when it’s the right moment.”
“Now
is the right moment.”
“No,
it isn’t.”
“How
can you say that?”
“Because
I’m right.”
“According
to you.”
“Can
I see you tomorrow?”
“I
have to work tomorrow.”
“Then
I’ll be there to pick you up. We
can come back here.”
“Why? So you can tease me more?”
“Likely. Would you like that?”
“I
can’t believe this.”
He
smiled warmly at me. “Neither can
I.”
“You’re
frustrating me.”
“I’m
frustrating myself. I want you
right now in ways that I’ve only wanted one other woman. But that was years ago. This is different.”
“How
is it different?”
“I
never thought I’d be here again. But I am. And I’m not taking
you until you’re mine.”
“I
don’t know how I’m going to sleep tonight or how I’m going to stay focused at
work tomorrow.”
“You
think it’s going to be any easier for me? That’s the whole point of this. I’m punishing myself for what I did to you.”
“But
you’re also punishing me.”
“You’ll
see that I’m right. Let’s give this
time. Let’s let it build.”
I
moved to speak, but he came forward and kissed me on the forehead, then on the
lips before he moved his mouth to my ear. The stubble again—rough against my skin. Damn him. “Trust me on this, OK? You’ll see. In the meantime, I’m hardly going to
keep my hands off you. Or my
mouth. Or my tongue. But I am going to make certain that your
first time blows you away, Jennifer. When it happens, your body will experience things that you didn’t know
it was capable of experiencing. Or
achieving. And then, when it
becomes clear to you, you’ll realize exactly why I’m doing this.”
“Kiss
me again.”
But
he didn’t. Instead, he moved away
from me. “I’ll have a car waiting
at the curb for you. The driver
will make sure you get home safe. And I’ll see you tomorrow night, OK?”
Bastard. “Fine,” I said.
“The
bathroom is just off to the right.” He cracked a smile. “Before
you leave, you might want to check your hair and makeup.”
CHAPTER FOUR
In
the back of the limousine, I rolled down the window next to me and breathed in
the city in an effort to ease my nerves. I felt, at once, charged and cheated, turned on and angry. I was riding on the cold rails of
whatever control I had left, which wasn’t much. He’s going to be the
end of me , I thought. Why did he stop that
from happening?
In
my clutch, I felt my cell buzz. I
reached for it, clicked it on, and knew it was a text of some sort from
Alex. But it wasn’t a text. It was an email. The subject line simply said, “For
you. And only for you. No one else.”
Attached
was a photograph. I downloaded it,
and when I saw what it was, my hand absentmindedly went to my breast. He’d taken a photo of himself in his
bathroom mirror. His shirt was off,
as was his T-shirt. On his face was
a smirk. His chest and abs were
bared to me. It was too
much—an absolute tease—but two could play this game. I wasn’t about to be undone.
I
asked the driver for privacy, and the privacy glass went up between us.
How
best to get to Alex? What could I
do to top that photo? I thought
about it for a moment, and then I leaned forward and unzipped the back of my
dress. I let the top fall into my
lap and expose my breasts, which were covered with the sexy lace bra Blackwell
chose for me earlier.
My
hands started to tremble at the thought of what I was about to do. I strategically parted my hair behind me
and placed it over my breasts in a way that I knew would turn him on.
I’d
never done anything like this, but for whatever reason and regardless of how
hard my heart was beating, I wanted to do it. I pressed back against the cool leather
seat, turned the phone around so the