Page 29 of Merlot Marriage

Philip keeps talking, saying my name, calling me liefling, but I only answer with gasping breaths and moans, too scared to wake myself from this trance.

Pushing up from my elbows, hands braced on either side of his head, I use the leverage to change the angle of my hips, putting a little extra pressure on my clit at the bottom of each movement, an orgasm building just beyond the tips of my toes.

The next thing I know, I’m on my back, and my eyes fly open in shock. Philip holds himself above me with one arm, his other hand holding my chin so I can’t turn my head. Can’t escape the look on his face.

His eyes are locked on mine, intense and dilated.

His eyebrows are furrowed, like when he’s hurt.

A muscle flickers in his jaw from his gritted teeth as he growls out a single word, breaking through my selfish bubble. “Wife.”

He punctuates his statement with one hard roll of his hips against mine, shattering me into a thousand pieces.

Philip’s face has transformed from hurt to smug as I come back to myself, and I wonder if I imagined it in the first place. “So that’s the name that got your attention, huh? And here I thought you were going to smack me for using it.”

“I still might.” I lift one hand off the bed, moving it toward his arm in slow motion. He watches it with an intense stare, quirking one eyebrow at me when I stop inches from his shoulder.

“You won’t.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I know you, Ophelia van der Merwe-Moore.” He’s still nestled between my legs, and I can feel every hard inch of him against my aching center. If that orgasm was a warm-up, a sample of what he could make me feel if we go through with this, I’m in trouble.

Philip leans down and kisses me, his teeth pulling gently on my bottom lip. The not-quite-pain brings me back to focus on our conversation. “I thought you said you were being brave? If you want to be brave, be here. Be in the moment with me.”He kisses me again, deeply, his tongue swirling against mine, reminding me how right it feels. “Don’t pretend you haven’t thought about this a thousand times before.”

It’s my turn to raise an eyebrow at him. “I haven’t.”

“Bullshit.” He grins to take the sting out of his accusation. “I have,” he admits, his grin turning soft.

The pieces of me that had gone all soft and gooey post-orgasm flinch. “Don’t ruin this. Don’t change everything on me now. I don’t want to lose my friend.”

The idea that this has all been a ploy to eventually win me over is an unwelcome intruder, but I push it away.Istarted this.Icame into his room. Philip was going to let it go, not pursue anything. He’s the one wanting reassurance from me, not the other way around.

“You won’t.”

“Promise?” I hate how unsure I sound, but I need to know.

Philip sighs and rolls off me, reaching down to adjust himself as we both stare at the ceiling again. “I promise. But if this is as far as this goes, I need you to walk out of this room right now.”

He shifts on the bed, propping himself up to face me, his head resting on his fist as he stares hungrily down at my naked body. It takes all my self-control not to pull the blanket over myself, but I suck in a breath, put on my metaphorical big-girl panties, and leave myself bare.

The bedding rustles as I roll onto my side, mimicking his pose, and stare back. We look at each other in silence. Philip’s eyes trace over my skin, burning a path along my body.

Finally, I break the quiet. “And if I stay?”

“Then I’m going to find out exactly how you taste when you come on my tongue. And then what your lips feel like wrapped around my cock, before I finally find out what your pussy feels like. And I will still be your best friend after.”

We can do this. Have sex and still be friends. This doesn’t change how there’s a good chance we’ll end up far apart by the time we get jobs. And it doesn’t change the fact that once his green card is secure, we’ll be getting a divorce.

It’s just sex.

So I pull him on top of me, our legs tangling as I press my lips to his. I lose myself in his taste, the rough scruff on his chin, and the feel of his fingers sliding up my arm. Weaving his fingers through mine, Philip holds my arm above my head while he commands my mouth. His other arm slides beneath my shoulder, his fingers wrapping over it from behind.

Holding me still, he breaks away from my lips to trail kisses down my jaw and neck, occasionally nipping at the skin. He keeps kissing back and forth across my collarbone, dipping lower and lower with each pass until he’s grazing the upper curve of my breasts.

“Tease,” I mutter, stretching up to kiss the tips of his fingers. When he doesn’t respond by taking my aching nipples in his mouth like I want, I bend my elbow, bringing his hand to my mouth. Sucking his thumb between my lips makes him pause.

“Oh god, Ophie,” Philip groans against my tender skin.

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