Chapter 3
Our cohabitation officially began.
To keep up my sweet, well-behaved wife act, I got up early every morning to make him breakfast.
And of course, I snuck in a little mischief on the side.
For instance, I'd put on one of his white dress shirts, the hem barely covering the tops of my thighs, my legs bare underneath.
Every time I came out of the kitchen with eggs and toast, I caught the exact moment Alexander's back went stiff.
He'd sit at the table with the newspaper, not reading a single word of it, and pretend to be the picture of dignity.
"Honey, breakfast is ready," I said, setting the plate in front of him. I bent over on purpose, and gravity eased the collar open just enough to show a hint of, well, cleavage.
His breath stopped for half a second.
I watched his knuckles turn white around the newspaper.
The little devil in my head had its hands on its hips, cackling.
Oh, he could keep pretending all he wanted!
I'd see how long he could hold out.
He slammed the paper down and shot to his feet, the chair legs screeching across the floor.
"I'm done. I'm going to the office."
He pretty much made a run for it.
I watched him bolt, then sat down in a fantastic mood and hummed my way through the whole breakfast.
These little games were played out every single day.
Sometimes, when I handed him a file, I'd let my fingertips graze the back of his hand.
He'd jerk back like he'd been shocked, then look at me with a hunger he was barely holding down, like I was a five-star meal and he was a monk who hadn't eaten in a month.
Sometimes, during a movie at night, I'd pretend to fall asleep with my head on his shoulder.
His whole body would lock up like a slab of stone, and he wouldn't move a muscle until the credits rolled and I "woke up," and only then would he let out a long breath of relief.
I was having the time of my life.
I loved watching him lose control over me, watching him want me so badly it drove him half crazy while he held himself back with everything he had.
It fed my wicked little heart.
That all lasted until one particular night.
We went to a corporate cocktail party together.
It was my first public appearance as Alexander's wife.
Alexander kept me at his side all night, blocking every leering look and every drink somebody tried to push on me.
One drunk, greasy executive named Sam Warren tried to get handsy with me, and before his fingers got anywhere near me, Alexander had his wrist in a lock.
"Mr. Warren." Alexander's stare could have killed a man. "You think you get to touch my wife?"
Judging by the grip, I figured Sam's wrist was about to crack.
In that moment, looking at the tall, broad back shielding me, my heart took off racing, and I couldn't stop it.
The car was quiet on the way home.
I kept sneaking looks at him. He drove with his eyes on the road, his profile hard and cold in the dim light.
But I knew he was angry.
The air around him was colder than the Arctic Circle.
Back home, he shrugged off his suit jacket without a word, yanked his tie loose, and walked straight into the bathroom.
Soon the shower was running.
I stood in the living room, not sure what to do with myself.
It was a long time before he came out.
He had nothing on but a towel around his hips, and water ran down the ridges of his abs and disappeared into that mysterious region below.
He had an eight-pack and a V-line straight out of a magazine.
I swallowed hard.
That body was a walking sin.
I was wet again.
Before my brain caught up, he was standing right in front of me.
Steam and heat and the scent of him wrapped around me.
"Lily," he said, his voice hoarse. "Do you have any idea how close I came to losing it tonight?"
"Losing it over what?" I was so nervous I could barely get the words out.
He didn't answer. He reached out, caught my chin, and tilted my face up to his.
His eyes held a tidal wave, a madness held down so hard it was about to break loose.
"I wanted to kill him." He bit off each word. "That man who tried to touch you. I wanted him gone from this world."
My heart clenched.
"And then." He paused, his eyes like they could swallow me whole. "I wanted to hide you away somewhere only I could ever see you."
His thumb dragged across my lips, burning hot.
"I wanted to do this to you."
The second the words left him, he bent his head and kissed me hard.