Under His Billionaire Roof novel Chapter 14

Leighton waited until Chloe went to bed.

She paced her room for twenty minutes, adrenaline coursing through her veins. Noah's words echoed in her head. *What I want is for you to tell him to back off because you're mine.*

She wasn't his. He'd made sure of that. Walking away. Pulling back. Rejecting her over and over.

But the look on his face tonight. The jealousy burning in his eyes. That wasn't the look of a man who didn't care.

At eleven, she heard Chloe's door close. Heard the sound of her TV through the wall.

Leighton grabbed her phone and marched down the hallway.

Noah's office light was on. She could see it under the door. Of course he was working. He was always working.

She knocked once. Didn't wait for an answer. Just pushed the door open.

He looked up from his laptop, surprise flickering across his face. "Leighton."

"We need to talk."

"Now's not a good time."

"I don't care." She stepped inside and closed the door behind her. "What is your problem?"

He leaned back in his chair. "I don't have a problem."

"You were a complete ass to Marcus."

"I was polite."

"You told him his job was boring."

"He said it first."

"You glared at him the entire time he was here. You made snide comments. You acted like he'd committed a crime just by existing." She crossed her arms. "So I'm asking again. What is your problem?"

His jaw tightened. "I don't like strangers in my house."

"Liar."

"Excuse me?"

"You're lying. Marcus isn't the first person Chloe's brought here. You've never acted like that before."

"Maybe I'm having a bad day."

"Or maybe you were jealous."

"That's ridiculous."

"Is it?" She moved closer to his desk. "Because you looked pretty bothered when he said he asked me out for coffee. When he offered to help with my portfolio. When he said he was going to text me."

"I wasn't bothered."

"You crushed your water bottle."

"The plastic was cheap."

"Noah." She planted her hands on his desk, leaning forward. "Stop lying to me. Stop lying to yourself. You were jealous."

He stood up slowly. The desk between them felt like both a barrier and a challenge.

"Fine," he said. "You want the truth? Yes. I was jealous. Watching him flirt with you. Watching you smile at him. Watching him touch your arm and stand too close." His voice dropped lower. "It made me want to throw him through a wall."

"Why?"

"You know why."

"Say it."

"Leighton..."

"Say it. I'm tired of guessing. Tired of reading signals that change every five minutes. Tired of you walking away and then acting like you have some claim on me." She straightened up. "So say it. Tell me why you were jealous."

He moved around the desk. Slow. Deliberate. His eyes never left hers.

"Because the thought of him touching you makes me insane. Because I don't want him helping you with your portfolio or taking you for coffee or doing any of the things I should be doing." He stopped a foot away. "Because every time I see you, I want things I have no right to want."

"Like what?"

"Like you. In my bed. Under me. Saying my name."

Heat flooded her body. Her breath came faster.

"Then why do you keep walking away?"

"Because I'm trying to do the right thing."

"The right thing for who?"

"For you. For Chloe. For everyone."

"What about what I want?"

"What do you want, Leighton?"

"I want you to stop treating me like I'm too stupid to make my own decisions. I want you to stop walking away. I want you to stop pretending you don't feel this." She moved closer. "And I want you to stop acting like I'm yours when you won't even kiss me."

His control snapped.

He closed the distance between them in two strides. His hand caught her waist, spinning her around. Her back hit the wall beside his bookshelf. He caged her in, one hand beside her head, the other still gripping her hip.

"Everything's already ruined. We ruined it the second you jumped in that pool. The second you touched my face in the kitchen. The second you looked at me like I was something you wanted to devour." She grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer. "So stop pretending. Stop walking away. Stop making excuses."

His eyes searched hers. Dark. Intense. Burning with something that made her entire body ignite.

"Last chance," he said. "Walk away now. Before I do something we can't take back."

"I'm not walking away."

"You sure?"

"I've never been more sure of anything."

Something in him broke. She saw it happen. Saw the moment his control shattered completely.

His mouth crashed down on hers.

Finally.

The kiss was nothing like she'd imagined. It wasn't soft or gentle or careful. It was desperate. Hungry. Years of wanting condensed into one moment.

His hand fisted in her hair, angling her head. His tongue swept into her mouth, claiming. Demanding. She kissed him back with everything she had, her hands gripping his shirt, pulling him closer.

He pressed his body against hers, pinning her to the wall. She could feel him. All of him. Hard and wanting and barely controlled.

She made a sound. A whimper or a moan. She didn't know. Didn't care.

He tore his mouth away, trailing kisses down her jaw. Her neck. Finding that spot below her ear that made her gasp.

"Noah," she breathed.

"Say it again."

"Noah."

He groaned against her throat. "I love the way you say my name."

His hand slid under her shirt. Warm against her bare skin. She arched into his touch, wanting more. Needing more.

A door slammed somewhere in the house.

They froze.

Footsteps in the hallway. Getting closer.

"Noah?" Chloe's voice. "You still up? I need to ask you something about tomorrow."

They stared at each other. Both breathing hard. His hand still under her shirt. Her fingers still gripping his collar.

The footsteps stopped outside the office door.