A Deal with the Bossy Devil (Bad Billionaire Bosses, #1)

by Kyra Parsi

Not my fucking problem. “How the hell was I supposed to know the box on your desk contained a glitter bomb of all things? What did you do, piss off a Care Bear?”

A little muscle in his cheek ticked unhappily. “Watch your tone with me, Miss Sanchez. I’ve spent the last two days cleaning up the mess you made for me on Halloween, and now this. I don’t know what your fucking problem is, but I’m in no fucking mood to put up with any more of your bullshit.”

“You have a cat?” I let my head slant to the side. “Do I?” “He’s very fat.” Excuse me? “And you blink like a lizard. What’s your point?”

“Sorry,” he eventually said, amusement tilting his deep voice. “I didn’t hear him come out over the deafening sound of all the chemistry we don’t have.”

“So you think I’m attractive.” “That’s not exactly what I said.” “It’s what I heard.” It was my turn to tease him, and I was never going to let him live this one down.

“You are… stubborn, and exasperating, and a massive pain in my ass.” I clicked my tongue. “Worst seducer on the planet.” His lips twitched. “But you are also aggravatingly, inconveniently… maddeningly beautiful, Ariana.”

“You’re so fucking pretty it’s annoying,” he chided, his voice dropping to a low, molten gravel. “I hate how much I love looking at you. I hate it, Sanchez. And I can’t tell what I’m more angry about anymore, all the bullshit you put me through, or the fact that your lips are so fucking plump and pink.”

“Look at how pretty you are when you blush,” he murmured approvingly. “I never stood a fucking chance. It really is too bad that we don’t have any… chemistry.”

She was melting. Her dreams for her son were coming true, and she was positively melting with happiness.

“You could have just left it on my desk,” he pointed out. I arched my eyebrows at him. “Why? So you could claim it was missing—that I stole it—and lure me into a predatorial slave-contract to pay you back?”

“I like looking at you. So much so that I actually hate it. You’re very pretty. It’s beyond outrageous.”

“Well, this is unexpectedly adorable.”

I didn’t know his voice could go all gentle and tender like that when he was talking to me. And I definitely didn’t realize someone calling you unexpectedly adorable would be so butterfly-inducing.

“Adrien, we despise each other,” I reminded him. “Right.” He paused again, this time to wet his lips and clear his throat. “Except for the part where I don’t actually despise you.”

“just because we’re attracted to each other doesn’t mean we have to act on it.” “Do I get a say in this?” “If I say no, will you listen?” “Unlikely. And I think we should act on it.” I mimicked his signature lizard-blink, regarding him with vague disinterest. “Hands down one of your worst ideas. And that’s saying something.”

“Get on the bed.” It was an order. There was no question about it, no room for argument. Excitement shot up my torso. I leaned forward, my lips brushing his as I whispered my defiance. “Make. Me.” Time stood still for exactly one heartbeat. And then his hands were on me, and the world went up in flames.

“You’re in my head, you’re under my skin, you’re fucking everywhere, Ria. I can’t think properly when you’re around, and I can’t trust that I’m not misreading the signs.”

“I need to make sure,” he reiterated. “I need to know this isn’t just teasing, or anger, or you trying to get back at me. Tell me this isn’t an elaborate revenge scheme. Tell me you want me to touch you.”

“You only have to say it once,” he promised, his fingers squeezing my throat lightly. “Admit you want it, stop waging war, and I’ll fuck you until you’re nothing short of incoherent, Ria. I’ll bend you over my desk and eat you out for as many hours as I’ve spent torturing myself fantasizing about it, and then I’ll punish you for making me want to taste you so fucking bad.”

“When you’re good, I’ll want to reward you. I’ll buy you toys and play with you. I’ll bind your wrists and feed you my cock. I’ll praise you, lick you, and fuck you the way you need.” He bit my bottom lip, then licked it soothingly. “I’d spoil you absolutely rotten if you let me, Ria.”

“Your new fiancée doesn’t know about your ex-fiancée?”

I needed to go back at some point, and preferably before the big anniversary party. Because I wasn’t all that keen on being used as a tool to make Adrien’s ex jealous. And I really didn’t want to be there when they made up, after she inevitably realized how big of a mistake she was making marrying that other chump.

“Let me guess. You wanted to get back at Josh for sleeping with your fiancée, so you orchestrated this whole thing to fuck with him. By fucking me.” It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure it out. Holy shit. I’d been so stupid.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I don’t give a fuck.”

“I didn’t ask you to make things right. I asked you to leave me alone,” I said. “You’re not my friend, you’re not my boyfriend, you’re just some guy I fucked. You have no right to meddle in my personal life like this.”

“You weren’t,” he said, his glassy gaze finding mine again. “Just so we’re also clear as to where I stand, you weren’t just some girl I fucked. I may not be your friend, and I may not be your boyfriend, but that’s only because you don’t want those things with me. Not because I don’t want them with you. It wasn’t just sex for me. I have… very real feelings for you, Ria. If it were up to me, we… things would be very different between us. But at least now there’s no confusion as to where we both stand.”

You don’t pursue your passions because you don’t think you deserve happiness. You hold yourself back because you don’t think you deserve success. You don’t date because you don’t think you’re worthy of love.