She blew out a breath, muttering to herself, “I need help, but the only person I’d ask is the one person I can’t.”
21
CONNOR
AFTER ARRIVING WITH ten minutes to spare until their appointment with the museum’s director, he and Faith toured the facilities.
“I had no idea that this was an old mansion,” she whispered.
“Good use of formerly abandoned property, I think,” he said. “I’m a fan of revitalization, especially when it doesn’t force people out. Can’t always be helped though—that’s the downside.”
“Have you considered going into that?”
He glanced at a painting of Sir Isaac Newton holding an apple. “Who says I haven’t?”
“Your Instagram page, for one. And two, because you haven’t told me you’ve done that.”
“Sponsors of my events wouldn’t think that was very exciting—unless I posed bare-assed in front of a building.”
Faith snorted. “I’d like to see that picture.”
“For your eyes only.” He meant it, too. There was something to be said about pleasing only one woman at a time.
Her smile faded. “I think the director is headed our way.”
He put his hand on the small of her back, pushing her forward. “Take the lead, sweetness. I’m here for moral support and backup if need be.”
“Thank you.”
“Mrs. Montgomery, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Alice Smythe. Congratulations on your recent nuptials.”
“Call me Faith, please. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to speak with me today and thank you for your kind words.”
In his opinion, Faith certainly knew how to start off a conversation that made the other person feel like they were someone important.
The women shook hands.
“I’m so glad to meet the woman behind the design tour. You’ve caught the eye of a few corporations that want do the same sort of thing you planned. I fear you’ve started a trend.” Alice winked at her.
Faith glowed from the praise. He liked her like this, in her element, and comfortable, almost as much as he enjoyed having her in his control. A control that he knew she gave to him, much like an exquisitely wrapped gift.
“That’s wonderful news. Unfortunately, I’m here because the Montgomery Design book is missing.”
Alice stiffened. “I assure you that everything was carefully packed and accounted for before being sent to Paris.”
“Oh, of course. I can tell you’re the type of woman who doesn’t overlook the tiniest of details, which is why I thought you would be the perfect person to speak with first, before I go to Paris and meet with that director. Frankly, I’m a bit worried because he doesn’t have the same reputation as you.”
“Quite so.” Alice took Faith by the elbow, her smile warm. “He’s French... what can you do?”
“Honestly, I have no idea,” Faith replied.
“Let me show you my notes as well as where we prepare and strike down exhibits?”
“That would be wonderful,” Faith said, her drawl thick and sweet like honey. “I heard you ran a tight ship, and I’m so excited to witness it in person.”
Hell, Faith made it sound so fun that he wanted to go, but this was all her. He wanted Faith to feel as if she could conquer the world when all was said and done. He wanted her to keep the job at MI for as long as she wanted to work there, not be forced out because of his need to have her near him.
Faith glanced at him over her shoulder, her eyes dancing as she bit back a smile. He waved her on. “You got this,” he mouthed.
She made a silly face that punched him right in the gut with its adorableness, then turned her attention back to her companion and disappeared around a corner.
Connor shoved his hands in his pockets, biding his time while Faith hopefully found the design book. The minutes ticked by slowly, so slowly that he found himself pacing by the entrance.
“You didn’t tell me you’d be in London.”
Connor spun around slowly, eyeing Addison Chatsworth, a woman he knew nearly as well as Faith.
Until a year and a half ago, they had a standing arrangement of meeting each other’s needs... until he’d grown tired of meaningless sex. Actually, it wasn’t only meaningless sex. He’d ended things with Addie the day after Faith dragged him off a heated concrete patio and lectured him for an hour about the dangers of exposure to cold temperatures while she bathed, dressed, and basically fussed over him like a mother hen.
“Last minute trip.” He nodded at a display of vintage animatronics. “Didn’t know you were a fan of engineering.”
She smiled broadly. “Daddy owns the place. He heard you were in town to meet with some higher-ups at the London branch, so I simply had to track you down.”
“I’m here on business only.”
She stepped closer, her voice lowering to a sultry level. “You could make it your business to meet me at my flat. I’ve had new toys installed. We could play the day away.”
Addison’s erotic invitation didn’t stir his cock at all. In fact, all he could think about was Faith on her knees... and shit... that would have him at attention while giving Addison the wrong impression. “I’m married now.”
“She’s welcome to join us.”
He’d stepped right into that one. “While I appreciate your willingness to include her, I have to confess that I suddenly find myself in the rather trite position of jealous husband. Ridiculous, I know, but the fact of the matter is that her body belongs to me alone, and I refuse to share.”
22
FAITH
FAITH HALTED IN THE middle of the grand room, stunned to find that Connor was not alone. The very familiar-looking, beautiful woman talking with Connor made her stomach twist.
They stood so closely together, their postures so relaxed that Faith knew a relationship was there, or used to be.
Before she married Connor, she didn’t like it, but she did accept the fact that Connor slept with women who were not her. And it wasn’t like she’d been waiting on him either. She’d dated, had boyfriends, and tried to make the two most serious relationships work out. Only they never did because they couldn’t handle that her best friend was a man. Worse, he was a man with a reputation.
