Chapter 8

Scott carried Chloe into the bedroom slung over his shoulder.

After depositing her on the bed, Scott got up and walked straight to the cabinet by the window.

Chloe sat on the bed and looked around. Judging from the layout of the space and the personal furnishings, this had to be the master bedroom—the place where Scott actually lived his daily life.

The room was furnished simply, without any superfluous decoration, done almost entirely in white. It looked clean, crisp, and orderly.

The air in the room carried a scent similar to the one on his body—a faint, clean woody fragrance, something very much like vetiver.

Before long, Scott sat down beside her and handed her the box he was holding.

Chloe was a little puzzled by the gesture, her brows knitting together faintly.

"Your deposit," Scott said.

Chloe took the box and opened it. The brilliance nearly dazzled her eyes.

Inside lay a ladies' wristwatch, diamonds encrusted across everything from the dial to the strap.

Although Chloe didn't know much about watches, one look at the exquisite craftsmanship was enough to tell her it had cost a fortune. Examining the dial more closely, she saw the Patek Philippe emblem.

"Six hundred thousand. Is that enough?" Scott tipped his chin toward the box.

"That's too much," Chloe said. "Pick a different one."

"This one will do. I can't very well have you keeping me company for nothing." Scott's voice was full of teasing. "Whatever's over the amount, consider it an extra reward for you."

"Using a refundable deposit as payment—you really know how to do the math." Chloe gave an unimpressed little snort.

"Now you're wronging me," Scott said. "I have always been extremely generous with ladies."

"Just keep it. Any of my other watches, I couldn't bear to put up as collateral."

Chloe glanced at the watch box. He'd handed over something worth six hundred thousand without so much as blinking—so just how valuable were the rest?

"I originally bought this watch as a gift for someone, but in the end it never got given away, so keeping it around gathering dust was a waste." Scott's voice interrupted her train of thought.

The moment he said it, Lydia sprang to Chloe's mind, and the question blurted out. "It was originally meant for your ex-girlfriend?"

Scott pinched her chin and drew her closer. "Asking in such detail—are you jealous?"

"I simply don't want to get tangled up in unnecessary trouble." Chloe looked directly into his eyes, not the least bit flustered.

"Relax. Everything is brand new. There won't be any trouble," Scott explained.

Before Chloe could open her mouth, Scott had already snapped the watch box shut, tossed it carelessly aside, pressed down on her shoulders, and pushed her backward onto the mattress.

Her breath was stolen away from her in a single instant. His kiss descended with a force that allowed no resistance, lips and tongues tangling, every bit of it pure aggression.

Chloe's hands crumpled his T-shirt; then, as they rolled, he caught her wrists and pinned them beside the pillow.

The sheets piled up in messy folds beneath them, giving off a soft, rustling friction.

After several turns, when that deep kiss finally paused, Chloe discovered she was somehow already straddling his waist, the skirt of her velvet gown bunched in disorder at the tops of her thighs.

Scott's palm held the small of her back rock-steady, his knuckles clearly defined, his body heat searing into her skin through the thin fabric.

Without the slightest warning, his hips drove sharply upward. The force was not light, and the intent behind it was unmistakable.

"Ah..." Caught completely off guard, Chloe shuddered as if an electric current had run through her whole body.

Her waist went soft in an instant and she pitched forward, her hands scrambling to brace against his tightly muscled shoulders. A flush spread from the roots of her ears across her cheeks, and her breathing fell into chaos.

Scott tilted his head and pressed his warm lips to the sensitive side of her neck, sucking with just the right pressure and leaving a small wet patch. "You can't take it already?" His voice vibrated against her skin, low and husky.

Chloe didn't answer, but her fingertips had already slipped under the hem of his T-shirt, wandering upward along the sharply carved lines of his abdomen, the touch solid and scorching warm.

Just as she was about to trail her fingers onto his chest, he seized her wrist in one swift grip.

"Want to touch here?" He laughed low and guided her hand downward without allowing any refusal, pressing it—through the fabric of his sweatpants—against the spot already stretched tight and straining. "Why not feel something more substantial? It'll perk you right up."

The astonishing heat and hardness beneath her palm made Chloe's fingers curl involuntarily. She tried to withdraw her hand, but he held it firmly in place.

