Free Always Mine (The Barrington Billionaires, Book 1) by Ruth Cardello Page A

joined her with one final deep thrust and claimed her cry of climax with a kiss. “Mine,” he growled.
    He stayed within her, holding his weight off her with his elbows, and kissed her forehead. The word mine reverberated around her mind.
    Part of her wanted to protest. Having sex with him may have changed what she’d thought she knew about her own sexuality, but it hadn’t changed how she felt about him. When she met his eyes there was a possessiveness she hadn’t seen before. Excitement and fear shot through Emily. He’d said he would have her, and she’d given herself to him.
    Now he wanted to own her.
    For now.
    She’d let the big bad wolf in the door, into her bed, and the look in his eyes told her he intended to take full advantage of both. A man like him could swallow her up, destroy everything she’d worked for, and leave her with nothing. Her head knew the only sane thing to do would be to ask him to leave and make the battle between them once again a professional one. She searched his face for a long moment. She’d survived the loss of her grandfather and then her mother. The goal of finishing her mother’s dream had given her strength. He could take all that from her. “Don’t hurt me, Asher.” She hadn’t realized she’d said the words aloud until he frowned and rolled off her.
    He cleaned himself off and pulled her back into his arms. His voice was gruff when he said, “If I was too rough—”
    She raised a hand to his cheek and closed her eyes briefly. “You weren’t. I wasn’t referring to that.”
    He took her hand in his and kissed it then tucked her more tightly against his side. He let out a long breath. “I know what you want me to say, Emily, but you’re wrong to cling to this place. You may not want to see it, but even if I don’t buy your land, everything that would have made your museum a success here is already gone. I can’t change that, but I can help you recreate it in Boston or in New York. Name the city, and I’ll start crunching numbers.”
    Emily fisted a hand against his chest. “You’re wrong. I will open my museum here. And it will be everything I know it can be.”
    “You’re fighting a battle that’s already lost.”
    Emily pushed away from him, but he held her there until she stopped struggling. A myriad of confusing emotions were rushing through Emily, but she focused on the one she understood. “If you take my land from me, I will hate you forever. Nothing else will matter. It’s something I could never forgive you for.”
    “Is that a threat?” he asked.
    She shook her head and spoke from her heart. “No, it’s the truth.”
    Asher’s answer was to kiss her deeply. He wouldn’t make false promises to her, but he did care about her. They made love again, slowly this time. Asher took time to appreciate every curve on the woman he was drawn to in a way he’d never been to anyone. There was a goodness in her that made him want to see her succeed. Asher held Emily until she fell asleep, then slid out of bed, stepped into his pants, and put the distance of a room between them. He paced her living room and reflected on the last few weeks. Before Emily, his greatest concern had been his expansion into Asia and the volatile government of Trundaie, and he had relished the challenge. How had he become a man who was second-guessing how he’d chosen to live his life? Emily was passionate about art, her museum, and making both accessible to all. In the end, the world would be a better place because she was in it.
    He doubted the same could be said about him.
    He ran through possible scenarios of how Emily’s dream could happen in Welchton and each one was more ludicrous than the last. Reselling the homes he’d purchased would get him some of his investment back, but it wouldn’t help Emily. Many of the homes had been vacant for long enough to have dramatically reduced in value. The families who had left wouldn’t return. He couldn’t believe he was even