She gasped, her eyes wide, as Xander satisfied that need with the firm caress of his thumb. Casey exploded around him in spasms of unrelenting pleasure as she stared up at him in the sheer wonder of her release, the whole of her body throbbing with the ecstasy he’d made her feel.
Xander watched her unashamedly as she found her release, his caresses continuing until he was sure she was completely spent, until he had given her every last moment of pleasure.
Then he bent his head to once again claim her lips with his, his caresses soothing now, gentling, as he smoothed her tee shirt back over her breasts before entangling his hands in the silkiness of her hair, his lips moving to kiss the tiny shell of her ear before trailing down the column of her throat to the tiny pulse throbbing at its base.
Casey moved restlessly beside him. ‘But you didn’t—’ She drew in a shaky breath. ‘You haven’t—’
He raised his head to look down into her stricken face. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes darkened by dilated pupils, and she couldn’t quite meet his gaze. ‘I don’t need to,’ he assured her gruffly.
And he didn’t. What had happened just now, seeing and feeling Casey’s pleasure, had been the most erotic experience he had ever had in his life. The throbbing of his own body was sweet evidence of that.
Casey’s skin was like velvet, her breasts so small and perfect, so responsive to his hands, lips and tongue. All of her was so responsive that he felt that to take his own pleasure would ruin something that was already perfect.
‘I don’t need to,’ he repeated huskily, smiling down at her as his hand moved to lightly caress one pink cheek.
Casey stared up at him wordlessly. Why didn’t he need to? Sam had always—
Now wasn’t the time to think about Sam, or their marriage!
Xander had just—
No, she had just climaxed—for the first time in her life.
Ever.
And it had been the most wonderful experience she had ever known. She had never dreamt—never realised—
What must Xander think of her?
She had come here to tell him that one of the details in the contract he’d had drawn up outlining the terms of their marriage was unacceptable to her, and had ended up having an orgasm on his desktop!
Not only that, but Xander had obviously found her lack of control so shocking that it had killed his own desire!
She turned her head away. ‘Would you let me up, please?’ She spoke quietly.
‘Casey—’
‘Just let me up, Xander!’ Her voice rose forcefully as she turned to glare at him.
Sighing, he complied, standing up to look away as she moved to adjust the fastening of her denims.
Casey swayed dizzily as she stood up, her legs feeling weak from the onslaught that had just racked her body, still aware of that tingling sensation between her thighs.
She closed her eyes briefly, wondering how she was ever going to be in Xander’s company again without remembering—remembering how she had—
‘I have to get to work,’ she told him abruptly.
Xander turned slowly to look at her, frowning as he saw the closed expression on her face—her eyes unreadable, her mouth set hard with determination. ‘Don’t you think we need to sit down and talk more than you need to go to work?’ he finally suggested.
‘Talk about what?’ she challenged.
Yes—talk about what? Xander wondered as he continued to look at her.
The last half an hour might have been the most incredibly erotic experience of his life, but it obviously hadn’t meant the same to Casey…
He drew in a deep breath before moving quickly away from her. He was afraid of what he might do if he didn’t!
‘So I’m supposed to ignore what just happened, huh?’ he growled.
She blinked, swallowing hard before answering. ‘I think that might be for the best, don’t you?’
It wasn’t a question, and Xander didn’t bother granting it an answer. If she could forget what had just happened then he would obviously be wasting his time talking about it.
‘Just put in whatever you want that paragraph to say.’ He held out a pen and the contract without looking at her, his clenched hands returning to his sides as he resisted the impulse to reach out and kiss her senseless as she made the necessary adjustment.
Despite the sexual attraction that existed between them, Casey obviously regretted having given in to that attraction. She was making it perfectly clear that she didn’t want a repeat of it, either, that it had meant nothing to her.
All this marriage meant to Casey—all it would ever mean to her—was financial security. And the sooner he got used to that idea the better.
