Текст книги "The Taming of the Billionaire"

Автор книги: Jessica Clare

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Текущая страница: 11 (всего у книги 16 страниц)

“I did nothing,” she protested, and wiggled on his lap. “All I did was ask you to throw some words at me. You came up with it all on your own. You just needed someone to bounce ideas off of.”

He wiggled his eyebrows at her and his look became distinctly lascivious. His thighs flexed under her and she bounced in his lap. “Speaking of bouncing . . .”

“Mmm.” Her hand went to his shirt and she began to unbutton it slowly. “You feeling frisky now?”

“I feel revived,” he admitted, and he tugged the belt of her robe free. “Relieved and happy and utterly fucking stoked.” He pushed the robe back, revealing her breasts, and cupped them. “And I’ve been neglecting you, haven’t I? Sounds like I need to make it up to you.”

“I’m down with that,” she agreed, pushing her breasts against his hands. His touch always made shivers race through her body. “You may proceed.”

“May I?” He pulled her against him and hauled out of the chair, carrying her. She wrapped her legs around him, loving how strong he was. Magnus always made her feel dainty and girly, especially in bed. He threw her down on the bed and his eyes gleamed as he gazed down at her. “I think you should sit on my face.”

Her lips parted in shock. “I what?”

“You heard me,” he said, bending over her and biting at one of her nipples. “I think it’d be sexy as hell. Don’t you?”

She had to admit to herself, the thought of straddling Magnus’s face and letting him lick her until she came was making her extremely aroused. “I just . . . I . . .” Her breath escaped her.

“I bet you’d like it,” he murmured enticingly. His mouth tugged at her nipple before kissing down her belly, then paused just above her pussy. “I like the thought of those thighs of yours against my ears. Your pussy in my face, and me sticking my tongue so deep inside you that you come all around it.” He moved up and flicked his tongue against her belly button.

Edie moaned.

“That’s not a no,” he told her in a sultry voice. “And you should be rewarded for your genius.” He took her by the arms and dragged her to an upright position, kissing her mouth again. “Come and clutch the headboard, babe, so I can shove my face between your legs.”

She trembled again, but she was going to do it, wasn’t she? It felt incredibly intimate and yet. . . . sounded so delicious. She nodded and got to her feet, watching as he laid flat on the center of the bed, and then patted the top of his chest. “Come here.”

She went, shedding her robe on the floor.

Edie’s thighs trembled as she moved forward, and her hands clutched the headboard for support as she moved next to him on her knees. This was so awkward. She looked over at him, not sure where to begin. As if in answer to her silent plea, he patted her thigh. “Spread these for me.”

She did as he asked, feeling vulnerable and exposed as his head slid between her parted legs.

He grinned up at her and then his hands went to the tops of her thighs, holding her from underneath, and he began to tug her downward, toward his mouth.

She closed her eyes, determined to not feel weird about this, but to just feel. Magnus had seen her naked. He’d licked every inch of her. This shouldn’t feel any more intimate than anything else . . . and yet it did.

Her breath sucked in as his mouth touched her flesh. Her knee started to protest bearing her weight, but she ignored it because his lips were lightly exploring her folds and licking every inch of her. She wanted to squirm, but she remained completely still, holding her breath, as his tongue brushed over her. Oh god, he was lapping her like he would an ice cream, and it was maddening and so fucking sexy at the same time. She made a small whimper in her throat, and he groaned at the sound of it.

And she felt his groan right against her core, a moment before his tongue speared deep into her. Edie whimpered again, arousal overtaking any awkwardness. Her knee throbbed, the ache increasing, but she wanted to ignore the damn thing.

“Damn, you taste sweet,” he murmured. “I could lick you for hours on end. In fact, I just might.”

