Her eyes flared, but she didn’t say another word and waited for him to continue.
“I’ll deposit a hundred grand in the account of your choice. You get the other half when the first year is up. You’ll move in here with me, and I’ll cover all your personal bills for the duration of the marriage. You’ll get a credit card and a monthly allowance.” He stopped talking and waited for the count of three beats. “But you have to give up the job, and you can’t get a different one. I need a wife for the whole family values scenario, and the relationship needs to look as traditional as we can make it. That includes you staying home and playing the part of my devoted wife. If you get bored, you can find a charity you’re interested in and spend your daytime hours volunteering. Whatever you want to do. I don’t really care. As long as you’re not out partying without me, your time is your own.”
Jenna studied h
im and found herself actually thinking about the possibilities. One major question ate at her. “Why?” Her eyes searched his. “Why do you need a wife so badly? Why now?”
“Nothing nefarious. I don’t want to get into it with you before you agree, but it’s enough for you to know it’s office politics. Nothing more. Nothing less.”
Jenna wanted to take the deal and run with it so badly she couldn’t believe it. She needed the money. Desperately. It was almost as good as winning the lotto. Or as bad as signing up to be the devil’s wife. She needed time to think it through. Could she live with a guy she didn’t know? How could she marry a guy she had no reason to trust? And what about… “What about s-sex?” She blushed red after the question popped from her mouth.
His dark eyes tangled with hers and his nostrils flared. “The sex will be good, sweetheart.”
Her pulse went spinning and butterflies quivered in her stomach. Her mouth ran dry and she clenched her hands together in agitation. She was no virgin. She was twenty-five years old and had been in several relationships before. But this guy was—this guy was on a different level. That’s why his dark appraisals had always intimidated her.
There was something about the idea of putting herself out there, giving her body over to him that basically scared her shitless. No doubt the sex would be good, and a shaft of desire tightened her nipples and shot through her, making her thighs tremble. But she didn’t think she could do it, she didn’t know him and didn’t think she could surrender to a man of his caliber so quickly. And she knew it would be quick. Already, his cheeks were streaked with a flush of arousal, his nostrils were flaring, and there was a tic in his cheek that spelled out his tension.
He might be presenting this as a business arrangement, but as she sat back on the couch under his intense sexual scrutiny, it all flashed in front of her how she had played into his hands.
If she was being honest with herself, she knew he had wanted her for months, and never made a move on her because of the employer/employee relationship. She saw that now. She had probably seen it all along and shied away from even thinking about it. All of those piercing looks in her direction. And the minute she had piped up and given him an opening, he was ruthlessly taking it. Sure, he probably needed a wife. But why not get one he wanted to sleep with in the bargain?
Jenna sucked in a much needed breath. She wanted to fist her hands in her hair and scream for time to think, time away from him. Her mind was racing with indecision. She was about to ask him for that much needed time when he interrupted her thoughts with more turmoil.
“You understand that sex has to be part of the deal, right? This arrangement for lack of a better word, needs to last for a couple of years, and the board of directors will be watching my every move.” He reached out and picked up a lock of her hair, rubbed it between his fingers and devoured her with his eyes. “That’s the reason I’ve chosen you.” His voice deepened. “I get a hard-on every time I see you. It’s been that way for months. If I have to limit myself to one woman for a couple of years, I’d like it to be someone like you.” He paused and ran his eyes over her again. “Someone exactly like you.”
Jenna’s heartbeat accelerated and went wild. Blood pushed through her veins and filled her with excitement. Having her suspicions confirmed enhanced the arousal beating through her. His words were like magic, controlling her, seducing her into accepting his crazy proposal.
But still, she knew it was wrong. Two people shouldn’t marry with the intent to divorce. And never for money. But God, she was tempted. She was probably going to go to hell, she was so tempted. She could pay off her debt, live in the lap of luxury, and get to sleep with him every night? The chemistry sizzled between them as they studied each other. She imagined the sex would be great. So, where exactly was the downside?
Her brain fought her body. She tried to come up with a reason to tell him to forget it. Maybe she was wrong and he’d be horrible in bed? Right, Jenna. But still, a girl should be careful. She needed to know. She needed something to go on to know if they would be sexually compatible. She thought they would be, but wanted more tangible proof. She didn’t want to just outright have sex with him, in case this ultimately didn’t work out, and he found someone else. It would be too uncomfortable at work if that happened. She studied him, studied the lines of his mouth. “Can I—can I k-kiss you?”
Chapter Five
David heard the unexpected, hesitant question and lust hit his groin in a punch so hard he had to drag in a breath. She wanted to try him out? “Yeah.” It was all he could get out. He steeled himself to stay still and let her kiss him. Blood pumped through him.
