Page 47 of Thiago

“Excruciating.”

She shook her head in disgust, but the corners of her mouth twitched upward.

Thiago kissed the right side of her neck and took a deep breath, inhaling the intoxicating fragrance from her skin. “The thought of another man touching you…” He couldn’t finish the sentence. “Youaremine, India.”

She lowered her gaze.

“You are going to call him?”

She swallowed. “Yes.”

“Do I need to?—”

She lifted her gaze. “You don’t need to be here for the conversation.”

“Let me know when it’s done.” Placing a hand on the back of her neck, he drew her flush against his body and kissed her. Her soft mouth yielded beneath his, and the irritating tightness in him loosened. His mouth moved over hers in fiery possession, fierce at first and then softening to unmistakable tenderness that conveyed his deep affection and desire to hold onto her.

When he finally lifted his head, he gazed down at her, reluctant to leave. His fingertips sifted through the soft hairs at her nape. “I better go.”

She rubbed his chest. “Yes, because I have errands to run, which I can’t complete during the week because I work for a man who’s a slave driver.”

“Sounds like a real bastard,” Thiago said, catching her wrist.

He kissed her again, deeper and more thoroughly until his body awakened, and she was practically fused to him, her fingers caressing his hair with gentle strokes.

Finally, with more reluctance, he stepped back from her embrace, but not before double-tapping her bottom. “I’ll see you later.” He walked away.

“Thiago.”

He paused at the door.

“Don’t ever threaten my job again.”

He watched her in silence, weighing his words. Normally, he didn’t give a damn what anyone thought, but India was different. She held more power than she realized. More power than he liked.

His threat had been an empty one, simply made to get his way. While he appreciated she was no pushover, he needed to make sure she understoodhewas no pushover.

“Do not give me a reason to,” he said.

Then he strolled out of the room.

Chapter Nineteen

“He what?” Kiara’s voice came through the Volvo’s speakers in high-pitched disbelief.

“You heard me,” India said, flicking on her indicator and waiting for oncoming traffic to go by. “He insisted we should be in a monogamous relationship. The whole conversation took me by surprise.”

She didn’t tell her best friend the whole story—that Thiago had threatened her job. If he had asked her nicely—like a normal human being—to stop seeing Simon, she would have done it without a fight. She didn’t have deep feelings for Simon, and they weren’t in a relationship. They had seen each other a few times, so walking away was easy.

But the conversation with Thiago brought home the precarious situation she was in, and she needed to weaken the power he held over her.

“Did you agree?” Kiara asked.

“I did. I called Simon and told him I couldn’t see him anymore.” She waited for Kiara’s rebuke.

Instead, her friend said, “You probably scared Thiago’s ass by dating other men. Unfortunately, some men like to play the fielduntil someone else wants you and then decide they can’t live without you.”

“Maybe, but I’m not sure that was the case with Thiago. He has an insane work schedule, so I don’t think he’s been seeing anyone else. I could be wrong, but I don’t think I am.”