Her knee cramped a protest and this time when she whimpered, it was a mixture of pain and pleasure. “I—I can’t do this, Magnus—”

“No, baby, you’re doing great,” he murmured, holding her thighs tighter as he licked up against her clit. “I’ve got you—”

“It’s my knee.” She straightened and hauled off of him, getting to her feet with a wince. “Ow. Fuck. I hate my knee!” She hopped around and flexed her leg, trying to work out the kinks.

“It’s okay,” he told her from his spot on the bed.

“It’s not okay.” Edie bit her lip, hating that her old injury was wrecking sex. “I want to, I just—”

“I know,” he said, getting up and cupping her face in his hands. He kissed her gently. “Seriously, though, it’s all right. We’ll try again with a bit of a twist.”

She gave him a suspicious look. “How?”

He winked. “Sixty-nine, of course. You can lay on top of me, and I get a bit of an added bonus that way.”

Edie narrowed her eyes at him. “Convenient.”

“Isn’t it?” The look he gave her was boyish. “I admit it, there’s no downside to it. I get to lick the hell out of you and get my cock in that pretty mouth of yours.” His fingers grazed her lower lip. “Because damn, you have the prettiest mouth. It was made for fucking.”

His words made desire ripple through her again. She nodded. She’d follow anywhere this man led in bed, because he could wring orgasm after incredible orgasm from her.

Magnus kissed her again, then took her hand and led her back to the bed. This time, he pulled off his loose shirt and undid his pants, stripping naked in a matter of moments. As he dropped his pants, the length of his cock caught her attention, hard, erect, and the head already glazed with pre-cum. And she was suddenly excited about the thought of taking him in her mouth while he did the same to her. She’d never done it before, but she loved giving head, and she loved receiving it, too. Seemed like a win-win all around.

She moved forward and her hand went to his cock, wrapping her fingers around his length. He groaned and pushed against her hand, kissing her mouth again.

“Trust me?” he murmured against her mouth.

She nodded. “Want you.” And she gave his cock a small squeeze, then ran her thumb over the head, picking up a bead of slickness. She brought it to her mouth and licked it off, enjoying the heat in his gaze.

“On the bed,” he growled. “Now. I want that pussy in my mouth.”

Her knees went weak. Okay, she was a sucker for the dirty talk. She sat on the edge of the bed and watched as he went around the other side and laid down flat. His cock jutted into the air and she leaned over to take him into her hand again, unable to resist the sight of it, so blatant and obscene and utterly fucking sexy.

“Come here, Edie.” He patted his chest. “I want your hips right here.” Then he pointed at his cock. “And your mouth right there.”

“Any other commands?” She teased even as she crawled forward on the bed, mindful of her bad knee.

“Nope. I will be completely content if I get those two things.”

Even as she moved, he pulled at her, hauling her legs over his chest as if she weighed nothing. She lost her balance and sprawled against him, her face near his cock and settling against his thighs. She almost protested, but then his arms gripped her hips and she felt his mouth nuzzle her pussy. “Mmm, right there,” he murmured, sounding so pleased as his tongue gave her a long, slick swipe that made her shudder.

She propped up on her elbows, adjusting her body. His cock was so big that it brushed against her face, and she leaned on one arm as she took him into her hand with the other, then put her lips to the head.

As soon as she did, his tongue stroked over her clit and she heard him groan. “Right there, baby.”

A whimper escaped her—she seemed to make all kinds of needy noises when he touched her—and she licked the head of him over and over again, teasing him with her tongue like he was to her.

“How do you like it, baby? Want to stop?” His tongue circled her core, the tip pushing inward, and she felt the urge to buck against it, moaning. “Or you want to keep going?”

Her entire body felt as if it were quaking with need. “Keep going,” she breathed. “Feels good.”

“Take me in your mouth,” he commanded.

She did, feeding his cock in between her lips. Her tongue dragged along his length, and she licked and nibbled every inch of him, and all the while he licked her folds and teased her clit, thrusting his tongue against her core every now and then. Edie took him deep and began to suck, hollowing her cheeks.

Magnus groaned. “Fuck, that’s good.”

