“What are you doing out here?” I asked, entering the shed that doubled as a workshop. I’d been in the bath reading a book about rock stars when I’d heard banging and drilling in the distance. It continued when I’d climbed out, and since I couldn’t find Nate inside the house, I’d slipped on a dress and some shoes, then followed the sound to investigate.

“It’s a surprise.” He looked at me and grinned, a light sheen of sweat coating his skin. Is it weird that I want to lick it?

Curiosity drew me closer. “A surprise? For me?”

He continued sanding a piece of wood, the muscles in his arms and back rippling with his movements. He wore a pair of jeans and a faded red T-shirt that clung to his sweaty body. It all looked enticing to me. I loved a man who knew how to use his hands.

“I’m not surprising myself,” he teased.

I looked over the items on the workbench, taking in the two long and narrow pieces of wood and the many smaller ones. They all seemed cut from larger branches that I figured had come from trees on the property. I had a fairly good idea what it was, and I already loved it. “Can I try and guess?”

“That would defeat the purpose.”

I ran my hand over his warm back and peered around him. “I’m going to guess anyway.”

He dropped what he was doing, catching me by the waist. “Mmm, you smell good.”

I ran my hands over his chest. “And you smell like work.”

“Is that a good smell or a bad smell?”

I made a show of sniffing him, pulling at his damp shirt. “It’s a good thing. You smell like you and….” I sniffed again. “The ladder that you’re making for the library.”

“There goes my surprise.” He laughed, dropping a kiss on the tip of my nose.

“I love it.”

“It’s not finished yet.”

“I don’t care. Just the fact that you came out here to build something I suggested off the cuff is the most beautiful thing a man has ever done for me.”

“I guess you haven’t been hanging out with the right men.”

“Aren’t you glad?”

He grinned, dipping his head towards mine. “Very.” He slid his hands down to grip my arse and his mouth connected with mine, kissing me in a way that was softer and more sensual than before. The kind of kiss that made you feel like the centre of the universe, the epicentre of his world.

“I want you,” I gasped, pushing his shirt up his chest so I could feel his skin beneath my hands. “Right now. Right here.”

“I’m filthy, duchess, and you just got out of the bath.”

“Then make me dirty again. We can wash off together.”

He responded by taking his shirt off. “Better?”

I licked my lips, then nodded and ran my tongue just between his pecs, the taste of salt coating my tongue.

He groaned, his fingers gripping tighter against my arse, his hips pressing against me as his erection grew. “Want to play a game, duchess?”

My tongue continued up his throat to the curve of his jaw. “Uh-huh.”

Walking me backwards until my arse hit the workbench, he caught my hands in his, lifting them over my head. “It’s called ‘Begging Duchess’.”

I liked the sound of that. “And how do we play that game?”

“Do you trust me?” Holding both of my hands in one of his, he pulled down a piece of cord and held it in front of me.

I nodded. “Yes.” It was crazy but true. I trusted him with my life.

His eyes smouldered as he wound the cord around my wrists, then secured it to a bracket that housed a shelf of surfboards above my head. “Too loose?”

Pulling against the cord, the boards above me rattled but didn’t shift. I hoped they wouldn’t fall and tugged a little harder. When all seemed secure, I shook my head.

“Good. Now stay put while I finish making this,” he said, stepping away and immediately restarting his work.

“Nate! Don’t you dare leave me here.” I pulled against the cord, twisted my body and tried to kick out at him.

He ignored me and kept sanding, leaning down to blow away the dust and inspect his work.

“Nate.” There was a tone of warning in my voice.

“Duchess.” There was amusement in his.

“Get me down.”

Placing a rung in the vice, he secured it, then picked up a wood plane.

“Please, Nate, please. This isn’t funny.” The direct route wasn’t working, so I tried a little sugar in my voice.

He immediately stopped what he was doing and looked my way, a giant grin curling that sexy mouth of his. “I guess round one goes to me.”

He made me beg. Cheeky bastard.

Putting down his tools, he walked over to me, a swagger to his step as he wiped his hands on a rag and threw it aside. My entire body reacted to him. So incredibly sexy. “I really like it when you beg. It gets me all hard knowing what you want from me.” To punctuate his words, he slid his hand into his jeans and grabbed his cock. My insides clenched from wanting.

“Is there any way that I win at this game?” I asked, a smile tilting the edge of my mouth as I realised how easily I got played.

“Beg for the right things and we both win, duchess.” His voice took on a gravelly tone as his eyes dragged down my body, obviously enjoying seeing me tied up.

