Chapter 38
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
ROMAN
M y pounding footsteps are loud in the small room and drops of sweat sting my eyes. I’ve been running on the treadmill for thirty minutes, and yet the burn in my chest is still stronger than the burn in my muscles.
I slam my fist on the stop button and slow to a walk, staring out at Manhattan lit up in front of me.
Somewhere out there, among the millions of faceless people, Chloe is having dinner with another man.
I should be happy about it. She’s done everything I wanted. Since the minute we stepped off that plane and back on US soil, we’ve acted as if we never kissed, never touched. Never fucked.
But we have. And no matter how hard I try, I can’t get it—can’t get her —out of my head. She’s burrowed under my skin in a way I thought was impossible for any woman to do. Even when I was with Katherine, I wasn’t obsessed with her the way I am with Chloe.
It’s possible I wasn’t obsessed with her at all.
While it’s pure torture seeing Chloe in my office every day and reliving those memories, she’s returned to the efficient, professional assistant I’ve come to rely on over the last few months. Of course she has. She’s more than proven how seriously she takes her job. She wouldn’t let what we shared compromise that.
But I don’t like it.
In fact, I fucking hate it.
For a short time—far too short—she let herself go with me. She asked for what she wanted and trusted me to give it to her. She bared herself to me and it was breathtaking.
But she needs a man who can be there when she needs him. Who can give her what she wants and needs when she’s too busy to take them for herself.
And I can’t be that man. I can’t make a woman my priority when the King Group will always come first. Especially when that woman is my employee and the eyes of the business world are on me, waiting for me to slip up.
Despite all that, the voice of reason in my head is drowned out by the possessive anger that churns in my chest at the thought of another man experiencing what I did.
Stepping off the treadmill, I snag the towel hanging on the back of the leg press machine and scrub it over my face and hair.
I stalk to my shower and turn it on full force. While I wait for the water to heat, I shuck my soaked workout clothing, then step under the spray, hoping to god the scalding water will wash away these feelings I can’t seem to shake.
But when I close my eyes, all I can see is Chloe smiling at that asshole, laughing with him. Will he try to take her home with him tonight? Will she let him?
I brace my hands against the shower wall and hang my head, heart pounding and jealousy scouring my veins.
Ethan is a good man. I know because I looked into him after I overheard her accepting his invitation to dinner, figuring if I could reassure myself she was going out with someone decent, these feelings would go away.
They haven’t.
He might be a nice fucking guy, but he isn’t the right man for her.
I am .
My breaths saw in and out of my lungs painfully, my control hanging by a thread. My brain, clearly working against me, conjures an image that pushes me straight to the edge.
Ethan taking Chloe back to his house, undressing her, touching her soft skin, stroking over her inner thigh. Over the mark I left on her.
Is it still there? Or has it faded to nothing in the week and a half since I gave it to her as she came?
A raw possessiveness seizes me by the throat, and this time I give in and let it take me over.
Chloe is mine.
Mine to look after. Mine to take care of. Her needs are mine to fulfill. I don’t know how I’ll make it work when she’s still my assistant. And there’s no way in hell I’ll fire her or ask her to quit her job. But I can’t stand by and let some other man have her because I wasn’t prepared to put in the effort.
Icy determination replaces the fire in my veins as I turn the shower off. I’ve barely dried myself before I message Phillip to meet me downstairs. Once I’m dressed, I stare at myself in the mirror. There’s no uncertainty in my expression. No doubt in my mind.
Confidently, I stride from my bedroom to the elevator.
Phillip eyes me curiously as he opens the car door for me. “Got a last-minute date?”
“Something like that.”
Once he slides back behind the wheel, he turns to me. “Where are we going, boss?”
I hold my finger up and scroll for a specific contact in my phone.
It rings three times before she answers. “Roman? Is everything okay?”
The clink of cutlery and the low murmur of conversation accompany her words. She’s at a restaurant, not at Ethan’s house, thank fuck.
“Where are you?”
She inhales, the sound sharp. “I’m at dinner. Has something happened?”
