The Charmer’s Gambit (Mershano Empire Book 2)

by Lexi C. Foss

  Will pulled back, desire shining brightly in his gaze as he stared down at me. “You don’t trust me yet,” he whispered. “This is not a question of whether or not I want you, because it’s pretty damn obvious that I do.” He pressed his arousal into my lower belly to punctuate his point. “It’s a matter of how I want you. Trust, Rachel.”

  I trembled. Was he right? Did I not trust him? I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. Everything I’d learned about him pointed to him being a good man. I’d so severely misjudged him in the beginning, but he’d slowly chipped away at all the stereotypes I’d unfairly assigned to him and showed me what lay beneath the hefty bank account.

  “I want to trust you,” I said, realizing it was the truth.

  His grin was sad. “I know, but you’re not there yet.”

  “I might never be there,” I admitted.

  He finally released my wrists and pressed his palms to my cheeks. “I’m a patient man, Rachel. And you’re worth the wait.” His lips brushed mine and lingered. I loved the way he tasted on my tongue. Like wine and peppermint. It tingled my senses, leaving me breathless and yearning. “But,” he continued, his mouth still touching mine, “I’m also observant. And I know someone hurt you.”

  I stiffened at his words. He must have felt it, because he kissed me again, softly. His mouth coaxed mine into submission with tentative strokes that stirred emotions deep within my soul. When his tongue entered to dance with mine, I couldn’t deny him. This time he let me wrap my arms around his shoulders and run my nails over the smooth skin of his back. He felt so hot and hard above me. So safe.

  “You will trust again, Rachel.” His words were a whisper against my lips. “You’re too strong not to. But we have to do this right. Because I want more than a night with you.”

  I swallowed. “How many nights do you want?”

  “Oh, darlin’, I want them all.” He kissed me again before I could react to that proclamation. Which was good because I had nothing. I’d only just accepted the possibility of a whirlwind affair, but something long term . . . Was I ready for that? How would it even work? Telling Ryan off tonight was only a temporary solution, a minor reprieve. He was still very much a part of my life, and I knew from experience that this little setback wouldn’t last long. He’d find a way to plow back into my world and ruin everything.

  He could hurt Will . . .

  “Shh,” Will murmured against my lips. “Turn that beautiful brain off and just feel.” His tongue entered my mouth as he palmed my breast. The move was so unexpected that it tore me from my thoughts and threw me into the present. He tweaked my nipple with those skilled fingers, and my bliss scattered all my thoughts.

  “More,” I moaned as my back came off the bed.

  “Yes, ma’am.” He bent to nibble my hard peak through the fabric while his hand trailed down my belly to the apex between my thighs.

  “Fuck,” I panted, eyes closing. “Are we . . . ?” My voice faded into another groan as he massaged a circle against my most sensitive point.

  “I said no sex,” he replied, following the question I hadn’t finished. “I never said anything about fondling, darlin’.”

  “Unfair,” was the only word I could get out as he increased his assault. Then he pulled his hand back, and I cried out in frustration.

  “You’d like me to stop?” he asked, his tone deceptively innocent.

  It took me a moment to catch my breath. All the foreplay and emotions had left me far closer to climax than I ever could have imagined. My panties were soaked, and my nipples ached with need. I palmed his cock through the sweatpants and squeezed, which earned me a hiss from him. Yeah, two can play this game, Mershano.

  “Don’t start something you can’t finish, darlin’.” The warning in his voice sent a rush of heat through me. I liked that tone. And I showed him just how much by stroking him, hard, through the fabric. “Fuck.”

  I grinned at his small slip in restraint. I managed one more caress before he caught my wrist in his hand and put it beside my head again. I expected him to hold it there, but he surprised me by letting go and palming my core again. He gave me no time to react before his lips captured my nipple through the tank top. My resulting scream was part surprise, part need. Because, oh my, he’d only been teasing before. Now he was touching me with purpose. His thumb found my sensitive nub through the yoga pants. I only had a second to recognize how impressive that was before he pressed down and sent pleasure racing through my veins.

