Page 15 of The Billionaire's Bargain

David doesn't remove his hand from my waist. "Alexander! Just getting acquainted with your lovely companion."

"Take your hand off her." Each word is precise, deadly quiet.

Something in Alexander's expression must convince David, because he drops his hand and steps back. "No harm done. Just friendly conversation."

"There's nothing friendly about you propositioning my date." Alexander moves to stand beside me, his body radiating tension.

David holds up his hands in mock surrender. "Misunderstanding. Won't happen again." He looks at me with a smirk. "Lovely meeting you, Alice."

As David walks away, Alexander turns to me, his eyes burning with an emotion I can't quite name.

"Did he touch you?" he demands.

"Just my arm. And my waist." I feel oddly breathless. "It was nothing."

"It wasn't nothing." His jaw clenches. "He knows better."

Before I can respond, Alexander's hand cups the back of my neck, and then his mouth is on mine. The kiss is hard, possessive, claiming. His other hand finds my waist, pulling me against him until I feel the solid wall of his chest. His lips are demanding, coaxing mine open, his tongue sweeping in to taste me.

I should push him away. We're in public, at his company's charity event, surrounded by his colleagues and competitors. But my hands fist in his lapels instead, and I kiss him back with a hunger that shocks me.

When he finally breaks the kiss, I'm gasping for air. My lips feel swollen, sensitive. His eyes are nearly black with desire.

"Now they know," he says, his voice rough.

"Know what?" I manage to ask.

He leans in, his lips brushing the shell of my ear as he whispers, "That you're mine. And you're very, very lucky we're in public right now, or I wouldn't be able to keep my hands off you."

A shiver runs through me at his words, at the promise they contain. My body responds with a liquid heat that pools low in my belly.

"Alexander..." I don't know what I want to say. What I can say here, now.

His thumb traces my lower lip. "I want to take you home, Alice."

It's not a question, but I answer anyway.

"Yes."

seven

. . .

Alice

The limo doorshuts with a soft thunk that seals us into our own private world. The partition between us and the driver is already up. Alexander's scent—expensive cologne with undertones of whiskey and something uniquely him—fills the confined space. My heart hammers against my ribs like it's trying to break free. His eyes haven't left mine since we slid into the backseat, dark and hungry in the dim lighting. I feel more naked under his gaze now than I would if he'd actually undressed me.

"You've been driving me crazy all night," he says, his voice a low rumble that I feel more than hear.

I wet my lips nervously. "I haven't done anything."

"That's not true." His hand finds mine in the darkness, our fingers threading together. "You existed. You smiled. You blushed when I touched you."

The car pulls away from the curb, the gentle motion pushing me slightly closer to him. Neither of us moves away.

"That kiss..." I start, not sure how to finish the thought.

"Was overdue." Alexander's free hand rises to my face, his thumb tracing the outline of my bottom lip. "I've wanted to do that since the first day I saw you."

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