Snapshot (Lessons in Love Book 2)

Smack. I clench my toes when Dex’s palm collides with my ass.

I’m going to come just like this—wrists bound, bare breasts smashed against the desk, my panties pulled down around my ankles.

He’s torturing me with pleasure. Dex drops to his knees, spreading my ass cheeks so he has room to slide his tongue from my clit to my entrance. My knees buckle when he dips his tongue inside of me. There’s something so viscerally delicious about getting eaten out from behind. I can’t see what he’s doing. Completely at his mercy, all I can do is feel. He flicks the tip of his wet tongue all over me, and right when I’m at the brink, the words spill right out of my mouth. “Oh, fuck…I’m close.”

Dex stops what he’s doing and spanks me on the other ass cheek. “Not yet,” he warns.

I should’ve kept my mouth shut. “Fuck, Dex. Enough,” I plead. “I need to come.”

We’ve been playing this game for what seems like hours. My endurance is running out. Every time I’m close to relief, he pulls away and watches me, waiting for me to cool down and my brewing orgasm to completely dissipate. Then, he gets me all worked up again. The man has endless stamina for this.

“I thought you liked being edged.”

“I do…for like ten minutes. Now, it’s time.”

“Oh, ho, ho,” he says with a chuckle before smacking my ass again, making me grunt. “I don’t think you get to decide when punishment is over, Trouble. That’s my call.”

“That’s what this is? Payback for messing up?” I ask breathlessly. It dawns on me that Dex might actually be working out his aggression on my rear.

He leans over me from behind, one hand wrapping around my throat. He doesn’t squeeze hard, just a little pressure as he whispers into my ear, “You messed up. But you’re my wife, and you have my loyalty in all things. So, when I punish you, it’s not because I’m angry. It’s because you love it.”

Whack. My ass burns then tingles as I groan in delight when he spanks me again. “Oh, fuck,” I wail.

“Let’s see. Are you ready for me?” His fingers tiptoe down my lower back and over the curve of my ass before he sinks two fingers in. “So fucking wet. Say it,” he growls in my ear.

I may be bound, pinned under him, with a red ass, but I have total control over my husband. I know exactly what he wants to hear. “I’m so wet, Dex. Only for you.”

“Mmm,” he moans into my ear. “I fucking love you.”

“I love you too. Now, fuck me like you’re trying to break me.”

Already shirtless, he walks around the desk so I’m eye-level with his crotch. “Such a filthy mouth. Let’s see if we can clean it out, hm?” He unbuttons his pants before untying my hands.

“Freeing me already?”

“I want your mouth, your hands, your dripping pussy, and your tight ass. I can’t get enough. I want every single part of you, Len. Do you understand? I need every part of you.”

“Then take it.” I open my mouth and grab him by the hips, guiding him to the back of my throat.

I expect him to buck his hips, trying to find his release, but instead, he cradles the back of my head gently, letting me barely wet his hard cock before he pulls away. “Spin around, baby.” He taps the edge of the desk.

After kicking off my thong that was dangling by my ankles, I swivel my legs around so I’m seated at the very edge of his desk. His entire demeanor has changed. There’s no playful smirk or dangerous smile. His brows aren’t pumping as he’s teasing me, withholding my relief. He looks drunk on desire, a man with one sole mission.

“You earned this one, baby. I’m going to make you come so hard.” Dex grabs my ankles and crosses them before hooking them over one shoulder. He buries into me, balls deep, in one rapid thrust.

The spot he touches feels like a detonation button. Something electric surges through me and I can’t even scream like I want to. I can’t find my dirty words to egg him on. My brain empties of everything. Dex’s eyes roll in the back of his head as he grinds into me in no hurry. Somewhere along the line, our kinky fucking turned into lovemaking. He sweetly kisses my ankles and calves, worshiping my body.

I win the race, trembling around him as I finally find my release. My orgasm is overwhelming and doesn’t dissipate. I’m wrapped up in the surge of pleasure for so long that Dex has time to clamp his hands around my thighs, holding them as they shake, feeling the powerful effect of his body on mine.

“How was that, Mrs. Hessler?”

“So good. So, so, good, Dex.”

“I want to hold you when I come.” He scoops me off the desk, carrying me to the couch. He sets me down before positioning himself with his ass at the edge of the sofa. Then, he guides me onto his lap to straddle him. I slide down on his soaked cock, covered with my orgasm.

“You feel so fucking good,” he moans when he buries back inside me. “So wet for me. Like you belong to me.”