‘Fine.’ He nodded as she placed the adjusted contract back down on the desk. ‘As Josh and Lauren won’t be at the wedding on Friday, I think it would be a good idea, after you and Josh have moved in here tomorrow afternoon, for the two children to stay up and have dinner with us. I know it’s a school day the following morning,’ he continued as she would have spoken, ‘but they need to feel a part of this.’
Oh, God. She and Josh moved in here tomorrow afternoon…!
How could she go through with this after what had just happened?
But how could she not? She had already handed in her notice at her two jobs—had already finished at the café earlier today. This was the last evening she would be working at the hotel. Her own and Josh’s things were packed back at the house, ready to move in here tomorrow.
In less than forty-eight hours she was due to become wife to Xander.
A man she had just discovered could so easily take her to the heights of pleasure.
A man she had come to like these last three weeks.
A man she had come to…love?
She gave him a startled look. Did she love Xander? Had she fallen in love with the man who was only marrying her to provide a mother for his daughter, to stop his father-in-law from attempting a custody suit for that daughter?
Could she really have been so stupid?
‘What is it now?’ Xander asked wearily as he watched the play of emotions cross Casey’s face. ‘After what just happened, you want it actually written into the contract that we maintain separate bedrooms? Fine.’ He nodded. ‘You want it in writing that there won’t be a repeat of just now? Again, fine,’ he snarled. ‘Now, if you wouldn’t mind, Casey, I have some work to do, too.’ He moved pointedly to sit back behind his desk, too tired, too bone-weary now, to engage in any more verbal battles with this woman this evening.
Casey’s face had first flushed, and then paled at his outburst. ‘That won’t be necessary,’ she told him coldly. ‘Just the adjustment I’ve made will be quite sufficient.’
‘Then don’t let me keep you. I would so hate for you to be late to work,’ he added. And he knew he sounded so like Lauren when she was in a fit of childish pique that he was surprised Casey didn’t tell him to grow up.
She didn’t—simply giving him one last pained look before turning on her heel and making a dignified exit, her head held high.
What an idiot he’d been, Xander instantly berated himself.
Had he really thought, when Casey had come here to complain that a million-pound settlement on her wasn’t enough, that the two of them making love would make any difference to her completely financial motivation for marrying him?
He was a fool.
Not only that, but he had been so beguiled, so enchanted with Casey’s loss of control, that he hadn’t even wanted to find his own release in the warmth of her body—had found her pleasure more than enough to satisfy him.
He was worse than a fool.
Chloe had used her body to manipulate and control him too. Until he had become wise to her machinations and refused even to share her bed any more.
He couldn’t believe he had fallen for that trick a second time!
How much more than a million did Casey want? How much did she think that sexual encounter was worth?
Xander’s eyes glittered angrily as he picked up the contract. But his anger quickly turned to a puzzled frown when he looked down at the adjustment Casey had made.
That whole paragraph concerning the settlement of money directly on Casey on the day of their marriage had been completely erased, with firm, black strokes of his pen!
Casey didn’t personally want any settlement of money from him.
He didn’t feel angry or puzzled any more—he felt stunned!
CHAPTER TEN
‘IT’S going to be great living here, isn’t it, Mummy?’ Josh said excitedly as the two of them returned to his new bedroom, after sharing a swim with Lauren in the indoor pool at the back of Fraser House.
Oh, yes—great, Casey echoed wearily in her head, outwardly giving her blond-haired young son an encouraging smile as she went through to the adjoining bathroom to run the shower for him.
The two of them had moved in that afternoon, as planned. Xander had been conspicuously absent when they did so—for which Casey had been very grateful, still not sure how she was going to face him again after yesterday evening.
The worst part about it, as far as Casey was concerned, was that she only had to close her eyes to relive the way Xander had kissed and caressed her, her body tingling anew as she remembered how it had felt when she had completely lost control.
Wonderful.
Like nothing else she had ever known in her life.
Something she craved—longed to have happen again!