Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 81947 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 410(@200wpm)___ 328(@250wpm)___ 273(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81947 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 410(@200wpm)___ 328(@250wpm)___ 273(@300wpm)
I clapped my hands again. “Oh, and pretzels! Ice cream is so much better when you eat it with pretzels.”
“And pretzels.”
He hung up the phone and swept me into his arms.
“What are you doing?”
With a wink, he said, “I want to get out of this suit, and I don’t trust you alone in the kitchen.”
I rolled my eyes as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “It’s not like I’d start a fire or anything.”
He raised an eyebrow and just looked at me.
My eyes widened. “Oh, yeah. Well, it’s not like I’d start another fire. There are no lit candles.”
He tossed me onto the center of his bed and turned as he shrugged out of his suit coat and headed into a walk-in closet. “You really are a treasure, krasivaya.”
I leaned back onto the black silk coverlet. Spreading my fingers as I swept my arms over the cool fabric, I called out, “Well, suck up all this adorableness now, because this high is already wearing off, and I’m pretty sure I’m pissed at you.”
He emerged from the closet in a pair of jeans with his chest bare.
I was instantly disappointed as he tossed a soft, gray T-shirt over his hard abs as he approached the bed.
Placing a knee on the mattress, he leaned over me. “Really? You think it’s possible you’re angrier than I am right now?”
The pink cotton candy disintegrated into a gritty gummy mess in my mind. Leaning up on my elbows, I focused on his dark, sapphire gaze. “What do you have to be angry about? I’m the one who got dragged out of a club in front of my friends while I was having fun. Hey, what were you doing there, anyway? Were you following me?”
He pushed my hair back, exposing my bare shoulders from the silver glitter top I was wearing. “Yes.”
Both of my eyebrows rose. “Yes?”
He ran his mouth along my neck, flicking his tongue over my earlobe. “Yes.”
I rolled out of his reach and sat up on the bed. “You can’t just say yes and leave it at that.”
Kneeling on the bed, he yanked on my ankles, pulling my legs between his before straddling me. “We can discuss your behavior tomorrow.”
He lifted the hem of my shirt and kissed the sensitive skin just above my jeans’ waistband.
My fingers pushed into his hair and pulled his head up away from my body. “My behavior?”
He rolled to the side so that I was now straddling him. “It’s not your fault. You didn’t know the rules.”
He unbuttoned my jeans.
I re-buttoned them. “I’m sorry, what rules?”
He unbuttoned them again before his warm hands wrapped around my middle, pushing my jeans lower. “Obviously, I will not tolerate my woman getting high in public at some fucking club.”
I jabbed my finger into the center of my chest. “Your woman? You’re not seriously talking about me, are you?”
His fingers pushed into the open waistband of my jeans as he wrenched me forward until I fell across his chest. “Who the hell else do you think I’m talking about?”
“I’m not your woman. I’m your secretary.”
“I thought you preferred assistant.”
“Don’t change the subject.” I gestured between us. “We are not a thing. This is not a thing.”
Something itched the back of my mind, trying to claw to the surface.
Anxiety, anger, and panic.
Something was wrong… something about Var.
If I could just focus…
Then the elevator pinged.
“My banana split!”
CHAPTER 25
VIVIAN
The porter removed the sterling silver cloche with a flourish.
I clapped my hands with glee at the sight of the enormous banana split.
In a delicate, oval crystal tray with heaps of whipped cream and extra cherries, it was so pretty.
Var came up behind me and patted the porter on the back. “Thank you, Urvan.”
Urvan unwrapped the cellophane from the bowl of pretzels and removed the cloche from Var’s club sandwich before bowing and leaving.
Sitting on the kitchen stool, I reached for one of the spoons.
Var pulled it from my hand. “Coffee first.”
“Ew. No.”
He poured coffee into two white porcelain cups with gold trim and the imposing Four Monks emblem on it. “I insist.”
Pushing my lower lip out, I took the cup. “You seem to be doing a lot of that lately,” I grumbled.
He raised an eyebrow. “What was that?”
I gave him a huge fake smile. “One sugar and a splash of cream, please.”
Despite knowing I would burn my tongue, I took a huge gulp. “Ow!”
He snatched the cup from my hand. “Like a child,” he muttered under his breath.
“What was that?”
He handed me a spoon. “I said, would you like a spoon?”
With narrowed eyes, I took the spoon and then pointed it at him. “I know that’s not what you said, but I’m too excited about my banana split to care.”
The creamy vanilla ice cream was topped with fresh slices of tart, yet sweet, strawberries smothered in warm fudge sauce. I dragged the spoonful through the whipped cream before licking it off the spoon.