|||||||||||||||||||||Xander had kept his promise.Tomorrow, it was my turn to keep mine.I had spent the last few days in a daze, trying to process the whirlwind of emotions and the sudden shift in my life.And I had to navigated the situation with Sky. Deal with everything. Make sure that he was fine.Xander had rented out an apartment for him with a guardian, deeming it better than letting my brother stay at the dorms where someone had evidently screwed him over.It was a lot to process.And tomorrow, I had to go see Mathewson King.But before that, there was one thing that I needed to do. One thing that I hadn't done yet - tell Dave.I had avoided his calls and texts, but I knew that I could not keep avoiding him forever.I had to face him. I had to tell him the truth.Well, all the truth that I could tell him.Xander had given me no way out - the contract was not signed yet but as soon as the sun rose at the station last week, one of Carlson's associates had shown up with a non-d
|||||||||||||||||||||"I am really not in the mood for this right now, Xander." I sighed as I followed him into his apartment.Xander had insisted that we spend some time together, get some homework done before meeting Mathewson tomorrow."You're going to have to deal with it." He said as he closed the door behind us.I glared at him. I had to remind myself that it was not like I felt in the mood to work with him at the office as well, but I still did it for the pay. This was no difference.Back then I slaved away for him forty hours a week - sometimes working overtime. Now, I was going to work for him twenty-four-seven.And what a boss he was."When are you moving in?" He asked out of nowhere. "Excuse me?" What on earth was he talking about?"Am I the only one smart enough to think that it would not be believable at all if my fiancé stayed separately from me?" He was talking to me in his most condescending tone - as if I was a petulant child who needed to be explained the tiniest bi
|||||||||||||As soon as my lips touched hers, I was finished.Her sweet taste was like a hit of the most potent drug, making me crave more.Her lips were soft, and she tasted faintly of mint.For a moment, she was frozen, allowing me to explore her mouth, but then she reacted. By biting down on my tongue."Ow!" I recoiled, tasting blood.River glared up at me, her eyes sparkling with anger and defiance. "Back off, Xander!"I smirked despite the sting from her teeth. "Feisty as ever."Her cheeks were flushed and she looked ready to spit fire. "We had a deal. No intimacy!""Well, we have not signed the contract yet." I shrugged but I decided this was enough play for now. I got off of her. "And right now, you are single, I am single, anything can happen between us and there will be nothing wrong with it as long as it is consensual."I got up and walked away from the bed, leaving her to stare after me, her mouth gaping open."You're not serious." Her voice was a mix of shock and indignat
|||||||||||||||||||||"I am going to puke!" I exclaimed as I walked up the stairs of the King's mansion, rubbing my chest."You will be fine!" Xander threw his arm around my waist, making me turn to shoot a glare at him."Hands off." I hissed."Public display of affection, remember?" He winked and then added, "Besides, Grandpa loves you. I am sure if he is to object to this marriage, it will be because he thinks I am not worthy of you and never the other way around."His words sent a shiver down my spine. Did Mathewson really think I was that amazing? Doesn't that mean that I will be breaking his trust in the worst possible way if the truth was ever to come out?But as we approached the grand doors, my thoughts of Dave and our break up were pushed aside, replaced with the dread of meeting Xander's grandpa again.It was easier to meet Mathewson as Xander's PA and the woman he felt was his comrade in having to deal with Xander's shenanigans. But to meet him as Xander's fiancé was unnerv
|||||||||||||||||||||"What we are doing is wrong, Xandy!" I exclaimed as soon as the front door closed behind us. "Your grandfather will be heartbroken when he finds out the truth behind our marriage. This ruse!"Xander turned to me, his eyes stormy. "Would you rather see me lose everything and Skylar's future go down the drain? This is the only way!"I took a deep breath, trying to compose myself. "I know," I murmured. "But the weight of this lie is heavy on my conscience."Xander's expression darkened. "Is that it or does it have something to do with the so-called collateral damage you were talking about yesterday?"I was confused. "What are you talking about?" I asked, and then it clicked. "You think I am regretting my decision to break up with Dave and is hence making up excuses to get out of this marriage?"I glared at him.How could he think that about when my brother's life was on the line? I was not the kind of person to choose my happily ever after over my baby brother's fut
|||||||||||||||||||Xander.Xander King.The man who walked into and out of boutiques and stores like they were a drive through, spent four freaking hours in the store with me just to pick out clothes for me.What was he playing at?He did not looked bored for a second while I was exhausted from having to change in and out of all of his selections.If he was so into shopping, then why the hell did this asshole make me do all the shopping for him and his flings?I glared at him. "Why are you enjoying this so much?" I hissed.Xander's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Because I like dressing up my future wife. You have something against that, wifey?"My eyes widened and I felt my face heat up at the term he had used to address me.Daniel, though he was facing away from us, squealed and even though he covered it up with a cough, he knew he was getting excited at Xander's antics."Why do you have to call me that?" I whispered, trying to keep my voice down.Xander leaned in, his breath warm a
