“And do you always stay at hotels blessed by royalty? First, the King of Sweden, and now the Maharaja of Patiala?”
“Royalty is fascinating to everyone—even Americans,” Durand said.
“Is it? I think we fought a revolution because we weren’t so enamored with the institution,” Asha pointed out.
Durand pressed the button of the gilded elevators, and one instantly arrived. He swept Asha in, steering her with a firm hand on her lower back. She was more than aware of the possessiveness in his touch. Her stomach rippled with nerves. She knew when she stepped into the elevator with him that once she was in his suite, she’d be unable to think, to control herself. She’d do whatever he wanted, and she’d like it. The idea of giving away her control frightened—and excited—her. No one made her feel like Durand did. No one lit up her desire, made her nerves come alive, like he did.
“Maybe you Americans regret losing the monarchy...just a little bit. Maybe that’s why you are fascinated. Perhaps, even, obsessed.”
“You think you know about obsession?” Asha challenged him as the elevator doors slowly closed. Durand hit the button for the penthouse, swiping his key against the sensor on the lighted pad, because not just anyone could take the elevator there.
“Yes, I do.” Then, Asha leaned past him and pulled out the elevator stop button. The elevator lurched to a complete stop and the alarm sounded, which she quickly disabled with a flick of the alarm switch.
“What are you doing?” Durand cocked one eyebrow in surprise. “Do you wish to...begin foreplay here?” He spread his arms wide, and grinned.
“Maybe.” She moved closer to him and ran her finger down the closed buttons of his shirt. “But first, I want you to tell me...” she glanced up at him “...what you mean to do with me?”
She pressed against him, pushing them both to the wall of the elevator, their lips were millimeters apart. She could almost taste the faint hint of sangria on his tongue. She searched his blue eyes and saw playfulness there.
“I mean to do all kinds of things to you, ma chère. Things I believe you will like.” His eyes sparkled. “Things I know you will like.”
She stood up on tiptoe and nibbled the bottom of his lip. “And then?” she asked him. “Do you plan to give me that membership?”
Durand chuckled. “This is no longer about the membership, and we both know it.”
He was right. She knew he was right. But she couldn’t let him see how much he’d grown to mean to her. How much she was already under his spell. She needed to take back some of her power.
“If you do not plan to give me the membership, then what do you plan to do with me?” The elevator dinged and they tumbled out of it, Durand pulling her into the hallway of the hotel.
“I mean to show you many, many tricks. For many, many hours.” They reached his door, and he pulled the keycard from his wallet, swiping it past the sensor. The door unlocked and they were inside, their lips meeting, locked together in a desperate dance. She ran her hand down the front of his pants, feeling him come to life beneath her fingers. Then, she pulled back as he sucked in a breath.
“What if I am the one to show you tricks this time? You think you are the only one with skills?”
She slipped down on her knees in the elevator. He stood stock-still, watching her with amused eyes, as she freed him from the confines of his pants. Normally, when she did this, it was simply to get something she wanted. She wanted to make Durand lose his own control, wanted to make him feel what she’d felt during that week in his hotel room. He seemed to still believe they were casual, when she in her heart knew they were much more. Their connection was something that didn’t come along very often. And she was going to prove it to him.
She stroked him, and he grew hard instantly in her hand. The carpet cut into her knees, but she didn’t care. She wanted to make him moan, make him lose control, and this was the way to do it. She flicked the head of his cock with her tongue, and he tilted his head back and groaned. This time, she’d be the one in control. This time, she wouldn’t be the one to succumb. She wanted to do this. Wanted to drive him wild. If she had to be on her knees, so be it. She flicked her tongue again, rolling around the tip, and then she took him—most of him—in her mouth. He cried out, unable to help himself, as she worked him, using both hands on this shaft, and her mouth and tongue around the head. She read his body silently, read his reactions, knew exactly what to do.
“Mon dieu,” he breathed, grasping her shoulders. “You will make me come,” he warned.
She freed her mouth. “That’s the idea,” she growled, and then she resumed her work, delighting in how she could control his body, how he was now a slave to the growing climax, how he’d have no choice but to come. She could feel it in his quivering body, how the desire was overtaking his control. But then, he pulled away.
“No, no. I cannot let you,” he growled, and swept her up in his arms. He once more zipped up his fly as he hit the buttons of the elevator. The elevator began moving once more, and soon the doors opened to the penthouse. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the hallway. A few seconds later, they were inside his rooms, an extravagant black-paneled hotel suite, complete with bedroom and dining room. The curtains were open, revealing Berlin’s iconic Brandenburg Gate, the stone column structure topped with a statue of the goddess of victory pulled by four horses, the afternoon sun blazing down on it. She didn’t care about the view or the lavishness of the suite. All she cared about was Durand.
