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PROLOGUE
Giving myself one last glance in the mirror, I opened the bedroom door of the master suite and strolled into the living room. Victor was perched on the edge of the sofa, head down, as he tapped away on his phone. I swear the man never stopped working, but running one of the largest hotel chains wasn’t exactly a nine-to-five job. His bags were packed and lying beside his feet. He was going on another business trip. He’d been taking a lot of them lately.
Victor lifted his head, his expression blank, but I caught the flash of surprise in his beautiful blue eyes. He was an attractive man at thirty-seven, and fifteen years my senior. I never considered dating an older man, but he changed that with one flash of his charming smile.
We met in November of last year, when he was a guest speaker in my Business Strategy class. His family owned the Martin Hotel chains located all around the world. After class, I found him standing in the hallway, leaning against the wall and looking completely out of place in a sea of college kids. He asked me out for coffee. Coffee turned into dinner. Dinner turned into spending Christmas with my parents, followed by a surprise ski trip to Breckenridge. Our relationship moved fast. I was in love, and somewhere along the way, I lost pieces of myself.
Nervous butterflies danced around in my stomach as his gaze swept over the tiny scraps of red lace clinging to my nearly naked body. Victor loved me in red.
Tossing his phone on the coffee table, he leaned back against the cushions and patted his thigh. “Come here, kitten.”
I straddled his lap, circling my arms around his neck.
He settled one hand on my hip, and with the other, he traced the scalloped edges of my bra. “What are you doing?” he asked with a hint of amusement in his tone.
Victor knew what I was doing, and he was goading me. Recently, our battle of wills had become less of a game and more of a power struggle to regain the control he’d slowly stolen from me over the last few months. “Why don’t you ever ask me to come with you on your trips anymore?” I asked, trying my best not to sound accusatory, but nothing got past Victor.
A slap echoed through the room as I registered the sting on my asscheek. Victor didn’t like to be questioned.
Smoothing a hand over my tingling skin, he spoke in an even tone. “Your graduation is on Thursday, and I’m not sure if I’ll make it back in time.”
That wasn’t my question, but before I could argue, he cupped the back of my head and guided my mouth to his. My fingers teased the silky strands of hair on the back of his head as the kiss deepened.
I felt him harden beneath me, and I rocked my hips to relieve the ache between my thighs. I loved Victor, but lately it seemed like my love wasn’t enough.
Rising up on my knees, I pulled the ties holding the tiny panties in place and tossed them to the side as Victor lowered his pants just enough to free himself. He wrapped his hand around his cock, stroking it before swiping his thumb over the precum at the tip.
My core clenched in anticipation. “Is this what you want, kitten?” I answered with a moan as he pushed his thumb into my mouth, the saltiness coating my tongue. Keeping his gaze locked on me, Victor pulled his thumb from my mouth and dragged the wet digit across my cheek, pressing hard against my skin.
“Such a greedy little slut, aren’t you, Makayla?” he taunted.
It was like he’d just dumped a bucket of cold water over my head. My body stilled, and my moan turned into a strangled gasp. It wasn’t the first time he’d called me a “greedy slut” or “little whore.”
“Victor, please don’t talk to me like that,” I chided softly.
I was always down for kinky sex. Some light hair pulling, a smack on the ass, and even a little dirty talk. But I had my limits. I hated those words for good reason, and he knew it. He was being cruel.
Leaning forward, he sucked a nipple through the lace of my bra. “What about what I like?”
“I thought you liked this—” I gestured to my mostly naked body. “—but lately, all you’ve done is make me feel like I’m not enough. You’ve changed.”
His jaw clenched as irritation passed over his face. The slight flare of his nostrils meant that I was pushing him too far, but our relationship was falling apart at the seams, and I was desperately clinging to the tiny, frayed edges.
“Where is that man who stood outside my classroom and asked me out for coffee?” I pressed. “Where is the man who whisked me off to Breckenridge and made love to me by the fire?”The words poured from my mouth, and damn the consequences. I wouldn’t take them back.
“That man was in denial. Depriving himself of a need that you can’t satisfy.”
Jerking my head back, I narrowed my eyes. “Whatneed?” I snapped. “I’m the one trying here.”
“I know exactly what you’re doing, and I don’t have time for your whiny bullshit.” He bucked his hips. “Get up.”
The knot in my gut was a clear warning to stop pushing. To let him leave. Deep down, I could feel things were about to spiral out of control. Something I desperately wanted back. Something I knew he would never return. but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t fight for it.
“Show me what you need,” I challenged.
His blue eyes turned nearly black, glazed over with something much darker than desire. Something carnal. His cock swelled between my legs as he reached up and fisted his hand in my hair, and I cried out. A mask of indifference fell over his face as his grip on my hip tightened, his fingers digging into the flesh. There would be a bruise later.
“Get on your knees,” he growled.