Claimed By her Daddies by Laylah Roberts
25
Pippa stood outside Kassim’s office in their country house. She stared down at herself. She felt pretty silly standing here in work attire.
With her naughty notebook under her arm.
This wasn’t going to work. This was silly. What if he thought she was being ridiculous? What if he told her to leave?
What if he rejected her?
It bubbled deep inside her. Gary had rejected her.
Gary was a dick.
She sucked in a breath. The others seemed to think this would work. After a brief nap, for all of them, Matek had told her his plan.
He thought that she should tell Kassim that she felt guilty over Matek being hurt. And that she needed him to punish her.
She really wasn’t sure how this was supposed to draw Kassim out of whatever place he’d gone to. But since she didn’t have a better idea, here she was.
Aric had been the one to dress her. He’d insisted on business casual, claiming that Kassim had to have plenty of fantasies of taking her in his office.
Well, it wasn’t like she hadn’t had those fantasies herself. Still . . . it was kind of hard to believe that Kassim would have thought about her like that. He was always so professional. She really wasn’t sure he’d ever thought about bending her over his desk, lifting her skirt.
Or ordering her to her knees so she could suck him off as Aric suggested.
Pippa shook her head. Go in. Don’t go in. But she had to make up her mind soon.
If you don’t do this, if you chicken out then you’ll never know if it would have worked. You’ll forever wonder.
And he might stay closed off from her. She couldn’t allow that.
So gathering up her courage, she knocked on the door.
“Come in,” he called out.
She opened the door and stepped in. He didn’t look up from his laptop. “Are the new guards here yet, Judd?”
“Um, I’m not sure, Sir,” she said, slipping easily into her role as his personal assistant. That part of the fantasy would be easy. It was the part where she told him about her feelings then begged him to spank her that she had issues with.
Where she told him that she wanted to fuck him. Where she made herself vulnerable.
Kassim’s gaze shot up to hers. Shock filled his face.
“I could, um, go find out.” She half-turned as though she was about to walk out the door.
She winced. Wait. No. This wasn’t part of the plan. Leaving wasn’t either. She had to stay here. She had to convince Kassim to open up to her.
With her mouth around his cock. That had been Aric’s suggestion. Although the others had all agreed.
Bastards.
Mouth dry, she instead locked the door.
“Miss Jones?” Kassim asked. “What are you doing here?”
“I thought you might need some help, Sir,” she said primly as she turned back to him.
Show no fear.
Well, she wasn’t afraid of Kassim. Just of his reaction to what she had to say.
“Help? Miss Jones, you’re on sick leave.”
“I’m not sick, Sir.”
“Holiday leave then.”
She shrugged. “It’s hard to be on holiday when I know you’re working, Sir. Maybe I could help you and we could get through everything quicker.”
Kassim leaned back in his chair and looked her over. “Is that why you’re here? To help me work?”
“Yes, Sir.” She eyed him warily. What was he thinking? It was hard to tell with Kassim. He had a very good poker face.
“Then why did you lock the door?”
Uh-oh.
She licked her lips, tasting the red lipstick that Aric had also insisted on. Shoot.
“And why are you nervous?”
“Nervous, Sir?”
“You’re licking your lips.” His gaze narrowed in on her mouth. “And you’re wearing lipstick. You never wear lipstick.”
Oh, shit.
“You also never wear skirts that short or blouses with your buttons nearly undone to your navel.”
“I . . . I’m sorry, Sir.” She reached for the buttons to do them back up. That was it, she was never going to let Aric dress her again.
“I didn’t say you needed to do them up, Miss Jones,” he told her in a firm voice.
She froze. Okay, maybe this wasn’t going to be so hard after all.
“It’s very unprofessional of me, Sir.”
“It is.”
She licked her lips again.
Crap. Stop doing that. Stop showing him how nervous you are.
“Miss Jones, would you like to tell me what’s going on? I’m going to assume you aren’t here under your own accord. That outfit and make-up has Aric written all over it. Although I’m sure he wasn’t the only one behind you turning up like this. They sent you to tempt me, didn’t they?”
“Sir?”
“The outfit. Half-professional, half-sexy. The red lipstick. Your natural shyness.”