She felt something new press against her core—his finger. His tongue teased her clit even as he began to stroke a finger in and out of her, and Edie began to make soft, needy sounds all over again. His length filled her mouth, and he started to pump against her tongue, her lips moving over him, even as his finger worked in and out of her.

An orgasm began to build, her leg muscles tightening. She moaned around his cock, and he responded by thrusting into her mouth deeper, the head butting against the back of her throat. She tried to suck him in again, but she was getting distracted by her burgeoning orgasm, and a moment later, it crested. Edie cried out as he continued to lick her clit and thrust into her with his finger. She lost her grip on his cock and whimpered through the waves of the orgasm. When she recovered her breath, she began to kiss and lick his length, still quivering as he thrust his finger into her, sending aftershocks through her body.

“I’m going to come,” he warned her, thrusting against her lips.

“Do it,” she encouraged, pressing her lips to him and kissing the soft, scorching-hot skin over his cock. “I want to taste it.”

He groaned, and she felt the first hot spatter of cum against her mouth. Hot jets of it splashed across her hands and face. He murmured her name, and she felt his entire body shudder under hers, felt the tremor of his orgasm as it ripped through him. It felt oddly intimate, even if she was a bit sticky now.

Magnus heaved a long breath, then patted her ass. “Can I keep you?”

And she laughed, because even though she was tired and her knee hurt, and despite everything else, she was having a wonderful time. They got up, cleaned up, took a quick shower together, and a few minutes later, returned to bed together, both naked. Magnus pulled her against him, his body smelling like soap and clean skin. He nuzzled her neck and wrapped his arms around her. “Get some sleep. I’ve got a long day of coding tomorrow, and there’s more of the convention you’ll probably want to see.”

“Mmm.” More Bronies and cat girls and people looking at her weird when she didn’t get their gamer jokes. “Or . . . I could stay in the room with you, and whenever you take a break, we can cuddle?”

“If by cuddle, you mean sixty-nine again, I am all for that.”

Okay, that was kind of what she had meant. She giggled at the thought. Magnus was turning her into the world’s raunchiest cat lady. How Bianca would be shocked.

Then, she decided, she didn’t give a shit what Bianca thought. Content, she burrowed against Magnus’s side and went to sleep.

Chapter Fourteen

The rest of the stay passed in a blur. Magnus was in a coding frenzy, the ideas pouring out of him faster than he could write the basics down. It would be months and months of work, he told her, but he seemed utterly happy about it. Things were moving for him again, and moving without Levi, and she’d never seen him so pleased with his work. And she was a little proud that she was the catalyst for it.

For herself? She went down to the convention a few more times, but it wasn’t her sort of thing, and her knee didn’t care for all the walking, so she ended up hanging out in the room with Magnus. She read a book on her phone, watched a few movies, and just snuggled with him in bed while he worked, and it was pretty much perfect.

The only thing she missed were her cats. If she’d had a few of them curled up in bed with them? Heaven. Magnus called his assistant and checked on his two “ladies” and she’d talked to Jenna about her cats, too, because she was weird like that.

Bianca sent her a few inquisitive little texts, but she ignored those. Oh, Edie wasn’t totally heartless. She sent a chirpy Having fun! Busy! XO text to shut her up, but she didn’t want to have Bianca and the real world intruding on their little interlude.

Soon enough, she’d have to go back to her tiny townhouse and her tiny life. Right now, it was just her and Magnus in a happy bubble, and she wanted to enjoy it.

Eventually, though, the con ended, and they checked out and drove back to Edie’s townhouse. For some reason, she felt vaguely sad to see the car pull up in front of her place. She looked over at Magnus and gave him a smile. “Thanks for inviting me. I had a lot of fun.”

She opened the door to get out, only to be dragged backward. “Is that all I get?” he teased. “No good-bye kiss?”

