“I love it when you say my name like that,” he told her, then did it again.
She grabbed his wrists, trying to pull his hands away. “No more,” she told him.
His eyes lit up and he shook his head. “We’re just getting started, honey.”
Oh, she loved those sweet endearments! They sounded delicious to hear ears! “Could you hurry up?”
He laughed again. “No. I’ve been waiting a long time to do this with you. We’re going to savor every moment.”
She frowned, not sure she could take savoring this first time around. “Maybe we could savor later?”
His mouth covered hers in a kiss so hot, her toes literally curled. Her body couldn’t stand the distance so she moved closer, her hands clinging to his shoulders as she pulled herself higher, needing a deeper kiss, wanting more. His hands tightened in her hair but the prickles only turned her on more, especially when he angled her head, deepening the kiss.
“I need more,” he told her. “I want to see all of you.”
With the heat burning from his eyes, Selena felt strong and powerful, beautiful. The way he was looking at her, surely it wasn’t a lie,” she told herself. This was real! This was what she’d been missing all her life.
With a quick tug of the laces, her hiking boots were tossed to the floor and she was relieved when he pulled the ugly socks off as well. They might have protected the skin of her feet from rubbing against her new hiking boots, but that didn’t mean she wanted them on any longer than was necessary. He tossed the socks behind him with the boots and her shirt.
When his fingers moved to the waistband of her shorts, she panicked slightly, grabbing his hands to stop him.
“I won’t take them off if you don’t want me to, Selena,” he promised. She still felt his fingers against her stomach. The sensation was startling, intriguing, and exactly what she needed to let him proceed further.
Gone were her shorts and then he was staring down at her cotton panties.
“Okay, I have to tell you…I was wrong.”
She looked up at him, not sure what he might be wrong about.
“Those cotton panties…they’re pretty hot,” he shook his head even as he traced the simple elastic around her waist, before moving down to skim along her thigh. “I might like this.” Then he shook his head again. “No, they have to come off.” A moment later, they flew through the air over his shoulder. “One of these days, you’re going to do a fashion show for me. I want to do a case study on the sexiness of the pieces Grace convinced you to buy and these cotton things.” A moment later, he kissed the space just below her belly button. “Until then, I’ll just have to enjoy every moment of the viewing and unveiling.
Selena couldn’t help it. The laughter just burst out of her. When she’d first met Reid, she never in a hundred years would have used the term “silly” to describe him. But he put a lot of humor into everything he did, and this undressing process was simply one more example of that.
“You’re…” she started to say something, but his fingers were tracing up the outside of her leg, then back again, this time on the inside. She gasped, arching her back as he came closer and closer to that heat between her legs. She was amazed by how wet she was and the man had barely even touched her.
“You’re beautiful,” he growled, his fingers moving along her thighs as she pressed them more tightly together. “Will you let me see all of you?” he asked.
She swallowed hard, her excitement warring with her nerves. “Why am I the only one naked?” she demanded.
He stood up and stripped, not bothering to put on a show. A moment later, he was completely naked. Gloriously naked. The man was built! Her breath caught as she came to her knees, her fingers itching to explore. “You’re amazing,” she sighed, caressing his chest, tracing the indentations where one muscle met another. There were so many ridges, so many bulges, and not an ounce of fat anywhere.
She was vaguely aware of his hands in her hair, but she was engrossed in her own exploration. Her fingers traveled higher, discovering that his pectoral muscles twitched as she explored them. Toying with his nipples, buried beneath a thatch of hair, made his fingers tightened against her scalp. It was the best reaction she’d gotten so she ran her finger over that spot again and again, just as he’d done to her earlier. His reaction was the same, a groan and a sharp intake of breath. Leaning forward, she let her tongue explore that nipple and his reaction was more intense.
A moment later, the slow exploration was finished. She found herself flat on her back, her hands held firmly over her head as he latched onto her nipple, his tongue lashing the sensitive peak before nibbling ever so gently. She pulled her wrists from his grip, grabbing his hair to pull his head away, but his deep chuckle gave her fair warning that he wasn’t going to allow it. Sure enough, he reclaimed her wrists, pinning them more securely above her head and continued to torture her nipple. When she begged him to stop, he only moved over to the other. Selena was practically sobbing by the time he moved down her stomach, her body arching into his mouth now.
Thankfully, he had to release her hands and she grabbed his shoulders, unware of how her legs had spread wide, making room for his hips. She realized their body positions when he moved even lower, his breath tickling the inside of her thighs.
A moment before she could protest, his thumb rubbed along her pink folds, spreading her wide. “You can’t even imagine how hot you are, Selena,” he told her. That was her only warning before his tongue began exploring her delicate flesh. His focus on that sensitive spot made her scream his name.
