Page 18 of Untamed Billionaire
One month. Chloe gripped the chair for a moment as she watched the guests mingling around the elegant living room. A wedding in one month? She’d been insane to even think it!
But there were only six days left. Six days until she realized her plan, earned her freedom, and…oh no! Marco just stepped into the room. Instantly, her stomach flipped as he looked around, spotted her and…their eyes clashed, her body trembled. Watching him, she saw the heat in his eyes and that caused her whole body to flush with heat.
It had been like this all month! Every time she saw Marco, her body trembled with desire for the man. He held her, he pulled her off to dark corners whenever possible and kissed her until she was a melting, trembling mess! When they couldn’t find a moment’s privacy, he touched her. It might be just a small touch to her arm, holding her hand, or wrapping his arm around her waist. All innocent touches that any engaged couple would do.
But none of Marco’s touches were “innocent”! The man didn’t understand the concept of innocent. To the rest of the world, he might just be holding her hand, but she felt his thumb tease the sensitive skin of her wrist. His arm around her waist might appear casual, but when sliding around her waist, Marco ensured that his fingers trailed along her back, dipping dangerously, deliciously low before smoothing into place on her waist. He might whisper something into her ear, but no one saw him nip at her earlobe. No one witnessed his finger slide against the soft skin of her neck or his lips brush against her pulse!
In other words, he was making her crazy!
But was she ever able to meet with Marco alone for an extended period of time? Not a chance! Jocelyn had somehow ensured that every moment of every day and night were filled with activities. Cake tastings, meetings with caterers, dress fittings, engagement brunches, lunches, bridesmaid fittings, engagement dinners, breakfasts, lunches and so many social events that Chloe should be exhausted. And she would be…if it weren’t for Marco’s touches and all of the moments he’d pull her away for a kiss. Marco kept her sane. Or insane!
How in the world had her simple plan to marry Marco, a plan developed to save her sister, turned into something…more? She’d chosen Marco because he was tough and strong. As soon as she’d read that he might move his headquarters to the Charleston area, she’d researched the man and determined that he was the perfect groom to help her save her sister.
So why was she lusting after him? Why did just the sight of him make her quiver with excitement? This had been such a simple, straightforward plan. Marry a strong, capable man. Petition the court to become Emma’s legal guardian. Find a place to live close enough to her sister so they could visit more often. End of story.
Oh, how that dream had changed! She still wanted to take care of her sister. But every one of the pictures in her mind included Marco now. Every fantasy featured him by her side. And in her bed! Good grief, she’d never been the kind of woman who dreamt about sex, but after more than three weeks in his company, more than three weeks of him touching her, kissing her and making her crazy, she dreamt about sex with him every single night!
“Don’t you dare eat that!” Jocelyn muttered into Chloe’s ear. “You know that the wedding dress I chose for you cannot be altered in the waist and you don’t have any room to spare!”
Chloe sighed and put the appetizer back down. She was starving, had only eaten an apple today and felt like she might faint. Only six more days, she reminded herself. Six more days and she could eat anything she wanted. She would move out of her parent’s house and never have to listen to her mother’s nagging about her weight or her hair or her shoes or…whatever the daily critique would be. And most importantly, Emma would be safe.
“Hello, Chloe,” Marco greeted, putting an arm around her waist. “Come with me.”
Chloe hurriedly handed the plate to her mother and followed Marco, ignoring Jocelyn’s horrified expression when the woman barely had time to grab the plate before Marco pulled her away.
“What’s wrong?” she gasped, hurrying her steps in order to catch up with him.
“I needed this,” he warned her only moments before he pulled her into a darkened room and into his arms.
Chloe sighed as she lifted her arms up, wrapping them around his neck. Yes, this was what she’d needed. All day, and all last night, she’d thought about his kisses. She’d wondered what it would be like to not have to stop, to be able to continue kissing him until neither of them could breathe any longer. Until neither of them pulled away with a frustrated groan.
However, Jocelyn was doing an excellent job of playing chaperone.
Except for stolen moments like this. She kissed him back, whimpering when he pulled her closer, pulling her hard against the rock-solid muscles of his body. She wanted…she wanted so badly to just pull herself up onto the table behind her, spread her legs and let him do all the wicked things she dreamed about every night.
“Please don’t stop!” she cried out when he did that thing with his mouth against her neck. “Damn it, don’t stop!”
Marco groaned as well, his hands itching to smooth higher against her body, to cup her perfect breasts and feel those nipples pebble against his palm, to feel those nipples in his mouth, to move down her body so he could taste the essence of her. He wanted to know everything about Chloe, to feel her come apart in his arms and feel her throb around his shaft as he found his release too.
However…!
A knock sounded on the doorway and Marco muttered a series of curses. “That woman is going to make me crazy!” he muttered against her mouth.
Chloe laughed, but he knew that she was trembling with need as well.
“I have no idea why she is so intent on keeping us apart,” she whispered.
Another knock. “Chloe! Darling, you’re needed out on the veranda. As the guests of honor, you and Marco are…”
Jocelyn stopped when Marco pulled the door open, growled out his frustration, then took Chloe’s hand and pushed past Jocelyn without another word. He wanted to murder the woman, but knew that he wouldn’t be able to marry Chloe if he was in prison. Fortunately, small bits of sanity were still pinging around in his sex-starved mind so he remembered that killing the woman was out of the question.
“Let’s do this,” he snarled. He gently tugged Chloe out into the main room once more and the hostess, he couldn’t even remember the woman’s name since this was the sixth…no seventh…engagement party they’d attended since announcing their wedding date. Only six more days, he thought. Six more days until…actually, less than that.
The party that night was just as long and tedious as all of the others, and Marco wondered why these people couldn’t add just a touch of variety to their social events. Seriously, it was as if everyone had a script for the night and it never varied. The only difference was the address. Even the outfits and the décor were too similar, no one wanting to step out and be daring. Every dining room contained the requisite polished table with too many plates stacked on top of each other and way too many utensils lined up beside the ridiculous stack of plates. Marco had caught too many hostesses and guests eyeing him gleefully as they waited with bated breath for him to mess up and choose the wrong utensil. He didn’t even give a damn when they looked away with disappointment.
He'd created a company from literally nothing, maneuvering around the globe to find new products and bring them to his markets in more than fifty countries. He’d figured out how to negotiate with world leaders and win business negotiations with some of the toughest business leaders. He had traveled far and wide, and these people thought they were going to trip him up over a fork?
“How much longer?” he grumbled, leaning towards Chloe who was once again pretending to sip her wine.
