Dreaming of Cade - Flash Fiction

Cade Maddox strode through the cold, marble tiled corridors of Renault Publishing, his expression reflecting his considerable anger if the wide berth he was given was any indication. He entered his office and slammed the door behind him with a force that resonated throughout the suite.

Damn Isabeau Renault! She was the most exasperating woman he’d ever met in his life, and he’d known a fair few women in his time. She fought him on everything, challenged him regardless of his logical suggestions, and she did it with a smile and a fire that made him want to get lost in her. She needed a damn good spanking some days, and others he would have sold his soul to lie next to her at night, the way he used to.

He sank into the leather chair at his desk and pulled the keyboard for his computer toward him, intent on making use of what remained of the work day. Once she exited the building, he’d be following  her. As he started scrolling through emails and seeing what needed his attention, he caught movement on the monitor that showed him her office. She was pacing…and she looked more lost than he’d seen her in years, her delicate features drawn with sadness. He forced himself to look away and get back to his work. The moment she left the office, he’d be notified.

A couple of hours later, a beep from the security panel made him turn, and he watched her lock the door to her office then head for the private elevator. She wasn’t going home tonight, but taking the lift to her penthouse on the top floor of the office building. He’d already done the security for her apartment, a few keystrokes and he was able to observe her every move there, too, though she hadn’t been told that in any of his reports.

* * *

The day had been much longer than she’d meant it to be, and she keyed in the security code to her office before heading to the private elevator that would take her to the penthouse. She was too weary to drive, even though her body was buzzing with restless energy on the way to the only floor this particular elevator was programmed for. She stepped out into a cool, silent entryway, and smiled.

She took the few steps that would put her at the door, then pressed her thumb to the panel that slid open when she punched in another code. A barely audible click told her the door was open and she went into the apartment, turning the lights on as she went, though only on dim, not full power.

She slipped her shoes off and left them by the curving sofa, then headed for the kitchen. Nothing appealed to her as she stared at the contents of the two fridges through their glass doors. She wasn’t really hungry anyway. The past couple of evenings had been spent at the privilegeNyc nightclub, drinking too much Scotch–again–and sparring verbally, then physically, with Cade Maddox.

She rubbed the heels of her hands over her tired eyes and sighed as she made her way back through the apartment. The entire place was laid out in a near horseshoe shape, the open end a wall of heavy, bulletproof glass that overlooked the glittering city below. On the left was the kitchen, small dining area, and her library/office. To the right, taking up most of the floor was the master bedroom suite, which contained a spacious bedroom, wide stone balcony attached, a bathroom straight out of Homes and Gardens, with waterfall shower and deep Jacuzzi bathtub. A smaller guest room was across the hall, richly appointed and comfortable. So far, no one had ever stayed in the apartment with her.

While she went through the familiar routine of undressing and showering, her thoughts returned constantly to Maddox and his unexpected reappearance in her life. Their past was lodging itself firmly in her present, and she wondered how long it would be before they were forced to talk about what had happened to put them on opposite sides of a chasm so dark and deep, it would be damn near impossible to bridge the gap. Then again, she chided herself, why would Cade want her near him again once he knew the truth?

She emerged from the bathroom after a quick shower, not bothering to put on a robe or nightgown, and she flopped on the silk and lace coverlet of the soft bed. They’d danced again tonight at the club, and he’d kissed her. She licked her lips, and in her mind the faint, lingering taste of him made her smile. She shivered, letting the memory expand outward, seeing every tiny detail of his face, tracing it with mental fingers, from the curving arch of his brow, across the sloping plane of his beard-stubbled cheek, and brushing softly over the lush curve of his lips. She loved Cade’s mouth, the soft sensuality of it so at odds with the stark masculinity that defined every inch of his body. He’d aged since they’d lived together, his eyes spoke of horrors seen, and acts committed that would never quite fade from his mind. He’d gained weight, but it was all hard muscle and controlled power. There’d been a time when she knew the taste and texture of every part of him, the soft silken hair of his chest, and how she loved to rub her cheek against it, or her breasts when she sat astride his hips. She bit her bottom lip, and memory took her back to the first time they’d made love…

God, Cade’s hands had been so gentle, and so knowing. She’d never been with anyone before him. She hadn’t told him, letting him believe she knew precisely what she was doing when she didn’t know a damn thing outside of her want for him. He’d figured it out fast, though, and once he’d stopped being pissed off at her for what might have happened, he’d made love to her for hours, showing her heaven over and over until she was limp and exhausted in his arms. That had been the beginning of the most perfect and happy year of her life.