||||||||||||||"Four times." Xander growled. "You are right. I need you in a bed."I took a step back."No." I said.It was one word, but it was firm.Xander's eyes bore into me, the hunger in his gaze unmistakable. "You don't mean that," he murmured, his voice thick with lust."Yes, I do," I replied, my voice shaky. "This isn't right.""What isn't right?" He asked.I was surprised.Did he not at all understand what was not right with this situation?"Everything." I whispered, my heart racing as I backed away from him.Xander's expression turned cold, his eyes dark. "I will give you time until the wedding. Whatever stupid feelings you are harboring towards that ex of yours, get rid of it by then. Because there is no way in hell I am going without sex for the next two years." He turned around. "You have to choose the lingerie. I will wait in the private room."He started walking towards it but I stopped him."You can always sleep with someone else."The words left my mouth before I had
|||||||||||||I did my lingerie shopping robotically and had Daniel come up and pack the purchase and had them sent downstairs before letting Xander know.He didn't ask any questions but Daniel wanted to know if we fought."He wanted me to get that gift-wrap lingerie." I shrugged.Daniel squealed like a school girl. He was loving the chemistry between us, he told me.What chemistry?The only thing going on between us was nuclear physics.Xander was waiting for me outside, his arms folded over his chest as he leaned against the car, looking every bit the CEO of the company, even though we were in a department store."Ready?" He asked, not even bothering to look at me."As ready as I will ever be." I said, my voice flat.He nodded and opened the car door for me. I slid into the passenger seat, my mind racing with a million thoughts.Xander slammed the door shut and slid into the driver's seat.The engine roared to life and he pulled out of the store front.I stared out of the window, my
||||||||"Damn, man!" Peter would not shut up. "I have never seen Xander King so jealous or so out of it before!" He told our friend George Thompson.I scowled at him but said nothing. I was not jealous.I was acting.It was just how men were supposed to act when their females were being hounded by assholes.George chuckled. "Oh well, we all knew the day was coming.""Yeah!" Dane appeared out of nowhere, one of the hostesses in his arm. "We are just surprised it took this long!"I glared at him but he did not have the decency to look away or look guilty.The man was married with three kids, fourth one on the way. And yet, he was here, at George's bachelor party, with his hand on a hostess's waist. His wife, Riley, was nothing special. But she did not deserve this.I was, by no means, a one-woman man. But I had accepted it and I had embraced it, which was exactly why I was not interested in marriage in the first place. I was no cheat - I did not vow to be there forever and then put my
||||||||I stared at my reflection in the mirror.Love bites peppered from my jaw to my breasts like rose petals, my core still throbbed from the passion last night and my legs felt like Jell-O.But my eyes... They were a storm.A mix of irritation, confusion and frustration.Now I knew why women were the way they were with Xander.The man knew how to worship every inch of a woman's body.He had taken his sweet time, kissing and licking his way down from my mouth to my neck, over my collarbone, across my breasts, down my stomach, and finally settling between my thighs.I shook my head.I needed to get those thoughts out of my mind."You okay?" Xander's voice was deep and sleepy, and it sent shivers down my spine.He was naked, and magnificent - god-like."Yeah," I replied, not taking my eyes off the mirror."You don't sound like it," Xander said, his voice closer now. He dipped his head to place a kiss on my exposed shoulder. I suppressed a moan when he licked off the water droplets d
|||||||||||"Now, get on your knees, on the floor." My wife-to-be, much to the satisfaction of my male ego, seemed to be in too much of a daze as she stared at my cock, that she did not really comprehend what I had told her to do.I stepped closer, the tip of my thumb brushing against her cheek. "I said, get on your knees, River."Her pupils dilated as she finally snapped out of her trance.She blinked, then swallowed hard."On...on the floor?" Her voice was a squeak.I nodded, the corners of my lips curling up into a smirk. "Yes, on the floor, wifey."Her eyes narrowed at the pet name, but she complied nevertheless, sliding off the bed and dropping to her knees.Her skirt hiked up slightly, exposing those creamy thighs.My cock throbbed in response.I stepped closer to her, my hand tangling in her hair, undoing her bun, and pulling her face closer to my groin."Good girl," I murmured, feeling the heat from her rapid breathing on my skin.Her lips parted slightly, and she licked her
