Coerced (Billionaire romance): Blackmailed by the Billionaire (Buchanan Romance Book 1) (12 page)

If only it were that simple. He bit his tongue from spilling something he regretted.

“Just because we have an unorthodox relationship doesn’t mean it has to be adversarial, does it?”

“So your questions are based on creating a pleasant work environment?”

The faint touch of bitterness in her tone cut at him in a way he was unprepared.

“If that’s the way you’d like to frame it in your mind,” he replied stiffly. “I’m just trying to ease the tension between us.”

She popped from the sofa, her eyes wet.

“The reason there’s tension is because you…” her mouth seamed shut but she looked ready to burst with emotion. Finally, she gave a short, frustrated cry and bounded from the room, saying, “You’re an asshole!”

The sound of a slamming door was his reward for trying to smooth things over.

With a sigh, he rose and poured himself another drink.

Things were not going to plan.

Not at all.

Something told him, it was going to be a while before he got anything sweet from his little pissed-off peach.

Bookmark: 17

-17-

The nerve! The unmitigated gall!

To act as if having a little chit-chat about nothing stuff was going to erase the horrible thing he’d done.

Elizabeth paced the bedroom, her rage and anguish almost indistinguishable.

Sutton was accustomed to walking all over people but she wouldn’t allow him to walk on her.

He may have bought her body but he’d never get her heart because she wasn’t that stupid.

Sure. Good idea.

Except…she had a terrible feeling…that Sutton already had his hooks into her tender flesh and she couldn’t quite understand why!

He’d bought her flesh. Taken her virginity.

And now, he was putting her heart into a blender so he could drink it at his leisure like a protein shake!

Fuck. That.

No, she wasn’t going to swallow her rage, her hurt. He was going to hear it and if he dumped her and threatened to toss her on the street as well as demand a refund (could he do that?) then so be it.

Flinging the door open, she stalked from the bedroom to stare Sutton down.

Well, he was much taller than her, so she was actually looking
up
at him, but the point was made.

She was pissed and he was going to hear about it.

“You hurt me,” she said, point blank. When he started to speak, she overrode him. “Yes, you
own
my body. You never
promised
fidelity, blah, blah, blah, but the point is, you never said that you’d hurt me like that. If you don’t have the common decency inherent to most people then I don’t think I can do this anymore and you can threaten me all you want but it’s not going to change who I am deep inside. I can’t give you my body without giving you something else, even if I don’t want to and trust me, I wish I could because giving you anything of value, such as my heart, is practically suicide and I know it.”

“What kind of relationship did you think you were signing up for?” he shot back, downing his scotch. “Did you think I was going to fall head over heels for you and pledge my undying love just because you’re fun to fuck around with?”

“No! But I didn’t expect you to demand EVERYTHING from me and give so little of yourself in return!”

“Well, that’s your fault for not reading the fine print,” he said with a tone so cold she shivered. He slammed his glass down, startling her with the sharp motion. “The fact is, I do own you and if you don’t like the terms, you should’ve thought of that before you signed on the dotted line. And before you even think of reneging on your contract, know this…
Buchanans never lose
. I will crush you, my sweet girl. So think twice before you make a decision that you can’t take back.”

Her eyes welled with tears.

“So that’s your solution? More threats? What the fuck is wrong with you that you think you can treat human beings like this?”

“What the fuck is wrong with you that you can’t fucking understand what you agreed to?” He shouted as he grabbed her hard by both arms. “You belong to me and as such, your feelings on how I conduct my business, are not my concern! If I want to fuck other women, I can! And I don’t need your permission!”

“I hate you,” Elizabeth sobbed, her heart breaking into a million pieces at the obvious lack of concern for her feelings. He truly didn’t care. He only wanted her body. It was her own fault for having any feelings at all for him. “I fucking hate you!”

He released her. “Good. Makes things easier that way, doesn’t it?”

And then he pushed her toward the bedroom, already unbuckling his trousers and she stared in disbelief. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Exactly what I want to. On your knees.”

Her lip trembled. “No.”

“Elizabeth…” he warned but she held her ground.

“If you make me, I’ll hate you forever.”

“I thought I’d already achieved that,” he mocked.

“Don’t.” Tears tracked down her cheeks but she didn’t waver. He’d never forced her before. If he crossed that line, she’d leave no matter what the consequence. She and Gretchen would live in her car if need be, but she wouldn’t stomach his touch another minute if he forced her.

