Page 139 of Scandalous Contract

“Okay,” he nodded. “You don’t like the idea of me being in control of what we do behind closed doors over the summer, huh?”

“That’s not it.” When he said it like that, it made me feel like I was overreacting. Was I overreacting? “Am I overreacting?” I asked.

“Of course, not. Your reaction is valid because it’s natural. It wasn’t fake. It wasn’t planned. It was your natural reaction. And if me being in control is an issue, then...”

“It’s not an issue. I think it’s the word.Control. I don’t like that word. I don’t like giving up control.”

“Which means it’s an issue, right?” he asked.

I turned in my seat to face him, trying to find the words to explain how I was feeling.

“I love the idea of you being with me this summer as my research buddy,” I told him. A summer together would give me time to work on those skeletons in my closet. “But, it’s the thought of you being in control of me during that time that bothers me.”

“What does me being in control look like to you?” he asked, staring up at me.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, what do you picture when you picture me being in control?”

My mind immediately went to Archie and his demands and his degrading words. I wasn’t that same woman. I know I would never accept that kind of treatment again. Even so, that was where my mind went.

I licked my lips before saying, “Julian, my husband...”

“You don’t have a husband, Stefanie. Not yet,” he told me.

“Huh?”

“You said your husband.”

Oh, right.“My, um, India’s father. He wasn’t...” How do I say this? “He wasn’t good to me. He was abusive.”

I swallowed, not believing I was telling him this. But now that I’d started, I needed to get it out. Julian didn’t speak. He just listened and held my hand, letting his thumb glide over my knuckles in slow passes, his touch so careful, so tender, it felt like he was trying his best not to break me.

“Her father was controlling,” I continued. “And since him, I haven’t had a serious relationship at all. My focus has been on me and my daughter. And I must admit that I’ve micromanaged our lives all these years to keep myself from ever feeling like I wasn’t the one in control. So, the thought of giving up control, it... scares me.”

There, I admitted it. I admitted a lot. I met his gaze head-on, forcing myself not to look away or start crying again. I wasn’t weak. Not anymore. And Julian wasn’t Archie.

“Thank you for sharing that with me. If the fucker wasn’t already dead, I’d kill him with my bare hands,” Julian told me, expression serious, tone deadly.

And instead of scaring me, it made me want to kiss him.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

“You’re welcome,” he told me, voice gentler now, the deadly edge fading into something tender and protective. His thumb brushed another tear off my cheek. “Can I tell you what me being in control would look like over the summer?” he asked, his tone low and patient.

I nodded slowly, the knot in my chest loosening a fraction.

“It means helping you with your research,” he said, his voice dipping into something deeper, hotter. “And if that research involves fucking you in every single room in this house to get your sex scenes just right...” His thumb brushed lightly over the inside of my knee, sending a slow, wicked shiver up my spine. “Then that's exactly what I'm going to do.”

Heat flushed my cheeks. I stared down at my lap. But he placed his finger under my chin, bringing my gaze back to his, refusing to let me look away.

“I plan to eat your pussy from the front, the back, and the side, until you can describe it in detail, noting every swipe, flick and suck of my tongue and mouth. I plan to fuck your mouth until your throat is raw so you can perfectly describe what it feels like having my cock against your tongue and my cum down your throat.”

Gush!I swallowed, wishing I had his cock in my mouth right now.

“And that pussy,” he started, gaze dropping to my lap, prompting me to clench my thighs as my pussy quivered. “By the end of the summer, she’s going to be addicted to my cock, my tongue, and my fingers.”

She was already addicted to all three. All I had to do was think of this man, and she started to gush.