Clinging to his damp body, she undulated beneath him, crying out when he reached between them and brushed his thumb against her clit, timing those maddening little circles with the rhythm of his thrusts. She gasped at his consistent touch, knew she was close, so close to climax, and she willed the sensation to take over her.
And then she was coming, with such a shout it should’ve embarrassed her. He swallowed her cries, his tongue plunging deep inside her mouth, in time with his frantic thrusts, and then he was coming too, shuddering above her, her name falling from his lips until he collapsed on top of her with a loud grunt.
Stasia held him close, savored his heavy body covering hers. She ran her fingers through his sweat-dampened hair, whispering soft words in his ear, kissing his salty neck. Their bodies were still connected, his mouth rested at her temple as he pressed tender sweet kisses along her hairline, whispering her name. She’d never felt so content.
Her eyes flew open, and she stared unseeingly into the darkness.
The realization scared her to death.
Chapter Twelve
“Alex, thanks for returning my call. Good to hear from you. How’re you doing?” Gavin turned his chair away from the desk, gazing out the window at the New York cityscape. It was a bright day, not a cloud in the sky, and the air had been brisk when he’d exited his apartment building earlier to go for his morning jog.
He’d pounded the pavement as usual, went about his normal route. Stopped for coffee at his favorite shop down the street from his building on the way home, offered his typical morning greeting to the doorman—they always chatted about the weather, the stock market, the economy and how the hell were they going to get out of this fine mess.
His normal, everyday rout
ine. He rarely deviated from it, wasn’t deviating from it now. Yet his life had completely changed. A few days with Anastasia Renaldi, two long nights in bed with her, their naked bodies entwined, and he was a new man.
A man with a new purpose—consumed with the crusade to do right by Stasia. Hence his putting in the call to Worth Luxury first thing upon his arrival to work. He wasn’t going to beat around the bush on this one. Time was wasting.
“I’m fine.” Alex’s familiar deep voice rumbled over the line. He didn’t sound too pleased. “I hear you’re representing Anastasia Renaldi.”
Looked like his old friend wasn’t in the mood to beat around the bush either. “I am.”
“Do you believe that wise?”
That question sent his ire up. “Why do you ask?”
“The media portrays her as a scheming young woman hell bent on getting what she believes she deserves, whether it be from the company she’s worked at since she was thirteen or Worth Luxury.” Alex paused, the silence stretching on for what felt like an eternity. “I wouldn’t recommend coming after us like that, Gavin.”
“We’re not coming after you.” Damn, this wasn’t going to be easy. Not that he’d believed it would be.
Alex chuckled. “Don’t treat me like an idiot. Clearly, Miss Renaldi isn’t stupid either. She hired you. And you’re a cutthroat jackass when you want to be.”
Gavin didn’t take offense to Alex’s remark. He was cutthroat. And he could definitely be a jackass. “You know better than anyone else not to believe everything you see or hear via the media.”
“True.” Another pause, this one shorter. “What does she want?”
“Not what you think.”
“So she doesn’t want twenty-five percent of Worth?”
It was Gavin’s turn to remain silent. Were there rumors going around that she wanted one-fourth of what she believed hers? They’d left for a handful of days and the story exploded. “She wants to meet with you.”
“Impossible.”
“Why? And not just you, Alex—she wants to meet with all three of you.”
Alex sighed wearily. “I shouldn’t be telling you this. Hunter is furious. Afraid she’s going to try and come in and take what we’ve worked so hard to build. And Rhett is so in love with his girlfriend he’s blissfully unaware of how high the stakes are in all of this.”
“I suppose you’re trying to hold everything together.” Typical Alex. He had big brother syndrome down pat.
“Always. Why does she want to meet?”
“Why else? She wants to get to know you.”
Alex laughed. “Don’t be ridiculous.”