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  He broke away, his eyes filled with lust. “I hope I’ve made it clear, you belong to me, Eliza.”

  “Oui, monsieur,” I said breathlessly, “Oui.” I placed my hand on his chest. “Would you like me to pleasure you as you pleasured me?”

  He looked at me thoughtfully, and I glanced down at the bulge in his pants.

  “Today isn’t about me, Eliza. I know who I belong to. I’m patient, and I can wait.” And with that, he walked out of the conference room.

  Chapter Six

  Beckett

  Today was the day we were leaving for Matcher’s Island. I had packed the last of my shirts and pushed my suitcase closed so I could get it on the ground and roll it into the living room while I waited for the limo to come pick me up.

  I couldn’t wait to get Eliza alone to explore her needs and desires. If her body’s response in her conference room was anything to go by, then this week would be an exhilarating ride for the both of us.

  I could already picture her at the airport wearing something sexy and seductive that hugged the curves of her beautiful body like a present waiting to be ripped open.

  There was something incredibly addictive about her, and it aroused both my hunger for her and the need to protect her.

  For years, I hadn’t been interested in a relationship of any kind. The thought of giving more than my body to a woman turned me off. In some ways, it felt like I’d stopped living when Wendy’s mother passed, but now Eliza had brought me back to life.

  She was mine even if she didn’t want to admit it yet.

  And I was hers.

  I straightened my tie and collar for the umpteenth time when I glanced over at my dresser and saw the box of condoms I had bought last week.

  Should I have packed them? Did I need them? It wasn’t like Eliza said she wanted to have a child. We were both still relatively young—she was ten years younger than me—and couples were having babies at more mature ages these days.

  But Eliza was a busy woman, and although the idea of seeing her stomach swollen with my baby was tempting, I wanted to be responsible and not cause her a shit load of stress that would make anything harder on her.

  The condoms reminded me of one more thing I had to pack. On my dresser sat a small black box. I picked it up and opened the lid. The ring I’d bought to propose to Eliza with glittered and sparkled.

  Lucy had done a good job filling me in on what Eliza liked and disliked. Part of me said I should just put the ring on her finger and not even ask her. There was no ‘no’ option available. But what if she did say no? Eliza was so damn hard to break.

  It was obvious she was trying her hardest not to let her true feelings for me show. Someone had hurt her deeply in the past that much was clear. But at our age, getting hurt and having our heart’s broken was almost like a rite of passage. If she let me in, I would heal all her wounds and put her heart back together again.

  Chimes from my doorbell brought me out of my thoughts. I glanced at my security monitor and saw Sam and Wendy standing at the door. Wendy knew I had a camera and looked up, waving.

  “Hey, Dad!” She said, giving me a wide smile. Her stomach had grown since I last saw her a few days ago.

  I buzzed them in, and when they walked through the front door, I gave Sam a slap on the back and my dear daughter a gentle hug and a peck on the forehead.

  Sam strode inside with no evidence of his limp. He still used his cane occasionally—when he was tired, or there was a sudden change in the weather, but not today.

  “What brings you two over?” I asked, ushering them into the living room.

  “Since you’re going on vacation with Eliza today, Dad, we wanted to see you off,” Wendy explained. “It’s going to be another week before I see you again,” she continued, smoothing her hands over her belly.

  “Yeah,” Sam began. “Plus, I want to know, should we plan on attending a wedding sometime soon?”

  “What makes you ask that?” I asked, barely concealing my smile.

  Wendy’s eyes widened, and a joyful expression gleefully hopped onto her face. “You seem so fond of Eliza. Every time we talk you mention her name.”

  “I barely know her. It’s too early to even think about marriage.” Of course, that was a bold-faced lie. But I didn’t want to look too desperate in front of my family.

  My phone rang, and I glanced at the caller ID. “Hold on you two, I have to answer this.” I swiped the answer button, “Hello?”

  “Hello, Sir. This is Charles, your limo driver. I’m ready for you.”

