Series: Stacey Espino
Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23564 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 118(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23564 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 118(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
“I want to remember this forever,” he finally said.
Everything felt real now with the haze of lust quickly fading.
“What does that mean?”
Was this the end? The payment would happen. Her mother would be happy. And they’d go their separate ways. She felt tears prick her eyes, but she pushed her rising emotions down to the pit of her stomach. Clara wasn’t expecting her heart to break in two.
“This is one of the best days of my life,” Grayson said before rolling off her to his back. His body glistened, his hard muscles tensing as he scrubbed his hands over his face and then through his hair.
Clara was at a loss for words.
“Are you hungry?”
The last thing Clara was thinking about was food. She wanted security and promises. Confessions of love and forever. But she’d have to settle for dinner. She nodded, afraid of her own emotions.
He shifted to his side, painting a finger over the hill of one breast before encircling her nipple. Her body was still sensitized, the bud instantly firming up.
“I love these tits,” he said. “Your body is perfection. I knew it would be.”
She wanted to tell him that every part of her belonged to him, if only he’d ask.
“Were you thinking of them before you saw me naked?”
“Every day,” he said. “Just thinking about you gave me a hard-on.”
“But you pushed me away.”
“That’s the past. We can’t change it,” he said. “Now you’re mine.”
She exhaled. Those were the words she wanted him to say. She wanted him to claim her, wanted him as obsessed with her as she was with him.
“For tonight?”
He only smirked, not giving her the reassurance she desperately needed. Grayson sat up and pulled on some boxer briefs.
“What do you feel like eating?”
She shrugged. They’d eaten from numerous different takeout places the past week, so she wasn’t sure what to order. “Pizza?”
“No, not tonight. I’m taking you out.”
“In public?” she asked.
Grayson chuckled as he stepped into a pair of pants from his walk-in closet. “Restaurants are usually public places, so yes.”
Clara had a million questions. They’d been keeping their meetings on the down-low for numerous reasons. One of the biggest was her good friend finding out, which she’d been trying her best not to think about. There was the age gap between them, potential gossip, and the fact they weren’t really a couple at all, just two people contracted for sex.
****
Damn, she was adorable.
Grayson buttoned up his shirt, watching her tense up on the bed. The poor girl had lived too sheltered and needed to enjoy herself more. There was an entire world out there to explore. He planned to take her to a posh downtown restaurant and show her the best of everything. It would be his first official act since claiming her as his own.
Their contract had been completed in full, but their relationship was far from over. If anything he was more obsessed with her now than before they’d crossed the line.
He had a lot to make up for. Grayson planned to woo her properly, to make amends for being such an asshole. He wasn’t going to fight against his own desires anymore.
“Do you have something against going out in public?” he asked.
She sat up, pulling the comforter up to cover herself. Her long blonde hair fanned out around her. Damn, she was gorgeous, the vision of innocence, and all his.
“But, you know…”
He raised a brow.
“Someone might see us,” she said.
He slipped a belt through the loops of his pants and began buckling it up in front. “Is that a problem?”
Clara shrugged. She looked dumbfounded, saying nothing more.
Grayson sat on the edge of the bed, using a curled finger under her chin to get her attention. “Tell me the truth. Are you embarrassed of me, Clara?”
Her eyes widened. “No, that’s not what I meant.”
“Tell me what you meant.”
“This thing between us isn’t real. People will talk. Why create unnecessary drama over nothing?”
He took a deep breath. The time for games was over. It was time to play for keeps.
“What I just did to you, taking your virginity while you shouted my name, wasn’t that real?”
Her cheeks flushed a pretty pink. “You know what I mean. We have a contract.”
“You’re right. And I’ll abide by it and give you every cent I promised. But the endgame has changed.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“I was selfish and took what I wanted. I’m used to getting my way.” He ran the backs of his fingers along the curve of her jaw. “But things changed between us. Everything changed. And I’m not ready to let you go.”
“So, how much longer do you want to extend the contract?”
He chuckled. “I don’t want a contract. I want you, and not for a week or a month.” Why was this so fucking hard to get out? Because he couldn’t fathom her leaving. “I want you to be mine.”