And of course she smiled and kissed him. The kiss turned into a make-out session, and the next thing she knew, she was clinging to his shirt, dazed, as he tongued the hell out of her mouth. Then he gave her a lazy, satisfied smile, and one last, soft kiss. “I’m going to miss you this week.”

She melted a little at that. “I’m going to miss you, too.”

“Say hi to Spanky for me.”

Edie giggled. “There isn’t a cat named Spanky.”

“There should be. It’s a great cat name.”

“Then name one of yours Spanky!”

He pretended to consider it. “Lady Spanky just doesn’t have the right ring to it.”

Edie rolled her eyes. “You are the worst, you know that?”

“Naw, baby. I’m the best and you love it.” He kissed her again. “I’m probably going to be in a work bubble for the next few days, though. You want to come stay at my place with me?”

“I wish I could,” she said wistfully. “The cats need me, though, and I have a few clients to visit this week.” Business was light, but she had her repeat customers and she didn’t want to disappoint them. “Maybe this next weekend?”

“Just text me,” he told her.

“I will.” Reluctantly, she left his embrace, and the car.

It was hard not to feel a little down after leaving Magnus behind, but the moment she opened the door, a chorus of meows greeted her. “Hi, babies!” Edie set down her bag and moved to the couch, petting heads and scratching backs as the cats clustered near. They looked good, she was pleased to see, and as Tripod jumped into her lap, she felt relaxed and happy. The only thing missing was Magnus, who’d just driven away. But she’d see him again this weekend. Hopefully. Edie closed her eyes and petted the cats, relaxing and thinking of the wonderful time she’d just had.

Footsteps thumped down the stairs and inwardly, she winced.

“You’re home,” Bianca said, voice accusing.

Edie cracked open an eye. “I am. Did you miss me?”

“Of course.” Her sister wore a hurt look. “I worried about you.”

“Why?” She stroked her hand along Tripod’s back. “I was fine.”

“Because Magnus has a lot of stairs and you were at the house by yourself. Of course I’d worry. What if your knee gave out on you? I’d never forgive myself.”

Now Bianca was making her feel bad. Edie hated lying—she’d told Bianca that she was staying with Magnus’s cats while he went to the convention—but she wasn’t sure how her sister would take the news. “I can handle a few sets of stairs, Bianca. No big deal. I’m not completely incompetent.”

“Of course not.” Bianca sounded offended that Edie would think it. “Excuse me if I worry about my sister after not seeing you for a few days. I’ll just . . . leave you alone.”

Edie sighed. At this point, she was probably supposed to apologize to Bianca for being bitchy and soothe her hurt feelings. But she didn’t feel like it. Being with Magnus had been nice, because he’d accommodated her knee without making her feel like she was broken. Bianca always made her feel like . . . less. And she hadn’t realized it until just now. “Can we do this later? I’m kind of tired and I’d just like to snuggle with the cats for now, if that’s all right.”

“Sorry if I’m bothering you.” Bianca turned and headed back up the stairs. “I’ll just go upstairs by myself, then. Like I have been for the last few days.”

Edie rolled her eyes.

***

Bianca nibbled on a delicately painted fingernail. She didn’t like this. Not at all. Why was Edie blowing her off? Edie normally needed her. She needed Bianca to drive, and to help her with the business. She relied on Bianca and couldn’t get things done without her. Edie leaving for four days and not even asking Bianca to take care of the cats?

It made her unsettled and unhappy. Of course she was concerned about Edie. Her sister tended to overextend herself when it came to helping people and their cats, to the point that she usually had to ice her knee at the end of the day. She always put herself last and needed someone like Bianca to think about her. Because that was who Bianca was—a selfless, devoted sister and assistant.

She frowned at her reflection in the mirror and smoothed her hair, then put on a bit of lip gloss. Her eyes looked tired today, so she carefully put on a pair of fake lashes, added some mascara, and fluttered in the mirror. Better. Now prepared, she shut the door to her room and turned to her computer, then dialed Levi on Skype.