  “Thank you, Charles, I’ll be right down,” I said and hung up.

  “I guess that’s our cue,” Sam said, grasping my hand. “Have a great time.”

  “Be careful, Dad, and have fun,” Wendy said, pulling herself up to give me one last hug.

  The babies in her belly kicked. It was their small way of giving me a goodbye hug too.

  “Looks like these two are going to miss you,” she said with a laugh.

  I lowered my head and whispered, “Take care of your mommy while I’m gone, boys. Grandpa will be back soon.”

  Once we were outside, Wendy hobbled over to a bench to sit down, while Sam helped me pass my bags to Charles who loaded them in the trunk.

  “Hey, Sam, I remember Eliza faintly at your wedding. How do you know her again?” I asked.

  Why was she so hard to figure out? Eliza left virtually no tracks to a past I could find, and I’d tried my best to find out as much as I could, but I kept coming up empty.

  It was like she appeared in people’s lives like a mist and could vanish at any moment.

  “Well,” Sam said carefully. “She matched me and Wendy up when I was having a bad time in the dating arena. I didn’t know that was how I’d meet Wendy again, but I’m glad I took the chance to use Eliza’s service. Perhaps without Eliza’s help, my path would have crossed Wendy’s again. But who knows. Fate has a funny way of making things happen.”

  “I agree, fate is a funny thing. So she took a liking to you?”

  “Yeah. I guess so. She knew so much about me because of that system of hers. I thought it was going to be a sham, but it really worked out for me. She works her magic and finds the perfect match for everyone.”

  “She does, doesn’t she,” I agreed.

  After wishing me good luck, Sam jogged back to the bench where Wendy was waiting. I waved goodbye one more time and made myself comfortable in the back of the limo.

  On the way to the airport, the surrounding traffic grew thicker and slower until we came to a virtual standstill.

  “There’s an accident up ahead of us, Sir!” Charles announced. “Might be a thirty-minute delay.”

  “Shit, thirty minutes? The airport is only ten minutes from here, correct?”

  “If there was no traffic, correct, Sir.”

  The fucking traffic was murder. I couldn’t have Eliza waiting for me for that long or have her thinking I wasn’t coming.

  I could call her and tell her to go ahead without me, and I’d catch another flight, but then people hoped she’d arrive by herself. I was sure the daggers were already out for her. I wouldn’t let anyone on that island backstab her or gossip about her.

  “Is there any shortcut you know of?” I asked.

  “I do, but it’s not the safest way to get there.”

  “I don’t care if it takes us through the worst neighborhood in the city as long as we get there in one piece and on time. Take any route you desire.”

  Charles smiled and nodded. “Very well then, Sir. You have the right driver for today.”

  He peeled off the highway, and my worries began to subside.

  “We’ll be there in five minutes, Mr. Monroe.”

  “Thank you. Do whatever you have to. I don’t want to keep my future bride waiting on the tarmac for me.”

  Charles pressed down on the gas, and we took a series of back streets and sideroads to get to the airport. We passed through rundown areas with boarded-up hou
ses and stores, but we didn’t come across any trouble.

  Finally, I saw the airport in view, and I instructed Charles on how to get to the area for private and VIP access planes.

  As we closed in on the airstrip, I dug out a hefty five-hundred-dollar tip from my wallet. Charles deserved it.

  I saw our plane and another limo. In front of that limo was Eliza, waiting with her arms crossed and an unpleasant look on her face.

  She couldn’t hide her expression when she was unhappy with something. She was far too serious and strong-willed to conceal her displeasure. If my lateness had upset her so much, I would make it up to her later in the best way I knew how.

  My limo pulled up next to her. I reached over to Charles and shook his hand, making sure to discreetly pass him his tip.

  “Thank you for getting me here on time, Charles.”

  “Thank you, Sir,” he said with a wide smile. “I’ll get your luggage.”

