He touched me, and I softened. He kissed me, and I groaned. He delighted me with the slip of his tongue, and I was lost.
I loved Nicholas Bennett—I loved him more than the Atwood land, more than the legacy left by my father and brothers, more than the money and the fame of our families. And not because I’d sacrifice everything that was me to be with him, but because he’d do the same. Because it didn’t matter if we were Atwood or Bennett.
We were together. All of us.
The heat of his tongue swept through me, building deeper, hotter. I drew him to my lips as my body shuddered. One flick of his tongue wasn’t enough.
His clothes slipped away. As I softened, every bit of him hardened, including the part meant most for me. His muscles, his abs, his voice, everything tensed with raw confidence and a quick possession. The swelling of my body was made by him, but the masculine victory was tempered by how he looked at me in such awe and adoration.
“Promise you’ll stay with me, Sarah.”
I’d promise him anything while my pulse raced and my core demanded more of his touch.
And I’d probably keep those promises too.
Despite the warnings and the fears and the darkness, I’d stay with him until the end.
However quickly it would come.
He lay beside me, his hand over my tummy. His cock sunk into me. I closed my eyes, and the thickness only tightened the need inside me. For once, his breathing shuddered more than mine. I loved hearing his quiet grunt, the not-so-hidden profanities that destroyed the composure of a man as powerful as Nicholas Bennett when he thrust within the woman he loved.
He was as gentle as he could be, but his touch was never rough, only demanding. The simple, desperate movement that offered so much but took even more. I mewed, matching his intensity, resting against the heat of his chest. His hands caressed every part of me, tickling over my breasts, my tummy, and finally in the crest he claimed.
I flinched as he rubbed my swollen clit. The sensation overwhelmed me into shocked shivers of pleasure. Neither of us would last, but we weren’t savoring. I needed that burst, the quick blending of passion. A promise of everything warm and wild.
He pinched my clit as I tensed, clenching against his thickness. The first jet of his heat within me caused my own peak, and I clutched his arms, the bed, my own body.
We shuddered together in a shared, perfect pleasure.
A perfect trust.
And I knew what it meant. Trust was my most reckless sacrifice of all, and letting him love me the most dangerous promise I’d ever make. My heart was his to cherish or shatter.
It wasn’t a weakness to love, but it took so much strength to survive.
We rested, panting, loving. For the first time, I let myself imagine that this would be our reality. Our few delicate moments could stretch beyond stolen hours or days and last for a lifetime.
Nicholas sighed, pulling from me despite my soft protest.
“We’re supposed to be at my party,” he said.
“You’re just lucky I didn’t name myself CEO of the Bennett Corporation.”
“Exceedingly fortunate.”
We dressed quickly. No powder or makeup hid the flush over my cheeks. We arrived only an hour late, well within the earned grace period of a Bennett. The Atwoods were usually given two hours until high society questioned us, but who was counting the seconds?
The Bennett Corporation spared no expense when celebrating the most monumental change in the company’s history. A completely altered board and new CEO meant one of the fanciest and most exclusive country clubs opened its doors for a night of dining, dancing, and reckless drinking.
A full-scale orchestra blared classical music, and every important person with a well-known family on the West Coast joined in the cacophony of money, power, and celebrity.
Reed greeted us with a broad smile and edged us from the well-wishers for a moment of privacy.
“And just where have you two been?”
Nicholas accepted a drink and toasted his brother. “I showed Sarah Bumper’s nursery.”
“I hope I get the encore tour.”
I blushed, wishing I had something stronger than ginger ale to endure the hungry stares of my two step-brothers. Someone was missing. I searched through the tuxedos and evening gowns.
“Where’s Max?” I asked.
Reed shrugged, attempting to look carefree. He failed. “Haven’t seen him. He’s probably coming later.”
Or not at all. Reed didn’t need to make excuses for his brother.
We parted as Senator Mackin arrived to shake Nicholas’s hand. The greying, walking/talking suit beamed an elect-me personality. He wagged a finger.
“Ms. Sarah Atwood. I remember you from when you were just a little tyke.”
“Most people do, sir,” I said.
“Certainly not little now.”
I glanced down. I wasn’t that big, and Bumper would probably be petite. The dress did accentuate the bump. I thought I looked rather cute.
“I should congratulate you, Ms. Atwood,” he said.
Nicholas held my hand. “Thank you, Senator.”
What the hell was he doing?
The realization took a moment to brighten the senator’s face, but the shock remained. At first, I prepared for the scandal, the dreaded word step-brother. Instead, he laughed.
“An Atwood and Bennett baby?” he hooted. “Jeez Lousie, that’s gonna be the most powerful kid in California. Boy or girl?”
“Boy.” We both answered quickly, reflexively.
“Well, congratulations! I feel like I ought to start my campaigning now. In thirty years that little boy is going to own us all.”
He shook Nicholas’s hand again before parting to chase either a waitress or the drinks she carried. I tugged Nicholas to my side before he dared to slink away.
“So…” I perked an eyebrow. “We’re just…telling people then?”
“Why not?” he said. “Sarah, I love you. And I love Bumper. And the truth will come out soon enough. Why not celebrate it?”
“Celebrate it?”
“We’re here, aren’t we?” he shrugged. “Surrounded by everyone powerful and influential. It’s a perfect opportunity to reveal it.”
I meant to frown, but the tingle of excitement buzzed through me.
He was right, but Nicholas didn’t see the true opportunity. We were here, celebrating his ascension to the top of the Bennett Corporation, succeeding his father and seizing his empire. Nicholas had the power, the company, the heir.
And I had him.
It was the perfect opportunity to announce our blessing and twist a knife that already dug into Darius’s heart.
Now, the bastard had no family. No company. Absolutely no meaning left in his life. Everything Darius once prized in the world was lost to me. Even his heir held my hand as he made his rounds to visits friends and business associates.
“Ms. Atwood!” A balding man, flushed by too many drinks, shook my hand and grinned at Nicholas. “Paul Baxtor. Vice-President of Research and Development at the Bennett Corporation.” He exhaled, smiling wider as he looked me over. “I read through your work, Ms. Atwood. You are…absolutely brilliant!”
He knew how to flatter me. “Thank you.”
“I am so grateful for the opportunity to work with you. We will make history, you and me. With your intelligence and understanding of these genomes, the world is going to change.”
The damn hormones. Nicholas thanked him for me as I choked on my own pride. I fanned my face to suppress the weepy tears.
“Let’s get you something to eat,” he said.
“Hear that?” My sniffle became a giggle. “Change the world. Me. All this time you Bennetts were trying to make an heir when you could have had me instead.”
“Hindsight is 20/20.”
I shook my head as a passing server offered a variety of shellfishes and seafoods. Not good for me at the moment, not a particular favorite otherwise. I aimed for a cracker with cheese though I really wanted a snow cone. I managed to find crushed ice at the bar and some soda just as the crowd cried for a speech.
Nicholas was a lot of things—handsome, confident, devoted. He was also a Bennett. His arrogance masqueraded as charm, but the world hadn’t offered him everything he dreamed. Instead, he took it. Seized it on the back of a motorcycle, seduced it from an enemy, and stole it from a father who no longer deserved the respect of his son.