by Tee, Marian
Damen shook her harder. “I thought you were gone!” He glared and scowled at her even as his heart kept beating faster, his mind still unable to comprehend that it had been a false alarm.
Looking down at her confused face, Damen bit out, “I thought you had left me!”
Understanding dawned. “You knew she was here?”
He nodded curtly. “Did she do anything to you? Did she say anything that hurt you or made you worry?” He couldn’t get the questions out fast enough. He needed to make sure Esther had left no damage. He couldn’t have Mairi gone again from his life. Not now and not ever.
Blinking back sudden tears at the worry darkening his face, Mairi shook her head and smoothed the hair away from his forehead. “It’s alright, Damen. It’s alright. She tried to make me go away, but she didn’t succeed.”
He stiffened. “What do you mean ‘tried’?”
Mairi haltingly explained Esther’s threat.
Damn his interfering mother! “I won’t let that happen,” he promised Mairi fiercely. “So don’t—”
“Damen.” She said his name quietly, gently, needing him to look at her and really listen to her. She cupped his face, using her touch to help him relax.
“Damen, relax. There’s nothing to worry about.” She smiled up at him tremulously, her love for Damen burning brightly in her eyes.
The sight of it made Damen catch his breath. “Mairi—”
“It’s okay. I’m okay. I dealt with your mother.”
He asked hoarsely, “How?”
Mairi evaded his gaze. “Well…”
“Mairi, say it.”
“I…umm…warned her that if she really does have me kicked out, I’m going to embrace my life as a mistress, live off you like a leech, and turn you into a sex slave because what she doesn’t know is that you’re secretly a masochistic sub who likes being chained and whipped by…umm…me?”
For a moment, all Damen could do was stare. His innocent quirky Mairi had said…that?
Esther Leventis was acknowledged as one of the most powerful women in Greece, and yet his beautiful girl had successfully intimidated her into retreating with a mind-boggling lie.
Mairi fidgeted at Damen’s look. “But I had to say something really scary,” she protested defensively. She was about to explain some more but ended up shrieking instead when Damen picked her up and spun her around, his laughter hoarse.
When he stopped spinning her around, she clutched his shoulders helplessly as she looked down at him, dazed by the beautiful gleam in his gaze. “Damen?”
There was hope in her eyes. He knew what she was waiting, hoping, and praying he would say but he just couldn’t. Not yet. Just not yet.
So instead of answering, he took her lips with a kiss.
Pain blossomed inside her like a rose filled with thorns, but after a heartbeat Mairi just decided to let it all go and focus on what she did have. Damen Leventis cared for her. At least he didn’t think she was some business arrangement to tolerate.
She just had to wait, just had to be patient, and sooner or later he would know the truth.
He loved her, too, had loved her from the start and always would.
With a sigh, she curled her arms around his neck and kissed him back.
In seconds, they were hastily undressing each other, a gasp torn out of her as Damen backed her towards his bed the moment they were both naked.
He kissed her mouth one last time before moving down, lips hungrily leaving a trail of passionate kisses down her neck, the valley between her breasts, and then moving sideways so he could suck on her nipples one at a time.
She moaned and arched against his hold. “Be gentle,” she gasped when he bit too hard.
“I can’t,” he rasped out as he released her nipple with a loud wet pop. “I want you too much.” He didn’t wait for her answer and went on sucking her nipples again.
Just when she thought she couldn’t take it any longer, Damen finally ceased his torture and moved further down, his lips kissing her belly and then the skin above her—
“So soft,” Damen purred in surprised pleasure as he took in her beautifully shaved pussy.
“Part of the…surprise,” Mairi managed to gasp before her body went up in flames as Damen’s tongue slowly lined her inner folds.
His fingers curled into his hair, gripping the locks hard. “Damen, please!” Her body started to writhe under his hot wet mouth, tears of pleasure striking her eyes as his tongue suddenly slipped between the folds.
