Page 40 of Marriage Bargain With Her Brazilian Boss (Billion-Dollar Fairy Tales)

“Done what?”

“Had sex.”

“Oh.” She blushed then, so prettily that he couldn’t help grinning. “Of course, you could tell with how busy your fingers have been.”

His chest shook with mirth. “I wasn’t going to be all over you, demanding my marital rights after realizing that.”

She giggled and it was the sweetest sound Caio had ever heard.

“It’s not a big deal, Caio. Yes, some of it was that I was hung up on—”

He pressed a hand to her mouth, his heart thudding as if it had been slammed hard against its cage. “You don’t have explain anything to me,querida. It just...made me put brakes on how fast I was driving this, that’s all.”

“I like fast, Caio. I love your speed very much. And you should know that if you were going too fast, I’d protest quite loudly.” Then she rubbed the tip of her nose against his in a tender gesture that burned him. “You have to stop making accommodations for me, Caio, as if I were not strong enough to handle you. You’ve got to trust that I know my own mind.”

He nodded, wondering what benevolent god had dropped her into his lap. Because he sure as hell didn’t deserve her. “It might hurt, Nush. However much I try to make it better.”

“Then isn’t it better to get the first time out of the way so that we can get to the better times?”

He shook his head and pulled her up. “Wrap your legs around me.”

“Why?”

“You’re tiring, Princesa. Let’s get you into the shower.”

That she didn’t deny it told him he was right. “How’d you know?”

“The more it bothers you, the more you cradle your wrist to your chest like a shield.” He hefted her into his arms and walked through the house, her outraged giggles that they were ruining the hardwood floors by getting everything wet ringing in his ear. Her laughter reverberated through the empty, desolate house as did her breath through him.

And that small part of him he could never quite shut up asked if she’d let him hold her like that if she knew of the destruction he was wreacking, if she knew how close to the truth she’d come when she’d called him manipulative and controlling and arrogant and how he could lose the battle to win a war.

CHAPTER TEN

ICHOOSEYOU, NUSH.The words reverberated through Nush like temple bells, restoring her faith in their relationship at a deep, core level where all her insecurities dwelled like sleeping monsters.

By the time she emerged from the shower, hair still mostly damp because she didn’t have enough strength in her one weak bicep to dry her thick hair, Caio had arranged everything outside in the patio off the kitchen.

A soft melody belted out from cleverly hidden speakers, the words in Portuguese. Running a hand over her dress, she reminded herself to ask him to teach her the language. She wanted to be able to converse with him in his mother tongue, which was a long-term project for her brain. But more than that, she wanted to understand all the things he muttered to her when he touched her.

He’d set the plates already served with lasagna she’d made, a salad he seemed to have whipped up, a bottle of wine and glasses. A couple of sleek solar heaters kept the space toasty even as a breeze from the ocean tickled its cold fingers once in a while.

Beautiful, rare black roses sitting in a crystal vase at the center of the small table sent her pulse racing all over her body like a loose electrical wire. That he’d remembered what Yana called her morbid fascination with all things dark and decadent made her dizzy with joy.

His hair, like hers, was still wet from the shower and slicked back. He’d dressed in dark jeans and a gray Henley that seemed to span an endlessly broad chest. The sexy casual attire made the dinner feel even more intimate. Like here was another side of Caio Oliveira revealed just for her and only for her pleasure. And God, what those jeans did to that ass.

Feeling suddenly self-conscious, Nush wished she’d taken the time and patience to dry her hair properly. All she’d done in terms of dressing up had been to pull on a loose, sleeveless pink gown with a deep V at the front and slap a little lip gloss onto her lips. After all the fuss she’d made about dining together, maybe she should have...

“Princesa? Have I missed something?”

“No. I just...” Nush swallowed her silly doubts at the possessive gleam in his eyes when they swept over her, lingering everywhere it fluttered. “It’s perfect.”

“You’re the one that is perfection, Nush.”

She bit her lip and smiled, fighting the urge to smooth her hair down. Longing twisted through her for something more. Even though she kept begging her greedy heart to stop its needy clamor. “Thank you.”

“Shall we eat then?”

Nodding, she joined him at the table. He’d arranged the chairs closer together, looking out into the ocean, instead of on opposite sides of the table. Her belly swooped at how romantic it looked.

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