Page 16 of Staying for Her

“But, now all I can think about are your lips,” he whispers, his thumb tracing lightly over my bottom lip as my tongue darts out, tasting the salt on his skin. “The way you felt with your legs wrapped around my waist as I sank deep inside that fucking exquisite cunt of yours.” The last words are growled as my teeth sink into my bottom lip, needing something to anchor me to this moment.

“Lucas,” I whimper, my eyes closing as he leans in, his lips tracing over the expanse of my neck and causing every fear to leave my brain.

“Baby, what you need to understand,” he mutters against my skin, nipping at my ear as he continues to whisper against me. “This may have started as a deal, but now I want more.”

My body relaxes the second the words wash over every inch of my skin.

“I want you every second of every day and staying away from you for the past two days has been fucking torture.”

My eyes snap up and I pull away so I can look into his eyes, which are full of lust.

“You wanted me all this time?” I ask, uncertainty gaining traction in my brain as I think back to the last few days, trying to remember.

“Billie.” My name falls from his lips like a prayer as his eyes bore into mine, his fingers gripping my hips before hauling me over the center console and placing me onto his lap. “I want you. I have wanted you from the moment I saw you sitting in that hall, but what happened in that alley?”

My breath catches and I cease to breathe normally as he palms the side of my face and leans his forehead against mine.

“That was the best fucking night of my life, and I want more. More of that… more of you.”

I don’t respond with words, I press my lips to his and take in the passion, greed, and possession in the grip his hands have on me.

“I do need one more favor from you,” he murmurs against my lips, his hand leaving my skin and sinking into his front pocket, pulling out a silver diamond ring.

“That looks real,” I mutter, my hands beginning to shake as I take in the solitaire setting, silver band, and wondering how the hell I ended up here.

“It is real,” he says, my lungs emptying of all air as I struggle to breathe. “It was my grandmother’s. The one woman who loved me for me and encouraged me to follow my dreams instead of the life my parents expected of me.”

My head begins to shake side to side because this can’t be real. “She always told me that she would protect me; she knew what my mother was doing with the dates and ultimatums. I just wish she could have been here to help, you know. She would have loved you for sure,” he whispers, taking my hand in his and kissing my palm.

“Lucas, I can’t take this. I can’t… that’s too… real,” I admit, my eyes locking with his as he smirks, placing the ring on my finger. It fits perfectly.

“You will take it. They need to believe that we are engaged, remember?”

The reality of what we still have to do rings in my ears as I hold out my hand and bask in the sparkle that is currently taking up half of my hand.

“Are you sure?” My voice is small, the uncertainty of the moment clear in the way my body shifts away from his touch.

“Billie, look at me.”

I shake my head, not ready for this. This ring is too much, it represents something good, real, and beautiful, and I’m about to taint that memory with a lie. I can’t do that.

“I need you to do this for me, okay? I need my parents to believe we’re getting married.”

I shake my head, my eyes filling with unshed tears.

“I can’t…”

“Yes you can,” he whispers against the nape of my neck, his fingers teasing over my stomach, up to my torso, and past my shoulders until he’s cupping my face once more. “I want you to be my girlfriend. I want that more than anything, but right now I need you to be my fiancée. Just for a few hours. Can you do that for me?”

I take a breath, looking from the ring to the man in front of me. Can I do this? I already like him, we have chemistry like nothing else and it won’t be hard to fake how we feel about each other. But the weight of this ring is a constant reminder of the lie, and I wonder if this will come back to bite me in the ass later. But when my eyes rise to meet him and I smile, nodding and I see that bright smile crossing his perfect face, all the worry leaves me because I’m helping this man get what he deserves and for now, that’s enough.

Lucas

Giving Billie my grandmother’s ring wasn’t the plan when I started this thing. I planned on buying a fake ring at a pawnshop and calling it a day, but the longer I spent with Billie, the more I wanted to see the real thing on her finger. Am I ready to actually be engaged? Fuck no. But the idea of her being in my life for the foreseeable future is not something I’m mad at, actually, it’s something I want more than I thought possible.

“Are you ready?” I ask, kissing the side of her neck as she wiggles on my lap. I smile against her skin, loving the way her breath catches when my fingers find the hem of her skirt, lightly tracing her exposed thigh.

“I think so?” Her voice is small, a blush creeping up her neck, lightly cresting over her cheeks.

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