It had been so long since she’d been touched, and no man had ever done that to her, so when his mouth closed over her once more, one finger sliding slowly into her heat, her body splintered apart, throbbing with the beauty of her climax as waves of pleasure burst over her.
Slowly, he relaxed the pressure and pulled back, but only so that he could grab a condom from the bedside table. A moment later, he was back, looking down at her. She lifted her legs, feeling soft and fuzzy. “That was wonderful,” she felt the blush stain her cheeks.
“We are nowhere near done yet,” he promised, bending to kiss her. She tried to avoid his kiss, tasting herself on his lips, but he wouldn’t let her get away. She kissed him back with everything she was feeling, all the turmoil and excitement, relief and gratitude. This was Reid and he’d just given her the most amazing gift. Something no man had ever taken the time to do.
Okay, so she’d had that one miserable experience in college and one boyfriend after that. Her boyfriend in her early twenties had been a fast and selfish lover. Never had she experienced pleasure from their time together.
Reid shifted her legs further apart, trailing along the insides of her thighs, making her shiver gently. Yes, she definitely wanted to feel him inside of her, but she knew that her part was finished. This next part, it was all for him. She shifted her hips, trying to help him as he pressed his way inside of her.
As he shifted into her heat, her eyes widened. The new sensations were…different from her past experiences. Suddenly, satisfaction vanished and the need returned! Stronger than before. Digging her nails into his shoulders, she moaned, surprised by the wave of sensation flowing through her.
“You okay?” he asked as he pressed deeper into her core.
“Yes,” she whispered, gasping as he slowly filled her up. “More,” she begged, licking her lips as she arched against him, trying to take him deeper still.
“Tell me if I’m hurting you.”
She shook her head. “Just…more!” she pleaded.
But instead, he pulled out and she whimpered. “No!”
He slid smoothly into her heat. Deeper this time. Then out and she shook her head, trying to tell him to stop doing that. When he arched into her this time, she felt the friction and wrapped her legs around his waist, trying to pull him deeper still. “Yes!” she groaned, arching off the bed as she closed her eyes. “Too good,” she sighed.
; He pressed into her until finally, he was all the way in and she held her breath as her body adjusted to his size and girth. He was so big! So wonderful! She wanted to stay like this forever! “Perfect!” she whispered, unaware of the sight she made as he looked down at her.
Reid agreed. She was perfect. Beautiful, sensuous, glorious, and amazing!
But he couldn’t hold back any longer. The way her inner muscles were squeezing, he was liable to lose control soon. Moving slowly at first, he tried to figure out the best way to move in order to give her the most pleasure possible, but it seemed that any way he moved, she liked it better. And that only made it more difficult for him to hold back. In the end, he reached down between their bodies, his thumb rubbing against that nub. He ignored her tugging at his wrist, enjoying the way her eyes widened. He knew she was close and sped up his pace, concentrating only on her pleasure, on bringing her to that pinnacle again.
When he heard her scream, he knew she was there. A moment later, her inner muscles contracted convulsively around his erection, which was all it took to bring him over the edge. Both of them came with a crashing pleasure that overwhelmed. He held still, feeling the last few pulses of her body as it wrapped around his and he groaned, feeling the sensations wash over him like a warm, erotic wave.
When it was all over, he rolled to his side, feeling like something had literally altered with the earth’s atmosphere. His arms shook as he tried to keep himself from crushing her. Rolling off to the side, he kissed her shoulder, her neck, before pulling away.
After discarding the condom in the bathroom, he returned to find her curled up on her side, the comforter pulled over her as those beautiful blue eyes struggled to stay open. “Don’t fall asleep on me yet,” he warned as he climbed back onto the bed, pulling her into his arms.
With a yawn she tried to smother, she asked, “Why not?”
“Dinner,” he told her, pressing a kiss to her shoulder. “You need dinner.”
She smiled, but he could tell she was losing the battle to stay awake. “Later,” was his only warning before those long, dark lashes closed completely.
For a long time, Reid watched her sleep, noticed the small freckles on her nose and cheeks, the elegant curve of her neck…things he’d never noticed because he was too entranced by those blue eyes of hers. With them closed, he could observe her more closely, see things that he’d missed while she was awake.
Selena was shockingly beautiful, even with those amazing eyes closed. He wanted to protect her and thought back to this morning. Bacon, he thought. And anorexia. He didn’t know much about it, but he knew that it was a bit like an addiction. Wrapping his arms around her, he vowed that he’d never give her a reason to slip back into that way of thinking. Whoever had hurt her, he wanted to find them and beat them. Never an advocate for violence, Reid still wanted to teach the man who had hurt this delicate woman a lesson in respect.
Chapter 9
“This isn’t going to work.”