He answered right away. “Bianca! I’ve missed you.”

She gave him a tiny, coquettish smile. “I’ve missed you, too.” Actually, she hadn’t. Levi was clingy to the point of being irritating, and he wanted sex all the time, and Bianca was a firm believer in not putting out unless there was a ring on her finger. The only redeeming thing in his favor at the moment was that he had a lot of money. Then again, she’d met a lovely man named Cooper at Gretchen’s engagement party, and while he wasn’t the greatest to look at, he owned a chain of coffee shops and seemed content to worship her from afar, which was better than Levi’s grating handsiness and constant texting.

“You’re so beautiful,” Levi said dreamily, staring into the screen. “I can’t think of anything but you.”

“Thank you,” she told him politely. Then she bit her lip in dramatic fashion and set out the bait. “Levi . . . I’m troubled. I don’t know who else to turn to.”

His eyes widened. “What do you need?”

“I’m just . . . troubled about my sister. Has Magnus said anything about the time she spent at your place?”

Levi tilted his head like a dog, curious. “What do you mean? She was at the convention this week.”

“Convention?” Bianca kept the prettily confused look on her face, even though she wanted to seethe. Someone was lying to her. Her! After everything she’d done for her sister. She selflessly looked after Edie and drove her everywhere. It felt a bit like betrayal, but she squashed that feeling down. “What convention?”

“She was with Magnus at FanBoy Con this last week. Wearing cat ears and everything. He said he hired her as a consultant for a new project.” Levi shook his head. “They were holding hands. He’s really got her fooled.”

Bianca gasped. “He’s still stringing her along? That’s . . . that’s not called for. He’s only supposed to distract her while we go out.” And since she wasn’t all that interested in Levi at the moment, deceit wasn’t necessary. “Doesn’t he realize he doesn’t have to do it all the time?”

“Magnus likes to go whole hog when it comes to projects,” Levi said ruefully. “You should see how much he’s hounding me to work on this new game. Just the other day—”

She held a hand up, indicating that he should be quiet, and he did. “Levi, sweetie, don’t you think this is cruel? Edie’s my sister. She’s fragile. She’s going to be devastated when she finds out all this is a lie.” She fluttered her lashes and then shook her head sadly. “You’re going to have to tell your brother to back off for now. We don’t want my sister getting too badly hurt. Her last boyfriend . . .” she trailed off, then changed tactics. No need to talk about that. “I am Edie’s caretaker, Levi. If she suffers, it affects me. It hurts me. Do you understand?”

“I do! I’ll tell Magnus to back off. But what about us?”

“We’ll figure something out.” She gave him a sad smile. “I don’t like the thought of our happiness at my sister’s expense.”

“I’ll fix this,” Levi swore.

“Thanks, sugar,” Bianca said. She blew him a kiss and then cut off the Skype chat. Oooh, Cooper was on. Maybe she’d say hello to him.

***

Magnus pulled up to Buchanan Manor in his Maserati. He’d been expecting to have a private conversation with his friend, hopefully about a new cat-friendly apartment he could ensconce Edie into. But when he parked, he noticed that there were several other cars lining the long, curving driveway, and all of them were shiny with wax and read like the auto section of the Robb Report: Tesla, Lamborghini, Mercedes-Benz, and his brother’s Aston Martin were all parked. Okay, so there was a meeting here today.

What the hell was Levi doing here, though? Unless it was something to do with the wedding? Surely it hadn’t been called off? He pocketed his keys and headed to the door. The butler let him inside, and into the mazelike house.

The other men were waiting in Hunter’s stark office. He knew from dealing with Hunter in the past that the man preferred to do most of his work from his home office, though he knew Hunter had an office in the city as well. As he entered the room, he saw the other men in the room were the other groomsmen, with the exception of Reese and Logan. Asher, Cooper, Sebastian, and his brother, who sat in the back with his arms crossed, a sullen expression on his face.