  I jumped out of the limo and went over to Eliza. “What’s wrong, Eliza? Why are you not already on the plane?” I asked. A cold wind brushed over the tarmac and swept over us. I rubbed her shoulders to help put some warmth back into her body.

  “I’m not going in there.” She turned her gaze away from me. “I can’t.”

  “Why not?”

  She bit her lip. An explanation wasn’t something she wanted to give.

  “I got reservations for another flight—”

  “No, Eliza. You’re going to tell me what’s on this plane that’s bothering you. We have to be honest with each other at all times.” I placed my fingertips beneath her chin and lifted her face until our eyes met. “Now tell me what’s bothering you.”

  “Fine,” she said and sighed. “My ex is on there. I saw him and his girlfriend… she doesn’t look a hair over nineteen.”

  I wrapped Eliza in my arms and held her close. “And why are you nervous about that?”

  “I don’t want to see him or be reminded—”

  “What did he do that hurt you so much, my love?”

  “He told me he loved me, wanted to spend the rest of his life with me, but all the time he was screwing around behind my back. A new girl every week.” She shuddered. “All the money I earned, he spent on his mistresses. Mon Dieu, you would think I would be over this, it was years ago, but some wounds never heal. He betrayed my trust repeatedly, and I was the fool who always believed him when he said he’d never do it again.

  “And on top of that, he stole half my hard-earned client list. I trusted him with everything. I was an idiot. How he got an invitation to Matcher’s Island, I’ll never know.”

  Fury built inside of me, but I tamped it down. How dare he treat her in such a disgusting way, but now wasn’t the time to be angry. Now was the time to show this amazing woman how strong she was. “I’m so sorry. He’s the idiot, not you. Your wounds will heal because you have me now. You walk on that plane like the sexy, confident woman you are and remind him of what he lost.”

  She stepped away from me, and my eyes ran along the curves of her breasts as she exhaled. “You have a way of getting me to do things I don’t want to do. Fine. Let’s go. After all, this is the classiest plane around right now, and I did want to show you off.”

  “Then what are we waiting for?”

  She hung to my arm as we made our way up the steps of the plane. The ground staff put our luggage in the cargo hold while we boarded.

  “Hello,” one of the flight attendants greeted us when we stepped inside, “may I check your tickets?”

  Eliza and I had electronic ones, and we both took out our phones to show the attendant.

  “You’re in section A. The best area on the plane.” She motioned towards the front of the plane to a private room.

  As we made our way to our area, a man, a few years older than me, popped his head out into the aisle from his private area and looked us up and down.

  Bingo. His eyes glared like knives. That had to be him, the ex, the one who had broken my loves heart.

  “Eliza, you brought a friend,” he remarked as she strode past him.

  “Yes, I did. I brought my match.” Eliza avoided making eye contact with him. “My true match. Someone who won’t cheat on me or steal from me.”

  “Louis Bernard.” He shoved his hand in my direction, and I took him up on it, giving him a bone-crushing handshake.

  “Beckett Monroe,” I said. “You’re the one who broke Eliza’s heart.” He sat there in stunned silence, so I continued. “Men like you make me sick. You think you can use and abuse women and discard them when you’re done.” I glanced over at his teenage girlfriend, who was too busy skimming through her phone to notice what was going on. “You do know how ridiculous you look? She’s young enough to be your granddaughter. I guess you couldn’t handle a real woman with maturity and experience.”

  Louis’ cheeks reddened, and he made a move to stand up, but I pushed him back into his seat. “I have a hundred pounds on you, friend, don’t even think about it. Heed my warning, if you ever go near Eliza again, I’ll make sure you can never fuck another woman as long as you live. I’ll have your dick cut off, and I’ll personally shove it down your throat.”

  I dropped his now crushed-up hand and caught up with Eliza. Louis knew what he’d lost, and I wanted to make sure he saw what would never be his again. I pulled Eliza to me and glanced over my shoulder, sure enough, his eyes were zeroed in on us.

  “Come,” I heard him bark at his girlfriend. “We’re leaving. I will not be insulted in such a manner. Matcher’s Island is nothing but a group of sad people patting themselves on the back.”

