Chapter 45

Kayla

The kiss started off as a tentative peck, a brief moment to subdue the rumors and nothing more.

But it quickly turned into so much more than that.

Before I could even wrap my head around what was happening, Nicholas’s mouth was suddenly moving against mine with an undeniable fervor. The heat that pulsed through me sent electric currents coursing through my entire body, and my knees trembled dangerously as his hands dug into the small of my back.

Then, he was pulling me closer, so close I could feel the steady rise and fall of his warm chest against mine. The mating mark on my neck pulsed in time with our tandem heartbeats, a thrum that sent ribbons of electric heat curling through every fiber and muscle of my body.

For a moment, I forgot everything. The party, Rebecca, the charade we were putting on. It all disappeared as his lips claimed mine in a way that felt far too natural, far too right.

My hands, seemingly of their own accord, slid up to his shoulders, gripping the lapels of his suit jacket and tugging him closer as though I might float off into space if I didn’t have him here to hold me down.

When we finally pulled back, breathless, I didn’t know what to think or do. I looked up at him, my lips tingling from the kiss, only to find him staring at me in stunned silence.

But the moment of shock on his face didn’t last long.

That smirk of his—the one that always made my blood boil angrily and my belly pool with desire at the same time—slowly returned, and his voice dropped low to a husky whisper.

“I knew it,” he murmured, his lips brushing against the shell of my ear. “You want me, Kayla. Just say it.”

The sensation of his mouth on my ear sent another jolt through me, but reality quickly slammed back into me as I made sense of his words. I pushed against his chest, breaking the contact entirely, and took a step back, trying to gather what little dignity I had left.

Thankfully, the song had ended, and when I glanced over my shoulder, I noticed Rebecca had stopped filming—in fact, she had disappeared entirely. Good. That was all I cared about.

Without sparing Nicholas another glance, I spun on my heel and marched back toward the table. My face was burning hot, but I refused to let him or anyone else see how flustered I was.

Somehow, the rest of the evening passed without incident. I avoided Nicholas as much as I could without drawing attention to it, focusing on small talk with other guests and nursing a glass of wine at the bar.

If anyone had noticed the tension after the kiss on the dance floor, they didn’t mention it, and I didn’t see the brunette or her friend again. It seemed we had made it through the night without tarnishing our reputation after all.

By the time we got home, though, I was exhausted. After showering, I changed into my pajamas and settled into bed with the book Nicholas had recommended earlier in the week.

I hadn’t expected to like it, but to my surprise, it was captivating—so much so that I hardly noticed the sound of the shower turning off in the adjoining bathroom.

That was, until Nicholas stepped into the bedroom.

I glanced up, only to immediately regret it. He was wearing nothing but a towel slung low around his narrow hips, exposing the deep V-line of his upper groin. His damp hair curled slightly at the ends, one strand loose across his forehead. Water glistened on his skin, catching the soft light from the bedside lamp, and I hated the way my stomach flipped at the sight of him like this.

“Good book?” he asked casually as he passed through the room, as though he wasn’t standing there looking like a Greek god.

My face heated, and I quickly snapped the book shut. “It’s fine,” I muttered, setting it aside.

Nicholas, in typical fashion, wasn’t going to leave it at that. Before I could stop him, he sauntered over and plucked the book from my nightstand.

“Hey!” I reached for it, but he held it out of my grasp, flipping it open to the page I had been reading. His brows lifted as he scanned the text, a slow, mischievous smile spreading across his face.

“Well, well,” he drawled. “Why didn’t you tell me you made it to this scene?”

“Give it back,” I demanded, my cheeks flaming.

Ignoring me, he cleared his throat and began to read out loud. “‘Her breath hitched in her throat as his hands roamed her body, his touch igniting a fire that burned hotter with every—’”

“Stop it!” I lunged for the book, but he easily sidestepped me, holding it high above his head where I couldn’t reach while his other hand held his towel tightly around his hips.

He smirked, clearly enjoying himself. “‘Her legs trembled as he kissed her neck, his lips trailing—’”

“Enough!” Finally, after literally having to jump up on the bed to reach, I managed to snatch the book from his hands. Hugging it to my chest, I glared at him. “Prick.”

Nicholas chuckled at me as I plopped back down, completely unbothered by my indignation. He perched on the edge of the bed, his grin turning wicked.

“You know,” he said, his voice dropping to a purr, “since you kissed me earlier and we both seemed to like it, why not finally take it further?”

I froze, my grip on the book tightening. “Excuse me?”

He leaned closer, his hand resting on my leg. “How about we try the position they were doing?” he teased, his eyes glinting dangerously. He climbed onto the bed on one knee, leaning over my body. He was so close I had to move back against the pillows just to avoid our lips touching again.

“Or I can try touching you the way he touched her,” he whispered. As he spoke, his hand slid upward, his touch deliberate and maddeningly slow.

For a moment, just a moment, my body began to cave. His skin still glistened with water, his bare chest radiating heat mere inches from me. Even now, as furious as I was, all I could think about was leaning up and licking the rivulets of water from his torso, my tongue tracing the deep grooves between his muscles.

We could finish what we started at the hotel. We could finally get it out of the way, give in to the obvious physical attraction that was there. It would be… easy. During the act, at least.

But I couldn’t. I wouldn’t.

Before I could do something I would regret, I swatted his hand away, my face burning hotter than ever. “Don’t even think about it,” I snapped.

Nicholas raised a brow and sat up, feigning innocence. “What? I’m just offering to help bring your little fantasy to life.”

“Goddess, you’re so insufferable,” I hissed, shoving him away. “For your information, I only kissed you at the party because your actions led to people questioning our relationship, and one of your ex-flings was filming us to see if we’d slip up in public. Otherwise, I’d never kiss you willingly.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Is that so? Because I recall your wedding day—”

“A mistake,” I bit out, quoting him directly. “I was young and stupid. But now I know better than to let myself become just another one of your sexual conquests. I won’t turn into a bitter woman who pines after you at parties, as much as you love the thought of that.”

The grin instantly slipped from his face, replaced by something I couldn’t quite place. For a moment, he looked almost… hurt. But the expression was gone as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by his usual mask of indifference.

“Yeah. Right,” he muttered, standing abruptly. Without another word, he turned and walked into the walk-in closet to get dressed, the door clicking shut behind him.

I stared after him, a strange heaviness washing over me. Had I hurt him, I wondered?

Shaking my head, I set the book back on the nightstand and turned off the lamp, plunging the room into darkness.