Total pages in book: 46
Estimated words: 45284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
I look around the small café area. I’ve rented out the entire pool since I wanted privacy with my woman. There’s nobody else in here. The staff is in the kitchen, and my security guards are outside the exterior door. It’s just us, with Loki yapping and splashing below.
“Tommy?” she says.
“I saw your picture earlier,” I tell her. “The sweet one with the sunglasses on.”
When I don’t answer her question, she looks like she might argue, but her expression softens at the news.
“You did? And it’s candy, by the way.”
I smirk. “You’re incredibly talented. I think they’re going to show it to the client, aren’t they?”
She flushes, lowering her gaze, looking like she doesn’t know how to handle the praise. It pisses me off because she should be able to handle it. She’s so talented. She should be a pro at taking compliments, but she’s never had her man before ready to lavish her with well-deserved praise every single day.
“I think they might,” she says softly, “but you’re changing the subject.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
After a long pause, I stand abruptly, the chair screeching against the floor.
“I don’t think I can look at you when I tell you.”
She laughs adorably, then quickly stops when she realizes I’m not joking.
“Uh… okay. I get it. Is it that bad?”
“You’ll have to be the judge of that.”
I walk over to the window with my hands behind my back. Some people call this my power stance, which I’ve used in countless meetings. I sometimes stand with my back facing the room as long minutes pass, and the tension increases. Now, there’s nothing powerful about it. It’s fear, pure and simple.
“I was in the office when George was reviewing the application videos,” I tell her, watching Loki clamber from the pool and flop onto the towel. His tail still twitches even as he pants in exhaustion. “It’s strange thinking back to that time. I feel like a different man.”
I almost don’t want to go on, but George was right. She deserves the truth. I’ll have to trust her when she says she’s not a gold digger.
“How so?” she asks.
“I was cold. I didn’t care about anything except for business. I’ve been that way for so long. Distant and detached. It makes me bloody effective at my job, but then I saw your video, Ami, and everything changed.”
My heartbeat is a powerful thudding taunt in my chest, telling me it will all come crashing down, the relationship ending before it has a chance to begin. I keep my gaze on Loki. I can’t turn and look at Amelia. She could be staring at me like I’m a madman, and I am… for her. I just hope she’s as mad as me.
“I knew you were special as soon as I saw the video. You were funny and shy and confident and beautiful. It’s not one thing. It’s all of you, Ami. I knew I had to meet you and be with you.”
“Just from the video?” she asks, her tone difficult to read.
“Yes, just from the video. I can’t count the number of times I’ve watched it. So when you arrived, I had to see you in person. That’s why I was outside the house. You were much more beautiful in real life than in that video.”
I stop, unwilling to reveal the rest: the marriage, the kids, all of it. It’s so bloody difficult, but I turn and face her. She’s on her feet, her hands clasped in front of her.
“I was—am—obsessed,” I go on, walking toward her, wishing her expression was easier to read.
It’s like she’s holding a lot back. I wrap my arms around her, using white-knuckle discipline to keep my hands above her waist. Cradling her as gently as I can, I lean down and kiss her cheek softly.
“I know it’s a lot to take in.”
“Obsessed,” she repeats. “Over me?”
“Don’t sound so surprised. You’re an amazing person.”
“You hardly know me.”
“Who cares?” I growl. “I know how I feel. I’m certain about that.”
At least she’s not jumping at the chance to be with me, immediately telling me she feels the same, but a clever person wouldn’t do that. They’d hold back, make it seem like they weren’t sure about it.
Stop.
I hear a message from inside, primal and urgent. She’s mine. She’s not tricking me.
She stands on her tiptoes and wraps her arms around me. She initiates the kiss, moaning passionately as we hold each other tight, pressing our bodies together. I break my above-the-waist rule when her moans become even more urgent. I can feel her lust bursting through her. I guide her away from the window, out of view, and massage her hips and ass as the kiss intensifies.
“Have you ever… you know… over the video?”
She’s flushed as she asks the question, vivacious in the extreme, all her youthful energy bursting out of her.