Chapter 1: Chapter 1

ANNA

I’m lying in bed, looking over the glorious man next to me.

He has dirty blond hair, sky-blue eyes, suntanned skin, and rock-hard abs. He is lying on his back with his hands under his head, exposing those biceps and that V line. He must be a Greek god of some sort.

A devilish grin creeps over my face as last night’s events play in my mind.

Those hands exploring my very naked body, leaving goosebumps on my skin. Those lips placing feather-light kisses on my mouth, on my neck.

I feel my cheeks warming up and my body tensing at the thought.

“Like what you see, cupcake?” Damitry asks, smirking.

“Morning,” I reply shyly.

“Morning, cupcake. Hungry?” he asks with that husky voice of his and a drop-dead gorgeous smile on his face as he turns to face me.

“Starving,” I reply, my voice full of lust for his touch.

I hear him chuckling as he gets out of bed, grabs his shorts, and heads to the bathroom.

Damitry is the CEO of Golden Global, Inc., a mineral extraction company, and he has a few investments in smaller companies as well.

He is known as one of the hottest bachelors in New York City, and as a playboy—that is, until he met me.

He loves his family, he has two older siblings, and his parents are very proud of his success.

~5 months earlier~

“Rachelle! Come on, hurry up!” I yell at my BFF.

Ray is a beautiful woman, with fire-red long hair, strawberry-red lips, emerald-green eyes, the body of a goddess, smooth skin, and long legs.

We live in a cozy little apartment with two bedrooms, an open plan kitchen well-stocked with utilities, a living room with a comfy couch and a TV, a tiny bathroom, and a staircase that leads up to the bedrooms, which face each other.

I placed potted plants in the apartment, but they all died on me. I do not have a green thumb.

Rachelle placed pictures on the walls, along with our framed diplomas and graduation caps, giving the place a more personal touch. We both graduated from medical school at NYU.

I love being a doctor and working with people, while Ray…well, she loves the doctors.

“Coming! Keep your panties dry, okay?” she replies, sticking out her tongue at me as she passes me to open the front door.

I flash her a sarcastic smile and we both laugh at our childishness.

As we exit the apartment building, we yell for a cab. Luckily for us, we get one in like three minutes.

“Where to, ladies?” the cabbie asks in a perverted way, checking us out.

“Brookfield Place, please,” Ray replies as she ducks into the cab.

After a few minutes, we arrive at the mall.

“Where to first?” Ray asks with a little too much excitement in her voice.

I smile at my friend as I reply, “I have to go buy a dress for my parents’ thirtieth-anniversary dinner.”

“Dress shopping, yeah!” Her eyes fill with excitement.

***

Hours of shopping later, there is still no dress for me. Ray, on the other hand, bought the whole mall. I only got an anniversary gift for my parents. It is fun shopping with your BFF.

“I’m starving. Let’s grab something to eat before we continue our search,” I say as Ray comes to a dead stop in front of yet another clothing store.

“I think I’m in love. Those shoes, Anna!” Ray says, theatrically placing her head on my shoulder and her hand on her forehead.

I chuckle at my overdramatic friend and reply, “Okay, Ray. Let’s go get you those shoes—and then foooood, before I die of starvation.”

It doesn’t stop with the shoes. She grabs a couple of dresses as well to try on.

I find one too, and it fits perfectly. It’s navy-blue, not too short at just above the knee, snug though the upper body, and flared out from the waist down. Crisscross straps on my back expose just enough skin.

As I stand and wait for Ray so we can pay, I scan through the lingerie.

“Ugh.”

~How can people wear some of this stuff? It looks very uncomfortable~.

“See something you like?” I hear a husky voice in my ear, so close I can feel the speaker’s breath on my skin.

“What the—” I say as I spin around, crashing my hands into his chest.

I look up into the most glorious blue eyes I have ever seen. I quickly rip my hands from his chest.

“S-sorry,” I say breathlessly, looking down at my hands.

“No need, sweetness,” he replies with a hot-as-hell smile on his face.

“Damitry,” he adds, holding his hand out to me.

“Um…Anna. Annabeth,” I reply.

~Shit, Anna, get a grip. He is just a human being. A sexy one, but still only a human.~

As I get it together, I flash him a polite smile and our eyes meet once again. I take his hand to complete the introduction.

“Annabeth.”

“Anna, what about this—” Ray appears from the fitting room and stops short as her eyes fall on this gorgeous man.

“I think it suits you. I’m Damitry,” he replies, looking at my frozen friend.

“Rachelle,” she says, looking at me with a ~you go, girl~ look.

Giving her an ~I know, right?~ smile, I reply, “He’s right, you look stunning in that dress.”

She turns around, looking over her shoulder as she strolls back to the fitting rooms.

“Would you like to have a coffee, Annabeth?” he asks with a grin.

“Um.”

Just as I am about to answer, I hear a woman’s voice call his name and he spins around.

A goddess comes out of the fitting room. Long, curly blond hair, perfect skin, lips that look so soft, legs that have no end, sky-blue eyes, and a supermodel’s body.

~She must be his girlfriend.~

I start to walk away from him. Something tells me she will not like it if a girl is staring at her boyfriend. I quickly pay for my dress and almost run out of the shop.

Outside, I quickly grab my phone and text Ray.

ANNA

I’m outside

ANNA

XOX