Outer Core Read Online Free PDF

personal questions, though, Karen. Nothing but the recent announcement. Any deviation from the subject and I’ll cut it short.” Daniel listens for a few silent moments. “Yes, I fully intend on following that.” After another brief exchange, he concludes the call.
    â€œHey,” he says, his mouth grazing my hair.
    I take another lungful of his comforting scent and slightly lean back to return his gaze.
    â€œHey.” My voice comes out mildly croaky, hinting at the mini anxiety I’m harboring. “What was that all about? You’re giving interviews again?”
    His hand slides to the small of my back, falling lower to palm me. “Just this one. I’m looking to pursue this new venture and the media shining some light on it won’t be a bad thing.”
    â€œWhat is it?”
    â€œJust some startups we’re considering investing in,” Daniel says drily, his lips meeting the skin above my collarbone, his hold on me becoming more eager.
    I ease back, bringing my finger to his lips. His eyes search mine. A supple smile eases onto my lips. I gaze at him for another lengthened moment. The special glee in his eyes, my glee. The three scars decorating his sharp features. The deepest one on his upper lip, the nearly hidden one on his brow, and the new one high on his tanned cheekbone. Hazel eyes become soulful, drowning into mine.
    My voice comes out quiet and throaty. “Two weeks have passed. It’s the real deal now.”
    Daniel cocks his head, eyes still absorbed in mine.
    â€œThe next time we . . . get busy.”
    A low chuckle rumbles between us. “Get busy, Hales?”
    â€œThe next time we ‘work on a project,’ if you will.” Daniel chuckles. I smile in response. “It’s been two weeks. We’re now officially what they call ‘trying.’”
    When understanding dawns on him, his hands move to cup my face from either side. His silent air speaks louder than any words could. And it makes my heart ache in the most vicious, sweetest of ways. Daniel slowly brings his mouth to hover next to mine.
    â€œHales.” One word, and the multitude of emotions and promises it carries. When our mouths meet, there’s something new about our connection. It’s deeper, it’s powerful, saturated with a profusion of emotions. Everything around us slowly fades away and it’s only us.
    Daniel and me.
    His hands hold my face, his eyes on mine. They travel to my mouth and back again. He slightly cocks his head, ever so gently advancing. I slowly lean forward. A sliver of air separating our mouths, our breath mixing, our stares transfixed. He tilts his head an inch closer, his eyes slowly closing while his mouth softly covers mine. I part my lips, letting him in. The kiss grows deeper and harder. With an urging need to feel him, I slide my hand under his tee, touching his warm skin. But it’s not enough. I tug on the fabric, pulling it up. Daniel breaks our kiss to help me discard his shirt. When our stares re-meet, wordlessly we speak of the magnitude of the moment. And the gears shift. As though possessed, with hurried, clumsy hands, we rip each other’s clothes off.
    On our knees, our bodies bare, facing each other, is when the atmosphere around us shifts. Gently, Daniel lays me back on the carpet. With a reverential hazel stare, he lies above me, his mass held by his stretched arms. Unhurriedly, he leans down to rest on his forearms, his lips just mere inches from mine. As our bodies slowly meet, words are meaningless. Words are not enough to express this overpowering thing that’s happening between us. It’s our stares, mouths, skin on skin, that give voice to our emotions. We move together, embraced as proximate as our bodies allow. Every stroke, every thrust, every moan, closer, deeper, overwhelming.
    Lost in his adoring stare, in the heavenly pleasure he gives me, in the immense, almost impossible to