Читать книгу What’s a Girl to Do? - Aimee Duffy - Страница 6

Unease twisted Shey’s empty stomach as she followed Mandy up the stairs on Monday afternoon. Why Marco, the big-dog editor and chief, would want his receptionist and an assistant editor to check out the upper floor was beyond her. She went anyway, clutching her purse tightly to her side. The sooner they got this over with and she could scoot to the deli across the street, the better. She was starved.

Mandy opened the door to the twelfth floor, and Shey’s breath caught in her throat. Mr. Cool—Calvin—stood in the entrance lobby next to a table draped with a thick white cloth. A bottle of Merlot was open, two glasses poured and two candles lit, but she didn’t notice what was on the plates. She couldn’t take her eyes off of his.

‘That will be all, Mandy.’ His voice, gentle yet commanding, shivered through her.

Mandy scurried back to the stairwell just as Shey’s shock cleared. She reached out and blocked the doorway with her arm.

‘What the hell’s going on here?’ she asked them both, though it was pretty obvious. She’d been set up. The you will not talk about me to strangers again speech she’d given Mandy earlier had clearly gone in one ear and out the other.

‘Shey, I hoped you would join me for lunch.’ There was no demand in his tone now, only charm, and she didn’t trust it one bit.

‘I think it’s romantic.’ Mandy let out a dreamy sigh and Shey rolled her eyes.

She couldn’t deny the gesture was sweet, in its own way. She wanted a guy to make the effort for her, and Calvin had brought that in spades. Didn’t mean she appreciated the sneaky way he got her there. Still, she gave him points for his smarts. There was no way she’d have come if she knew what was going on.

The effort alone deserved a gentle let-down, since her rejection on Friday night hadn’t gotten through that beautiful head of his.

‘Fine. I’ll stay, but only because I’m starving.’ And were those chocolate truffles? Yeah, she’d stay for dessert before she put her foot down.

Mandy winked, then she was off down the stairs with a clatter of heels hitting concrete. Wisely, Calvin didn’t smirk, only pulled a chair out for her. She slid in, breathing through her mouth in case he was throwing out the bottled pheromones again.

He disappeared behind her and then she heard the click of the door closing. She whirled the top half of her body around to face him, a skitter of unease dancing down her spine. ‘What are you doing?’

Part of her wondered if this was a bad idea. She was alone with a man who drove her body crazy, a man she barely knew. He could be a rapist or a murderer. But if he was either of those things, getting Mandy to bring her up here would blow his cover, wouldn’t it? Mandy would know the last person Shey was with, and there was CCTV all over the building.

Calvin left the key in the lock and sauntered back to her with a manly gait that drew her gaze down his body to take in every inch of that tailored suit. Shit, even his walk was sexy. The corner of his mouth pulled up and her heart stuttered.

‘I want to make sure no one interrupts us.’

She watched as he sat across from her at the table, wondering if what he said was true.

‘I’m not going to hurt you, Shey. You don’t need to be afraid of me,’ Calvin said seriously.

Stupidly, she believed him. But he meant physically, not emotionally, and to her the latter was all that counted. ‘Why lock the door? It’s not as if anyone will come up here.’

One eyebrow rose as he studied her expression with intent eyes, like she was exhibit A, and she stifled the urge to squirm in her seat.

‘You’re really not afraid,’ he said, a warm smile curving those lips.

‘I have pepper spray in my handbag and grew up in the Bronx.’ She tried for an angelic expression.

Calvin laughed and her smile slipped. Every time she heard that sound it felt like he was zapping her with little electric currents. His eyes worked like twin lasers, heating her from the inside.

This was just like what had happened to her mother, except now it was happening to her.

Every conversation she’d had with her mom about boys came flooding back into her mind and dulled the connection with Calvin. Being here with him was risky, even though she’d ruled out physical danger. The last thing she needed was to lose her head and her control when she was with a man. She should leave right now.

‘I didn’t mean to laugh,’ he said, sensing the tension in her. He leaned forward. ‘I’ve never met anyone like you, Shey.’

The way he focused on her was so consuming, she lost the ability to speak. Her imagination ran wild for a second as she imagined herself walking around the table, undressing him and letting him do all the dirty things those eyes promised.

But reality snapped her back to her senses. Shaking her head, she stood, and he rose too.

