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Elina

CHAPTER TWELVE

I try to spend the rest of the trip in silence, but I can't.

He tells me what New York is like—which until now I only knew through movies—and it piques my curiosity.

Inadvertently, I find myself asking questions I would normally have kept in my head, like what Central Park is like and if he's ever ridden a carriage there.

Then I feel like hitting myself.

Odin doesn't seem like the kind of man who does things a tourist would do, and I’m ashamed of myself for being so na?ve.

I decide it’s time to shut my mouth before I start to talk nonsense.

"Don't you want to ask any more questions?" he says after I'm silent for a few minutes.

I'm playing with my seat belt, and I don't look at him, I just shake my head from side to side.

Does he think I'm a simpleton compared to the women he's used to being with?

I look at him from under my lashes, and again his masculinity shakes me. I can feel the power in him, and it appeals to me more than is safe.

I don't feel afraid, though .

Despite his claims about wanting to have sex with me, I know Odin wouldn't force me.

That day when Naim attacked me, he told me to trust my instincts, and they tell me that Odin is not a coward, that he would never take advantage of a woman.

A man like him has no need to force someone to have sex. In addition to being handsome, he has that something else that makes people try to attract his attention. And that's why, as much as I try to fight it, it's so exciting to be the target of his desire.

Even without experience, I know that he's the type of man who would take a woman on a tour of the stars during the act.

His dark gaze traps me every time I look at him. He doesn't have a friendly face, and even though he wears fine clothes that I know are very expensive, you can tell there's something wild underneath.

He is never clean-shaven, like the men from our land tend to be. There's always a shadow of fur on his face, giving him the look of a pirate. His hair isn't perfectly cut either; it's thick and messy, making me want to feel it with my fingers. His appearance is capable of taking any woman's breath away, leaving whoever stares at him with no choice but to continue admiring him.

There's something about him that makes him irresistible, even before he starts talking.

There's nothing gentle in his voice, but every time he opens his mouth, it makes me want to obey him. Give in to his demands. Which is very strange, because I've always been the type of woman who rebels at the slightest sign of imposition. I was raised to be submissive like my sisters and mother, but I never agreed to the role. As I learned from a young age the consequences of defying my father, I pretended to accept everything that came from him. Inside, however, I was seething.

If I couldn't be myself all the time, especially with my dad, I made up for it by rebelling towards the rest of the world.

That's how I managed to scare off all my suitors.

Remembering that makes me think of our conversation earlier today. The things he said to me flipped the switch on my imagination.

I may be a virgin, but I'm not dead. I have masturbated and made myself come many times. I’ve also watched romance movies, and the love scenes really caught my interest, but I always knew that, living on the island, there was no way I could experience any of those things without having a husband.

Besides, one must remember the fact that my dad would freak out if he found out anything... Everyone on the island knows each other.

Other than that, I've never been attracted to anyone until now. The men who attended our receptions were usually married, and the single ones were either too old for me or didn't arouse my desire.

I look surreptitiously at Odin again. He would be perfect to try out if I decided to go on an adventure. Beautiful and sensual like the heroes of romance movies.

Our conversations also excite me; they make me dizzy. His insinuations send goose bumps over my skin. Every time he says he wants me, I feel a pulse of desire between my thighs.

But I would have to be crazy to get involved with him.

It's not just that he took everything from my family.

I don't know about my father's business, but I know Leandros well enough to understand that he's not an honest man. I've heard some of his conversations with his lawyers and also with his security guards. My father will trample over anyone to get what he wants, especially if it involves money. The biggest proof of this is having negotiated my marriage with Naim without consulting me.

So I'm not the kind of daughter who thinks her dad is a saint just because he's my dad. I, more than anyone, know what he's capable of.

Odin said he's not a hero, and I believe him, but Leandros fits the villain role perfectly. Therefore, it's not the fight between the two of them that prevents me from embarking on Odin’s seduction but rather the fact that my life has been turned inside out.

I'm going to a strange country with a man who is supposed to be my enemy. I'm going to live alone and have a job to earn my own living for the first time in my existence. There are too many changes to process, and I can't add a sexual involvement with a man like him.

Not that I'm not interested.

I nearly fainted when he said he would spend hours, days, locked in a room with me, making love.

However, there are a myriad reasons why I wouldn't even consider allowing something to happen between us. The main one? He's my boss. If we get involved, when he gets tired of me, I'll be jobless. At least for the moment, I don't have another opportunity at hand to keep a roof over my head.

“You must be in the mood for a rest. I usually don't talk that much. I don't know what got into me,” I finally answer.

“If I didn't want to talk, you wouldn't have any doubts about it.”

I believe him. Odin doesn't seem like the type who lets anyone make him do anything.

“Is there a supermarket near the apartment where I'm going to live?” I try to focus on practical things.

“Supermarket?”

“Yes, I'll need to buy groceries. Can I go there on foot?”

“Have you ever done that? Bought groceries?”

“No.”

“Don't worry. Make a weekly list and an employee will provide everything you need.”

“No, I can learn how to do my own shopping. I just need someone to teach me. You are already offering too much.”

