"What the hell does he think of himself?" Just as she opened the door her steps came to a halt as she found Ashton emerging from the bathroom in nothing but a towel-clad about his hips.

Her breath hitched a little and her heart skipped a beat while her brain stopped working for a minute.

"Mrs King?" Ashton's voice brought her back to reality.

"What did you do?" She demanded as soon as common sense hit back at her face.

"Enjoyed a shower." He answered easily.

"That's not what I'm asking! What are you planning to do?"

"Planning to go to bed." He drawled.

She was losing her calm now. Placing her hands on her hips she tilted her head as she looked him into his eyes.

"What exactly is going on in your mind?"

"Even I'm not sure. I'm confused about whether to have vodka or wine."

She took a deep breath trying to calm her anger down.

"Don't act coy, Mr King. You know well enough what I am talking about."

"And what are you talking about Mrs King?" he asked as he took slow measured steps towards her.

"Why did you tell the maids to shift my belongings to your room?" she asked as she closed the door behind her completely aware of the fact that there was always a chance that a maid might pass by and listen to the argument.

"Isn't it understandable for husband and wife to live in the same room and share the space?"

"Wait. You had promised my privacy will be respected."

"Since the maids are in the house we need to act like a couple and a couple lives in the same room."

"But - "

"But what, Lilly? Do you want the maids to sleep in a room filled with pests?" Ashton asked and Lilly remembered a huge spider that once invaded her house back in England and had scared the living daylights out of her. She hated that memory and shook her head in a No. She definitely wouldn't want anyone to sleep in a room filled with spiders.

" Or do you want them to know we are just faking this marriage and risk losing Sam because you know the news of our contractual marriage won't take long to reach Elsie's ears?"

At that point, Lilly realised this argument was not going anywhere. So taking a deep breath she asked, "How long would it take for maids to return to their quarters?"

" I am not sure," he answered shrugging his shoulders and Lilly couldn't help but notice how a droplet of water dropped from his wet hair and travelling down his neck reached the collar bone and then travelled further down his torso, she gulped.

'He is hot!' her brain screamed in full fangirling mode.

'Shut up you idiot!' the common sense intervened.

"I'll try to get this done as soon as possible," Ashton said interrupting the war between her brain and common sense.

"But till then you are going to stay here in the in this room," he announced.

"Fine." she sighed because she knew at the moment she had no other choice.

"But why is there not even a couch in this room?'' she questioned.

"I like open spaces, for one. And for two, maybe because I don't need a couch to sleep on. I sleep on my bed." he said gesturing towards the wide king-sized bed in the centre of the room.

"Yeah... I see that but you don't mean that we are going to share this bed. Right?"

"It's me who is sharing." He said giving a charming smile.

"Since I am so kind-hearted and generous I will allow you to sleep on my bed."

"Then are you going to sleep on the floor?"

" Mrs King, why do you think I bought a bed? So that maybe I could use it to sleep on. Then why on earth would I sleep on the floor?"

"But we can't sleep on the same bed!" Lilly panicked at the thought of sleeping with him.

Sighing he ran his long fingers through his wet hair, looking frustrated. "Mrs King, why don't you sleep on the floor if you have that much of trouble in sleeping on the bed?"

" I am not accustomed to it." Her voice trailed off.

"Really? And I have been spending my nights sleeping on the floor and if that were the case then why do you think I would have bothered to buy myself bed?"

"But I don't want to sleep with you." At this moment Lilly couldn't help but feel like a 5-year-old throwing a tantrum.

"But I'm dying to," Ashton replied, his voice almost like silk and satin. She looked up in his dark gaze frowning as to where this conversation was going and in that very instant she regretted her decision of looking up in his eyes.

From up this close, he looked even more handsome. His beauty is like nectar to the sore eyes. Even her brain lose all its rational thoughts when he was all her eyes could see.

He took two more steps towards her and closed the little space between them. Never breaking the eye contact he touched her loose hair strand and tucked it behind her ear and in a very gentle and seductive motion, he ran his forefinger down her pink cheek along the creamy column of her neck, measuring the length of her collar bone. She knew she needed to stop him but she just couldn't fight that hypnotic gaze and his soft touch.

He continued with his slow and seductive act as his fingers touched her shoulders and travelling down the length of her arm he reached to her hand. Slowly he took her small and soft hand in his bigger one as he brought it to his lips and placed a soft kiss on each of her knuckles.