“I do.” I grind my hips against him so he’s touching that spot again. I flinch because it’s too sensitive. The pleasure is now a little painful too. “Finish, Dex. In me.”

He wraps me in a bear hug, pinning me against his chest, our sweaty, naked bodies melting into one. Bucking his hips like a madman, he roars in relief as he fills me. “Fuck, baby.” He slumps backward onto the sofa, pulling me backward with him. I try to climb off his lap, but he tightens his grip. “No, stay a minute.”

“Okay.” I rest my ear against his chest, listening to his rapid heartbeat slowly calm. It’s just the sound of us breathing for what feels like hours. Too warm and comfortable we can’t move. Our breathing and heartbeats synchronize in silence until the office goes fuzzy and my eyelids grow too heavy.

I’m not sure who dozes off first. But eventually, the office disappears as a sweet, vivid dream replaces it…

I can almost feel the sunshine on my face as I look up at the blue sky. I’m lying in a hazy field of daisies. Dex lies right next to me, his large hand draped over my swollen belly.

“How about we name him Hayes?” Dex asks.

“As in Jacob Hayes?”

“Yeah,” he says. “I think Grandpa would’ve liked that.”

“Me too,” I murmur, placing my hand over his. “I love that. Baby Hayes.”

Dex

After pulling on my briefs and pants, I cover my naked, sleeping wife with my button-down shirt. I try to be gentle, but she stirs, her big brown eyes popping open.

“Time to go?” she asks.

“No, shhh. Rest, baby. I’m going to go grab some snacks from the breakroom and find you a blanket.”

She snuggles into my shirt. “Thank you.”

“Be right back.”

I remember that Grandma kept throws in her office. I leave Lennox behind to relax on the couch while I hunt down supplies. As I turn the corner, it’s clear from down the hallway that there’s already someone in Grandma’s office. That’s odd. Maintenance, maybe?

I push open the cracked door and am surprised to see Denny sitting behind Grandma’s old desk. Her legs are crossed, and she’s scowling as she stares out at the Miami skyline. With the sun just beginning to drop, the sunset glowing over the water line is stunning. How can she be looking at a view like that with such a miserable expression on her face?

“Hey, what’re you doing here? Meeting Lennox? She’s sleeping in my office.”

Slowly swiveling in the executive chair to face the door, she looks me up and down. “Since when are shirts optional in this office?”

“It’s a Saturday,” I say. “No one should be here.”

She gestures to herself with both hands. “And yet, here I am.” Her tone is very cool and clipped. “How’d the meeting go?”

Denny was one of my first calls after I saw the article with Spellman’s announcement. She’s the one who suggested an immediate all-hands meeting to hunt down the rat. Except it wasn’t a devious rat at all. Just my innocent wife who had no idea how Spellman would use her against the company.

“It was Lennox. An accident. She ran into Richard at the charity event and no doubt he lured her into spilling some secrets. She had no idea⁠—”

“Please, Dex. She’s not an idiot. She should know better.”

I narrow my eyes. “He alluded to the fact that we finished the merger. She thought she was talking to a team member.”

Denny shrugs her shoulders. “Dismiss her from the CEO position. We’ve dealt with this incompetence long enough. First Tearney, now Richard. Get rid of the weak link.”

Now I’m pissed. “The weak link you’re referring to is my wife.”

Denny crosses her arms tightly, her lips pursing. “This whole dedicated husband bit was cute at first… Now I’m over it.”

“What the hell are you doing right now?” I ask, shocked at her audacity. “Why are you speaking to me this way?”

Denny holds up two fingers, her long, white acrylic nails filed into what look like daggers. “Two things you need to know, Dex. One, Lennox will be removed. That was an extreme dereliction of duty, and the leadership board will call for her termination.”

“Denny, why are you coming down so hard on Lennox? She’s been nothing but kind to you.”

She grumbles in frustration. “The second thing you need to know is that once Lennox is removed, I’m legally challenging you for ownership of the company. Actually, I’m challenging you for ownership of everything. We both may be bastards, but at the very least I’m a Hessler. This is my office”—she glances around the room, then narrows her gaze on me—“not your wife’s, not yours, and goddamn, am I sick of babysitting your spoiled ass.”

Denny picks up a folded piece of paper on the desk and holds it out to me. I take two steps in from the doorway but don’t reach for the paperwork. “What’s that?”

“DNA test.”

The familiar rush of adrenaline fills my veins. The throbbing in my head begins as the familiar signs of a panic attack emerge. I fight it the best I can. This is not a moment to show weakness. I’m feeling a lot of things, mostly shock. This is the woman who all but begged to be my second mother, and now she’s trying to take away my company.

