I liked ruling over her.

I got what I wanted, when I wanted it.

But she obeyed with hesitance, remained reluctant when she shouldn’t. I shouldn’t expect anything else, but I was disappointed anyway. She told me she didn’t sleep with anyone, whatever her reasons might be. But I expected her to feel differently with me.

I wasn’t sure why.

Women had always wanted me because I had money, fame, and fancy cars. They wanted to fuck me so they could brag about it to their friends. They wanted to party with me so the paparazzi could snap a picture of them and put it on the cover of a magazine. They never wanted me to leave, and if they got to sleep in my bed beside me, they wouldn’t want to leave me either.

Titan was the first woman who wasn’t impressed by me.

She was like a robot. The only time she showed passion was when we were screwing. She finally came alive and showed real emotions. The rest of the time, she was just as cold as she was during meetings. Only once in a great while did she let her walls down and show that soft smile that grew from her heart.

I was impressed with Titan.

But I was more obsessed with Tatum.

Who was she?

I woke up to the sound of my alarm the next morning. Titan was awake beside me, but it wasn’t clear if she had already been awake. I rolled on top of her, gave her a quick morning fuck, and then got into the shower.

She helped herself to my bathroom, using my toothbrush just the way I used hers. She caught my reflection in the bathroom mirror and winked.

That put a smile on my face.

When I finished getting ready for the day, she put back on the clothes she’d been wearing and slipped on her heels. If she’d brought her bag like she was supposed to, she could have left for work right away.

“I’ll see you later.” She rose on her tiptoes and kissed me before she walked into the elevator.

I stared at her ass when she faced the other way, thinking about the way I fucked it last night.

She turned around, a knowing look in her eyes. She probably knew exactly what I was thinking. Titan had a knack for that sort of thing. The elevator doors shut, and she was gone.

I went to work and handled a few phone calls. The entire building was buzzing with activity. There was so much to do and so little time. Even if I worked constantly around the clock, I still wouldn’t be happy with my productivity.

Pine called me before ten.

I answered. “Surprised you’re awake.”

“Why?”

“It’s not noon yet.”

“Shut up, asshole.” He insulted me, but he laughed at the same time, making it easy to question the validity of his sincerity. “I got a special invite to that new club that’s opening downtown. And you and Mike are coming with me.”

“When?”

“Tonight.”

“It’s Wednesday.”

“So?” he asked incredulously. “When have we not partied in the middle of the week? Every day is a good day to party when you are hot shit like us.”

I only had six weeks with Titan, and I wasn’t going to squander it by pretending to hook up with someone. If Titan would just drop her uptight paranoia, I could bring her along or at least explain why I wasn’t interested. “I’m gonna pass, man.”

“What?” he snapped. “Why?”

“I’m meeting with the Megaland guys.”

“At nine?” he asked incredulously.

“I don’t know when the meeting is going to end.”

“Get real,” he snapped. “Mike and I are coming to get you whether you like it or not.” He hung up on me.

That little bitch hung up on me.

---

I went to the new building I owned with Titan. It was a few blocks away from my main building, so my driver drove me there and dropped me off. A lot of people recognized my car, so if I didn’t want to draw attention to myself, I took the shiny black Mercedes with tinted windows.

I rode the elevator to the top floor and walked into the conference room. Our offices were still under construction.

Titan sat at the head of the table—drinking an Old Fashioned.

At ten in the morning.

Since she could handle her liquor pretty damn well, I wasn’t going to judge her for it. “I’ve been thinking about the new name for the company.”

“Let’s hear it.” She straightened in her chair and turned her full focus on me.

I sat in the chair on her right with the windows in front of me. No one else was on this floor because the rest of it was being remodeled. Titan and I liked our privacy until we could find appropriate assistants who didn’t have any loyalty to Bruce. “Stratosphere.”

Her eyebrows rose, and a smile full of approval formed on her painted lips. “I like it.”

“It’s perfect.”

“I think so too. We’re in agreement.” She took out her notebook and wrote the word in her slanted, feminine writing. “I’ll contact our lawyer and get the corporation going.”

“Sounds good.”

Titan went over a few other things that we both needed to address. Anytime she presented information to me, everything was so meticulous. She chased down any loose threads, needing to know every little detail about everything. She didn’t leave anything to chance.

