Pausing in the doorway, Silvia wore a red body-clinging dress and matching lipstick. Black hair, black eyes, she looked like Satan’s mistress. He hid his repulsion and pretended not to notice her.
She approached his chair, placing one strappy heel before the other. Heel to toe, heel to toe, she really put a lot into that walk. Always trying too hard. This time, it was a waste of effort.
“Good evening, handsome.” She lowered into the seat beside him.
He sipped his drink, brushed imaginary lint off his suit jacket. Then he gave her his attention. “Good evening.”
At the edge of his periphery, her key card hung from the front of her dress by a claw clasp. The same clasp that attached his plastic card to his pants pocket.
The cards looked identical. A swap should be effortless.
She leaned in, giving him an eyeful of plumped-up cleavage. Heavy mascara lined her lashes, hooding a gaze that darkened with hesitant hunger. She wasn’t certain of his interest. Hell, he’d teased her enough over the past couple of days to leave her hot and bothered and unsure about everything.
“Why didn’t you leave with your new purchase?” She trailed a finger along his arm.
“I have unfinished business here.” He raked his gaze down her body and lowered his voice into a suggestive caress. “Something I want.”
“If that’s true, why did you spend three million dollars on another woman?”
“Because I can.”
“But why her?”
“The one I want said she couldn’t be bought.” He traced a finger along the curve of her jaw.
Her breath caught. “For that much money, my brothers would’ve made an exception.”
“Good to know.” He bit his lower lip in a way that women seemed to love. “I might make another offer, but I always sample expensive things before I invest in them.”
“Is that right?” She purred, an actual feline sound in the back of her throat, and rubbed her face against his touch like a contented cat.
He wanted to backhand her, which, even for him, exceeded his tolerance of violence. He adored women and treated them as such.
But not this one.
This one, he ached to kill.
Stifling those urges, he reclined in the chair and sprawled his legs in a blatant invitation for her to join him.
She did instantly, crawling over his lap and straddling his hips. Then she touched him, her hands wandering and exploring his body unfettered. He allowed it, biting back bile and guilt.
He’d told Vera he belonged to her, and he meant every word. But Silvia’s key card was hanging against his chest, so close, right fucking there.
“You’re so goddamn sexy.” She slid her palms over his shoulders. “So big and strong and beautifully formed.”
As she groped his muscles and nuzzled his neck, she went on and on about his physical appearance. He barely attended, his focus on his goal, waiting for the right moment.
When her breaths sped up and her eyes clouded over with lust, he knew she was lost in her aching need, thoroughly distracted by her greedy desires.
Without warning, he yanked her tight, bodies flush. In the span of her startled yelp, he unclipped the card from her dress. Her hands flew to his face, her hips abhorrently grinding as he switched the cards and secured his to the same spot on her bodice. Her card went into his pocket under the guise of his knuckles teasing her inner thigh.
She bent in for a kiss.
He captured a hunk of her hair, stopping her an inch away. “I do the kissing, not the other way around.”
Her ruby lips bowed downward into a moue of frustration.
The easy part was done. Now he needed to untangle her from his body before she put her hands on his cock.
He wasn’t hard, not even a little. The very thought of her touching him stirred nausea in his stomach.
Too late.
Her fingers slipped past his guard and caught him between the legs. He didn’t move, didn’t twitch, for fear he would knock her across the room.
“You’re not into this.” Her grimace deepened as she squeezed his limp dick. “Almost as if you’re not into me.”
“I’ve been very straightforward about what I’m into.” He removed her hand and chose his words carefully. “While you match my physical specifications perfectly, you fail to meet other expectations.”
“You like a fight.”
“Always.”
“You want me to struggle and cry while you dominate me.” Her throat bobbed. “You want to rape me.”
No. He didn’t want anything to do with her. “Yes. Brutally.”