Page 34 of Scandalous Contract

I didn’t look away from him when he tossed the last of my attire onto the couch. He stood close, too close, yet not nearly close enough. His gaze burned into me, roaming over me so slowly and carefully that it felt like a physical touch.

I licked my lips when his hands lifted, fingers brushing along my cheeks. His thumbs swept over the curve of my jaw before sliding down to my neck. He lingered there, fingertips resting against the pulsing beat beneath my skin.

The look in his eyes... it was more than lust. More than desire. It was devotion. Like he couldn’t believe he was touching me. Like he was afraid if he let go, I might disappear. My pulse thundered beneath his touch, racing beneath the warmth of his palm.

His hands drifted lower, sliding over my collarbone, brushing along the swell of my chest. My breath stuttered, and my eyes fluttered shut as his fingers skimmed the curve of my breasts. The heat of his palms scorched my skin as he trailed down, slow and unhurried.

He wasn’t in a rush. He was savoring this, taking his time with me, seducing me. When his thumb brushed my nipple, a soft moan escaped me along with a shiver of pleasure that I couldn’t hold back even if I wanted to. His hand cupped my breast, lifting it slightly, his thumb circling the hardened peak.

He rolled it between his fingers, a light pinch that sent a jolt of heat between my thighs. My breath left me in a shaky exhale, and my head tipped back against the door with a soft thud. This man had me so aroused I could probably cum from the slightest breath against my pussy.

“You’re exquisite,” he whispered.

My eyes opened slowly, just in time to see his gaze drop to my lips. His mouth was close, so close I could feel the ghost of his breath against my skin. His hand slid back up to my throat, thumb resting at the hollow just beneath my jaw.

He wasn’t squeezing, wasn’t applying pressure, but the possessiveness of the gesture made my pulse race beneath his touch.

“You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen,” he murmured. “I must have you, Stefanie Adams.”

My breath caught, not because of the words themselves. I’d been told I was beautiful before. But the way Julian said it, paired with the way he looked at me, the way he touched me... well, it left me reeling, spiraling.

And that made him dangerous. That made mewantto believe him. My eyes searched his face for any sign of a lie. I found none. Only hunger. Awe.

“You really want me... that much?” My voice was barely above a whisper.

His eyes darkened. “I’ve never wanted anyone or anything as much as I want you, Stefanie Adams.”

My chest tightened at the certainty in his tone. He wasn’t feeding me lines. He wasn’t trying to seduce me. He was simply speaking the truth. And God help me, I believed him. No one had ever looked at me like this before.

Not even the man I married fresh out of college. No one had ever touched me this way. If I wasn’t careful, Julian Cattaneo would wreck me for any other man, and I couldn’t let that happen. All I could give him was tonight. Tears sprang to my eyes.

“Julian....” I started.

“Shhh,” he whispered, thumb brushing along my lower lip. “I didn’t tell you that to make you feel pressured or uncomfortable. I just wanted you to know that this isn’t just a fuck for me. This isn’t a cheap thrill. I want you. Ineedyou, Stefanie. But let’s save the deep conversations for the morning. Tonight, I want to be buried deep in this pussy.”

His words made my pussy gush. He was standing so close that I felt his cock jerk against me. It seemed he, too, was ready for the next round.That, I could handle.Sex, I could handle. Anything beyond that wasn’t in the cards for me.

But as he said, that was a conversation for the morning. Tonight, I wanted to fuck his brains out. I wanted to make him feel just as good as he was making me feel. Come morning, neither of us would have any regrets.

We’d look back on this experience and think only happy thoughts. My breathing was a little shaky as his other hand slid down my side, fingers skimming my hip, tracing the curve of my waist.

“You’re trembling.” His eyes dropped to my mouth. “Are you nervous?”

“Yes,” I admitted. I had no reason to lie.

“Why?” His thumb traced my bottom lip again. “Because of me?”

“Because no one’s ever touched me like this.”

His grip tightened at my waist, the primal flare of hunger in his eyes making my knees weak. I saw the flash of possessiveness in his eyes, that dark hunger simmering just beneath the surface.

His hand slid up my side, thumb brushing the curve of my breast before grazing my nipple. My breath escaped in a gasp. His mouth tilted into a smirk that was entirely too sexy.

He leaned in, chest pressing against my chest, his mouth brushing my ear as he whispered, “Let me show you how a man is supposed to make his woman feel.”

My heart nearly stopped. His lips trailed down the side of my neck, pressing the lightest kiss to the fragile skin there. My pulse fluttered beneath his mouth, quick and erratic. His hand slid down my back, fingertips tracing my spine.

I arched into him without meaning to. My body responded to him instinctively, the heat of his mouth raising goosebumps on my skin. His lips moved lower, finding the curve of my shoulder.