He Dismissed Me, I Faked My Engagement

Lucian froze for three seconds. "Sloane, stop playing." His smile looked strained. "There's no other man in your life who gets to touch you but me." "Of course." I fastened the clasp of my bra without looking back. "As your friend, though, I do hope you meet a few more people while you're still young. Want me to help you pick from those East Side heirs?" He sat up. The dark gray silk sheet slid down, exposing his entire back. It was covered in scratch marks. The skin near his shoulder blade had even broken, tiny beads of blood rising from the wound. The front of him looked no better. The bite marks on his chest were bruised red and purple. Across his abs were the fingerprints I'd left when I lost control last night. Last night, after the Ferraro family's private poker game ended, he had been the one to stop me. He had taken my hand, pressed it against his stomach, and asked me again and again in a low voice, "Do you like it, Sloane?" "Do you want it?" Cigar smoke mixed with cologne. I fell into those dark green eyes. By the time I came back to myself, I was already straddling his lap. He was the one who tempted me first. I bent down to pick up the heels scattered across the carpet. "Not going to sleep a little longer?" His voice was lazy. "It's Sunday. I kept you up all night." "I told you. I'm going to the Castellano estate today to meet my fiancé's family." My encrypted phone rang. I answered. A calm male voice came through. "Send me the address. I'll have the driver pick you up." "Of course, darling." There was a two-second silence on the other end. Then a low laugh. "I'll be waiting." I hung up and sent him the address of the estate. Lucian stared at me. His gold lighter clicked. He lit a Cuban cigar, took a sharp drag, then slowly exhaled. His voice went cold. "When the f**k—" "Did you get yourself a fiancé?" "And why wasn't I informed?" I shrugged. "When have you ever informed me before switching women?" "You never forgot to call me when you broke up with them, though." "How many times did I stay up with you, soaking in whiskey until morning?" Not for free, of course. Every time, he wired money into my offshore account. So far, the total had reached two million. "You're too naive. Don't let some man fool you." He frowned. "Send me his information. I'll have my consigliere look into him." "Thanks, but I trust him." Lucian suddenly laughed. "You slept with me. Your fiancé doesn't mind?" His eyes narrowed slightly. "Last night... was your first time, wasn't it?" One of the hidden buttons on my gown was fastened wrong. Expressionless, I fixed it. "He doesn't need to know." "It's not like I meant for it to happen." "As for you..." I glanced at him. "With all the women you've had, why did you act like such a virgin last night?" At the beginning, his entire body had been tense. His breathing had even trembled. I had lowered my voice and coaxed him through it. And now he wanted to act like nothing happened. If I hadn't known Lucian was clean and got tested every month, I never would have been reckless enough to sleep with him. His ears turned red. Then he gave a cold laugh. "What, I didn't make you feel good?" "You screamed yourself hoarse." After we slept together, something both familiar and strange hung between us. The bedroom, remodeled from a basement suite, felt as heavy as the sea before a storm. I didn't want to keep talking. Turning my back to him, I said, "Zip me up." His throat moved. He came up behind me. His palm was scorching hot. His breath brushed against my ear. "One more time." "Five hundred thousand." I smiled. "And what would that make us this time?" "Childhood friends," he said. "We grew up together. How could I possibly fall in love with you?" "At most, it's a situationship." I turned around and zipped myself up. Then let out a quiet sigh. "You know me, Lucian." "I'm old-fashioned. Traditional." "I just want to find the right man and get married." "Last night was an accident." "Sleeping with a man like you, who can't stay loyal to anyone, is a waste of my time." "We should just stay friends." Lucian's face darkened until it looked ready to drip water. The cigar burned down to his fingers. He hissed from the heat, crushed it into the crystal ashtray, and lit another. I hated the smell of cigars. I grabbed my handbag and stepped into the private elevator. The doors slid shut. Only then did the tears come. Late. Stupid. Unwelcome. I opened the mirrored panel, pulled out my compact, and started fixing my makeup.