Billion Dollar Bad Boy (Big City Billionaires #1) (6 page)

I was ecstatic—and amazed—by how handsome he was.

The very air around him felt like it was
breeding
sex. If people could bottle his essence, they'd make a fortune.

“Do I make you nervous?”

His bluntness threw me off. “The situation makes me a little uneasy. I mean, I'm here because you've been sending me all these letters and gifts. People don't meet like this.”

His  head bent towards one side. “I meant, do
I
make you nervous, Pet.”

A flutter rolled through me. I rocked in my chair, hands balling in my lap.
But he must know my real name, if he had cupcakes sent to my work.
How much
did
he know about me, and how?

That led me to a new question, one that had been growing for some time. “What does the 'S' stand for?” I blurted, unable to hold back.

Running a finger over his cheek, he gestured at my dress. “Take a guess. I've been leaving hints for you.”

Blinking, I stroked the hem of my outfit.
What does he mean?
It was smooth, and it fit me wonderfully. Just wearing it was enough to get my heart going.

Hints...
What was the clue? He'd sent me so many things.

Tilting my head, I tugged at my hair out of habit. In the process, I flicked the edge of my earring. In the crimson lights, my dress looked more maroon than silver, just like my earrings would. It didn't matter. I knew what he was trying to tell me.

“Silver,” I breathed out, smacking my palms onto the tabletop in delight. Looking up, I found him watching me with hunger in his amber eyes. “It's Silver, isn't it?”

Winking, he slid his palms over the table until he scooped my fingers up. He moved fast—trapping me. “I love how fucking clever you are. Yes, Silver. And you look
gorgeous
wearing my name.”

Blushing along my throat, I rubbed my knees together. From the start, he'd been branding me. I hadn't even noticed.

S had left his mark where the world could see.

I didn't know how to feel about that. It was bold, and kind of crazy, too. He was letting everyone know I was claimed.

That I belonged to him.

I became conscious of how ridiculous this was; a man sending me secret gifts and courting me from afar. Shivering, I pulled at my hands, but he just held tighter. Licking my lower lip, I met his intense eyes. “Silver can't be your real name.”

Those eyes hardened like ancient glaciers. “To you, it is.”

I controlled the tightening that slid between my ribs. His answer hurt, but clearly he wanted to keep his identity a secret. He must have a good reason for that. “Alright, so what should I call you? S, or Silver?”

“Which do you prefer?”

His hands were warm on mine, holding me down as easily as if he'd been clutching my jugular. But honestly, it was his stare that kept me planted where I was. Or, almost planted.

I
was
shifting side to side with nervous energy.

“I like Silver,” I said, blushing as I admitted it.

He showed me his row of straight teeth. “Good. I happen to love hearing my name from your lips, almost as much as I love calling you Pet.”

That made my pussy twitch. I crossed my ankles, I'd already crossed my thighs as tight as I could. Was it weird to feel so aroused by this man?
I'm probably desperate from years of no action.
That didn't sound right. So what had driven me here?

“You look uncomfortable,” he said softly, sliding his fingers from mine.

Closing my hands, I pulled them to my chest. They felt empty. “I am. I mean, how can I
not
be? I have so many questions about you—about all of this.”

“Then ask away.”

My jaw slid open. “What?”

“Ask away.” He rolled his palm down his chest, taking my attention with it. “If you have questions, let me hear them.”

I didn't hesitate. “Why
me?
”

Grinning ear to ear, Silver looked me over. The twinkle in his eye had a million shards, a million ways to leave me guessing at his thoughts. “That's a very good question. And one I'm not ready to answer.”

I scowled. “That's not fair.”

“No?” he asked, chuckling.

“You said I could ask questions, but you dodged the first one.”

“I said you could ask. I never said I'd answer.”

“So you
won't
tell me anything?”

“Try again, let's see.”

Drumming my fingers on my hips, I glanced side to side. “This club, Jessop said it was one of your favorites. Do you own it? Is that how you...”
Make your money.
I bit my tongue. I didn't want to sound like I cared about money; I didn't. But I was curious, and I couldn't deny wondering how he'd paid for everything he'd sent me, including a hired limo.

