Henry enemies to lovers.., p.1
Henry: Enemies to Lovers Steamy Romance, page 1
Contents
Title Page
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Epilogue
A Word From Maggie
HENRY
by
Maggie Carpenter
Copyright © 2024 Maggie Carpenter/Dark Secrets Press LLC
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher. This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental.
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PROLOGUE
The upmarket restaurant and cocktail lounge was busy, but that wasn’t unusual. Henry liked busy. Sitting at the bar he’d watch the waitresses skillfully flirt with the single men in hopes of a bigger tip, then immediately change their demeanor when serving a couple. Occasionally one of them would shoot him a flirtatious wink. He’d smile back but didn’t carry it any further. The place was his retreat and he wanted to keep it that way. He loved the ambience and the unique decor. In the center of the room, surrounded by an ornate steel fence, stood a round, four-foot-high white candle with many small wicks. It burned down throughout the year, then was replaced at a big party on New Year’s Eve. Hence the name of the popular spot was Candles.
As he sat at the bar and sipped his martini, a flash of color caught his eye. Glancing across at the door he spotted a young woman wearing a pink, glossy raincoat and gloves.
He grinned.
He found gloves erotic, and imagined how her leather covered fingers would feel sliding up and down his rigid member.
She slipped off her trendy coat, and he found himself admiring generous breasts beneath a clingy black turtleneck. Moving his eyes down, he spied tight jeans and knee-high patent leather boots. As if feeling his stare, she turned and smiled at him. She was honey blonde and very pretty.
He smiled back.
He wasn’t surprised when she began ambling towards him.
Not only had he been blessed with attractive features, he was tall, he attended a gym religiously, and he’d been told more than once he oozed sensuality. Given his dark passion he believed it. He could wield a flogger like Lancelot could wield his sword, or land a feathered touch that made a woman weak with need.
“Hello, I’m Jane,” she purred, perching on the bar stool next to him
“Henry.”
Her nails appeared to be professionally manicured, but he spied a tiny dot of polish near the cuticle of her left forefinger. She hadn’t wanted to spend the twenty pounds on a manicurist. Was she broke or thrifty? Her handbag appeared to be Prada, but the counterfeits had become hard to detect at a glance.
“Would you prefer to drink alone?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.
“Does anyone like to drink alone at a bar?”
“That would depend on the circumstances.”
“I disagree. If someone really wanted to be by themselves they’d stay at home. What can I get you, Jane?”
“Bubbly, but I’d like to buy a bottle and sit at a table. And when I say I’d like to buy a bottle, I mean I’d like to be the one to pay.”
As she made the offer he felt a flutter of distrust, but deciding to play along he took her arm and led her to a quiet corner. She ordered the champagne, they chatted and laughed, and though he found her sexy and appealing, he noticed she was nursing her glass more than drinking from it.
“Well, Henry, this has been great fun, but I have an early start so I’m must say good night,” she abruptly declared, opening her bag and retrieving a change purse. “Darn it,” she muttered, sliding back the zipper. “I only have a one-hundred-pound note. You wouldn’t have change, would you?”
He was immediately wary. Most everyone used credit cards, and the waiter would bring change. But intrigued, he lifted his wallet from his pocket, took her hundred-pound bill, and gave her five, twenty-pound notes.
“Thank you, Henry, and I’m sorry I have to run,” she said with a sigh, placing one of the twenty-pound bills inside the leather folder left by the waiter. “Hopefully I’ll see you here again.”
She rose to her feet, but as she started to walk away, she tripped and grabbed his jacket. Though he hadn’t seen anything overt, he knew she’d helped herself to his wallet.
“You’re not leaving until you return it, Jane,” he’d said sternly, clutching her wrist.
“Return it? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Should I call the manager and ask him to search your bag? Perhaps I should just do it myself,” he warned, leaning closer and glaring at her as he spoke. “Do you want to cause a scene?”
Her defiant expression suddenly gave way to one of sadness. Sitting back down, she reached into her bag, lifted out his wallet and placed it wordlessly on the table.
“Why did you choose me?” he asked as he picked it up.
“Does it matter?”
“Let me guess. You quietly scouted this place and saw me here alone a few times so you assumed I don’t have a woman in my life. That makes me a target. I’m well-dressed, I wear a nice watch, and you’ve seen me pay cash for my drinks. How am I doing so far?”
“Frighteningly well. So, uh, what happens now?”
“I can’t let you go unpunished. You’ll come home with me for the spanking you deserve.”
“You can’t be serious,” she exclaimed, staring at him wide-eyed.
“Do I look like I’m joking?”
“I suppose if I refuse you’ll turn me over to the management.”
“I’m not saying what I might do. If you want to roll the dice that’s up to you.”
