Born of Defiance Read Online Free PDF Page B

call me or Aaron. He’s number four. Or you can use the house system. The driver service is five. If I can’t answer, leave a message and I’ll call or text as soon as I’m able.” He headed for the elevator.
    â€œTalyn?”
    He paused.
    She closed the distance between them. Looking up at him, she gave him the sweetest smile. “Thank you for everything.” She stood up on her tiptoes to place her cheek against his.
    Talyn swallowed as a wave of desire tore through him and set his blood on fire. It wasn’t helped by the sudden image in his mind of her in the small underpants she’d worn for her agency photos. Felicia had the sweetest ass he’d ever seen on any female, and he lived solely for the day he could peel her clothes off and sink himself deep inside her.
    The scent of her floral perfume filled his head and set his senses spinning. Worse, her soft riot of curls brushed against his skin, making him so hard that he was sure it would be obvious to anyone who glanced in his general direction. He hungered so much for her that it took everything he had to pull away.
    But if he didn’t go right now, he wouldn’t be able to return to her for weeks. “I’ll see you in five days?”
    She gave him an adorable pout. “Is that your next liberty?”
    He nodded.
    â€œThat seems like a long workweek.”
    She wasn’t kidding about that. Prior to Anatole’s appearance, his life and schedule had been much easier to manage. Now it sucked to extremes.
    â€œBeauty of the military. They own my sorry ass.” He winked at her.
    â€œFive days, then.” She pressed a light kiss against his lips that did nothing to settle the heat in his blood.
    Hard and aching, he forced himself to leave her, even though all he wanted was to stay with her for a while longer. She would definitely be worth the write-up and punishment.
    His breathing ragged, he took one last look at her before he stepped into the elevator to return to work.
    Felicia didn’t move until Talyn was gone from her sight. An inexplicable pain hit her as she felt his absence like a physical blow. How weird. She barely knew him. Had only met him twice, and not even for a total of half an hour.
    But no one had ever been so kind to her. So thoughtful or concerned. He didn’t treat her like a paid whore.
    He treated her like a treasured wife. Like she mattered to him. Something that was completely at odds with what her friends had told her to expect. And it was definitely not what she’d learned from her research.
    Then again, they didn’t know him. At all. The reporters were speculating, and none of her friends had ever met Talyn. They were commenting on rumors, too.
    You know better than to listen to those.
    The heartless monster they’d warned her about wouldn’t have gone to this length to make her comfortable and safe.
    Tears filled her eyes as she looked around the massive condo he’d provided for her. Housing in Eris was so expensive, and that included the cheapest sections. Not even in her wildest dreams had she ever allowed herself to envision such a place as her residence. She’d expected something small, hopefully clean, and without vermin.
    This  …
    Laughing, she ran through the huge open rooms, amazed at how beautiful they were. How elegant.
    Until she came to the master bedroom.
    Her jaw went slack at the humongous bed that faced the most incredible view of the city she’d ever seen. She could even see the outline of her school from here.
    The tray ceiling above was trimmed in gold and painted to look like a celestial sky. An ebony ceiling fan was suspended over an ornate, hand-carved platform bed. A matching settee was to the right of an elaborate dresser. But more intriguing than that was a huge bouquet of flowers, and a wrapped present on the bed that had her name on it.
    Almost afraid to see what it contained, she approached the flowers first