“You’ll regret it,” I said. “What you need now is something else. Comfort. This might make you temporarily forget everything, but it will dirty this. Us. I don’t want you to use what we have this way.”

“Use what we have?” she asked with a bitter laugh. “A contract. A sex contract. That’s what this is supposed to be, so why are you finding it such a burden to fuck me?”

I brushed my thumb across her cheek. Pain was hidden behind the anger in her eyes, but it was still clear as day.

“You’re hurting,” I said. “And you and I both know there’s more here than the contract.”

“Hurting?” she spat out. “And why is that?”

She’s right. I fucked up. I didn’t regret going after her father, but I regretted everything after. How he died. How ruthless I had been. My oversight when it came to his family.

“You’re right,” I admitted. “It’s my fault.”

She looked taken aback by my words, but then her eyes narrowed. Like even though the words were coming out of my mouth, she still couldn’t believe them.

“What?”

“I was mad at you for damaging my company’s reputation and getting my name in the papers, but…” I swallowed the knot in my throat. “I regret my actions. With your father. I was hurting too. He was my best friend, regardless of what happened, and you didn’t deserve it. I’m sorry, Addi.”

She smacked my hand off her.

“You were hurting?” Her voice rose with each word.

The pain from what happened with her mother was still fresh. If I had learned the person closest to me had been spending the only money we had while letting me work myself to the bone, I wouldn’t have been so forgiving.

But that was Addi. For the people she loved, she’d stay until the end. Take care of them even when they were pulling the rug out from under her.

“I know what happened with your mother was⁠—”

“Don’t talk about it,” she snapped. “What I want is for you to fuck me, Warren, and you can’t even do that.”

“Addi,” I warned.

With a growl, she grabbed my button-up and pulled so hard the buttons snapped. She knew exactly how to handle me to get the reaction she wanted.

“Fuck me, Warren,” she ordered. “I know you want to. You think I can’t feel how hard your cock is?”

I grabbed her, placing her back to the couch before crawling on top of her. She wrapped her legs around my waist and pulled me closer, her lips attacking my neck instantly.

“That’s it,” she groaned, and I involuntarily jerked my hips against her.

The need for her was undeniable. It had only grown with time. Stronger and stronger every minute until it turned into an obsession.