She was a great business partner. If I was going to have anyone in my corner, it was her. She also had a well-honed intuition, reading people so well it was like she was looking at their private file.

“I scheduled a meeting with a new supplier,” she said. “They’re overseas, and they’re half the cost.”

“How?” Slave labor?

“They use a type of material that’s much cheaper to make. They have surplus over there, but it’s in demand over here.”

I could get on board with that. “Great.”

“I also cut a lot of costs here.” She pushed the paper toward me. “If Bruce paid more attention to what he was doing, he could have saved this company.”

“Well, he was an idiot.”

She pushed another paper toward me. “This is the stock value. It spiked last week.”

I eyed it, surprised by the sudden growth. We had barely done anything, so I didn’t understand why the value had increased.

“I think it’s from that commercial we did with Brett,” she said. “People are investing in us as the new owners, not the products.”

That made sense. “That worked out well.”

“I’m also starting a new campaign with Connor Suede. He wants to do a series of ads and commercials with the most powerful women in the world. I think that will only help.”

My eyes darted to her face at the mention of his name. I saw the text message that popped on her phone weeks ago. I saw the way he spoke to her, leaning in like he was about to kiss her. She wasn’t the only one with intuition. If he hadn’t fucked her already, he obviously wanted to. “No.” The word flew out of my mouth all on its own. I didn’t think twice before I laid down the law.

Titan slowly turned to me, her eyebrow arched. “No what?”

“You aren’t doing that commercial. Connor Suede is a prick.”

“Do you know him?”

Hadn’t met him once. “Doesn’t matter.”

“No, it does matter. He’s the biggest fashion designer in the world. I wear his clothes almost every day.”

It was the first time I wanted to rip the clothes off her body and not because I wanted to fuck her.

“It would be great PR for us.”

“We don’t need PR.” I pushed the stock reports back toward her. “We’re good.”

She pushed it back. “Hunt, what is your problem?”

There wasn’t room for jealousy in our relationship. We didn’t even have a relationship, just an arrangement. But something carnal inside me flared up, made me angry. My jaw was clenched, and the veins in my forearms were strained. “Did you sleep with him?”

Titan used to compose her features at all times, but now she let her real emotions come out. Her features softened in surprise before they hardened once again in offense. “Excuse me?”

“You heard what I said.” The question was on the table, and I couldn’t backpedal. I had to see this through. I needed to know what kind of relationship they had if they were going to work together.

“That’s none of your business, Hunt.”

“I fucked you in the ass last night. Yes, it is my business.”

She looked like she was about to stab me with her pen.

Every time I tried to calm myself down, I just got worked up again. Red in my gaze and I couldn’t see straight. I was calm, logical, and pragmatic. But the idea of another man touching Titan made me anything but cool. I guess I was the jealous type.

Never knew that before.

“Hunt, you’re playing with fire right now.” She pressed her finger to the table, drawing an invisible line between us. “Back off, or you’re going to get burned.”

“Then burn me,” I said coldly. “I’m the one in charge for the next six weeks. You’re going to tell me exactly what I want to know. Now.”

Her eyes narrowed. “That’s not how it works, Hunt. I never pried into your personal life.”

“Well, you should have.”

“I respect your privacy.”

“I don’t want you to respect it, and I sure as hell don’t respect yours.”

She sat back, floored by what I said.

“I’m tired of pretending that this is just some convenient fuck-a-thon. We’ve both made sacrifices for each other. We’re in business together, a first for each of us. You know more about me than most people, and I know more about you than you usually tell. We aren’t friends. We aren’t lovers. We’re something else entirely. So all those rules you set up don’t apply to us. So, tell me, Titan. Did you fuck Connor Suede?”

She held my expression as she stared me down, her eyes shifting back and forth slightly. She erected a fortress of stone and brick, impenetrable. But no matter how thick her fortifications were, I could break through every single one. She might be made of stone, but I was made of bullets. I could pierce right through her.

“I don’t know what this is, and I’m not going to put a label on it. But it’s not what it started as. It’s grown into something different, an exception. So let’s just be honest with each other. That’s one rule that still applies.”

She pressed her lips together tightly, her expression hardening. “Yes.”

“Yes, what?”

