Page 46 of A Touch of Fate

Samuel dropped his hands from their task of unbuttoning his shirt. “What makes you think I would be with another woman?” he asked quietly, his gaze so intent I had trouble not looking away.

I felt inexplicably stupid blaming his possible infidelity on my wheelchair, especially since I’d been the one who told him it wasn’t as big a deal as many people thought.

Maybe he saw it because his frown deepened, becoming almost foreboding. Of course, that only made him more attractive. Samuel was a man who always looked good, and sometimes he looked completely breathtaking. “My parents have been married for thirty years. My father taught me that loyaltyand faithfulness are the key to a marriage. I wouldn’t dishonor you by cheating on you, Emma. There isn’t another woman, and there won’t be.”

I swallowed. I could tell he was being serious. Actually, he seemed almost angry that I’d dared to accuse him at all. But what about F.? Was he really that good a liar? If that were the case, our marriage would be doomed. I blushed at my next words, feeling ashamed for my actions. “You have two phones, and this morning an F. told you she misses you.”

Samuel’s face became stone, as cold and as unrelenting, but the look of disappointment and anger in his eyes was worse. “You spied on me?”

I swallowed hard. “You hid your second phone from me, and the message from F. popped up on your screen.”

He stared off to the side, his gaze distant as if contemplating what to tell me. “You don’t trust me.”

Anger surged through me. “How could I? I’d love to give you the benefit of the doubt, but I know how some men in our world are, and I know how many people perceive me. I won’t lie to myself, and I don’t want you to lie to me either.”

Samuel took a step closer, his eyes blazing with fury. “You shouldn’t listen to what other people say. You should care how I perceive you. And I haven’t given you a reason to distrust me. I have two phones because I’m not only in contact with Outfit members. I have to deal with many creeps from other organizations that I’d like to keep separate.”

Was he telling the truth? Then why had the message sounded very intimate, not like something business acquaintances wrote each other? Was I imagining things? “You haven’t tried to have sex with me again.”

I sank my teeth into my lower lip before my mouth could spew more word vomit.

“Ideally, I’d have sex with you again very soon,” he said with a hint of a smirk that immediately sent sparks through my body. “But sex in a marriage isn’t a one-way road.”

“But why didn’t you try anything after our wedding night?”

Samuel still stood in his half-unbuttoned shirt with those rolled-up sleeves in front of me, and with every word out of his mouth, I wanted him more. “I didn’t want to push you into anything you weren’t ready for. You could be sore.”

I was still a little sore. “You could have asked me or tried to initiate something, and I would have told you no if I didn’t want it.”

Not that any part of me didn’t want to be with Samuel. I still tingled when I thought of Samuel’s fingers on me. My body and mind screamed yes.

“You could have initiated things,” Samuel suggested as if it were the easiest thing in the world, and to him, it probably was. I didn’t often think about our age gap, but the eight and a half years he had on me meant he’d been having sex for a long time. Most guys in our world began at fourteen or fifteen, so he’d been sexually active for twelve years. A new wave of nerves filled me.

My cheeks burned fiercely. I fumbled with the covers. “If I had more experience, maybe I would have…” That was a lie. My fear of being rejected by him would have been too great. Our bond was still too fresh for me to be anywhere near being confident enough for a move like that. “But you have at least twelve years of experience on me! You have probably slept with more women than I have shoes in my wardrobe!”

Samuel cocked an eyebrow. Damn him for looking like a woman’s dream. His gaze flitted to the rows of shoes lined up on the open shelves in the walk-in wardrobe, and his answering smirk made anger and desire battle in my insides. I tried to remember how many shoes were on display. Since Anna hadtold me I looked good in heels, I’d gone on a few unhealthy shopping sprees.

“You need to buy more shoes,” he said with a chuckle.

I stared at him indignantly, but at the same time, the banter did strange things to my belly. “Don’t tempt me.”

“So what about the matter at hand? Why didn’t you approach me? Like you said, you are the innocent part in our bond, and some might say I was being considerate by not demanding anything from you.”

“There’s a difference between demanding and initiating,” I said firmly.

“I don’t know you very well. I wasn’t sure if you would have had the backbone to say no.” For some reason, his voice had become lower over the course of our conversation.

“Oh,” I said. I hadn’t seen it from his angle yet. “That makes sense… but I would prefer it if you’d take the initiative for now.”

Samuel stepped closer to the bed. The top buttons of his shirt were open and gave me a very distracting view of his chest. “I don’t have a problem with that as long as you want to have sex with me.”

“I want to,” I whispered despite the heat crawling up my throat.

Samuel loosened his tie, never taking his eyes off me. “Good,” he murmured. He leaned over me, cupped my face, and kissed me. His kiss tasted of whisky or brandy, I couldn’t tell, and was gentle at first but soon became more demanding. My body responded immediately. My core tightened, and an insistent tingling started between my legs. Samuel shoved back the covers and climbed between my thighs. His erection pressed against my core when he stretched out on top of me. His kiss, just like the first time, set my body aflame. And the feel of his weight between my legs? I couldn’t get enough of it, especially the pressure of his length exactly where I needed it.

Samuel rocked against me lightly while he kissed me, and the friction was almost enough to make me come. I hadn’t even realized how much our conversation had already turned me on. I hesitantly slid one hand into his hair and put the other on his back. Samuel pulled back. “I’m yours. You can touch me however you want.”

I let out a choked breath.Mine. It still seemed impossible.

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