Page 17 of The First Deal

Maybe I could distract her?

No, I was a man of my word. I’d take my shitty hand like a good sport, and who knew, perhaps it would lead to something far,farmore enjoyable—for me anyway.

The doors slid open, and I guided Hannah out into the wide hall. She bounced her way beside me towards the white, ornate double doors at the end of the hall, then came to a jolting stop as I fumbled around with the key card.

I never fumbled, but for some reason, today, I did. And I was going to incessantly blame it on my fear of flying, instead of admitting what it likely truthfully was that had me acting this way.

“Holy fucking crap,” Hannah gasped as she stepped forward, eyes wide as I pushed open the door at last. “This is…” She spun to face me, lower lip pinched between her teeth, popping free as she failed to contain her smile. “You can leave me here when you go home. I’ll call my boss now and hand in my notice.”

“Surely you shouldworkyour notice,” I teased, following her inside and closing the doors behind us.

She turned her back on me and slipped her sandals off, neatly placing them by the door. “Juno would understand,” she said softly, slowly making her way further into the suite.

After removing my own shoes and placing them beside hers, I made a beeline for the bar and began to pour us each a drink as I watched her.

Hannah was gliding around, amazement written in every blink of her eyes. She ran her fingers carefully over the back of one of the plump, cream sofas, then picked up a scatter cushion. Holding it to her chest and stroking her hands all over it, she continued to explore.

She pushed open doors, finding the master bedroom, another smaller bedroom, each with an ensuite bathroom.

I followed her through the doors of the master bedroom when she disappeared out of sight, but instead of continuing to watch her, I headed towards the balcony doors and opened them wide, letting in a gentle breeze and the sound of the busy streets below us. Then I retrieved our drinks and drew my attention back to the girl who had agreed to allow me to whisk her away to Rome. She squeezed the cushion tight to her body as she stood in the doorway of the bathroom, gaze locked on the giant bathtub with its gold taps and feet.

“Would you like to freshen up?” I asked as I held a champagne flute over her shoulder in offering.

She shook her head as she took the drink, then downed the whole thing and handed it back to me. I chuckled as I sipped my own drink—a small measure of whiskey.

“There are many things that I’d like to do, and later, I will spend enough time in that tub that I turn into a shrivelled prune, but for now”—she turned to face me, dropping the cushion to the floor—“I would like to kiss the stupidly rich man who is trying, and succeeding, in his attempt to impress me.”

Her arms twisted around my neck, and she pulled herself up onto her tiptoes, her nose brushing mine as her eyes closed, and before I could even take a moment to breathe, her lips were crashing into mine.

Sweet, soft, and so fucking surprising I almost fell backwards. The girls I chose didn’t kiss me like that. They barely kissed me at all. They never thanked me with lovely gestures, it would usually be a blow job, or… come to think of it, not even that. They weren’t grateful. They expected it all.

Hannah didn’t. She understood that I had money, maybe not quite how much, but she understood that it existed. She actuallyappreciatedthe effort I had made, and sure, the suite was exactly how it always came, but I was showing off, Ididwant her to be impressed. It was nothing to pour her a drink, nothing to keep her close as we had made our way from the car to the lobby, then up to the suite, but the way she was kissing me, lips parting enough for her tongue to sweep across the seam of my mouth, was the loudest show of appreciation I had ever experienced from a woman.

She pulled away, breathless, but I wanted more, I wanted to enjoy the moment I had never stolen before. So I wrapped my arms around her, glasses still in hand, and dropped my lips back to hers, demanding, stealing, desperately pressing my tongue against hers as we fell so deep into each other that the world around us began to fade into a blur of warm, fresh air and distant melodic sounds.

“Mr Hudson,” she rasped when I finally released her. “Are you trying to become the death of me?”

Me? Ha! If anything, it would be the other way around. That thought scared and excited me all at once, and I pushed the evidence of it against her stomach, watching her carefully as her eyes widened and lips parted.

“Why on earth would I want that? You’re much more useful to me alive,” I teased, dropping my chin and meeting her ear with my teeth, nipping and making her squeal.

Hannah batted my chest, making space between us, and I chuckled as I threw back the last mouthful of my drink and strolled away from her, back into the lounge where I refilled each glass and waited for her to follow.

It took her a minute, but I knew that she would follow. After all, she had only just, since we stepped into the elevator, stopped bubbling over with excitement over winning that stupid game which I was now convinced she had just made up on the spot.

I’d have to look it up, and if it was real, ensure she had played by the rules. I would take my loss today, but if I found out that she had cheated, or tricked me, then I’d come back with vengeance. That sweet seductress wouldn’t be able to sit for at least a week.

“So…” she said slowly, tilting her head so that her hair fell across one shoulder like a black, satin sheet. “Do I get to collect now? Or are you going to try to distract me?”

Grinning at her from the other side of the bar, I raised my brows. “Distract? Me? Never.”

“Then get your ass round here”—she went to sit in an ornate armchair—“and take your spanking like a good boy.”

“Boy?” I blanched, choking on air. “Cariño, I will take it like a gentleman.”

I took a step around the bar, downing another measure of whiskey and slamming the glass onto the marble counter. “I will bend over for you.”

Another step.

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