He led her to the bedroom, his mouth hungry on hers. Suddenly, her plan to control his body evaporated in her mind as his tongue lashed hers, as the want in her grew to a burning need. She felt the soft bed beneath her back. Then he was on top of her, his weight delicious against her. He rolled her on top of him, and then found the zipper at the back of her skirt. Soon, it and her blouse were puddles on the floor, and she wore only lacy, sheer underwear. His fingers couldn’t move fast enough, and neither could hers. Their clothes only seemed frustrating barriers to what they both wanted now.
His skin felt hot against hers as his hands roamed her bare body. Her skin came alive beneath her touch, and she moaned, even as he shed the rest of his clothes. He seemed to be ready for her as he reached into the bedside table of the hotel and withdrew a condom. She wondered how many of them he’d stashed there, and then remembered they’d gone through more than she could count in London. Would Berlin be the same? Would it be a blur of amazing sex and a growing sense of dependence on this man she knew so very little about?
But then his lips were on her neck and she forgot why she was so worried. Forgot to fear her growing feelings. All she could do was surrender to his white-hot touch, surrender to the need growing between her legs. She needed him, she realized. Needed this. He worked her body as if it was an instrument he was born to play, and as his hands kneaded her, she moaned, nearly losing herself.
He moved so that she could straddle him, and she sat up on him.
“Do you want to show me more tricks?” he asked.
She grinned wickedly. “Of course I do.” She lowered herself down the length of him, taking him in, inch by inch, slowly, deliciously slowly. His blue eyes never left hers, and she could see the want in them, feel his desire grow.
Yes, want me, she thought. Need me.
She began moving slowly at first, rocking back and forth, and he kept his hands on her hips, steadying her and himself.
“Do you want me?” she asked him, her voice a low purr. She kept her hands flat on his muscular chest and could feel his heart pounding as she moved her hips.
“Oui,” he murmured, his lips parting.
“How much do you want me?”
He closed his eyes as she pulled him deeper, ever deeper, inside her. His blue eyes flicked open.
“Very much,” he admitted.
“More than any other?” Now she realized it was
her insecurity rising to the surface. Her jealousy. She wanted to be the only one that mattered. She was falling in love with him.
He flipped her over then, so that he had the upper hand.
“Do you want to be wanted more than any other?” he challenged. He withdrew from her, even as her knees fell open. She felt cool air against her thighs, and a disappointing emptiness. He rubbed his tip against her wetness, and she arched her back. He teased her mercilessly, when all she wanted was him inside her. Now. “Do you want me to want you, Asha?” he pressed. His thumb found her swollen clit, and she groaned.
“Yes,” she managed, meeting his gaze. He pushed in an inch and she gasped. “More,” she demanded.
“Admit that you have feelings for me,” he said, moving his thumb faster.
“I don’t,” she lied. And he withdrew completely. This was maddening. He was driving her mad with desire, with lust, with need. She clutched at his arms. “Wait.”
He pushed forward again, tip inside her, his thumb working the nerve endings in her swollen center, making her see stars. “Yes?”
“I want you...to want me,” she breathed, and he pushed all the way in, touching the deepest part of her.
“I do want you, ma chère. More than I’ve ever wanted anyone.” The admission pushed her towards the edge, and she felt her body awash in relief, and desire, and...love. “Come for me, so I can see your beautiful face.”
He worked her harder, and she had no choice. A climax ripped from her, and she shouted, unable to contain the explosion of pure pleasure, as he worked his magic, and she succumbed to his spell. When she opened her eyes, he was looking at her with such reverence, as if she were a priceless work of art. Never had a man gazed upon her like that, and she feared, never would a man gaze upon her like that again.
He stroked her face gently. “Never come like that for anyone but me,” he said.
“I’m worried I won’t,” she admitted, and he laughed. He moved, flipping her so that he was flat against her back, and he entered her from behind.
“I want to be the best you’ve ever had, or will have, Asha,” he promised her.
“Keep on like this and you will be,” she murmured, worried that it might be true. That he would be the best sex she’d ever have, a man who vowed never to love another completely.
He worked faster, clutching her to him, squeezing her breasts in his hands as if holding on to them for support. Unbelievably, her own desire began to rise again. Would she come once more? This was insanity. She never knew her body was capable of this. But only with him. Only with this man. He nibbled her ear from behind and her logical brain completely shut off. Now was not the time to worry about the future. She felt a surge of pressure in her belly, the climax growing there. She was going to come. And so was he. They came together in perfect unison, and then Durand pulled her to him, clutching her like a raft keeping him afloat.
“I need you, Asha, like I’ve never needed anyone,” he growled in her ear. “You are...you are making me want to love you.”
“What’s stopping you?” she challenged him, feeling a rush of emotion flood her.
“Do you want the membership or my love?” he asked her, nuzzling her neck.
“Maybe I want both,” she told him.
“Maybe you can’t have either,” he murmured.
“Now you’re the one who lies,” she said, whipping around to face him. “You’re the one not being honest with me.”
“No?” Durand rolled away, and Asha sat up, fully naked. He stroked her hip and the side of her leg with one tender hand. His eyes roamed her bare body, possessive, appreciative.
