Only Love Read online

  As I walked, I stuck a pair of Bluetooth headphones in my ears and called a number I hadn’t used since I’d left South Africa. It was around two in the morning there, but I didn’t care. Besides, Benson Firth worked weird hours. I wasn’t sure the guy even slept.

  “Liam Grey. It’s been a while,” Benson drawled in lieu of a greeting. “What can I do for you?” Benson was basically a private investigator, but that term didn’t really seem to fit him. He could find out the president’s darkest secrets if he wanted to. And his fee most certainly reflected that. However, he was worth every penny, and I’d used many times over the years when I was running my company.

  Getting right to the point, I said, “I need a dossier on someone.”

  “You know, if you’d sell your diamond mines and give up your billions, you would stop making enemies,” he teased.

  “I’ll keep that in mind. However, it’s not about my enemies. Her name is London Kennedy. She lives in New York City, a student at NYU. I want to know everything there is to know about her.”

  “Everything?” He didn’t ask why, which was one of the reasons Benson was in high demand. He had no interest in your motivations as long as your wire transfer cleared.

  “Everything,” I confirmed. “Down to the last detail. If she took a pill this morning, I want to know about it.” The example popped out, and I was once again grateful that Benson didn’t ask questions. I didn’t want to explain that I needed to know if she was on birth control.

  “What’s your deadline?”

  “Get me her address in the next half hour. Then I want what you have on her by tomorrow morning and send me daily updates if you have new information.”

  “I’ll have to move some things around to put that kind of time into it right now,” he warned me. “Plus, taking the trip out there. It’s going to cost.”

  “Whatever it takes,” I confirmed. There was nothing I wouldn’t do to make London mine.

  We agreed on the terms and ended our call just as I was walking through my front door. I made my way to the den by the master bedroom that I’d converted into an office. Taking a seat at my desk, I pulled up my email and saw that Benson had already sent me London’s address. With that information in hand, I dialed the number for the local security company I used. There were always threats directed at me, and I wasn’t stupid enough to completely ignore them all. So, I was well protected but from a distance. They were excellent at being stealthy, which was even more important in this situation. I set them up to watch over London without her knowledge. They were going to tap into any security feeds that would allow me to monitor my girl and make sure she was always safe. From my enemies as well as any motherfuckers who attempted to steal her away from me.

  It took everything I had to keep from driving to her house and waiting to catch even a small glimpse of her. Instead, I grilled a steak and potato and made a salad, trying to stay busy. After doing the dishes and finishing up some paperwork in my office, I glanced at the time with a frown. It had been almost four hours since I’d called Essex security. I should have access to view any cameras in London’s house by now.

  Almost as if they were listening to my thoughts, my phone rang with the owner’s private number. “Hey, Nathan. Are we all set?”

  “Not quite,” he responded, surprising me. They’d never been late to deliver before. “Are you familiar with Jonah Carrington?”

  My eyebrows rose at the name. Of course, I’d heard of him. He owned a multi-billion-dollar tech company and was rumored to be one of the best hackers in the world. In fact, Essex Security was a subsidiary of his corporation. And if that hadn’t been enough, we used him for my company’s cybersecurity. “What does he have to do with this?”

  Nathan sighed. “First of all, I should warn you that he’s one of her father’s best friends. He’s practically her uncle.”

  “Good to know,” I murmured, wondering why this was important. “I’m still not seeing how that affects your task.”

  “Because he’s the one who set up the security on the house she’s living in. The entire network is locked up tighter than Fort Knox.”

  “Shit,” I grumbled with a deep frown as I scratched my jaw through my beard. “Alright. Just stay on her at all times and keep her safe.”

  “Already done.”

  I grunted in acknowledgment and hung up. Feeling restless without my own eyes on London, I changed into shorts and hit my home gym for a strenuous workout. It did the trick, and after a quick shower, I fell into an exhausted sleep the moment I dropped into bed.

  The next morning, I didn’t feel all that rested because I’d been hard as fuck and on the verge of coming all night. Every time I closed my eyes, I was fucking London in my dreams. Although, I did make note of some of the more creative ideas my brain had conjured up for when I finally had the real London in my bed.

  Sitting up and scrubbing my hands up and down my face, I tried to clear away the morning fog. Then I threw off the covers and swung my legs out of the bed, grabbing my phone as I walked toward the master bath. I ignored the hundred or so emails that had come in overnight, searching for just one. I finally spotted Benson’s address and clicked open the message. He’d attached a file on London and rather than trying to see the small print and pictures on my phone, I sent it to the printer in my office.

  It was a big file and would take some time to complete. Since I knew I’d want to head out as soon as it was done, I forced myself to shower and get ready for the day. When I was dressed in jeans and a sweater, I combed my thick beard and slicked back the longer portion of my hair on the top of my head. I slipped on a pair of deck shoes and grabbed my keys and wallet. By the time I entered my office, I was happy to see that the dossier was done printing. I put the loose papers into a folder and took the stairs down to the garage that sat under my house at street level. There was an elevator, but I rarely used it in favor of the stairs. I made a metal note to make sure London used it when she was pregnant, though. I didn’t want her navigating the stairs alone in that condition.