She frowned. Was she shy? Not really. Just reticent. She was guarded. Maybe that came across as shy.
“I just, I . . .”
“Yes, Miss Jones?”
“I need you to punish me, Sir.”
He froze. “Punish you? How? Why?”
“Um, well, my outfit is a bit risqué.”
He ran his gaze over her. “It is. Did anyone see you on the way down here?”
“No, Sir.”
“Then I see no reason to punish you for it.”
Shit. She was crap at this role play.
“Would you like me to do anything for you, Sir?” she asked, hoping he would lead the way.
“No, Miss Jones. Like I said, you’re on leave.”
Her shoulders slumped. Right. No punishment. No blow job. No sex.
Stupid girl. Why did you think this plan even had a chance?
“I’ll leave you alone then, Sir.” Turning, she fumbled with the lock. There was silence behind her and she started to sniffle. This was just pathetic.
Wait.
What was she doing? Was she just going to walk away? If she left now how much longer would he hide away? And would he do this every time he thought he’d messed up? Was there even going to be a future for them?
Maybe this time, it was up to her to fight for what she wanted. She was too used to hiding. To running from her problems, avoiding them.
Take a stand.
“I know this might seem like I’m here to play a game, Sir, but I’m not.”
“Excuse me?”
“The whole naughty secretary-hot boss. It’s a game. It’s meant to be fun. But that’s not the main reason I’m here. I’m here because you’re hiding from me. That’s normally what I do. It is what I’ve been doing. I’ve been hiding because I feel so damn guilty.” She leaned her forehead against the door, closing her eyes.
“Miss Jones—”
“I’m talking,” she said sharply. Then she tensed. Shit. She was probably going to get into trouble for that.
Screw it.
“I broke the rules and then Matek got hurt. I’ve been drowning in guilt and I retreated into Little space. Matek and the others helped pull me out. They seem to think you feel guilty too. Although I don’t understand why you would. Or why you would hide from me. Unless you’ve changed your mind and you can’t tell me. Which would probably destroy me since you four are the first people I’ve really trusted since my father died. You’re the only men that I’ve been able to open up with, be vulnerable. So I really hope you’re not going to break my heart.
“But if you need to then please just do it. Like a band-aid. I can take it, Sir. I need to know though.” She sucked in a breath. “Now I just feel stupid. Especially because I’ve just blurted everything out. I wanted you to help me get over my guilt. So I thought I’d pretend to be the naughty secretary. But now I . . . I . . . I’m just going to leave and maybe we should forget this conversation ever happened.”
She managed to get the lock undone and opened the door.
“I didn’t give you permission to leave the room, Miss Jones,” he said in a low voice.
She stiffened. Permission? Was he for real? She didn’t need his permission to leave the room.
“You’ll need to be punished for that. Come here.”
Was he playing? Because he sounded very serious. She wasn’t sure. Was he mad at her for blurting out all that stuff? Was he upset that she had pointed out he was hiding from them all? Or was he about to tell her that it was all over?
Turning, she looked at him and a tear slid down her cheek.
“Miss Jones. Here.”
He pointed at the floor next to where he sat behind his desk. Woodenly, she walked over.
“Sir?”
“Did I give you permission to leave?”
“No, Sir.”
“And is your skirt an appropriate length?”
What? Hope filled her.
“No, Sir.”
He knocked a pen onto the floor. “Pick that up please, Miss Jones.”
Her breath caught. Before she could talk herself out of it, she leaned over to grab the pen.
“I can see your breasts when you bend over, Miss Jones.”
“Sorry, Sir,” she whispered, handing him the pen. Then unable to stop herself, she blurted out her worry. “Are you sick of me, Sir? Do you no longer want me?”
He froze at her whispered words, staring down at the pen in his hand. “On the contrary, Miss Jones. I want you more than words can say.” He glanced up at her. “But I don’t think I deserve you.”
“Why not?”
“I made mistakes and you were nearly harmed.”
“Yeah, well, I made mistakes and Matek was harmed. So I think I have you beat there.”
“It was not your fault Matek was harmed,” he said firmly.
“It was,” she countered. “I broke the rules. I deserve to be punished.”
