Page 29 of Kingston's Rival

Maybe because she had been taken by surprise?

Whatever the reason, the curves of her body perfectly aligned with Casper’s as he deepened the kiss by threading his fingers in the silky softness of her hair.

Long, heady kisses that Casper only left to taste the delicious length of Persy’s throat and the sensitive skin behind her ears.

“I could kiss you all day and night,” he groaned. “I want to devour you.” His lips claimed hers again.

Her mouth was hot and wet as he thrust his tongue inside, feeling her slight resistance only when he began to thrust the hardness of his cock in the same rhythm against the heat of her thighs. A resistance which was growing stronger by the minute.

Until Persy wrenched her mouth away from his and pushed him away at the same time.

Her nostrils were flared, her cheeks flushed, her lips slightly swollen, and her eyes flashed the color of molten gold as she glared at him. “I’ll need your word, here and now, that there will not be a repeat of that if I agree to accompany Martyna to the Kingston estate.”

Casper’s mouth thinned. Persy made it sound as if he had forced those kisses on her. Which they both knew was a blatant lie. For the few minutes they’d kissed each other, he’d known Persy was as invested in him as he was in her.

He wanted to be angry with her attempt to deny their desire for each other.

He wanted to be.

But how could he be angry with the woman he knew, despite his own previous attempts at self-denial, he was falling in love with?

“I’m making no such promise.” He shrugged. “There’s no point when I already know that I can’t, and won’t, keep it.”

Her eyes widened. “I— But— You can’t just go around kissing me, kissing an employee, whenever you feel like it.”

“Why can’t I?”

“Because it’s unprofessional,” she snapped.

“We aren’t in the army, Persephone. Nor,” he continued before she could comment, “does the same rule of nonfraternization between different ranks apply in civilian life.”

Her eyes narrowed, pretty much as Casper had known they would. “You don’t outrank me.”

“No? Pretty sure owner of the company outranks a mere employee.”

“One of the seven owners of the company,” she corrected pointedly.

“All of whom you’ve deliberately deceived today when you were completely aware of exactly where Martyna was hiding.”

Her wince was pained. “Will I be dismissed for that?”

Casper could hear the disappointment in her tone. “Doubtful. That would be like the pot accusing the kettle.” He gave a rueful shrug.

“That’s good.” She breathed a sigh of relief. “But I don’t think of myself as being a mere anything,” she added feistily.

Casper took a couple of seconds to admire how the amber of Persy’s eyes was highlighted against the angry blush in her cheeks. Her slightly swollen lips were also an enticing red from where the two of them had just kissed so passionately.

Casper agreed with Persy. She wasn’t a mere anything because, after those kisses, she was the woman he definitely knew he was falling in love with.

“We need to leave,” he announced as he straightened. “Just in case any of Morozov’s men have managed to track Martyna to here.”

A frown appeared between Persy’s eyes. “That shouldn’t be possible.”

Casper shrugged. “I doubt you thought it possible I would be in your bedroom this evening either, but here we are.” He watched as the color deepened in Persy’s cheeks. “Exactly,” he bit out. “Let’s go and tell Martyna the agreed plan for keeping her safe.”

Except when they walked out into the sitting room, it was to find it and the kitchen area empty. There was no one in the bathroom either.

Martyna was gone!

---