Read The Italian's Bedroom Deal for Free Online Page B

considerate.
     
    Now, seeing him in action as he snapped out orders, she understood in a small way how he’d been able to create his empire from almost nothing. If she were in business with him, she could easily be terrified of his anger. She’d read articles about how he destroyed anyone who opposed him. She definitely hoped she didn’t fall into that category simply because she was asking to have an affair with him. Having Max as an enemy would be truly terrifying, she now realized.
     
    Bracing herself, she forced her words to be succinct and direct. “I asked if you would be interested in a short term affair so I can gain some insight into a world I don’t know anything about,” she explained. She waited a moment, watching in amazement as a muscle started twitching in his jaw. “Max, you should be flattered that I asked you first. I don’t know very much about you but what I do know, I respect a great deal. And I think you would be a magnificent lover, especially for my first time,” she said, only blushing slightly at her small speech.
     
    He put a hand to his forehead, leaning his head down in an effort to concentrate. She watched in fascination as a vein on his forehead started throbbing. “And what about the marriage part? Why not wait until you’re married to discover what passion is like? Shouldn’t your husband do that for you? Won’t you be disappointed that he won’t be your first lover?” He paced again and turned to her before she had a moment to respond. “You should wait for marriage, Clarissa!” he snapped out.
     
    Clarissa cringed in horror at the suggestion. “No thank you.” Her heart was pounding and she wished she could just shrink back into the wood work. He wasn’t interested in her in that way and she hated the humiliation that flooded through her body, making her stomach clench painfully. And marriage! What was wrong with a little affair? How could that hurt anyone? Why couldn’t she just enjoy sex?
     
    Max stopped pacing and glared at her, stunned by her furious reaction to what he thought of as respectful ideas about her personality and her future. “Why is that so horrible an idea?” he demanded.
     
    Straightening her shoulders, she turned to face him, unafraid of her stance on this issue. Forgetting her embarrassment over his imminent rejection, she faced him squarely. “I’m not going to get married,” she said evenly, looking right back at him without fear. “That’s one thing I’ve seen from too many angles and don’t want any part of.”
     
    For the second time in less than a half hour, she’d shocked him. Max could feel the anger draining away to make room for his confusion. “That’s insane. Every woman wants to get married.” He wasn’t speaking just in general though. He’d experienced and avoided too many women’s attempts to get him pinned down in the matrimonial state. How could this one, delicate, tiny, beautiful woman not want what every other woman of his acquaintance strived for in sometimes horrifying ways?
     
    “Not me,” she confirmed with feeling.
     
    He looked at her for a long moment, trying to determine if she was teasing him or not. The look in her eyes, the honesty and belligerent stance all indicated that she was not teasing. That she was, in fact, very serious about her position. He dismissed that though. His past experience with women was that all were more than eager to get married. “You’re being silly again. You’re just too young to know your own mind.”
     
    That did it. His comment about her age sent her over the edge from irritated to outright furious. She dropped her arms to her side and walked toward him. “I’ll have you know that I’m not as young and naïve as you’d like to believe. I’m twenty-five years old and, just because I don’t have any sexual experience, that doesn’t make my opinions stupid or irrelevant,” she snapped, poking him in the middle of his chest on each point. “Think about