  He switched breasts, sucking my nipple hard into his mouth. God, how would that feel on bare skin? I wanted so badly to rip the damn tank top over my head, but my limbs were locked down by my mounting arousal. It built low in my abdomen, coiling so tightly it almost hurt, and I couldn’t help the whimper of need escaping my lips. This was so much better than my midnight sessions with my vibrator. Hell, it was better than any of my previous physical experiences. I’d never felt so pent-up in my life. All I wanted was to explode, and I could feel it, taste it, on the edge of my being.

  Taunting.

  Waiting.

  So close.

  “Come for me, gorgeous.” The words were hot against my lips and followed by a sharp pinch to my clit. It was so unexpected, and startling, that it snapped my restraint in half and sent pleasure spiraling through my lower belly and into my limbs. Will swallowed my scream with his mouth and continued applying pressure where I needed it to prolong my orgasm. It shook me so hard, so deep, that it almost hurt. And then I was kissing him. Hard.

  My emotions took over, demanding I worship him, thank him, for whatever it was he’d just done to me. But as I tried to reciprocate with my hands, he gently grasped them and held them between us. His mouth was relentless against mine, returning my kiss with a fervor I felt throughout my being. I had no idea how long it went on—minutes, hours?—but eventually the urges subsided, leaving me more exhausted than I ever remembered being.

  When I yawned, Will chuckled and nuzzled my neck.

  “It’s been a long day,” he murmured, affection coloring his tone.

  I curled into him, not wanting the night to end. “Just a little longer.”

  “For as long as you want, Rachel.”

  “Mm-hmm.” I settled my cheek against his shoulder, content to just be near him. Warmth cocooned me as he pulled the blankets around us. How he managed to do that while we were lying on them, I had no idea. I was too lost in the moment to care. Too lost in him.

  He pressed his lips to my forehead, then to my temple. “You’re beautiful, Rachel.”

  I smiled and tried to tell him we were past pickup lines, but it came out as a grumble instead.

  He must have understood some of it because he replied, “You better get used to it, darlin’. ’Cause I’ll never stop complimenting you.”

  Those words followed me into my dreams, where I entered a world of what-ifs and what could be. And for the first time in a very long time, I dreamt of a life without Ryan in it.

  17

  Breakfast Banana

  Male stubble tickled my neck as Will placed an open-mouthed kiss beneath my ear. “Wake up, gorgeous.” His sexy murmur had me stretching against him like a contented cat. The hot arousal pressing into my ass suggested he liked that, or maybe it was having his thigh between mine that he enjoyed.

  Light streamed in through the curtains, confirming I’d spent the night in his bed. I expected that to bother me, but it didn’t. If anything, I felt relieved, which was bizarre. Intimacy didn’t scare me, but Ryan did. Except when I thought of him, all I felt was a mild annoyance rather than fear. That’s new.

  Teeth scraped over my tender skin as Will gently bit my pulse. When he sucked the spot into his mouth, I practically purred. “Mmm, I like this. Learning your tells and finding what makes you tremble.” The arm beneath my breasts tightened as his leg slid upward between my thighs. I fought a moan when he met my core, and quivered. “Just like that,” he whispered.

  I found myself beneath him not a second la
ter, staring up into eyes filled with dark intent. My heart thundered in my chest at that look because I recognized it. Determination laced with desire. I was trapped and he knew it.

  “Do you know what I do when I find a new subject or activity that excites me?”

  I swallowed and shook my head, unable to speak. Not with him staring down at me like that.

  “I master it,” he murmured. His lips brushed mine in a gentle kiss that belied the heat radiating between us. “You’ve been warned.” He rolled off the bed and stretched his arms over his head, showcasing all those delicious muscles and his impressive arousal. I wanted to rip those gray sweatpants off, trace all those hard muscular lines with my tongue, and taste every inch of him. If that bulging outline was anything to go by, he would certainly be a mouthful. Yum.