Under Cade’s loving guidance, she’d learned to enjoy her body. No one else had ever touched her the way he did. She’d known other lovers since him, not many, but they weren’t Cade, and even in her anger and her feigned hatred for him, she knew she’d never love anyone else. He was the best part of her, he was inside her like the blood in her veins and the beat of her heart. She rolled onto her side and reached out to drag the second pillow close to her, hugging it tight.

“Cade…” she whispered in the silence, where it was safe to admit to the air that she still wanted him as much now as she had years earlier. Sighing heavily, she closed her eyes, let her thoughts drift…

She heard him come into the room, the heaviness in his breathing telling her he’d been drinking too much, which meant he’d been out with his old unit. The bed rocked a little as he sat on the edge and she turned to watch him pull off his shoes and go through the motions of getting undressed. With Cade, she never tired of seeing him stripping down to bare skin, and he was magnificent, all hard muscle and tanned skin. He turned back to the bed and she saw the flash of his smile in the dim light from the lamp on his side of the bed.

“Good night?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I think it’s about to get better.” He grinned down at her.

Laughing, she threw back the bed linen and opened her arms to him. He wasn’t long accepting her invitation and she arched up off the mattress when he settled over her, their mouths fused, tongues entwined, soft moans sighing in the silence of the room.

His hands glided over her, slowly stroking over her curves, and she felt him ease away. He hooked her legs over his arms and her fingers tangled in the thick silk of his hair while her entire body shuddered when he spread her thighs wide and bent to kiss the soft thatch of hair before moving lower. The stroke of his tongue over her clit made her gasp his name, and he slowed his pace, kissing and sucking softly, drawing her nerves so tights she was certain she was going to faint before he ever let her come for him…

Her head thrashed from side to side as he held her in place and his tongue began to flick rapidly over her clit. The building heat inside her would have had her writhing against the sheets if he’d loosened his hold, but he held her exactly where he wanted her, and she screamed as her orgasm trailed flames along her veins. Her hips rose off the bed and she pulled at his hair, panting for breath. He let her breathe for less than a minute, then he covered her again and lifted her hips to meet his thrust as he buried himself fully inside her still quivering pussy.

She hardly heard his soft, lust-roughened voice growling close to her ear, but she felt the tremor it evoked rushing through her entire body. He was still for a moment, allowing her to relax and adjust to him, then he moaned softly when she pushed against him, and whispered, “hard, baby, please…” His body answered her, and she came apart in his arms again, her senses exploded as tiny showers of light falling behind her closed lids as she cried his name…

Isabeau woke from the dream shaking and sweaty, the wetness seeping between her legs coating her thighs when she sat up, her clenching pussy still rippling with the remembered feel of Cade inside her. She ground her teeth and tears sprang to her eyes.

She fell back on the bed, her breathing quick and erratic. Closing her eyes, she let her hands begin to caress her heavy, sensitive breasts, tugging on the hard, distended nipples as she pinched and traced circles around them, remembering Cade’s tongue, and the way his mouth worked her into a frenzy with this touch alone. Low in her body, the tugging sensation of weight and need grew. Groaning, she rolled and pulled the vibrator out of the nightstand drawer, flicked the switch, and slid it deep inside her, slowly creating a steady rhythm as tension began to build. Within minutes her body shook, the orgasm sweeping over her as she cried out Cade’s name, and in her mind, saw the incredible pleasure than transformed his handsome features when she took him over the edge with her.

Breathing hard, she slid the vibrator free of her body and tossed it aside, the overload of emotion suddenly battering her in the aftermath of the sexual release… She lay flat on her back and cried, soft, low sobs that were broken only by his name… She loved him. Against all her efforts to make it go away, she loved Cade as much as she had when he loved her, too…

On the bedside table, her cellphone began to ring and she knew who it was before she answered. “I’m tired, Cade, what do you want?” She heard the tears in her voice, the rasping quality making the pitch low and husky. Maybe he’d assume it was because she’d been asleep… He used to tell her he loved the sound of her voice after they’d made love, and she hoped he wouldn’t remember that now as she waited for him to speak…

* * * * *

Cade Maddox and Isabeau Renault are living their story on the pages of Facebook. If you’d like to know more about them, and read about them, visit here:

New York Minutes

©2012 Denysé Bridger - ALL rights reserved.