Page 63 of Preferential Treatment

And then he was coming, and the feel of him shaking and shuddering on top of her, the hot, wet spill of his climax, the agonized groan rumbling deep in his throat, all conspired to force another orgasm out of Kate. Mikhail made a pained, almost animalistic noise as her pussy clenched around him again, milking every last drop from him.

When the last wracking spasm released him, Mikhail slumped on top of Kate, driving the breath out of her in a faint, “Oof.” His weight wasn’t unpleasant. In fact, there was something kind of soothing about being mildly crushed. But Mikhail wasn’t moving at all, and it was kind of concerning. Kate twisted to look him in the eye. Mute, dazed, he stared vacantly through her, pulling in slow, rasping breaths.

Well. At least he was breathing.

Still slightly worried, Kate touched his cheek. “Honey,” she said gently—only becoming aware of the endearment after it had already left her mouth. “Mikhail,” she corrected herself, but that sounded wrong too. “Mishka,” she said gently, stroking his cheek.

At that, he blinked, drawing in a deep breath. He closed his eyes, leaning into her touch. She brought her other hand up to cup his face, stroking her touch gently along his neck and shoulders, over his back. He shuddered and sighed, but remained putty beneath her hands.

“Are you alright?” she asked softly.

He let out a wry, wheezing laugh. “No. I think you killed me.”

“You’re a very talkative corpse.”

He chuckled again, his breath gusting against the side of her neck. “Why are you so good, Katya? You’re a witch. No, a succubus. You’re stealing my soul through my dick.”

“You caught me.”

“Don’t stop. I don’t need a soul.”

She smiled. “Well, I need to breathe. Get off of me, you oaf.”

He groaned like an old dog and rolled off of her. Cold air hit her skin unpleasantly, like being thrown into a pool. She shivered, but not for long. Mikhail’s arms snaked around her, pulling her on top of him.

She lay ensconced in his arms, her head resting on his chest, feeling the rise and fall of each breath, listening to the steady beat of his heart. He shifted minutely, and she felt the press of his lips to the top of her head. She breathed out a contented sigh, stroking her fingertips through the dense mat of his chest hair. She brushed against the medallion, tracing its edges.

“Why do you always wear this?” she asked, too pleasure-dazed to filter her thoughts properly.

To her surprise, though, he actually answered her. “It was a gift given to me as a child.”

She knew he had no family. Who would have given him a gift so personal that he still wore it to this day? She hesitated to voice the question, but she didn’t need to.

“One of the matrons at the orphanage gave it to me. She recognized my academic potential and fought to have me transferred to a better school. Her support changed the trajectory of my entire life. When I was thirteen, I was sent to an elite boarding school on a scholarship, thanks to her efforts. She died right before I finished my baccalaureate, so she never saw what became of me.”

Kate was awed that he’d revealed so much—that he’d trusted her with something of such obvious emotional significance. She stroked the medallion contemplatively. “She’d be proud of you if she could see you.”

“I don’t think she would,” Mikhail said quietly.

“No?”

“She gave me this to remind me to be humble and grateful. She didn’t approve of immense wealth. A bit like you, in that regard.”

“Why do you wear the medal, then?”

“To remember her.” He paused. “To remember who I was.”

“Who were you?”

“An unwanted castaway who shouldn’t have amounted to anything.”

Kate pushed herself up onto one elbow, looking down at him. She stroked her hand across the furry plane of his chest. “You were always going to amount to something.”

“Nobody knew or cared who I was until I proved I could make them money. A lot of money. Now I make my own money, and the world only loves me more for it.”

“Money doesn’t make you. Your inventions contributed more to the world than your wealth ever will.”

Mikhail gave her a skeptical look.

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