I swallowed and kept calm. Despite my will, my heart raced. I wasn't sure why, but he broke his silence.

Slowly, he walked toward me around the desk.

When he approached, I reminded myself why I was there. I doubted it was sex.

This thought broke the strange spell he had cast on me, and for a moment I was free of his gravitational pull.

"You're rude," I said. "You want to marry me but haven't asked my advice. "

My words only made him tighten his eyes. At the spot where most people stop and respect personal space, he took two more steps.

I could smell him as he loomed over me. Cool and calm, like ice, but with the rich tang of his skin. A man's odor.

Already racing, my heart sped up. Blood pressure rose. It was inches away. If my tits were bigger, I could've inhaled and brushed them on his chest.

I vaguely thought, This is not going well. Slippery. Other ideas emerged, like kiss him!

A smile returned, and he lifted an arm. I thought he was going to crush me, so my heart leapt.

He pointed to my left, though.

"Sit."

I attempted to calm down. My heart was racing. I wasn't sure why he suddenly moved, but he did.

He walked slowly around the desk to me. He walked gracefully.

As he neared, I reminded myself why I was there.

This idea broke the peculiar spell he had cast over me, and for a moment I was free from his gravitational pull. His fragrance surrounded me. It was chilly and peaceful, like ice, but had his skin's deep flavor. Manscent.

My heartbeat doubled. My heartbeat quickened. We were inches apart. If my tits were bigger, I could have brushed them against his chest.

He smiled and raised his arm. My heart soared when I believed he'd crush me.

But he merely pointed left.

I whirled, smacked his shoulder and stomped to the couch. I had to conceal a gasp, his touch shot electric impulses through me.

I flopped down on his superbly equipped couch and rested one flip-flopped foot on the table. I liked my chipped toenail polish.

Luke King was still. He surveyed me coolly from his office's center.

He squinted at me. I sat awkwardly on his couch, horny. Finally, he walked over.

Instead of sitting on the opposite couch, he sat next to me and crossed his legs, revealing his suit pants' beautiful lines.

I didn't want to show him I was uncomfortable, so I fished the contract from my handbag.

"So...?" I threatened him with the contract. If he'd been sitting across from me like a normal person, it would have been more effective. Instead, I flapped it beneath his nose.

He smiled again, propped one arm on the couch, and inclined his head.

He answered, "It's a wedding contract."

"I thought your father would tell you"

His body heat spread between us. My shoulder almost touched his chest, and I wished I'd worn a light skirt because I was sure his knee touched mine, but my clay-stained pants were too thick to feel it. My tingling knee sent tremors up my leg. They curled around my thighs' heated apex.

I tried to ignore it. "Yes, but why?"

"And you'll take on my father's terrible debt?"

He pursed his lips, a delicious action. My eyes were pulled to them anyhow. I wanted to drag my tongue down his mouth's seam to open it and battle with his. I licked my lips while staring at his face. I squeezed my tongue behind my teeth and raised my eyes as I realized my mistake.

He looked at me coolly. "Your dad's debt isn't insurmountable," he said. His company has name and contacts. He grabbed the document from me almost absently, his fingers slipping over mine. Over my heartbeat, I heard myself gasp.

Exactly. He dropped the contract and turned to me. His attention landed on my hair, a birdsnest of dark chestnut curls I couldn't control and piled haphazardly on top of my head.

His fingers tangled the hair. It was like he was twisting me up, over, and under. My skin scorched and my lips ached for his kiss. I sought to understand my belly's need.

"You get my father's firm and me.!"

Luke King nuzzled my hair. Even I found this excessive.

I stumbled and grabbed the contract.

First, he seemed astonished. "See whether we're sexually compatible," he said.

"That's presumptuous." My legs shook, but I didn't want to appear weak.

When he grimaced, a line formed between his brows.

"Why would you marry if you didn't sexually desire me?" he asked.

"Getting such things out of the way early may prevent regrettable decisions." He raised his chin and surveyed me. His gaze was like a blowtorch, melting my skin and bones. "I think we'll match well."