“OK. I think I get this game now. I tell you what I want, and you’ll do it, but only if I beg.” He nodded, licking his lips in that sexy way I loved. “What if I tell you to do something and you do it without me begging? Do I win then?”

He chuckled slightly. “Sure, you’ll win if that’s what you want.”

“Drive you so wild that you can’t help yourself? Of course I want to win.” His eyes met mine, filled with interest and desire.

“What is it you want, duchess?”

“I want you to unzip your jeans so I can see your hand wrapped around Goliath.”

His eyes glittered, enjoying his game. “That didn’t sound like begging.”

“Please, Nate. Please, I need to see.”

He did as I asked, unbuttoning his jeans to release his erection. I gasped at the sight, his hand wrapped around his girth, gliding back and forth. So erotic, so manly, it made my core throb in anticipation.

“You like this?”

My breathing quickened as I watched his masculine strokes. “Yes. Keep going, please.”

Heat rose in my cheeks and his tip glistened in a way that made me lick my lips. He groaned at my slight movement.

“Have you ever done that while thinking about me?”

His grip tightened. “Every fucking day since we met. I’d think about that sweet cunt of yours and I couldn’t help myself.”

“That’s a filthy word.”

“I’m a filthy guy.”

Our eyes locked. He certainly is.

“Take off my dress so you can see.”

His hand slowed while he spoke. “I’d have to cut you loose.”

“You don’t want to see my sweet cunt?”

“Oh, I wanna see it.”

“Then please, I beg you. Strip me.”

With his breathing laboured, he released his cock and picked up a utility knife from his workbench. When he stood in front of me, he lifted his hands above my head, his cock pressing into my stomach. Then he stilled just before he cut the cord.

“Wait. I have a better idea,” he said, lowering his hands so he held the knife at my chest. A sliver of fear flickered through me, but then he pulled the neckline of my dress back and cut into the fabric, gliding the knife all the way down to the hem until it fell open, exposing my naked body. “Mmm, no panties.” He rose to his feet and cut the straps, causing the dress to drop to the floor.

“That was one of my favourite dresses,” I gasped, my chest heaving. I was so turned on that I could feel the cool air touching my juices.

“You begged for me to remove your dress. I obliged.” He grinned and stepped away from me, disappearing farther into the shed.

“Where are you going?”

He was barely gone a minute before he returned with an adjustable stool.

“Just adding a touch of my own.” He positioned the stool under my arse, then flicked the lever until it was high enough for me to sit. “Now, spread your legs,” he commanded.

“I didn’t hear you beg,” I responded with a coquettish grin.

Placing his hands on the inside of my knees, he pushed my thighs wide apart while brushing his lips against my mouth. “That isn’t the aim of the game.”

He had me there.

My eyes locked with his, I placed my heels on the foot hold, then opened my legs as wide as I possibly could. “Is that what you want?”

Stepping back, his eyes swept over every part of me, lingering on my exposed pussy. His cock twitched, and then his hand caught it. I just about came from the bolt of arousal that shot through me.

“Show me,” I whispered. “Show me what I do to you. I want to watch you come. Please, Nate, show me.” I was really enjoying this game, more so when his hand began to stroke, his speed and grip increasing along with his rate of breathing while I whispered encouragement and squirmed in my seat.

“Fuck, duchess,” he hissed. “I’m gonna come.”

“Then do it on me,” I gasped. He stepped forward, and with a couple more strokes, he unloaded a hot stream of cum on my chest. He caught my mouth in his, kissing me thoroughly as his cock twitched against my stomach.

“Looks like I won that round,” I said when our lips parted. “I didn’t beg.”

His shoulders shook with amusement as he kissed me again. “Oh, I’m gonna make you beg, duchess.” He dropped to his knees and flicked his tongue over my clit. My legs shook. “By the time I’m finished with you, you’ll be screaming so loud the surfers on the beach will hear you.”

“You’re probably getting really tired of my questions at this point,” I started as I stood at the sink in Nate’s rustic kitchen. The ladder still lay in pieces on Nate’s workbench, my dress in tatters on the floor, all left behind in favour of sexual games until our need for food forced us to be domestic.

He leaned against the glossy timber bench top drying a plate. “But you’re going to ask anyway.” He grinned as he met my eyes. I loved the way his sparkled with happiness. I wanted some of that for myself, wanted to feel as sure about this as he did.

If only we could exist in this house on our own forever. If only we could shut out the world.

