“You still with me, Sophia?” His lips brushed over her jaw and down her neck.
“Yes.” Her fingers raked down his back as he shifted forward, the head of his cock pressing against her opening. “No more waiting. Please. I want this.”
His hand cupped her breast, and he rolled a nipple between his thumb and forefinger. “So impatient.”
“Now, Dion.” The words dissolved into a cry as he pushed inside her, filling her. Taking her.
She sucked in a breath and let it out slowly, willing her body to relax into it. As he started moving, all of her melted against him, turning pliant in his hands. Each stroke pushed her higher and higher, toward an apex of something she hadn’t even known existed.
He rained kisses down over her, and her eyes fluttered, pleasure filtering through her as she lifted her hips, anchoring her legs around his waist. Urging him to go deeper. Drawing him in. The rhythm became frantic as they chased pleasure. Together. As a team.
The muscles in his arms corded as he thrust, and she gripped him, digging her nails into his skin. Marking him as hers. And when his name fell from her lips, he shuddered inside her, thrusting long and hard one last time.
The silence washed over her as they lay there, tangled in one another, and a deep calm claimed her.
Maybe Dion was exactly the person she needed to help turn her life around.
Chapter Fourteen
In the lazy glow of late morning, Dion quietly slipped out of bed and out of the apartment, into the pale Parisian sunshine. When he returned, Sophia lay in the center of the large mattress, where she’d invaded his space in the middle of the night, her hand reaching for his. The sweet gesture, regardless of the fact that it was made unconsciously, had warmed him to the depths of his soul.
Which was precisely why he needed to make Sophia learn her lesson.
Walking slowly so that each footstep fell as soundlessly as possible, Dion crept out of the room. He paused at the doorway, turning back to admire her languid form, the sheet pulled up to her waist and her dark hair fanned out like a halo on her pillow. She had one arm flung over her eyes, leaving her breasts free to the morning air. The apartment air-conditioning kept a cool breeze running through the rooms, which made her nipples stiff and peaked. He had half a mind to abandon his plans and go back to bed so he could wake her with his mouth.
But they were about to enter a marriage, which would leave plenty of time for the carnal delights of such things. Now, he needed her to know something important.
Dion Kourakis was not a man to be trifled with.
He snuck into the spare room where he’d been sleeping up until last night and located Baroness Sasha Foxington III. Sophia had no idea that he’d brought the fox with him. It had required a little planning, like finding a suitcase that would easily fit the damn thing and having it loaded onto the plane after they’d already boarded and distracting Sophia while the driver brought it up the afternoon they arrived.
Initially, he’d planned to let Sophia pick her own engagement ring. After all, a marriage for a business arrangement didn’t really require such romantic notions as getting down on one knee. He would have been more than happy to buy her whatever sparkly rock took her fancy and call it a day.
But somehow that didn’t feel quite right, now. Last night had shown him what kind of person she was—strong, fierce, determined. Qualities he held in the highest regard because he’d spent his own life cultivating those very things. The more he learned of her father’s tyranny and controlling nature, the more his respect for Sophia deepened.
And while the plan was not for the marriage to last forever, Dion had grown to enjoy Sophia’s company. And hell, he’d even grown to enjoy her antics. They’d come at an important time, helping to distract him from his growing concerns about Elias’s health.
Dion twisted the signet ring around his little finger. It wasn’t at all his style, with the flat top and engraved initials that were so well-worn they could barely be read. But Elias had owned that ring since receiving it on his twenty-first birthday, and Dion had never seen him without it, right up until the day that he got diagnosed with lung cancer and slipped it into Dion’s palm.
You’re the closest thing I have to a son.
Dion knew the sentimental value of a ring, and so he’d decided to take the old-fashioned route. A small velvet box was burning a hole in his pocket. He’d visited a jewelry store he’d noticed several times on their walks through Paris because their designs were beautiful, unique, and a little unconventional. Much like Sophia.
The ring he’d chosen was simple in its beauty—almost antique-looking. It was engraved with a pretty vine design that twisted all the way around the band, small emeralds punctuating each leaf. In the center of the ring was a larger square-cut emerald. It reminded him of the descriptions of her dream cottage and how she wanted to be surrounded by nature.
He slipped the ring onto a ribbon that he’d found adorning a box of fancy toiletries in the bathroom and tied it around the fox’s neck. Then he snuck back into the bedroom, silent as a dream, and placed the fox on the end of the bed. Since Sophia was all of five feet nothing, there was plenty of space at the foot of the bed for the fox to sit undisturbed by her feet.
As if sensing his presence in the room, Sophia stirred. Her arm flopped down by her side, and she shifted, eyelids fluttering and an adorable hmm sound emanating from her lips. She blinked once, twice, and sat bolt upright, clutching the bedsheet to her chest, a shriek on her lips.
“Dion!” The shriek turned to laughter, and she placed a hand to her mouth. “Oh my god, you scared the shit out of me.”
“Not a great way to wake up, is it?” He stood on the other side of the room, arms folded as he leaned against the wall.
“What’s this?” She crawled forward to inspect the ribbon around the fox’s neck.
