This is really happening.
“We have to get the ball rolling, Michaela,” he says, as if he can sense my turmoil.
I nod even though he can’t see me. “I guess so.” The words come out faint.
“You’re still with me on this?”
I pinch my lips together, wanting to escape from all of this, but I can’t.
“Michaela?”
“I’m still in.”I know what’s at stake.“It’s a lot to take in at times.”
“We’re a team,” he says, borrowing my words from last night.
I can’t help my laugh. “We’re a team.”
“All right, I have to go. I’ll see you soon, Mrs.König.”
“See you soon,” I say.
Then, it hits me.
Wait? What?
“Phoenix, I’m not changing my last name.”
No answer.
“Phoenix?”
I pull the phone away from my ear and stare at my screen, dumbfounded.
He hung up.
Chapter 17
Phoenix
My gorgeous bride-to-be is fresh-faced this morning. She requires not much makeup to highlight her stunning beauty. She’s all business in a pretty, flowy lilac floral dress that reaches her mid-calf.
My fingers itch to undo the buttons running up the front of the dress to take a peek at what she’s hiding underneath. I have no doubt her body is clad in mouthwatering lingerie.
Her dainty feet are trapped in the same pair of sexy as fuck white high heels with a strap circling her delicate ankles she wore when she barged into my office two days ago to rip me a new asshole.
A little over forty-eight hours ago, we were strangers. Now, we’re planning a wedding. Un-fucking-believable.
“This takes breakfast to a whole other level of perfection,” Michaela says. “Where do you find your chefs? Do you poach them from the top restaurants in the country?” She leans forward and drops her coffee cup on the table.
“We don’t need to resort to such underhanded actions,” I say. “We attract the best and we treat them right. My father lives by this motto. It’s the same for my brothers and me.”
“Hence, your undisputable success.”
“Something like that.”
We hold each other’s gaze for a few long beats.
There’s something about this undeniable pull that’s beyond her unquestionably seductive physical features that jack up my libido. And it has nothing to do with going without sex for too long. It’s debatable, but in this case, it’s way more than that. With other women, the surge of attraction is never this all-encompassing. Not even with Marie-Clémence or Evelyn.
