I ran my fingernails to his thigh, cupping between his legs and relishing the low growl just before I felt him swell in mymouth. A moment later, he tried to pull himself free, but I wouldn’t let him.
“Jane,” he moaned, saying my name like a warning, but I didn’t want to hear it. I wanted everything he had, even though I was aching to feel him inside me instead.
The next thing I knew, the floodgates opened and he came, hot jets that I swallowed a lot more eagerly than I ever would have thought possible. After, I kissed my way back up to his lips. For a moment, I wondered if he’d let me kiss him now that I had the taste of him in my mouth, but he answered the question before I’d even asked when he slid a hand around the back of my neck and pulled me to him.
After a kiss that made me squirm against him, Alex pushed himself up on one elbow. Still slightly out of breath, he pushed me onto my back and undid my pants. He pushed them down with my panties, his movements slow and deliberate.
When the garment dropped to the floor, he kissed a path up to my mouth, his hand moving behind my back to unhook my bra. The moment it was gone, he sucked each of my nipples into his mouth in turn, his tongue circling around them as he ran a hand up and down the inside of my thigh.
“Alex,” I murmured breathlessly, my hips rolling until he finally slid his fingers between my folds and teased my entrance.
I moaned, my eyes sliding shut. He kissed my breasts, my throat, and my eyelids. He nibbled at my earlobe, his thumb circling my clit before he finally pushed a finger into me. Just when I thought I was about to fly off the bed, he took my hip in a firm grip and held me down, watching me intently when I cracked my eyes open to look at him again.
Alex knew exactly where and how to touch me now, playing my body like an instrument he’d mastered decades ago until pleasure streaked through me like lightning. I let go without fighting it, trembling and moaning his name when I came.
We spent the rest of the night just like that, neither of us holding back or breaking the spell we’d fallen into. When Alex finally sank into me, his hands were in mine and he was looking right into my eyes, whispering “I love you” when he bottomed out.
Slowly and gently, we moved together, just feeling, touching, and kissing until it felt like we were the only two people left in the world. Honestly, I never thought I was the type to fall in love, but I would forever be grateful that it had been with Alex.
I felt like I’d found the other half of my soul in him, and with him by my side, I knew I would be okay. Regardless of what the future held, I knew now that all I really needed was Alex, and somehow, by some miracle, I really believed that he felt the same way.
CHAPTER 46
ALEX
Iwoke up angry. A deep, barely controlled fury had settled into my bones overnight and stayed there. This wasn’t the type of feeling that would burn itself out by the time the coffee had finished brewing, but the kind that suddenly made things crystal clear.
Jane was still asleep when I left, curled up in my bed like she’d finally accepted it was hers too. I didn’t wake her, instead just standing there for a moment watching the steady rise and fall of her back. Her dark blonde hair was spread across the pillow like spun gold, her face hidden by the strands, but she finally looked at peace.
As I looked at her, I made myself a promise I was intent on keeping—no one was taking anything else from her. No one. This woman was so strong and so brave. She’d fought for her family and what was theirs until the very last moment, and although she seemed convinced she’d lost, the war wasn’t over yet.
That thought was at the front of my mind as I finally turned away from the bed and walked into the bathroom. It stayed with me all the way through my shower and churned through my mind as I quietly got dressed.
By the time I got to the office, I was ready to kill someone. But since that would complicate things rather significantly, writing up a nearly billion-dollar contract would have to do.
The lawyers were already waiting. Nate sat at the head of the table, his sleeves rolled up and his tablet in front of him, his expression alert. He took one look at my face and didn’t bother with pleasantries.
“Tell me you slept,” he said.
“Not much,” I replied, dropping into my chair. “Tell me you’re ready.”
His mouth curved into something like a smile, but it didn’t quite make it all the way there. “Well, I don’t know about that, but I’m onboard.”
“Really?” I asked, a little surprised.
“I’ve run the numbers six different ways since last night and you were right,” he said. “We’re going to scare the hell out of anyone on the other side of the table, but it’s going to be worth it. There’s a ton of potential in that company.”
“Rattling them is exactly what we want,” I said. “I’m glad you’re finally coming around, though. I want Thayer for Jane, sure, but I wouldn’t be pushing this if I thought it was a bad investment.”
He looked at me for a long moment, then raked a hand through his hair and nodded. “Yeah, I know.”
We got to work then and there was something soothing about it, the clean lines of the deal, the precision, and the absolute certainty of ink on paper. I dictated terms while Nate and the rest of the team adjusted the language, the numbers climbing higher with every revision.
A billion-dollar counteroffer didn’t blink. It just stared back and dared anyone to challenge it. A few hours later, we were done and the entire Westwood and Sons board were set to meet, ours and the East Coast division.
Some were in our executive conference room, those who had been able to attend in person on such short notice. Most, however, were on screen, their faces arranged in neat little boxes, all of them waiting to see what kind of madness I was about to unleash.
Sterling appeared from his office, as calm as ever, but I caught the flicker of anticipation in his eyes. Harlan joined a moment later and my father grinned at his brother from his seat beside mine. Neither of them had questioned the meeting request or asked for details.
