Chapter Five

Lily

I stare at my reflection in the mirror as the memories of the previous night invade my head. Even now, I can feel my body burning with a strange hunger, an insatiable craving for him. It doesn't make any sense that I feel this way about a man that I just met.

Yet, it felt so natural to be with him. So good.

A loud knock at the door distracts me from my thoughts. I glance in the direction of the sound with a slight frown, wondering if Dana forgot her keys or something else.

I quickly go over to the door and pull it open. "Did you… G-Gabriel?" I gasp as my eyes fall on the very man that's been on my mind all day. He looks incredibly handsome in a dark gray suit that molds perfectly to his tall, muscular body.

"H-how did you find me?" I ask, blinking at him in surprise.

"The address was on your resume," he answers simply, looking into my eyes with an intensity that sets my body on fire.

"B-but why are you here?" I ask, stepping outside and closing the door behind me. I don't need him to see my chintzy little apartment with its Goodwill furniture and Dana's socks strewn about the floor.

"You were gone when I woke up," he replies. "It seems you've forgotten the details of your contract. I've come to take you home, wifey."

"You shouldn't call me that," I say despite the warmth spreading across my face. "It's all fake anyway, right?" It has to be. A man like Gabriel would never really want a woman like me.

He advances slowly, trapping me between the door and his large body. "And last night?" His husky voice sweeps across my skin, leaving goosebumps in its wake.

"All of it," I mutter, avoiding his piercing gaze. "W-we shouldn't have done that last night."

He steps forward, closing whatever gap remains between us. He lowers his head to my ear, his hot breath fanning my skin.

"Is that how you really feel, Lily?"

"I... Uh…" A soft gasp escapes my lips as he suddenly nibs at my earlobe. I immediately lose my train of thought and my head becomes a jumbled mess.

His right hand starts a slow trail up my thighs, bunching up my dress along the way until I'm almost bare to his smoldering gaze. My eyes unconsciously drift closed as I let myself get lost in the wicked sensations of his expert hands and mouth. I can feel a steady pressure mounting in the pit of my stomach, threatening to spill out of control.

He presses his palm against my aching pussy while his lips find their way to a sensitive spot on my neck. Just as I think I'm going to combust from an overload of pleasure, he slides a finger into me. I let out a muffled moan as my sex ripples around his finger, taking him even deeper.

"You're so wet, angel," he murmurs, withdrawing his finger and sliding in again, slowly.

I open my eyes to look at him and I almost forget how to breathe. His usually clear gray eyes have gone dark with a consuming hunger that sent chills down my spine.

"So ready for me…" he continues in an impassive tone as if he isn't torturing me with his fingers. His strokes grow faster, deeper, until I'm panting for breath, grinding helplessly against insistent fingers, desperate for release.

Suddenly, he nips my clitoris, tweaking his hand in a way that sends me spiraling off the edge. I jerk violently against the door, biting down hard on my lip to muffle the scream that rise in my throat as I become subdued by the powerful wave of orgasm.

"That felt real to me, angel," Gabriel says, slowly stepping away from me.

I search his face, trying to make sense of what just happened. I can't believe I just climaxed against the door, in the hallway, where anyone could have walked in on us.

And why do I find the thought exciting?

I close my eyes as I'm suddenly overcome by a series of conflicting emotions: confusion, excitement, arousal, and more confusion.

"God, what are you doing to me?" I ask, opening my eyes to look at him again. "I can't… This doesn't make any sense."

"What doesn't? The glaring attraction between us?" he asks, his stormy gray eyes boring into mine, holding me prisoner to his gaze. "There's no denying this, Lily. You want this too. But I see you've not come to terms with your desires. I promise, as difficult as it is, not to do anything until you ask me to. I'll wait. No matter how long it takes."

"What if I never ask?"

He smirks, an arrogant curve of his lips that make him look even more handsome. Lethal. "Oh, you will."

"I-I think you should leave now."

"Yes, we should leave now," he says, glancing at his watch.

"W-we?"

"Yes, Lily. You read the contract my lawyer sent to you, right? You have to live in my house for the duration of our fake engagement."

"Yes, I did. Of course."

Of course I didn't. I was so desperate for the money that I immediately signed the copy of the contract sent to my email and sent it back.

"Okay, great," Gabriel says with a nod of approval. "Let's pick your stuff and get going."

"Uhm… I can't"

"Why not?" He asks with an impatient frown.

"I have to be at an interview."

"What interview?"

"Oh, I applied for the position of secretary at Rhiley's Cosmetics, and I have to be there in an hour."

"Forget it."

"What? Why?"

"Because you, Miss Thomson, have been employed as my executive assistant," he replies, his expression unchanging. "Effective immediately."