There was a line and Sutton was dangerously close to crossing it.

A long moment, heavy with tension, squatted between them, filling the space until it was thick enough to touch.

Something flitted through Sutton’s expression that was almost too shocking to admit — it looked a lot like pain — but it was gone in an instant.

And so was Sutton.

“You’re fucking more work than you’re worth,” he muttered as he grabbed his keys and bailed from the apartment, slamming the door behind him.

Elizabeth released a shaky breath, so relieved he was gone.

Thank you, lord.

The ugly truth was she could possibly forgive him for “cheating” on her but she could never forgive him forcing her sexually.

And the fact that she wasn’t packing her bags this very instance told her she was far more invested in Sutton than she wanted to let on.

The fact that Sutton ran out before doing something he couldn’t take back — said far more.

***

Fuck
! What the hell just happened?

His intentions had been twisted into junk like a car dropped into a giant trash compactor.

Hadn’t he planned to be nice?

To actually woo her like a decent human being?

Yes. But then he’d seen her laughing and flirting — and almost KISSING — his little brother and something had snapped inside him. He’d wanted to hurt her because seeing her with Reece like that had hurt him!

How had things gotten so bad, so fast?

So much for following Emma’s advice. Maybe he wasn’t cut out for things like…true human connections.

Emma had said he and Vince were alike and yet Vince had found a good woman and somehow convinced her to be his wife.

Whoa. Apples to oranges.

He didn’t want a wife. He wanted an obedient, sweet, sex slave.

Right?

Hell, he didn’t know anymore.

Frustration welled up inside him.

Yes, he wanted that but he wanted so much more.

He wanted Elizabeth eager and willing to suck his cock, to prance around in a slutty costume for his pleasure, to smile sweetly and present her luscious ass when he wanted to stick his cock in it!

He wanted to have intelligent conversations with her about current events, the fucking weather, even her damn art!

Sutton felt trapped in a box of his own making.

Was it too much to ask to expect Elizabeth to want the same?

The part that made him sick to his stomach was the sinking feeling that he might’ve had that with Elizabeth if he hadn’t been a total ass.

Fresh anger pounded away the inexplicable pain that seemed to dog him whenever he thought of Elizabeth’s tears and how he’d hurt her.

To prove the point to himself, he thought of finding Gemini to let off some steam but when the idea made him physically ill, he wanted to punch something.

What had that woman done to him? Elizabeth had wormed her way into his every thought and he didn’t know what to do about it.

He wanted Elizabeth to smile at him the way she’d smiled at Reece — freely, without reservation — the way she laughed at his stupid little jokes.

Her eyes had lit up as they’d talked about art.

The art that’d been inspired by their visit to Malvagio.

Sutton wanted that light to shine his way.

That inspiration belonged to him!

It’d been HIS hand on her pussy as she’d watched that couple fuck. It’d been HIS finger inside her as she’d writhed against him. It’d been HIS name she’d cried out as she came.

He wanted HIS Elizabeth back.

Scrubbing at his face, he realized just how royally he’d fucked everything up.

The way to getting Elizabeth back wasn’t with threats or coercion.

He had to do something he’d never done before.

He had to allow himself to care about someone more than he cared about himself.

Okay, great.

And, exactly how does one do that?

He doubted there was a manual on how to become less of an asshole.

So ask Vince.

Oh, hell no. He’d figure things out on his own. His cousin wasn’t the love guru. Besides, if Vince could figure it out, he certainly could.

Sutton drew a deep breath and blew it out.

So the first step seemed the hardest.

Apologize.

Even the word made him shudder.

But he supposed that was a good start.

Yeah, but what was he apologizing for, exactly?

That was a loaded question.

A part of him wasn’t ready to acknowledge that he’d done anything wrong.

He hadn’t promised—

Hell, he could ride that useless train all day and it would still take him to nowhere.

Time for action.

He might crash and burn but he had to try.

Grabbing his phone he called the first florist he searched.

“I want the biggest, the best, the most expensive arrangement you have and I want it delivered within the hour.”

Bookmark: 18

-18-

Elizabeth stared at the flowers, dumbfounded. There was no card but she knew they were from Sutton.

The flowers dwarfed what Reece had brought her.

Confused, she simply stared at the beautiful blooms, unable to allow herself to hope that Sutton meant the flowers as an apology.

But an apology for what, exactly? Was he remorseful for his behavior or his actions? Maybe both?