She dropped her gaze and he rose to his feet. Reaching out, he tipped up her chin. He studied her with firm, calm eyes. “You want to be punished?”
“If it gets rid of this yucky feeling in my stomach, if it makes me stop having nightmares about Matek dying, if it means I can move on, then yes. I deserve to be punished, I want to be. And I want you to do it. Please, Sir.”
He cupped her cheek. “You hid in Little space.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“I don’t want you to do that again, understand? If you have problems, issues, fears, you need to learn to talk to us.”
“Not really my strength, Sir.”
“Not mine either. But there are others in our harem who are better at it. We’re a family, we need to learn to lean on each other, to turn to someone for their strengths and be there to bolster someone else up when they’re weak.” He ran his thumb over her lips. “And that needs to start with me. I’m the one who has been holding us all back.”
“How, Sir?”
“I was raised to think I had to be perfect. Not my parents’ fault. But just the expectations on me as the eldest. So when something happens that I see as my fault then I take it badly. Anything happening to my brothers, to you, I see that as a personal failure.”
“Kassim, you can’t take all of that on your shoulders. You can’t control what I or your brothers do. Not everything is your fault.”
“You are right. But in this, I feel I have some blame. I didn’t tell you about the attack on you in Escana.”
“I’m guessing that you were trying to protect me.”
“I didn’t want you to be stressed after your concussion. But I also thought I could take care of the threat without you ever having to know. I want to shelter you from all pain and fear.”
“You can’t do that, Sir. Much as it sounds amazing. There are always going to be dips in life.”
He frowned. “This is a bit more than a dip.”
“Someone trying to kill me is kind of a bummer. I can’t even go out for an ice cream. Or have cream tea. I really love scones and cream.”
He moved his hand to the back of her neck. “I’m sure we can have one made up for you here, Miss Jones.”
“Sure. It would be nice to go out, though. I’m quite mad at how inconsiderate this killer is being. My first time anywhere that isn’t New Zealand, Australia or Escana and I can’t even sight-see.”
“I promise that when this threat is over, I will bring you back here and you can act the tourist all you like.”
“You’re a brave man wanting to get back on a plane with me.”
“I’d go anywhere with you, Miss Jones. You are my heart.”
She sucked in a breath as the words hit her, burying in deep. “You’re my heart too, Sir.”
“I don’t like that you thought I had changed my mind. That will never happen. I know that my actions may have been interpreted as me turning away from you, but I was punishing myself for failing by cutting myself off from you. I never meant to punish you, though. Never like that.”
“But you’ll take me over your knee? Punish me?”
“You didn’t put that person behind the wheel of the car.”
“But I did run into the middle of the road when I’d been warned not to leave Beck and Aric.”
“True.” He looked thoughtful. “And that is eating away at you?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“So you decided to come in here to . . .”
“Ask you to punish me, Sir.”
“Why not one of the others?” he asked curiously.
She nibbled at her lip. “Well, uh, I . . .”
“Out with it, Miss Jones. You’ve been brave up until now.”
She sucked in a breath. “I haven’t seen you much since Matek was hurt, and I was worried. Matek explained that it wasn’t you pulling away rather that you feel guilty as well. He thought that maybe we could work through that together. I could get rid of my guilt and bring you out of this office and back to our family.”
He looked thoughtful. “Our family. I like that. And the, um, what did you call it? Naughty-secretary, hot-boss fantasy? Whose idea was that?”
“I think it was Aric,” she whispered.
“And did Tavi have anything to add?”
She couldn’t tell if he was mad that they’d all conspired to arrange this.
“Just that I should bring the naughty notebook and he might have given a few pointers on how to act as well. Although I didn’t really need those.”
“No, you were doing a very good job yourself.”
“You weren’t into it, though.”
“Wasn’t I? Do you know how often I’ve thought of bending you over my desk? Of lifting one of your skirts or pulling down your pants? Of running my hand down your panty-clad ass then spanking you for wearing panties? How often I’ve thought about pulling you across my lap and smacking your bottom on the pretense of punishing you? Or of ordering you to your knees to suck my cock.”
She could feel herself going bright red. “You have? Really?”
