Hero Read Online Free PDF Page B

snorted. “Somehow, I don’t see that happening.”
    He smirked outright and made no further comment. Despite my attempts to maintain cool composure, it was disconcerting, to say the least. His cocky expression and crass language were doing something to me. The fluttering in my belly intensified, moving lower down in my body to heat my core.
    It wasn’t an entirely unfamiliar reaction. I’d become aroused during my scenes a few times in the course of my research. BDSM was undeniably erotic. But just because it got me hot didn’t mean I wanted to have sex with my partner. I wasn’t interested in that kind of intimacy.
    Dex’s fingers closed around both my wrists, and he led me toward the center of the room. I followed, allowing the contact. I’d given him permission to touch me while setting up the scene. Besides, he was touching my wrists, for god’s sake. It wasn’t like his hands were on more intimate parts of my body. Even if his gentle grip did make my sex squeeze in time with the press of his fingers around my wrists.
    We came to a stop, and I stared up at him in silence, captured in his steady blue gaze. I was so intent on trying to puzzle out the strange glint in his eyes that I didn’t realize long moments passed before he broke contact.
    “Stay,” he issued the low command, his face close enough to mine that I could feel the warmth of his breath on my cheek. My head tilted back of its own accord. Or maybe that was simply because he was so tall. I had no choice but to look up at him when he encroached on my space like this.
    He released my wrists and stepped away. My body swayed toward his, as though drawn by a magnet.
    “Stay,” he repeated, more firmly.
    A light shiver raced across my skin as the low rumble of his voice rolled over me. I shifted back into place, remaining rooted to the spot as he crossed the room to consider the array of sex toys hanging on the far wall. He selected the items I’d requested: cuffs, a spreader bar, and a crop.
    I swallowed hard when he turned back to me. He prowled, closing the distance between us at a pace that was achingly slow, yet he also seemed to reach me too fast. I wasn’t prepared for his renewed closeness. Power emanated from him, slapping up against me like a palpable force. I’d been around Doms before, but none had affected me so strongly.
    I widened my stance, planting my feet as though to brace myself against the weight of his aura. His smirk returned. I fixed him with my most defiant stare. He met it steadily, his amusement evident in the arrogant curve of his full lips.
    I didn’t deign to respond to it verbally. I could engage in a silent battle of wills. I recognized that he was trying to Top me. He wasn’t the first Dom to try it, but I was finding his strange mix of quiet confidence and subtle dominance difficult to resist. He wasn’t a hard-ass snapping orders at me; he kept managing to slip past my defenses.
    I gathered up my resolve and maintained our eye contact, boldly meeting his gaze.
    “Give me your wrists,” he commanded in that same smooth, deep voice that messed with my head and heated my insides.
    I considered defying him, but that would be childish. I’d been the one to dictate the terms of the scene, and refusing him would only prove that he was affecting me more than I’d like to admit.
    Wordlessly, I gave him my hands. He didn’t break his intense gaze as he secured the supple black leather cuffs around my wrists, buckling them closed with practiced ease. He was obviously an experienced Dom.
    That’s good, I tried to tell myself. It’s good for my research.
    It would have been easier to convince myself if I wasn’t so intimidated by the cool confidence with which he lifted my arms over my head and clipped them to the chain that dangled from the ceiling. He was tall enough that he easily secured my hands high above me, stretching my body. The cuffs held firm, pressing into my wrists, eliciting a sudden sense of