“That was nice of you.” He slid his hands into his pockets, and he looked like a powerhouse in that suit. With a clean jawline and a masculine face, he already looked handsome even without a designer suit tailored to fit him perfectly. All the things that others needed to be presentable were unnecessary for someone like him. He already carried himself like a leader, like the most admired man in the country.
It was hard to believe he was mine…if I wanted him to be. “She does so much for me. I thought she deserved a nice Christmas. Do you get your servants anything?”
“I give them jobs, don’t I?”
I pressed my lips together tightly and forced back the smile that came to my mouth. It was a predictable answer and fit him so well. I slipped off my jacket and hung it in the closet before I came back to him. My fingers flicked on the fireplace because I was cold the second my shoulders were free of the warm jacket.
He glanced at my appearance in the tight dress. The look was subtle and quick, but it was still noticeable at the same time. He kept his hands in his pockets and his shoulders straight, eyes trained on me.
I waited for him to walk out. “Thanks for the ride home.”
“My pleasure. I’ve got to keep the dogs away.”
“That was the only reason you came?”
He shook his head slightly. “I came to see you. That was the only reason.”
I stopped a few feet in front of him and crossed my arms over my chest. The more I felt the pull between us, the more I tried to fight it. Maverick had done a terrible thing, and I didn’t want to forgive him so quickly. He really hurt me, and it wouldn’t be right to sweep it under the rug…but my heart wanted something else. With every passing day, I missed his bedroom more and more. I wanted to be the recipient of his amazing kiss, be the woman under him in the throes of passion. I wanted to be his wife.
Maverick waited patiently, like something might happen. If I were willing, he would slide his hand under my hair and kiss me as every piece of clothing dropped to the floor. His desperation was palpable, his desire filling the air around him. It’d been over a month since he’d last gotten action, but he remained faithful to me because I was the only woman he wanted.
It was going to happen anyway, so I may as well go for it.
But I couldn’t bring myself to do it. “Goodnight, Maverick.”
His eyes fell in disappointment, and a quiet breath escaped his nostrils. Like he was a deflated balloon, his shoulders slowly sagged and his chin tilted toward the ground. “I can’t last much longer…”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Was he giving me an ultimatum?
“It doesn’t mean anything.” He stepped closer to me, his hands sliding out of his pockets. “When I watch you sing, it turns me on like crazy. Your voice…your mouth…everything. Then when it’s just us two, all I can think about is how beautiful you are, that you’re my wife and no one else’s. There’s nothing in this world that turns me on more. I could be with another woman, but that would be unsatisfying. I could be with myself, and that would be a letdown too. I’d rather just keep waiting…even though it’s driving me mad in the process.”
My arms tightened over my chest, like they were a protective barrier that could actually stop him.
Maverick read my body language with disappointment. He bowed his head slightly then turned to step out of the room. “Goodnight.” He headed to the door without looking back. His expansive shoulders looked beautiful in his jacket, and his narrow hips led to a tight ass. It couldn’t be seen directly, but the tug of the fabric made it obvious.
I watched him go without asking him to stay.
But I missed him the second he was gone.
10
Maverick
Charles and I talked about business at his house. We had a few rounds of scotch and a couple appetizers, but we spent most of our time discussing his needs for his businesses. He had a few restaurants across Europe, not just Italy, and fulfilling his need for my exclusive product wasn’t as easy it seemed. Our wheels weren’t produced by machines because the process was far too delicate. It required a hands-on approach, which made it expensive, and also difficult.
“You’re asking for a lot—but I’ll do my best.” This business was a family legacy. Handed down through the generations on my father’s side, it was a great source of pride for the DeVille family. The food industry wasn’t that interesting to me, but my family’s hard work through generations to achieve this kind of success was fascinating. It made me feel connected to my grandfather and my great-grandfather…and even my own father.