Or was she naive to think that Sutton was doing anything more than just trying to win her over with expensive gifts so she’d stop giving him grief and return to being his willing sex pigeon, content to just be whatever he wanted her to be.

If she took the flowers at face value, she was naive.

If she eyed the flowers with suspicion, she was a cynic.

Neither were a great option.

Her gaze lingered on the vibrant bouquet. They were quite beautiful, that much was true.

Her cell phone dinged with a text message.

It was Sutton.

A car will come for you at 6 p.m. Dress comfortably.

A dismal frown found her as sharp disappointment threatened to skewer her.

He wanted her to pretend all was well. As breathtaking as the flowers were, they meant nothing.

Did she refuse? Tell him to kiss off? To shove his flowers up his butt?

No, that wasn’t fair to the flowers.

She would go. What else could she do? For all of her brave words, Gretchen needed her. Was it Sutton’s fault that she’d somehow let him into her heart? Maybe that was what hurt the most — she’d let herself down by allowing him to hurt her.

This was, and still remained, a business arrangement.

A painful reminder, but a reminder, nonetheless.

Showering and dressing, she climbed into the car and wondered where it was taking her.

When it pulled up to the airport, veering off to a private strip where a small, elegant plane awaited, she nearly swallowed her tongue.

The chauffeur opened her door and she stepped out in shock as Sutton descended the short stairs to help her.

“What is this?”

“This is a plane,” he answered with a small grin.

“I know it’s a plane…I mean…what’s happening?”

He graced her with another smile and she had to admit, his smile did terrible things to her resolve to remain aloof. Sutton, when he tried, was very charming.

They settled into the luxurious leather seats of the private plane and she couldn’t help the wide-eyed wonder of everything around her. The truth was, she’d never flown economy-style, much less ultra-first-class.

And she was a little nervous.

Champagne appeared courtesy of a sharply dressed male steward, which she eagerly sucked down.

“First time flying?” Sutton surmised and she jerked a short nod. He chuckled. “Seems I’m many of your firsts.”

She shot him a look. Not funny.

“Too soon?”

“Much.”

Sutton appeared appropriately chastised, which she took as a promising sign and returned to her window, amazed by how quickly they were taking to the air. “Where are we going?” she asked, once they were in flight.

“Spain.”

“
S-spain
?” the word escaped in a puff of shock. “I…what?”

Sutton, his mouth warming with another smile. “Surprised?”

“Uh, yeah. That’s an understatement. I didn’t bring any clothes!”

“I shall buy you a new wardrobe if you like. We’re going somewhere specific. Someplace I think you’ll enjoy.”

An intrigued smile found her lips. “And where is that?”

“I’m sure you’ve heard of The Prado in Madrid.”

One of the ten most amazing museums in the world? “You mean, the museum that houses the Spanish royal family’s commissioned art throughout the centuries? Ahh, yes, I’ve heard of it! Dreamed of it!” Elizabeth forgot everything else and just tried to catch her breath as her heart sped up with wonder and amazement. He had to be pulling her leg. People just didn’t hop in a plane for Europe! “Are you serious? We are going to The Prado?”

He laughed, pleased. “Yes. Every artist should visit where fine art resides. If you like, we shall visit them all.”

Oh, Lord. He was serious. Deliriously happy tears flooded her eyes. This was better than flowers. Better than chocolate. She jerked a nod, as she tried to hold back the flood. “Yes!” Her mind was babbling and her mouth hadn’t quite caught up. All she could manage were single syllable sounds that didn’t sound coherent at all but Sutton didn’t seem to mind. If anything he seemed to swell with pride that he’d rendered her mostly speechless.

“Good.” He motioned to the steward, saying, “I hope you don’t mind dinner on the plane. It’s a long flight. We shall arrive sometime in the morning.”

Dinner? Oh, right. Who cared about food? But her stomach grumbled and she realized she hadn’t eaten lunch after all the turmoil had gone down. “I’d be fine with a sandwich of some sort.”

“Well, the chef might take exception to that request seeing as he’s prepared a five-star meal for us tonight,” Sutton said.

Her cheeks flamed. “Oh! I’m so sorry…I’m fine with whatever…I’m sure it’s going to be delicious,” she assured the steward apologetically. She shot a look at Sutton with embarrassment. “I’m not accustomed to this kind of thing. I thought all you get on a plane was peanuts and water with all the budget cuts out there.”

