Chapter 78: 78 ~ Mira
"What do you think?" I asked Ariel as I twirled in front of her in the maxi skit and crop top two piece I picked up at this boutique.
"This looks great."
"Thank you. You’ve barely picked anything," I pointed out.
She shook her head, "Oh I’m not much of a shopaholic."
"Nonsense," I said with a dismissive wave. "Pick anything you want, it’s on me."
"That’s too much,"
I insisted. "Trust me it’s not. You’re going through so much trouble for me."
The fact that she started shopping as well made it even more fun.
We went to the local market and bought different top hats and locally made jewelries as souvenirs.
We even got to try some local cuisine and it was so much fun.
I didn’t want the day to end.
But by 4pm, I got a text from Jace. We were going to dinner and I needed to be home before then.
Typically, I would have frowned and almost thrown a tantrum about him spoiling my fun. But this time, I was eager to get home and see him. Odd...
I slid into the back of the rental car with Ariel while the driver and the guard that accompanied us stayed in front.
We chattered animatedly, gushing about all the beautiful pieces we had picked up.
I was going to do a whole fashion show in the comfort of my room when I returned to New York.
~
When we got home, the guards helped me carry my stuff out while Ariel picked up hers and headed to her quarters. We would catch up later.
My brother Facetimed me just as I entered the bedroom.
"Hey," he said, then frowned slightly. "Where are you?"
"Oh we’re on vacation." grinned as I showed him the shopping bags of what I got.
"You’re getting too carried away. I didn’t think my sister was a gold digger."
That came out of nowhere. I was too stunned to speak.
"How dare you?!" I yelled when I finally got my voice.
He was lucky he said this over the phone and not to my face because I would have slapped the shit out of him.
"You put me in this situation due to your recklessness. And now that I’m trying to make the most of it, you dare call me a gold digger? You’re crazy." I hung up immediately and blocked him.
This was not my fault. It was his. How dare he try to shame me?
I was breathing heavily as I sat back down, pondering on his words.
What if he was right?
Was I actually getting carried away by the luxuries I was experiencing being the wife to a billionaire?
Was I slowly beginning to lose myself without even realizing it?
I didn’t have much time to think about it because Jace came in just then.
His eyes scanned my features. I looked away quickly. His gaze felt too intense for me. It felt like he was peeling off layers of my skin.
"I heard you yelling," he said.
"You heard wrong." I muttered, getting on my feet .
As soon as I tried to walk past him, he pulled me back.
"What happened?" He questioned.
I tried to be stubborn and break out of his hold but I should have known better. His grip tightened.
"Jace, you’re hurting me."
Loosening his grip a bit, his eyes still stayed on me, boring holes into mine. ’
I sighed in resignation.
"I’m fine, I promise. I’ll go get ready for our dinner."
He looked like he wanted to say something but decided against it as he let go of me.
~
I wore a backless short red dress that accentuated my curves. Since I was doing my makeup myself, I did little to nothing with just some mascara and lip gloss and of course some powder.
I slid into the black heels I just got during my shopping spree and paired it with the customized LV purse he gave me in Rome. My hair stood in a sleek ponytail behind my head and of course I had on the necklace he told me to never take off.
"I’m ready." I said as soon as I stepped out of the bathroom. He was seated on the couch waiting for me.
He was wearing a white shirt and black slacks. Nothing out of the ordinary for him but he looked dashing nonetheless.
Placing his palm on the small of my back, he led us down the stairs to the waiting car.
"Where’s Ariel?" I asked, expecting her to be taking pictures and videos by now.
"It’s just you and I tonight, Mira."
My eyes snapped out to his. There was something about what he said and how he said it that made me feel fuzzy on the inside. I bit my lower lip and looked away.
Jace handed me a bouquet of white roses. I smelled them and smiled.
"Thank you,"
He nodded in acknowledgement but I could see that he was fighting back a small smile that was trying to break out on his face. Apparently, he did not like smiling in front of his guards.
The restaurant was cleared out when we got there. Apparently he had rented the place out for a few hours just for us. The fact that he went all out like this and it was not for the media was so endearing. It made me want to pull him to myself and kiss him.
I didn’t just think it, I did it.
"What was that for?" He asked after we pulled apart.
I shrugged, "Oh nothing. Let’s just say that you’re not so bad after all."
"Are you falling in love with me?"
The way he asked so seriously made me freeze. I was taken aback by the question. Where did it come from? And most importantly, was I falling for him truly?
I asked myself so many questions in the space of a few seconds before responding to him in the best way I could.
"I thought you don’t believe in love,"
"I don’t." He said with a tone of finality.
There was no need to press further. We didn’t need to fall in love. This was not permanent. At least I knew that.
The waiter came in with our orders and we ate in comfortable silence for the most part.
We made small talk but the sexual tension that was between us was unmistakeable. I blamed it on the white wine and probably the fact that I was ovulating but I wanted to jump him at that moment.
"Let’s get out of here," I whispered in his ears.
He understood immediately, handled the bill and took my hand as he led us out of the restaurant.
The drive was quiet. He was driving while the guards followed in the other vehicles.
I felt his hand on my thigh every now and then and it made me want him more.
I looked up and saw that we were not heading to the villa.
"Where are we going?"
"To the beach."
"The beach?"
"Trust me." He said, rubbing on my chin tenderly.
I sighed and decided to do just that.
He drove to the beach side and parked at a safe distance from the ocean.
🔥
The car was quiet, save for the soft hum of the engine and the occasional crash of waves from the ocean a few meters away. I could feel his gaze, heavy and dark, burning into me from the moment I unbuckled my seatbelt.
And now, with the lights dimmed and the air between us thick with tension, I didn’t dare look at him. I didn’t trust myself to.
"You really wore that dress to test my patience," he murmured suddenly, his voice was low and rough.
My heart thudded. "It’s just a dress," I said, barely above a whisper feeling all the confidence I had before we left the restaurant dissipate.
"No." He reached over, his fingers curling around my chin to force my eyes to meet his. "It’s the way you looked at me all night. The way you laughed during the times we talked. If there was any other man there tonight they’d wish they were me."
His hand slid from my chin down to my bare thigh, brushing the hem of my dress. "But they’re not me."
And just like that, his mouth was on mine.
It wasn’t slow. It wasn’t gentle.
His kiss was all teeth and hunger, like he’d been holding back for hours and finally snapped. I gasped as he deepened it, his fingers tightening possessively on my thigh, tugging me closer across the seat.
"Jace, someone might see-" I tried to warn him. But on the flipside, I knew the glass was tinted.
"Let them." His voice was gravel now. "They’ll know who you belong to."
His hands were everywhere. Pushing my dress up. Palming my hips. His mouth left a trail of hot kisses around my jaw, down to my neck.
"Say it," he growled against my skin. "Say who you belong to."
"You," I whispered breathlessly. "I’m yours."
He groaned and pressed his forehead to mine for a beat, his chest rising and falling with restraint.
"You’re gonna be the end of me, Mira," he muttered. "But not tonight."
And then he pulled me fully into his lap. I unzipped him and moaned and his cock slid into my soaking wet pussy.
The leather creaked beneath us, the heat of our bodies fogging the windows as the Maldives moon glowed through the windshield. Nothing existed outside that car - just his hands, his mouth, and the sound of his name falling from my lips like a vow.