim Me: A Novel

He teases me, his tongue gently stroking the tender flesh between my legs and my vulva. I squeeze my eyes tight and try not to squirm. I cannot help it, though, and when I do, that wonderful, damnable cord slides over my dripping sex. I am so wet, so turned on, and just that tiny bit of friction is enough to shoot electricity all through me. I curl my toes in the shoes, shifting them so that only the points touch the ground and my knees raise even higher. I want more—so help me, I need more—and then, thank God, his tongue flicks gently over my clit and that is all it takes. I shatter, leaning back, my hands gripping the bench so hard I’m afraid I might dent the frame.

He holds me in thrall, his mouth pleasuring me so fully, his tongue dipping intimately inside me. The orgasm that is racking my body seems to go on forever, and I squeeze my legs shut, trapping Damien, not certain if I am trying to ensure that he never stops, or trying to make him stop because I cannot possibly survive such an onslaught of pleasure.

I feel the stubble of his beard against my thigh and gasp, then realize that I have been holding my breath. I lean forward, my senses returning, and twine my fingers in his hair. I don’t want him to stop, and yet right then, I need his arms around me. I need to hold him close and kiss him, and I roughly pull him up. I claim his mouth with my own, kissing him fiercely and relishing the taste of me upon his lips.

“Take me to bed,” I plead moments later. I’ve had only a taste of Damien, and like a long-starved refugee, I am nowhere close to having my fill. “Please, take me to bed,” I repeat.

“Not yet,” Damien says, and his eyes are dark with promise. “First, I’m going to take you out.”


I shift on the soft, leather passenger seat as Damien maneuvers the sleek and speedy Bugatti Veyron onto the Pacific Coast Highway. Damien has not actually said as much, but I think that of all his cars, this one is his favorite. It’s certainly the one we use the most, and I have even managed—finally—to memorize the make and model. Now it’s “the Bugatti,” not “that unpronounceable car.”

He’s smiling, obviously enjoying putting the car through its paces, leading us away from Malibu to God knows where. He hasn’t told me, and I haven’t asked. Wherever we’re going, I trust that it will be fabulous, and I am happily lost in the pleasure of watching him. Damien Stark, my playful, sexy billionaire. I smile even broader. Mine, I think. That is what he said about me. That I am his.

But is the reverse really true? Is Damien mine? For that matter, can a man like Damien Stark—a man who holds power close, but his secrets closer—ever belong to anyone?

His attention shifts from the road, and his brows rise in question, creating two horizontal furrows on an otherwise perfect forehead. “Penny for your thoughts,” he says.

I force my lips to curve, banishing my worries. “I haven’t taken a look at your balance sheets, but I think you’re worth more than a penny, Mr. Stark.”

“I’m flattered.”

“At my assessment of your value?”

“That you were thinking of me,” he says, taking his eyes off the road long enough to meet my eyes. “Then again, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. There isn’t a moment that goes by that I don’t think of you.” His words are as smooth as whiskey and just as intoxicating. “Even at the bargain-basement price of a penny, if I was required to pay each time my thoughts turned to you, my fortune would have evaporated days ago.”

“Oh.” My smile is soft and ridiculously, foolishly shy. He has, in that Damien Stark way that he has, completely banished my troubled thoughts. “I guess I won’t charge you, then. I’d hate to see you destitute.” I flash an impish grin as I snuggle back against the soft leather seat. “I like your cars too much.”

“I imagine they make putting up with me more palatable.”

“Oh, absolutely,” I say. “The cars, the clothes, the jet.” I’m counting on my fingers now.

“The paparazzi?” He glances sideways at me, and even in that quick flick of his gaze, I see the concern on his face.

Kenner, J.'s books