‘Where are you going?’

‘This can’t happen.’

Shey could tell by his incredulous expression that he couldn’t believe she was shooting him down. The reality was that they had no future beyond lunch, and staying for that long would be risky. He was a man used to getting what he wanted, and she had a feeling there were many before her that he’d taken at his will. Scores of women who, no doubt, fell at his feet.

There was no room for a player in her life, messing with her body and giving her what it desired. Accidents happened, she was living proof. But she was smart and learned from her mother’s mistakes. Passion led to carelessness and that led to the end of careers. A carefully planned romance that she was in control of would be much safer.

‘Sit down. We’re just having lunch.’

They weren’t and they both knew it. This lunch was a form of foreplay, and damned effective.

‘Just lunch?’ Shey asked, unable to move. Those truffles were calling out her name, even though she knew a moment on the lips was a lifetime on her hips. He nodded and she slid into the chair.

‘Tell me why you panicked. The truth,’ he added, like he couldn’t stand lies.

His eyes latched onto hers with an intensity she shied away from. She ignored his question. After all, she didn’t panic. It was self-preservation, which her body clearly wasn’t interested in.

‘How do you have a key for here, and why were you at Storm on Friday?’ If this was the last chance she’d get to ease her curiosity, she had to go for broke.

His grin sent a heated shiver through her, chasing away the last shred of her fear. ‘Ladies first.’

Shey stopped the frown before it happened. He was… infuriating really. She reached for her wine and took a sip to calm herself.

‘I’m not sure what you expect, but I can’t give it to you.’

He picked up his own wine, a calculating glint in his eyes that told her he was looking for another angle to persuade her. Yeah, it was flattering that he wanted her this much, but whatever was between them couldn’t go anywhere. She had to keep her focus or she’d be screwed, and not just literally.

‘Calvin—’

He leaned forward, elbows on the table. ‘Stop fighting me. Maybe I just want to have lunch with a beautiful woman, is that a crime?’

She grinned. ‘Is that a line?’

He chuckled and she couldn’t help joining in. The tension in her shoulders melted away, and she had to admit the guy was smooth. Either that or she didn’t really want to leave in the first place.

Shey glanced down at the plate. He’d bought all her go-to-lunches from her favorite deli. She thought again about the effort he must have put into this meeting. It warmed her heart, especially when she glimpsed the fairy lights above. It was almost romantic. Not to mention over-the-top, since she got the vibe he was only looking to take a dip beneath her panties.

‘How about you answer my other questions?’

The air crackled with something taboo, and Shey felt drawn to him like he was a black hole, sucking her in. She tried to fight it, but that was the hardest thing she’d ever done. She needed to keep her head.

‘I own the building. Marco wanted to renegotiate the rental agreement to expand Storm’s offices to this floor.’

Suddenly the effort she found so romantic didn’t seem that way anymore. Sure the fairy lights, the candles, and the hamper of her favorite foods, were all lovely. But that was the extent of it. Surface stuff that didn’t involve any more effort than picking up a phone and ordering someone—probably Mandy—to do it for him.

‘You look disappointed,’ he observed.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, she shrugged. ‘I only agreed to lunch to tell you that you’re wasting your time. I’m not interested.’

He grabbed her wrist; his hold firm but gentle. Her skin sizzled, and she tried to keep her mind sharp, but all she felt was a stronger pull and she couldn’t stop herself from falling into the spiral of urgent desire. He traced his thumb over the veins on the underside of her arm and Shey’s breath caught in her throat. Calvin’s smile slipped, and his eyes promised things she should know better than to want.

‘I think you’re as interested as I am, though I seem to be the only one willing to admit it.’

Shey snatched her arm back, his self-assured observation giving her the strength she needed. ‘Lust is irrelevant. It’ll take more than some sandwiches and wine to get me to swoon over you.’

He picked up some parma ham and cheese with his fingers. ‘I don’t want you to swoon over me. Eat.’

Calvin popped the food into his mouth. Shey watched that sculpted jaw work as he chewed. She forgot for a second what he’d said. His thick throat bobbed and her heart raced, the pull in every cell of her body intensifying as she wondered what it would be like to lick her way from the hollow in the center of his collarbone all the way up over his Adam’s apple.

