Page 32

THE FIRST DAY OF NAOMI'S birthday weekend had been a huge success, and with photos of the party taking over social media, Sarah wasn't surprised when she saw the crowd of fans and paparazzi waiting outside Fox Lodge's parking lot the next day.

"Free PR is always good PR," a cheerful voice piped up from behind her. "Or so I like to tell the sheikh."

Sarah was already grinning even before turning around, having recognized the voice. "You made it!"

"We were supposed to make it here yesterday," Hyacinth admitted after their quick exchange of hugs, "but something came up at work, and Marwan and I ended up having to record another episode."

"What's important is that you're here," Sarah told her friend.

Hyacinth gestured to the crowd outside, which had just gone wild at the arrival of her brother-in-law, Sheikh Tarif Al-Atassi, and her sister Anisah. "Look how cute my sister is acting."

Prior to marrying the royal sheikh, Anisah had worked as a royal tutor for the kingdom's American queen and was rather infamous for her strict, schoolmarmish ways.

This side of her was glaringly evident now, with the way her lips pursed every time she saw girls clamoring for her husband's attention.

"Do you think she'll ever get used to it?" Sarah asked with a grin.

"Never," Hyacinth said brightly while curling an arm around her friend's. "But enough about her. I'm famished. Where do we eat?"

Ten minutes later, and Sarah and Hyacinth were sharing one of the cozy booths in J & N's, which was basically the hotel's upscale version of a diner. Since it was only seven in the morning, there still weren't that many people around, with most of the guests choosing to sleep in.

Sarah asked the other girl about Sheikh Rayyan, whose engagement to Hyacinth was yet to be disclosed to the public.

"Not coming," Hyacinth said with a sigh. "Busy with work, as always."

Sarah was about to murmur words of comfort when a commotion outside their window caught her attention. The crowd had gone wild again, girls jumping up and down - oh.

Hyacinth, seeing Sarah's grimace, turned her gaze to where the other girl was staring at. Oh. "And here I thought you were over him," she teased.

Sarah quickly snapped her gaze back to her friend. "Of course I am."

"Uh huh." Hyacinth was clearly unconvinced. "Just promise me I have dibs when you guys make it official. You two are perfect for my show."

Sarah glared at her friend. "Very funny." Since the title of Hyacinth's show was Fuck Being Politically Correct, it was easy to tell which aspect of her relationship with Damian the other girl was alluding to.

"I'm serious, and it will be fun—-"

"What's going to be fun?"

Sarah jerked in surprise at hearing Damian's voice. Shit. She looked up, and there he was, looking his usual gorgeous self with a denim jacket thrown over his plaid shirt and jeans.

"I wanted you two to guest in my show—-"

Sarah kicked Hyacinth under the table, but it was too late.

"It's a deal," she heard the billionaire say easily.

What?

"If you let me have breakfast alone with my stepsister ."

Sarah groaned at the amount of innuendo he had injected in the last word while the same thing had Hyacinth grinning. "It's a deal, Mr. Fox."

And Hyacinth was gone faster than one could say wait, leaving Damian to comfortably slide in her place on the opposite side of the booth.

"Morning, love."

Shit, shit, shit.

"Morning." Sarah's voice was stiff. Memories had flooded her brain the moment he appeared, and all of it was urging her to do a runner...

Damian knew exactly what Sarah was thinking when her cheeks suddenly flushed with color. "Thinking about last night?"

Eep . Sarah could feel herself turning even redder as his words forced her to face up to what she had done.

Last night, she had still been on her knees when Damian pulled out of her mouth, and it was hearing that strange but unmistakable popping sound that had snapped Sarah out of the haze of desire she had been trapped in.

She had looked up at him in horror, stricken at what she had allowed to transpire.

'This shouldn't have happened,' she had whispered.

And then she had hastened to her feet and run away, taking advantage of the fact that Damian still had to do his pants before he could come after her.

She had stuck to Naomi's side like glue for the rest of the night after that, and when the party came to a close, she had rushed to her room and triple-locked her door before falling into troubled sleep.

But even then, a part of her had known she was only delaying the inevitable—-

Oh my God!

Sarah shot up in her seat when she felt his hand touch her knee.

"Relax," Damian purred. "No one can see us." He had her legs hidden between his, and with Sarah so much smaller and slimmer than him, other people at the diner would only be able to see one side of his denim-clad thigh and not much else.

His fingers started caressing her knee, just slow, gentle strokes that shouldn't have been erotic or thrilling in any way, but because this was Damian, it just was, and she had to bite her lip hard to keep herself from crying out.