Slowly, carefully, Jenna lifted herself and moved beside him, moving to her knees and leaning into his side. He wrapped a steely arm around her waist to help balance her. Immediately, she was swamped with hot, fierce, sexual desire. The feel of his muscular arm wrapped around her was exquisite. She sucked in a breath, caught her bottom lip between her teeth and studied his mouth, wondering how she should start, trying to calm the heart that was trying to beat out of her chest. His fingers bit into her side, rubbing the indentation of her waist, and then moving to her butt and squeezing. Her breathing went haywire and she hadn’t even touched his lips yet.
She waited too long and he spoke. “Are you scared?”
“No.”
“So what’s the problem?”
“There’s n-no problem.”
“Baby, if you don’t kiss me now, I’m going to have to help you out. Make up your mind.”
Jenna felt the smooth vibration of his voice slide down her spine in an agony of arousal. She wanted to rock herself against him so badly it was taking all her control not to. She put her lips to the corner of his mouth and breathed in his scent. It immediately went to her head like a shot of tequila. Her mouth shook and she took a nip of his lips, moving them softly, quivering against him. His body stiffened in restraint. She felt his hard muscles tense at the same moment his arm tightened on her so much it made breathing even more difficult.
She lifted her face away from his and licked her lips softly, tasting him. His heavy-lidded gaze was narrowed on her mouth as he took a shuddering breath. Slowly, she put her lips back to his and delicately sucked his bottom lip. Without any warning, his arms grabbed her and with no effort at all lifted her in one motion until she was straddling him, her hands on his shoulders, his lip still caught under her teeth. She moaned a soft little sound and pushed the juncture of her thighs against him, currents of delight rushing through her.
Sensation shot through David in waves of pleasure that brought his cock to pulsating attention. Her breasts were bouncing on his chest, her hot liquid warmth pushing against his stomach in a way that brought a bead of sweat dripping down his face. And she hadn’t given him her tongue yet. Jesus Christ, how was he going to handle it when he finally got her stripped naked? It was going to go fast the first few times; he wouldn’t be able to control himself.
His hands clenched on her hips and he tried to endure the temptation of the hottest little closed mouth kiss he had ever experienced. He tried to summon control and knew he was only seconds away from grabbing her and ramming his goddamn tongue down her throat. He tried to stop his hands from biting into her flesh. He fought for breath. He fought for sanity. He fought for control. Couldn’t find it. One second. Two seconds. Three seconds…
Jenna gasped the moment his tongue pushed into her mouth. His hands grabbed the back of her head, turning it to the fit he wanted, and began kissing her with unguarded lust.
Her belly tightened as all hell broke loose and he took total control. His tongue plunged into her mouth, retreated, plunged again. Shock and need cursed through her as she hung in his grasp and received a kiss unlike any she had ever experienced in her life. She was twenty-five years old, and she had kissed many, many men. From the boys in junior high, to parties in high school and college, clubbing with girlfriends and dating, she had been kissed by a lot of guys. Never, never had
she been kissed like this. She’d read about it in romances, but never really believed it happened until now. He was kissing her the way he would have sex with her. His tongue stiff, inundating her mouth, plunging it in and out the way he would plow in and out if he was having intercourse. It was literally blowing her mind.
And it didn’t stop there. He was consuming her whole. He held her head in the palm of one huge hand and bodily picked her up off his lap with the other. Flipping her over on the couch, he came down on top of her. He sucked in her oxygen, continuing to ram his tongue in her mouth. She was being totally annihilated by his strength and size. Her heart hammered and her pulse pounded as she was caught under him, trapped by his weight. Her legs were spread wide, his hips pushing between her thighs.
She knew in a flash that if they had been naked, he would be in her already. Suddenly, the voracity of his appetite confirmed what kind of lover he would be. A lover like she’d never had before. Her breasts tingled, and a pool of hot moisture dampened her panties.
Desperate for oxygen, she forcibly turned her face from his and took a deep breath. The second her mouth left his, his face moved lower, pushing into the valley of her breasts, trying to get closer. He reached down and lifted the hem of her sweater up and over her head before she had time to attempt to stop him.
He tossed the sweater aside, and fastened his mouth on her nipple, over the cotton of her bra. He let out a groan of frustration, sat up and twisted the snap open between her breasts. Putting his mouth back on her nipple, his hand cupped her other breast, his thumb rubbing at the hardened peak. The twin assaults vaulted her into the stratosphere of desire, and she realized with shock that they were about to have sex. He wasn’t going to stop at kisses; he wasn’t going to stop at petting. And dear Lord, she wouldn’t be able to stop him. She might kill him if he did stop.