She reached for the wine and took a huge gulp. It was smooth as silk, just like him. The fruity taste was divine. Not even close to distracting her from his presence, though. He seemed to dominate the entire lobby, his impressive Armani-clad body the only focal point.

‘Then what do you want?’ she found herself asking, even though she knew.

‘You. In a bed. For a few nights, perhaps a week.’

The husky tone of his voice touched her like a caress and his words painted images in her mind of the two of them naked, rolling around sweaty and desperate. She tried to pull herself together; after all, he’d pretty much told her he wanted to fuck her and nothing else, but her body reacted like it was readying itself to welcome him inside, and her mind clouded over.

‘I want to do things with you, Shey. Things that will bring us both immense pleasure. I want to fuck you with my tongue, fingers and cock until you can’t stand. Then I want to do it all over again.’

Before she could stop herself, his deep baritone voice roused more dirty fantasies. Her clit swelled, her nipples ached and a volcanic rush of hormones vibrated through her. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think of a cutting remark to throw at him to make him stop the assault on her senses.

‘Why?’ she asked, cussing the fact her voice was all breathy.

His gaze dipped down the upper half of her body, and when he returned his attention to her face, his eyes were wild. ‘You are every man’s wet dream, Shey Lopez. Curves in all the right places. Gorgeous. I can’t not want you. Believe me, I’ve tried.’

She swallowed.

‘And you want me just as much.’

Unable to speak, she stared at him.

That was when he rose, stalked around the table, and offered his hand.

God help her, she placed her hand in his and then she was off the chair and pressed against his chest. Lost in the darkness of his eyes. Lost in the crude words that made her want to spread herself out on the table in offering. He ran a finger up her spine over the silk dress, enticing a shiver and igniting a sharp need at her core.

But that was the problem, wasn’t it? Losing control was dangerous. It led to bad things, like the end of a career and accidental pregnancies. The thought gave her the strength to pull away. His mouth opened in disbelief, but she wasn’t giving him a chance to let him talk her around again. Shey grabbed her bag.

‘Thank you for lunch, but this is a bad idea.’

Her heels clicked urgently across the floor. Just as she was about to turn the lock, he spoke.

‘I never would have guessed you’d be uptight about sex.’

Her hand froze on the key and her teeth clenched. She wasn’t uptight, just careful.

Then Friday night’s conversation flashed into her mind. Safe and controlled relationships were all she allowed herself. Ever. But every cell inside was screaming to turn around and let him kiss her, and maybe more. And why not? She could do crazy, just once, couldn’t she? As long as she kept her head, it didn’t have to go too far.

Shey turned. Calvin’s expression was closed off, but he couldn’t hide the heat in his eyes. She dropped her bag, then walked back to him slowly, with an extra sashay in her hips.

‘I’m not uptight about anything.’

The grin was back as he rested his hip against the table. ‘I’ll believe that when you stop running from this.’

She stopped right in front of him. ‘I’m not running anywhere.’

‘What changed your mind?’ he asked, but his attention was on her lips.

‘I had to prove you wrong.’

He chuckled again, and the noise shivered through her. Grabbing her hips, he maneuvered her until her ass hit the table, and he closed in. Her heart rate spiked, her breath coming in short gasps.

His palms rested on the table either side of her. ‘I’m happy to be proven wrong in this case.’

Calvin’s head lowered slowly. She closed her eyes, totally lost in the unique scent of him, but still retaining control of herself. His body pressed so close to hers she could feel his erection prodding her stomach, his hard pectorals buffering the soft flesh of her breasts. She was sliding into the erotic moment with him; the urge to let go and enjoy was overwhelming.

His lips brushed her earlobe, soft as a whisper, and she made an incoherent sound in her throat. ‘Is this what you want, Shey?’

Shey was trembling so hard she didn’t know how to answer. She was wired to him, barely hanging on to reason. All she wanted was to be closer. To have his hands on her. For him to stop talking and fulfill the promises he made earlier with actions.

As if reading her mind, his palms made contact with her outer thighs. The charge that ran through her ignited her senses. She was aware of every one of her pulse points, especially the one aching between her legs. Knees weakening, she grabbed onto his shoulders for support. His lips brushed her collarbone, and her head rocked to the side to give him better access. That seemed to be the reaction he wanted, because slowly he slipped her dress up her hips as he nibbled her throat.

