He was going to make her say it. For the first time in her life she wished someone would make things easy for her. That he would just sweep her into his arms and carry her up to one of the suites. But he was making her choose. He was leaving the consequences up to her, which meant that later, she wouldn’t be able to blame him if things exploded on them.“I want you,” she said, her voice low, “but I don’t want to want you.”“That does amazing things for my ego, sweetheart,” he said, offering her a slight smile.Her heart tripped and a short laugh escaped her lips. “You know I’m not into ego stroking, Jake .”“That’s a shame.” Their eyes caught and held, tension and electricity arcing between them.“One more night.” Her words were rushed, the blood roaring in her ears.“One more night,” he said, standing from the table, taking her hand and drawing her up with him.“Isn’t it rude to leave this early?” She cast a backward glance at the full reception, at the cake that had yet to be cut.“I
He pushed the button for the top floor and the elevator began to move again. When they reached the top floor he keyed in a code and the doors slid open, revealing an extremely masculine, modern apartment space.She stepped out of the lift on wobbly legs. She felt a slight smile tug at the corners of her mouth. The whole place was very Jake. Furniture with clean lines, neutrals accentuated by pops of color that reminded her of the beach. It was beautiful and opulent, and surprisingly functional.It felt more intimate now, being in his home. It was one thing to have an affair at a vacation spot, but another to actually come into where he lived.To sleep in his bed.Panic nibbled at her, her stomach about to explode in a flurry of nerves.But then Jake put his arm around her and dipped his head to give her a light kiss on the lips, and she couldn’t worry anymore. Relationships, feelings, commitment, all of it scared her, made her want to run. But Jake didn’t. Somehow, no matter what the f
He held her hips tightly, his movements strong and sure, nothing tentative about his claiming of her body. Because that was what it felt like. It was more elemental than their other times together, and in a lot of ways, she had less control. She was at his mercy, and yet she couldn’t be afraid of him, and he wasn’t harming her, he was only giving to her. Giving her pleasure while he took his own. While they shared in it.He reached around and stroked the source of her desire. Already she could feel another orgasm building, this one stronger, more intense. She whimpered, and clenched the comforter tighter, the tension too much for her to bear because she knew when it broke she would shatter with it.She felt his muscles start to shake, felt his fingers dig into her hips. He was close, too.“Kalia,” he said, as he went over the edge.His fingers worked her faster and she followed him, her body tightening around him as he pulsed inside of her. Their orgasm went on and on, blended together
“I thought you could use some.” Jake held a mug of coffee out to Kalia and shesat up straighter in the bed, letting the covers fall around her waist.“Thank you,” she said, taking it and inhaling the heavenly scent. She wassuch an addict, but at least he understood. Understood and shared in it.It was an interesting reversal of their morning routine. And an interestingsetting for it. She’d always thought there was an undercurrent of domesticity in their office routine, but this took it to a whole new level.He sat on the edge of the bed, his own mug in hand, dressed only in a pair of jeans, his chest still bare. There were certain aspects of this that were a definite improvement to their office mornings.“What are your plans for the day?” she asked, a little embarrassed once the question had escaped. Was it really any of her business what he was doing? It wasn’t a workday and they didn’t have a real relationship.“Nothing. A total rarity. Usually I try to visit Maddy on Sunday, but
“Remind me never to work out with you again,” Kalia said, rubbing her shoulders as she settled into Jake ’s low slung sports car.“Too much for you?”She groaned and leaned her head back against the seat. “Normally, I don’t like to admit defeat, but in this case, I’ll concede.”“Are you hungry?” Jake asked, maneuvering the car into traffic.“Very.”“Do you want to go out?”She grimaced. After a workout that intense, she wasn’t fit to be out in public. “I can cook for you. My condo is close.”Jake hesitated for a moment before changing lanes and heading in the direction of her home. She didn’t know what she was doing, why she was inviting him to come home with her. Because she was certain that he would end up staying. That they would end up in bed together, and she was sure that was the wrong thing to do. She should have told him to drop her off at home, should have tried to start putting distance between them.But she hadn’t. And even now that she recognized what she should do, she was
They drove to the office together the next day, despite her protests. She alsoconceded to packing an overnight back, just in case. She shouldn’t have.She shouldn’t have left it open. She should be ending it. They’d had an agreement and they weren’t sticking to it.The relationship, because it was growing into that, was now beyond her control. She wanted to be with Jake almost more than she wanted her next breath, but she didn’t want to want it. She didn’t want to want him.She was sitting in her spot in his office, notebook in hand as he briefed her on a new resort property in Goa, India.“Any concerns regarding the location?” she asked.“Not that I can foresee. It’s an older resort, and basically we’ll be renovating it and bringing some more tourism into the area.”“Excellent. I love it when you make my job easy.” She looked up at him and her heart fluttered in her chest.There was no compartmentalizing. She had thought that Jake , her lover, could be someone different in her mind t
