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“Oh yeah? Is that what we should do?”
“For now…” He closes the laptop, sets it aside, and kisses me. “I think we should relax.”
“Did you realize you were tired?” I ask him and he leaves me a moment, only laughing at my question as he goes to the kitchen. I watch as he opens a bottle of champagne and pours us each a glass.
It’s only after he’s back next to me, each of us sipping the bubbly, that he admits, “I do think I could use a moment to sleep in, and”—he lowers his voice, planting a small kiss on the crook of my neck before whispering in the shell of my ear—“enjoy my investments.”
As I inhale his masculine scent, his eyes reach mine and the kiss we share in that moment is perfect. Everything is perfect with him. It’s almost too good to be true and I find myself hushing that voice in the back of my head.
I anticipate him taking me again, but instead we lie down and relax into each other.
We relax so much that he ends up sprawled on the couch, his arms around me. I let my head rest on his chest and listen to his heartbeat for so long that Graham falls asleep.
He looks younger when he’s sleeping, and it tugs at my heart.
I want to pull the throw blanket over both of us and stay all night, but thoughts race in my mind.
The way he talked about his parents and getting more from his life makes me hesitate. There’s a decent chance he doesn’t want anything serious because of this, and I don’t want to be the one to get in his way.
And…I don’t want to be the one who falls in love too fast.
That little voice in my head says it’s already too late.
I slip out of his arms anyway, tuck the blanket around him, and go back down to the eighth floor. Back down to reality where I can’t sleep because I’m almost certain I’m way in over my head, over my heels, and all the way back around again.
MADDIE
At the end of the month, nearly five weeks of seeing each other, if you can call it that, Graham whisks me away on vacation. I know from experience that there are plenty of beautiful sunny places to visit on the coast, but it hardly feels like five minutes on the private plane before we’re touching down.
I spent most of the ride with his mouth on mine or sipping champagne and enjoying the little touches so that helped pass the time.
The beach house he rented for the weekend is so close to the water that I hear every wave that rolls in. It’s minimalist, with everything nearly white so the view holds even more impact. Palm trees bend in the breeze. The air smells like ocean salt, and Graham strips off his dress shirt almost immediately and takes me into a massive bedroom overlooking the sea.
There are three lingerie sets on the bed already: one pink, one red, one black.
“Your choice, temptress.”
A blush rises through me and I can’t help but think this is a fantasy I never dared dream before. One a girl like me couldn’t have even imagined.
Graham stands with his hands on my waist while I look them over, pulling me into him. I can already feel how hard he is and how hard he has been since we were on the plane. My whole body is hot with how much he obviously wants me.
“Black.”
He lifts the lacy lingerie off the bed and puts it into my hands. “Go change,” he says. “Then come back to me.”
My heart races as I ready myself and slip on the lingerie. It’s beautiful and expensive, and when I’m wearing it, I really do look like a temptress.
I feel like one, too.
The sun is on an angle in the sky when I pad back out into the bathroom, completely enamored by everything about the present moment. Graham sits on the edge of the bed, in a suit that makes him look all the more powerful, his knees spread and his hands clasped between them. His eyes darken at the sight of me in the things he bought.
“Fuck,” he says softly, his gaze wandering down my body as if he’s undressing me with the simple action. “Strip for me.”
I work my fingers under the straps and peel the lace away from my skin. I just put it on a few minutes ago, but it already feels like it’s part of me. Graham bites his lip when the lace comes away from my nipple. They tighten in the cool of the air conditioning, and he motions for me to turn around while I work the panties over my hips and down to the floor.
“Bend,” he says.
The cool air touches a soft, wet part of me, and Graham groans.