His Wicked Games: A Billionaire Romance (The Cunningham Family #1) Page 12
What the fuck just happened?
I lean against the wall, trying to catch my breath, while Calder holds his hand out to me as if we were just having a perfectly normal conversation.
“Ready for the rest of the tour?”
Like fuck I am. I can hardly stand upright. He just had his fingers inside me and now he wants to pretend like none of it ever happened? My breasts are still hanging out, for fuck's sake.
I straighten and quickly yank my dress back up.
“What the hell was that?” I say.
He withdraws his hand. “A lesson.”
“A lesson?”
“You asked me why this painting was my favorite. I was only answering you.” He rubs his jaw. “You seemed to be enjoying it well enough.”
“You too,” I counter, but honestly he doesn't look half as flustered as I feel. How the fuck did he manage that? I know he wants me too, that he was aroused by the way I let him touch me.
“Is this some sort of sick game?”
“Not at all,” he says, leaning toward me again and dropping his voice. “I only wanted you to realize how much you want me.”
I open my mouth to deny it, but I know it's a lost cause. I can't bluff my way out of this, and Calder knows it. He's watching me with an infuriating mixture of smugness and amusement. I can't decide which I want more: to slap him or to grab him and kiss him.
His dark eyes are scanning my face, waiting for acknowledgment of my attraction. Despite the fact that I basically begged him to make me come only about a minute ago—not to mention my other behavior of the last twenty-four hours—I can't bring myself to say the words. Not now. Instead, I push myself away from the wall and extend my hand to him.
“I'm ready to continue our tour,” I say. “I imagine there's a lot left to see.”
I'm rewarded, briefly, by the look of surprise that flashes on his face. He recovers quickly, but it makes me feel better to know I've knocked him off balance, if only for a moment.
He takes my hand.
“There's lots more to see,” he says cheerfully. “Where would you like to go next? The stables? The kitchen?” He flashes a flirtatious smile at me. “Maybe you'd like to visit one of those secret passages? I think you'd find it quite stimulating.”
I feel like someone's dumped a bucket of cold water on my head. He’s toying with me. He has to be.
My eyes leap to his, and he's still wearing that self-satisfied smile. He has me in his power, and he knows it. He's enjoying it.
There's only one way to fight that.
“The secret passageway sounds amazing,” I say. “Let's start there.”
If my quick agreement surprises him, he doesn’t show it.
“Of course,” he says, holding out his arm to me. “This way.”
I hook my hand around his elbow, praying that he doesn't notice how shaky I still am. His skin is fire-hot beneath my touch, but he appears perfectly calm and collected. The bastard. He must get off on making me squirm.
He leads me from the gallery, and as we pass a long window I crane my neck to peer outside. The sky is still dark, the rain still pouring down. Thunder rumbles in the distance, suggesting that the storm won't be ending anytime soon.
How much longer I can survive in this place with Calder, I don't know, but one thing's for sure: I'm in way over my head.