Page 34 of The Billionaire Submissive
She looked down at the bowl and just breathed in the delicious creamy goodness. He returned with a basket of croissants, drizzled with honey.
“Not fair,” she whispered hoarsely, unable to look away from the sticky, flaky pillow waiting to dissolve in her mouth.
“Your options are simple.” Despite his brisk all-business voice, Donovan picked up his spoon and winked at his friend. “We can, of course, stay here and have a wonderful weekend stuffing ourselves silly with Ricardo’s decadent creations. Or we can walk away together and go home to my condo. The cleaning crew might be done ripping the cherry-stained carpet out and they’re supposed to deliver a new bed later today.”
Ricardo let out a soft whistle and left to get the wine bottle.
“Or I can drop you off at your very safe and boring townhome and never see you again.”
She shot Donovan a fierce look and picked up her own spoon. Staring down at the risotto, she tried not to drool. “I’m not done with you yet, Mr. Moneybags.”
“Then how about every time I try to buy you something, you increase the count. Make me extremely penitent later.” He lowered his voice, letting his desire roughen his words. “And I’ve got so much money, Miss Harrison, your arm’s going to wear out before you can make me sorry I blew it all on you.”
“Hardly.” The first bite was going to be the best. Closing her eyes, she slipped the bite into her mouth and just held the creaminess on her tongue to savor every delicious element. Salty bacon. Smoky cheese. The firm chewiness of the rice. She swallowed and couldn’t hold back the soft moan of pleasure. “I think I need a cigarette.”
Ricardo grinned. “That good?”
“Don’t tell Dmitri I’m cheating on him.”
“I saved the best for later.”
Lilly swallowed another heavenly bite and reached for the wine. “Better than this?”
“His specialty is French pastries,” Donovan said with a wicked grin. “Although I hear he’s created a magnificent dessert he calls the Big Apple Chocolate Silk Pie.”
“Fuck.”
“That’s three, Lilly.”
Chapter Eleven
When she first saw Donovan’s pride and joy, Lilly had shot him a glare and dragged him in close to whisper, “Four.”
I can’t wait to show her the jet, then.
After cruising around the lake for a while, she slowly started to relax. It was a beautiful day, hardly a cloud in the sky, and though water traffic was heavy,Beverlywas big enough they dwarfed most of the other boats. He kept the speed slow and gentle, a seductive cruise along the shoreline. She liked to people watch, so he gave her plenty of time to see the party boats and all the beautiful people enjoying their homes and pools along the shore.
She fisted a yawn, so he decided to pull into his favorite little cove for some peace and quiet. The water was calm, giving the boat just a little rock. With big trees overhead to offer a little shade, it was the perfect place to simply lie back and enjoy the sun without getting completely fried. He’d been outside enough not to worry, but she was pale and fair. The last thing he wanted was for her to have a miserable sunburn the rest of the weekend.
“Okay, okay, this is rather nice, even though this ‘boat’ is more like an ocean liner.”
“Would you like to go on an ocean liner some day?” He took her hand and led her up to the highest deck. With a thick, soft pad, lots of pillows, and a built-in cooler close by, it was his favorite spot on the boat.
“Don’t tell me—you have an ocean liner too?”
Casually, he stripped his shirt off and tossed it on the bench lining the side of the deck. “Several. My family started in boats. In fact,Beverlywas my father’s, named for my mother. When he passed, I inherited it.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
He gave her a warm smile and stretched out on his back. “Don’t be—it was years ago.Beverlysat in dock for a long time, waiting on me to get my head out of my ass. My father and I had a rocky relationship when I was growing up, and I didn’t take his death well. Do you want to change into a suit?”
“I’m good for now.” Lilly stretched out beside him, leaning on her elbow so she could see his face. “Why did you have a rocky relationship with your father?”
“When I was growing up, he was gone all the time. He and Grandpa were out on the fishing boats. Grandpa Saebo, my mother’s father, was a Norwegian crab fisherman. Dad joined him soon after he married Mom and they were gone all the time. He used to say if the boat isn’t out to sea, we’re not making money. Then they bought another boat, so Dad had even more reason to be gone. They chased the various seasons, hitting crab, cod, whatever they could. The few weeks Dad came home weren’t enough to make up for the months he was gone. I resented him for leaving us alone, all the work Mom had to do.”
“Did you have any siblings?”
“No, it was just me and Mom, and sometimes Dad, and even rarer, Grandpa. By the time I was fourteen, we were doing well enough they both could have retired, but they chose not to. I resented that even more. So when Mom passed away from breast cancer…”