“Not on this plane.”

She giggled, unable to help herself. “Membership has its privileges,” she murmured.

“Indeed.”

Elizabeth settled into her chair, sliding her palms down the cream-colored leather with open appreciation and sighed, unable to believe Sutton was taking her to Spain.

Of all the wild, incredibly unexpected things to do…

A smart girl would just accept the kindness and delight in the experience but now that the shock had begun to ebb, she was left with questions.

She couldn’t keep her gaze from drifting to him with a question. “So…why are you doing this?”

Sutton stared — that inexplicably beautiful face of his burning into her memory as the moment stretched between them — finally answered with a shrug, “Because it pleased me.”

And Elizabeth felt the tiniest pinch of disappointment. No declaration of any sort. No apology.

Just…yeah.

It pleased him.

Welcome to the world of the billionaire, right?

Sutton did nothing that didn’t, at its core level, please him.

Had she expected anything else?

Maybe that was the crux of it — she wanted more.

More than he was willing to give.

***

They
touched down at the Madrid Barajas Airport after twelve hours and a car shuttled them to the hotel so they could freshen up.

While Elizabeth showered, Sutton had Chantal send over some comparable designer outfits for Elizabeth so they were ready for her when she finished.

Elizabeth, towel wrapped around her body, exclaimed at the beautiful clothes awaiting her, her eyes glowing.

“This is gorgeous,” she said, lifting the gauzy dress that he could only imagine would look clinging to her bountiful curves.

He particularly enjoyed the generously cut neckline, which plunged at her cleavage.

“Chantal was good enough to include accessories and shoes,” he pointed out and Elizabeth made a tiny little sound of excitement as she lifted the strappy sandals. “As always, Chantal has excellent taste.”

“That woman is a freaking genius,” Elizabeth murmured. “I never enjoyed clothes shopping until she showed me how much fun it could be to find cuts that flatter instead of embarrass.”

Unable to stop himself, Sutton came forward and nibbled a trail along the damp skin of her neck. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about…ever.”

Elizabeth shivered and sank against him, her soft curves pressing against him in all the right ways. “When you say things like that…I almost believe you mean them,” she murmured.

“I always mean what I say,” he said, removing the towel so he could fill his hands with her tits. “And you have the best breasts of any woman I’ve ever known.”

She moaned as he gently squeezed, pushing his rock-hard erection against the cleft of her behind.

“This is what you do to me,” he said softly against the shell of her ear. “You undo me. Every time.”

Those tiny gasps were like jet fuel to his ever-smoldering need for her.

He wanted to taste her. Wanted to devour every little moan and gasp. He wanted her smiles, her laughter. Her groans and cries.

He wanted it all.

Every damn bit.

His touch became more urgent but he was fighting a war within himself.

He’d brought her to Spain to atone for the shitty things he’d said to her. The awful, terrible way he’d treated her. But he couldn’t get the words past his lips.

All he could do was show her that he wanted her to have the best. He didn’t want to put labels on what he felt.

Didn’t want to break apart and analyze the why of it.

He just wanted.

The yearning in his soul matched the hungry beat of his heart when he looked at Elizabeth.

He wanted to throw her down and plunge deep inside, burying himself until he no longer knew where he stopped and she began.

Somehow by the grace of God, he managed to still his roving hands, pulling away with a barely contained shudder of sharp disappointment.

Now was not the time.

In a way, he felt he hadn’t yet earned the right to touch, which was ridiculous but he couldn’t stop picturing her crestfallen expression from the other night.

He’d been a fucking asshole. If only he could bring himself to actually admit that out loud.

Elizabeth turned, her lovely blue eyes hazed with desire. “Sutton?”

He brushed a soft kiss across her lips, forcing a light smile. “We must be off. The museum director is giving us a personal tour and we shouldn’t be late.”

Immediately her eyes lit up and she smiled. “Oh! Good point. Yes, let’s go. I can’t believe this.” Her little squeal of happiness sent a ricochet of joy through his insides. “I’ve always dreamed of traveling to Europe to see for myself the art masterpieces throughout the ages but I honestly, never, ever expected that I’d be able to do it. This is amazing.”

She shocked him by rising on her tiptoes and pressing a hearty kiss on his mouth, her grin contagious.

In all his life he’d never seen anything more beautiful.

Truthfully…he didn’t think anything would ever compare to Elizabeth’s radiant loveliness.

Not even the world’s most celebrated art collections.