He pulled her gently, making her stumble onto his lap. Before she could react, he flipped her beneath him-his body hovering above hers.
She gasped, startled.
His hand gripped hers.
"Dev... leave me." Her voice shook as she struggled beneath him.
He didn't speak. Just stared at her.
Then he leaned in close, his lips brushing the skin near her ear.
"Why?" he whispered.
He kissed just below her ear, then traced a path to her neck-slow, teasing.
Meera shut her eyes, scared she will lose to him.
"Please, Dev... leave me. Don't do this to me. I beg you."
"Her hands pressed against his chest. She pushed him-softly, as if pleading. Her voice trembled, breaking like a sob."
Devansh froze, loosening his hold immediately.
Tears welled in her eyes and began to fall silently.
"Meera... what happened?" His voice was soft now, shaken. Only confusion and hurt remained.
"Please don't touch me," she whispered, broken. "Not when you don't love me. Not when your heart is with another woman. I'd rather die than be touched like this by a man who's already left me-emotionally, even if not physically."
And before he could say a word, Meera slipped out from under him and ran from the room-leaving him sitting there, stunned, alone with his guilt and silence.
Henley agrees to pretend to date millionaire Bennett Calloway for a fee, falling in love as she wonders - how is he involved in her brother's false conviction?
******
Henley Linden's brother is in jail for a crime he didn't commit, and she'll take any job to raise the money needed to free him. Soon, she's agreed to pretend to date millionaire Bennett Calloway for ten thousand dollars, so his mother will ease up the pressure on him to find a wife. But once Henley is enmeshed in Bennett's world, he falls for her, and she starts to have feelings for him as well. Despite her romance with Bennett, as she grows closer to the Calloways, Henley realizes they are somehow involved in her brother's conviction. Journeying deeper into a world of wealth and conspiracies, Henley is forced to rely on Bennett, though doing so could cost her everything.
[[word count: 200,000-250,000 words]]