C6, PT. 4

Again, his voice was coarse, far from the clipped, robotic delivery he normally used.

“I gave you the best of me when I visited, more than I’ve given anyone. Back then, I couldn’t put you first. I couldn’t even put myself first, but today’s different. There will still be times when business takes precedence, but I can make allowances. I can cut out time to…”

She eyed him incredulously as he struggled to name a single activity that didn’t involve work. “You’re hopeless.”

He opened his eyes, scowling and perplexed. “What do couples do besides fuck?”

“Normal couples go on dates, travel, cuddle, and share their hopes and dreams.” The thought of him doing any of those things was ludicrous. “Why continue this charade—?”

“Because I got a taste of the real thing and I thought I would have it forever,” he said harshly, face contorting as he struggled to contain his emotions. “I know we can’t go back to that, but I deserve the ghost of what we had. I’ll take the imitation, the charade, over nothing.”

The anger and longing in his tone shredded her insides. Her nails sank into her palms as she fought the magnetic pull between them. “Roth—”

“Once, you gave up everything to be with me. Now, you’re willing to give up everything to get away.”

Her eyes watered. “Do you blame me?”

“You want to be happy,” he said in a flat tone that didn’t match his words. “We were happiest together.”

When she averted her face, he gently brought it back, forcing her to deal with what was between them.

 “You want to live a safe, quiet life, but you were born for this. You were groomed to rule in the highest tiers of society. You have the skills, knowledge, and experience to wreak havoc if you chose.” His voice dropped, deepened. “You were born to be on the arm of a man like me. A man who can afford anything your heart desires and fulfill the unspoken ones you try to hide.”

“I don’t…”

He pulled her to his chest and cradled the back of her head as he put his lips to her ear. “Take what you want from me. Money, my attention, resources… Whatever you want, it’s yours.”

She twisted her hand in his shirt as emotion warred with reason. It was hard to think straight when she could hear his heart racing.

“We need this time together. Let me make up for the past. Let me give you what I promised I would when I’d made it.”

The ache in his words made her tremble as she battled the compulsion to comfort her captor and give him whatever he wanted.

“I can’t give you all the things you deserve. Maximus was right about that. I shouldn’t have touched you if I couldn’t. I thought I could change. Now, I know better.”

“What does that mean?” Her voice was muffled since her face was pressed into his shirt.

“It means we’re on borrowed time.”

He wrapped himself around her and rocked her as William Davies had, as she wished her own father had done. She buried her face against his shoulder and cried. He held her throughout her storm and when it was over, he settled her against the wall and held her up with one hand when she began to sag. He lifted her chin to reveal his own eyes were suspiciously shiny.

“Stay with me.”

Her nails dug into his forearms as she struggled. “I…”

His expression hardened. “Ask me for something.”

“What?”

She wasn’t prepared when he reached down to cup her pussy. Her tears dried up as his middle finger easily slipped inside her.

“I warned you when I presented the prenup—it didn’t matter if you didn’t sign. Every time I saw you, I was going to find a way to get you on your back.” His eyes dropped to her mouth. “Or you on your knees.” He gave a one shoulder shrug. “Or me on mine. I don’t mind eating—”

“You’re talking about sex,” she said through clenched teeth and went on tiptoes to escape him and yelped when he firmly hooked two fingers inside her and pinned her ass to the wall as he loomed over her.

“You and sex are synonymous in my mind.” He massaged her so the remnants of him dripped down her thighs. “I’m going to get what I want from you. I’m going to wring you dry.” He captured her skittish gaze. “Use me.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You want to punish me for what I did to you? Don’t run and hide. Take your fair share of me.”

Her womb clenched. “Anything?”

An imperceptible pause and then, “You know my limits.”

“I want to see what you have on my family.”

He drew back, obviously taken aback by her request.

“Roth?”

“The files are in my office.”

She let out a stifled shriek when he picked her up. Automatically, her arms went around his neck and her legs around his waist as his hands cupped her bare ass.

“You disappoint me, princess.”

Her eyes moved from her crumpled pants in front of the elevator to his face. “What?”

“You’re going to have to work harder at showing me you don’t care what happens to your family.”

She glowered. “I need to see it for myself.”

He set her on her feet behind the couch. “Wait here.”

She watched him stride away, more than a little bemused by all that had transpired. She wondered if he realized she hadn’t technically agreed. She twisted her hands together. She couldn’t stay with him. That was a death sentence or worse. What did he mean when he said he couldn’t give her everything she wanted? That he couldn’t change? And why was he willing to show the evidence he gathered to blackmail her family when she could warn them in advance? There had to be a reason for his compliance, something more he would get out of it than simply pleasing her, but what?

She ran her hand through her tangled hair. This man was driving her crazy. Within twenty minutes, she went from screaming for help to having sex to being comforted by him. She was so fucking confused. He admitted that he planned to ruin her as Kaia had predicted, and somehow managed to brush that bombshell aside and convince her she should stay, so he could make up for plotting against her. As usual, she was stumbling along in his wake, emotionally distraught and unable to think straight while he piled on so much information and sensation, she had trouble taking it all in.

**This is a raw draft of Bitter Confessions. Please do not share or distribute.

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