  “But you promised,” the girl whined.

  “You’ll get over it,” he snapped, storming off the plane.

  “What did you say to him?” Eliza asked, gleefully.

  “Nothing for you to worry about, my love.”

  I could tell from the way her lips moved she wanted to ask questions, but then she gave her head a small shake as if deciding against it.

  We entered our private area. I closed the door and flipped the lock. The suite was much to both our liking. The retro-theme reminded me of a time gone by when travel was a thing of luxury. Mahogany paneling and padded suede lined the walls. There was a lavish leather sofa, brass accents, and plush carpet.

  “Impressive, non? Looks like a mini studio apartment.” Eliza sat down on the couch, and I made myself comfortable next to her.

  “Yes, it does. The drinks and food are good too.” I wrapped one of my arms around her waist and pulled her closer.

  “Beckett, darling, we’re not aiming for the mile-high club, are we?” she teased, tapping my nose with her manicured finger.

  “Is that something you’d like?”

  Eliza ran a fingertip from my chest and up around my jaw. “Let me show you what I’d like, mon chèr.”

  Chapter Seven

  Eliza

  Beckett was too handsome to deny. My body became magnetized to him, and my hormones begged to take control, and the way he’d turned all alpha-male in front of Louis did nothing to dampen my arousal.

  He truly was my match, that was something I wouldn’t and couldn’t deny. So, it only made sense I had a little fun with him.

  I slid my palm between his thighs, rubbing my hand against his hardened crotch. He wanted me badly, and I was dripping to have him inside me, but that would still have to wait.

  A lady of my stature didn’t give it up on an airplane. Unless Beckett took me the way he had in my conference room.

  “Is this to your liking, darling?” I asked, rubbing my hand harder over his rock-solid cock.

  “What do you think?” He groaned and placed his hand on mine and held it against the crotch of his pants.

  His cologne wafted into the air and made me twinge for him even more. Beckett was uncontrollably handsome, and my body responded to him in the dirtiest of ways.

  “I want you, Eliza. Don’t tease me. If you do, I’ll make sure everyone on this airpla
ne hears you scream,” he growled into my ear.

  Poor, deluded thing, the only one who’d be screaming would be him.

  I positioned myself between his thighs and pushed his legs apart. He raised an eyebrow as I sank down to my knees and rubbed his erection. The texture of his pants rippled against his cock and my palm.

  He grunted and bucked his hips towards my face. “So that’s how you want to play it.”

  “Oui, darling. For now, you play by my rules. Or else dessert won’t be on the menu.” I waved my finger disapprovingly.

  “Rules. I hate rules. But I like dessert, and I have a feeling it’ll be worth waiting for.”

  I squeezed his cock and marveled at the small damp patch blossoming through the fabric of his trousers.

  My mouth ran dry. I had to taste him. Had to savor him. The same way he had tasted and savored my pussy in the conference room. He hadn’t even given me a chance to catch my breath. He just blew me away. And that was exactly what I had planned to do to him.

  The fasten seatbelt sound chimed, and the intercom crackled to life. “Everyone, please make sure you’re seated, the plane is now readying to take off.”

  “Shit,” I moaned, getting up to get into a seat. “I guess I won’t get to taste you until later.”

  There were special seats for takeoff, and Beckett and I shuffled over there before we tumbled to the back of our private suite like two basketballs.

  “Don’t worry, you’ll get to taste me soon enough.” Beckett glanced down and chuckled at the bulge in his pants.

  As soon as we’d reached the cruising altitude and the seatbelt sign went off, we got out of our seats, and we made our way back to the couch.

  He worked at his pants, unbuckling and beginning to unzip, but I swatted his hands away. “That’s my job. Keep your hands to yourself.”

  “You’re going to make me suffer, aren’t you?” he asked, a dark hint of lust glazing over his eyes. His voice was gruff, and it made my body tingle and shiver.