"Have you thought about my proposal?" he asked softly.

"I already gave you my answer," she muttered.

"But it's not the answer I want," he drawled, "so change it."

Aaaargh. He was doing it again, going all cocky on her that she could only glower at him even as her toes curled hard inside her boots.

"Did I just turn you on, love?"

"No." But this was a lie, of course, and the gleam of amusement in his sexy, blue eyes told Sarah that he was on to her, too.

"Let me do something about it."

"There's nothing to—-" She felt the billionaire squeeze her knee under the table, and oh God, it was more than enough to have her insides tightening with need, and she quickly sucked her breath to keep herself from making any noise.

"You were saying?"

She stared at him, torn between dismay and outrage. "For God's sake, Damian." They still had a hundred-plus guests staying in the same lodge as them, and they only had to be caught once—-

His hand had moved, his fingers trailing up on the inner side of her thigh, and Sarah reacted without thinking, her legs snapping close...and trapped his hand between them in the process.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

She might just have made things worse—-

Oh my God!

Damian squeezed the tender skin of her thigh, and she found herself gripping one edge of the table.

"I can make you feel like this every day, love."

"Shut up."

"You just have to marry me."

"Never—-" The hand between her legs was abruptly withdrawn, and a feeling of aching emptiness immediately struck her at the loss of his touch.

Damian leaned back against his seat and waited.

His Sarah was defiant at first, her voice sharp as she told him off. "Don't touch me again."

He didn't bother to answer, and soon enough, his patience was rewarded as Sarah seemed to shift restlessly in her seat.

"You can try all you want," he murmured, "but you won't be able to make it go away. You want me too much, love."

Sarah squeezed her eyes shut against the seductive note of inducement in the billionaire's tone.

"It's still early enough," he purred. "We won't get caught."

Inhale, exhale. Regulating her breathing was all she could do to distract herself from the devilish lure of the billionaire's voice, which was still doing a brilliant job in getting under her skin and stirring her senses.

"Tell you what, love. I won't even make you ask for it."

Oh God, oh God.

" You only have to open your eyes and look at me..."

Why was this man so good at tempting her?

"And I'll take you to my office and make you cum..."

Her pussy started to quiver.

"No questions asked," Damian promised gravely, "before or after."

The deliberate and deliciously wicked similarity in his words wasn't lost her at all, and before she knew it...

Her eyelids were already fluttering open, her gaze meeting his...

And then Damian was taking hold of her hand, and Sarah's heart started drumming loudly as he led her out of the diner. Their pace was swift, and all Sarah could do was focus on their clasped hands, not wanting to risk looking around and seeing something that could ruin the moment.

And then suddenly, they were there, and her heart jumped to her throat as he stepped aside to let her inside his office. When she turned around, it was to hear the click of his door locking, and then he, too, was turning to face her...

No questions asked, before or after.

The memory of it freed her, and a whimper escaped her...just as she started running towards him.

They met halfway, Sarah throwing herself in his arms, and the billionaire immediately covering her mouth with his the moment her limbs locked around his body.

He carried her to his massive desk, and she heard things falling to the floor just before his hands shifted its hold and he was gently lowering her so she could lie flat on her back on his desk, her legs dangling over its edge.

She didn't even think of resisting when she felt him pry her legs wide open, and she could only whimper when she felt him slowly pull her panties down her legs. Cool air brushed against her pussy a second later, and she cried out.

"Exquisite," he rasped, "and so gloriously, fucking wet."

The words had her shuddering with a gasp, and at the first stroke of his fingers against her folds, she found herself becoming delirious with need.

Oh God, he was so good at this.

So, so wonderfully good.

So good.

Stroke after stroke after stroke, she felt herself gradually losing her mind, until she could no longer contain herself.

"Damian."

She heard him growl, and her body arched helplessly at the sound.

"Damian, please."

And that was when his finger finally ceased its tormenting, teasing strokes and slid inside of her.

A long, drawn out moan spilled past her lips, but it soon turned into quick, short whimpers when the thrust of his finger soon started to quicken. He was pushing deeper and harder, too, and she was finding it harder and harder to breathe as her body began to tighten.

"Damian. Oh God. Damian."

It was suddenly impossible to stop saying his name, and the more she said it, the hotter she burned, the fires inside of her pooling within the walls of her womanhood, and when she felt his thumb start grinding against her clit, something inside of her burst...

He watched her come, her body buckling with every thrust of his fingers, and when her dazed gaze drifted to his, he said softly, "I love you, Sarah."