Chapter 18
Laith stood beside Andi, fiddling with the diamond engagement ring that he’d had in his pocket for the past several days.
They’d known each other for only two weeks!
Was this crazy? But the past few days without her, without her by his side, sleeping next to her and even just talking with her was driving him around the bend!
He didn’t need sex…okay, that was a lie.
He wanted every part of her. He wanted to make love to her to show her how much she meant to him.
But he also wanted to just sit with her and talk.
He wanted to hear her laughter. And yeah…
he wanted her soft sighs and he needed to feel her tight body wrapped around his shaft!
Ever since his father had suggested that he marry Andi, his world had felt “right”. Andi threw him off balance and now he knew that the only way to make this right was to marry her.
“How’s your day going?” he finally asked. Which sounded absolutely stupid since they’d been waiting for the elevator for several moments. Damn, he felt like an awkward teenager!
The elevator doors opened and they stepped into the tight space. She waited until the doors closed again before answering. Andi and Laith were at the back of the elevator with his guards stationed in front. They were all facing forward, but he knew that they heard everything that was said.
“I’m doing well, thank you, sir.” Another awkward moment, then she asked, “How are you?”
He chuckled and nodded, giving her a side-glance. “I’m quite well.” He glanced up at the buttons, watching the progress as the elevator descended. “Did you have a relaxing weekend?”
“Yes. It was pleasant.” She stood very still, not taking her eyes from the lights over the elevator door.
He shifted slightly, watching her. Andi tilted her head slightly, but didn’t change her body’s angle.
That allowed him to see the soft pulse of her heart against the delicate skin of her throat.
It was faster than usual. Plus, her pale cheeks turned a lovely shade of pink.
It wasn’t particularly flattering. In fact, the blush made her look blotchy, but to Laith, the color announced she was thinking along the same lines as he was. She wanted him!
He moved his eyes lower, glancing at her breasts. Unfortunately, the suits that he’d chosen specifically for her obfuscated her body’s reaction. He couldn’t see her nipples through her suit jacket. But if he could somehow convince Andi to take the jacket off …!
He contemplated various conversational gambits that would allow him to see her breasts.
“Where do you want to eat lunch?”
Andi took a breath to respond, but then shook her head. A soft lock of her brown hair drifted down over her cheek and he moved to brush it away. Hell, he wanted to kiss that small freckle just under her mouth. He wanted to strip away her clothing and see Andi’s true reactions to his closeness.
But he couldn’t. Not until later anyway.
Once she was finished for the night, he would lure her to his penthouse and kiss every thought out of her intelligent mind so that he occupied her every brain cell.
He would make love to her until she was squirming in that delicious way, then he’d give her the pleasure he knew she craved.
“We can’t have lunch together, Laith,” she whispered.
“Why not?”
“Because…” the doors to the elevator opened on the ground floor. There was a crowd of people waiting to step inside so Laith turned and faced forward. His guards moved into position and Laith walked out, allowing Andi to step out.
“Don’t follow me,” she hissed sharply over her shoulder to him.
When she tried to walk faster, he chuckled and extended his stride to match hers.
“We’re just going out for lunch, Andi. I don’t know why you think this is such a problem.
” They were out on the street now and she turned in the wrong direction, so he grabbed her elbow and guided her towards one of his favorite lunch spots, a small pub that had delicious lunch specials.
He knew it would be quieter than the cheaper places nearby and Laith seriously needed to speak with Andi.
Hell, he needed to hold her and whisper naughty suggestions in her ear.
“Laith,” she whispered, then looked around, hoping that no one recognized them from the team. When she looked up at him again, her eyes pleaded with him to understand. “I’m already suffering because someone on the team knows about us.”
Laith stopped her immediately. They were standing in the middle of the busy sidewalk, but he didn’t care. “What’s going on, Andi? Who knows about us?”
Andi looked around, self-conscious now. “Be quiet!” she hissed, then pulled out of his grip and started walking again.
Laith wasn’t going to stand for that. If someone was harassing her, he would put a stop to that nonsense.
“Andi, give me a name. Who is bothering you? Is it Lawrence?” Then he put a hand on the small of her back, leading her towards the quieter pub.
They entered the restaurant and he directed her towards one of the small tables in the back.
“I’ll get us some fish and chips,” he told her, then left to speak with the waiter.
After a moment, he came back and sat down across from her.