I couldn't imagine this man wanting me. I must keep focused.

"I don't need love or affection. As per the contract, a wife would suit my demands."

"Why did you think I'd agree?"

He frowned. "You can analyze the benefits," he continued.

I raged. I said, "Fuck you."

"I know a lot about you," he answered coolly. "You like knitting but abandon projects often. You leave harsh anonymous remarks on other artists' websites. I know you feel horrible enough to anonymously criticize."

"Wh-what? You... stalked me?"

He seemed confused, as though he didn't understand why I asked. " Yes, " he replied.

" If we marry, I should know who I'm marrying."

OMG. OMG. OMG. He knew what?

Luke King pierced me. Everything was his.

"You'd have time to focus on your art, too. No more shoving your products down the stairs because you have to move."

I suffocated. It hurt. Ouch!

As he got closer, I retreated until I struck a floor-to-ceiling window and flattened myself against it.

He touched my cheek, throat, and breasts.

"I thought you would find a couple stipulations in the contract... distasteful," he replied. His voice was dreamy, but I couldn't hear him over the blood in my head.

" Given how much you desire me."

"No," I answered.

His eyelashes moved. When he discovered my nipple, he wrapped his thumb and forefinger around it.

"What did you say?" he inquired.

"I don't want you."

He twisted my nipple.

Painful pleasure raced from my nipple to my clit. My legs buckled when I screamed. Nervous hands dropped purse and contract.

Luke King said, "Don't lie."

He stroked his fingers over my body but avoided my flesh, as if it might hurt him. His kisses traveled over my sweater, waist, and hip. His hands found the delicate wrinkles where my ass met my thighs. He scratched my legs with dull fingernails. They were hardly noticeable through my jeans.

I wanted to put his face in my crotch. I wanted his mouth and cock. I hovered my hands near his hair and ears, frightened to touch him.

His nose grazed my hip and jeans. He stopped at my thighs and inhaled.

He leaned on the glass behind me. His lips caressed my ear and he went closer until I felt his cock in his pants against my belly.

He said, "I can smell you."

"Your pussy begs me to fuck it." His furnace-hot body hovered over mine, and his erection pushed against my stomach.

"Sign the deal and get whatever you want." He massaged his cock over me, almost touching my pussy. My underwear was drenched with juice. His lips brushed my throat, stopping my heart.

Where he touched me, flames licked my flesh. I grasped his shoulders. Under his white linen shirt, he had strong planes and tremendous muscle. My hands clinched as he ran his fingertips along my sweater's hem. Then, slowly, he slipped them under and caressed my stomach.

I tried to stop him. He wouldn't stop.

He pressed his palm on my abdomen and slid his hand under my jeans' waistband and elastic.

I drooped and shoved his hand. He split my outer lips and slid his fingers along my slit, but he didn't touch my swelling clit.

His fingers were coated in my juices. His other two fingers skimmed my slit, but didn't touch.

I tried to trap him with my hips, but he avoided me. He murmured into my skin and scraped his teeth on my collarbone.

He muttered, "Beg me to take you." His voice shook my bones. "Beg me to fuck you on the couch."

I spoke before thinking. I whispered, "Yes."

"Please."

I left my dignity behind as I grabbed my handbag and contract. I didn't straighten my hair before bursting through the double glass doors. Instead, I went for the wooden doors and burst through them.

As I ran to the elevator, I shuffled clumsily. The doors opened when I slammed my hand on the button. I fell in, and they started to fall.

My clitch was exposed as I reached inside my pants and parted my pussy lips. While one hand slithered beneath my ragged sweater and bra strap, I stroked my fingertip furiously in rapid circles to stimulate the nerve endings. To satiate my hunger, I gripped my breasts and tapped my nipple. It seemed as if my body was on fire as my legs collapsed and I lurched against the railing. Sobbing, I let out an audible gasp as my cheeks became heated and flushed.

