Chapter 31 Charlotte
Charlotte
“I need to shower.” I disentangled myself from Cole’s strong arms.
He wanted casual. A stranger in a bar. Another layer of make-believe. Fake marriage. Fantasy sex. It had to stay that way. It was the only way to protect my heart. I’d never recover from him leaving me a second time. I’d never give him the opportunity.
He clasped me back to his body and his mouth captured mine in a deep, long kiss full of lust and need. “Not done with you yet,” he murmured against my lips.
His hands explored the hollows of my back, and it wasn’t long before we were grinding against each other, his skin hot against mine.
His hands and mouth were all over my body, exploring and savoring, like he couldn’t leave a patch of my skin unmapped.
I clung to him, breathing him in, needing him again.
Alarm bells rang in my head despite the thrill running through me.
This wasn’t a casual kiss, and it needed to be.
Gently, I backed out of his arms. “I’m all sweaty, I really need to shower.”
I also needed to pee. I’d already had a migraine in Rome, and I didn’t need to add a UTI to the list of ailments.
His hand roamed over my hip, spreading tingles across my middle. “I’ll shower with you. No point wasting water.”
Despite his commanding tone, there was something vulnerable in his smile.
Resist. It has to be a one-time thing.
“I can’t imagine you’ve ever had trouble paying your water bill.”
He wrapped a strand of my damp hair around his finger and gazed at it. “It’s not the money. It’s the right thing to do for the environment. You should know I care deeply about the environment.”
“Right. That’s the first thing that comes to mind when I think about billionaires—just how much good they do for the planet.”
His eyes sparkled, and his tone filled with bland innocence. “I fund plenty of conservation projects.”
“Like what?”
He planted kisses along my collarbone. “Rhinos.”
It was so random, I couldn’t help my chuckle. “Rhinos? Why rhinos?”
“Why not rhinos? They’re critically endangered. It would be a terrible loss if they went extinct.”
“Of course. It makes perfect sense that you’d be the patron saint of rhinos. They’re irritable and unpredictable. Solitary creatures. Thick-skinned. Quick to charge when they perceive a threat.”
He raised a dark brow, but humor danced in his expression.
“Why don’t you tell anyone about your charity work?”
“Why would I tell anyone? I don’t need anyone to know.”
“Philanthropy is good for your image. Being a do-gooder earns you more karma points than being married.”
“I don’t do it for karma points. And it’s not part of the image I’ve built.”
“So you’re happy with the way people perceive you? It doesn’t bother you? You want people to think you’re an arsehole?”
“I don’t care, as long as they know that I’m strong.”
“Generosity isn’t a weakness. In a world like this, it takes way more strength to be kind than it does to be a dick.”
“My father views it as a weakness.”
“So when you say you need people to think you’re strong, by people, you mean your father?”
“OK, Carl Jung. Settle down.” He kissed me again, deep and slow, his hand cupping my ass. “Why are we talking so much when we could be kissing?”
My body sang with his touch. I had to say no. Time to draw a line under it. This had been a skit. It wasn’t real. But it felt so good to be light and fun. Something beyond the pockets of normality I chased with Tiff. Beyond anything I’d thought within my reach. This was a pocket of heaven.
His hand caressed my shoulder, making it difficult to focus on anything but the warm brush of his fingers. “You know what’s more fun than a shower? Put those stockings on. And the heels. Nothing else.”
“I can’t take any more. I’m serious. Another orgasm and you’ll finish me off.
” The words fell from my mouth unbidden.
“But I don’t want to be accused of not doing my bit for the environment.
” And if I can’t resist touching him again, then I can blame the rhinos.
“But please don’t make me come again, I can’t take it. ”
A smile twitched his lips. “Just a shower. I promise.”
I couldn’t trust his promises or that arrogant smirk. He’d proven that. But death by orgasm at this man’s hands wasn’t a bad way to go.