“I fucked Connor Suede.”

I already suspected her answer, but hearing it didn’t make it easier to swallow. It was like a big pill without water. My hand rested on the table, and my fingertips tapped against the surface. Instead of letting my anger out like a monster, I kept it buried inside—for the most part. “When?”

“A while ago.”

“What does that mean?” I kept my voice steady even though it was easier said than done.

“About six months ago. I don’t see why the time is relevant since it never overlapped with you.”

“I’m just wondering why he’s still trying to fuck you.”

Her eyes remained as cold as two pieces of green ice. “You’ve been with me. I’m sure you can figure it out…”

Because she was an unforgettable fuck. I knew it, and she knew it. I tapped my fingers against the table.

“Do you feel better now?” she asked sarcastically. “Or did that not change anything at all?”

“Why did you sleep with him?”

“Why?” Both of her eyebrows leapt high on her forehead. “Because he’s handsome, confident, successful… Do I really need to explain how sexual attraction works? Why don’t you tell me about the last woman you slept with, and then justify why you did it?”

It was a stupid conversation. She proved her point.

“You know what, Diesel?”

I’d never heard her use my first name before. It wasn’t in an affectionate tone, but in the way my mother used to say it when I did something wrong.

“I liked you the moment I met you because you weren’t a prick like all the others. I’ve always felt like an equal with you, respected and validated in the same way as the rest of your colleagues. You’ve never scrutinized my decisions because I’m in a skirt instead of pants. Men like you are what we need in this world. In order for women to be granted the same respect as their male counterparts, men need to treat us equally. You’ve already done that, setting the stage for others. But this…this is a double standard. If I were a man, you would not ask me why I slept with Connor. You’re judging me for something your friends Pine or Mike would have done.” She leaned forward and held up her hand. “I’m not going to put up with it, Hunt. I’m not going to be vilified for being a sexual human being exercising my right to do whatever the fuck I want to do.” She slammed her hand on the table, the sound thudding in the conference room. She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest, staring me down like scum on the bottom of her shoe.

She made me feel like shit when I’d never meant to offend her. “Before you start hating me, let me explain…”

“Explain what?” She was back to being cold and objective, like her speech had never happened.

“I didn’t ask you about Connor because I’m judging you…or think less of you for having meaningless sex. I think a single woman can do whatever she wants. The number of partners she’s had is irrelevant. Just like how the number of partners I’ve had doesn’t matter. That’s not what I was implying.”

“Seemed that way.”

“I was asking because…it’s obvious, Titan.”

She cocked her head to the side. “What’s obvious?”

“It’s obvious that I’m jealous.” I confessed my crime, knowing I had no right to feel that way.

Her features slowly softened.

“I admit,” I said quietly, “when I saw Connor touch you at the fashion show, I didn’t like it. When I saw him text you and ask to come over…I almost broke my jaw from clenching my teeth so hard. I don’t have anything against the guy…but I hate anyone who’s ever had the pleasure of enjoying you. As far as I’m concerned, you’re my woman. I’m possessive. I’m jealous. I’m selfish.” I looked out the window when I didn’t want to be the recipient of her gaze anymore.

Now there was just silence.

A lot of it.

Instead of working, we soaked up the tension. It was supposed to be an afternoon of deadlines and plotting. But somehow, our sexual relationship was at the forefront of the conversation.

I’d already thrown myself under the bus, so there wasn’t anything left to say. I explained my behavior, telling her she meant more to me than she should.

“Hunt…” She pursed her lips again, taking her time deciding what to say.

I already knew what she would say.

“If I’m being honest, I’m jealous too.”

Okay…that was not what I was expecting her to say.

“When we were at the fashion show, some model was pressed up against you. I felt the acid flood my mouth, but I stopped myself from giving in to the jealousy. I stopped myself from caring. But I did care…”

Tatum Titan was jealous. Couldn’t believe it.

“So, I do understand.”

My natural reaction was to smile, to feel the victory spread through my limbs. But I kept my reaction under wraps. I steadied myself from doing something to shatter her vulnerability.

“I like you a lot, Hunt.”

This was getting better.

