“And a wife you just admitted I don’t want.”
Not once had I considered myself marrying anyone. Ever. I didn’t need companionship beyond fucking women when the urge hit. I was perfectly content being free to do whatever the fuck I wanted whenever I wanted.
So why is my dick incredibly hard in consideration of her offer?
“Only in name…” Her eyes met mine. “I don’t want a husband and you don’t want a wife. We’re perfect for each other.” She forced a smile.
“No.” I turned back toward the elevators. “Let’s go.”
I felt her move behind me. She cut off my path and placed her hands on my chest. “Why not?”
“Because I don’t give a damn about being connected. The kind of power and control I crave doesn’t have a damn thing to do with what marrying you can offer. Do you know why all the families fear me?” She shook her head and I smiled. “I’m the one thing they can’t control. They fear what they can’t control because I’m unpredictable and that scares the shit out of them. Unlike them, I have nothing to lose. Being connected to you will change that. So you’ll have to do better with your negotiating if you want me to marry you, Cia.”
“Then what do you want? I’ll give you anything.”
“Anything is very open ended, Cia. Are you sure you want to go there?”
Her eyes flickered with fear before she lifted her chin defiantly and nodded.
“Why?”
“The alternative is much worse in my opinion. I’m not marrying Warren, so name your price.”
I took a step closer, bending slightly. My face was inches from hers. “You want me to marry you, then what I want in return is a marriage not just in name, but in my bed. I want your body, Cia. To use whenever, however, I want. Are you willing to agree to that?”
Her eyes went wide and I smirked and stepped around her. “I thought not. Now let’s go.”
The second my hand wrapped around the handle to her suitcase and I took my first step, I heard her voice again.
“Yes.”
That one word caused my dick to go hard again and I knew I had just royally fucked up.
4
Cia.
Why?
The question had been on repeat in my mind since it’d left Nex’s mouth. The obvious answer was he could be my salvation. A permanent solution to me taking charge of my life. Merrick loved me. There was absolutely no doubt in my mind that my brother loved me but he also loved our father along with the power and prestige that came with sitting at the top of a hierarchy.
If that hierarchy was challenged, then nothing and no one would get in the way of Merrick securing his spot on the throne. Not even his love for me, which meant that even if I somehow managed to escape this marriage with Warren, and another demand for me came into play, a demand that challenged his ability to remain in control, Merrick would choose control.
Marrying Nex meant I was no longer a bargaining chip for my father or brother. The obvious answer was taking him as my husband. What I refused to acknowledge aloud was that a man like Nex was sinful. Pure, raw sex.
His face was beautifully sculpted with hard angles, encased in chocolate skin, tempting lips which enticed me to crave the pleasure I was certain they would promise. I was also a sucker for a beard and his was slick, lush, and perfectly manicured. I could already feel the soft tickle of it teasing my inner thighs while he pleasured me with those sinful lips… and tongue. He exuded masculinity and dominance, which was the problem. The man was consumed with a reckless and dangerous darkness. The kind that would undoubtedly ruin anything that got close.
And I want to be close.
I agreed to his one condition. To be his wife, not only in name but in his bed.
And I want that too.
To want Nex created a dilemma. He was everything I’d spent the last thirty-four years attempting to escape a connection to. Men like my brother and father. And Nex wasn’t only like them, he was everything they were and everything they weren’t dark enough to be. Whereas my father and Merrick toed the line by being morally gray, Nex was an abyss of darkness.
And I want that too.
I want him.