“Oh, don’t, please, oh…don’t stop!” More wanton words slipped past Mairi’s lips as Damen continued to fuck her with his deliciously talented tongue.
Her hips were moving frantically now, a sign that she was close to coming. Damen inched up, bracing himself on his arms. “Ready, sweetheart?”
She looked up at him, the look in her eyes making him swallow. “Always.”
The word had him groaning and in the next second, he claimed her body with his cock, his strokes, long, steady and leisurely, taking his time to torture her with a very slow pace.
“Damen,” she wailed, her body twisting under him, her legs snaking around his waist, willing him to go deeper, harder, and faster. “Please, Damen, please…”
But he refused to heed her wishes, wanting to drive her wilder with need.
She pulled him down to her, arms tightening around his neck. “Damen, pleeeeeaaaase!” Instinct had her vaginal muscles flexing and constricting around his cock.
“Shit!” The tightening muscles squeezed his cock in the loveliest way, taking him by surprise. His control snapped.
“Daaaaaaamen!” His movements were frenzied. There was no pace, no rhythm, just sex at its rawest. It wasn’t making love. It was fucking, and she wanted more of it. She would always want more of this and would never get enough of it.
“More,” she begged.
“Then tell me how much you want my cock,” he growled.
“So much,” she sobbed as she tried to squeeze his cock with her muscles again.
“FUCK!” One hand went to her hair and another went under her butt, using both to anchor him to her body as he fucked her as hard as he could, the slapping sounds their bodies made rebounding inside the huge bedroom.
The sounds were earthy and lustful, and hearing it only made Damen want to fuck Mairi more and more.
Mine, he thought as he drove his cock into her so deeply he could feel the head of his cock brushing against her womb.
MINE! It was his last thought just as she cried out, the strength of her orgasm taking him beyond the edge. With a loud groan of his own, he came, his body arching powerfully as he pumped his seed into her already-drenched pussy.
They stayed linked together as their bodies relaxed in a blissfully sated state, Damen only taking the time to roll onto his back so that she would be lying on top of him.
He gazed up at her, beyond content to just look at the dreamy expression on Mairi’s lovely face.
Much, much later her eyes slowly drifted open.
He smiled, knowing what she was going to say before she even said it.
“Hi.”
His chuckle made his chest vibrate under her, tickling her nipples into coming to life once more. “Hello,” he answered, the lazy smile curving on his lips so beautiful it had her toes curling.
Although she was already sleepy, she forced herself halfway up, bracing her hands against his hard chest. She wanted to look at him, really look at him because…
A sigh tumbled past her lips.
Gosh, he really was at his most gorgeous when he had just had sex.
Damen frowned, mostly to cover his embarrassment at the way Mairi was looking at him. “Stop staring at me like that,” he grumbled.
She giggled.
It was an extremely cute sound, making him sigh himself.
“Damen?”
“Mm?” He lifted his gaze back to her.
Chapter Nine
To trust a Greek billionair
e, one must remember he can say very cruel things.
She said: Hmph.
He said: Err, did you say you’d like to watch a romantic comedy tonight? I think I’d like it, too.
“…and so for Teachers’ Day, the much coveted spot for the opening speech shall go to none other than Ms. Tanner!”
Mairi’s jaw dropped at Ms. Thorn’s announcement, unable to believe that she had indeed been chosen to formally start the festivities for Teachers’ Day with a speech. How could it be? She was one of the newest teachers in school. It just didn’t make sense.
Ms. Thorn beamed at her. “I can see you’re confused, but actually most of us are not.” She turned to the students with a wink. “Right, girls?”
The students cheered wildly in response, sending a fiery blush to Mairi’s cheeks. When Ms. Thorn motioned for her to go on stage, she did so immediately, knowing the principal liked it when teachers made even the simplest of speech when given awards of any kind.
With a nod of approval and a congratulatory smile, Ms. Thorn stepped aside for Mairi to take over the microphone on the podium. Swallowing, Mairi tested it by tapping the speaker. It echoed in response.
