Chapter 25
Chapter 25:
He sounded completely sober. The needy, clinging man from the night before was gone. The arrogant CEO was back.
Eliza peeked through the gaps in her fingers. He was walking toward the bed. He leaned over her, placing one hand on the mattress beside her hip.
“About last night —” he began.
“You were drunk!” Eliza accused, her face burning. “You violated the contract! Clause 4 says respectful cohabitation p>
“I reviewed the contract this morning,” Dallas said, his voice unhurried. “Clause 4 forbids ‘public embarrassment.’ It says nothing about private consummation p>
Eliza dropped her hands. Her mouth fell open. “You — you want to consummate p>
Dallas looked at her. His gaze dropped briefly to her lips, then returned to her eyes. The air in the room thickened, charged with static.
“If I had wanted to, Eliza,” he said, his voice dropping to a low rumble, “you wouldn’t have slept so soundly p>
𝗥𝗼𝗆а𝗻𝗰𝖾 𝗻𝗈v𝗲𝗅ѕ оո
The implication hung between them. Eliza felt a jolt of heat low in her stomach. She looked at his lips. For one split second — a terrifying, irrational split second — she found herself wishing he had wanted to.
Dallas saw the desire flicker in her eyes. He noticed the way her breath caught. Satisfaction settled quietly in his chest. He leaned in. Closer. Closer still, until she could feel the warmth radiating off his damp skin.
Eliza closed her eyes and tilted her chin up.
Dallas pulled back.
“Get dressed,” he said, his voice crisp. “Breakfast in twenty minutes p>
Eliza’s eyes flew open. He was already moving toward the door. He paused at the threshold and glanced back over his shoulder.
“And Eliza p>
“Yes?” she squeaked.
“You drool when you sleep p>
He walked out.
Eliza grabbed a pillow and hurled it at the closed door. It hit with a soft, unsatisfying thump. She fell back onto the mattress and groaned at the ceiling.
She felt completely outplayed. He could turn the heat on and off like a faucet, and she was the one left scalding. But beneath the embarrassment, something else lingered. She touched her lips.
What is wrong with me?
She needed boundaries. She needed walls. If she let him in — if she let herself fall for him — she would end up just another asset he could liquidate the moment he grew bored.
She scrambled out of bed, grabbed her laptop from her bag, and opened a blank document.
ADDENDUM A.
1. No entering the private bedroom without knocking. 2. No nudity in shared spaces. 3. No confusing behavior.
She typed furiously.
Downstairs in the kitchen, Dallas poured himself a black coffee. He heard the faint, rapid tap of keys drifting down from upstairs.
He smiled.
Eliza marched onto the back patio clutching a piece of printer paper like a weapon. Dallas was sitting at the glass table, reading the Wall Street Journal on his tablet. He was wearing a crisp white polo shirt that showed off his tanned arms. He looked infuriatingly well-rested.
“We need to talk,” Eliza said, slamming the paper down on top of his tablet.