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  Before I had a chance to think about it further, Xavier left the shower, strode across the room, and scooped me up in his arms.

  Again.

  Our mouths met by the time he was halfway back to the shower and I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t protest. Who the hell would protest when a naked man, practically good enough to eat, swept you off your feet and took you into a shower?

  He placed me on my feet on the tiled floor, only to back me to the wall hard enough to take my breath away. Rational thought should’ve intruded when he ripped my blouse open and then unzipped the back of my skirt. My shirt fell to the wet floor. His caresses left me heady, hungry for more than his mouth.

  With a jerk, he turned me around. The wall tiles against my face were wet and warm. His body pressed against mine, the scorching heat of his erection searing my ass. He made quick work of unsnapping my bra and discarding my skirt. All the while, his pace quickened.

  “So beautiful,” he whispered as his hands descended my back.

  His fingers trailed down the seam of my bottom, eliciting a quake within me. Warm lips kissed my shoulder blades and my heart swelled each time he brushed against me.

  Was this what letting go felt like? This weightless feeling that made me eager to be with him again and again.

  Xavier’s hands circled my hips and he pulled me back against his hard chest. Ever so slowly, he slid inside of me, gliding into my channel with three fingers. The exquisite touch left me wanting more. Somehow, I managed to turn around to kiss him again. His hungry mouth devoured mine. I reached down between us, running my hands over his hard pecs, even lower until I grasped his length.

  He hissed against my lips. Now that’s what I wanted to hear.

  Our gazes locked while he thrust his fingers into me as I stroked his length. He stared me down, almost challenging me to come first.

  I’m not tied down today, Mr. Quinn.

  Using the soap, I gripped the base of him with one hand and stroked upward. As my pleasure built from his attention, my grip faltered a few times.

  “Is that all you got?” he grunted.

  I stroked him faster.

  My breasts bounced with each of his thrusts. Pleasurable agony pooled in my stomach and raced down my legs. His thumb on my clit was blissful punishment that kept increasing in intensity.

  “Xavier…” His name slipped out of my mouth, followed by a long moan. He had me right where he wanted me, pinned where I couldn’t escape my oncoming orgasm.

  Until he paused.

  “What’s—” I began.

  “Are you going to run away next time when I ask you to stay?” His hard gaze bore into me and the icy steel in his voice was unmistakable.

  Did he seriously ask me a question right before I was ready to come? I ran my thumb across the tip of his cock. He flinched, but he still didn’t move.

  “Answer me, Sophie.” His eyebrows lowered and his mouth formed a hard line.

  “No,” I murmured, so close to climax the muscles in my legs began to give out.

  “When I tell you to come to me, you will,” he whispered against my mouth. He thrust his fingers harder into me. Faster. My back arched in response. My breath came out in punctuated gasps. Pretty soon I was bucking against him, practically writhing until he pushed me over the edge and I cried out.

  When my breaths evened out, all I could hear was the hiss of the shower. The smell of sex lingered in the air, but I just stood there like a dazed fool while Xavier gave me a pleased smile.

  He picked up the soap and slowly cleansed my body. By the time he was done, I had most of my faculties back, along with the awareness of one thing: I didn’t want to run away as much anymore.

  Not if I’d always get this happy ending.

  Chapter 17

  Sophie

  After my unsuccessful attempt to escape from Xavier’s place, I was much more self-conscious about being around him. Once I got back to my apartment around lunchtime, I was surrounded and interrogated as any good friend should be.

  “Don’t you have a job?” I asked Penny.

  “Not right now. You’re not that slick, sweetie. How long were you going to wait before you told us what’s going on between you and Xavier Quinn?” she asked. I’d found her camped out on the couch with sleepy eyes, a relaxed smile, and messy hair. She’d been out all night, most likely at the Phoenix Club, a local BDSM club. “Dinner is one thing, but you’ve been seeing him often.”

  The door to Lana’s bedroom was closed for once.

  “What are you doing on the couch?” I asked. “Did you pull an all-nighter?”

