The Rose He Killed novel Chapter 179

Chapter 163: The Body Changes

Bella POV

But none of that – not the ginger, not the chutney, not the printer paper situation – prepared me for what was happening on the other end of the spectrum. The libido was a problem.

I had not seen this coming. I had prepared myself for tiredness, for nausea, for the smell sensitivity, for the general experience of my body becoming something I no longer had full authority over. What I had not prepared for was wanting Caleb with a frequency and urgency that was frankly undignified and completely incompatible with the careful, measured pace I had spent months trying to maintain.

It was badly timed, it hit me during board meetings, during conference calls, once in the middle of a very important lunch with a Singapore investor when Caleb leaned across the table to point at something in my document and I had to excuse myself to the bathroom to collect my thoughts.

It was badly directed – I had worked so hard to keep some sensible distance between desire and work.

The lunch with Mr. Tan had been the worst so far. We were halfway through discussing the quarterly projections when Caleb leaned forward, his sleeve brushing my arm as he pointed to a line on the report. The scent of his soap-clean, masculine, and now permanently unscented because of me-hit me at the same time as the low timbre of his voice explaining the numbers. Heat flooded my body so fast I had to press my thighs together under the table.

“Excuse me for a moment,” I said, standing abruptly. My voice came out tighter than I wanted.

Caleb’s eyes flicked to mine, concerned. “Is Everything alright?”

“Fine. I just need the restroom.” I forced a polite smile at Mr. Tan. “Please continue without me. I’ll be right back.”

In the private bathroom I gripped the edge of the sink and stared at my reflection. My cheeks were flushed, my breathing shallow. Five months pregnant and I was acting like a teenager in heat. I splashed cold water on my face and tried to talk myself down.

“This is ridiculous,” I muttered. “You are a CEO. You are in control, you do not get wet in the middle of a business lunch because your husband pointed at a spreadsheet.”

ľ

When I returned to the table, Caleb watched me carefully. Mr. Tan was still speaking, but Caleb leaned closer the moment there was a pause.

“You sure you’re okay?” he asked quietly, voice low enough that only I could hear. “You look… flushed.”

“I’m fine,” I whispered back, even as another wave of heat rolled through me at the sound of his voice so close. “Just pregnancy things.”

His hand brushed mine under the table. “If you need to leave early”

“No. We will finish this.” I squeezed his fingers once, then pulled away before I did something stupid like drag him into the nearest empty office.

Later, in the car on the way home, the silence felt charged. Caleb drove with one hand on the wheel, the other resting on my thigh.

<Chapter 163 The Body Changes

You were quiet after lunch,” he said finally. “Did something happen with Tan? If he said anything.”

Claim

“It wasn’t Tan.” I shifted in my seat, trying to ignore how aware I was of his hand on my leg. “It was you.”

“Me?” He glanced over surprised. “What did I do?”

“You leaned over the table, you smelled like soap and you sounded… competent. And suddenly all I could think about was you bending me over that same table instead of discussing quarterly numbers.” The words tumbled out before I could stop them as my face burned. “I had to excuse myself because I was getting turned on in front of a major investor. It’s mortifying, Caleb.”

He was quiet for a second, then a low chuckle escaped him. “Mortifying?”

“Yes. I’m supposed to be professional. Iron Empress, remember? Not someone who has to hide in the bathroom because her husband’s voice makes her thighs clench.”

Caleb’s hand tightened gently on my thigh. “Bella… you have no idea what that does to me. Knowing you want me like that, even in the middle of a business meeting. It’s driving me crazy too.”

I turned to look at him. “It is?”

“Every single day,” he admitted, voice dropping. “I see you across a room and all I can think about is how you looked last night when you came on my fingers. Or how your body is changing-your breasts fuller, your belly rounding with our baby-and I have to remind myself we’re in public.” He exhaled slowly. “But I don’t want to push. You’ve been keeping your distance, and I respect that. I just… I want you too all the time.”

I swallowed hard, the honesty in his words making the ache between my legs worse. “I thought I could control this. Keep things slow and safe. But my body isn’t listening anymore. It wants you. Now. Often. And it doesn’t care about board meetings or careful pacing.”

Caleb pulled the car into our garage and killed the engine. He turned to face me fully, grey eyes dark with want. “Then stop fighting it. Tell me what you need. I’ll give you anything, Bella. Anytime. Anywhere you want me.”

I reached over and cupped his face, thumb brushing his lower lip. “Right now? I need you upstairs. In our bed. And I need you to stop being so patient and fuck me like you mean it.”

His breath hitched. “Yes, ma’am.”

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