“Shit,” she muttered under her breath.
“You’ve got ten-seconds to make up your mind. Shall I count them out?”
“Never mind, I’ll go with you,” she grumbled, then rolled her eyes and let out a sigh. “I must be out of my fucking mind.”
“You have five-seconds to change your mind. One—two—three—
“I’m not changing my mind,” she said vehemently, rising to her feet.
Quickly standing up and taking her by the elbow, he walked her to the door and and helped her on with the pink glossy coat. As they stepped out into the cold, wet night and he handed his parking ticket to the valet, he leaned his lips against her ear.
“One last chance to back out, Jane. I don’t usually give last chances, but I want to make sure you—”
“I don’t know what the alternative is, and I’m not prepared to take the gamble,” she retorted, turning her head and darting her eyes at him. “People inside saw me leave with you, and the car attendant will too, so I don’t think you’re going to slit my throat and jump my body someplace.”
“You’re right. I’ll do exactly as I said. No more, no less.”
His car arrived as he finished speaking, and though they didn’t talk on the drive to his flat, he sensed she was as titillated as she was scared. Pulling into the garage and walking her inside, he wondered if he was about to make a long-held fantasy come to life. Or had she agreed to return to his home to see what she could steal?
“Nice place,” she remarked. “What do you do?”
“Among other things, I spank naughty girls.”
“Very funny.”
“It wasn’t a joke,” he declared, leading her into the living room. “I’m going to sit on the couch, and you’re going to stand in front of me. Understood? Say, yes, Sir.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Good,” he said, sitting down and staring up at her. “Lower your jeans and bend over my lap.”
He watched her face flame red as she followed his instruction, and once over his thighs, she grabbed a throw cushion and buried her face. He didn’t object.
“Count yourself lucky I didn’t ask the manager to call the police. I know her well. Her name is Bertha, and she would have had them there in a heartbeat.”
“I get your point,” she retorted, turning her face to the side. “Will you please just get this over with?”
“I’ll spank you when I’m good and ready! Stealing can have serious repercussions for your victims. But you probably don’t care about that,” he exclaimed, landing the first hard smack.
“Ow! I’m careful about my marks. I swear, I would never take from anyone who—”
But landing two hard slaps on the back of her naked thighs, he cut her off before she could finish.
“Anyone who what?” he barked as he began spanking her with a steady rhythm. “I work long hours, young lady, and I don’t appreciate the likes of you attempting to take my hard-earned money. Get yourself a decent job!”
“Ow, okay, you’ve made your point!”
“I’m not even close to making my point,” he shot back. “How a young woman who is so smart can do something so stupid is beyond me.”
“I said I’m sorry.”
“I suspect you’re only sorry you were caught,” he scolded, then paused his hand to slide down her panties.
“No, please--”
“Jane. Say, Please, Sir, spank me harder for trying to steal from you.”
“Ooh, I can’t believe this is happening.”
“I gave you a choice,” he snapped, delivering several hot smacks in quick succession. “You chose to be spanked. Now say it, or should I take off my belt?”
“Please, Sir, will you spank me harder for trying to steal from you,” she blurted out hastily.
“I most certainly will,” he growled, bouncing his hand from cheek to cheek, determined to teach her a lesson. “Stealing, cheating people, taking their money! Shame on you. That is not an acceptable way to make a living. You’re a clever, pretty girl, you can do better. Much better! Get yourself a job. No, do more than that, find yourself a career.”
“Please, Sir, please stop.”
“You called me Sir. Perhaps you’re learning,” he exclaimed, moving his hand down to spank her sit spot.
But she unexpectedly gyrated her hips, and as his eyes fell on her glistening pussy, a surge of erotic energy pulsed through his loins.
It was time to stop.
She’d deserved a hot backside, and he’d been happy to oblige, but that was where the evening had to end.
“Get up and get dressed,” he said sternly. “I’ll call you a taxi, and I meant what I said. You obviously have potential. Turn your life around before it’s too late.”
CHAPTER ONE
Two Months Later
Whenever Henry returned to Candles and sat at the bar he would think about Jane and wonder how she was. Though he wasn’t sure why, he continued to harbor the unlikely hope he’d run into her again.
“Henry? Are you ready for another?”
Looking up from his Martini, he was about to answer the bartender when his attention was snatched away by four noisy young women. Glancing across to the door he saw them laughing and joking as they hung their coats. One of them wore tortoiseshell glasses and had brilliant red ringlets flowing down her back.
He grinned.
Long hair could be so much fun.
But then she turned slightly, and for a moment he thought she was Jane. Though he knew he was staring he didn’t care, and as they began walking through to the restaurant, he willed her to look across to the bar.
God suddenly answered his prayers.
She looked back to speak to the girl behind her.