  She looked me over with pursed lips. “Oh, you’re not avoiding my question that easily. You’re wearing the same clothes and you never came home.”

  I picked up a few containers of Thai food someone had left on the coffee table. A great distraction. She’d follow me to my room anyway. “I had a dinner meeting and such with Mr. Quinn.”

  “And?” she pressed.

  I tossed the food in the trash. There was no way I was letting one of my roommates eat them as leftovers. “And we had additional work to do.”

  “I bet they worked, all right,” a voice behind me said.

  I turned around to see Lana, dressed only in a long Harvard U T-shirt, along with a shirtless man in jeans trailing after her. We had a guest. Now that was a new development.

  “Morning!” the man said as I began to prepare coffee. He had that scruffy look to him. Definitely not my type, but he was cute nonetheless.

  Lana pushed the two digits of her right hand into her cupped left. A rather crass gesture, if you asked me. And anyway, he didn’t use two fingers. He used three.

  “Oh, stop it,” I said with a laugh. “Who’s your friend?”

  “She’s stalling, don’t fall for it,” Penny said.

  Lana introduced me to Dr. Hanley. The name seemed vaguely familiar.

  “Tongue-surf guy?” I mouthed to Penny.

  She nodded back with a devilish grin. I guess Lana’s vow of celibacy was officially over.

  Lana ran her hand down our guest’s wide—yet slightly hairy—back and turned to me. “So are you and Xavier dating or what?” she asked me.

  If she’d gotten to the point any faster I might’ve experienced whiplash. “Not exactly. It’s complicated.”

  Weren’t all relationships?

  “So did you have wild, hot monkey sex last night?” Penny’s face brightened.

  “For someone who didn’t sleep in their own bed last night, you sure have a lot of questions,” I replied to her.

  She went to the coffeemaker with a grin. “Best couch nap ever.” The rich smell of coffee filled the kitchen as she poured herself a cup from the large carafe. “Sophie, this is the first time I’ve seen you stay out overnight with someone. I just wanted to make sure you’re happy.”

  “I’m good.” Satisfied. Fulfilled. Any similar words would be appropriate. Carlie would say well fucked, but that wasn’t my style.

  “Carlie told me he’s a celebrity. We just want you to be careful,” Penny added. “He might be here one minute and gone the next. Not the best marriage material.”

  I almost replied, Just the way I want it, but I didn’t feel like saying it. I nodded instead.

  Now that the interrogation had ended, I managed to snag some coffee and run to my room. Once there I checked my email messages. Soon enough I could be buried in my work and any distractions related to Xavier Quinn could be cast away.

  Only to find an empty inbox.

  I wasn’t surprised about this development. I got a huge-ass check from one of the richest people in the world and my assistant eagerly accepted the additional hours.

  At the rate Jesse was going, I could leave my business behind and join Carlie.

  For the first time in a long time, I spent the day doing things I rarely had an opportunity to accomplish: clearing out old documents for shredding, dusting my room—you know, boring crap most folks forget about until they are
stuck at home.

  Now that I was organizing my space, I also went through all the white boxes from Sato. It was time to get rid of them. Instead of throwing them in the trash, I decided I’d just take out the gifts and toss the boxes.

  Sounds easy enough, right?

  I formed a pile in the middle of the room. The newer packages were on the bottom with the older ones on top.

  Armed with a box cutter, I got to work on the first one. With each rip, I steeled myself for what I’d find. In the first, I pulled out a letter and a necklace. I crumpled up the unread letter and tossed the paper into the waste bin. Oh, look, three points!

  By the fourth box, I was on a roll, until I read the letter inside. The letter had come at a time when I’d been at my lowest point, depressed and hardly eating.

  Sophie,

  Each time I write these letters, I pretend you’re not mad at me and you’re happy. Pretending won’t change things, though. Are you well today? I just became district manager for my father’s company. My parents held a party for me and I thought of you the entire time.