“Really, Miss Jones. But I didn’t think that would be something you were into. I never wanted you to feel like I was treating you with anything but the utmost respect. It is not because I want to degrade you or think that you should give me anything or that you do not do a good job—”
She reached up and put her hand over his mouth to quiet him. She’d never seen him so out of sorts. He was babbling and it was about the sweetest thing she’d ever seen.
“I know you respect me. This is fantasy, it’s roleplay. It’s not real life. I know that if I don’t want to get on my knees and suck you off then I don’t have to. The thing is, the idea of it makes me really hot. And I really do want to do that.”
He gently removed her hand from his mouth. “You do?”
“Yes, Sir. I do. I . . . I like the idea of roleplay. I mean, I’m guessing you wouldn’t be keen on dressing up as Batman and arresting a naughty Cat Woman and spanking her with your paddle ...”
“Not quite my thing, no,” he said dryly. “Although you might have some luck with Aric on that one.”
“Hmm, you could be right. But this roleplay? That’s right up your alley, right? You’re already my boss and I’m already a little bit naughty.”
“A little bit naughty? Is that what you think? You have racked up several violations, Miss Jones.”
Her heart raced at the firm tone. This was something she’d dreamed about. Hell, sometimes she’d sit at her desk and grow wet from fantasizing about what he might do to her. And now it was happening.
Well, it will if you don’t say something, idiot.
Already worry was filling his face. He frowned, opening his mouth.
“I have, Sir? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. It won’t happen again.”
He took a step back then sat in his chair. “It won’t? Now, I might have believed you if this was the first time that you’d said that. But it’s not, is it, Miss Jones? In fact, several times now you’ve told me that it wouldn’t happen again and yet where we are.”
“I’m sorry, Sir. What can I do to make it up to you?”
“I’m afraid that I’m going to have to fire you, Miss Jones. I can’t have someone working for me who is so blatantly disobedient.”
She slid to her knees, putting the notebook down on the floor. “Please, Sir, don’t do that. I need this job.”
“Miss Jones, I can’t allow this to continue without punishment.”
“You’d punish me, Sir?”
“If it’s the only way you will learn.”
“Maybe I can do something for you instead, Sir.”
“And what would that be?”
She licked her lips then reached out to touch the big bulge pressing against his pants. He sucked in a sharp breath. “Perhaps I could take care of this for you, Sir?”
“Are you sure you can handle it?”
Could she handle it?
“Only one way to find out, Sir.”
“Very well, Miss Jones. You may remove my cock from my pants.”
Her hands were trembling as she released the button and drew down the zipper slowly. Beneath the pants, he wore black boxers.
“Miss Jones, before you take out my cock, please go lock the door.”
The door? What? Oh, fuck. The door!
She jumped to her feet then wobbled on the high heels that Aric had chosen for her. Damn him.
“Careful.” Kassim reached out and steadied her. “Slowly.”
“Yes, Sir. Sorry.” She walked over to the door and locked it. Then she let out a deep breath. She really needed to start remembering to lock doors. Turning, she moved back around the desk to find that Kassim had pulled down his pants and boxers so that his dick was revealed.
Oh, and it was a thing of beauty. Long and thick. With a wide head.
“Miss Jones.”
“Yes, Sir?”
“You’re staring at my cock. Am I to take it that you like it?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Good. Then get down on your knees and take it into your mouth.”
The order moved through her. She had this overriding need to obey. Yet, at the same time she felt powerful. Because she could see how much this gorgeous, strong man was turned on.
He wanted her.
Boring, nobody Pippa.
She didn’t know why. But that hard-on was for her. And she wasn’t going to let it go to waste.
Kneeling, she leaned in as he held his dick out to her and she licked over the head.
He made a growling noise as she took the head into her mouth, sucking strongly. Then she drew back before licking her way down the shaft. She peered up to find him staring at her, watching.
“You are beautiful, Miss Jones. Absolutely stunning.”
She wasn’t, but the words filled her with sweet sunshine. “Thank you, Sir.”
“No need to thank me for the truth. I couldn’t have dreamed up a more perfect woman for me and my brothers.” Then as if he realized the role he was meant to be playing, his face grew sterner. “But you’re not sucking.”