Henry had never felt his heart leap.
Nor had he ever been frozen to the spot.
But he was.
In spite of the long red hair and glasses, the young woman was undoubtedly Jane.
“Henry? Are you okay?”
Spinning his head around, Henry darted his eyes up to the bartender.
“Yeah, sorry, Jimmy.”
“Hey, I don’t blame you, they’re an attractive bunch,” the bartender remarked with a grin. “Do you want me to send them over some drinks or a bottle of wine?”
“That’s a very good question,” Henry murmured as he watched them settle into a table. “Get me another Martini and I’ll think about it.”
“Don’t think too long. Someone else might beat you to it. Mind you, they should be buying us drinks.”
“What do you mean?” Henry asked, unable to take his eyes off Jane. Her hair looked so real he was sure it had to be a very expensive wig, then it occurred to him she may have invested in hair extensions.
“They’re all loaded,” the bartender continued. “Don’t you recognize the girl in the green scarf? It’s Sylvia Parker. She’s on that TV show, Shady Lane.”
“I don’t watch much television. What about the others?”
“The blonde is the daughter of an MP, the brunette comes from a centuries-old aristocratic family, but I’m not sure about the redhead.”
“That explains it,” Henry muttered as the bartender left to make his second Martini.
Seeing Jane with the prominent young woman made sense. They’d be easy targets, and he assumed they’d insisted on eating at Candles and Jane felt she had to agree. She’d sat with her back to him, so she’d probably seen him when she’d entered.
“Here’s your Martini.”
“I’m sorry, Jimmy, but I want to switch it out for a scotch,” Henry said as the bartender was about to set down the glass. “And I also want to order something to eat.”
“No problem. I’ll get you a menu.”
Scotch was Henry’s drink of choice when he was pondering. Thinking things was his comfort zone. He dealt with complex problems all day. Even at night his brain would still be spinning. The only time he wasn’t thinking was when he had a woman over his lap, or he was enjoying some other salacious scenario.
Puzzles!
He loved them.
Why would a young woman as attractive and bright as Jane be hustling for a living?
It was a tantalizing question, and he was determined to uncover the mystery.
* * *
Jane rarely panicked, and she hadn’t panicked when she’d seen the hot guy who had spanked her sitting at the bar, but she was concerned. She was running a long con, and after six weeks of arduous work she was nearing the payoff. The last thing she needed was Henry causing problems.
She hadn’t wanted to eat at Candles, but as she and her new friends had walked out of Sylvia Parker’s front door and climbed into the limousine, Sylvia had told the driver where to go.
Now she was there, and as fate would have it, so was Henry. Purposely knocking her bag to the floor, she reached down to pick it up and risked a quick glance at the bar. Henry was sipping from a tumbler and talking to the bartender.
She frowned.
Knowing habits and patterns was how she survived.
The slightest deviation was something to be noted.
When she’d walked in he’d been holding a Martini.
Why the change?
“What do you think, Jane?” Sylvia asked as Jane returned her bag to the back of the chair. “Are you up for going down to the country for a couple of days?”
“Am I up for going down?” Jane repeated with a laugh. “You do have a way with words, Sylvia.”
“Is that a yes?” Amanda asked. “Please say you’ll come. Mummy and Daddy won’t be there. We’ll have the whole place to ourselves.”
“I’d really like to, but it will depend on whether or not my father decides to fly back this week. He won’t like it if I’m away his first weekend home. He’s been gone for over a month.”
“When will you know?”
“Soon. When I spoke to him this afternoon he said the deal is almost done.”
“I still can’t believe your dad will own a goldmine,” Sylvia said with a sigh. “You’ll be rich forever.”
“I know! It’s so exciting. It’s not a big mine, at least not yet, but he thinks it will be. He wouldn’t have spent all this time away unless he was sure about it.”
“When will you be flying to Australia to see it?” Sylvia pressed. “Will you bring me back a nugget?”
“I’m not sure dad will let me bring back chunks of gold and give them away. I don’t even know if that’s legal.”
“If it’s not legal you’d better not do it.”
Henry’s voice had come from behind her, and she inwardly cringed. He’d interrupted her at a crucial moment, and she quietly cursed herself for not keeping a closer eye on him.
“Hello, Henry, fancy meeting you here,” she said sweetly, turning to look up at him.
“Now there’s an original line,” Sylvia muttered with a giggle. “Hi, I’m Sylvia Parker. Who are you?”
“Henry Gibson.”
“This is Amanda Duncan, and Susan Braithwaite,” Jane said, introducing the last girl who rarely spoke until she’d downed a couple of drinks.
“What’s this about doing something illegal?” Henry asked, staring at Jane with a steely glint in his eye.
“I was about to say, I wouldn’t do it if it was!”
