When I finished, my heart was racing as if I’d just addressed a boardroom of fifty instead of the man I loved. I waited for him to tear me apart.
Julian didn’t speak for a long time. He just looked at me.
“Well?” I prompted, fidgeting with my pen. “Is the logistics model flawed?”
Julian stood up, walked around the desk, and took the pen from my hand. Then he leaned down and pressed his forehead against mine.
“The logistics are solid,” he whispered. “But the woman behind them… she’s terrifying. I almost feel sorry for whoever sits across that table from you when it’s time.”
He kissed my temple, lingering there.
“You don’t need a savior, Elara. You’re so smart and capable.” His voice dropped, warm. “I’m in awe.”
I exhaled through the warmth in my chest.
It was the most romantic thing Julian had ever said to me.
Chapter 35
Elara
Julian told me not to wear the wine-colored satin chiffon slip dress I’d chosen for the night. I wish I had listened. His grunting and growling at every man who even looked my way was funny at first, but now I was just annoyed.
We hadn’t even made it past dessert before he snapped.
“Excuse us,” he barked at the guests sharing our table. His mother was somewhere across the ballroom, expertly closing deals; Julian had brought me here to network, to be the face of our new partnership. But his focus wasn't on the business.
He pulled me from my seat, gripped my wrist, and dragged me through the hallway, quiet and fast. We moved past the busy waitstaff and through the swinging doors into a small staging pantry. The second the door clicked shut, my back hit the wall.
Bunching my dress up around my hips, he held me there.
“What are you doing?” I questioned, my breathing already hitching.
“I told you not to wear this dress. You’re trying to drive me to madness,” he whispered, his mouth brushing my ear. “Do you know what I thought about during that entire speech? You. On your knees. Under the fucking table. Gagged on me while all those men who wanted you watched.”
I gasped. He grinned, a manic light in his eyes.
“You like that, don’t you? Pushing my buttons. Wearing this little dress like you didn’t know exactly what it would do to me.” He pulled the strap off my shoulder and pressed his teeth into my skin.
A hiss broke loose from my lips before I could swallow it. Heat slid down the inside of me like spilled wine, sticky and staining. He heard it. “You like the thought of them seeing you like that. For me.”
“I don’t,” I breathed, but the protest was weak.
“Liar.” He captured my mouth in a kiss that was all teeth and tongue. When he pulled back, we were both panting. “You love knowing you could bring a room to its knees, and I love that you let me ruin you in the dark.”
His hand dipped between my thighs. “Say something sweet. Pretend you want forgiveness.” He ordered.
I shook my head, my stubbornness flaring even now. “I didn't do anything,” I sassed.
His fingers massaged the heat between my legs, ignoring my defiance, the fabric of my underwear making it nearly unbearable.. He slid one hand behind my neck, guiding my face toward his. “You did. You tempted me. Maybe I should fuck you right here as punishment? Bend you over that tray table and make watch your cum faces in the silver.”
He pulled my panties aside and slipped two fingers inside of me without warning.
My mouth opened. The sound I made was obscene. He caught it in his palm.
“Quiet,” he warned. “You don’t want my mother’s friends catching you back here with my fingers in you?”
I shook my head, helpless.