Magnus took a seat with the others, feeling a bit like a guilty schoolboy. The grim look on Hunter’s face didn’t help. “Hello, boys,” Magnus said, keeping his tone easy. “Surprised to see all of you here.”

Asher didn’t make eye contact with Magnus, but that didn’t surprise him. Sebastian glanced over, but he seemed preoccupied. Only Cooper gave Magnus a friendly smile. Everyone else looked too damn uncomfortable.

“Good, you’re here,” Hunter said, tone curt. He folded his hands on his desk. “I asked you all to come here today because you are all good friends and business associates of mine. I’ve asked you to be in my wedding. I trust all of you. And you know that Gretchen is the woman I love and intend to marry, and she has her heart set on a big wedding with lots of pomp and circumstance. And because I can’t refuse her anything, I’m going to give her the big wedding she wants. Which is what brings me to today’s meeting.” He dragged a hand over one cheek, as if rubbing a scar. Then, he glared at them. “Quit sticking your dicks in the bridesmaids.”

Sebastian snorted.

Asher just grinned.

Magnus said nothing, but his fists clenched at his side. Is that what this was about?

Hunter spoke again. “One of the women is dropping from the bridal party, and my wife-to-be is extremely upset. Gretchen has been frantic all day, and I told her I’d take care of it.”

“Guilty as charged,” Asher said. “I’m fucking Greer, and I’m not going to stop. And no, it’s none of your business.” He adjusted his cufflinks, and then added, “I’ll talk to her. I didn’t know she was threatening to drop out of the wedding.”

Magnus’s eyebrows rose. He vaguely remembered the small, plain woman that he’d seen Asher with in the gardens at the party. Was that Greer? If so, poor woman. Asher had hang-ups by the dozen and he was a good man to party with, but a lousy relationship, Magnus would imagine. The man struggled with lots of demons.

“Greer’s not the one threatening to drop,” Hunter said drily. “Though now I see we have another problem. Chelsea is the one wanting to leave the wedding.”

“What?” Sebastian stiffened, his body becoming alert. His cold expression flicked with surprise. “Chelsea?”

“Et tu, Brute?” Hunter said, voice gruff. “Both of you, either make those women happy or break it off cleanly so Gretchen’s plans aren’t spoiled. Understand?”

“If you’ll excuse me, I have to make a phone call,” Sebastian said, rising to his feet in a fluid motion. He gave Hunter a stiff nod and disappeared out of the room.

“Anyone else have any confessions to make?”

Asher crossed his arms and looked over at Magnus.

“Edie’s mine,” Magnus said simply.

Hunter nodded. He looked over at Asher again. “Keep your goddamn dick in your pants. Greer’s a nice girl and deserves better than your sorry ass.”

“Wow,” Asher drawled. “What happened to brotherhood and friendship and all that bullshit you were spouting a moment ago?”

“Brotherhood is one thing,” Hunter said. “But now you’re making my woman unhappy, and I can’t have that.”

“I can handle Greer,” Asher said, getting to his feet. “Don’t you fucking worry about her.” He looked over at Magnus, then at Hunter. “You’re not going to lecture him?”

Hunter lifted one scarred eyebrow and eyed Magnus. “Do I need to?”

“Nope,” Magnus said.

“All right, then.”

Asher threw his hands up and stormed out of the room.

“How is it everyone’s fucking a bridesmaid but me?” Levi asked.

“I’m not,” Cooper said.

“That was all I had,” Hunter said, rifling through a few papers on his desk. “Thank you for coming today, men. Oh, and please send your tuxedo measurements to Gretchen’s wedding assistant.”

The remaining men stood.

“A word with you, Magnus,” Hunter said as they turned to leave. Levi gave Magnus a questioning look, but Magnus waved his brother on. After a few moments, he was alone in the room with Hunter and sat back down in his chair. Hunter pulled out a few papers and offered them to Magnus. “I’ve sent an email of listings to your personal inbox. These two just came open and are going to come off the market fast. There’s also a pop artist looking at these particular places, but I wanted to give you first dibs if you have time this afternoon.”

