Page 76 of Discretion at Its Finest

His thrusts faltered for a moment, and immediately I felt his hand cradle the side of my face, wiping away the fallen tears.

“Look at me, Vieve.” His voice was low, steady, but trembling at the edges. “I’m right here, baby.”

Something inside me shattered. “I’m sorry, Reid,” I whispered, the confession breaking out of me like a sob.

Another tremor ran through me as he slowed his thrusts. “I know, baby…” he muttered before his lips devoured mine as my body tightened around him.

He leaned in, lips brushing my temple, my cheek, the corner of my mouth, as he thrust deeper, slower, pulling sound out of me again. My fingers curled into his hair, my body shuddering back into itself.

And somewhere between his lips on my temple and his hands pulling me closer, the shame dissolved. In that moment, there was no past, no punishment or lies that followed me across the country. It was just him and me.

My cry hit the air, my entire body spasming around him as pleasure tore through me violently one final time.

“Good girl…” he whispered, voice breaking. “Jesus… fuck, you’re such a good girl—”

He followed moments later. With a guttural sound ripped straight from his chest, his forehead against mine, his hips driving tight, deep, losing every shred of restraint.

I didn’t know if this was forgiveness or just the closest we’d ever get to it, but in his arms… in this moment? I didn’t care anymore.

Chapter twenty-nine

Reid

Genevieve fell asleep on the couch without meaning to. Curled on her side, knees drawn in, my suit jacket over her shoulders. The office lights were dimmed low, the night life of the city bleeding in through the windows, and she slept through all of it.

I stood by the window with a glass of scotch I hadn’t touched, not feeling remotely as tired as she was. Every muscle in my body was tight, wound too damn tight for a man who should’ve felt satisfied. I wasn’t.

She still loved me.It felt like the admission was something I’d pulled from her against her will. And she wanted my forgiveness. Her apology was messy but real. Still, I didn’t know how to give it to her.

What I gave her instead was something uglier. Something I was not sure either of us would recover from cleanly. And she took every last piece of it, of me. I didn’t know how to stop wanting her. I thought I could ignore my need for her, my addiction and obsession for her… but after the last few hours we spent in this room, after what we’d done? I knew I was wrong.

A knock at the door sounded, pulling me from my thoughts. Only one person would be here this late into the night, crazy enough to work his ass to death when he saw fit.

“Come in.”

Alexander entered the room, his strides long, his hands flipping through a file before he paused entirely, his gaze flickering to a covered Genevieve still curled up in the corner. He turned to look at me, eyebrows furrowing.

“You know,” he began, “we landed yesterday… You couldn’t have waited a few more business days to—”

“Talk,” I interrupted him, now annoyed he was here in the first place.

As if that flipped a switch, he shook his head. “The structure is finalized. Accounts are live. Investments are in place.”

“How clean?” I asked.

He exhaled through his nose. “Too clean,” he admitted. “First transfer cleared an hour ago. No delays or internal flags.”

That finally made me look at him. I was sure he was impressed with himself; he usually was more than me… but he was still gripping the folder, knuckles tight along the edges, eyes filled with adrenaline and… fear.

“So what’s the problem,” I said.

He stepped closer, glancing to the woman asleep on the couch before locking back onto me. “Reid,” he said quietly, “you just moved two hundred and fifty million dollars… and no one batted an eyelash.”

I didn’t react. “Good,” I said calmly.

Alexander stared at me like I’d misheard him. “Good?”

“If they’d noticed,” I said evenly, “someone would’ve tried to stop it.”