Perception Read Online Free PDF Page A

surprised her by placing a
kiss to her right shoulder, his tongue briefly trailing along the intricate
magnolia tattoo that extended down to her elbow. He didn’t linger, but it was
enough to send an influx of heat percolating through her bloodstream.
    Xander
continued to touch her, the heat of his hands on her back made Mercedes bite
her bottom lip as she dropped her head slightly, trying to peer down at her
feet. Shit. This was not good.
    Not good
at all.
    Xander
unlaced her corset, slowly and efficiently, his fingers trailing over her naked
skin as he revealed it. All she could do was attempt to keep her respiratory
system from failing, not wanting to let Xander know just how much he was
affecting her at the moment.
    The
leather corset fell away, and her nipples immediately puckered from the cool
air that caressed her overheated skin. Right. Tell yourself that, and
maybe it will be true.
    Within
minutes, Xander had her fully naked, save for the thigh high boots. Mercedes
tried her hardest to act as though this were simply clinical, but her damned
body was betraying her every thought.
    Being
naked, and being naked with Xander touching her, were two entirely different
things. Granted, she was sure he’d seen her in various states of undress at the
club, but she wasn’t sure he’d ever seen quite this much of her at one time.
    “We’ll
leave the boots on,” he informed her. “Because they’re sexy as fuck.”
    More
chills skated over her skin at his obvious approval.
    “Spread
your legs for me,” he instructed, his hands gliding down her thighs as he knelt
behind her. The fact that his face was intimately close to her bottom had her
squeezing her internal muscles tightly.
    This was
nerve wracking to say the least.
    When he
reached her ankles, she felt the leather straps being secured in place over her
boots. Despite the temptation, Mercedes didn’t try to see how far she could
move. It wouldn’t be far; she knew that much. And she wasn’t about to let
Xander know she’d suddenly developed an overwhelming case of nerves.
    Back to
his full height, Xander took the flogger from her hand and trailed the long,
leather strings down her right arm, then across her shoulders. Since he was
left handed and wielding the flogger with his right hand, for now, she knew she
had a moment’s reprieve.
    When he
lovingly slid the tails of the flogger over her left arm, she consciously
fought the shiver that threatened to wrack her body. He was getting into
position.
    Xander
was a big man, with a significant amount of power, and with him standing so
close, holding a flogger, she felt a little light headed, and utterly consumed
by him.
    Refocusing
her attention on her part in this scene now that she was an active participant,
Mercedes sucked in a deep breath and stared forward, keeping her body loose but
on alert. She only wished there wasn’t a mirror on the wall, because now she
had no choice but to watch what Xander was doing to her as well as feel it.
    “Have you
been a good girl?” Xander asked as he pressed his chest up against her back
once more, his eyes meeting hers in the floor to ceiling mirror.
    Um…
no.
    But she
didn’t say that. She couldn’t say anything at first. With his shirt unbuttoned,
she felt the heat of his naked chest against her skin, and the only thing she
could think about was how warm his body was against hers. And how… hard.
    Oh,
shit.
    The
knowledge that he was physically reacting to this – to her – made a zing
of pleasure ricochet through her. Never in all the time that she’d known him
had Xander shown any interest in her.
    Or had he
and she just missed it?
    No. No,
definitely not.
    Seriously,
they were good enough friends that she could walk around her house half-naked
when he was there. Not that she did, but if she wanted to, she would’ve never
worried about offending or enticing him.
    Considering
their dominating personalities were in direct conflict, Mercedes had considered
Xander