The Temporary Wife: Luca and Valentina's Story(64)

Her breathing is uneven as she lifts her face, soft pants escaping her beautiful lips as she reaches for my shirt. “Good girl,” I whisper. “I don’t want you looking at anyone but me, you hear me? Don’t you fucking dare even think about anyone but me.”

She nods, a hint of vulnerability shining through. “Only you, Luca,” she promises me. My hand disappears between her legs, and a smile makes its way onto my lips when I realize she’s already wet. This is all I need. That look in her eyes… as though I fill her mind to the brim, pushing out every other thought.

My wife unbuttons my suit pants and grabs my cock, her eyes falling closed for a moment as a wicked smile lights up her face. “Do you want it?” I ask her, my voice low.

She nods at me, her gaze pleading, and I can’t help but smirk. “Then ride me, baby. Take what you want. I’m all yours, Valentina.”

Her expression morphs into something that looks like a whole lot more than lust, and it makes my heart race in a way it never has before. Our eyes lock as she sinks down on me slowly, taking all of me. “Yeah,” I groan. “Just like that, baby. Take your husband’s cock, just like that.”

She rides me slowly, my hand wrapped in her hair, soft moans escaping her lips. She’s a fucking sight to behold, and she’s all mine.

I just need to make sure she never forgets it.





Chapter Forty





Luca

I try my hardest to appear disappointed as Stephen Harris, my Chief Operating Officer, tells the board that he’s retiring. It’s about fucking time. I can’t wait to see my wife’s eyes light up when I tell her the news. She’s perfect for his role, and truth be told, she’s been doing this pig’s fucking job for years now. It’s about time she gets recognition for it.

This news is the only thing that’s salvaging my shitty morning. I couldn’t sleep last night, my mind replaying Valentina’s words.

He’s the reason you’ll never have to worry about me falling in love with you.

Is this some form of karma? Is it payback for tormenting her for years, for not realizing what I had? She’s my wife now, yet it some ways, it feels like she’ll never fully be mine. She’s given me her body, but that’s not all I want.

“I understand this may be shocking to some of you, but worry not. I’ll stay on until my replacement is fully trained, of course,” Stephen tells us.

Not a single person in this room is surprised. If anything, we all agree that this is long overdue. Everything about this man is long-winded. Even the way he speaks is irritatingly slow. Why the fuck does he talk that way?

“It would be so hard to pass down years’ worth of knowledge, but I have the perfect candidate in mind.”

I raise my brow in surprise. Everyone at this table knows there’s only one qualified staff member, and it’s my wife. They know as well as I do who has actually been doing his job.

“Please allow me to introduce you to my son, Ben. I recently hired him to join my team with the expectation that he’d take on my role eventually.”

Stephen’s secretary opens the board room’s door, and in walks a familiar face. I sit up in my chair at the head of the table and clench my jaws. It’s him. The man Valentina was talking to at the club. What the fuck is he doing in my board room?

His eyes meet mine as he pauses next to his father, recognition apparent in them. For a moment, he looks pained, but he swiftly schools his features. So he remembers seeing me with Valentina, huh?

“My son was the COO of Feria Finance in Australia for years. When he told me he was ready to come home, I knew I could safely retire and hand over the reins. I trust that you’ll agree that his work experience is highly relevant and exactly what we’re after.”

I see my board members nod and start to tap my finger impatiently. What in the fuck is going on here? The looks Stephen is exchanging with everyone around me tells me that he’s buttered them all up. This plan of his has been in the making for a while, and I’m caught off-guard. That rarely happens.

“I’ll have to look into his background, but provided he checks out, we could consider him a candidate,” I say carefully. Until I inherit my shares, I’m merely another employee, just like everyone else here, and they love to remind me of it every chance they get. I can’t let my anger show, or they’ll push for this asshole’s appointment that much harder.

Stephen smiles at me, clearly pleased with my answer. “That settles that then. He can take over as soon as I’m formally retired. I’ll start training him at once.”

I lean back in my seat and pin him down with a cold stare. “I said I’m willing to consider him as a candidate, but he isn’t the only one. I’d like to nominate someone myself, and I’m sure our other board members have recommendations of their own too.”

Stephen looks surprised, as though he genuinely thought this would be a done deal. “Another candidate?” He frowns, making him look even more like a fucking pig.

“Valentina.”

I don’t miss the way Ben flinches, his eyes widening. Who the fuck is this idiot? If he truly was the COO of Feria, then he clearly is qualified for this role, yet it doesn’t look like he’s done his homework. He should’ve known he’d be going up against Valentina. Clearly, he’s an entitled lazy fucker, just like his father.