||||||||||"What kind of personal assistant does not have her phone on her?" Was Edward's question as soon as he sighted us. He stood up from where he was leaning against his suitcase, in the hallway that led to Xander's - and I could say for the time being, my - apartment.What was he doing here? Was he moving in tonight?Dammit, why had I not taken that call? We would not have been ambushed like this if it wasn't for my stupidity. I felt grateful to Xander for handling things quite meticulously today morning itself. If Edward had walked in and found all of my things including my toothbrush in the guestroom then he would have immediately informed Mathewson, and that would be the end of our great contract marriage facade. "What are you doing here?" Xander asked the question for me."Well, your grandfather is not happy with the allegations thrown against you, Mr. King, so he has asked me to move in at the latest and help with the wedding preparation." He sounded indignant as if some
|||||||||||"So this bitch thinks that she can just yap all she wants and we won't do nothing?"Mr. Carlson looked over at me helplessly while I just shrugged at him, standing next to a seething Xander.I had forgotten for a second how furious Xander could get. And how fast he would act on his temper."Well, she is not taking names." Mr. Carlson shrugged. "So if we make a statement or take any action against her, the public would only think that there is some truth about what she is saying.""You think I care what the public thinks?" Xander's voice was low, and I could feel his body tense up behind me. "It's what Grandpa thinks that matters to me.""You should care what the public thinks, Mr. King." I was here as his personal assistant, not his fiancé. "You are running for the position of the Chairman. It's a huge responsibility and the board will not be willing to even consider you for the position if you act so recklessly."Xander glared at me. "I am not running for Miss Congenialit
|||||||||"It's a cozy place." I looked around the new place.Skylar nodded, his eyes still narrowed at me. "I am an idiot."I snorted as I looked over at him. "Despite what your scores and IQ said, I knew you would agree to it some day."He scoffed and then sat down on the couch. "I am talking about how I did not realize that there was something going on between the two of you from the way your 'asshole' 'evil' 'piece of shit' Boss came all the way in the middle of the night to bail me out and get me a new place to stay! No asshole boss does that!"I glared at my brother as Xander stepped out of the kitchen after having talked to the butler and housekeeper who were a couple and staying with Skylar to look after him."She did a great job hiding me under her thumb, didn't she?" Xander winked as he sat down on the armchair opposite Skylar.Skylar's eyes narrowed, and he leaned in closer. "I have never heard one good thing about you from anywhere else as well. And she herself gossips abo
|||||||||The fitting lasted three whole hours.I did not get to choose my dress.Xander was being an obsessed monkey.He hovered over every decision, every stitch, every detail of the wedding planning like a hawk. It was infuriating, but I couldn't deny that he was being... nice. He was acting like a real groom-to-be."You know the groom is not supposed to see the bride in her dress before the wedding right?" The attendant had asked Xander but she had been chased away by him with a deathly glare."It's a fucking custom, not a law." He had snapped.And that was that."We will have the final alterations done in two weeks." Another attendant had told us.I sighed as I finally got to sit down.I picked up my glass of sparkling water and took a sip. "I can't believe we are getting married in three weeks." I dropped my voice. "Fake. But still married."Xander's eyes snapped to mine. "It's not fake. Not for the next two years it isn't."I gave him a flat look. He was taking it too seriously
||||||||||||I started awake, my eyes wide with shock.What kind of erotic dream was that?I tried to sit up and my every muscle and bone hurt.I looked down and realized I was naked, and I was in Xander's bedroom.Naked in his bed with him nowhere in sight.I glanced around the dark room. The memory of his fingers inside me, his mouth on my neck, his cock sliding into me...it was all too real and they all came back to haunt me. "Fuck!" I swore, clutching my temples. "So early in the morning? Not that I mind." I jumped when I heard Xander as he walked in, clad in a pair of grey sweatpants that hung low on his hips, showing off those perfect washboard abs that ended in a V. My cheeks reddened at the sight because it just amplified the memory of the events of last night. I scanned the room, looking for my clothes."Where are my clothes?" I whispered, trying to hide my embarrassment.Xander smirked, his eyes sweeping over my naked body. I quickly covered myself with the duvet."In
||||||||||||||I carried her inside and deposited her on the dining table.Her eyes widened in shock as I pushed her legs apart, tearing her skirt in the process. "Xandy!""Too late, baby!" I laughed as I ripped the rest of her skirt and exposed her turquoise lace panties. "Now it's time for punishment."Her eyes were wide with shock, but she didn't fight as I pushed her legs wider apart and slipped my hand under her panties."You can't do this," she murmured, her voice trembling slightly as I felt her slick heat."Oh, but I can," I said, stroking her gently. "And I will."Her breath hitched as my fingers delved into her wetness. She was soaked and ready.I pulled my fingers out, making a show of licking her wetness off my lips, silently telling just how wet she was for me."You taste good," I murmured, my eyes hooded as I took in her flushed face, the way her chest was heaving with every breath she took."Take off all your clothes." It was a demand, an order.River's eyes widened. "H