The pull towards him intensified like gravity. The closer she got, the closer she needed to be. His breath tickled her neck as one of his hands slid around to her backside. He squeezed hard and she moaned her approval. Pleasure sparked anew and gathered momentum as it crashed through her. His other hand got to work, sliding beneath her thong, and immediately a long, thick finger entered her. Instinctively, she squeezed her muscles to pull him deeper, ground her hips to get a better angle, and he rewarded her by slipping in another. Though she felt full, it wasn’t enough. Shey tried to tell him, then his lips pinched her ear sending a blast of shuddering currents through her body and all she managed was a mewl.

Thrusting his fingers, he squeezed her backside, pulling her into a rhythm that made the burning inside morph to an achy pleasure. The orgasm swelled with the force of a train going full out, and she couldn’t bite back the desperate sounds coming out of her throat. His fingers swirled, over and over, barely skimming a spot inside that made heat flash through her. She was panting so hard she couldn’t tell him where she needed him to focus, but as she looked at him with pleading eyes, she hoped he understood.

Calvin’s jaw was tense and the feral need in his eyes cranked her up higher. She gasped as he hit that spot inside again, and he grinned. Shey let out a wordless protest when his fingers swirled again.

‘The anticipation will be worth it, Shey. Trust me.’

She couldn’t form a coherent reply, not with what he was doing to her. Taking her body to the edge, then slowing. Finger-fucking her faster as she felt the monumental orgasm slip away, then using lazy strokes right before she could come. She was sweating all over, and with every ragged breath she got another shot of his amazing smell. It was hard to believe that it would be better this way. When he brought her to the edge again and stopped, Shey wanted to weep. Her emotions were as raw as her body, held at the brink, her pleasure and what felt like so much more in this man’s control.

This time Calvin slipped in a third finger and started pumping hard. With her nails digging into his shoulders to keep herself upright, she begged him with her eyes for more. Whatever wall he’d put up to restrain himself cracked. His thumb found her clit and his mouth sealed over hers with a growl.

Her control crumbled as everything doubled.

The sensations, the mounting pressure, the electric connection. He thrust his tongue into her mouth at the same tempo as his fingers, and kept that punishing rhythm on her clit until she couldn’t breathe. As he sucked her lower lip into his mouth, the pressure exploded in wild spasms, and she grabbed onto his hair to pull him closer, so his mouth could swallow her cry of relief while her body shuddered on.

Shey went limp against him. She felt too open, too raw, more vulnerable than she’d ever been, but she couldn’t let him go. Calvin’s gentle kisses eased her, reassured her that everything would be fine even though she couldn’t think straight. His free hand rubbed up and down her spine softly.

As her mind sharpened, she realized her head had slipped down to rest against his chest, and he still had his fingers inside her. Wedged between the table and him, she was held upright. Shey tested her leg muscles and decided it was better he supported her, but the thought of his hand between her thighs, fingers inside her, made her face heat. Made everything too real. Especially when she realized the pull to him was stronger than ever.

She tried to speak. Her throat was clogged so tight nothing got past except little puffs of air.

Slowly, Calvin withdrew his fingers and her inner muscles tightened on instinct. When they had slipped out all the way, she felt cold and bereft which, she told herself, was insane. Releasing her hold on the silky strands of his hair, she disentangled herself from him, but a hand on her lower back kept her stomach pressed against his straining erection. Her achy core throbbed and pulsed, her muscles clenching with the thought of him filling her up, fucking her as thoroughly with his cock as he had his fingers.

He raised his hand. Those expert fingers glistened and she followed their journey up. Calvin waited until she met his heated gaze, then slipped all three fingers into his mouth and sucked. His eyes closed and an almost feral groan rumbled from his chest. That’s all it took for her whole body to fire up again like she hadn’t just had the best, most intense orgasm of her life.

When he’d finished his taste test, he stared at her through hooded lids. His eyes burned beneath, but she sensed he had put an invisible barrier back between them again, controlled the emotions he’d let go of when she’d begged with her eyes. It didn’t lessen the pull, or the crackle sparking the air between them, but she felt like he’d pushed her away, even though he was still pressed against her.

Not to mention her own self-control was nowhere to be found. God, was she actually considering taking this further? She should have left when she had the chance.

Calvin cleared his throat. ‘I need to be inside you. Now.’