“Whose DNA test?” I muster out.

“Yours, of course. I’ve known who my father was since I was thirteen years old. Why do you think I never left with my mother for Europe? I found out I was a product of Harrison’s affair from my mother’s drunk ramblings. She wasn’t supposed to tell me, but it slipped. And once I knew, I stuck around for so long because I thought…” She shakes her head, not finishing her sentence.

Thinking back on the stories Grandma told me, I begin to fill in the blanks. “You thought you’d win Harrison over if he got to know you? Then he’d give everything to you?”

Denny rolls her eyes. “It’s not that wicked. I just wanted a relationship with my father. I wanted one of my parents to give a shit about me. The closest I got was Dottie. But I never really had her, did I? I thought I got close when your mother died.”

I take a few steps closer. “Tread lightly when you talk about my mother, Denny,” I say between gritted teeth, not knowing where this is headed.

“I could never say anything bad about Melody. She was perfect. So fucking perfect that even when she was gone, Harrison would rather drink his grief away, mourning the daughter that wasn’t even his. He couldn’t be bothered to get to know the one who was still right in front of him. And Dottie…” Denny has to press her trembling lips together. She takes a moment to compose herself. “As soon as Melody was gone, she fixated on you. Golden Child Dex. You’re all Harrison talked about when he was sober enough to form words. Fuck, I was so sick of hearing your name. I was always the help. Never family. And now…well, let’s just say payback is a bitch.”

It’s too much to absorb all at once. Denny has secretly hated me all this time? So, all her affection and attention wasn’t love. It was just to keep tabs on me. Like a cobra waiting for her moment to strike. “What do you even want with Hessler Group? Hmm? I thought your passion was spending money, not making it. You really want to inherit and run all this bullshit?”

“No, I don’t. I’m going to sell it off in pieces. Then, I’ll do the same with Hessler Estate. I’m going to tear down everything that piece of shit worked so hard to keep together.”

I shake my head in disbelief. “Spite is a poison, Denny.”

“Well, revenge must be the antidote.” She taps the desk, her lips curling into a cruel smile. “Because this feels pretty damn good.”

I glance at the paper in front of her, wondering if she actually has a claim to any inheritance. I suppose it’s possible if Harrison had an affair. And if Denny is a product of that affair and I’m not a Hessler… But wait, how can that be? That would mean Grandma lied to Harrison, to Mom, and me—for my entire life. Grandma’s not a liar. This…this can’t really be, can it? I need more answers. “If I’m not Harrison’s, then who?”

“Hell if I know, Dex. This paper just proves you’re not a Hessler,” Denny says with a snarky tone. “You’re a lost puppy. Sucks to be lied to your whole life, huh? Join the club.”

She’s around so much, I have no doubt she snagged a hair or a used cup for those test results. Denny’s my emergency contact. She hires my staff and orders my medication. This woman has had so much access to my life…while hating my guts the whole time. “I didn’t agree to that DNA test. It’s not legally admissible.”

She nods. “You’re right. But when I sue you in place of your grandma for fraud and con artistry for impersonation of a family member to steal a fortune that was never yours…well, the court is going to require a legal DNA test that’ll give the same results I have right here.” She taps the paper in front of her. “Just bow out, Dex. This isn’t your fight.”

“I’m still Dottie’s grandson. That means something.”

“You’re forgetting,” Denny seethes as she rises. “She’s not a Hessler. I am. I am the only motherfucking person alive with a legitimate claim to all of it.” By the end of her sentence, she’s shrieking, near deranged, as if years of angst and hatred are bubbling to the surface. “I gave up everything for this family. My marriage. My chance at motherhood. I tried for years to be the mother you lost, and never once could you look me in the eyes and tell me genuinely that you loved me. I was always treated like an outsider. Fuck all of you. Now you can be the one left out, watching everything you ever wanted from outside a glass window. An article is running next week exposing Dottie for the con artist she was. I’m telling the world what the Hesslers did to me. Hiding me, bullying my mother…all of it. It’ll ruin you.”

I press my lips together as her breathing calms. Her brows finally relax, and her eyes shrink to normal proportions.

“This is the part where you beg me to keep your secrets,” Denny snarks.

“I did…Denny.”

“What?” she asks, confused.

