Bedding The Billionaire (8 page)

She nodded, confusion in her eyes, but she didn't
question him. Instead, she licked the finger at her lips, sucking it into her
mouth.

Then she took charge. She pushed him back onto the
couch, then knelt above him, lowering herself. A deep groan emanated from his
throat as she touched his throbbing tip. His eyes watched her as she settled
down on him, then bulged as she swallowed him whole inside her. She was hot and
wet and just the feel of her sucking him into her slickness brought him quickly
to the edge. She leaned forward, her hands beside his head on the couch and
pumped him hard. Then just as he thought he was going to explode inside her,
she stopped. She smiled wickedly down at him.

"Abbey," he croaked. "Don't. Not
now." He thrust his hips up to meet her, but she moved, just enough so he
couldn't reach.

"Do you want me?" she asked with a sly grin.

He closed his eyes and nodded. "Damn it, Abbey,
yes." What was she doing? This was torture. If she was trying to pay him
back for teasing her the same way a moment ago, then it was working.

Unable to stand it any longer, he took her hips in his
hands, then thrust upwards again, a mighty effort that made her gasp as he
lunged deep inside her.

She pumped him, long and hard, and a moment later he
felt her shudder. It sent him to the edge again and over it. Wave upon wave
crashed into him as Abbey's body became limp and flopped on top of him, her
arms snaking around his neck. She kissed him feverishly as he climaxed into
her.

He pushed his hands through her hair and kissed her
back.

***

An hour later, Nick awoke and brushed Abbey's hair
from her face. She still lay on top of him, her weight pressing into his arms
and chest. He didn't want her to move. She felt good snuggled into him. Comfortable.

Abbey stirred. She lifted her head up and blinked down
and smiled the electric smile that had him hooked. He grinned back. He couldn't
help it. She had that affect on him.

"Hello, Sleepy Head," he said, catching the
bulk of her hair in one hand and holding it off her face so he could see her
beautiful eyes.

"What time is it?"

"About two."

"I should be going."

She tried to get up but he held her.

"Stay awhile longer," he murmured.

She looked at him through drowsy eyes, then settled
back onto his chest with a sigh.

"We could go into the bedroom," he said. "You
could stay the rest of the night."

Abbey sat up, shaking her head. "I can't. I
should go. My friend is waiting."

Nick
frowned. What friend? He felt a small stab in the base of his stomach. Not
Tarken, the idiot from dinner?

"Lucy," she said, as if reading his
thoughts. She glanced over at the window. "She'll be waiting for me."

"Oh." He extricated himself from her and
stood.
Fool. Don't forget who she is. What she is.
She'd replaced one
pimp with another, a woman this time.

And he
was an idiot to have forgotten what the arrangement was. He'd been carried away
in the heat of the moment, the passion, thinking this was more than it actually
was. But it was sex. Just sex.

He looked down at Abbey. She was already dressed in
her bra and skirt and she was holding her torn thong, a piece in each hand.

She glanced up at him, her eyes glistening, a smile
twitching her lips. "Guess I need to buy another one."

Nick's first instinct was to smile back at her, but he
shoved any thoughts of humor from his mind. She was hinting that she needed
more money than just two nights worth. Or was it three, since they'd actually
done it three times now?

He bent, picked up his pants and pulled the wallet out
of the back pocket. He opened it and glanced down at Abbey as she sat on the
couch. Her blue eyes stared back at him expectantly. He turned away. He
couldn't look at her, not when she pulled that innocent face on him. It was all
he could do to stop himself from kissing her again.

"How much?"

She didn't say anything, so he was forced to look at
her. Her eyes narrowed and her brow puckered. "What are you talking
about?" she asked.

Nick took out a hundred dollar note. "One
hundred? Two hundred? I have no idea what these things cost."

His voice sounded angry, even to him, but that was too
bad. It was how he felt. Cheated somehow, but he wasn't sure why.

Abbey's jaw dropped and her eyes suddenly widened to
the size of satellite dishes. She stood, fully clothed now, and glared back at
him. He suddenly felt very ill, sickened by what he'd done. This was not like
him. He'd never done anything so drastic and so foolish in his life. He did
not
like it.

"Three hundred?" he asked gruffly.

He was peering into his wallet so he didn't see the hand
coming. Her slap stung his cheek.

His head snapped up and he resisted the urge to grab her
hand to stop her doing it again. It wasn't dignified. Whatever was wrong, he
could sort it out with some clear level-headed thinking.

"What the hell was that for?" he shouted. Fuck
level-headedness. Nick Delaware had never been slapped in his life, and
certainly not by a hooker!

"For treating me like something on a supermarket
shelf." She turned away and rounded the couch. She was heading toward the
door.

"Abbey!" She didn't stop. Nick ran after her
and grabbed her arm. "Abbey, where are you going?"

"None of your damn business. Besides, what do you
care? I'm just a cheap hooker you bought for a couple of nights, aren't
I?"

Nick blinked down at her. He shrugged. "Well, I
don't think three hundred dollars is cheap, but I admit I don't really know
—
"

This time he saw the slap coming and he caught her
hand. She tried to pull free but he held her firmly. Their eyes locked in
unspoken battle. After glaring at each other for several heartbeats, he let go.

"Abbey, calm down. What's the problem?"

"You! I'm not a hooker, Damien."

Nick flinched at the name. "Stop calling me that,
please. And what do you mean you're not a hooker?"

Abbey shook her head and flung her arms in the air. "What
does it sound like it means? I'm-not-a-hooker. Is that clear enough?"