As I drew fluid from my slippery folds across my clit, my hips collapsed. I startled as I envisioned Luke King's huge, rough hands grabbing hold of me in the dark. When the waves of pleasure slammed into me and threatened to draw me into a deep, hungry ocean, my back arched and I screamed.

My whole body seemed to contract during my orgasm, my hungry passage squeezing around nothing. Insufficient. Insufficient. I couldn't fuck him. I almost sobbed with disappointment as my body spasmed.

Before I could pull my hand out of my pants, the elevator doors opened.

In the foyer, businessmen waited. and I just managed to escape.

In an elevator, I masturbated.

Gulping, I wiped my sticky fingers on the inside of my sweater and left.

I took three wrong turns in the lunch crowd before finding the bus station. I buried my face in my hands and tried to think when I boarded . My fingers smelled like my own juices, reminding me of my salacious behavior. When I got home, my feelings were slim pickings

The next morning, I was nursing a hangover in a lawyer's office.

I was still drunk...

After my encounter with Luke King and embarrassing elevator display, I felt dazed and useless.

I sat down, opened the contract, and read for 10 minutes. I'm a mature problem-solver. My father left me ten voicemails during my meeting with Luke King, which I deleted.

I needed a lawyer, so I went. I wanted to know if it was binding, If I sign.

I had to look up a few to make sure they were correct.

I shifted in my chair as I stared at the contract in my lap. It was illegal. 95 percent sure. If I didn't "play the submissive" in 75 percent of our sexual encounters, he couldn't sue me. Perhaps. He'd keep track? A vision of King bending me over a table and fucking me while recording it made me giggle, then set my cheeks on fire when I remembered he had told me to beg him to fuck me that way.

I liked having a female lawyer. My needs were important.

"GREEN?"

A handsome paralegal stood in the doorway.

I slung my purse and contract over my shoulder. I entered unsteadily.

Lawyers annoyed me. My law-studying friends aren't lawyers. Most became baristas instead of lawyers. My father used the law to exploit people whose only crime was ignorance, need, or poverty.

So I entered Ms. Stock's office with trepidation, and when she smiled and shook my hand, my brain screamed.It's a trap!

"Hello, Ms. Green. "She said. She lacked lawyer's bearings. Her iron-colored hair was white-streaked, and her eyes were dark.

"What, your fiance?"

"Yes. I'm his bride."

She frowned. "Wanna wed him?"

"We had many issues."

Finally, she motioned for me to sit, and I gratefully did. She read the contract opposite me.

She folded her hands over the contract. She was confused. Still recovering from last night's abuse, my stomach clenched and I shrank.

"Miss Green, This contract is unique. I assume your reasons are good, but this contract isn't binding."

"A loophole? Can I marry and divorce him?

Her twisting lips told me her answer wasn't simple. "It's a strict prenup. Divorcing Mr. King won't help. If he wants certain freedoms and a contract, he may end the marriage."

"Prenuptial agreements cannot enforce sexual provisions because one spouse's refusal would make the sexual interaction rape, and the law cannot condone nor enforce rape. This clause is invalid if King sues you."

"Would that nullify the contract?

"Nope. Severability clause. Mr. King can end your marriage for any reason if you sign this contract, and you'll only have your assets. Both sides need loyalty. You'll get a personal, job, and project allowance, You'd get little if King dies. He may have included a clause saying if you have sex with another man,you have to pay him a billion times what he offers to you , and nothing you can get even if he dies."

"Bugfuck," I said.

"Miss Green, may I be honest?"

She signed it. "This contract isn't perverted"

"Oh?"

"Yes. I've never seen an animal or human sex clause"

She crumpled papers. " He gives everything you can from him. This marriage could launch your career or make you wealthy. He's the perfect husband. You'd be better off divorced." "Why not if

I rubbed my forehead to think. The logic was bad. I hated nonsense. I wanted her to tell me the contract was invalid. I could have divorced King, saved my mother with his money.

Despite her encouragement, I hesitated.

"No contract charge?"

