A Taste of Winter: 1 (Red Masks) Read Online Free PDF

late night?” His voice was huskier than normal,
sending a thrill of anticipation up her spine—a delicious wave of desire that
took her totally by surprise.
    Seriously? One night of amazing sex and now every man turned
her on—even her bastard of a boss? Not that there was any mistaking the way her
heart beat faster and her palms turned moist, her throat clamping shut and
refusing to make any sound at all lest she say something stupid like how his
voice made her stomach flip.
    “Miss Winter? Can you hear me? Are you still there?” Dear
God, had he always had that subtle Southern purr that rippled across her skin?
    Gathering her wits before she could do anything ridiculous,
Alaina managed to clear her throat. “Yes Mr. Marquis, I can hear you. And I am
still here despite the fact I would rather be talking to the devil himself.
What new torture do you have planned for me today?” Alaina snapped her mouth
shut too late, the words already buzzing across the line in another of her
recent blatant challenges.
    His bark of laughter echoed in her ear, making her tremble
in aroused response. Surely he had never laughed before. Not like that, so deep
she swore she could feel it vibrate between her legs.
    “From past experience I thought you were well aware of my—needs,
shall we say?” His voice had dropped another degree into sexy. Fantasy and
reality merged as she imagined her boss whispering in her ear while his
skillful hands tied her down and began to torment every inch of her flesh until
her knees grew weak and the ache in her cunt had her screaming for…
    “Miss Winter, I do hope you are paying close attention. If
you do not change the color of the LaRue House immediately I will be forced to
punish you accordingly.”
    The threat sent a thrill of fear to add its impact on
Alaina’s already overstimulated imagination. Punished? She wanted to be
punished. Longed to be punished—if it led her to the heights of ecstasy she’d
experienced last night.
    Then she remembered where she was and exactly who she was
talking to.
    “Mr. Marquis, I assure you the LaRue House is being painted
exactly as it should be. The light green is perfect, I checked it against the
Historical Board’s guidelines myself.” Let him chew on that. “And if you intend
to levy another of your infamous fines you should know I have no intention of
paying it unless you intend to drag me to court, in which case I will call upon
the Historical District to back my choice.”
    How do you like that, you pompous ass?
    But before she could finish patting herself on the back, the
man chuckled once more. A soft, menacing sound that made her nipples stand up.
“You want a fight, my dear Alaina? I cannot wait to take you on.” Ryan clicked
off before she could form a suitable reply.
    As pissed off as she’d ever been in her life, Alaina threw
her phone across the room, enjoying watching it crash against the wall. Fuck
the man and his legions of demands. She was through with bowing and scraping
and agreeing to his every miniscule modification, done with having her every decision
second-guessed.
    The phone tried to ring, a garbled sound from the floor, but
Alaina had already headed to the shower to slough off the caress of her boss’s
voice and scrub away any lingering want in her stomach even as she remembered
over and over the seductive innuendo of his final words.
    * * * * *
    In his office at Marquis Development Ryan clasped his hands
behind his head, leaned back in his chair and pondered the delicious change in
Miss Alaina Winter. He’d always known she was more than she appeared and after
he’d taken her to his bed last night he’d finally unleashed her very naughty-girl
side.
    But he had to be careful or he’d give the game away—and he
had no intention of losing his ice queen so soon. Not before he had another
chance to make her scream—and she did scream. His cock rose to attention as he
remembered the way she’d whimpered and begged, the way