“Yes. Tell me where you are, and I’ll pick you up.”
“I’m at Trio’s. But… are you sure it can’t wait? I’m, uh, I’m on a date.”
My blood boils in my veins at that word. Does she think I don’t know?
“No, it can’t wait. Give your apologies to your date. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
Before she can argue, I disconnect and tell Phillip to head for Trio’s. I ignore the shit-eating grin on his face when I do.
Fifteen minutes after I end the call, we pull up outside the restaurant. If I thought Chloe would be there waiting for me, I was wrong.
I’m out of the car before Phillip has a chance to open my door.
“Am I waiting?” he calls after me.
“I’ll only be a few minutes.” I stalk into the restaurant, a feeling that’s almost pleasure coursing through me at what I’m about to do.
The ma?tre d’ hurries over, his face a mask of panic. “Mr. King. We weren’t expecting you.”
“I’m just here to pick someone up,” I reassure him without slowing.
I spot Chloe across the room, and at the same time, her eyes widen on me. Ethan turns around to see what she’s looking at, and his face clouds with disappointment. I’ve got nothing against the man, except for the fact that he’s sitting across the table from Chloe.
As I approach, she hastily stands, her eyes finding his. “I’m so sorry, Ethan.”
“That’s okay,” he stands as well. “Maybe you can make it up to me some other time,” he says as I reach them.
She opens her mouth, but before she can reply, I butt in. “Chloe will be very busy over the next few weeks. I’m not sure she’ll have any spare time.”
Her mouth snaps shut, and she stares at me, brow furrowed.
I raise an eyebrow, a smile pulling at the corners of my lips. Now that I know she’ll be leaving with me and not good-guy Ethan, the pressure in my chest has eased.
“I’ll explain everything when we get to the office,” I tell her.
She scrutinizes me, her expression full of confusion and maybe a little apprehension.
Can she feel it? The change?
She picks up her purse and slips it over her shoulder. “Thank you, Ethan. I had a great time. While it lasted.” Her eyes slide to me and then back to him. Her smile is far too warm for my liking.
With an arm held out, I gesture for her to lead the way, then give Ethan a curt nod and follow her out.
When we get to the sidewalk, she turns to me. “What’s the emergency? Is it EcoTech?”
“I told you, I’ll explain back at the office.” I put my hand on her back to guide her toward where Phillip is out of the car and waiting for us.
She digs her heels in. “You’re acting weird.”
I dip my chin to hide my amusement. She won’t appreciate it. But I don’t want to get into it here.
Not where everyone can see.
Leaning toward her, I’m careful not to touch her. Once I do, there won’t be any going back. “Fine, sweetheart . I’ll explain in the car.”
Her eyes flare wide and her soft pink lips part. Rather than argue like I thought she might, she spins and walks briskly to the car.
Phillip greets her with a warm smile. “Nice to see you again, Chloe.”
She squeezes his arm. “It’s nice to see you too.”
When he grins at me over the top of her head, I tamp down my newly developed sense of possessiveness and merely give him an unimpressed glare.
He earns a little of my good will back when he slips into the driver’s seat and, without waiting for me to ask, he presses the button to raise the barrier between us.
As soon as it’s up, Chloe pins me with a glare. “ Sweetheart ?”
“You have a problem with the name? You didn’t seem to mind last week when you were?—”
She puts her hand up. “I thought we were pretending that never happened?”
“That’s not working for me.”
Brows furrowed, she slants her head, examining me. “Why not? I thought that’s what you wanted.”
Unable to help myself, I curl a strand of loose blond hair around my finger, then trail it down her neck. “So did I. But it turns out that’s not the case.”
Her ocean eyes search mine. “Hold on. Did you pull me away from my date because of a work emergency, or because you didn’t want me to go out with another man?”
“He’s not right for you.”
She crosses her arms, chin jutted in defiance. “Who says?”
I smirk a little. “I do.”
“ You do?” She lets out a huff. “Then tell me. Who is the right man for me?”
She thinks I’ll back down. She doesn’t realize who she’s dealing with.
