Page 26 of London Dynasty

“Any man would like to fuck his wife, especially if she were as beautiful as you are.”

My eyes flashed and found the ground as heat crept over my cheeks.

“Don’t act coy,” he advised. “You must know you’re beautiful. So the answer to your question is no. I want to sleep with you. I plan to sleep with you and so much more.”

“I don’t understand,” I admitted, finally daring to look up at him. This whole night was supposed to be about sealing the deal, but I felt more like I was running in circles. Spencer had sent me spinning—spiraling into a heady state of agitation. My skin felt too tight. It prickled with hot awareness the longer I stayed in his presence.

“Some men get off on forcing women.” He picked an invisible bit of lint off his sleeve before turning his dark eyes on me. “I do not. Quite the opposite, actually. I’d like to fuck you, Kerrigan, but only when you beg me for it.”

I opened my mouth to respond but no words came out. Instead, I swallowed. Spencer rose to his feet and took two steps toward me. There was nothing predatory in his approach. Instead, he moved toward me with a casual ease that said he knew that I wanted him, too. His hands slid into his pockets and he tilted his head, an amused smile curving across his handsome face.

I found myself frozen to the spot, wishing that he would act. I’d known my virginity was a thing of the past when I’d agreed to the arrangement with Tod Belmond. It’s why I had lied about it in the first place. I’d expected Spencer to simply take it based on what I’d been told about the situation. I’d prepared myself for that. Now it was like he expected me to crawl onto a silver platter and spread my legs.

Spencer finally spoke, his voice low as though he didn’t want to be overheard. “Do you know why I have no interest in forcing you?” He walked around me like he was surveying an object in an art gallery. He paused behind me and I felt one finger trace down my bare shoulder.

“No,” I whispered.

He stepped closer, leaving only a small gap between us. His breath was warm on my neck and every inch of my body was aware of him even though the only place we touched was where the pad of his finger still rested on my shoulder. “Ask me to touch you, Kerrigan. Let me show you.”

“Here?” I burst out. “Shouldn’t we go to a bedroom or…”

“I’m not sleeping with you tonight,” he stopped me. “I only want to make a point.”

“Which is?” I breathed.

He leaned closer and whispered in my ear. “That I won’t ever need to force myself on you, because you’re going to give yourself to me in every possible way...freely...wantonly. You are going to measure your life by the moments of pleasure I give you. Now ask me to touch you.”

It was part of the arrangement. I’d known that. I hadn’t expected to actually want him. Somehow it made it worse and better at the same time. Spencer didn’t expect me to sleep with him tonight, which meant my panic attack had been unwarranted. I was torn between feeling stupid, overwhelmed, and hot. God, I felt hot like my body was on fire. Each word he spoke seemed to add fuel to the inferno burning inside me.

“Touch me,” I said. Relief washed over me. I was still burning but now that I’d given him permission, he would extinguish me. But nothing happened.

“You need to ask me,” he repeated, a smile coloring his voice. “Nicely.”

Was he fucking serious? I spun toward him, tripping on my heels and careening into him. He was closer than I expected, my sense of spatial relation completely frazzled by his mere presence. I righted myself quickly and glared at him. “Do you want consent or a fucking engraved invitation?”

“I told you that I like begging.” He stepped back, widening the gap between us, and I fought the urge to go after him.

“I’m not going to beg.” I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Not tonight.” He smirked at my aghast expression. “But you could ask nicely. It’s the polite thing to do when you’re getting to know someone.”

“Or maybe you’re all talk,” I hedged. His grin vanished and I felt a surge of triumph.

“Like I said, fucking you is not a requirement for this marriage,” he said coldly. “It was a pleasure to see you again, Kerrigan. I’m certain our parents will continue to arrange as many of these damned gatherings as they can.”

I balked, watching as he made his way toward the door of the solarium. He wasn’t really going to leave. Was he? Was that it? Was it possible that I could get away with playing pretend until Kerrigan came home and fulfilled her end of the bargain? But the triumph I’d felt moments before faded. I’d worked myself up over tonight. I’d sold my virginity for ten million pounds to a man I’d never met. I hadn’t expected to find myself wishing something had happened between us. I hadn’t expected to want him. This arrangement had an expiration date. Still, there was no way I was going to beg.

But something else was weighing on my mind. If he was leaving, then something must have happened between him and Tod Belmond. “What did you say to my father? He seemed upset by you asking to hold off on the announcement.”

Spencer paused at the door and turned to me with cold, hard eyes. There was no smile on his face and his confidence now sent an icy chill down my spine. “I told him that I’d like to get to know you better before I agree to marry you. That’s what I told your father. He’s given us two weeks, but then both our families will expect to make this public.”

“You want to get to know me?” I asked, startled by the idea that Spencer had expectations that felt too much like romance.

“Yes, I’d like to get to know you. I’d like to know what’s going on in your head when you watch the room with those wary eyes. And I’d like to fuck you,” he added darkly. “Is that a problem?”

I swallowed and shook my head.

“Good. Now, that we’ve settled that. I have a request to make of you,” he said. “Tonight, when your hand is between your legs and you’re touching yourself, remember that it could have been me.”