Page 32 of The Billionaire Dating Game

His best bet was not to inhale before he made it to his bedroom, the one place that was both his sanctuary and his hell. It was the one room she hadn’t stepped foot in, nor had they shared his bed. There he wouldn’t be reminded of her scent and how her essence had coated his tongue nor her cries as she came. She’d panted his name. Sweet. Throaty. A noise between a whimper and a catch of her breath. Alexei loved being wrapped in that sound as he emptied his balls inside of her greedy little pussy.

The bedroom would now be his hell because she wouldn’t be there. Other than the ache in his heart, there'd be no reminders. His teeth clenched. Wouldn’t it be better to have had her in the room that mattered most to him, permeating every square inch of the space? Ni, that would be torture.

His resolve set, he pushed past the bedroom door and froze.

She lay in his bed.

Under the covers on one side of the bed in all her warm glory was the woman who made his heart sing. His feet were heavy, his chest tight as he slowly shifted to the side and sat at the edge of the bed.

Turned low, the bedside lamp cast a soft glow across her face. Alexei had to touch her, know he hadn’t conjured her into his house, his bed. She sighed, leaning into his caress along her cheek, and his eyes stung.”

Her gaze met his, at first confused before her eyes became glossy too. “Alexei,” she breathed his name like a prayer.

“You came back, malo svitla.”

“I never left.” She covered the hand holding her cheek. “I sent the chopper back to the hangar.”

Two days he’d been in agony, two days while Candice was home. He let his gaze roam over her face. Her eyes were puffy from crying and her lower lip was swollen from gnawing the tender flesh.

“I thought you returned to Wheecaster or Paris…” Her eyes closed. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”

“I’m not going anywhere. Not now, not ever.”

“I love you, Alexei.”

He searched her eyes. Did she love him? He had to be certain. Others had made similar declarations and he had thought they meant it. “I can’t change my past, Candice, my mother dying…the fire, none of it. Had I had the same power I wield now, I would have done much worse. I was willing to let Jasmine go until she tried to hurt you.” He scrubbed his face. “If you’re looking for a reformed man, I’m not him.” Candice was the fever in this blood and promising he won’t do anything to keep her by his side would be a lie. “Given another chance, I’d forget the parties…all of it, and bring you here without regretting a minute of it.”

“I love you,” she said again as if she didn’t hear a word he said.

“Candice.”

“You deserve love, Alexei Popova, and I deserve to give it to you.” She sat up and ran her fingers through his tousled hair, causing his breath to catch. “I didn’t fall in love with you today, Alexei. I fell the very first time you kissed me. That evening I knew you were capable of revenge, yet my heart wanted you anyway.”

His arm circled her waist, anchoring her to his chest as he ran the tip of his nose along her cheek…the curve of her jaw in a desperate need to acquaint himself with her fragrance and the softness of her skin. Hope curled tightly in the pit of his stomach at her words.

“When Anna told me about your involvement with arson…the police investigation, I didn’t think to run then, and I don’t want to run now.”

“I’m in love with you too, Candice. My light. Malo svitla.” He captured her gasp in a hard kiss that made his head swim. “My love means I will keep you with me no matter what. Can you accept that?”

“I’ve had two days to think, and I know I don’t want to be without you.”

“Good, then love me for the rest of our lives, and I promise you’ll want for nothing.” He sucked her tongue into his mouth greedily. It had been too long without tasting her.

“You are everything I need,” she promised, falling back against the pillows.

He stood, hastily ripping off his clothes until he stood naked, his dick straining for attention. “You’re in my bed now. Make no mistake, I’m never letting you go,” he vowed, yanking back the covers.

The pure silk lingerie he’d bought draped her dark skin in invitation. And he obliged, shifting between her open thighs. Her spine arched, and he gripped the back of her neck as her breasts rounded between them, nipples stiffening under the soft material.

“You’re mine, malo svitla.”

“Yes.”

“Say it.”

“I’m yours, Alexei. No one else's.”

He thrust into her tight, wet channel and whimpered at how right she was wrapped around him. His…she was his and no one else’s. Candice was his future, his life…his forever. With her by his side, anything was possible. Love was within reach.

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