Page 36 of A Corruption Dark & Deadly

Chapter 9

It wasn’tlong before the gossip magazines picked up on the fact that Jericho was now dating the same woman longer than a week. They ran the pictures from their time at the Gala from their first week together, and as Annie peered over one at the kitchen table the next morning, she couldn’t help but run a critical eye over the shot of them on the cover. She looked stiff and awkward, but Jericho still looked at her like she was the most beautiful woman on the planet. She had no idea how she had won him over; it wasn’t as though she had been trying to. She had hoped to hate him for the rest of her life but she found that that plan completely backfired.

Instead, she had fallen in love with him.

“I like that shot of us,” he said from behind her, surprising her at his ability to sneak up on her without a sound.

“You’re looking at me like I’m something otherworldly,” Annie murmured, pushing the paper aside and taking the offered mug of coffee from his hands without even looking up. How was it that they hadn’t been together for a month and somehow they had fallen into a comfortable routine while also still maintaining the passion they had for each other. That was the dream, wasn’t it? To be comfortable and lustful simultaneously?

“Because you are,” he said as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. He slid at his usual seat across from her, wearing a sleeveless muscle shirt that clung to his long torso and revealed his broad shoulders and muscled arms. He wore sweatpants that clung to his ankles and, as usual, bare feet. Jericho didn’t wear socks unless he absolutely had to. He brought his own mug to his lips and took a long sip of coffee, black.

“Are you okay with this?” she asked skeptically, perking her brows. “I just, I know you’re a private guy and the fact that you seem serious with me means they have a lot more stuff to talk about.”

“First off,” Jericho said, keeping his eyes on her even though his hand was on his newspaper. “I am serious about you. I would marry you tomorrow if I thought you’d say yes.”

“Excuse me?” she asked, flabbergasted. “You would marry me?”

“Of course,” he said.

“But… why?” This made no sense to her. “You barely know me.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “I know enough,” he said. “You’re an educated accountant with lawyer friends and you graduated with honors from the University of Seattle. Your parents are dead and you have an older brother who’s good at his job but somewhat misguided. Your greatest fear is being alone and you bite the inside of your bottom lip when you’re worried. Unlike most people, you get quiet when you’re nervous and you make decisions based on your rationalizations rather than your emotions, which is practical. Except when it comes to this house.” He bit his lip as a smile broke out on his face. “This house is incredibly dear to you. It was my only bargaining chip to persuade you to open up to me. I know your favorite position is underneath me, when I have all of the control and you especially love when I hurt you just a little bit. Maybe leave a mark on you, spank you.” His eyes darkened just talking about it and Annie felt the inside of her thighs start to moisten. “And I know for a fact you would look absolutely sexy with my child growing in your stomach.”

Annie clenched her jaw. She wasn’t quite sure how to respond to that, but she had a feeling Jericho could read her thoughts, her body language.

“You looked absolutely amazing last night,” he said, his voice dropping an octave and causing a shiver to tingle throughout her body. “If I didn’t have to kill that man for touching you, I would have fucked you in my office.”

“You killed that guy?” Annie asked, surprised. It was strange to find her insides completely used to a statement like this. There was no resistance in it, not even a swirl of guilt. She was frustrated, but for a completely different reason. “Were you careless?”

“Do you even have to ask?” he asked. “No one is allowed to touch you, Annie. Everyone needs to realize the consequences of their actions.”

“You’re not going to blame me for my outfit?” she asked, quirking a curious brow.

“Why would I blame you for your outfit?” he asked, as though the question itself was ridiculous. “You looked stunning last night. You look stunning always but last night… Jesus. I couldn’t keep my eyes off of you. And neither could anyone else.” He reached out and curled an errant strand of hair, tucking it behind her ear. He clenched his jaw, anger lighting the pale green. “I’m not sure who you dated before but I want to make it clear to me that you are allowed to wear whatever you want when you go out with me or your friends or by yourself. If any man touches because he doesn’t understand that you don’t want to him to touch you, that is on him and not you. Do you understand?”

Annie bit her bottom lip and nodded. Immediately, his eyes were drawn to that lip and he couldn’t help but stare at it.

“We should,” she said slowly, just as he reached out to touch her bottom lip. It was like he was obsessed with it. And maybe he was. That wasn’t a big deal, was it? Why would it be? But she needed to focus on the task at hand, even if his touch was distracting. And tempting. “We should talk.”

Instead of making a snarky comment about how those words said in tandem could never mean anything good, he picked his eyes up so they would lock with hers.

“Probably a good idea,” he agreed. His voice still had that husk to it. Her body was still covered in goosebumps.

“What are we?” she asked, deciding to be direct rather than dance around it. She didn’t think they were simply friends. There was more to their relationship, a dark attraction that wasn’t exactly typical, that rested between them. And she wanted to figure out what they were to the best of her abilities so they could get on the same page.

She knew they had discussed this the other day as well. Briefly, before he distracted her with pleasure and perfect words. She had been asking, at the time, because she was scared. Now, she wasn’t scared anymore. Now, she was confident in herself and in Jericho and what it meant to be with him. Still, she wanted to label it because, like the majority of society, labeling something came with a set of expectations.

“That depends,” he told her. “Are you going to marry me?”

She laughed. “Now?” she asked. “Um, are you being serious?”

“Why wouldn’t I be serious?” he asked softly, tilting his head to the side at that awkward angle. “Marriage is not to be taken lightly. I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t mean it.”

Annie thought about it. Did she want to marry Jericho? She had never thought about it. She liked being his, she liked the fact that she was the only one who belonged to him. Marriage would solidify that bond. It wouldn’t – shouldn’t – change anything. It would just make things legal between them.

“I’m sure you want to put together a prenup before we get married,” she said slowly. She couldn’t believe she was actually considering his offer. She was crazy. Yeah, she was crazy for him as well. She just wasn’t as comfortable admitting that out loud the way he was.

“Actually, I don’t,” he said, shrugging his shoulders. “You can leave me and get my riches. Hell, I’ll throw your house into it as well, if you really want that. I just don’t think you’ll leave me.”