Page 35 of Submit

Yes. Yes, I will.

I would willingly beg for that and I know it, my earlier determination to never beg a man for anything again completely forgotten.

This thing between Casper and I has accelerated from zero to sixty in a matter of an hour but I guess finding out your life is in danger and the last few years of it has been a lie really speeds things up. I can’t shake the feeling that this new information has given Casper and I an expiration date though and I don’t like it at all.

I angle my head up toward him. “I’m begging now.”

He groans quietly, painfully.

“We need to figure out a plan to get you away from him,” he states again matter-of-factly. At least I think that’s what he says. I can’t be sure since my brain is so addled with lust that I can’t focus on anything except his mouth which just landed on that sensitive spot right below my ear.

My groan of pleasure is not quiet. At all.

“Keep your voice down. Jörn probably has his damn ear pressed to this door. I’ve made it too obvious that…” he trails off.

“That what?” I ask breathlessly as I lean my face forward and trail my hand up the inside of his bare thigh. I’m totally playing with fire, but I can’t seem to help myself and I welcome the burn.

Instead of answering me, he throws his body weight forward, knocking my head back into his waiting palm as his lips crash over mine. He closes his fingers around my tangled, sandy hair, and his free hand is pulling my waist against his dick which is now hard and very visible through his swim trunks.

We’re both panting when he pulls back.

“That’swhat,” he snarls, seemingly irritated by the fact that he’s attracted to me. I would wonder why that frustrates him but I remember that there’s a good chance my fiancé may actually try to harm Casper if he finds out I rode him like a pony on the beach, so okay, I see where his irritation is coming from.

Our spell is broken when a fist pounds on the door to the gear room. “Hello? Why is this damn door locked? I need to get in there! Jörn, where’s the key?” Johanna yells from the other side.

Quickly Casper whispers, “Play nice with Van den Tweel until we solidify our plan. If he knows something’s up, that won’t be good for either of us.” He pauses briefly, his eyes growing dark, before adding, “But don’t playtoonicely. I don’t share.” Then he yanks the door open, brushing past Johanna without a word, leaving me shell-shocked, still against the wall, my hair a mess, and my lips tender from the brief but rough contact. All I can do is look at Johanna with wide eyes.

“Oh, girl, we willdefinitelybe talking about this tonight,” she giggles as she puts her stuff away.

~

JOHANNA HAS A SMALL, one-bedroom flat in an oceanside building. The adorable space is decorated with fairy lights and reminds me a little of my college dorm room with better furniture and amuchbetter view. Her living room walls are painted a light blue-gray that works wonders to calm my nerves. I set my bags down next to the couch which pulls out into a futon, where I’ll sleep.

I can see her rooting around in the refrigerator over the low wall that separates the two rooms.

“Johanna, thank you so much. I’m so sorry to invite myself with no warning and totally invade your space like this. It’s an incredible space, by the way.”

Her eyes light up at the compliment. “Thanks! I was really lucky to find this place when I came over from Holland. My first apartment was a lot farther from the coast. Granted, it was bigger, but I knew shortly after moving in that I would take a smaller space to have the view.” She pours two glasses of orange juice and hands one to me as she directs me to the little balcony that overlooks the water. As we get settled, I’m lost in thought when I feel her hand on my forearm, drawing my eyes to hers. I see only sincerity and kindness there when she speaks. “As for staying here, if you don’t mind being cramped, you can stay as long as you need to.” It’s clear from her tone that after the day of mimosas and seeing my face in the gear room today, she knows something’s up.

I squeeze her hand. “Thank you. It seems my life has become somewhat of a mess recently.” I laugh humorlessly.

She sets her drink down and turns fully to face me, the ocean providing a peaceful backdrop for this conversation. “I know it’s none of my business, but I’m dying to know what’s going on between you and Casper. The man hasn’t so much as spent more than two platonic seconds looking at a woman the entire four years I’ve known him. And trust me, we’ve all tried getting his attention.” There is no jealousy in her voice, no pettiness, just maybe a touch of awe and curiosity.Why you?I can hear her silently asking.

I can’t tell her much about Casper. I’ll save that story for Beatrice, who knows more about him than I do anyway. But Icantell her about Will.

“Well, I don’t really know what’s up with Casper. He’s super intense and obviously he’s hot as hell, but he’s also pretty nice if you can get past the growly exterior, which I only managed to do for about thirty seconds today.”

A half-truth. He is nice…but it was longer than thirty seconds.

Johanna barks a loud laugh. “I wouldn’t know because no one ever has gotten past it.”

I give her a shrug. “I’m not really sure why that is.” Again,not totally true.Casper admitted that part, he’s drawn to me because of my situation. I’m trapped and being used and lied to like his sister. “What Iampretty sure of though is that my fiancé has been lying to me the entire time I’ve known him. I just found out that his parents own the company he works for.”

I must not be making much sense because Johanna eyebrows draw together and asks, “That’s a bad thing?”

“Not necessarily, but in two and a half years, he’s never told me that’s who he works for. Or that he’s literally worth billions of dollars. That doesn’t raise any alarms to you?”

She seems to think about this for a minute. “Maybe he didn’t want you to be with him for the money?” she offers.

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