She cleared her throat loudly and mouthed sorry when the microphone unexpectedly picked it up, the sound bruising hundreds of ears in the process.
“Sorry,” she croaked out and wanted to kill herself again because this time she sounded like a newly-turned-human Pinocchio in need of vocal surgery.
Seeing everyone staring at her expectantly, Mairi tried to think madly of something to say but none came except for—
Carefully avoiding Charity’s gaze, she said weakly, “Yay me?”
The entire crowd laughed. Well, the entire crowd except Charity, that was. Her supervisor had long reprimanded her about using the expression, saying that it was very unprofessional of her.
When she returned to her seat, Ms. Thorn resumed making announcements. Her tone was quite excited as she revealed this year’s sponsors and donations. “We are up by a million dollars this year, mainly due to our two VIP guests.” She beamed. “First is Ioniko Vlahos—”
Mairi clapped her hands with the rest, but not as strongly because it felt like she was betraying Damen somehow.
“And secondly, Mr. Damen Leventis and his fiancée Alina Kokinos.”
Mairi paled the same time a few pairs of eyes went her way. Velvet and Mandy, who were concerned, Diana, who was anxious, and Charity, who was smug and knowing because she had seen something she wasn’t supposed to see a few weeks ago and she was only biding her time, waiting for the right chance to reveal the ace she had up her sleeve.
Conscious of several people’s gazes, Mairi slowly lifted her hands up again to clap with the rest of the crowd. With each clap, it was as if she was breaking her heart into two, over and over.
When lunch break came that day, Mairi quickly hid herself deep in the school’s gardens, her back against the trunk of a large old oak, knees tucked under her chin.
She wasn’t in the mood to answer the questions that her friends would surely ask. How could she answer those anyway?
Mairi played with her phone, waiting for it to ring. Anytime now, it would ring, she told herself. Damen had changed completely. He was different now. He might not realize he had fallen in love with her yet, but he cared for her and Mairi believed him when he told her he never wanted to hurt her.
The minutes ticked by, the silence becoming more painful.
When her phone finally rang, she couldn’t answer it fast enough.
But it was not Damen.
“Mairi? It is Ioniko.”
“Oh.”
“You are disappointed?” Ioniko asked gently.
His gentleness undid her. She tried to speak but couldn’t. She was too busy holding back tears.
“I have just spoken to Katya. My sister told me you now know about this weekend?”
Clearing her tear-clogged throat, Mairi said tremulously, “Y-yes. I know that you’re one of our guests. We’d be honored—”
“Mairi, small talk is wasted on me. You know that. I called because I wanted to be sure you are fine with what would happen?” He paused. “Will you be able to bear seeing them together in person?”
This time, she just broke down.
The sound of Mairi’s tears made Ioniko’s fingers clench around his phone. “Mairi—” But he was cut off by a beep. He knew it meant another incoming call, and Ioniko would bet his entire bank balance that it was Damen.
“Go on,” he told her. “Answer it. You can call me after – if you need to. I am always here for you.”
She squeezed her eyes shut, wishing it was effective to ward off the pain of knowing Damen should have been the first one to call her, not Ioniko.
“Thank you,” she choked out.
“It is nothing. Now, no more delays. Answer the call.”
And so she did.
“Mairi?” Damen’s voice came out controlled.
The more worried he was, the colder his tone became, but Mairi did not know this. All she knew was that he had called her too late, and he didn’t sound like he cared.
When she didn’t answer, Damen’s heart dropped to his stomach. She already knew. He had a feeling the announcement would be made today, but he had delayed calling, not knowing what to say.
I did not have any reason to make Alina refuse the invitation.
It was the truth, but it sounded incredibly lame and more suited as a reasonable lie.
The silence lengthened, becoming tense and awkward.
He gritted out, “Mairi, speak to me, please.”
