Page 75 of A Forbidden Arrangement

I can’t look away. My tongue wets my bottom lip. Thick fingers swirl in the liquid. Then he brings them to my mouth.

“Open.”

I do and moan as I suck cum from him, not bothering to care that I would have been embarrassed to enjoy this before. Xander’s made it clear that he is going to enjoy anything I want.

He pulls his fingers out with the pop, then tugs me into his side, and my head rests on his shoulder. He draws slow strokes from my hip all the way up to just below my breast, goose bumps erupting in the wake of his touch.

“Dahlia, you have no idea how happy you make me.”

There’s an electric current zapping deep within me, leaving my entire body tingling. I want to bottle it up so I can feel this way forever.

Xander’s lips press into my forehead, and a low hum in his throat rumbles under my palm.

I think I’m starting to understand.

Chapter 34

Dahlia

Even though I’veslept in his bed for the last several nights, Xander hasn’t tried to start anything, seeming content just to hold me. He’s tenacious in the way he’s stayed by my side, never letting me out of his sight.

It’s as if he hasn’t gotten over finding me in that room and how close I’d been… I cut off the thought, not wanting to spiral down that road. I’m never going to be okay with what happened.

As if sensing my thoughts, Xander’s gaze snaps up, gray eyes hidden beneath glasses, landing where I’m curled up on the leather couch in his office. I still think it’s unfair for him to look this good while my thoughts are already constantly drifting in the wrong direction. With my new phone, I’ve had to start a brand-new garden in my favorite cozy game. I’ve spent hours playing it in a comfortable silence as Xander works.

I mentioned getting a job once, and the look he gave me had me shutting my mouth fast. If we’re not in his office, we’re in the greenhouse, and honestly, I don’t mind it. I’m not about to complain about spending my days there, surrounded by sunlight and the smell of earth, instead of punching a clock somewhere I don’t want to be.

How long can this last? The ache in my chest builds, a quiet reminder that nothing this good ever stays. The more I fall for him, the harder it’ll be when it ends. His whispered promises steady me for a while, but they don’t stop the thoughts that creep in anyway. I spent too much of my life being left behind to be able to blindly accept that this time will be different.

“What are you thinking about?” Xander’s head is tilted slightly to the side, and not for the first time, I wonder if he can read my mind. He’s so in tune to me. He’s able to spot the second something inside me shifts and reels me back.

“That you work too much.”

One of his brows arches high, but he doesn’t call me out on the lie. “Do you want me to stop?”

“Would you, if I asked you to?”

“I’d have to find a suitable replacement and train them?—”

I snort. “I’m kidding. You are seriously so ridiculous.”

“You still don’t get it.” Xander takes his glasses off and places them on his desk. “I’ll just have to do a better job of showing you.”

Tingles spark down my spine, and I shiver.

Xander pushes off the desk, the wheels of his chair moving backward. He holds out his arm to me.

“Come here, pretty girl.”

I get up, leave my phone, and cross the distance to him, letting him guide me down onto his lap, my legs cradled on either side of him. For several seconds, we just breathe each other’s breaths. We haven’t been this close since the day on the mats. My cheeks instantly flush.

“What are you thinking about?” He asks the same question again, but this time, it’s more playful than I thought he was capable of, his lips flattened, twitching at the corner.

“Not you.”

“Liar.”

He wraps his arms around me, pulling me closer, and drops his head to my shoulder. His hair tickles my neck as he takes deep breaths through his nose. “I missed you.”