“Sorry, Sir. I’ll do better.”
She took as much of his shaft into her mouth as she could manage, taking him deep. A murmur of pleasure came from her and she heard his sharply drawn-in breath. She bobbed up and down on his dick, loving the feel of him, the way small moans left his lips.
“Your mouth is spectacular. It’s warm and wet. Hot. So hot. That’s it, take me deep. I’m going to warn you before I come so you can pull back if you need to.”
Pull back? Why would she want to do that? She wanted to taste him. To drink him down.
She took him even deeper then swallowed.
“More, Miss Jones. More.”
She could feel the tension in his thighs, heard his breathing growing faster. She increased her movements. Her jaw was starting to ache but she wasn’t going to let that stop her.
“I’m going to come.”
She didn’t move away. And when he came in her mouth, her hums of pleasure mixed with his groans. Gradually, she drew back, licking at his dick like a contented cat. He ran his fingers through her hair, pulling the loose bun apart.
“That was amazing, Miss Jones. Thank you.”
She leaned her head on his thigh and stared up at him with a smile. “Thank you, Sir. For taking the time to make me see the error of my ways.”
That rated her a smile and she couldn’t be prouder. Right now, he was less guarded than she had ever seen him.
“Please stand,” he commanded, holding out a hand. She took it and let him draw her up onto her feet. To her surprise, he pulled her onto his lap. She curled up, sighing with delight.
Kassim held her tight, giving her time to come back into herself.
“How do you feel after that scene, tamiya?”
Scene? “I didn’t really think about it being a scene.”
“No? Maybe because we didn’t negotiate much beforehand.”
“Did we have to? I didn’t see it as a scene because, well, it just felt natural and right.”
“Hmm, so it seems right and natural for me to order you to your knees to take my cock into your mouth?” he said in a teasing voice.
“Yeah. Pretty much.” She grinned, loving this side of him.
But then she sobered, because there was something that had been niggling at her, that she just had to ask him.
“Kassim?”
“Yes?”
“I just wondered, I mean I . . .” She sucked in a breath. “Why did you guys never steal me?”
His mouth dropped open.
“It’s a tradition, right? And I just wondered why,” she finished lamely, trying not to let him see how it hurt her.
He grasped hold of her chin with his hand. “We didn’t bride steal you because I am an idiot.”
That wasn’t what she’d expected.
“Aric suggested it, right at the beginning, and I shot him down. I thought you wouldn’t like it because you weren’t Escanaian. I didn’t want to scare you away. You were my assistant and I didn’t want to take advantage of you. Then after you were attacked, I thought it might put a bigger target on your back. I told myself and my brothers that we would wait until your attacker was found. But I’m starting to think my reasons were more selfish. That I couldn’t let go of control of Escana for that long.” He shook his head, looking deeply upset.
“Hey, Kassim.” She cupped her face between her hands. “Look at me.”
She waited until he stared down at her.
“That’s fucking ridiculous.”
His eyes widened.
“You’re the least selfish person I know. You dedicate your life to running Escana. To doing what is right. You spend your time worrying over your brothers, over me. You never take time for yourself. You’re not selfish.”
“Miss Jones, that’s not true.”
“It is true,” she told him fiercely.
“If we had stolen you then you would have had better protection. You wouldn’t have been hurt, nearly run over.”
“You don’t know what would have happened. You did what you thought was best. That’s all you can ever do.”
“Perhaps,” he sighed.
Concern filled her as she studied him. He had dark marks under his eyes and his face was drawn.
“You haven’t been taking care of yourself,” she accused.
“I think that makes two of us, tamiya,” he replied, raising an eyebrow. “Have you been eating?”
“Have you?” she countered.
“We’re a fine pair, aren’t we?” he mused. “I’ve been neglecting your care.”
“Kassim,” she said on a sigh. “I’m going to say this and hope you don’t take it the wrong way, but you can’t control everything. And because of that, not everything that goes wrong is your fault. I’m an adult. I can take care of myself.”
“Hmm, clearly.”
