Chapter Twenty-eight

Paris had no shortage of luxury hotels, but the George V was inarguably the place to stay. An eight-story landmark just minutes from the Champs-Élysées, the hotel was the epitome of elegant sophistication. And after being crammed into a boxcar with goddamn bunk beds, Hudson was more than happy—make that thrilled—to trade in the one-of-a-kind experience through the European countryside for a king-size bed with sheets having a thread count to match the U.S. national debt. Not to mention a place where he didn’t have to walk down the hall to take a piss.

The concierge had greeted them immediately, taken care of checking them in, and quickly instructed a bellhop to escort them to their room. The private elevator with secure access had shot them up to the penthouse smoothly and efficiently. And the room itself was even better than advertised with a view that offered the perfect vantage point for enjoying New Year’s Eve fireworks from the comfort of a luxurious king size bed. But as the day wore on, the sixteen-hundred-square-foot space began to feel like a shoebox.

As the morning had turned into an afternoon that darkened into night, Allie seemed to withdraw. She became more isolated, offering what felt like forced laughs or strained smiles. Something was off. Logic told him it was nothing, that it was all a matter of his own perception. But the pit of his stomach told him otherwise.

Hudson fought the feeling and took a deep breath, trying to relax.

Hell of a lot of good that did.

In the bathroom, he planted his left palm on the marble while his right cranked the hot and cold. In a rush, water cascaded out of the faucet and began to fill the oversize infinity tub that was smack in the middle of the room. Turning his head, he saw Allie in the living room, staring out the double doors that openedto a terrace with three-hundred-and-sixty-degree views of the city. But she seemed oblivious to the night sky, the ambient glow of the city humming below her, and the Eiffel Tower glittering in the distance. Instead her empty gaze was indicative of someone stuck between two polars, concentrating hard on something while at the same time trying to get away from it. Hudson knew all about that; he was a pro at shutting down and sending out the hands-off message when the world was getting a little too clear.

The level of the water rose and steam began to billow from the tub. As it did, he replayed the past few hours, then the past few days, trying to figure out what, if anything, he could have said or done to cause this disconnect. On the train he’d left in search of confections with extra whipped cream, and when he’d returned the air had shifted and the mood had altered.

It didn’t make sense.

Any of it.

When it came to her, his senses were sharp. But right now he couldn’t nail the source of her reserve to anything specific.

“Allie?”

Her head turned. God, she was beautiful and the one woman he’d always wanted. In her white waffle-cut robe with her blonde hair loose around her shoulders, she struck him stupid. Still.

Hudson strode across the room. The candles he’d lit wafted in his wake, but did nothing to infiltrate the distinct chill in the air. Without a word he slipped his arms around her waist. She turned, running her hands up to his shoulders and linking them behind his neck. When her hazel eyes finally met his, there was honest-to-God emotion in them. His hands clasped the sides of her face and tilted her head before sealing his lips over hers. His tongue licked inside her mouth in lazy glides, tantalizing her as he waited for her to respond. And when she finally did, when she finally gave herself over to him, he groaned, drinking in the taste of her.

“Take a bath with me,” he whispered against her lips.

“Okay.” Her breathy voice was the only green light he needed. Hudson embraced her tightly and lifted her off her feet. His cock throbbed for attention, pounding between them as he carried her to the bathroom. The water was still running and the place had gone tropical, but the fog forming on the mirrors that covered the walls did nothing to hide their reflections.

In a coordinated sequence he set her on her feet, pulled the sash of her robe, and peeled the fabric off her creamy shoulders, letting it pool at her feet. She was just so goddamn beautiful. Although not in a modern, overdone way that was all about excess—too much makeup, fake nails, and over-the-top extensions. Allie was naturally beautiful, with delicate features reminiscent of Grace Kelly.

He spun her around to face the mirror above the twin sinks. The candlelight reflected off the beveled edgesand bathed her skin from head to toe. He lifted a hand and brushed his knuckles up the contours of her ribcage then along the gentle slope of her breast. Her eyes drifted to his hand, tracking its movement. The tension in her body was unbearable; she seemed anxious.

“Look at me. Don’t drop your eyes.” He dipped his head but his gaze remained locked to hers as he ran his tongue along the planes of her shoulders. Her skin was soft, smooth as satin under the caresses of his hands and against his tongue, and gradually he felt the strain ease out of her muscles.

His hand dropped between her thighs and a groan rumbled deep in his chest. Christ, she was wet. He had command of her body but he wanted her mind along with it. He slid his middle finger inside her, eased it out, then back in with a second.

Allie moaned and pushed back against his hand. “Hudson,” she whispered.

His tongue traced the pulsing vein in her neck. “I know what you want, but I need to hear you say it.” He was rock-hard and dying to be inside her, to feel her sliding slick, hot, and wet around his cock. But despite the burn that was spreading up his legs and through his groin, he held back, wanting her with him. He pulled his fingers out and thrust gently back into her. “Say it, Allie.”

“Take me.” Allie’s back arched and she clenched around him. In that moment he knew she needed the connection as much as he did.

Hudson reached for the belt of his robe and yanked it from the loops. The fabric split wide and his cock jutted out from his hips, hard, strong, and proud. He gripped himself and slid the tip between her glistening lips. The first touch against her slick sex nearly made him lose it.

In a split second the tension in the room was replaced with raw lust. He seized her hips, and when his fingers sank into her flesh he felt the need to tether them there, as if he was grounding them both in the moment. With a hiss, he entered her on a solid stroke that brought his body flush against her ass. Allie cried out, her fingers curling around the lip of the counter. He pulled out to the tip, then thrust sharply back inside her. The groan he let out vibrated throughout his whole body, and a harsh breath rushed out of her mouth.

Steam slicked their skin and the sound of water trickling over the edges of the tub behind them mingled with their collective moans. Glancing to the side, Hudson caught their reflection. He watched his hips roll and then pump into her, his lower abs flex and then release, as his cock was stroked from every angle. “Look at us,” he ground out. Each word was punctuated with a thrust of his hips. “Watch me fuck you.”

Her gaze landed on one mirror then the next and the next, and he knew she saw what he did in the multiple reflections. They were a prism of naked bodies all moving in unison, working together. Sweet hell, an orgasm was already perched at the head of his cock and the slow burn was creeping up his spine.