Total pages in book: 189
Estimated words: 178200 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 891(@200wpm)___ 713(@250wpm)___ 594(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 178200 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 891(@200wpm)___ 713(@250wpm)___ 594(@300wpm)
She was trying to hide her thoughts from him. Damen knew her too well for it to work, but it was a fact Mairi would not likely believe because of their short and pain-filled past.
He heard himself saying, “I’ll work out with you.”
Her surprised gaze flew to him. “Y-you will?”
Damen answered with a careless shrug, “I don’t see why not. I do not have anything scheduled for the day.”
She blurted out, “But you hate working out with me.”
Color stained his hard high-boned cheeks. “I did not exactly say that—-”
“You practically did then,” she said, still bemused at Damen’s unexpected announcement. “The last time we jogged, you told me I was slower than a turtle.”
“I meant it like an endearment—-”
“And the last time we went to the gym and I was on the treadmill, you told me that I didn’t know how to run properly—-”
“Your breasts shook too much—-”
Mairi threw her hands up. “How can I stop them from shaking?”
Knowing full well he had been and was still being unreasonable about the topic concerning her breasts – which really shook too much, making the sight exceptionally arousing for any man – Damen said flatly instead, “Just tell me if you do not care for my company.”
At the words, Mairi snapped her mouth shut with a sigh.
He was so sly.
“You know I always want to be with you,” Mairi mumbled.
And again, he was disarmed.
She was so sly.
Wordlessly, Damen closed the distance between them and his hand clasped her nape. When she turned towards him, his lips took hers in a kiss that soothed whatever had to be soothed. For once, passion didn’t flare up, the kiss remaining sweet and tender between them.
Even so, when Damen lifted his head, her eyes were wide with wonder and she said dreamily, “Hi.”
He laughed.
She really was so sly, the way she got under his skin all the time, but he was not complaining.
“Hi,” he said huskily. “We’re okay now, matakia mou?”
She nodded, a dreamy expression still on her face.
“Good. We’ll work out as you planned.” She nodded in the same obedient manner, making him laugh. “It will not be a problem to appreciate this submissive part of you.”
“Anything you want,” she told him.
His gaze became hooded, Damen being ruthless enough not to let that promise slip by. “Anything?”
She nodded dutifully.
“Good. Then you will tell me about Stavros, won’t you?”
Chapter 5
“So we were in high school...” Her voice bounced off the walls of the vast basement gym, its décor and range of state-of-the-art exercise equipment at par with the world’s most popular fitness centers.
The words caused a rather inelegant snort to come out from Damen Leventis, a Greek billionaire who used to be famous for his irreproachable manners.
Seated on the floor, knees pulled up, Mairi shook her head in exasperation at the sound, her ponytail bouncing as she did. “I haven’t even said anything about him!”
Damen’s broad shoulders moved in an arrogant shrug. Crouching down on one knee, he said with a grunt, “Just get on with the story.” Positioning himself to assist Mairi with her sit-ups, he placed his hands on her feet, applying a small amount of pressure.
This close, she couldn’t help but gape. He wore nothing but jersey shorts and trainers, making him a mouthwateringly sexy sight that even now kept Mairi’s throat dry. All those rippling muscles and golden skin...
Did he really think she would be able to work out properly when he looked like that?
When Mairi didn’t respond, Damen glanced up and caught her staring.
She blushed, immediately averting her gaze, but it was too late.
Damen said wickedly, “Maybe you’re in the mood for another kind of exercise?”
She shook her head.
“You’re sure?” He caressed her knees.
The simple move had her jerking. “Damen! I really need to work out!” She had gained a few pounds after vacationing with him for only a week.
With a reluctant sigh, he released her sensitive knees and went back to holding her feet down. Mairi had a tendency to cheat when doing sit-ups, with her feet lifting off the floor to take away some of the pressure on her abs.
“Start working out then and,” he added gruffly, “—-while you’re at it, tell me about the man from your past.” Damen knew he needed to fucking hear her story about Manolis like a hole in the head, but he also knew that he would never be at peace until he heard it straight from Mairi.
She protested, “He’s not what you make him sound.” Why did he insist on making it sound like she had this wild teenage affair with her old classmate?
Damen pushed her back on the floor, a hard look on his beautiful face. “Get on with it.”
With a frustrated sigh, Mairi clenched her abs and started her sit-ups. “So, Stavros was a Greek billionaire like you...”
As he watched her move gracefully up and down, her breasts once again shaking like a damn invitation for fucking, he heard himself say, “And so you fell in love with him because of that?”