“Sometimes it scares me,” she whispered. “It’s so rare for me to find someone that I trust, to find someone I feel so connected to. In the past decade, I’ve only made a handful of genuine friends. When I met you…I wasn’t expecting to make another. I’ve felt comfortable with you since the beginning, that you respected me for my brains and my talent, not just the way my legs looked under my skirt.”

“But you do have nice legs…”

She looked at me, a small smile growing on her lips.

I smiled back. These were the moments I lived for with Tatum. I loved getting to know the woman underneath those executive clothes, that hard face. She was as soft as a rose petal, silky to the touch.

“The sex is great for a lot of reasons. But I think one of the biggest reasons is this feeling between us…camaraderie, friendship, trust…whatever it is. I’ve never partnered with anyone before, and when I considered doing it with you, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind. That tells me there’s something here.”

My smile slowly faded away as my heart rate picked up.

She looked away for a moment, staring at her silver pen on the desk. “But what I said in the beginning still applies. I’m not looking for romance. I’m not looking for love. I’m just looking for an arrangement that gives me pleasure. And when it’s over…we’ll walk away but stay friends.”

It was like someone shot me in the chest.

Right in the heart.

Blood poured from the wound, and I struggled to breathe.

With every beat, I was losing my life.

Sometimes, it seemed like I meant something to her, but at the end of the day, I didn’t.

Why should I care?

“Why aren’t you looking for love? Why is that off the table?”

Her eyes turned back to me. “I’m marrying Thorn. I can’t fall in love with someone.”

“Are you implying you could fall in love with me if you let yourself?” It was a bold question to ask, but since we were being honest, I decided to go for it. I didn’t have anything to lose.

She searched my expression as she considered the question, taking her time. “I…I don’t know.”

Tatum Titan had just hesitated and avoided eye contact.

“That sounds like a yes to me.”

She turned back to me, hardening her gaze once again. “When you’re sleeping with someone, emotions get complicated. I just have to remind myself what I want…and not let things get messy. I’ve never allowed anyone to control me. Giving you that luxury automatically tells me you mean something different to me.”

“And the fact that I’ve let you control me tells me the same thing.”

A long pause.

Intense eye contact.

Noticeable heat in the room.

It was like a furnace was burning a forest.

My eyes didn’t drop from hers. I stared her down, refusing to look away.

She did the same time, her green eyes resembling emerald flames.

She was the first one to break the silence. “Then that means we need to be careful…because we both want different things.”

“You still want to marry Thorn?”

“I committed to him.”

I leaned forward in my chair, coming closer to her. “You didn’t answer my question.”

“Yes, I did.”

“I asked if you wanted to marry him, not if you were committed to doing it.”

“Aren’t they the same thing?”

I shook my head slightly. “Not at all.”

Titan broke eye contact for a second time. “I think it’s the best move.”

“Your love life doesn’t have to be a business decision.”

“My entire life needs to be a business decision. I can’t make another mistake.”

Another? “You’ve made a mistake before?”

Her gaze met mine once again. “Yes, as we all have.”

It was her ex-boyfriend. I could feel it. “It’s okay to make mistakes, baby. They humble us. They strengthen us. They turn us into a powerful people like Tatum Titan and Diesel Hunt. Mistakes make successes mean something. And I sure as hell have learned far more from my mistakes than I have from my successes.”

She watched me, her eyes submissive.

I rested my fingertips against my chin, brushing across my coarse hair. My eyes remained on hers. “I think we could have something pretty incredible if we allowed ourselves to.” I put my cards on the table, gambling my chips away.

She stilled at the statement. “Are you saying you want something with me?”

I shrugged. “I’m open to it. Are you?” I kept my hard expression, but I was holding my breath at the same time.

“I’ve made a commitment to Thorn. He’s a good man, and I’ll be happy with him.”

“And bored.”

Her eyes flashed with annoyance. “Love like ours is the kind that lasts. He’s powerful, trustworthy, everything I’m looking for. And even if he wasn’t, it’s been done.”

“You haven’t signed a marriage license.”

“But I don’t break my promises.”

Thorn made her promise to marry him? What kind of man would do that? A proposal shouldn’t be coerced. It should be wanted.

“And Hunt, you have the rest of the women in New York City to bed. A man such as yourself wasn’t built for a single woman.”

“I don’t know about that.” I rubbed my fingertips against my lips. “I’m enjoying having you.”

