At the Pleasure of the President (The Perfect Gentlemen 5)

“Make me come.”

Every sultry word from her mouth made his cock fill and throb. “Make you come, you said?”

“Yes.” There was no pleading in her tone. She demanded. She knew what her rights were and she wouldn’t accept anything less from him. It was one of the reasons he’d never been able to resist her. “Make me come, Maddox. Now.”

“My pleasure.” Inside her, he pressed his fingertips right where she ached most and rubbed her in torturous strokes while he covered her clitoris with his lips and sucked.

Seconds later, she screamed his name while her body bucked and worked against him, lifting to his mouth and demanding every bit of bliss he could give. Then she went over the edge, gripping onto his arms and holding him as if she’d never let go.

Sweet moments later, she drifted down with a satisfied sigh. Mad couldn’t wait to join with Sara for a second longer.

He lifted himself away from her and rose to his knees, shoving his sweatpants down to free his cock.

Then he stared at her again, splayed out in front of him, all flushed cheeks and womanly curves, her body open and welcoming. She took his breath away.

He couldn’t wait to watch her change day by day as their baby grew. He would take it all in, catalog every single difference, and make sure she understood how amazing she was. He would show her every day, in every way he could, how much joy and warmth she brought to his life.

“I love you.” He shifted between her legs and held himself above her gently swelling belly to align his crest with her slick opening. Then he pressed inside her. Heat lit through him as he sank deeper. A groan tore from his chest. Somehow, he managed to stay in control. What was on his mind was far too important to wait, and she was too precious to wonder. “I want to marry you before the baby comes. I still have your ring.”

She gripped his arms and drew him closer even as she wrapped her legs around him. “Yes.”

It wasn’t the proposal he’d planned, but they weren’t the wide-eyed kids they’d been mere months before. It was probably silly that he’d considered himself a kid then. He was almost forty, damn it. But the man he’d been before? That Mad had been naïve. He’d planned a dramatic, epic proposal, guaranteed to be plastered across social media and talked about for years.

He’d needed that then. Now all he needed was Sara.

Mad stroked into her, finding a rhythm he’d craved for months. The connection went far beyond sex, beyond mere pleasure.

Staring into her eyes, he thrust deeper, wanting to lose himself in her and stay in this moment forever. But her need soon proved as great as his. When she tightened, digging her nails into his skin, and urged him on by rocking her body with his, Mad couldn’t hold out a second longer.

Climax hit him, rocketing through his body until he imploded and was reborn a new man. Until he swore he couldn’t see anything but her. Until he forgot everything but Sara and this moment that began the rest of their lives.

His entire body heavy with gratification, he rolled to his side and pulled her close. Sara lay breathless, wrapped in his arms, nestling her head on his chest. This was what they’d found that first night, what had surprised him even more than the amazing sex. They just fit together in ways he hadn’t imagined and couldn’t live without.

“I want you to marry me this week,” he said. “We can do it up big later, but I want to be good and married when our child comes, even if it’s only in our hearts and in front of our friends. We’ll know the truth.”

“Yes.” She smiled as though she couldn’t agree more and she was right where she wanted to be.

And Mad knew he was finally home for good.

Chapter Fifteen

“Are you sure nothing’s wrong?” Gus asked as they strode down the hallway toward the press room.

Liz wasn’t sure of anything after the previous night. Her odd spat with Zack had ended when she climbed into bed with him for a fitful night of sleep. This morning, he’d been his usual smooth-as-silk self, awakening her with kisses and making love to her like nothing had happened the night before. Still, when he looked at her, she’d seen something in his eyes she didn’t like, a distance she’d never seen, even when they hadn’t been lovers. She tried to write it off as his funky mood or her imagination…but worry lingered.

“Everything is fine. Well, as fine as it can be, given what’s going on.” She stopped because if they wanted to finish this conversation in private, they couldn’t get any closer to Vanessa, who waited steps away with a bottle of water and her notes for the weekly press briefing.

“I meant between you and Zack. He and Roman are scheming. I had a long talk with my fiancé last night, but I couldn’t get him to budge. He’s claiming Chinese wall privilege, the bastard.”

Only two lawyers would use that term in their romance, referring to the ethical division that kept their respective jobs separate from their personal lives. Basically, Roman had refused to tell his bride-to-be anything he and Zack exchanged. No doubt that made Gus crazy.

“He’s right, you know. He can’t tell you or Zack won’t be able to be open and honest with him.”

Gus’s eyes rolled. “Ethics suck. They’re up to something. I know it.”

Liz wasn’t sure what Roman would be up to besides his job, which entailed listening to Zack and advising him. “Is he worried about Krylov being in town?”

Gus shook her head. “No. They’ve got a security firm, someone Connor knows from his CIA days, tracking him now. They say he’s already back in New York. Well, what they say is he’s in New York and they can’t figure out how he left. Apparently they don’t have any footage of him ever exiting the hotel, much less stepping foot in DC.”

“He’s a mobster. I’m sure he’s had plenty of practice eluding cameras and agents.”

That’s what was bugging her. She and Zack hadn’t talked about the incident with Krylov at all this morning. After he’d made love to her, he’d dressed in sweats and his running shoes, then told her he would see her later. She would have thought Zack had put the whole thing out of his mind except he’d made her promise she wouldn’t leave the White House without an escort.

“Well, all I know is the guys have gone into hyper alpha-protective-asshole mode. All of them. When I told Roman I intended to go to your place and pick up some clothes for you, he had a hissy. Have you ever seen a six-foot, three-inch wall of muscle have a hissy? It’s a sight…” Gus sighed. “Apparently Connor will be selecting your wardrobe for the next week. I tried to take care of it for you but was told in no uncertain terms that he can handle shoving clothes in a suitcase. He’s going to get all the wrong shoes and probably forget your undies. I’ll apologize in advance for his fashion ignorance.”

Liz cringed at the thought of Connor rifling through her underwear drawer, but she acknowledged the reasoning behind it. “It’s all right. They’re worried. I didn’t really want to go back there in the first place, but now it’s a no. You probably shouldn’t go, either.”

“Hmm. So, I’m told the press is like a school of hungry sharks today.” Gus nodded toward the room where the briefings took place. “Don’t give them any chum. Put on a happy face, pretend like the world isn’t falling apart, and do what you do best. Once this is over with, we have a wedding to plan—and we’ve got to be quiet and fast about it.”

A genuine smile curled up Liz’s lips. Clearly, something good had come from last night because when she’d gone to the bunker to have morning coffee with Sara, she’d found a very cozy couple ready to tie the knot. “I’m so happy for them, but have we considered the fact that Mad’s death certificate has been filed? Officially, he’s dead. I’m not sure how we make their marriage legal.”

Gus brushed those details aside. “We don’t, at least not yet. The ceremony is for the two of them. Mostly, I think Mad wants a ring on her finger in case anything goes poorly. As soon as we can, we’ll get all the paperwork done and make it right. But this gives us an excuse to celebrate, and we al

l need that right now.”

“I think we can plan a serviceable wedding in a couple of days. They’re getting married in a bunker—a place where many a war was launched—so the ambiance will be…interesting. Have you considered it for your own ceremony?”

Gus laughed, the sound booming in the quiet of the hall. “Wouldn’t it be fitting? Roman and I are in a constant state of trying to figure out what the other is plotting. It keeps us both on our toes. Come on. It’s go time. I’m going to try to blend in at the back and sneak out before they can surround me. Be on your toes because you know someone will ask about the Capitol Scandals story. And now that our interview has been postponed, the questions are likely to start.”