His featherlight kisses on her knuckles sent arrows shooting inwards, melting her insides. She needed to stop because she knew this was heading in a very wrong direction but oh boy! her anatomy wanted to stay like this for a little bit more. Just a very little bit of his touch.

"You know Lilly," Ashton's voice sounding like a very soft and tempting invitation from the devil himself as he continued, "I am enamoured by your beautiful eyes. I love the feel of your soft cheeks against my palms." He continued as he cupped her cheek with his left hand and rubbed her lower lip gently with his thumb.

"Your lips... Every time I see your soft lips I can't help but feel the need of tasting them and teasing them a little."

Slowly, he lowered his head into the crook of her neck inhaling her flowery scent he planted a soft kiss making her suck in her breath.

"Every time I look at you my desire for you just intensifies. I want to touch you, hold you and kiss you. Trust me when I say that I have no control over these emotions."

She knew she should run for hills. If it was someone else then she would have kicked him in the nuts by now but why was she still listening to him? Why his soft words felt so tempting and right, She wondered. It felt as if he had put a spell on her which she seemed unable to break.

"So Mrs King, let's share the bed tonight."

When these words left his mouth it was as if a bucket of cold water fell on her head and the spell broke. She pulled her hand free from his hold and pushed him in the chest so there was at least some space between them.

"Not even you in your dreams!"

"When I said 'Let's share the bed' I meant let's sleep. The zzz sleep." he said shrugging those wide shoulders as he narrowed his eyes at her and asked, "What did your dirty brain think of it, Mrs King?"

She opened her mouth and then closed again. Gosh! She had never felt so embarrassed before.

He lowered his head and whispered in her ear, "Wanna have some 'Before the sleep sex'?"

She looked at him. Mortified. So he was playing games with her, she realised. Deciding to answer in his language she gave a cheesy smile as she said, "As

tempting as the offer sounds I am not interested. Sorry." she said willing her voice to sound cool and unaffected while inside she was a complete mess.

Crossing his arms in front of that hard chest he said, "Well then if you want to sleep on the floor, you can. It's all yours. If you want to sleep on the bed then choose a side and stick to your end. Don't worry I won't touch you without your permission."

"Fine." It wasn't like she had any other option.

"Great. Now that we have finally sorted the sleeping arrangements I am going to bed first, I am tired." he yawned turning his back towards her as he walked towards the bed.

Seeing his retreating muscled and tempting back, a very flustered Lilly spoke up before she could stop herself, "Are you going to sleep just like that?"

"Like what?" he stopped in his tracks and asked without turning to look at her.

'' I mean you are not wearing anything."

Turning his head just a little he gave her a sideways glance, "I am wearing a towel."

'This towel can come off with just a little pull.' she had wanted to scream but maintaining her composure she said, " I would appreciate if you could take the trouble of adding a little bit more clothing on your body."

"What if I don't? After all, it's my room and I can sleep however I want."

This man was seriously testing her patience now and Lilly was at the end of her wits. Before she could realise she had uttered the most embarrassing words of her life.

"Oh since it's your room then would you even dance naked around here singing Lalala?"

He turned around to look at her as a devilish grin appeared on his lips. He took slow predatory steps towards her as his eyes gleamed wickedly.

"You know what," he said bringing his mouth closer to her ear as he continued, "I do that often."

Before she could even regret her words from 10 seconds ago her brain started screaming with curiosity.

'Does he dance naked!?'

If earlier she was red now she turned scarlet as her brain started displaying not-really-needed but oh-so-erotic images of a handsome business mogul dancing naked in the vicinity of his room.

"Wanna join?" He asked bringing his face closer to her as his eyes looked into hers.

Her eyes fluttered in shock and embarrassment. She was at a complete loss as what to say next.

Turning his head a little Ashton looked out of the window and said, "But I do it only on a full moon night. Tsk and tonight is not that night."

'It's two days later. Full moon.' Her brain supplied a not-really-needed answer. But her tongue saved her remaining dignity by not letting the words out.

"So let's dance when it is a full moon, Mrs King. What say?" He winked at her.

"Shameless!"

So, how was this update? Enjoyed? 😆

What do you think of the story so far? Is it good or is the plot simple and not-so-surprising?