Page 226 of Hateful Games

A giddy smile threatens to take over my lips.

Twisting around, I press myself against him and rest my palm on his chest. Over his steady heartbeat. His fingers tighten on my ass when I scrape my nails down his pecs to the top of his abs. “You keep this up, you’re going to lose your asshole card, hubby.”

“Good. You’re catching up.” Eyebrows slashed over his chocolaty eyes, he gives me a ravishing smirk and orders, “Hurry up.”

Then he proceeds to steal my iced tea and takes a sip. I scowl. “No sharing, Nova.”

“You’ll make an exception for me.”

Slapping my ass, he forces me toward the reception desk. “Get those stiletto ones.”

“Who taught you the name?”

His gaze turns feral hearing the jealousy in my tone. “No one. The internet did.”

“Oh.”

“Jealousy suits you, wife.”

“Shut up!” I turn around before I can make more of fool out of myself. The young girl behind the counter gives me a bright smile. “I would like a manicure, please.”

“Absolutely.” Her accent is thick. “Any specific style?”

I always go for gothic but the back and forth with Nova, and the heady rush in my veins of the past two days, has me feeling some type of way. “Something romantic. It’s my honeymoon.”

“Congratulations.”

“Thank you!”

“Please come this way. Nora will be taking care of you today.”

The next hour goes by getting myself pampered. The girl doing my nails quietly working, which I appreciate. My small talk skills still poor. I keep stealing glances at Nova throughout and he never once looks irritated for being kept waiting. He sits with his ankles crossed, arms flexed, and winks, catching me staring.

With my nails freshly painted a bright, glossy red, I make my way to the front to pay. Except, Nova has already done it and takes my hand. Staring at it, he hums in appreciation before guiding me outside.

We reach the private section of the harbor and stop at the biggest yacht. Oasis written in huge bold letters. I’ve grown up in wealth but still the sight of it makes my jaw drop. It has to be over five hundred feet in size with God knows how many amenities and rooms inside.

It is stunning, sleek, and screams luxury.

I can only imagine what the inside looks like.

“How come I didn’t know you owned a yacht?” I gasp, mouth agape.

Nova, who is shaking hands with the man in charge of maintaining it, turns to me as soon as he leaves. His tone curt when he answers, “It’s my dad’s.”

“Do you not like sailing?”

“Not as much or as often as him.”

My neck aches from tilting my head so far back as I compliment, “It’s beautiful.”

“Of course you’d love it.”

“I’ve never been on one but have always been curious.” Taking his outstretched hand, I let him walk us to the side to get on board. “My mom would love this. She’s obsessed with oceans and everything related to it. Except, my dad never indulged her. Said it was a waste of time.”

Nova doesn’t say anything but I feel his hand tense around mine. From his profile, I see his jaw tighten and shoulders bunch.

I realize my slip.

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