“For now.” She turned away and grabbed her papers. She cleared her throat, silently dismissing the conversation. “I’m doing that campaign with Connor. We’ll start shooting in a few days. I’m running late to lunch. I’m meeting Thorn.”

I didn’t want her to meet Thorn either. I was jealous of the man who’d secured her so long ago. I was jealous of how committed she was to him, how she deemed him to be the only man good enough to share her life with.

I rose out of my chair the moment she did. “I’m coming over at seven.”

She looked up at me, her hair pulled over one shoulder. She accepted my statement without argument. “Yes, Boss Man.”

Before she could walk away, I circled my arms around her waist and pulled her in for a kiss. I kissed her hard on the mouth, my hand digging into her hair. My fingers grazed along the soft skin of her neck, gliding over her pulse and to the fall of her hair. I kissed her with passion, angst. I kissed her like she was the only woman in the world I ever wanted to kiss.

And she kissed me back.

The kiss lasted for minutes. She obviously didn’t care about being a few minutes late if it was for a good reason.

And this was definitely a good reason.

When I finished, I pulled away with my hand still on the back of her neck. “Thorn Cutler will never kiss you like that.” My fingers released her reluctantly, but my eyes bored into her in a way they never had before.

---

I was just about to walk out the door when I came face-to-face with Pine.

“Going somewhere?” He waggled both of his eyebrows.

“You’re stalking me now?”

“I have to because you keep blowing me off.”

“I’m not blowing you off. I’m busy, man.”

“Well, you’re busy a lot lately. You’ve never had a hard time squeezing in a party here and there.”

“I told you I’m meeting the Megaland guys tonight.”

“It’s seven o’ clock. Bullshit.”

“Work never sleeps. You know that.”

“Shut up and let’s go. I’m not leaving until you come out with me.” He blocked the door with his body.

“You think that’s gonna stop me?”

He shrugged. “Probably not. But I’ll just follow you if you don’t come along. And we both know you don’t want me to follow you…because you’re hiding something.”

I was hiding something.

“Maybe you’re fucking a princess from Thailand or the press secretary at the White House, I don’t know. But you can fuck her later. Let’s go.”

Pine had me cornered, and his suspicions were right on the money. But at least he didn’t suspect Titan was the woman I was screwing. That was one thing to be thankful for.

---

Nightlife was the same even though I’d been out of the game for a while. It was a bunch of neon lights, darkness, waitresses in tight skirts, and tits.

So many tits.

Two girls made out in front of me, trying to seduce me so I’d take them back to my penthouse. Their tongues moved in tandem before they sealed their mouths together. They groped each other’s tits through their dresses.

I watched them as I drank my Old Fashioned, knowing it was the only way to keep up the pretense that I was single and fucked anything that moved. Stuff like this usually turned me on. I liked girl-on-girl action as much as the next guy.

But I didn’t feel anything right now.

There was one place I wanted to be—with Titan.

The sex with her was hotter than any threesome I’d ever had. I wouldn’t want to watch her make out with another woman. The only thing I’d like to watch is a recording of me fucking her.

Pine had a girl on his arm, some black-haired woman with almond-shaped eyes. Mike was making out with a blonde. The music constantly thudded against my ears, the sound blaring and loud. It was going to give me a headache by the end of the night.

“Quite the show.” Brett came out of nowhere and fell into the seat beside me, his eyes on the two women making out in the chair beside me. “Admission is free, right?”

“Not for you.”

He chuckled and kept watching them. “Wow. I don’t even kiss that well.”

“Female intuition.”

Brett watched them as he rubbed the side of his face. He hardly blinked.

My phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw a message from Titan. Since it’s been two hours, I assume you aren’t coming.

I’d meant to give her a heads-up, but I never had a chance. Got caught up. I’ll be there around midnight.

Well, maybe I won’t be.

She was pissed. But I liked it when she was pissed. She was mad I wasn’t there, which meant she wished I were there. And that was excellent news to me. I smiled before I shoved my phone back into my pocket.

“Seeing anyone?” Brett suddenly asked.

I nodded to the two women. “Right now, them.”

Brett stared at me. But it was an unusual stare. Heated, intense, intimidating…he’d never looked at me that way before.