“I loved you. I have a hard time saying it because the people I love most tend to leave me. Of course, I didn’t want another mother. It would’ve been too painful to lose you, too. Up until about ten minutes ago, you were my friend. Friendship is the base of some of the strongest relationships, even more significant than bloodlines and family.” I point right at her. “But thank you for showing me your true colors. I don’t need to pity you anymore.”

Denny glances over my shoulder. “She makes you weak, boy.”

I turn to see Lennox standing in the doorway in just my shirt, clutching tightly to an envelope. She’s staring at Denny. If looks could kill, Denny would be a limp body on the ground.

Instead, she keeps talking. “A better man would at least try to defend what’s his. You were never cut out to lead this company. There’s not an ounce of Harrison in you.”

“You sure are obsessed with the man you claim to hate,” I say. “Like I said, poison.”

“Shut up,” Denny snaps back. “And by the way, Lennox, thank you. I had my suspicions, but your little tip before the charity dinner really helped put things in place. I thought I’d have to get rid of you, but it’s been kind of fun watching you ruin your husband. I can always rely on your loose lips to get you in trouble.” She winks.

Lennox takes a few angry steps towards Denny and ends up right by my side. Her fists ball up. “You snake. Kat told me you set me up for that article, and you sent Richard over to my table that night at the charity event, too, didn’t you? You told him to make me think the merger had gone through so I’d say whatever.”

Denny smiles. “And tipped the server an outrageous amount to keep your champagne glass full all night. Too fucking easy. You’re all just puppets.”

“Get the fuck out, Denny,” I roar, finally hearing enough.

“I thought I made it clear when I said this was my office now.”

“Get out!” I bellow, making both Denny and Lennox jump. “Call your lawyer. You want a fight? You got one. Good luck to you. But as of right now, you’re not the CEO, and you’re not an heiress. You’re nothing but fired. Get the fuck out of my sight.” My clenched fists and throbbing temples must be enough warning because Denny, without another word, brushes past us and exits the office, a sickening smile on her face.

The moment she’s gone, I pick up the DNA test she left behind, trying to make sense of the paperwork. Outside of the “no match” at the top of the document, it’s just a lot of medical jargon I don’t understand.

“This is what you were trying to tell me, isn’t it?” I ask, spinning around to face Lennox.

She nods somberly. “I didn’t lie to you. I had my suspicions but never proof.”

I hold up the paper. “Here’s proof.”

“I didn’t want you to be mad, Dex.”

Lennox has never lied to me before. Her honesty is my favorite thing about her, and admittedly, I feel a little betrayed. But at the same time, how could she explain? To walk into all of this as a stranger and have to shatter everything I thought I knew about my family…how could I ask that of her?

“I’m not mad at you, Lennox,” I interrupt. “I get it. Some secrets aren’t yours to share.”

She closes the space between us and weaves her fingers in mine. Squeezing my hand hard, she adds, “Not at me, Dex. I didn’t want you to be mad at your grandma. She had her reasons. I asked you to read the letters because they tell her story. She left them in plain sight in her office. Come to think of it, she probably wanted someone to find that box of letters. She wanted someone to know her real story.”

I’m trying not to be angry. All that time Grandma preached loyalty and love, yet she lied to me. I look at Lennox, her soft brown eyes calming me. “I never knew my father. Now, I don’t know my grandfather. All I have is what Grandma told me…except now she’s a liar.”

“I knew your grandpa,” Lennox says with a small smile.

I blink at her. “You’re suggesting Jacob⁠—”

“Not suggesting. Confirming.” Lennox pulls me by my hand to the sofa, guiding me to sit. She hands me the letter, now wrinkled where she was clutching it so hard. “I’ve been reading the letters for over a month now, piecing the story together. Jacob used to write these tragic poems about ‘Daisy’ and how he missed out on his long-lost love. When I met your grandma, I assumed they were about her.” Lennox taps her temple. “It dawned on me tonight that he wasn’t writing about your grandma. He was writing about his daughter. The baby he never got to meet.”

My chest constricts, the familiar ache anytime someone brings up my mom. I hate this topic. I hate longing for what I can’t have. No matter how much money I have, I can’t turn back time and save the years with my mother that I was robbed of.

“What’re you saying, Len?”

“I was poring over that box, trying to find the perfect Dottie letter to begin to explain everything. But when you left a few moments ago, I found this.” She points to the letter in my hands. “It’s the only letter in the box that was to Dottie, not from her. She kept this close because it must’ve meant a lot to her. This letter has all your answers, Dex. I promise.” She tilts her head to the side, studying my expression.

“This is from Jacob, then?”

Lennox shakes her head. “No. From Harrison.”