Page 8 of Contractually Wed

“All this chemistry you claim there is between us, this uncontrollable lust you have for me... I would like a taste of it. After all, I switched my choice to you pretty fast. I need a reminder as to why.”

“Why? You didn’t kiss Rina after all.”

He grinned. “And how would you know if I kissed your sister or not?”

Color rose to her too-sharp cheeks and she shrugged. But she didn’t shy her gaze away. “I...asked her.”

“Why, Jia?”

Her gaze flicked to his mouth like a liquid caress, going straight to his groin. “Every time I saw you together, it was like pairing a wolf with an adorable baby chick. I kept waiting for you to realize she was too sweet and good and docile for you, and I was...curious about how a man could burn up for one sister and kiss the other. So I asked her, again and again.”

“I was burning up for you? Your confidence is interesting, if nothing else.”

“It’s a fact.”

“That your attraction to me is real,” he said, satisfaction strumming through him like an unchecked river.

“Yes,” she said, an edge of defensiveness to the word. “It’s chemistry. I won’t be made to feel shame over it.”

He wondered who had made her feel shame over it and how he could reduce them to ash. “I am beginning to see one big advantage to this union, then. And getting quite excited about it too.”

Her gaze flicked to his crotch and then back up.Christos, the woman was bold. “You sure your...hard-on isn’t because of what I can do for you?”

He threw his head back and laughed, true enjoyment coursing through him. And her eyes on him, tracking everything, drinking everything in...was a shot of desire injected straight into his veins. “I do believe we have one thing in common, Jia. Refusing to believe in delusions.”

“So admit the truth, then. Power is the thing that gets you off.”

“In this case, no. I should very much like to fuck you, as soon as possible. Is that clear enough?”

Her only reaction was the slight widening of her eyes and the heavy rise and fall of her chest. “Pleasure before World Domination for Apollo Galanis? That’s...an unexpected turn.”

“Well, you are quite the package.”

“If we do this...” she said, her palm coming to rest on his chest with a boldness that set his muscles to curl with need “...if you really want us to have an actual marriage with sex and all that, for however long it lasts, you have to get rid of your other...girlfriends or flings or whatever you call them. You have to get rid of Portia Wentworth, like tonight.” Her palm slammed into his chest in emphasis, his latest convenient partner’s name gritted out. “I won’t share you, even if you’re not actually mine in the true sense...”

Apollo caught her mouth with his, her fierce claim as much of an aphrodisiac as the rough pants of her breaths. She was midsentence and her mouth was open and he swooped in, his want as raw and visceral as he’d ever known it to be.Dios mio, her lips were incredibly soft and she tasted sweet and tart.

She made a soft sound into his mouth, both complaining and eager, when he grazed her lower lip with his teeth, didn’t back away. If anything, her fingers wound tighter around his neck and she leaned into him a little more.

Apollo pulled her closer, the dip of her waist and the flare of her hips as he moved his hands lower a lush invitation. He grabbed her bottom, deepening the kiss. She pushed onto her toes and bit his lip. A rough groan escaped him, as her belly rubbed against his hard shaft.Christos, he couldn’t wait to taste her everywhere, couldn’t wait to reduce her to nothing but his name and her pleasure at his hands.

After what felt like no more than a few seconds, he pulled back, eager to see lust paint its fingers over her sharp features. Still clinging to him, Jia buried her face in his neck, in a gesture that made him feel...something. Her little hot pants pinging over his skin like music notes.

Then she was pulling away, running her palm over her belly, her chest rising and falling, her gaze rapidly scanning everything around them but barely touching his.

Arms folded, amused despite the deafening thud of desire in his blood, Apollo watched her with growing fascination. The woman was a puzzle and a present wrapped in one and he couldn’t wait to unwrap herandunravel her.

She collected her cap, her handbag that had fallen under the lounger, and after what felt like an eternity, faced him. Brown eyes danced with lust-heavy brightness. “So this is on?”

He grinned, tucking his hands in his trouser pockets to stop himself from reaching for her again. “Are you waiting for a romantic proposal?”

She made a face at him but there was something very practiced about it. Apollo wondered at how much of her toughness was armor and what it hid. “Given I proposed to you, that will just be another farce, no? At least, we have a good story to tell when it all burns down.”

He refused to argue the point with her. “There will be a car downstairs to take you home. It’s past eleven.”

She looked surprised. “Don’t need it. I’m used to taking care of myself.”

“And I’m used to taking very good care of my assets,” he said, without missing a beat.

---