“Everything alright?”

He drank from his glass, his throat shifting as he downed the liquid.

I kept staring at him, waiting for some kind of explanation.

“Be straight with me, man.”

“Sorry?” I raised an eyebrow, unsure if I was reading his expression correctly. It was dark and he looked mad, but I wasn’t sure if he was truly mad. What the hell would he be mad about?

“I asked if you were seeing someone.”

“And I said no.”

“Which is a lie.”

My ears stopped vibrating with the bass of the music, and now my heartbeat was heavy in my ears. I could hear it as well as feel it. My brother never had a problem calling me out on my shit, and he was doing it now. And he was always right before he started a brawl.

He knew about Titan.

How? I didn’t know.

Why did he decide to mention it then? I didn’t have a clue. Fortunately, my friends seemed caught up with their dates, so they didn’t care about me. The music was too loud to overhear us.

Brett looked just as angry as he had a minute ago. “Why are you lying to me?”

I still didn’t have a confirmation that he was referring to Titan, but I suspected he was. “How did you know?” I baited him into it, seeing what he would say.

“The way you talk about her. You kiss the ground that woman walks on.”

“Do not,” I snapped. “I just respect her, admire her.”

“And that text conversation you just had.”

Was I naïve to assume my brother wouldn’t invade my privacy like that? “That was a dick thing to do.”

“I didn’t look on purpose. The screen is bright as fuck, and her name was right at the top.”

“That doesn’t mean anything. We work together.”

His eyes narrowed. “You’re gonna lie again?”

My brother had me. There was no getting out of it. I didn’t say anything to incriminate myself further.

“How long has this been going on?”

I’d promised Titan I wouldn’t tell anyone, and now I felt like I’d betrayed her. But in my defense, I didn’t tell him anything. And I wouldn’t tell him about our arrangement. That was something I could protect, at least. “A few months.”

“What about Thorn?”

How did I get around this one? “They’ve…kinda got an open relationship.”

“So, she’s not cheating?”

“No,” I said quickly. “Titan would never do that.”

Now that I was talking to Brett, he seemed to ease up. “Why are you keeping this a secret?”

“She doesn’t want anyone to know. I would have told you, but…she told me not to.” I nodded to Pine and Mike. “They don’t know either.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” he asked incredulously. “I’m your brother.”

“It’s not like we talk about women anyway.”

“We do if we’re seeing them for a few months.”

It wasn’t how it seemed, but I couldn’t correct him. “I don’t think it’s gonna last. Another reason why I didn’t want to mention it.”

“Why not? You’re running a company with her now.”

“She’s just not…looking for anything serious.” I turned back to the women making out on the couch. “And it’s not like I am either. I just enjoy being with her.”

Brett stared at the side of my face.

“Keep this between us, alright?” I said. “I mean it.”

“You can trust me, Hunt. You know that.”

“Yeah…I do.”

“So, you guys are just fuck buddies, then?”

I nodded. “Pretty much.”

“You’re a lucky man, Hunt.” He shook his head in disbelief. “Not too many men are man enough for a woman like that.”

I certainly was.

“But she seems like a really cool person. If it were me…I’d have a hard time not falling for her.”

I stared at the girls harder, brushing off what he’d said.

Brett let it hang in the air, probably on purpose.

I hoped this conversation was finally finished. The longer it continued, the more likely someone could catch on.

“Why don’t you take off and go to her?” he asked. “You’d obviously rather be there instead of here.” He nodded at my friends. “And they won’t even notice you’re gone.”

“And ditch you?”

“Ditch me?” he asked incredulously. He turned to the two women with their hands up each other’s dresses. “I’m taking these women home tonight. Don’t you worry about me. Now go home to the woman you’ve been thinking about all night. If I were you, that’s where I’d be.”

---

The elevators doors opened at midnight. I walked into her penthouse and found her sitting on the couch. I didn’t pack my bag because I came straight to her place. I’d have to wake up early so I could head back to my penthouse and get ready before heading to the office.

She was sitting on the couch, a glass of red wine in front of her.

That was a surprising change.

She greeted me with a simple look. “Ran out of whiskey.”