She flushed. “I haven’t felt like eating. I know I’ve been running from my guilt by going into Little space. I’m going to work on not hiding when things go wrong. Will you do the same?”
He sighed. “You’re right. As the oldest it’s always been my responsibility to take care of my brothers.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, they’re grown men who can take care of themselves. And maybe you need to learn to let people help you, to look after you once in a while.”
He frowned. “I’ve always believed that letting someone help is a weakness.”
“I get that, but sometimes letting someone help takes a lot of courage. And that can’t be a weakness, right? We don’t care if you mess up, Kassim. That’s life. Mistakes are life. We just want you with us. We all love you, Kassim.”
He stiffened. “Do you?”
“Do I what?”
“Love me?”
Whoops. She hadn’t intended to say it like that. But she wouldn’t deny it.
“I love you, Kassim. I want you with me for a long, long time. Please don’t work yourself into an early grave, or pull back away from me when things go wrong.”
A fierce look came over his face. “You realize you are never getting away from me now.”
“Good,” she replied.
He kissed her. It was a kiss of possession and love. She melted in his arms, letting him lead. Like always. She knew Kassim would always need to be in charge. And she was fine with that. As long as he let her take care of him sometimes.
Drawing back, he gave her an arrogant look. “You love me. You are mine.”
“Yours,” she whispered. She licked her lips. Would he say it back? “And you’re mine.”
A small smile tipped up the ends of his mouth. “I am yours. Because you are my heart. My life. I love you, Pippa.”
She leaned up to kiss him this time. Of course, he didn’t let her have control for long.
When he pulled back, he cupped the side of her face. “I will try to let you and the others in more. Perhaps let my brothers take on more tasks.” He made a face. “I’m not sure they’ll do anything to my standards.”
“I know. You can take it in small steps. Nobody expects miracles,” she teased.
“Brat.” He tickled her sides while she squirmed and squealed.
Then he stopped and gently grasped her chin, tilting her head back. “Now, we need to talk about you.”
“Me?”
“Yes. You brought in your naughty notebook. Shall we see what is in there?”
“I don’t think we have to. Let’s not and just say we did, huh?”
He huffed out a breath. “That isn’t how this is going, tamiya.”
“Drat. You know, I’m feeling so much better now. No guilt.”
“Is that so? Have you been sleeping well?” He ran a finger under her eye and she knew she best not attempt to lie.
“Not really.”
“Nightmares? Trouble getting to sleep?”
“Both,” she confessed.
“And eating?”
“I can’t seem to stomach food other than those protein drinks. And I’ve been avoiding dealing with anyone by using Little space as a safe haven but that’s all over now.”
“It is?”
“Uh-huh, Matek, Aric, Tavi and I . . . um, well we . . .”
He raised both eyebrows. “You what? Climbed into bed with Matek and then fired his physical therapist when she objected?”
She flinched. Then she remembered what Aric said. “She was getting handsy with Aric.”
“She was?”
“She grabbed his butt.” She narrowed her eyes. “She’s going down.”
“Going down?” he asked with amusement.
“Uh-huh.” She whacked her fist into the palm of her hand. “Down. You don’t think I can do it?”
“I’m sure you can, tamiya.” He tapped her nose warningly. “However, you won’t.”
“Why not? She deserves it.”
“Well, for one, I paid her out and she’s gone.”
“Really? I thought you might be mad at us firing her.”
“I never expected her to last long. Matek is a terrible patient. But also, you won’t do anything because I won’t risk any harm to you.”
“I could totally own her ass.”
“While it’s amusing to hear you talk like this, I’m afraid a princess doesn’t own people’s asses.”
Oh. That sucked. But he was right. She had to get used to being a princess.
“Sorry. That wasn’t very princess-like.”
“No need to apologize. There’s only us here. But you’re to forget about her, all right? I was interested to hear you were in bed with Matek, though.”
“Aric and Tavi set that up,” she muttered. “They were worried about me.”
“With good reason.” He sighed. “Instead of throwing myself into work and finding whoever is after you, I should have paid more attention to your health.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re pale and you’ve lost weight. You aren’t sleeping. You needed me. I wasn’t there. That is going to change, though. Starting with dealing with whatever is in your naughty notebook.”