I lean toward her, reveling in the way her pupils dilate and her pulse flutters at the base of her throat. “I am.”
A breath stutters out of her. “You?”
“You say that like you don’t already know it’s true.”
She blinks, then scowls—a cute little downward curl of her lips. “Why should I? We agreed it would be over when we got back. And now that someone else is interested, you’ve changed your mind? I don’t want to be a plaything, Roman. I have too much respect for myself.”
I give my head a sharp shake. “A plaything is the very last thing you are, believe me. And I didn’t change my mind because someone else is interested. The way it felt, knowing you were out with Ethan, only clarified what I want. And maybe sped up the process of figuring out what I need. That’s you in my life. And I’m not talking about as my assistant.”
She swallows audibly, her eyes darting between mine. “So what about you being my boss?”
I clench my jaw. It’s a reminder I don’t need. “It’s not a perfect situation. I’ll figure out a way to make it work.”
Her gaze narrows. “ You will, will you?”
The corners of my mouth tug up. She wants equal ownership of whatever this is, and I fucking love it. “I’m hoping we will.”
She worries her bottom lip with her teeth, her eyes shimmering in a way that has my heart pumping harder. “And are you going to ask me if that’s what I want?”
I incline my chin. “Of course.” Then I reach for her and drag her onto my lap.
“Roman!” she gasps.
I bury my hands in her hair the way I’ve been dying to since we returned from France and brush my lips against her jaw. “Tell me, sweetheart. Do you want me?”
Her breaths are coming fast. “I shouldn’t.”
“I know.” I press my mouth to the tender skin at the angle of her jaw. “I shouldn’t want you, either. But here we are.” My tongue flicks out and tastes her. “I’ve fucking missed you. Have you missed me?”
“You’ve seen me almost every day.” Her voice is breathy, her fingers tangling in the hair at my nape.
“I have. And it’s been fucking torture not being able to touch you again. So tell me, Chloe. Did you miss me too?”
“Yes. Every day.”
I reward her for her honesty by tilting her face to mine and taking her mouth in a kiss. When she moans against my lips, I clutch her hips and rock her against me.
But before things get out of hand, Phillip pulls the car to a stop in front of King Plaza.
Chloe’s gaze is hazy as she looks out the window. “Wait. We’re really going back to the office?”
“Yes. Let’s go.”
Without argument, she slides off my lap and quickly rights herself. When she’s done, I open the door and step out, then wait for her to follow me. As much as I’d like to touch her right now, I can’t. Not in full view of our security guards and cameras. So I shove my hands in my pockets to stop myself and lead the way into the lobby.
“Mr. King. Miss Callahan,” the guard greets us. “Another late night?”
“The devil’s work is never done,” I reply.
He chuckles. “Good luck. Hopefully you won’t be here too long.”
Even in the elevator, as we ascend to the top floor, I keep my hands firmly in my pockets, acutely aware of the security cameras.
“What are we doing here?” She turns to face me, arms crossed. “Is there actual work to be done?”
I give her a once-over, moving slow, taking in every inch of her. “Do you want to do actual work?”
She doesn’t reply, just holds my stare. The tension builds between us as the elevator traverses the final few floors. When the doors open, she gives me one last look, then steps out and makes her way toward my office.
I follow behind her, my eyes fixed on the sway of her hips, until she stops in front of the door and peers over her shoulder.
“Unlock it.” My voice comes out rough.
She taps in the code and pushes the solid-wood door open. As soon as I shut it behind me, all bets are off.
There are no cameras in my office.
Gripping her hips, I back her toward my desk. I only stop when her ass is pressed against it.
“Do you know how often I’ve imagined fucking you right here?”
Her irises are thin rings of turquoise around pools of black as she looks up at me. “No.”
“Too damn often for my peace of mind.”
She bites her bottom lip, even as the corners of her mouth turn up. “I may have imagined it once or twice as well.”
“The day you stood here and watched me come, did you wish I’d bent you over and fucked you?”