Her eyes were like saucers, staring up at him in this wide, guileless way that made his heart thump. She fingered the ring, rubbing it between her thumb and forefinger.
“I thought we should make it official.” He stalked forward, suddenly hungry. He loosened the bow from behind the fox’s neck and placed the animal on the ground. “I know a lot of women want a big white diamond for their wedding day, but something told me your tastes run a little more unique.”
A smile lifted her lips. “Something told you, huh?”
He reached for her hand and pushed the ring onto her finger. For some reason, seeing it on her hand filled him with pride. “I know this marriage isn’t what you wanted. It’s not going to be traditional or even normal. But out of all the women I could have married, I’m glad it’s someone with your wild spirit. You keep me on my toes, and that’s not an easy thing to do.”
“Thank you.” She reached out to touch his face, her fingers rubbing against the bristles coating his jaw. “For giving me a way out.”
“I’ll have the paperwork drawn up as soon as we get back. Everything you wanted—it’s done.”
“And what about what I want right now?” Her gaze turned sultry, her touch turning from soft and gentle to hard and demanding as she raked her nails against his scalp.
“What’s that?” He sank down to his knees on the bed, one hand bringing her palm to his lips.
“You. Me. A morning in this bed?”
“Only a morning?”
She grinned. “For starters.”
He eased her back, settling his hips between her legs as his lips came down on hers. As well as this had worked out, their marriage would never be about love. The clock would count down their time together, and then they would part ways with what they wanted—him with closure, and her with her freedom. And when it happened, he would welcome it.
Love could never be part of the equation.
…
Sophia had no idea it was possible to organize a wedding in a month, but it seemed that Dion’s influence and power opened more doors than she could ever have imagined. Venues were chomping at the bit to host
them, and Sophia’s second visit to the bridal store had been a lot more successful than the first.
In that time, Sophia and Dion had fallen into a rhythm. She’d started accompanying him to work two days a week, running her virtual-assistant business out of one of the offices in his building. On her off days, Sophia visited the children’s ward of the Corfu hospital. She volunteered weekly to read stories and keep the kids amused. Life wasn’t anything like what she’d thought it would be here—it was busy, fulfilling, and she found herself settling into her new home. Today would be the day it all became official.
Her mother had tears glimmering in her eyes. “You look wonderful.”
Sophia stood in the middle of the dressing room, the simple vanilla silk dress caressing her skin. The fine straps accentuated her shoulders, the pale color amplifying the warmth that Corfu had given her skin. She had pink in her cheeks and the shiniest ember glint to her hair and freckles dusting her arms and chest. The island had been kind to her; it had breathed life into her in a way no other place had.
She stared at herself in the mirror, assessing the stranger looking back. The stranger who’d finally found her power and confidence thanks to one imperfect man.
“I know this can’t have been easy for you,” Dorothy said, coming up behind her daughter. In the mirror, their relation was apparent. Sophia had her mother’s fine, wispy hair and wide eyes with inky lashes. She had the same little bump on her nose and the same heart-shaped face.
But all the similarities were on the outside. Because inside, Sophia was nothing like her mother.
“Yes, knowing I have to marry a stranger to keep my father happy is difficult.” Bitterness coated her tongue like a poison. Despite growing to really enjoy Dion’s company—in every way—this situation still made her blood boil.
Dorothy cringed. “Do you think I’ve been a terrible mother?”
She hadn’t wanted to get into this today. A wedding was supposed to be a joyous occasion, but it had been impossible not to think about why she was here. What she was required to sacrifice. Knowing this wasn’t her choice would always mean there was an uneven footing between her and Dion. They would never be equal, because she had not been party to the arrangement from the outset.
“No, I don’t think you’ve been a terrible mother.” She turned to face the woman whose weakness had made Sophia become stronger. “But I don’t understand why you’re still with Dad.”
“I love him,” she replied simply.
“How?” Sophia shook her head, the delicate chandelier earrings tinkling like tiny windchimes. “How can you possibly love someone who treats you like that?”
“Your father saved me, Soph. I was starving and doing awful things to keep food on my family’s table when I met him. He came into my life and things finally started to look up—he saved me. He even gave my brother a job and helped my sister pay for her schooling. He was my white knight.”
“He’s a manipulator.”
“You don’t know him like I do. You haven’t seen what he’s done.”
“It doesn’t matter what he’s done, Mom. It matters what he’s doing. Today. Now.” She couldn’t understand why her mother didn’t get this. “I’m going to fix everything. After Dion and I are married, we’ve already discussed how you can move here. We have plenty of space and—”
“I’m not leaving Brooklyn, Sophia.” It was the first time she’d ever heard any strength in her mother’s words. “I’m not leaving your father.”
“But you can be here with me.” She enclosed her mother’s hands between hers. “It’s all part of the plan. We’ll move you here and—”
“No.”
Sophia blinked. She wasn’t sure her mother had ever said that word before—she’d certainly never heard it come out of her mouth. Especially not when her family requested something. So Sophia hadn’t assumed, even for a second, that her mother would refuse the offer. Why wouldn’t she want a way out, like her daughter did?
