Page 145 of Scandalous Contract

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

STEFANIE

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THAT NIGHT, JULIANcame home later than usual. But he’d texted and let me know something had come up at work, so I knew he would be late. I was curled up on the couch, laptop open on my knees, pretending to type but mostly just waiting, counting the seconds, for the sound of his key in the door.

When I heard it, I smiled. He stepped inside, looking like every sinful fantasy I'd ever had, sleeves pushed up his forearms, shirt clinging just a little too well to his chest. His hair was messy. Most women would think that meant he was out cheating.

I knew better. He’d probably had to handle some Cattaneo business. I didn’t ask any questions. I just smiled at him when his gaze landed on me. His mouth lifted into that slow, sexy smile that could undo me in less than a second.

“Hey, beautiful,” he said, sounding tired as he closed and locked the door behind him.

“Hey, handsome,” I said, snapping my laptop shut and sliding it onto the coffee table.

He didn't even hesitate. He crossed the room, tugging loose his tie as he walked, dropping it on the back of a chair when he neared me. Then he sank down onto the couch beside me and pulled me straight into his lap.

The moment I was seated against him, his hands locked around me, and I smiled, happy to be in his arms again. His nose brushed the side of my neck as he breathed me in, slow and deep, as if I were the only thing in the world he needed to recharge.

"I missed you today," he said, voice gravelly against my skin.

"I missed you, too," I whispered, threading my fingers into his hair at the nape of his neck.

He sighed and tightened his arms around me, pressing me harder to his chest. I shifted, settling deeper into his lap, my thighs straddling his waist, my core brushing the hard bulge straining behind his slacks. He was already half-hard, and just feeling himtheresent heat spiraling low in my belly.

"I’ve been thinking about holding you like this all day," he murmured against my throat, his mouth skimming across my pulse.

So had I. It was crazy how his body fit so perfectly against mine. And it amazed me how he made the world outside of this house disappear with a touch. He pressed a kiss to my throat. I tilted my head back, offering him more access.

His mouth trailed down the column of my neck, kissing, teasing, licking. My hips moved of their own accord, a slow grind that made him groan against my skin.

“You keep doing that," he warned. “And I’m going to fuck you right here, right now."

The thought alone made me wetter.

"Maybe that’s the point," I whispered, my voice sultry as hell.

He chuckled low in his chest, but there was no humor in it, just raw hunger. He slid one hand up my spine, the other curling around the back of my neck as he lifted his head, his eyes burning into mine.

His gaze pinned me in place, and before I could even catch my next breath, he crushed his mouth to mine. It was the kind of kiss that stole every thought right out of my head. His tongue danced with mine, his hands sliding over my hips, my thighs, dragging me harder against him as if he couldn’t get close enough.

I kissed him back just as desperately, my fingers tangling in his hair, pulling him closer, needing more. His hands roamed everywhere, over my ass, up my sides, under my shirt. His palms were hot against my bare skin, every brush of his fingers lit me up like a live wire.

He pulled away just long enough to yank my T-shirt over my head, tossing it somewhere across the room. I gasped, the cool air hitting my bare skin, but before the shiver could settle, he was there, mouth hot and hungry against the curve of my breast.