A delicate shiver traces over her skin, sending a jolt of raw need through me.
“Yes.”
“Tell me, Chloe. Did you think about me when you touched yourself? Imagining what it would be like if I were inside you?”
She lets out a shaky breath, the warm air ghosting over my neck. “I couldn’t help it.”
The mental image of her sliding her fingers between her legs has my dick throbbing. The connection between us is undeniable, forcing me to smash all my boundaries. I can’t deny it any longer. I don’t want to. The control I once believed I had is hanging by a thread.
And now I’m letting go.
I cup her jaw and raise her face to mine. “I’m going to spread you out on my desk, and I’m going to make you come until your orgasms are all I can see every time I sit here. The memory will get me through the hours when I can’t touch you, can’t kiss you, can’t fucking have you.”
Surprising me, she rises onto her toes, slides a hand around the back of my neck, and presses her lips to mine. It takes only a heartbeat for me to take over. Now that I’ve stopped fighting the pull toward her, I won’t hold back.
My mouth is hard on hers, claiming it, claiming her .
She whimpers, fisting her hands in my shirt, the sound sending desire pounding through me.
When I break the kiss, I drink in the sight of her flushed face—lips pink and swollen, eyes heavy-lidded with the same desire I’m drowning in.
She reaches behind her and begins unzipping her dress, but I stop her. I need to do it myself. Forcing even breaths through my nose, I take over, dragging the zipper down to the small of her back. Then I trail my fingers up to her shoulder, hooking them under the thin strap there and sliding it off, before doing the same to the other side.
The dress slips down to her waist, and as I absorb the sight before me, jealousy scalds my veins. Her red lacy bra is pure sin. “You wore this for Ethan.” My voice comes out thick, almost unrecognizable.
She lifts her chin, her gaze unwavering. “I wore it for me. I wanted to feel desirable. That doesn’t mean he was going to see it. I didn’t expect anyone to see it tonight. Least of all you.”
Her defiance just makes me harder. I’m well aware that she was only out with another man because I told her what we had couldn’t continue. That’s a mistake I plan to rectify.
I dip my head, gently biting one tight nipple where it juts against the lace before sucking it deep and hard, causing her to gasp and arch her back. I repeat the action with her other nipple, then alternate between them, sucking and nipping until she’s writhing against me.
When she’s a panting mess, I lift her and set her on my desk, then drop to my knees between her legs. Her dress is bunched around her hips, and she’s still wearing her panties and her heels.
I push her thighs apart, immediately finding the faint purplish mark I left. The sight of it against her creamy skin sends a surge of satisfaction through me. As does the wet spot in the center of the satin strip between her legs.
“You’re so damn ready. Look at you, soaking your panties for me.”
Her eyes are almost all black as she peers down at me. “M-maybe I just really l-like seeing you on your knees.”
My chest heats and a laugh rumbles out of me. “Don’t worry, sweetheart, you’ll be on yours next.” I rub my thumb over the evidence of her arousal, then slide it up to her clit and massage it gently.
Head thrown back, she moans. “Roman, please.”
Not finished playing with her, I press my face to her pussy and suck on her through the wet material. Her taste explodes in my mouth, and with a groan, I suck harder. When I push my tongue, and the thin layer of satin separating us, inside her, she gasps, her hips jerking at the sensation.
Much more quickly than I planned, my patience runs out, and suddenly, I’m desperate to remove all barriers between us.
With a twist of my fingers, I snap the thin strip of lace on one hip, then the other. Then I tug her ruined panties away from her and drop them on the floor.
“This was a set.” Her protest is half-hearted.
I chuckle. “I’ll buy you a set in every color.” I’m more than happy for her to throw out the one she wore on a date with another man. Before she can protest my words, I direct her. “Put your feet on the edge.”
She hesitates, probably aware of just how exposed this will leave her. But it only lasts the space of a heartbeat or two. When she braces her hands behind her and puts her feet where I’ve commanded, heat flares hard and fast up my spine. She’s pink and wet and all fucking mine .