“You are already in love with me,” she told him. A look of surprise flickered across his face. Surprise and...fear. Had she hit on something true? She’d been teasing, but the look on his face told her maybe there was more to this than she thought. “I can read you, Mathis Durand.”
“Yes, you can,” he admitted to her, and he pulled her close for a kiss. She broke the contact, blinking. “But I cannot give you all that you want.”
Asha pulled away from him. “You can give me what I want. And you will.”
Durand laughed. “Do you always get what you want?”
“Always,” she said with more confidence than she felt.
“And if I give you my heart, what will you do with it? Will you be careless like you are careless with...the other men in your life?” Durand pulled her to him, and she lay with her cheek against his chest.
“No, I would not be careless,” she promised.
“Why would you give me one but not the other?”
“So this is about winning for you, is it?” Durand pressed.
“Is that what you’re afraid of?” Asha asked.
“And if I asked you to be mine? Would you be mine? Are you ready to commit to me?” he asked her, rolling on top of her so they were nose to nose.
She blinked fast, her heart ticking up a notch. “What does that mean?” she asked, tentative.
“It means I want you, Asha. Only you. And I want you to be with me. And only me.”
“Does this mean you love me?”
His lips parted, and for the briefest of seconds, she thought he’d admit that he did love her. Instead, he swallowed his words. “It means I cannot stand to see you with another man. Any other man,” he said.
If he wasn’t going to admit he loved her, then she was not going to commit to him, she decided. A wicked smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. “Well, then,” she said and drew him near. “You’d better keep an eye on me. Make sure I don’t wander.”
Durand moved closer. “I intend on it.” He glanced at her seriously.
“What makes you think you have the right to that?”
“Because it’s true. You’ve gotten through my defenses.” He sucked in a breath. “Asha, I’m powerless against you. I... I...” He paused. “I love you.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
DURAND SAW THE look of surprise bloom on Asha’s face and wondered if he’d gone too far. What was he even saying? He was falling in love? Sure, the two of them lay naked in the hotel bed, their bodies tired yet satisfied, but was this love? He’d sworn never to fall in love, but like so many things in life, reality had simply blindsided him. No, Asha had blindsided him. He’d never met a woman like her before, both savvy and calculating, and yet, at the same time, so innocent about so many things. He had told the truth: he was helpless to resist her. He loved her strong will, the way she fought to be included. He admired her fight, her determination not to take “no” for an answer. She was like no woman he’d ever met, and that’s why he’d come to care for her. Beyond that. Come to love her. He wasn’t just falling in love. He’d already hit bottom.
And she wasn’t saying anything. She was staring at him, completely frozen.
“Asha?” he prodded. And then he realized that he’d gone further than she was ready to go. She wasn’t ready to say it back to him. He’d overstepped and there was no walking this back. Not now. Not ever.
“I—I don’t know what to say,” she said, looking uncomfortable. And then he saw the hard truth: he might love her, but she wasn’t sure of her own feelings. Not yet. At least, she wasn’t willing to share them. He knew her body loved him. Maybe that would have to be enough for now.
“You don’t have to say anything,” he said quickly, to save his pride. The woman he’d declared his love for, the only woman who’d ever stolen his heart, wasn’t prepared to take it.
“Besides, I thought Mathis Durand doesn’t believe in love.”
“That was before I met you.” Durand wasn’t going to lie. Not now. Her cold feet right at that instant only made him want her more. It only made him even more determined to convince her that they belonged together. They needed to be together. Now and always. “We are meant to be together, don’t you see?”
; “Why?”
“We are so alike, you and I. Both fighting for what’s ours, it’s us against the world.” This was the truth of it. They were more alike than they were different.
“You sure it’s us, not me against you?” she challenged him.
“Don’t even joke about that,” he growled, suddenly feeling possessive. The woman brought out a side of him that he didn’t realize he had. Asha grinned, playfully, teasing him. The woman knew exactly how to push his buttons, how to make him want...more. “If you aren’t going to tell me you love me, then you have to promise me you’ll not be with another.”
Asha blinked fast, and in that second, as he watched the emotions play out on her face, he realized she did care for him. More than she was willing to admit for now.
“You want to be exclusive?” she asked.
He thought about her reputation, of dating whomever she pleased, whenever she pleased, and understood that so much of her public persona wasn’t true. “I don’t want you to run off to any of your other pop stars or actors.”
“You think I do that?” she asked him, eyebrow raised.
“I think that you like to make people think you do.” He stroked her bare arm. “I want you, and only you, and I want you to be loyal to me.”
“Or...? What will you do?”
He growled and rolled her on her back, climbing atop her so they were nose to nose. “I’ll punish you.” He nudged her nose with his. “And don’t lie,” he said, a slow smile spreading across his face. He pressed a bit harder against her. “And you know what happens when you lie.”
“I’ll be punished,” she breathed.
“That’s right.” He pressed harder against her, as his own cock came to life again. He slid between her legs, poised and ready to enter. “So? Tell me you’re going to be mine, and only mine.” He nudged her and she sucked in a breath, but her eyes never left his.
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