“Why not?”
“I know you don’t understand it, Soph. But he’s my world. I’ve been with him since I was sixteen years old, and he knows me inside and out. And I know him. I see the good in him that others don’t.”
There is no good in him.
Tears of frustration pricked at her eyes. Was her mother really so blind to how controlling her husband was?
“I love him more than anything in my life, aside from you.” Dorothy cupped her daughter’s face. “You’re going to be married now, so you’ll understand it someday. The bond between a husband and wife is something blessed and worth protecting. When you work on a marriage together for so many years, you develop a closeness that is totally unique. These days, people don’t have the same views on marriage, I know, but it’s worth the bumps in the road. It’s worth the tears and the nights when you lay awake wondering what to do. Without your father, I might have ended up on the streets for good. I can’t ever forget that.”
Sophia’s heart sank. Nothing she could say would change her mother’s mind. Which meant her father would get his money, and he’d still have her mother to dangle, ensuring his daughter’s compliance. Just. Like. Always.
Sophia wanted to shake her mother, to try and rattle some sense into her. But it was hopeless. So instead she swallowed her pride and enveloped her mother into a hug. Maybe there was some truth in Dorothy’s words—because Sophia did still love her mother, despite how her weakness had held Sophia easily within her father’s spiderweb for her entire life.
Maybe it would be better for Sophia to run. Pack her bags and get the hell out of dodge in the hopes that her father would forget about her.
But what about your mother? Do you think you can vanish and leave her to fend for herself?
“One day you’ll understand,” Dorothy whispered. But Sophia seriously doubted that would ever be the case.
Chapter Fifteen
Dion hadn’t been able to stop staring at Sophia all day. At his wife. The second she’d stepped into the church, all breath and brain function had flown out of his body. Her father had insisted on walking her down the aisle, which he knew she would hate. But the second Cyrus had left her, the world had become theirs.
She’d looked up at him with those luminous chocolate eyes, lifted her own veil because she liked the idea of presenting herself to the world instead of having a man do it for her, and when she’d said “I do,” he felt the intensity of it right down to the marrow of his bones.
Dion hadn’t anticipated being so affected by the day. And while his views on marriage and relationships still hadn’t changed—they made you weak, if you let them, and he would avoid that at all costs—he would rather have Sophia by his side in this arrangement than anyone else. They were partners. And together they would bring down her father. And his.
“I’m glad Elias was able to make it today,” she said as they walked through the back garden of the wedding venue. It was dark now, with fairy lights wrapped around all the trees and lanterns in shades of blue, lilac, and gold bobbing in the breeze. The night would soon draw to a close. “I was worried he might be too sick.”
He didn’t have the heart to tell Sophia that her fears were almost confirmed. Elias had been unwell earlier that day, and the nurses had protested his attendance, but nobody stopped him from doing a damn thing if he wanted to do it. They’d pumped him full of drugs and monitored his every move. He’d only stayed for the ceremony, but it had given Dion a feeling of belonging that filled a hole in his heart.
“You look really amazing today,” he said.
“You’re just saying that because I set a low bar to begin with.” She laughed.
“I mean it. When I saw you walking up the aisle toward me, I wanted to tell everyone to get out and leave us alone.” He paused as another couple came toward them, hands outstretched, offering well-wishes and kisses. “You’re a vision.”
For some reason, the return smile didn’t seem to reach her eyes.
“What’s wrong?”
She shook her head, her eyes suddenly sparkling, and not in a way that spoke of wedded bliss. “Nothing.”
“It’s not nothing.”
“I didn’t want to talk about it until we got home.” She brushed the back of her hand over her cheek, where a tear had fallen.
“Then we’ll go home.” He grabbed her hands and squeezed them. “That’s it. Wedding over.”
She looked around the garden. “But there are still so many more people—”
“If I can’t prioritize my wife on our wedding day, then that doesn’t bode well for us, does it?”
“How is it possible that you treat me better than the two people who are supposed to be my family?” She shook her head, her throat working as she swallowed.
“Come on.” He tucked her under one arm. “Let’s get out of here.”
He pulled her through the garden, his long-legged strides telling everyone around them that now would be a bad time to interrupt. As far as he was concerned, it was his wedding and he could exit whenever the hell he pleased. Iva could handle the guests.
They rounded a corner into the back section of the building, which had been a working farm for many years but now was used almost exclusively for events where people wanted privacy along with amazing views. Dion found his driver sitting around and chatting with some of the venue staff, but he jumped to attention the second his boss approached. In under five minutes, Dion and Sophia were in the back of the limo, with the farmhouse fading rapidly in the rearview mirror.
Dion tapped the button to close the privacy screen between them and the driver. “Tell me,” he said simply.
“It’s my mom.” She leaned back against the limo seat and looked up at the ceiling. “I told her that I wanted her to move in with us, to get away from Dad…”
He could feel her pain as if it were his own. “She wasn’t interested?”
“No. She says she loves him, but I have no idea how.” Her voice was tight with stress. “He treats her horribly. He treats me horribly, and I’m her child. Doesn’t that mean something to her?”
How to Lose a Fiance Page 15