“You have beautiful hair. I’m captivated by it.”She sucked in a breath. “You are an easy man to captivate.”“No,” he said, his face serious, “I’m not.” He lowered his head and kissed her lightly, the gesture somehow more romantic than if he had ravished her mouth.“I’m almost ready,” she said, knowing she sounded as breathless as she felt. “Makeup.”He followed her into the bathroom and grabbed his razor from the medicine cabinet while she rummaged through the bag she’d brought with her and found a shade of red lipstick that would work well with the dress.He shaved away his five-o’clock shadow while she put the finishing touches on her look, and the whole time her hands were shaking. It was the sort of thing a married couple would do. At least, the sort of thing she imagined a normal married couple might do.“I’m ready,” she said. Anything to get away from the house, from this domestic scene that was making her whole body ache with longing she didn’t want to feel.All eyes were on th
Being with Jake , making love with Jake , was always amazing. But it had never been like this. His hands moved over her curves, his touch reverent, his lips soft but urgent on her skin. And when he claimed her, surged into her body, she truly felt as though she didn’t know where she began and he ended.She dug her nails into his shoulders, locked him more tightly against her by wrapping her legs around his hips and she arched into him and gave in to the pleasure that was coursing through her body. But it was more than that. More than just a physical reaction brought on by sexual arousal and release.His body went taut above hers, the tendons in his neck standing out, ahoarse grunt signaling his orgasm. She held him to her, felt his heart beatinghard against her chest. It was so much more than sex. So much more than afling.And she didn’t think she could face it.Before she and Jake had started sleeping together, they’d been colleagues, they’d almost been friends and then they’d move
Kalia.I had been working for him for a couple of months now as his pr, and still I was not used to it. The fact that the very first thing I felt when Jake’s deep, masculine voice pulled me out of the deep sleep I had been in was a shiver of excitement, and not a pang of annoyance, was disturbing on a lot of levels, all of which I was too tired to analyze in that particular moment.“It’s one in the morning, Jake .” I said, as I blinked against the blinding light radiating from the screen of my smartphone. After four months in working for him, I should know better than to be surprised by a midnight phone call, but somehow every time it happened it caught me unprepared. “It’s nine a.m. in England.” He said, “And we have a crisis on our hands?” I immediately rolled over and brushed myhair out of my face, the cool sheets from the side of the bed that had been unoccupied chilling me slightly.“The sky isn’t falling, if that’s what you mean, but we have protesters lining the streets at
Kalia.And I had vowed i wouldn’t become like that. I wasn’t letting anyone have control over my life again.Although, obviously Jake had some modicum of control over my life since he was my boss and my child's father, but that was different. “If you expect me to buy new clothes you have to give me time to shop.” I said facing him with a straight face, after all this was his event he was inviting me to, it only made sense. “You can have the afternoon off.” I shook my head, my tight bun staying firmly in place. “Morning and afternoon. I need some sleep too.”“Morning to lunch hour,” he countered.“Deal.”“No black. No beige.” He added“It’s an art gala, most of the women will be in black.” I said defensively “I know, and that’s exactly why I want you to wear something else.”I frowned. “I’m not in the habit of allowing men to dictate what I wear. I can choose for myself.”He stood from his desk, and I was distracted, as I always was when he surprised me like that, by the superb sha
Jake was from a fairly affluent family, that was general knowledge. It surprised me that he’d had to take out loans to start up his company.When we were married he never talked to me about this type of stuff, or anything business related at all. Which is why I loved our new arrangement, I felt needed and smart. I was not just a pretty girl. “But now you have to play the diplomacy game,” I said.“I would anyway. I develop resort and hotel properties, the public has to have a favorable view of me.”“That’s true.”For the most part, the public did have a favorable view of him. He was charismatic and charming and dated the most eligible women in Hollywood, which put him on the front cover of a lot of magazines andmade him very high profile for a businessman. He was also a slave driving taskmaster, but only his employees knew that. And in fairness, he never expected anything from her that he didn’t expect from himself. In fact, he seemed to expect more from himself.Which was why, even
