Page 78 of Beneficial Misfortune

It’s a black card, the same as the one Vincent offered me at the mall today, but with one major difference. It has my name on it.

“I assume you know what this is.”

I chuckle, shaking my head at his question. I might live under a rock, but who doesn’t know what a black card is? Everyone in movies has them, but from what I know, they’re a lot harder to get than the movies make it seem. Carter came from a wealthy family and was still denied one, much to his annoyance.

“Good, then I trust you understand the limit does not exist. If you want it, it’s yours.”

He tucks the card into my pajama pants pocket before reaching into his own to pull something else out.

“No!” I cringe as my voice comes out harsher than I’d intended. “No, thank you.” I try again, holding up my hands to stop him from giving me whatever that is as I take a step back.

His eyes narrow as he watches me, but he doesn’t let me get far before he reaches out, pulling me back to him.

He doesn’t say a word, and I don’t either, unsure what to say. I know he’s not Carter, even just our brief time together has shown me that. But for some reason, I can’t get past this feeling, this fear of being owned.

“Why?” he asks, his words impassive and his face unreadable, but I swear I see the hint of a spark in his eyes as he assesses me.

Licking my lips, I stand tall. He might be my boss, but that's it. He doesn't own me. He arches a brow at me, but I don’t have an answer, at least not a good one.

Instead, I drop my gaze to my feet.

“Katherine…”

I know what he wants, yet I can’t seem to do it. Shame turns my stomach, knowing he doesn’t deserve this. That he deserves better than me.

Once again, he lifts my chin, and the barest hint of a smile curves his lips.

He leans down until we're only a breath away. I hardly dare to breathe as my heart beats at triple its usual speed.

“I'm not sure who he is or what he did to you, but I assure you when I give you something, it’s yours,” he says, his voice low but harsh, and I know he means it.

He isn’t Carter; I know that, but accepting things is a slippery slope.

I open my mouth, ready to insist, but he cocks a brow, and I swallow it down.

“A real man doesn’t need to own his woman with possessions and buy her affection. A real man owns his woman by being what they need, their support and love, even when things aren’t pretty.”

Nathan holds out the box, and I glance down at it, seeing the wordsTiffany & Co.stamped across the top.

“I buy what I want, for who I want, because I want to. I suggest you get used to it.”

His fingers curl around my chin, tilting my head farther back as he leans impossibly closer.I worry I might pass out as all the oxygen rushes from my lungs. He’s so close, closer than I’ve ever been to him before. Nathaniel is harder to read than Alex and Desmond. He likes his privacy and seems more reserved, but right now, it’s as if he can’t get close enough.

“When I own you, there will be no question of if you want it or not. You will be mine, and I will be yours because real men know a woman's pleasure makes our own sweeter.” His eyes search mine for a moment, and all I can do is look up at him like a deer in headlights. I’m trapped here, but I’m almost positive I don’t want to leave. It takes me a moment to process what he’s just said; my mind is a tangled mess from how this conversation just went from zero to one hundred so quickly.

I can’t keep the shock off my face as his words finally sink in, and I watch as his lips turn up in one of his rare smiles and know he was waiting for me to understand.

Did he just imply that we’re a thing, like a couple? No, there’s no way he meant it like that… But then again, what else could he have meant?

Well, honestly, there’s probably about one hundred other things he could have meant, but I don’t get to overthink it for long.

“That will be all. Have a good night, Katherine,” he says, dropping his hold on me and pulling himself up to his full height, brushing non-existent wrinkles from his suit jacket.

“I—I” I try to say something, but it’s as if he stole my ability to function properly when he trapped me in those icy eyes. Snapping my mouth closed, I drop my eyes to the floor as I feel my face heat with embarrassment.

“Take the necklace,” he says, holding the box to me.

With a shaky hand, I reach out, my fingers closing around the box as I take it before quickly turning to leave.

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