  My heartbeat still speeds up every time I think of our first night together. During the other times my heart hurts to think about the ocean that separates us. Please understand that I had no choice. As the heir to my family, I must choose them first.

  Sato

  A growing anger made me clench the letter tight enough to crush it a bit. He thought of me the entire time? I guess when he got on the plane to leave me behind I slipped his mind.

  And I absolutely detested myself for feeling a brief moment of happiness when he mentioned how he fondly thought of our first time together. That had been a special moment for me and he’d ruined it in this letter. That bastard.

  Instead of tossing the note in the trash, I grabbed the next box. I’d been stabbed in the gut, I might as well go for the jugular. Box after box held letter after letter. Not one of them apologized to me. In each of them, he expressed how much he missed me and how he wanted to be with me again if he ever came back to the U.S.

  I tore open the latest one and dared myself to read it. My hands shook as I wiped away the tears that fell.

  Sophie,

  I’m coming to the U.S and I want to see you.

  Sato

  So I had seen him at Sakura No Hana. It didn’t matter though. Sato still knew how to hurt me without saying a word.

  —

  By the next day, I was ready to escape the apartment. I had yet to get any texts from Xavier about Nakamura and I grew worried. Had what happened at the teahouse messed up any chances he had for a contract?

  An ache grew in my chest. Xavier might’ve tried to smooth my ruffled feathers but the truth of the matter was that people like him had far loftier goals than my concierge business in Boston. He employed thousands of people. What if my actions kept him from doing something far greater than I could imagine? I wasn’t a fool. I’d done my research. Xavier had big plans for pushing mobile technology from the research level into practical form. Every single day I saw someone holding a cellphone. I used one all the time, but I never thought about the people behind the technology. It took capital and drive to innovate, and Xavier had both.

  I had no idea what he’d told Nakamura the other day, but I did understand that billions of people used phones, and that mobile devices required a processor to function. A faster processor meant cellphones could do more, and Xavier needed Nakamura to accomplish that goal.

  And I was one of the critical people for this mission. No pressure, huh?

  Maybe I’d heard what I’d wanted two days ago, about how everything was all right and now his silence was a clear message: You messed up.

  Rain continued to fall, so I worked alone in my room until my phone bleeped with a new message:

  come to the andretti cigar club. private smoking room 4. men’s dress shirt and panties only. wait for me.

  My jaw dropped. What kind of request was this? Instead of feeling revulsion, my heart sped up.

  Wasn’t this what I wanted? To see him again?

  When I tell you to come for me, you will. That was what he’d said.

  There was no hesitation in my step when I dressed in a thong and garters. I put on my trench coat over my nakedness. The shirt could be bought on the way.

  No one questioned me when I left the apartment in black heels. It was just another day, another dime for their roommate who catered to the rich.

  I took a cab from my place to downtown. The traffic was heavy into the city due to an accident on the expressway, but once I was past the slow crawl, the cab’s speed picked up. I kept glancing at my watch. Xavier really hadn’t specified a time.

  Would he show up and not find me there?

  By the time my cab pulled up next to the cigar bar, the traffic was thick along Ninth Street. I glanced at my phone. Did I have enough time to get a shirt? I’d rather show up properly than not, so I hurried to the closest shop and bought a shirt.

  When I returned to the cigar bar, I was relieved to learn from the hostess that the party for the private room had yet to arrive. As I weaved through the main bar with its brick walls, leather seats, and modern decor, I was pleased at the chance to come to this place. Not a single client in the past had asked for reservations here.

  Every kind of cigar connoisseur drank and smoked here. From the guy we passed in the jeans and polo shirt to a woman dressed in what had to be the sharpest Chanel pantsuit I’d ever seen. A light fog of cigar smoke filled the air, scents ranging from roasted nuts to leather, even coffee.

  I was led to an elevator that took me to the second floor with the private party rooms. One door was open already with a lively party going on inside. I spied only men enjoying cocktails and cigars. Maybe a bachelor party.