We stare at each other in silence for a while, and I'm hoping he's going to contradict me, but he surprises me instead.

“Do you cook?”

I shrug. “I wouldn't starve to death.”

“I don’t cook.”

“I figured.”

“What does that mean?”

“You're rich—you don't have to do anything. You must have plenty of people to fulfill your every wish with a snap of your fingers.”

“You're rich too.”

“No, my father is... was . Besides, I always enjoyed watching the maids prepare meals. I love the smell of fresh food.”I feel my face heat up because I've said too much again. I'm sure Odin doesn't give a damn about that kind of bullshit.

“Savoring?”

“Huh?”

“Do you like savoring a good meal? ”

“Yeah. I like the pleasure I feel when food touches my tongue. Of how some dishes are a perfect match with a good wine, creating a delicious mix of flavors.”

He's silent, but he's staring at me intensely, which causes my body to shudder.

“I don't know what it is about you that makes me talk nonstop. I'm not usually that chatty.”

“You know what they say about the ability to enjoy a good meal? There is a parallel between enjoying a good dish and making love."

“Do you only think about sex?” Despite the question, I feel like laughing, but I hide it.

“Not usually, but you make me feel an unstoppable desire.”

“Spare me your seduction tricks. Nothing will happen between us.”

“I don't use seduction tricks to get the woman I want.”

Hearing that gives me an unpleasant feeling and the certainty that I need to keep my head straight.

The woman I want.

He must play this game very often, and while it doesn't surprise me that he’s had several flings, it does give me confirmation that I must keep things between us on a professional level or I might miss out on my only chance to deal with the mess that has become my life.

I decide to be honest for a change. “I'm not going to lie and say I'm not attracted to you. Those things you said about sex...I believe what you said about being able to make love for hours. But while I no longer owe my father anything, I don't want to mix things up between us. I don't need my virginity anymore, and I intend to lose it, but when I do decide to have sex, it will be with someone who doesn't pay me a salary.”

“Is working for me the problem, or are you just waiting for Prince Charming?”

“Far from it. I'll never get married. I’m talking about experiencing sex.”

“And your family's plan for you was to marry as a virgin?”

“As you say it, that was my family's plan. I never wanted a husband like my sisters dreamed of.”

“Why? ”

“I like being alone. I don't miss having a man by my side, but I know the time will come when my body will want to learn about pleasure."

To my surprise, he unbuckles his seat belt and walks over to me. He bends down in front of my legs, but he's so big it's like he's standing. “A kiss.”

“What?”

“Let me kiss you once, and if it's not how I imagine it, we'll forget this conversation forever.”

I look at his mouth. His lips are sensual enough to make me forget about everything else. I'm thirty years old and I've never kissed a man. What harm could there be in having just one taste of him? If it's not good, it will at least drive any fantasy out of my head.

Instead of answering, I reach up and touch his face. I run my fingers gently over his jaw and enjoy the feel of the stubble on my skin.

I close my eyes to feel him better.

I let the tips of my fingernails continue to experiment, but suddenly he grabs my wrist.

“Look at me.”

I obey. I don't like being ordered around, but I'm unable to resist his commanding tone.

He brings my fingers to his mouth. Without ceasing to stare at me, he kisses the tips and then sucks them one by one.

His mouth is hot, wet, and sensations I've never experienced flood my body.

With his free hand, he unhooks my belt and pulls me to the edge of the chair. “You want this?” He's sitting back on his heels, and as soon as I nod in confirmation, he pulls me onto his lap.

I don't have much choice but to spread my legs to accommodate his body, and the feeling of having him holding me is like being protected by a wall.

“Are you going to open your mouth for me this time?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“Because now I'm the one who wants to taste you.”

Without any warning, he pulls me by the back of my head and glues our lips together .

At first, our mouths just feel each other.

Heat versus heat.

It's not enough, and without him telling me to, I open my mouth, inviting him in.

He just brushes his tongue across my lip, and I moan in pleasure. As soon as the sound escapes, he finally takes me.

It's a sensual, hot, determined invasion.

Odin leaves no room for me to doubt how much he wants me. His kiss is intense and so dominant that I lose track of time and space.

I just don't want to stop. I could kiss him for hours.

I wish he would touch me, but I don't know how to ask for it. Just being passive in his arms doesn't satisfy me, and I clasp my hands around his neck.

That seems to please him, because he fits me more comfortably in his lap, pulling me against him by my butt.

I can feel his arousal under my body, and the nerve endings between my thighs vibrate in response every time I move.

Odin groans as he sucks on my mouth, and I bite his bottom lip lightly.

He stands up and sits in his chair with me on his lap, and I pull away to look at him.

“No.”

“No what?”

“Our kiss isn't over yet, Elina. Come back here.”

I really don't want to stop, but I'm starting to lose consciousness. The attack is wanton, delicious. He's waking me up.

If this is what kissing him is like, what would it be like having him taste every bit of my body?

The thought stimulates me, increasing my need, and I tug at the strands of his hair to get more of his mouth.

I can't think clearly. I just want a little more of what I'm feeling.