Page 13 of Chasing Sophia

“You’re beautiful.” His words are so soft that I think he’s forgotten about my choice and is giving me sweet nothings.

“I want to be fucked, Asher. Hold the sweetness for tomorrow.”

His chuckle is loud against my ear. “Remember you said that, baby.” And he slams inside me in one hard thrust. Air leaves my lungs, pain and pleasure mixing as I try to get accustomed to his size. “You’re so fucking tight. Let me know you’re okay.” His hands graze my cheeks, and I open my eyes and nod.

He waits for the count of three before pulling back and slamming into me once again. Foreign pleasure bursts through me as he gives me what I asked for. He’s relentless, one hand holding my hip and the other around my shoulder. My bed squeals under the weight of his thrusts, mixing with my moans and his grunts.

“You feel better than I imagined, Soph.” His movements are brutal, and I want this man no other way.

His hand drifts down to my breast, and when he squeezes it, I see stars. I shatter into a million pieces, wanting him to be the man who’d pick me up and make me whole, always. Asher’s pounding, which has slacked for a beat, resumes, and my eyes open. He isn’t fighting for his release, and when his fingers thrum against my sensitive clit, I know he’s asking me for more.

“I can’t. Not again.”

He shakes his head, not accepting my answer. “You will. If I don’t make you come at least five times tonight, I’m not doing my job right, Soph.” His palms rest on either side of myface as he rubs my nose with his, making my heart beat hard against my rib cage. I realize these soft moments in between the unrestrained sex are far more dangerous.

“You’re a vision when you come.” His lips land on mine before he gives me another earth-shattering orgasm.

8

ASHCROFT

I wakeup to the sound of running water in the shower. The thin baby blue curtains remind me I’m not in my own room. I glance at the clock on the nightstand. Fifteen minutes past six. God, when have I last slept so peacefully since returning to St. Peppers?

I put on my slacks from the neatly folded stack on the chair and meet Sophia in the doorway as she steps out of the common shower in the apartment. Wrapped in a soft pink bathrobe and her hair tucked inside a matching towel, she looks so sweet, unlike the girl from last night, who has asked me to fuck her senseless.

“Good morning,” she whispers in a breathless tone as her gaze shifts between my face and my naked chest.

“It is now. Let me brush my teeth before I wish you good morning in the best way.” I have no interest in losing her due to bad breath.

She giggles, and I can’t keep myself from wishing to hear her laughter first thing every morning. “You’ll find a fresh toothbrush under the sink.”

After getting ready, I find Sophia in the kitchen, where she’s pouring coffee into two cups, and there are two plates with breakfast.

“How can I help?” I place a kiss under her ear and marvel at the slight tremor that runs throughout her body.

“Take this to the table,” she says with a touch of breathlessness. I carry the two coffee cups with a warm feeling in my heart. A part of my brain argues to run back home. I have a business to run, a staff to command, but for some reason breakfast with Sophia is going to be the highlight of my entire week.

“When are you expected to be at work?” she asks after taking a sip of her coffee.

I place the cutlery to the back of my plate as guilt digs its claws into my heart. She doesn’t know that nothing is expected of me, yet I work ten to twelve hours every day in my family business. I know my workers start around nine, but as I told Sophia, I don’t lie.

A lie by omission is still a lie, though.

“Usually, I start work around seven.”

Her forehead crinkles as she looks down at her watch. “You’ll be late today.” Before I can tell her not to worry, she asks, “Is your boss hard on you? I know rich men can be…”

I hold her hands on the table, not liking her upset face and also wanting to know what has made her so wary of wealthy men. “What is it, Soph? Why so much hatred toward the wealthy?”

“It’s nothing.” She tries to pull back, but I tighten my grip. Finally, after a frustrated sigh, she adds, “My father worked as a bookkeeper for a very rich businessman. He never took any vacations, the pay was bare minimum, and the stress… It tore my dad apart. He always came home late in the evenings, left too early in the mornings, and worked most of the weekends. Inever got to see or bond with him. And when I was old enough to know it was of no fault of his own, he had a heart attack, at work. He died at the same desk he had spent more hours at than his home. His asshole boss didn’t even bother to attend the funeral.”

Her jaw clenches, and despite the redness in her eyes, Sophia doesn’t drop a tear. My heart is full with unbridled pride and vivid restlessness. She does hate the rich.

“Your father’s boss was a jerk and a leech, Soph. I don’t think it had anything to do with how much money he possessed. I’ve met some of the kindest people who are rich, not only in wealth but in heart.” My mother being one of them. She would have changed Sophia’s mind in a flash.

Sophia looks at me in confusion, as if she’s never even considered this. But then she closes her eyes and shakes her head. “You can’t change my mind on this, Asher. Not now. Not in a million years.”

I drop her off at the school and return home with fear eating my insides. Sophia hates wealth and here I am, the richest man in town, lying and trying to impress her. I can’t shake this feeling that something will break in the end. Her. Me. Or maybe, just maybe, her thick walls of disbelief will shatter against my love.

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