  My private room was gorgeous. At the far end of the room, from the cedar wood floors to the ceiling, windows offered a view of downtown. Along the other wall was a private bar and selection of cigars. The room had everything from cutters to lighters. I didn’t dare touch anything. The cost to book this room and have everything available had to be in the thousands.

  Then I spied a small box in the center of one of the black leather seats. The box had a tiny label: SIT HERE.

  Inside the box was a piece of chocolate. I popped the piece into my mouth and discovered the center was filled with candied vodka. Very nice and smooth.

  Time to get ready. I took off my coat and donned the shirt. It covered almost nothing below my ass. There went picking the right size. At least I was warm. The room was cooler than I preferred.

  I sat down where he wanted me, turned away from the door. Was this what he did with all the women he dated?

  Waiting like this used to be easy. Not so much anymore. The large hand on the clock continued to tick, tick, tock and for some reason I kept glancing at it.

  He’s coming, Sophie. He’s not Sato.

  The room was stony quiet. Except for the sounds next door. Would anyone accidentally come inside? Not the best way to keep your shiny clean image, Ashton!

  But it was too late now.

  My heartbeat raced in anticipation. Memories from the encounter at the park flooded my mind and my thighs clenched with need. The large shirt hid the pebbling of my breasts.

  The door opened with an audible yawn. The urge to turn around was strong, but I ignored it and faced forward.

  Before Sato I had little patience, but one thing I quickly learned was rewards came to those who waited. Pleasure came with obedience.

  I licked my dry lips and kept my gaze fixed on the window.

  Xavier strolled past me and took a seat across from me. He smelled absolutely delicious and looked gorgeous in his tailored dark blue suit.

  “Sorry to keep you waiting so long.”

  “It’s not long at all.” I would’ve waited longer. Especially for the self-assured man in front of me.

  His gaze swept over me from my heels, up my legs, and finally to the shirt I wore. I squirmed under his scrutiny.
Was he already as hungry to touch me as he was for me to touch him?

  “Why haven’t you contacted me?” I finally asked.

  “I’ve been rather busy with affairs back west.”

  “So everything is going well with Nakamura?”

  He nodded. “As expected.”

  I tried to keep my back straight, but all the uncertainties that flicked at me earlier made it hard for me to keep my cool. I had so many questions to ask him and none of them seemed to want to come out of my mouth. Had he thought of me since I’d left his apartment? Had what occurred between us meant anything to him other than casual sex?

  “Please elaborate” was all I said.

  “He’s taken an interest in me beyond our meeting. That much I’m sure of. My associates at Silver Sparrow told me someone from Nakamura’s company is examining my holdings.” With every word he spoke, I couldn’t keep my eyes off his mouth. Those lips that sucked on me in the shower. Those large hands that had made me come in the shower.

  I tried to smile and couldn’t stop my legs from crossing and uncrossing. I was sopping wet against the seat. “That’s a good sign. We’re getting close.”

  He watched me for a moment and I would have given everything I had to know what he was thinking. What was going through his mind? Half the time I thought I understood my clients. Their needs and their desires. That was my job, but at this moment I wasn’t sure how to please.

  What I did know was I wanted to please him. To serve him.

  My mouth opened, but no sound came out.

  “Open your shirt, please,” he finally said.

  My fingers trembled, yet I managed to begin unbuttoning the dress shirt. From the top, down to the bottom, my skin was exposed to the cool air in the room. By the time I was done, my chest rose and fell in time with my rapid heartbeat. I pulled the shirt open, exposing my breasts to him. The nipples were pert and ready to be sucked. When I looked up, he was staring at me.

  “I’d like a bourbon, please,” he said.

  “Of course.” I rose from the seat and went to the private bar. Everything had been stocked from hard liquors to martini mixes. Nothing but the best. I selected a personal favorite from the bourbons and poured him a shot with two ice cubes. Once done, I strolled over to him and placed the drink on the table beside him. Instead of looking at his face, I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the hand that rested on his leg. His hand was a hairbreadth away from my knee. Close enough to caress me if he saw fit.