  “We have a conference call in fifty minutes with Jeff and Janet; otherwise, I would take you up on the offer in your eyes.” He gripped my chin and forced me to meet his gaze. “I’m going to take a shower. I suggest you do the same and meet me downstairs in thirty.”

  “So bossy,” I replied, finding my voice. It came out a bit breathier than I wanted, but the words were clear.

  He traced my lip with his thumb and grinned. “We’re just gettin’ started.”

  I liked the sound of that. He left me on the bed, staring after him. I couldn’t help it. The man had a fine ass.

  “Twenty-eight minutes,” he said when he reached the bathroom. He nailed me with a look over his shoulder that sent heat rushing to all the right places. “Don’t be late, Miss Dawson.”

  “I wouldn’t dream of it, Mister Mershano.” Not because of the taunt in his gaze, but because I was never late on principle.

  His chuckle teased my senses as he disappeared from view. That man was doing things to me I never thought possible. Self-assurance always turned me on, but never like this. Will took it to a whole new level by adding his alpha tendencies to the mix and creating an intoxicating persona I stood no chance against. I’d fought it for all these months, determined to dissuade him, yet he’d only managed to deepen my attraction. To the point where I wasn’t sure I wanted to say no at all anymore.

  What would he do if I joined him in the shower?

  It was so tempting. I could hear the spray against the tiles and knew he was in there naked and taking care of his arousal. I shivered at the image of him taking his hard cock into his hand and stroking himself to climax. All those muscles bunching, his full lips parting on a groan meant for me . . . My thighs tensed as sensations built low in my belly, curling tight with the indecent fantasy flashing behind my eyes. The urge to touch myself, just as I knew he was, overwhelmed me. He’d taken me to a high last night unlike any other, but it was like he’d lit my blood on fire. I needed more, so much more, and he’d denied it this morning.

  Because of a meeting.

  My eyes drifted to the clock on his nightstand to find ten minutes had passed already.

  “Damn,” I muttered, my libido cooling. The last thing I needed was to be late for my own debriefing with the partners. It took considerable effort to leave his bed, but my desire to keep my job proved a healthy motivator.

  Every part of my body felt alive and more sensitive than usual. When I pulled off my clothes, my nipples hardened to a painful degree and my legs trembled. The water felt like daggers against my burn but massaged other parts of my body in interesting ways. Especially when it dribbled over my belly to the apex between my thighs. Will had awoken something inside of me that did not want to be put to rest, which was likely his intention all along.

  Determined, insufferable man.

  I soaped myself clean with light, hesitant touches and rinsed my hair. It did nothing to put out the fire brewing deep inside, nor did dressing in my charcoal-gray skirt suit. My pale blue blouse seemed to stick to my clammy skin, and my lacy bra abraded my tender skin. By the time I walked downstairs, I was a hot mess, while Will looked the epitome of sexy casual in his black slacks and white button-down. The sleeves were rolled to his elbows, and his collar was open since he’d forgone the tie. My eyes trailed over every inch of him. Fine didn’t even begin to cover it.

  “You look hungry,” he murmured. “Banana?” He held up my usual breakfast of choice, but his innocent tone and gesture were not lost on me.

  “Funny,” I grumbled, grabbing the fruit from his hand.

  “Someone needs coffee.” He pushed over a fresh mug. “You were two minutes late, by the way.”

  “My hair wasn’t cooperating.” A partial truth. The hair dryer had been too hot this morning thanks to my hypersensitized skin. It’d taken an extra five minutes to finagle a solution, which resulted in the partial bun at the back of my head. “Besides, our meeting starts in fifteen minutes.” Plenty of time. I peeled the banana and took a bite while he watched me over his coffee mug.

  “I look forward to you doing that to my cock.”

  I choked on the fruit in my mouth and had to force myself to swallow. Holy shit. He said that so casually, like he was commenting on the weather or something.