I smiled as I moved toward her. “Now it makes sense.” I moved to the spot beside her on the couch and immediately dug my hand into her hair. My hips wanted to thrust inside her, and I wanted to give this woman enough come that it dripped down her thighs when she stood in the shower. Fortunately, she was in just a t-shirt, so I pulled it up past her hips.

She pressed her hand against my chest, immediately pushing me off her. “You had fun tonight, huh?” With a tone full of furious accusation, she didn’t look as aroused to see me as I was to see her.

“Not really.”

“Didn’t seem like it.”

I moved my body forward again, guiding her back to the couch. “Were you there?”

“No. But someone with a camera was.”

I grabbed her panties and started to pull them off.

She slapped my hand away, her eyes full of daggers. “Looked like you had a threesome.”

“Someone took a picture of me watching those chicks make out?”

“Yeah…you seemed pretty into it.”

“I’d rather watch you touch yourself.”

She slapped me across the face, her palm smacking hard against my skin.

I turned with the hit and felt a scorching surge of arousal. I slowly turned back to her, turned on and pissed off. “I wouldn’t have been watching two women get it on if I could just tell my friends that I’m seeing you. But you don’t give me that luxury.” Since she was already furious, I didn’t want to add fuel to the fire by mentioning Brett knew about the two of us.

“You could have not gone.”

“Pine came by my place. I told him I had to work, but he didn’t believe me. I’ve been blowing him off for weeks. I don’t blame him for being annoyed. But if I could tell him the situation, he would knock it off.”

“Not gonna happen.”

After our conversation that morning, she still couldn’t trust me? “You really are uptight.”

Smack.

I wasn’t planning on her slapping me, but I liked it. After I turned with the hit, I looked down at her. “And you have a tight ass.”

She slapped me for a third time.

This time, I yanked on her panties hard, ripping them slightly at the seams. I quickly got my slacks and boxers off, forgetting about the shoes and crawling on top of her. I pinned her down, hooked one leg over the back of the couch, and slid inside her.

So fucking wet.

I paused as I was seated inside her, feeling the warm tightness surround my length. I had been staring at those two women when I could have been doing this the entire time. Seemed like a waste. “Now I know why you’re so mad. You’ve been wanting me to fuck you all night.” I started to move inside her, using slow and even strokes.

“God, you’re cocky.” She bit her bottom lip as she unbuttoned my shirt, getting it open so there was nothing but skin between us.

“Yes, I’m a cocky god.” I buried her into the couch and moved between her legs, being greeted by more moisture as I got the momentum going. I thrust hard and deep, causing her ass to leave a print on the cushion.

She enjoyed me so much that she didn’t give me shit about the arrogant comment I’d just made. She grabbed on to my hips and moved with me the best she could, taking in my long length with eagerness. “Hunt…yes.”

“Tell me you missed me.”

She looked me in the eye as she dug her nails into my chest. “I missed you…”

“More.”

“I missed you, Boss Man.”

I thrust harder, all the muscles in my back firing off as I fucked this woman good. I gripped the back of her neck as an anchor, keeping her in position so I could fuck her as deep as I wanted. “Fuck yes.”

She moaned as she fucked me back just as hard. We’d done kinky things together, but we’d never fucked quite as hard as this. We were doing whatever we could to feel each other, to feel that shattering sensation of euphoria.

“Ask my permission to come.”

For just a second, her eyes lit up in rebuttal. But it quickly melted away when her desire to climax outweighed her pride. “Let me come, Boss Man.”

“Beg.” I deepened the angle and thrust deeper, our mouths together and my tongue in her mouth.

“Please…”

“Please what?”

“Please, Boss Man…let me come.”

I gripped her hair harder and forced her gaze directly into mine. “You were jealous tonight. Admit it.”

She breathed into my mouth, her nails dragging down my back.

“Tell me.”

“Yes…I was jealous.”

“Jealous of what?”

She moaned as I fucked her harder, barely stopping herself from coming. “Of you watching them…”

“And?”

“I want you to only watch me.”

Now I wanted to come. I wanted to fill her with all my seed and watch it drip everywhere. That sentence was the sexiest thing I’d ever heard her say. “You can come, baby…”

Right on cue, she exploded, her pussy clenching my dick with everything it had. “Boss Man…yes…god.” She pressed her face into my neck, cut me with her nails, and writhed with me, sweat streaking across her body.

