Chapter 11 Chapter eleven
Charlotte shoved him away and struggled out of the viselike strength of his arms. Frantic, she scooted away and sat up. She pulled her knees against her and wrapped her arms around them, as if it would afford some sort of protection against the formidable man in her bed.
“You’ve lost your mind.”
He sat up as well, but fortunately allowed her to keep the distance between them.
“It’s the perfect solution.”
“No. It’s not. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. And in case that’s not clear, no.”
She wasn’t ready. Her entire future—away from Houston—pursuing her dreams was waiting. She couldn’t allow anyone to derail her.
“I’m not marrying anyone. Especially you.”
His nostrils flared, and she trembled, knowing she’d well and truly pissed him off.
The world closed in on her. By going to bed with him, she’d been ensnared by the steel trap that was Maverick Pierce.
He reached for her wrist, and claustrophobia closed around her, triggering a need to run. She leaped from the bed so hard that her knees wobbled when she touched the floor.
“Damn it, Charlotte. Listen to me.”
He raked a hand down his face, man and fury, naked, his cock hard, and all his muscles and sinews coiled tight, ready to spring.
“Stay where you are!”
She raised her hand.
“I mean it. I need some space.”
Her heart thundered so loudly in her ears that it drowned out all other sounds. She hurried across the room to snatch up the thick robe provided by the hotel. With shaking fingers, she knotted the belt.
She backed up against a wall. To his credit, he stayed where he was, even though his jaw was set in implacable lines and temper burned in his eyes. She shuddered.
“Please, come here so we can talk.”
He’d dropped his tone, removing the threat and making the words an invitation.
“No.”
Charlotte refused to be swayed by his skilled vocal inflections.
“It’s time for you to leave.”
“I’m not sure I was clear,”
He countered, words still measured, not betraying the emotion that was conveyed by the rapid tic in his temples.
“We’re getting married, Charlotte. We’ll need to work out the details.”
Was he deaf? She glared at him as she shook her head.
“This isn’t the eighteen hundreds, Mav.”
Hysteria bubbled through her, making it impossible to breathe.
“You don’t have to protect my virtue.”
“Of course I do. I saw you at the club, then took your virginity.”
“Stop it. Please. You didn’t take it. I gave it. There’s a huge difference.”
Why had she slept with him? Any other man would have been happy to fuck her and leave her.
“I make my own decisions.”
He shrugged.
“I warned you before I took you to a private room.”
“I don’t want to get married.”
Especially to an overbearing alpha male. No matter how sexy.
His fist was clenched, visible proof of the effort it took for him to stay where he was.
“I’ve heard all about you. What about me?”
Him? She barely contained her shock. He was destroying her life and was concerned about himself?
“This isn’t about you.”
“Yeah. It is. I won’t get over you, Charlotte.”
Knocked in the solar plexus, she gasped.
“Give me ten minutes,”
He asked.
“Then, if you want, I’ll leave without another word.”
Charlotte knew what was good for her. And that meant she shouldn’t be in the same room as him. He was far too tempting, and she responded to him on an elemental level—a survival of the species urge. Every part of her wanted him.
His admission that he wouldn’t get over her rooted her in place.
“I’m honored you chose me, Charlotte.”
“It was just sex.”
“One more crack like that, and I won’t be able to keep my hands off you. I’ll prove how damn wrong you are.”
She tried to take another step back, but she couldn’t. Instead, she put a hand on her heart, as if she could protect it.
“But you already know that, don’t you?”
His words were a whisper, a challenge. He saw her lies and took a scalpel to them.
“Mav…”
“Fucking admit it, princess. You like my kisses, the way you get lost when we see each other. And you were alive in a way you’ve never been when my cock was inside you.”
She forced herself to focus on his face and not his honed abs, the hand that had held her in place over his lap as he spanked her, his damnable cock. The problem with that was his lips. She wanted them on her. He might be irresistible, but that didn’t mean they should spend the rest of their lives together.
Marriage wasn’t in her immediate future. She needed to finish her last semester at school, then establish her career, maybe buy a condominium or a house. When—if—she accepted a proposal, it would be from a man she’d spent a lot of time with and knew well. They’d have similar interests and shared vision for the future. She was looking for a deep, abiding love, such as her parents had.
Their years of infertility and miscarriages hadn’t driven them apart. Instead, the struggle had bound them more closely together. They supported each other through the tough times, and they celebrated each joy along the way. They’d dated for years before marrying.
“All right,”
She conceded.
“We have insta-lust. Which you seem to equate with some sort of misplaced sense of obligation.”
If she’d had any idea he would stake a claim on some moral high ground, she would have locked her virginity up in a chastity belt.
“It’s more than some fleeting attraction that’s going to be satisfied by us going at it a couple of times. And there’s no misplaced anything. Admit it.”
Her legs lost strength, so she moved to an armchair to sit down.
“I’m a possibility thinker, Charlotte. And I see the start of something good here. We could make a good team. An excellent one, even. You have talents that Maverick Media needs and that I value.”
“You’re not listening to me.”
“I have eight minutes left.”
It seemed to have escaped him that she actually hadn’t agreed to his request. He was a rel
entless force of nature.
“This is an opportunity for both of us.”
“Is that what I am to you?”
Her skin prickled.
“An opportunity?”