I skim my finger over her, the ghost of a touch from her clit to her glistening entrance. Then I slide the tip inside. “I can’t wait to feel your needy little cunt gripping me again,” I murmur.
She whimpers restlessly. So damn impatient.
Head lowered, I lick over her tight bundle of nerves and push my finger deeper inside her, eliciting a sharp gasp from her lips.
I pump into her, alternating between circling her clit with my tongue, sucking on it, and flicking it in an erratic rhythm that has her hips chasing every movement.
Within minutes, her legs are shaking and her arousal trickles down the cleft of her ass. She moans when I thrust a second finger into her, giving her more of the pressure she needs.
When I press a third against the tight ring of muscle between her cheeks, she sucks in a breath and tenses up.
“Has anyone ever touched you here?”
She shakes her head. “I’ve never…”
Satisfaction slams through me. I feel like some kind of damn cave man, needing to claim every part of her.
“Let me in, sweetheart. It will feel good, I promise.”
A shudder racks through her, but she relaxes, allowing me to slip the tip of my finger inside, its passage eased by the slickness already pooling there.
As I work my tongue and hand again, she moans, grasping my hair as if to anchor herself. But by the way her internal muscles tighten around me, there’s no holding back what’s about to hit her.
“Roman… God, I’m so close.”
At the last minute, I pull my hand and mouth away, and she cries out in protest, eyes flying open and finding mine. The need blazing there takes my breath away.
“The first time you come in my office,” I growl. “It’ll be on my cock.”
In one quick movement, I unzip my pants and push them and my boxer briefs down to my hips, freeing my erection.
As I wrap my fingers around my aching shaft, her hips squirm in anticipation. A firm upward stroke forces the pre-cum that’s leaking from me to spill over the back of my hand and drip to the floor.
“Lie back.”
When she does, I lean forward, brace one hand on the desk, and press the swollen head of my cock against her clit. Desperate to be filled, she tilts her pelvis, trying to get me where she needs me.
Her movement has me sliding down toward her entrance, pulling a hiss from between my teeth. I don’t push inside, as much as I’m dying to. Instead, I curve forward and kiss her long and hard, as my crown pulses against her soft flesh.
When I break the kiss, she begs. “Please, Roman. Please.”
There’s not a part of me that doesn’t want to fuck her bare, but we haven’t had that conversation yet. And now isn’t the time.
“I need to get a condom.” The words are so harsh they’re practically a growl.
Her head lolls to one side against the desk. “Hurry.”
Fuck, her neediness only stokes the fire licking up my spine. I love seeing this side of her, where she chases what she wants. And if she wants my cock, I’m more than happy to give it to her.
I yank my wallet out of my pants pocket and tear the condom out. Once I’m sheathed and at her entrance, she lifts her hips, her body giving way around the head of my dick. Her inner walls clamp down on the first thick inch of me.
“You want me to fill you up, sweetheart?” My whole body vibrates with the effort it takes to resist thrusting balls deep into her. I want to take my time. If I’m going to cross every line, then I’ll make sure I enjoy every second of it.
And watching her perfect little cunt work so hard to take all of me is one of the details I don’t want to miss.
So instead of slamming into her, I flex my hips, forcing her to slowly accept more of me.
“Yes.” She tips her head back, the word coming out of her as a choked gasp.
The spikes of her heels slip on the wood as she braces herself, leaving scratches on the polished surface—marks that send a dark thrill coursing through me.
I’ll make sure they stay there where we can both see them every day.
“You’re so damn tight.” I grit my teeth, fighting off the tingling sensation building in my spine. “But you’re going to take every inch.”
Digging my fingers into her hips, I angle her so I can slide in more easily.
I keep my gaze fixed on where we’re joined, sweating in an effort not to just shove my way in. Then I pull back so I can drive in a little deeper.
“God, Roman,” she gasps. “That feels… I… I’m…”
She stiffens, then cries out, her spine bowing as her internal muscles clench and release around me.
I’m not even halfway in and she’s coming. “That’s it, sweetheart. You needed that, didn’t you? You needed my cock to make you come.” I press my fingers into her, barely holding back my own release.