  My Audi purred when I pressed the ignition button, and as soon as the garage door was open, I drove out onto the street and made my way to the Flatiron District where London lived. I parallel parked across the street and shut off the car. It was barely eight o’clock, so I didn’t expect to see much movement, leaving me free to peruse the information Benson had sent while I waited.

  He’d really come through in such a short amount of time. Apparently, London was staying in her parents’ brownstone while she went to school, while they lived in their main residence, upstate in the country. I nodded in satisfaction, knowing it was unlikely I’d have to deal with her parents until after I’d moved London in and she was wearing my ring.

  Skimming over the information, I looked for specific items, saving my thorough read-through until tonight when I’d need the distraction anyway. There were pictures from her life starting as an infant up to the present. School, job, and medical records. I studied the latter closely and grinned when I saw that she wasn’t currently on any prescription medications. No birth control.

  Benson had also included any electronic receipts that had been sent to her, credit card and bank statements, and copies of her social media posts, including her public and private Pinterest boards.

  The grocery store receipts for the past several months helped me make a list of what to stock the house with, and I sent it to my housekeeper as soon as it was several pages long. I’d add to it later, if necessary. There were several purchases that had a pattern, and I scoured them until I was sure. As far as I could tell, London bought items for her period every twenty-eight days, give or take a day. I did some math and smiled so wide I thought it might break my face. Fate was on my side at the moment. London would be ripe and fertile in the next couple of days. My cock swelled at the thought of exploding inside her unprotected womb. I was going to pump her so full of cream she’d be stuffed like a delicious pastry.

  Her Pinterest board
s only made me even more determined to breed my baby girl. It was clear she loved sewing and design, but what got my attention was that so much of it was filled with baby clothes. While similar things were pinned to her private boards, there were also ones dedicated to wedding planning, baby showers, and decorating a nursery. I was more than happy to let her have the wedding of her dreams, but the real marriage was going to happen as soon as possible. She would be my wife and well on her way to being the mother of our children long before we recited our vows in front of friends and family.

  What surprised me the most was information he’d ferreted out about her goals for college and her career. She was undeclared, and most of her schedule for the year consisted of general education credits, and I assumed she was taking Italian to fulfill the foreign language requirement. However, her electives all had something to do with fashion. Particularly classes that involved designing and creating clothes. Somehow, Benson was able to find out that her dream was to design clothes for children and babies. It certainly gave some clarity to her Pinterest boards. There were even a few pictures in the file of adorable little outfits she’d made and sold on a couple of niche shopping sites. She was very talented, and pride swelled in my chest.

  Movement across the street drew my eye, and rage raced through my body like a wildfire, leaving simmering violence in its wake.

  Chapter 3

  Liam

  A young, good-looking guy had stepped out of the front door wearing jeans and nothing else. He bent down and picked up the newspaper from the porch and went back inside, shutting the door behind him. There was a familiarity in his demeanor that indicated he stayed at London’s house often.

  My hands clenched into fists, the knuckles popping from the strain. I didn’t remember seeing anything in the dossier that indicated she was dating someone. And I would have bet my fortune on the fact she was a virgin. She’d all but confirmed it when I’d had her in my arms. But the evidence in front of me spoke to the contrary. Taking a calming breath, I talked myself into searching through the papers before marching over there and beating the shit out of the little asshole who dared to touch what was mine.

  I found the part about her living situation and read it carefully. Finally, I read something that had my body relaxing, though I wasn’t entirely happy with the situation. The kid’s name was Hudson. He was the child of Thatcher and Imogen Kendall, who were close friends of London’s parents, and apparently, she and Hudson—who were the same age—had grown up together. When I read Benson’s explanation that their other roommate was Grace Carrington and she’d been in a relationship with Hudson since they were pre-teens, I reconsidered putting him in an early grave.

  I licked my lips as I thought about her virgin pussy and how I would be the one to fill it for the first time. Fuck that. I was the only man who would ever experience having her wrapped around their tongue and cock. I would be her only love, just as she was mine.

  However, I was still unhappy that there was a single man living with my baby girl, and I had a hard time believing anyone who got close to her didn’t want her. It was a good thing I’d be taking her away from him very shortly.

  My phone rang, startling me, and I pressed the green button on my steering wheel to take the call without removing my eyes from the Kennedy house.

  “What?” I barked.

  “Well, hello to you too, jackass,” muttered Annika.

  “Sorry, Annie. I have a lot on my mind. What’s up?”

  “I forgive you,” she sighed as though she was making a grand gesture to do so, making me chuckle. “I received a retainer invoice from Benson Firth. Since I’m not using his services at the moment, I assumed it was your doing, but I wanted to check before I paid him.”

  “Yeah, he’s doing some digging for me,” I confirmed, keeping my tone deadpan. Annika was a hell of a businesswoman, but she was also a nosy little sister.

  “What kind of digging could Professor Henry Higgins need to have done?”