But she didn’t and even now, Damen could not figure out what to say. He tried to come up with something else to talk about. “Were you talking to someone before I called?”
This one, Mairi gained a little pleasure in answering, never mind if it was not fair. “Yes,” she whispered. “I was talking to Ioniko.”
Damen stiffened. “And?”
“He asked me…if I was okay with what would happen tomorrow.” She then asked bitterly, “Are you having second thoughts about asking the same thing?”
Damen knew now was the right time to explain, but he just couldn’t get past the fact that she had been talking to Ioniko Vlahos. It was his worst fears realized, and as the fear mingled with pain, he said with unconscious sharpness, “What did you tell him?”
“Nothing.”
He snapped, “You didn’t tell him about us?”
She snapped back, “Is there an us?”
Damen cursed. “What does that even mean? Don’t fucking play games—”
The sheer unfairness of Damen’s words had her crying out, “You’re the one who’s playing games! Why didn’t you call me sooner?”
She had the right to ask him that, he knew. But guilt was still not an emotion he was used to feeling, and so was jealousy. Together, the two was a dangerous combination, effectively messing with his head.
“Mairi—”
“Cut the bull and answer me!”
His temper heated up, and he growled, “You are not my fiancée to have a right to make me answer your question!” The moment he said the words, Damen knew they were completely the wrong thing to say.
Her skin took on a sick pallor at his words. She thought he had changed. She had really believed he had.
“I wish I was in love with Ioniko instead,” she whispered, just to hurt him as much as he was hurting her.
The words were like a gunshot directly aimed at his heart. It made every cell in his being burn with fierce possessiveness and jealousy. A part of him knew that things had probably escalated out of their control. They were hurt and had both said things they didn’t mean.
He wanted to be fair and take it all back, but he couldn’t because in his mind he still heard her saying that she wished she was in love with Ioniko instead.
“If you want to be with Ioniko, I’m not stopping you.” He should stop here and now, but he was hurting too goddamn much to st
op just like that. “I just hope he’s willing to settle for my leftovers.”
Chapter Ten
To trust a Greek billionaire, you must not give up on them on the first try, or the second, or the third…
She said: Get ready to be hurt a lot of times.
He said (wincing): Think of it this way. We get a lot of practice begging, too. The next book can be The Art of Groveling.
He still hadn’t called.
It was the uppermost thought on her mind as she showered and changed into a cerulean wraparound dress. As she applied her makeup, she told herself that it was because he hadn’t yet figured how to apologize to her without losing face. Greek billionaires were terribly arrogant, after all. She couldn’t even think of a single Harlequin title that had a humble Greek billionaire in it.
Also, Mairi thought stalwartly as she worked her hair into a chignon, humble was good on paper but in real life? It was so not sexy.
So all in all, this was good and healthy for their rela—
Her thoughts stuttered to a stop, and she mentally scrambled for the right word to describe what they had.
Lover and cheater.
Mistress and benefactor.
Slut and client.
Mairi ran to the sink to throw up.
Two hours later, she was hurrying towards the auditorium, face scrubbed clean of tear-ravaged makeup and dressed instead in an elegant but simple cotton candy pink sheath dress.
Velvet and Mandy were already in their seats when Mairi joined them. “Where’s the pretty dress we bought yesterday?” Velvet asked, surprised.
“Wardrobe malfunction,” Mairi lied, thinking that should cover the fact that she had thrown up all over it because of sheer nervousness…and heartbreak.
“Oh…and your makeup?” Mandy asked.
“Umm…application malfunction?” She pretended she didn’t notice her friends throwing her suspicious looks after that.
Finally, Velvet cleared her throat. “Okay. Yay you for all the mishaps then.”
Even Mairi had to crack a smile at that.
Mandy gave her a quick hug. “Break a leg, okay? And chin up. I have no idea what you’re going through again to say all those silly lies, but I’m certain it has to do with your Greek billionaire. Whatever it is, remember we’re here for you.”