The next time her body releases me, I surge forward, burying myself to the hilt. With a tight jaw, I hold myself deep inside her and ride out her orgasm. But the moment she relaxes against the lacquered surface beneath her, I’m moving. One long withdrawal and then a hard thrust back in.
She rolls her hips against mine, trying to take me deeper. And when I lean over her and suck one of her nipples into my mouth, she wraps her legs and arms around me, digging her nails in and urging me on.
Hips pumping hard, I slip a hand between us and pulse my thumb against her clit, forcing another orgasm to crash over her.
“That’s my good girl,” I growl in her ear as she convulses beneath me. “You feel so fucking amazing. But I’m not done with you yet.” With a groan, I pull out of her. “Turn over, sweetheart.”
She blinks dazedly at me for a moment, then lowers her feet to the floor, wiggles out of her dress, and lies back down on her stomach, stretching out across my desk.
I hope like hell I never forget the way she looks like this. Long legs, still in her heels, perfect ass, and the curve of her body pressed against the dark wood.
Gritting my teeth, I grip the base of my cock hard. Then I push back into her, palming the cheeks of her ass, kneading them, spreading her so I can watch the way she stretches around me.
Resisting the urge to pin her against the desk and take her hard and fast, I force myself to straighten. Like this, I catch sight of our reflection in the window. Though our images are hazy and distorted by the city lights shining in from outside, I can make out just how big I look in comparison to her and just how perfect she looks like this—in my office, on my desk, taking me.
With my focus fixed on our reflection, I continue stroking into her. Pressure builds inside me, driving me almost out of my mind. But I need more. I need her closer.
I pull her upright so her back is pressed to my chest. “Watch us.”
Gripping her hip with one hand, I slide the other up her body and wrap it around her throat, holding her in place.
Her throat works as she swallows against my palm. “I… Roman, I n-need to come again.”
She’s almost there, if the way her pussy is squeezing me is any indication, but I deliberately keep my pace slow, edging both of us.
Dropping my hand to her thigh, I lift her leg so her knee rests on my desk and she’s spread wide for me. “Touch yourself. I want to watch you come.”
She doesn’t hesitate, slipping her fingers into her pussy and circling her clit.
The sight of her—of us—like this pushes me close to my limit. It’s taking all my willpower to hold back.
When she lowers her hand to where we’re joined and caresses me, I lose all control.
“Fuck.” Unable to stop myself, I drive my hips into her hard and fast.
She cries out, and I thrust harder.
“Keep touching yourself.”
The moment she focuses on her clit again, her body clenches around me. Her spine arches, her breasts thrust out, and she calls out my name. I roll one tightly furled nipple between my fingers, giving it a sharp pinch.
She shudders, jerking against me, her internal muscles squeezing, pulling me deeper inside her.
My vision goes dark around the edges. “ Fuck . Your perfect little cunt is going to milk me dry.”
With both hands on her hips, I slam into her, chasing my own release as the aftershocks of hers ripple through both of us.
I’m groaning now, low and deep and urgent, until my body tightens almost to the point of pain. Then I’m coming. Heat and pleasure boil up my spine and I surge into her as deep as I can and let it explode out of me.
Tilting forward, she reaches between us and palms my pulsing balls as my release fills the condom in wrenching spurt after wrenching spurt. The feel of her fingers against me intensifies each throb to an electric shock of pleasure so strong that my legs shake. I have to drop a hand to the desk to brace myself as I ride it out.
When my orgasm finally eases and I can breathe again, I pull her against me, gripping her chin to angle her face up to mine. “We’re going to make this work. Okay?”
Eyes wide and dazed, she exhales. “Okay.”
I crash my lips down on hers, swallowing her moan.
I’ve crossed all the boundaries I swore I never would. But this is nothing like the sordid trysts my father carried on. I care about Chloe. I’m not after a few cheap orgasms. Here, in the dark, in secret, it doesn’t matter that she works for me.
I just need to find a way to make the same thing true in the light of day.