Page 117 of Snapshot

Dex lifts his eyebrows in surprise. “Not that I’m complaining, but on what? Do we own a Bugatti I have yet to see?” He smirks.

“I paid off all my debt. And my dad’s. It was…a lot.”

“All that money and the first thing you think to do is pay off your parents’ debt?” Dex asks.

I shrug. “What else do I really need?”

He scoots closer, pulling me into his embrace. “This is why you hate it here. Your heart is too good. You’ll never fit in here in my world,” Dex mumbles. “Don’t worry about the money.”

“I am worried,” I say. “I didn’t hold up my end of the deal.”

“Technically, you did,” Dex murmurs against my neck. The familiar swirl of desire brews between my thighs. “It was shorter than a year, but you held the position. Now, the shares are going back to me. It’s done. Money’s yours. And it’s just a drop in the bucket, Len. I’m going to take care of you, your family, andourfamily forever.”

His hand slips between my thighs as he continues to kiss my neck. “I really missed you,” he murmurs. “And fuck, you smell so good.” He grabs my hand and lays it across the bulge in his lap, then heads right back up my skirt, trying to wedge my thighs apart.

Glancing around the room nervously, I try to ward off Dex’s advances. “Wait, Dex, this is your office.”

He takes a brief break from kissing me to flash me a mischievous smirk. “Sure is. My office. My wife. And I want you here. Right now.”

“There are people here,” I insist, struggling to keep my head from going fuzzy as his lips touch all over my bare skin.

“It’s Saturday. We’re alone.” One of his hands is still maneuvering up my thighs, now spread as far apart as my skirt will allow. Dex’s other hand is on the back zipper of my dress, peeling it down.

“What about the executive team? They werejusthere.”

“They’re gone. They left in a hurry. It’s fine.” He grazes my clit with his thumb through my thong, and a tremor of desire surges through my body. But I stop myself before I get carried away.

“Wait, Dex, there’s something I need to tell you about Denny,” I say, clamping my legs shut, squeezing the life out of his hand.

There’s a smirk on his face. Like he’s thrilled I just denied him. “Did you just close your legs on me?”

I nod slowly, once again glancing at the box on the table. “I hate to pile on, but there’s something else you need to know… I don’t know how to say it.”

“Are you leaving me?”

“No,” I assure him with wide, horrified eyes.

“Is it medical? Are you hurt? Is someone else hurt?”

Puzzled, I answer, “No.”

“Then I don’t care right now. We can talk later.”

“Dex…you can’t possibly want sex.”

He glances down at his crotch, proving me wrong. The obvious thick bulge is my clear answer. “Why wouldn’t I want to feel close to you?”

“Because I just fucked your whole company up. You treat me with kid gloves, but admit it, if I were anybody else on theleadership team, you’d be ripping me a new one right now. I messed up. It’s okay if you’re angry with me.”

He scowls at me. “Yeah, so mad,” he says sarcastically, but then he pumps his eyebrows at me. “Bad girl.”

“Dex.”

“What?” he asks with a light laugh. “I’m sorry—you want me to be upset? I can’t. Sure, it’s an inconvenience, but it’s not lost on me that even on my worst days, I’m not alone. Lennox, never forget that all you do is add to my life, not take away. I never needed a business guru of a wife. I just wanted someone who sticks by me even in the worst of times. I wanted a partner… Mybestfriend. You’ve been so patient with me for three years when I was denying how much I actually wanted you. Even more so since we got to Miami and I left you alone. I’m not angry. I’m just grateful you’re still here.”

I cock my head to the side, staring at his handsome face. His light green-brown eyes look a little hazy at the moment. It’s like he’s in the eye of the storm, blissfully unbothered by the wreckage I’ve caused.Is this love?Automatic forgiveness? Problems becomeourproblems. And there are no real consequences as long as we’re together?

“That was a good speech,” I say.

---