Except now they were married. He’d made her demand monogamy from him. He’d vowed to be faithful. He’d sworn to have been celibate for over a year because of her.
She swallowed hard and took a deep breath, slipping back into the shadowy hallway that allowed her to spy on the couple. Her heart pinched so hard that she gasped for relief and found none. Tears filled her throat and eyes. Her nose started to run, and she wanted to run away.
The woman leaned forward, whispering something in Connor’s ear.
Don’t be that kind of woman, she told herself. Be confident and go stand where you belong, at Connor’s side, as his wife.
Faith walked briskly to Connor and Addie, a smile firmly fixed in place. His gaze swung to hers, filled with wariness and yet, he met her halfway, the beautiful woman forgotten.
“What did find out?” he asked, his large hands on her shoulders. When he looked at her the way he did right now, she felt like the only woman who mattered to him.
“It’s not here.”
“Fuck.” He exhaled harshly, then lifted his head. “Would you mind if I introduced to you Addie? I need her to see that you... just please go along with it, okay?”
“Why would I mind?” she asked slowly.
“Because... it might make things weird between us,” he said. “I don’t want that.”
“Introduce away,” she said.
Connor moved, his arm coming around her shoulders to pull her in close. “Addie, this is my wife, Faith. We’ve known each other since we were kids and finally decided to do something about it,” he said.
Addie’s calculating gaze ran over her. “Pleasure.”
“Oh my gosh.” It clicked suddenly where she’d seen
the other woman before. “You were the one photographed in Paris at the exhibit for the design book and made it go viral. Thank you so much for that. You have no idea the kind of response I received. My boss was so happy.”
Addie’s calculating look dissipated, replaced by a friendly smile. “That was your idea?”
Faith nodded. “I thought it would be good for the company.”
“I really enjoyed the interactive displays. I had no idea we had so many technological advances because of MI’s founder’s vision. What an incredibly clever man. Bloody brilliant job, you.”
Faith smiled so big that her cheeks hurt. This was the oddest conversation she’d ever had, mostly because she was having a normal talk with a woman who’d had sex with Connor... and she kinda liked her. Something was seriously wrong with her today—jetlag the likeliest of culprits.
“Thank you. I’m missing a piece from the tour, so Connor and I are taking some time away from our honeymoon to search for it. He’s so sweet to me.” He really was sweet her, always had been, and always concerned about her comfort—especially when she was hungry.
Addie turned her attention to Connor. “I can see why you don’t like to share.”
“Huh?” Faith looked to Connor for clarification. “What don’t you like to share, besides your candy?”
“That was one time. I shared my entire stash with you that night.”
“Only because I refused to be your partner for trivia until you made up for it.”
He began to argue, then stopped himself with a shrug. “You were my secret weapon.”
“Charming story.” Addie touched Connor’s cheek briefly, her light touch making Faith more jealous that she thought possible. “If you change your mind, you have my number.” Then she left in a cloud of sweet-smelling perfume that turned Faith’s jealousy into befuddlement.
Faith turned to Connor. “Change your mind about what?”
“You don’t want to know.”
She raised a brow. “I’m not an idiot. I know the two of you have been intimate before.”
“We’re haven’t been for a while now.”
“Pretty sure she wants that to change.”
He grabbed her by the elbow, propelling her down an empty hallway. “I ended things with Addie over a year ago.”
“Then I can’t complain, can I?”
“Will you hold my past against me?” he asked.
“I never have before.” She scrunched her nose. “Why would I start now?”
He stopped suddenly. “She wanted you to join us.”
Faith’s eyes rounded. “And what did you say?”
“That you belonged to me, and I wouldn’t share.”
Her heart began to pound against her chest. She licked her lips. “Good.”
“Is it?”
She nodded, knowing that what she was about to confess to him would make her sound like she had feelings for him, for years, but she simply didn’t care how she sounded to him anymore. “I’ve never liked sharing you, but before I didn’t have a good reason to put a stop to it.”
Slowly, he backed her into a corner. “How would you have stopped me, sweetness?”
“I would have given you what you needed and couldn’t get from any other woman.”
He dipped his head, his lips close to hers. His breath warming her skin. “You’ve always given me what I needed.”
“Not everything you need.”
“What are you saying exactly?”
“That if we hadn’t been best friends, I would have....” The words got stuck in her throat. His gaze was so intent, so piercing he terrified her. No, not him, her feelings for him were terrifying. “I would have made it in your best interest to only be with me.”
His smile became predatory. “By fucking me.”
She gave him a tiny nod. “Yes, that.”
“I would have made you so dirty.”
Her breaths came in little pants now, her breasts rapidly rising and falling under her sweater. The coat she wore felt oppressively hot, even though it wasn’t buttoned. “I like dirty.”