“The Red and Ripe doesn't belong to me.” Smiling, he eyed the room we sat in. “But it's a very interesting place.”

Interesting? No, you're what's interesting
.

Something nudged me under the table. I realized what it had to be.

His shoe.

He glided the shiny tip along my bare ankle. When I glanced back up, ready to let fly another question or two, I simply froze.

Silver was watching me, yet all the humor was gone. His tight lips said he was holding something back, and the heat in his eyes screamed lust. Raw, honest lust.

I said, “Um, so, if you don't own this club, then...”

“You said you hadn't been here before, right?” He didn't let me answer, he pushed his chair back and stood. “Let me show you around. You can see what I like so much about it.”

Every question I have, he keeps dodging.
I still knew nothing about this man. I was ready to feel furious. Amazingly, I obeyed him and stood. More amazingly, when he reached out to place his palm on my shoulder, I let him.

There was a moment where I trembled, languishing in the electric jolt that arose from our contact. I think he must have felt it, too, because he glanced down at me and hesitated.

We hovered there, the only sound between us was our own breathing. In the red glow, his eyes absorbed all light. They became black, richly dark like a fine coffee. I could drown in those eyes.

He flared his nostrils, filling his broad chest. On my shoulder, his fingers dug in. The fierceness turned my lower belly into whipped cream.

“You're dangerous,” he whispered.

“Me?” I smiled dubiously. “How am I—”

“Trust me, Pet. The things you're making me resist doing to you right now...” He breathed out. “I didn't think holding back would be so hard.”

My cheeks bloomed, my heart ticking in a circle. This man wasn't scared to tell me that he wanted me.

Breaking eye contact, he pushed me gently through the curtain. Instantly the thrum of music hit; I'd forgotten the rest of the world existed. His presence was constant, beating out the cloying sweat and drumbeat of the other club-goers.

Easily, he forced us through the bodies. I tried to pay attention, but my senses were working against me. My nerves itched to focus on
him.
His palm on my shoulder, his rough breathing by my ear... Silver was exactly what I thought he'd be.

The fraying rope that kept me from gripping his shoulders and begging him to put out the damn ache he'd been creating in me for weeks was near snapping. This was nothing like me—I didn't spend my time thinking about sex!

And now it's all I can think about with him.

“There,” he hushed, stopping us on the outskirts of the room. “Look.”

Following his lead, I stared across at the walls. I noticed the indents—much like the one we'd been inside, except there were no curtains on these.

In one of the concave rooms, I saw shapes writhing. My brain was slow, or I was denying what I was seeing. Either way, it didn't click immediately that these were people. Sweat glinted off of naked skin, the couple wrapped up in their own world.

They didn't care who watched.

The man was on his back, the woman riding him fiercer than a bull in a rodeo. Her breasts were being mauled in his palms, skin redder than the lights could have made them.

I... what...

Not once did either of them look at the crowd. She arched her spine, gripping his shoulders and moaning in sinful delight. In each of the rooms, a couple—or more—was doing the same thing.

They were all wantonly fucking in public.

Clutching at my dress, I pushed the wave of emotions down. Was this fear in my guts, or was I getting turned on?

A hand brushed my wrist. “Are you alright?” Silver asked in my ear. “You're breathing heavily.”

“Fine. I'm fine.” Stepping back, I bumped into him; I'd forgotten how close we were.

Tucking his arm around my waist, he pressed his palm against my forehead. I could see the tiny crease in the middle of his bottom lip. “You're burning the fuck up.”

Of course I am,
I thought sluggishly.
I'm watching a bunch of strangers screwing in a corner.
I could still hear them panting.

“Are you getting excited?” he asked me, his words burrowing into my ear. “Are you imaging doing that, fucking where everyone can watch you shake and shiver and come?”

My legs became noodles. He was being too crass, my mind resisting as my pussy threatened to ruin my panties. His form leaned into me, and I swore I felt the growing shape of his hard-on.

This was too much.

What the hell was I doing in this place?

