Page 52 of Billionaire Grump
“Margot’s watching us again,” she whispers. “Pretend I’m saying something really dirty to you right now.”
Fucking hell. If she sat on my lap I could practically come. If her wet pussy softened to the shape of my raging erection like it did before, this time I could position her, moving her panties to the side… “My imagination’s not that good. You’ll have to give me some material to work with.”
I have a very real problem. Because there’s nothing fake about my throbbing lust. I lean close to her ear, breathing in more of the heady floral scent of her.
“I’m waiting, Jones.”
“I don’t know how to talk dirty,” she giggles. “I’ve never done it.”
“Try.”
Her nose crinkles and it’s almost unbearably adorable. She leans closer, cupping her hand like she’s telling me a secret. “I liked our kiss.”
“I’m sure you can do better than that.” I can barely control the yeti of my lust, who wants nothing more than to sling her over my shoulder and carry her back to our room, to peel off her little dress and taste every inch of her perfect skin. “Kiss me again.”
Someone taps on the microphone. Damn it. Blake is getting ready to make a speech.
“I just wanted to say a few words,” he begins. “First of all, I’d like to thank all of you for being here this weekend. You’re our family and we love that you’re here with us to celebrate this very special occasion. Leah and I also want to thank Margot Russo, our amazing wedding planner. Margot, we couldn’t have done all this without you and we’re lucky to have you.” There’s a smattering of applause and Margot smiles rigidly. “And finally, enjoy tonight, but the real festivities are tomorrow night and if any of you are too hungover to party, you’re officially off our Christmas card list haha. To my groomsmen, I’m ordering you to meet me in the hotel bar after dinner for a run-through of the day tomorrow. Leah’s bridesmaids will meet with her in the pool house for a final nightcap. So, please enjoy the outstanding food, provided by our caterers, Elite Catering. Margot will say a few more words once dessert is served. Cheers, guys. We love you.”
Fuck it all. That means we’ll be apart for at least a few hours.
Blake and Leah take their seats at our table and the rest of the dinner goes smoothly enough. Everyone’s intrigued by Ivy. She dodges the more personal questions gracefully.
I’m paying attention, but I learn very little about her that she hasn’t already told me. She lives in Soho. She writes her own music and performs in small clubs, mostly around Manhattan. Her admirers around the table are in awe of her “content,” the stuff she’s posting through social media, which she laughs off as a way to make a living. She has a younger brother whose name is Josh. I learn he’s headed to Columbia at the end of the summer.
She tenses when she talks about her brother and her breezy façade slips. I guess it’s not surprising. She lost her mother and her father doesn’t seem to be on the scene. Which means she’s responsible for her teenage brother. It can’t have been easy.
But she plays her part like a pro, continually circling me into the conversation, making up little stories about our two months together that thoroughly convince our rapt audience.
“Last Saturday we went to the Met,” she tells them. “We wandered around for hours and then Alex took me to this little rooftop bistro on the Upper West Side that I never knew was there. A jazz trio was playing live music and it was just one of those perfectly romantic New York afternoons, like something out of a movie.”
“What was the name of the bistro?” asks the woman who took Ethan’s seat, whose name I’ve forgotten.
“It had such a cool atmosphere, and the food was amazing.” Ivy turns to me. “Can you remember what it was called, sweetie?”
Thankfully Leah intercepts the question. “Our workaholic Alexander Maddox taking an entire afternoon off?” Leah laughs, saving me from answering the question. “We’ve known Alexander for years and he’s always got some excuse why he can’t join us for things like that, because he’s always working on the weekends. I’m just amazed he was able to keep this from us for so long.”
“He’s told us absolutely nothing about you,” Blake adds. “Although this does explain the reason why he was too busy to come to my bachelor party in Vegas.”
“We were buying a fund.” I’ve already told him this, more than once. “I was needed for the negotiations.”
Ivy’s bare thigh is flush against mine. I’m trying to ignore my perpetual fucking hard-on, which throbs hotly. I’m going to have to do something about this problem before we share a bed tonight, but I’ll worry about that later.
Dessert is finally served and Margot makes the announcement about the rest of the evening.
People start to get up from their chairs.
“Ivy,” Leah says, “you’re welcome to join me and my bridesmaids in the pool house. We’re just going to go through a few more details of tomorrow’s schedule.”
“Thank you, but I think I’ll call it a night. I’ve had a crazy week.”
“Of course. But we’ll see you tomorrow.” Leah gives Ivy a hug. “Thank you so much for singing.”
“Of course. I’m so excited for you.”
Leah smiles at us both, but it’s me she’s talking to when she says, “I’m so excited for you.”
“I’ll walk Ivy back to our room, then meet you in the bar,” I tell Blake.