Maxine Sullivan - The CEO Takes a Wife / The Throw-Away Bride

Heavens, if he expected her to take the lead then he was in for a shock. There wasn’t a woman alive who wouldn’t like to make love to him, including herself, but tonight she couldn’t quite bring herself to make the first move. She just wasn’t sexually experienced enough to be blasé about all this.

She swallowed past her dry throat. “The seafood salad looks nice.”

He shot her a knowing look. “Yes,” was all he said, then gestured for them to start helping themselves.

After that they ate and made idle conversation about the house, the weather, the food. It wasn’t a getting-to-know-you time but more a staving off of the inevitable—at least, for Olivia.

And then Alex took a slip of paper out of his pocket and pushed it across the table toward her. “Here’s a check for the rest of the money. I want you to have it now and not after we make love.”

His face was unreadable but something softened inside her, despite her pulse leaping all over the place. It was nice to know he was sensitive about her feelings.

“Thank you,” she whispered, leaving the check where it was for the moment. She’d paid half of his other generous check into her business account and half into her mother’s account in LA. It had held both banks at bay until she could cash this latest check.

As for Alex, any man who put his family first had to have some sort of sensitivity about him, she admitted, liking that he was doing this for his brothers, just as she was doing this partly for her mother. They at least had this in common.

And that reminded her.

She tilted her head at him. “Alex, I like your father. I think his heart’s in the right place.”

In a split second Alex’s jaw hardened. “You’ve known him five minutes and you figured that out, did you?”

Oh damn. She regretted saying anything now. Their moment of bonding had disappeared.

“Sometimes you don’t need to know a person long to know what they’re like,” she pointed out coolly. “ You certainly made up your mind about me quickly enough.”

A heartbeat passed, then his hard mouth visibly relaxed and the sexy look in his eyes told her seduction was now on his mind. “Yes, I did, didn’t I?” Without warning, he reached across and lifted her hand in his, tugging her gently to her feet.

The breath stalled in her throat. Oh heavens. What had she started? “Alex, I—”

“And that’s because I know when something feels right,” he cut across her, pulling her the few steps toward him around the table, making her tremble, his intention obvious.

“Alex—”

“And you feel right to me, Olivia Valente,” he murmured, pulling her onto his lap, his intense gaze holding hers still, just like his warm hand was holding her waist still. “Very, very right.”

She licked her lips. “Alex, can we please—”

“Yes, we can,” he muttered, and lowered his head.

Alex’s mouth covered hers and the room grew silent as he held her, absorbing the texture of her soft skin against his own. He’d only kissed her twice before, so he wanted to stay like this for a while and appreciate every inch of her mouth.

He did for several heartbeats.

But soon he couldn’t ignore his need to explore farther. He needed to delve into her luscious mouth, then uncover her bit by bit. He wanted to know the excitement, feel the intensity, learn the mystery of her body.

And he wanted it now.

He parted her lips with his own, and her sweet breath slid straight into him. He groaned and took a moment to savor it, before letting his tongue do a silent sweep.

He moved his mouth over hers slowly. And then she started to kiss him back, learning his taste, feeling his excitement as pleasure surged through him.

When he finally began to ease away, he scraped his teeth lightly across her bottom lip. “Third time’s the charm,” he murmured, noting the way her pupils had dilated.

She blinked. “Um…third time?”

“This is our third kiss.” He bent his head again. “And this…” he needed more “…is our fourth.”

He kissed her deeply again before drawing back to place kisses along her smooth jawline. His lips brushed against her earlobe and he lingered there, breathing in the light floral scent of her hair.

After taking his fill, he leaned back and ran a finger along the underside of her chin. Then he followed the column of her throat to where her quickened pulse drummed at its base, down to the first dainty button of her blue robe resting on her cleavage.

His libido climbed.

“Undo it for me,” he commanded.

She gasped, her blue eyes widening. “The button?”

“Yes.” He only had one hand free, the other was holding her by the waist. “Then undo the rest of them.”

Her eyes were hesitant beneath her long eyelashes, but after a moment she lifted her hands and began to do as he asked. The silk parted as button after button broke free, leaving behind the blue silk gown made to capture a man’s attention.

It did.

And there was nothing pure about the thoughts running through his mind. “You dazzle me,” he rasped, seeing the outline of two dark nipples peeking through the shiny material.

He felt her quiver as his thumb ran over the tip of one bud. He did it again, then held the nipple between his finger and thumb, squeezing lightly. Her quiver turned to a shudder.

Relishing the feel of her coming alive under his hands, he bent his head to that breast and began sucking through the material, flicking her with his tongue.

She gave a whimper and her head arced back against his shoulder. One of her arms came around his neck and she held on to him, burying her face in his nape and breathing deeply. Just as quickly, she pulled back, as if caught doing something she shouldn’t.

He felt heat explode inside him. “Do that again,” he muttered against her breast.

She froze for a split second, hesitated before she did it again, making him groan. They stayed like that for a short time, then finally he lifted his head and she moved her face back.

He looked into her eyes. “A man could lose himself in you and never want to be found,” he rasped.

Her eyes darkened. “Oh, Alex.”

His gaze slowly slid down her body to where the material pooled at the apex of her thighs. He looked up. “You don’t like me saying that?”

“Yes.” She swallowed. “I do.”

His palm slid downward, over her abdomen and her soft mound before resting between her legs. She gasped as he stroked her with his finger through the gown. “You don’t like me touching you?” he teased huskily.

“Yes…” her throat convulsed “…I do.”

He had to feel her naked body. He had to see all her creamy smooth skin. He pushed to his feet, with her in his arms, and stood her in front of him. Then he eased the silky robe off her shoulders, letting it drop to the floor. The matching nightgown was next and he shuddered when he saw how perfect she was.

Their eyes locked.

“Alex,” she murmured, her eyes darkening, her cheeks coloring, though she made no attempt to cover herself.

Lifting her, he carried her to the bed. After laying her down he began stripping off his clothes.

Their eyes locked again before her gaze ran down his body and she gave a soft gasp. He knew if he didn’t touch her…didn’t taste her…wasn’t inside her soon…he’d explode.

He joined her on the bed and this time her mouth parted even before their lips touched. He gave a low sound of approval, and she answered his kiss, her hands coming up to cling to his shoulders. Willingly, he let her pull him closer, until his bare flesh was pressed against her soft skin, savoring the aching anticipation.