  I laughed, and it felt good to release a little of my tension. “Research,” I teased.

  Annika was silent for a moment and then she gasped. “Have you found your Eliza Doolittle?” Dammit, she was too perceptive for my own good, and my moment of hesitation seemed to validate her suspicion. “Holy shit! You have!”

  “Yes,” I grunted. Then I added, “She’s not just my student, Annie. She’s my future.”

  Annika gasped, and I winced when I realized what I’d revealed. “She’s your student, Liam? Isn’t that against the rules or something? Will you get fired?”

  I shrugged even though she couldn’t see the gesture. “There are very strict policies about it. But if I have to quit to be with her, I won’t hesitate.”

  “When do I get to meet her? What’s she like? How did you meet? Are you bringing her home? Can I call her? I want to—”

  “Annie!” I shouted with a laugh, cutting off her litany of questions.

  “What?” she yelled back.

  I hesitated to tell her more, but she hadn’t said another word about the student/teacher situation. She’d simply accepted my explanation and supported me. Given the circumstances of her own relationship—Annika’s husband was almost twice her age and had pretty much claimed her a minute after they met—I didn’t think she would judge me for my obsession. And the truth was, I really wanted to tell her about London.

  I spent the next hour filling her in and answering her many, many questions. Then London emerged from the house, and I had to rush Annika off the phone. “I’ll call you after it’s done,” I promised. London started walking down the street, and I quickly exited my car, following her on foot from a safe distance.

  Even though I knew there was security on her, my day consisted of watching her run errands. I loved that she seemed oblivious to the second glances from the men she passed. That didn’t stop me from giving them a dark, threatening look that had them speeding up to get away, though. I was starting to consider buying a private island where we could live alone so I wouldn’t be driven out of my mind with jealousy every time she left the house.

  London returned to the brownstone shortly before dinner, and through the front window on the second floor, I eventually saw her sit at the dining room table with a plate and a stack of textbooks. She’d changed into a loose T-shirt and stretchy, gray pants, ones that hugged her ass a little more than I liked with knowing another man was in that house. I pushed the jealous thought away, and since I was pretty sure she was in for the night, I texted her security detail to let me know if she left. Then I reluctantly went home because I had shit to do to get things ready for our future.

  I spent Sunday in much the same way except that I also put out feelers for a job at another university. Hopefully, I’d be able to find another position before someone found out about us. It wasn’t as though it mattered if I worked; we had more money than we could spend in one lifetime, but I did enjoy teaching. And I didn’t want London to be forced to go to another school.

  After another day of watching and planning, I debated sleeping in my car across the street from her house. I hated leaving her at night, but she had the security on her. Besides, I’d accomplished the things I wanted to do before bringing her to her new home.

  “London!” I called her name as she rode me, then I pushed up into her with one last hard thrust and held her hips in a tight grip while thick jets of come spilled from my cock.

  “Fuck,” I grunted when I opened my eyes and realized I’d been dreaming...again. And for the second time, my dream had caused me to come, and I’d made a fucking mess of myself and the bed.

  The sunlight was just breaking through the clouds, and I turned my head on the pillow to check the clock. It was almost seven. My first class of the day was at nine, so I rolled out of bed and headed for the shower. It was going to be a long day as I waited to see London again, so I was glad that I was busy straight through until my last class ended at six tonight. Which happened to be London’s last class as well. It was
perfect timing, especially since I didn’t work on Tuesdays.

  When four o’clock finally arrived, I leaned a hip on the side of the desk at the front of the room, and my eyes were glued to the door. I felt my expression darkening each minute that ticked by without London entering the room. At ten after, I had to start, so I tried to release my anger and frustration. I didn’t want to bring down the class just because I was in a shitty mood. After I’d dismissed the students, then I’d figure out how to find my baby girl and blister her ass for running from me.

  A few minutes later, I was administering a verbal quiz when I saw the door to the classroom open out of the corner of my eye. It had been quiet and slow, with the obvious intention of trying to remain unnoticed. However, London was impossible to miss, and my jaw hardened when several male eyes drifted in her direction as she slipped inside. The way they looked at her had the possessive beast inside me clawing to get out. Especially when I caught sight of her loose, gauzy pink skirt that only fell to mid-thigh. And the sliver of skin that peeked out just above the waistband when she moved and her pale-yellow halter top shifted... Yeah, we would be having a talk about her wardrobe very soon.

  I managed to contain the animal inside and focus instead on London’s face as she realized the only open seats were across the room and she’d have to walk right in front of me to reach them. My lips fought to form a grin as I thanked the universe for making this so easy. As she walked past me, I called her name in as professional a tone as I could muster. “Ms. Kennedy.” She froze for a second, then her head turned to the side and she stared at me with a deer in headlights expression. “You’re late, and you’ve missed half of the quiz.” Before I could continue, she mumbled an apology and scurried to an open seat in the second row. I raised an eyebrow and gave her a reproachful look, solely for the benefit of the other students. “I’ll need to see you after class, so we discuss your attendance and schedule a makeup quiz.”