Magnus looked at the apartment listings and grinned at his friend. “When can we go?”

“First,” Hunter said. “Do we need to talk about Edie? The dicks-out-of-bridesmaids warning wasn’t for you per se, but now that you mention it, I should warn you that if you break Edie’s heart, Gretchen is going to come after you with a carving knife. She’s very protective of her friends, Edie especially.”

“I don’t plan on hurting Edie,” Magnus said, a little offended at the conversation. No wonder the others had stormed out. This felt a bit like being chided by his father, and Hunter was a friend and peer, not his dad. “She’s an adult, and I’m an adult, and we’re going to handle whatever happens like adults.”

“Fair enough,” Hunter said. “Shall we take your car?”

***

Two days later, Magnus had signed the preliminary paperwork for a lovely little apartment in a Park Slope townhouse. The entire first floor of the townhouse had been redone as a private apartment, and with sixteen-hundred square feet, large rooms, and a spacious bathroom to call her own, he suspected Edie would love it. There were lots of nooks and crannies and several windows that would be perfect for cat perches. He paid a cash retainer on the place to ensure he could move in right away, and once he had the keys in hand, he texted Edie.

Magnus: When can I see you again? I have a surprise for you.

Oh boy, she sent back almost immediately. I have two more client visits today and Bianca won’t get off my ass lately. What if I meet you tomorrow around lunch? Can you send your driver to come get me? I’ll need to be back in time for medication and feedings.

Magnus: Whatever’s most convenient for you, he told her. But don’t delay too much. I need you in my bed.

Edie: Is this a booty call, Magnus Sullivan? Because your technique needs work.

Magnus: You weren’t saying that when you were whimpering like a puppy last weekend.

Edie: Okay, okay. Fine. You win. Tomorrow.

Wear something easy to tear off, he told her.

Edie: One Velcro dress coming up!

***

She didn’t wear Velcro, of course, but Edie was wearing a dress when he saw her. She smiled at him in greeting, the long skirt blowing around her legs, a dark sweater thrown over her shoulders. Her hair was in her two little braids and she beamed at the sight of him.

Magnus pulled her into his arms and gave her a long, intense kiss. He’d missed her during the last few days.

“Let’s go up and see your cats,” she said, smiling. “I’ve missed them.”

“Not me?”

She just laughed. “I always miss you.”

He tugged her toward the car instead. “Actually, I want to give you your present first.”

“Or we can do that,” she agreed. “Is it breathing? Because while I love cats, I really can’t squeeze another into the place, and a dog would upset the delicate ecosystem in my townhouse.”

“Better than a cat,” he told her, getting into the back seat of the car with her. He passed the driver the address and settled into his seat, then pulled Edie’s slim body against him so he could touch her again. Touching Edie was quickly becoming an addiction for him.

She turned to him with excited eyes. “How is your game coming?”

“Incredible,” he told her, and for the next few minutes, he bored her with detail after detail of the game that was unfolding into something spectacular at every level. It was like now that he was past the one thing blocking him, all the other chips were falling into place. He could practically see scenarios in his head and couldn’t work out his plans fast enough.

Best of all? He didn’t even need Levi.

Which was good, because after the meeting at Hunter’s house? The brothers had a blowout fight. Levi had told him to back off of Edie because he was taking things too far. Magnus, already furious at his brother’s laziness, fired him from The World project and told him to go fuck himself. Now, they weren’t speaking and things at the art house were more than a bit tense.

And Magnus found that he . . . didn’t care. Levi would get over it, and he could choose to work with Magnus, or he could go spend his money. Either way, Magnus was fine with it. He was tired of being held back because Levi didn’t feel like working, or Levi was fascinated by a girl. This time, Magnus was flying solo . . . and he was enjoying the hell out of it.