"I don't have any strength left..." Her voice had gone completely hoarse, its trailing edge trembling beyond her control. The cool, rational woman who had negotiated across the dinner table was nowhere to be found. She had melted into a helpless, pliant mess.

"No strength won't do at all." Scott unhurriedly pulled down the invisible zipper at the back of her gown, the faint metallic rasp of the teeth sliding apart ringing especially clear in the quiet bedroom.

"I've already prepaid the deposit. How about this—say a few sweet things for me? Tonight, let me do the work."

He propped himself up and loomed over her, caging her beneath him. Behind his glasses, his eyes were bottomless, desire surging and roiling within them.

"I assumed," Chloe panted, lifting her wet, glistening eyes to glance at him, "that getting slapped would make you work harder."

"Complaining I wasn't forceful enough?" Scott's gaze abruptly darkened. He wasted no more words. One hand hooked the bend of her knee and pressed it aside, while the other efficiently stripped away the half-shed gown entirely and flung it onto the carpet.

He bent over her, his chest pressed tight against her bare skin, their scorching body heat passing back and forth between them.

His lips pressed to the shell of her ear as he exhaled each scalding word, one by one, slowly and distinctly. "Tonight, I am going to teach you a proper lesson."

He bit down hard on those final words, loaded with undisguised lust and the will to dominate.

And this was only the beginning.

In bed, Scott was far more wanton than his words—and far more reckless.

It had been almost two years since she'd had sex this frequently.

Even though only a single day had passed since the last time, when it finally ended, Chloe still felt as if her waist was about to snap clean in half.

When it was over, she lay sprawled face-down across the bed, her cheek pressed to the faintly cool sheets, most of her hair soaked through with sweat, utterly spent.

Her whole body was damp and sticky.

"Want a shower?" Scott's hand slid onto her shoulder and met a slick sheen of sweat. He couldn't help laughing low. "You really are made of water."

"Help me up." Chloe's plea came out weak and airy.

"I'll carry you to the shower." Scott lifted her off the bed without the slightest effort. "My apologies—I lost control a little back there. You were simply too—"

He didn't finish the sentence, but from the look on his face, Chloe knew whatever came next wouldn't be anything flattering.

Scott seemed to genuinely enjoy watching her get riled up. Unfortunately for him, right now she truly had no strength left even to work up a proper anger.

After rinsing off under a hot shower, her waist ached a good deal less, but thoroughly soaked through by the steaming water, Chloe grew so drowsy she could barely keep her eyes open.

Once again, it was Scott who carried her out of the bathroom.

When Scott laid her down on the living room sofa, her eyes flew open.

"Once I've changed the sheets, I'll carry you back to the bedroom," Scott said.

"Do you have any clothes here I can wear? And where's my phone?" As she spoke, Chloe started to sit up.

"Don't leave tonight. In your current condition, driving yourself home wouldn't be safe at all." Scott pressed her back down gently. "If you felt unwell on the road and some passerby called the police, I'd end up a prime suspect."

Chloe had no answer to that. In the end, she stayed the night at Scott's place.

The violent exertion of the night had left her utterly drained of every last ounce of energy. She slept straight through until dawn without waking once.

In the morning, she was woken by her alarm.

She groped around her pillow with her eyes half closed, found the phone, and switched off the alarm—only then realizing that something was wrong.

She clearly hadn't brought the phone into the bedroom last night. What's more, it was currently plugged into a charging cable.

"Morning."

The man behind her rolled over and draped an arm across her waist.

"Did you bring my phone in?" Chloe asked.

"I was worried a dead battery might mess up your work. Relax—I didn't look at anything else," Scott said.

"Thanks," Chloe said.

"Words alone aren't going to be enough." Scott lowered his head and pressed a kiss to the nape of her neck.

Bzzzt. Bzzzt. Bzzzt—

Just as the atmosphere was heating up, an urgent burst of vibration sounded, shattering everything.

It was Chloe's phone vibrating. Scott watched her pick it up. Displayed clearly on the screen were one word: [Hubby.]

Chloe sat up and raised the phone to her ear.

"Honey, you're not at home?" The moment the call connected, Austin's voice came through.