Nick took a step back and drew his brows together. "Then,
why are you here?"

She turned away so he couldn't see her face. She took
a step toward the door, but there was no way he was going to let her go after
that revelation without an explanation. He caught her arm.

He thought he had the situation all figured out. He
thought he had Abbey all figured out, but now nothing was what it seemed
anymore. And he was a man who liked everything out in the open. No surprises,
no secrets. He wanted to know who he was dealing with at all times, and that
included now, with Abbey. If that was in fact her real name.

"Abbey," he said softly. He drew her to him.
"If you're not a hooker
—
"

"Which I'm not."

Nick nodded. "Which you're not, then what's going
on?"

Abbey shook her head and Nick felt his blood begin to
heat up. "Tell me."

"You don't need to know."

"The hell I don't!" I've just slept with you
—
more
than once
—
I think I have a right to know who, and what, you
are."

"We agreed this was just sex," she said
through gritted teeth. She pulled her arm out of his grip. "No strings
attached. Two consenting adults. Remember?"

Her glare dared him to deny it.

He wanted to. He wanted to tell her how much he'd
liked it. How much he liked her company. How much he wanted to see her again. But
he couldn't. She may not be a hooker, but he still had no idea what she wanted from
him. Until she told him, he wasn't going to give her an inch. This was just
like closing a business deal
—
never let the opposition see all your
cards at once. It paid to keep something back until they revealed all of
theirs.

"Yeah," he said casually. "It was just
sex. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Apparently not because she emitted a low growl, then
reached for the door handle.

But Nick wasn't ready to let her go yet. He wanted
answers. He placed a hand against the door beside her head, slamming it closed
again. Abbey swung round. She was trapped between the wall and his arm. Good. Maybe
now he could reason with her.

"Let me out or I'll scream."

He smiled down at her. "Go ahead."

She screwed up her nose, closed her eyes and opened
her mouth. Hell, she really was going to scream! He did the first thing that
came into his mind—he kissed her. Hard and deep. He took her face in his
hands and rubbed his thumbs along her cheeks, gently. She groaned and he
thought he had her. He thought she'd succumb to his kiss. Maybe she'd stay with
him a while longer, tell him everything he wanted to know. Everything he needed
to know.

But he was wrong. Abbey stopped kissing him and pushed
away. Her eyes glowed up at him like two blue flames. "You're an asshole,
do you know that? You think everyone should bow to your whim, especially women.
Well, I've got news for you, Buddy. I hate arrogant men. You can't order people
around and you can't make women do what you want them to do with a kiss."

She spun round and opened the door. Nick swallowed. He
had to think, but he couldn't. His brain was failing him, for the first time in
his life.

"Abbey," he said softly, "don't
go."

She swung round again. "And don't think that a
few gently spoken words are going to work either, because they don't." She
sniffed. "Not on me anyway."

Nick stood, rooted to the floor. He was still naked,
he realized, but he didn't care. What could he say to make her stay? And what
in the world was she doing in his hotel in the first place?

"Just tell me one thing. If you're not a hooker,
then why did you come to my room in the first place?"

She paused, the door wide open. She glanced up at him
then looked away, out into the corridor. "Free massage, complements of
hotel management."

She walked across the threshold without looking back. The
door swung closed behind her.

Nick let her go. If she wasn't going to tell him the
truth then he didn't want to see her again.

Nobody lies to Nick Delaware.

Abbey sat in the swivel chair behind Lucy's desk,
staring blankly out the window at the rundown warehouse next door, while her
friend studied a role of film negatives.

"This is really hot," Lucy said, a smile in
her voice. "We could put this stuff up on the Web and make a fortune at a
dollar a peep."

"Very funny." Abbey sighed and passed a hand
over her face. It was one o'clock in the afternoon. She'd had zero sleep, it
was hot and Lucy's office was stifling with only a noisy old fan to circulate
the stuffy air.

Lucy sat on the edge of the desk, her face suddenly
turning serious. "Look, Abbey, don't get upset over what this guy said. It
was bound to happen considering the circumstances. He's a jerk and you're not a
hooker. Forget about it. He's not worth it."

"Easier said than done. It's not everyday I get
accused of being a prostitute." Abbey still couldn't believe Damien had
actually had the nerve to offer her money after what they'd shared. Is that
what the sex had meant to him? Is that what she'd meant to him?

"Well, what did you expect? You were dressed like
a hooker, you entered his apartment with a flimsy excuse and you jumped him
within five seconds. I think it was a pretty darn natural thing for him to
assume given the circumstances. I still think you should've taken the money. Three
hundred will pay the rent."

"Lucy! I will not take money for sex!"

"No." She held up the roll of film to the
light. "But you'll take money to create the illusion of it."

"That's different."

"If believing that makes you happy, then go ahead
and think it, Abbey Girl. It sure doesn't worry me what anyone thinks about
this whole thing. As soon as I get these processed, I'll send them up to your
lover's wife and cash in. That's all I care about."

"You're cheaper than me," Abbey said with a
grin. Lucy's irreverent attitude was somehow reassuring. Her friend was right,
and Abbey knew it, deep down. She just had to admit to herself that it actually
was
about money
—
just not Damien Vane's. And not in exchange
for sex.

"And he's not my lover," she added. "Well,
technically he
was
, but not any more. I'm not going anywhere near Le
Meridian, or even Collins Street for that matter, until he's left. I may be
poor but I've got my pride."

"Good for you." Lucy slipped Abbey a sly
smile. "You know, if you'd taken that money, we could be sipping cocktails
about now."