Page 67 of The Accident

I nod.

“What did you think?”

“It’s interesting,” she says carefully. “It’s perfect, really. Like a magazine spread.”

I chuckle. “Yeah, that’s why I’ve been thinking about selling the place,” I say, casual. “A magazine spread isn’t a home. It’s just a pretty picture for people to look at.”

She looks up, startled. “You’re selling? But why?”

I scan the kitchen, the slick, angular lines of it, the too-perfect island, the thirty-thousand-dollar espresso machine. “It’s a good apartment for a bachelor,” I say. “But lately it feels too sharp and impersonal.” I pick up my glass and swirl it. “I’m thinking I want something softer. With a yard. Maybe a real garden.”

Kayleigh looks shocked.

“Really? You want to move to the suburbs?” She looks absolutely flummoxed.

I smirk. “Not quite. But somewhere I could raise a family, if I wanted.”

That causes the beautiful girl to freeze, fork halfway to her lips. Then, she sets it down. Her cheeks are pink again, and she stares at the counter, as if waiting for the world to stop spinning.

I let the silence stretch. The air is thick with basil and anticipation.

“A family? Why?” she says, finally, her voice just a whisper.

I watch her face, the way the flush climbs down her neck and pools at the hollow of her throat. “Because I might want one,” I say. “Kids would be cute, don’t you think?”

Kayleigh looks utterly astonished, her cheeks pink.

“I don’t know,” she stammers. “I just never saw you as the family man type. I thought you were a billionaire with an empire to run, always rotating between work, charity events and million-dollar man-caves.”

I don’t answer right away. Instead, I lean forward and run my hand along the edge of the counter, then reach for her wrist, circling it with my thumb and forefinger. She doesn’t pull away.

“That’s true, but maybe I want something different now. Maybe I’ve changed,” I say in a deep growl.

She bites her lip, the motion involuntary.

I squeeze her wrist, just hard enough. “Don’t look so scared, Kayleigh. It’s not going to happen overnight, and besides I own you, sweetheart. And I’m not done with you yet.”

She shivers, her other hand clenching tight around the fork. “How long?”

I tilt my head. “How long what?”

She swallows. “How long until you get bored? Until you send me away so that you can move forward with the dream of your big house, with a garden and kids?”

Ah, so she has no idea that I’m thinking of sharing the aforementioned house and kids with her. And why would she? I’ve given nothing to let on that my mind has been spinning in circles recently, thinking of nothing else but my pretty blonde stepsister. That I can’t think of anything but Kayleigh, in fact, even with the IPO coming up.

I let my gaze drift over the gorgeous girl, the bare skin, the way the dress does nothing to hide the roundness of her hips, the slope of her shoulders, the spill of hair down her back. “Well, a million dollars on a personal assistant’s salary takes a long time to pay off,” I say in a silky tone. “But really, this arrangement isn’t over until I say it’s over.”

She flushes deeper, the pink fetching. I imagine kissing her at the hollow of her throat, where her pulse flutters, and then removing her dress and kissing her all over. But Kayleigh’s trying to stay calm. She sets her fork down, hands folded, and stares at the counter.

I release her wrist, but let my fingers drag down her arm, slow and soft. “You belong to me,” I say, and the words come out like a prayer. “Which means I get to do whatever I want.”

She looks up, eyes wide and innocently blue. “But what do you want, Trevor?”

I smile, slow and patient. “A lot of things. We could have a lot of fun together, Kay. But tonight, I think I want to take pictures of you.”

She jerks back, the motion so abrupt she almost knocks her stool over. “What kind of pictures?”

“The kind you sent me,” I say, voice low and dangerous. “But better. Professional. Ever since I got that unexpected gift in my Inbox, I haven’t been able to think of anything else. I’ve jerked off to those photos multiple times, Kay. They were the best present ever.”