“You have no idea what dirty is, Faith. The boys before me couldn’t please you. They didn’t know what you needed, what you still need.” He slid his hands inside her coat, fingers trailing up her ribcage to rest under her heavy breasts. Her nipples tightened to hard points. “But I do, and I know about the vibrators you bought. The ones you used when you were so fucking lonely at night.”
“How would you know I bought?” Her face flamed but she kept her gaze on his. “Did you hack into my laptop.”
“If only.” His lips quirked. “You accidentally added one to your wish list. Your public wish list. I took it off for you. I’m bigger by the way.”
Her jaw dropped, both at what she’d done, what he’d done and his comparison. “Well, you don’t know what I thought about when I used them.”
“Tell me, then.”
“I shouldn’t,” she said as her confidence grew. “You’ll think I was a very bad girl.”
“I happen to be a fan of very bad girls with pretty blue eyes, long black hair, and big tits.”
She pressed her hands against him, fingers slipping between the button plackets of his shirt. His stomach contracted at the contact. “I want to touch you everywhere, and then lick everywhere I touched.”
He yanked her to him, his mouth on hers like a ravenous beast as he whispered hot, filthy things between kisses. “I want to fuck you. I want to make love to you. I want to come all over your tits and make you lick my cock clean. I want to bend you over and fuck your tight ass. I want to tie you to the bed, make you crawl to me and finger yourself while I watch.”
She moaned, picturing everything in her mind as he continued on, as his hands moved over her body, caressing her breasts, cupping her ass, and slowly inching up her skirt. “I want to finger you while we sightsee. I want you to suck me off while I take a business call. I want you to sit on my face and scream my name when you come.
“Most of all, I want to take you right now, in the hallway where anyone could see us.”
Her breath caught in her throat and her thighs grew slick. “I don’t have anything on under my tights.”
His nostrils flared, as if he could scent her arousal. “Show me.”
She glanced around, worry threatening to replace the hot arousal and desire he’d inflamed. “I don’t know if I can.”
His nipped at her chin. “That’s because you’re such a good girl who always follows the rules.”
She leaned forward a tiny bit, capturing his bottom lip with her teeth and pulling back until it popped out. “You make me want to break them.”
“Do you think you can follow my rules?”
“I vowed to obey you when we got married.” She’d thought that section of her vows to be archaic, but this... was anything but old-fashioned.
He blew out a curse. “Rule one, I get to touch you wherever I want, whenever I want.” He pinched a hard nipple, making her whimper. “Are we clear, wife?”
“Yes, husband.”
“Rule two—”
Suddenly, Faith’s stomach growled loudly. So loudly, she snorted with laughter and broke the spell he had her under. “I’m so, so sorry.”
He glanced at her stomach, a wry smile playing on his lips. “Not as sorry as I am.”
“I can wait. We can keep doing... this,” she said, her cheeks heating again. She shook her head, threw back her shoulders and attempted to give him a sexy look... and judging by the look on his face, failed miserably. “C’mon, give me another rule.
“All right. Rule that supersedes all other rules: A hungry Faith is an unreasonable, not turned-on Faith, so keep her fed.”
She gasped in mock outrage, even as her pulse slowed to normal levels. She was a total grump when she was hungry. “I am not that bad.”
He cocked a brow. “You’re right.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re a lot worse, but I’ll keep you anyway.” Grasp
ing her hand in his, he led her out to the waiting car. “Let’s head to the hotel so we can order room service.”
Impulsively, Faith leaned over to kiss his cheek. “I had fun back there, just so you know... even though I was hungry the whole time”
He lifted her hand to his mouth, turning it so he could kiss her palm. “So did I.”
TWENTY MINUTES LATER, they were whisked up the elevators with two valets at their sides to a private floor with only two doors.
“Mrs. Montgomery, if you’ll follow me?” The valet led her to the door on the right. “Your luggage is already inside.”
“Thank you.” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the back of Connor’s shirt before the door shut behind him. The valet opened the door, gesturing at her to go inside first. “Should you require anything, simply lift the phone, or use your iPad to make a request.”
She dug into her purse, diving into her wallet and then grabbing at her coat as it started to slip. Finally, she gave up and said, “I don’t want to sound like I don’t know what I’m doing, but I don’t, so can you tell me what a decent tip is?”
Another door opened, one neatly hidden in the wall behind a bookcase. Connor walked inside. He crossed the room and shook the valet’s hand. “That will be all for now.”
He tipped his hat to them and left.
“You’re not required to tip.”
“But you did anyway,” she pointed out.
“Only because you sounded so adorable asking for help.” He leaned against the wall.
“Why do we have two suites?”
“The penthouse was already booked, and I wanted us to have complete privacy.” He exhaled, worry evident in his eyes. “Just in case.”
“In case of what?”
“The press decides to bother us about our sudden marriage.”
“Far be it from me to question your methods.” She tossed her purse in one of the chairs facing an elegant fireplace. “I want to sleep in this room.”
He pushed away from the wall to come stand in front of her. “As you wish, Buttercup.”
Her pulse skittered. “Is it time to eat, yet?”
Seducing the Billionaire's Brother Page 11