"I could probably edit it for free.  List me as your prenup consultant if asked.

"No problem," she said. "Adapt if you marry Luke King." She sat up and opened contract page 2. "Divide property"

By the time I got home and showered, I was ready to take on Luke King. I wouldn't accept this. I called Empire Capital to talk to Luke King.

When I discovered I was a VIP in the Empire, I volunteered my name.

"Oh!" I felt terrible for the receptionist who sounded like she was having a heart attack.

"Mr. King is out of the office, I'll give you his mobile so you can call him."

King had given specific instructions to give me his number if I called.

Unnerved, I wrote down his number and hung up.

Second call was less exciting than first.

I phoned Luke, put the phone on speaker, and hid it so I wouldn't hang up, take a taxi to the airport, and purchase a one-way ticket to Lyon. After two rings, his deep voice said, "Luke King."

I was speechless. All the things I wanted to say became jumbled, and I couldn't decide where to start.

He said, "Miss Green."

I said, "Why are people so nice?"

He added, "I told them we may marry."

I burst into tears. "What?" I hadn't told my closest pals, and he'd sent a company-wide letter.

I twitched my head towel nervously. Hearing his voice, even through my mobile phone speakers, brought back memories of yesterday, when he trapped me in his office and shoved me against the wall.

"Have you considered my offer?"The hand fiddling with the towel on my head moved to the sensitive spot between my thighs.

I didn't pull away. His deep voice made me slippery.

"I saw a lawyer," I said.

He responded, "Good." "Happy. Signing legal papers requires legal guidance.

Yeah. "She said to marry if the sex was fantastic. "While I chatted on the phone, my middle finger circled my clit. "Uh-huh. I have edited some clauses."

The stillness was longer than I anticipated this time.

I heard him sigh and rustle. "Let's meet."

"Okay. Where?"

"Lunchtime is near."

"Let's have lunch."

My hand froze and my anxieties soared. "Alright. Where?"

This time, his sneer made me even more uneasy. "I'll send a vehicle"

He hung up before I could finish.

I regarded my phone. I quickly phoned his telephone but got voice mail.

The contract on my coffee table caught my attention. He was submissive, wasn't he?

"Ass!" I remarked aloud, but it was impossible to discern whether I was calling King an ass or remarking on the circumstance.

I leapt up, shedding towel and bathrobe.

He knew my address.

The fact that a fancy-ass black vehicle came up to my low-rent apartment reminded me that he knew where I lived. The thought that he could locate me anytime he wanted gave me the goosebumps.

I inhaled and raised my chin.

Luke King's driver took a tiny double-take when he spotted me.

I don't like to dress up, therefore I had some terrible clothes in college. Blake skirt contrasted with orange top, which showed too much cleavage.

I didn't have time to straighten my hair, but I felt alright.

Driver Cole said, "Ma'am.I'm here to help."

I said "thanks" and entered.

The car's inside was nicer than its beautiful outside. Buttery leather seats stroked my thighs through my fishnets.

"Where are we going?" I questioned the driver.

" Mr. King instructed to keep our lunch plans secret. "

He looked ashamed in the mirror. "I should drive around first," he added.

He seemed disturbed.

I replied, "Don't worry."

I observed the city to relax, but I was more tired than I expected. Yesterday's rash driving put me to sleep. The door waking me awake.

When he said, "Here we are, ma'am," the driver's eyes were sad. I was ecstatic.

He helped me out of the car, and I pretended to repair my clothes and tried to figure out where I was.

I was surprised I wasn't at a fancy sushi bar or French café. I entered.

Inside, Luke King waited. He halted me despite my half-readiness.

Dammit. I'd forgotten how handsome he was.

His broad lips quivered in a faint smile when he saw me, and I felt like his emerald eyes were staring through me.

I tried to flip my hair arrogantly, but my high heels made me wobble.

Luke King grabbed my ass before I collapsed and pulled me close. His sleek, powerful physique pulsed with energy as he looked at me.

He warned, "Be careful." He released me softly.