  “How are you feeling about the meeting?” he asked in that same tone, completely unfazed by my reaction or the fact that I was openly gaping at him. “Ready?”

  I took a fortifying sip of my coffee while he observed in that relaxed way of his. How he managed to maintain nonchalance after saying something like that, I would never know. Because my face was on fire. He said nothing as I continued holding my cup like a lifeline and taking the caffeine into my body. Why I thought drinking a hot liquid would help was beyond me. It only seemed to sizzle my insides.

  “So this is you flustered?” He sounded so amused. “It’s cute.”

  “Jackass,” I managed.

  His dimples flashed. “There’s my favorite lawyer. You know how much I adore our verbal sparring.”

  “Verbal sparring?” I repeated, my wit returning. “You mean all those conversations where you failed to understand the word no?”

  He brushed his knuckles over my cheek. “You weren’t saying no last night, darlin’. I believe I heard the word yes roll off those luscious lips more than once.”

  And the heat was back. Awesome. Just what I needed five minutes before our conference call. I cleared my throat, forced the banana down my gullet—much to Will’s amusement—and slammed my coffee cup on the table. This meeting could make or break my career, and I wasn’t going to let a little flirtation unsettle years of poised confidence. Even if I did still feel like a furnace.

  “You better behave yourself, Mister Mershano. Or what you just witnessed with that banana is never going to happen to your cock.”

  Excitement brightened his expression, which was the opposite of my intent. “Duly noted, Miss Dawson. Shall we take the call in my office?”

  I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge—I had a feeling I would need it—and nodded. We’d spent a lot of time in his oversized home office this week, both working at his desk and reviewing all the materials Baker Brown put together for the meetings next week.

  The purpose of this morning’s call was to go over any residual questions or concerns Will had. It also served as a way to confirm whether or not I was ready for the meetings next week. If they sensed even the slightest bit of hesitation, I knew one or both of them would join us in France. Mershano Vineyards was too big a client to disappoint, and we were down to the wire with our flight leaving in less than twelve hours.

  I smoothed my hand over my jacket while Will fiddled with his teleconferencing equipment. When Jeff and Janet appeared on his projector screen, I smiled. It was time to knock their socks off.

  18

  Flying First Class

  “So this is how the other half lives, huh?” I’d expected to fly coach to Paris, but Will had other plans.

  We were in a first-class suite; a commercial airline feature I didn’t know existed until today. Standard business class, sure, but this was something else entirely. There were only two other people up here, on
e on each side with their windows, while we sat in the middle in our own little nook that came with curtains for privacy. My seat rivaled an oversized recliner chair, which, according to the video we watched prior to takeoff, would magically transform into a full-length bed after dinner.

  I sipped my second glass of champagne and fluttered my stocking-clad feet. My pumps were the first items I’d stowed in our closet, much to Will’s amusement. He’d tried to convince me to wear jeans for the flight, but I’d refused. This was a work trip first and foremost, and I was determined to dress the part. So he’d worn his slacks and a button-down, saying he didn’t want me to be the only formally clad person on the plane. I had smirked when a man in a business suit entered the private nook to my right, and Will had just shaken his head.

  “You need to decide what you want for dinner,” he said now as he passed me a five-course menu.

  I handed the fancy leather book right back to him. “This is your world, millionaire. Order for me.”

  He arched a brow. “Now who’s being bossy?”

  I shrugged and continued to kick my feet. This jittery feeling had been with me all day. I thought maybe it was elation from our successful call with the firm this morning, but it went deeper than that. My body was ramped up on adrenaline, and I sensed the man to my left was to blame. It didn’t help when he started conversing in fluid French with the blonde flight attendant.

  She popped her slim hip against the wall in front of us and beamed at Will while he ordered dinner in French. Salmon tartare, grilled beef tenderloin, soup, salad, and a dessert. It was enough to feed a small army.

  “Ce sont de très bons choix pour vous et votre femme.” All excellent choices for you and your wife.

  I opened my mouth to correct her, but Will beat me to it.