I gave two more pumps before I exploded inside her, dumping all of my arousal into her cunt. That was what I’d wanted to do all night, not watch some women try to fulfill my desires. I already a woman who knew exactly how to do that.

She laid her head back, breathing hard and with pointy nipples.

“Say thank you.” I commanded her with my eyes, forcing her to obey.

She almost didn’t. She struggled with it, struggled more than when I asked her anything else.

I grabbed her hair and yanked on it. “I just fucked you the way you liked. Now thank me for it.”

Her eyes were sizzling pans, and a single drop of water would make them spit with steam. A woman like her didn’t need to thank any man for fucking her, but I wasn’t any man. I was the man who owned this woman until our arrangement was finished. She had to say it if she wanted me to keep fucking her. “Thank you…”

The muscles of my ass and back tightened in reaction. I got the most powerful woman in the world to thank me for making her come, making her legs shake in a powerful climax. I owned every inch of her, and she knew it. This power, this strength, was something that sent me all the way to the moon.

Now I was hard again.

I started to thrust. “Good. Now I’ll make you come again.”

---

It was two in the morning when we got into bed. I slept in the nude because I was too tired to pull my boxers on. Thankfully, my alarm on my phone was automatic, so I didn’t need to worry about setting it every night. I often didn’t know where I would end up at night, so it was one less thing for me to worry about.

Titan got into bed beside me, her face washed and ready for sleep. She pulled on my collared shirt, the one I’d been wearing out at the bar. It smelled like booze, sweat, and cologne.

“You’re going to sleep in that?”

“I prefer your t-shirts, but this will do.”

“I can always leave a few over here…” I smiled when I pictured her having an attachment to my clothes. She could afford to buy the most expensive shirts in the world, the most comfortable, but she chose mine.

It had nothing to do with the fabric.

“No,” she said. “That’s okay.” She lay beside me and pulled up the sheets. But she was stiff, not relaxed like she had been with me that morning. Anytime we were in this bed together and we weren’t having sex, she was rigid like a board. She stared at the ceiling blankly, counting down the hours until morning finally returned.

I thought this objection would end after the first or second night, but she obviously wouldn’t let it go.

“Would this help?” I stayed on my side of the bed, a foot of space between us.

“What?” she whispered, slowly turning her head toward me.

“If I stayed here all night. Didn’t touch you.”

“If you want to be helpful, you could just go.”

“No. You need to get over this. You’re never going to sleep with Thorn?”

“I’m sure we’ll have our own bedrooms.”

“And your kids won’t think that’s odd?”

She shrugged. “It’ll be one of our weird hang-ups.”

“It’s a really weird hang-up,” I said honestly. “You’re a fearless woman who isn’t scared of anything. Don’t you think it’s time to overcome this? You’re being a pussy right now, Titan.”

Her eyes snapped open in disbelief. “Did you just call me a pussy?”

“Yep. And I meant it.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You shouldn’t talk about things you don’t understand.”

“Then educate me. You said you would be willing to tell me.”

“I said I was willing to consider it.”

“Well, you’ve had plenty of time.”

“Two days…”

“That’s enough time. Now tell me.”

She looked at the ceiling again, her answer obvious.

This woman was such a pain in the ass. “Back to what I was saying. What if I stayed over here?”

“I don’t know.”

“And I promised not to touch you. It’s like not I’m not even here. You know, baby steps.”

“I guess we could try it. I haven’t slept much in three days. I’m exhausted.”

What kind of fear would possess her to stay awake for nearly three nights straight? “Alright. You have my word. I won’t touch you.”

“Really?”

“My word is pretty damn powerful.”

She extended her hand to me.

I eyed it, having no idea what she was doing.

“Let’s shake on it.”

I couldn’t suppress the chuckle in my throat. “Fine, if that works for you.” I shook her hand then stuck to my side of the bed.

She adjusted her pillow, tossed and turned a few times to get comfortable, and then fell asleep immediately.

I could tell by her breathing.

I didn’t sleep right away. Instead, I watched her sleep beside me, her eyes closed and her lips slightly parted. Her hair was across the pillow, and my collared shirt was loose around her body. When Titan was at her most vulnerable, she was also the most beautiful.

I wished I could see this version of her every day.