“I love my job, Nate. I love teaching, and I love singing. I’m booked to do a wedding in a few weeks, and it would be so hard for them to find someone new at this stage. Plus my class is in the midst of rehearsals for a play we’re putting on. I don’t want to walk away from that. It’s bad enough that I’ve already walked away for two weeks without notice.”

It had been exactly that. Two weeks into my marriage and my new life as wife to the loveable rogue standing beside me. I’d never had so much sex in my entire life. The man was insatiable in his need to torture every blissful moan from my body. A satisfied smile had become a permanent fixture on my face. Thankfully the bloodshot eye and bruised cheek had faded, leaving the unpleasant memory of his mother’s temper right where it belonged—in the past. I had no doubt that Nate’s wrath was fierce and his family would think twice before even looking my way again. Not that we’d heard from his family since we’d arrived back in the country, but I knew they were there, waiting in the wings. We couldn’t ignore them for long.

“That sounds more like an essay than a question, duchess.” He set the plate on the shelf, then took the wet one from my hands. “Why don’t you just ask exactly what’s on your mind?”

“Will I be allowed to go back to work?” I held my breath as I watched his face for a reaction.

“Barefoot and pregnant in my kitchen isn’t your lifelong dream?”

I released a sigh. “No, it isn’t. And if I’m perfectly honest, I don’t feel that bringing a child into your world is the right thing to do.”

“My world? Look around you, duchess. This property is worth millions. You don’t think I could provide a good life for my children?”

“I don’t doubt your ability to provide things. I doubt your ability to provide a safe environment.”

“Because there are bullets whizzing past your head every time you step outside?”

“You know that isn’t what I mean.”

“Then what do you mean? Spell it out.”

“I don’t want to have children with you while you’re still involved with your family.”

His expression darkened as he set the dry plate back on the shelf, working the tea towel between his hands. “I’ve already told you that going straight isn’t the life for me.”

“And being crooked isn’t the life for me. I like my job. I like following the rules. I don’t want to worry every time I see a cop that they’re after you. I don’t want to have kids who need to visit their father through a set of bars.”

“Cartwrights don’t do time,” he said through gritted teeth.

“So you’ve said. But all it takes is one slip-up, one set-up, one crumb to lead back to you and this is all over.”

“That won’t happen. We’re too careful.”

“You have to at least admit it’s a possibility! Jesus, Nate, what happens to me if something happens to you?”

“You’ll be taken care of,” he replied quickly.

“No, Nate. What happens to me without you? Don’t you get it?” Frowning, he shook his head. I ran my wet hands through my hair. “I’ve fallen in love with you, you dopey fuck. And the idea of losing you scares the living shit out of me.” I threw the dishcloth over the tap and stomped out of the kitchen, shaking my head as I breathed deeply to calm down. I’d said it. I loved him. I’d sworn I wouldn’t do it, but I did. I fell. How could I not fall for him? Despite his profession, he was the man of my dreams, my soulmate.

A few moments later, he slid his hands around my waist from behind. “Love, duchess?” he asked, resting his chin on my shoulder.

“Surprise! I’ll bet you didn’t expect that to come out of my mouth so soon.” Tears threatened the backs of my eyes.

He ran his fingers through my hair, brushing the tangled waves. It felt wonderful and helped calm my stormy mind. “I wake up every day afraid that you’ve left during night. But when you’re still asleep in my arms, I fall a little deeper each time. And when you wake, I get a little more lost in your eyes, your smile, your smell.” He inhaled deeply. “I don’t know if that’s love or need or if it’s because you cure my loneliness, but whatever it is, I’m thankful for it. I’m thankful for you. I don’t regret a single moment since bringing you into my life. As for kids, I want them, but I can wait. I want you to want them too. I’m not that much of an arse.”

“And what about my work?”

“Go and do it. I’ll drive you there myself.”

“What about your work?”

His jaw clenched. “I can’t walk away from the family.”

I turned in his arms, tired and drained after my outburst. “Look around, Nate. Don’t you think we have enough? Don’t you think you could retire now and still be a wealthy man?”

His brow furrowed as he peered down into my face. “It isn’t that easy, duchess.”

“Could you at least promise me that you’ll think about it?”

He studied me for a moment, then nodded.

“Thank you.” Wrapping my arms around his waist, I buried my face against his chest.

I felt him sigh before his big arms surrounded me. “Love, huh?” he asked again, as if he couldn’t believe it.

I nodded and he squeezed a little tighter.

“Love.”