Kalia. In theory, I liked sexy men, at least from a distance. When said sexy man was both my baby daddy and boss, it made life a bit more complicated. It didn’t really matter, though. Business was business and I had no intention of crossing any lines with him. I wasn’t his type anyway. He liked party girls. The shallower, and the shorter the skirt, the better. Of course, I wasn’t entirely certain what my type was as far as practical application went. Judging by my recent string of failed dates I didn’t really have a type.“How many shots?” he asked, lowering the cup.“four,” I answered, trying to bring my mind back into the present and away, far, far away, from his lips.“Good. It’s going to be a long day.” i sat down in the chair by his desk, pulled my notebook out of my briefcase and sat poised with a pen in my hand.“Why do you do that?” he asked.“Do what?”“Take physical notes on paper. You have a million little gadgets for that kind of thing. I know because most of them were pu
Kalia. In theory, I liked sexy men, at least from a distance. When said sexy man was both my baby daddy and boss, it made life a bit more complicated. It didn’t really matter, though. Business was business and I had no intention of crossing any lines with him. I wasn’t his type anyway. He liked party girls. The shallower, and the shorter the skirt, the better. Of course, I wasn’t entirely certain what my type was as far as practical application went. Judging by my recent string of failed dates I didn’t really have a type.“How many shots?” he asked, lowering the cup.“four,” I answered, trying to bring my mind back into the present and away, far, far away, from his lips.“Good. It’s going to be a long day.” i sat down in the chair by his desk, pulled my notebook out of my briefcase and sat poised with a pen in my hand.“Why do you do that?” he asked.“Do what?”“Take physical notes on paper. You have a million little gadgets for that kind of thing. I know because most of them were pu
Jake was from a fairly affluent family, that was general knowledge. It surprised me that he’d had to take out loans to start up his company.When we were married he never talked to me about this type of stuff, or anything business related at all. Which is why I loved our new arrangement, I felt needed and smart. I was not just a pretty girl. “But now you have to play the diplomacy game,” I said.“I would anyway. I develop resort and hotel properties, the public has to have a favorable view of me.”“That’s true.”For the most part, the public did have a favorable view of him. He was charismatic and charming and dated the most eligible women in Hollywood, which put him on the front cover of a lot of magazines andmade him very high profile for a businessman. He was also a slave driving taskmaster, but only his employees knew that. And in fairness, he never expected anything from her that he didn’t expect from himself. In fact, he seemed to expect more from himself.Which was why, even
Jake.I had never seen Kalia look less than perfect. She always looked beautiful, even when she rushed into the office at two in the morning to handle some sort of media crisis. But in a dark navy blue gown with ruffled sleeves, a demure neckline and a back that dipped so low it ought to be illegal, she was stunning.Her hair was pinned to the side so that her curls cascaded over one shoulder, and didn’t cover any of the skin that was on display in the back of the gown. Her makeup was more dramatic than she usually wore to the office and her legs were bare, and on glorious show, the dress barely skimming her knees. And they were amazing legs.My libido kicked into gear, a reminder that I hadn’t had sex in a very long time. But business had been intense and when I hadn’t been focused on my various building projects I had been handling Maya’s big move into her new, off campus apartment. An apartment she hadn’t wanted, because she couldn’t afford it herself. But there was no way I was let
JakeI put my hand on the small of her back, on her bare skin, and I felt a small shiver go through her whole body. She was feeling every bit of the attraction I was. Strange, because I had only ever seen her in herbuttoned up professional mode for a while now, now suddenly she was unbuttoned and very, very hot. Although, she had always been hot. I had thought more thanonce about uncoiling her tightly wound hair and watching the dark curls tumble down.She shifted against me, her hip brushing my body intimately. My muscles tensed and desire roared through me, my body hardening at the accidental contact.I drew her closer, letting her feel. Letting her know exactly what she was doing to me. I didn’t hit on employees as a rule, ever. But she tempted me. And that was a new experience. Women appealed to me, and I desired them. But I had never considered them a serious temptation. If itwasn’t the right time, it was easy for me to leave my date standing on the doorstep and go home withou
KaliaI bit my lip. This side of Jake always confused me . In some ways he seemed more uncomfortable having people know anything good about him.He didn’t seem to mind the negative press that came when he dated one supermodel, then switched to an actress the next night. But he didn’t seem to want to let anyone know about his good behavior. And there was something about that that made me almost like him sometimes, and that made all the other physical things he made me feel intensify.“It’s … okay, events like this are definitely a little bit fake. It’s see and be seen. Most people are flashing their bids all over the place.” I jerked my head toward the glittering celebrities and debutantes gathered around different pieces of art, waving their bids around while they talked.“I don’t play the game,” he said. “It doesn’t appeal to me.”“You have to play the game a little bit, Jake It’s good for business.”“What’s it like for you, doing a job that’s so at odds with who you are?”The questi