From the corner of my eye, I spotted the neon-cherry exit sign. “I need to get some air,” I stammered. If I stayed, I didn't know what would happen. Did he want us to do
that?
Just go wild where everyone could see? Was he an exhibitionist, a voyeur, something else?

“Air? Of course, I'll walk with you—”

“Sorry, I can't—I'm sorry.” Unable to explain how the surging desire was overwhelming me, I pushed away from him. His fingers drifted down my arm, threatening to snatch me back before I could run.

Then we were apart, and I was stumbling for the door.

Shoving around the crowd, I rushed out into the cool night. Gasping, I threw my head back. Around me, the pulse of music and bodies faded, the heavy door clanking shut.

Why am I here?

The question swam up abruptly. I couldn't bury it. This place was a perverted sex club—Silver had taken me to an actual
sex club!

A month ago, if I'd been asked to predict my future, I would never have guessed this was coming. None of it. Fuck, a million guesses and I'd still have been wrong.

Me, Alexis Willow—notoriously quiet and lame—meeting up with some smartly-dressed, power-oozing man who kept calling me Pet? Gifts were one thing, this escalation went beyond my limits.

I'm an idiot,
I reprimanded myself. Pushing my hand to my forehead, I swiped my hair back and laughed. “What's wrong with me?” I asked the night sky. The scent of garbage was rank in my nose, but I breathed deeper, filling my lungs with it. “Did I think I could really mesh with a guy like him?”

Years ago, I would have fit in better... but... No. That was a pointless thought. I wasn't the same girl. My life was different,
I
was different.

Ever since that single day.

The grip that came down on my arm yanked me from my pitiful thoughts. It was firm, steel and iron.

Silver,
I thought on reflex.
He came outside to find me.

But something was wrong. Why hadn't I heard the door open? In fact, it should have hit me, I was still right up on it.

Fear snaked into my heart. In my ear, the breathing of the other person was raspy and labored. That was when I knew. Even before I turned, looking into those yellow and red-veined eyes, I knew.

The hand on my shoulder didn't belong to Silver.

Alexis

––––––––

H
e spun me around, clutching for my wrists. It was an older man, his face hard, his smile too soft. Inside his eyes, hard-packed black ash focused on me.

“Hey there,” he purred. “You looked lonely out here. Thought I'd say hi.”

It's happening again.

“Let go of me!” Wrenching my shoulder, I worked to get free, but he only squeezed harder.

Chuckling, he spun me from the wall, forcing me down the empty alley. Trash slid under my heels, and I regretted wearing them. In sneakers, I could have run faster—fought back harder.

I'm not going to give up!

Gritting my teeth, I swung my body backwards. “Help!” I screamed, echoing off the wet bricks. “Someone please, help me!
Help me!
”

Scowling, my attacker rounded on me, strangling my wrists. My skin was numb; I didn't care. “Shut up!” he snarled, pushing me against the rough alley wall. The hard texture was cool under my exposed spine. “You make another sound and I'll smash that pretty mouth right in!”

Breathing through clenched teeth, I leveled my glare on his.
Fight!
I begged my body. On impulse, I jammed my head forward, hoping I'd crush his nose with my skull. He managed to lean away, but the surprise in his wide eyes gave me strength. “
Let me go!
” I shouted, throat going hoarse.

The world needed to hear me. Surely someone would realize I was in danger. Did no one care?

Curling his lips back, almost feral, my attacker laughed. “You fucking bitch, you tried to break my nose! You think that's funny?
Huh?
” He shook me violently. Everything in my skull banged together, mushing into paste.

No one is coming.

The cold realization was sobering.

If I don't fight back, I'm dead.

I'm gone.

But I was too dazed, my feet couldn't get a grip on the slimy earth. It didn't matter how much I ached to hurt this man, he was winning.

Abruptly my attacker released me, stumbling to the side like he'd been hit by a car.

“What the fuck do you think you're doing to her?”

Silver had a voice hotter than the lava swirling in the Earth's core. The same vibrant anger reflected in his glare.

Lifting my head, I gawked at him. Had he heard my cries through the brick walls and come searching for me? “Help,” I croaked, slumping to my knees.