Selena turned towards the woman who had spoken. With a swift glance, she took in the pinched mouth, the overly made-up complexion, and the angry eyes. The assistant marketing director, Ruth. She’d been on vacation over the past week, so she hadn’t been in on the brainstorming conversations. Now the woman sat in the meeting with a scowl, ready to criticize any and everything.
Pasting on a professional smile, Selena tilted her head. “I appreciate everyone’s feedback. Why don’t you think so?” she asked, folding her hands in front of her as she stood in front of the group. Unfortunately, her new boss, Dave, was in another meeting so he wasn’t here to defend the group’s efforts. After spending the night with Reid, making love to him and realizing how beautiful making love could actually be, Selena felt…empowered! She’d never felt this kind of euphoric happiness. A kind of serenity that not even Ruth’s nasty comments and sneers could dissipate.
Ruth sighed as if the burden of this meeting was too much for her, then tossed the mock-up of the advertising board to the middle of the table with obvious disdain. “Because people don’t buy makeup like this. They get one or two pieces at a time. Not an entire ‘look’ at once.”
Digging deep for patience, Selena smiled. “I completely agree.”
The woman rolled her eyes. Actually rolled her eyes! In a business meeting? That just…well, she supposed it happened but it was shockingly unprofessional.
“So, why would you even suggest promoting five different ‘looks’ to the public? It’s a waste of advertising dollars that we could be spending on a more effective idea.” She flipped through the financial reports, shaking her head. “I never should have gone on vacation. Dave should have run this by me before tackling such a ridiculous idea.” She leaned forward, glaring at Selena. “What we’ve been doing so far has been working perfectly. Rembrandt Cosmetics has grown exponentially over the past decade. We were on the right course.”
So much for her serenity! Selena counted to five before she responded. Then she lifted her eyes and focused all of her attention on Ruth as she said, “You’re right. Rembrandt Cosmetics has expanded extremely well over the past ten years. And the current marketing strategy has advanced the product line and gotten the attention of many new customers.” She paused, looking at the others. “I believe it is time to take the next step. Over the past year, I’ve listened and observed our customers, learning what they want, what they like, and how they shop. But more importantly, why they shop.”
“Just so you know, customers don’t go into a store and buy the entire line of makeup at once.”
Selena told herself that Ruth didn’t know of her background, didn’t know that she’d been training the trainers for several years now. So she patiently nodded. “Yes. You’re absolutely right. Sometimes. And sometimes, a woman needs a fast, efficient process to find out what works specifically for her. This idea does that.”
“So, why are we here? If you know that women don’t buy in bulk, this effort is wasted!” the woman sneered with a dramatic wave of her hands.
Selena brightened her smile, trying not to be patronizing. “Well, this idea does exactly what you’re saying. I’m not suggesting that someone go out and buy an entire makeup line and Rembrandt definitely doesn’t promote bulk sales. Every woman is different and every need requires specific attention. That’s why we have very specific products for each look.” She went back to the five pictures that she’d drawn when submitting her idea. “For the smoky eye, we’re suggesting three different eye liners.”
Another snort of disgust. “No one has the time to use three liners,” the woman snapped, crossing her legs and turning her shoulders away.
“True,” Selena continued. “The three different liners are for the different skin tones. A very pale woman can’t use black easily. Not without going for the goth look.” She paused while the rumble of laughter died down. “Someone with very pale skin should use a charcoal or brown liner. And a darker skinned person shouldn’t use a soft brown liner. It wouldn’t show up properly. She needs the darker tones.” She picked up the papers that had been distributed to everyone at the beginning of the meeting. “Referring to the cost, there are three tiers, one for the teenager, who spends a bit more money but needs less expensive products. Another for the woman in her thirties who is still working to advance her career and is willing to spend a bit more money, but wants longevity in her products so they’ll make it through the day without touch ups, and yet a third tier for the older woman who is more than ready to spend, but needs justification for spending money. Within each of those tiers, I’ve provided additional data on their spending habits, the product suggestions, the additional training required for each tier, and…”
“It won’t work.”
Selena surveyed the rest of the audience, knowing that they were on board with her ideas, enthused even, but none were willing to speak out against Ruth. Obviously, the spiteful woman wasn’t the director, but Selena suspected that she was the kind of staff member no one wanted to confront
directly. Acknowledging that, Selena knew that the woman was going to be a hindrance to progress.
It was essential that she get this woman on board.
For a brief moment, Selena thought about mentioning to Ruth that Reid wanted this marketing campaign. But saying that out loud brought back memories of yesterday and last night. Sleeping with the boss made her wary of bringing up his name. It felt…inappropriate.
Maintaining the professional smile, she turned to the others. “Does anyone else have any questions?”
They all shook their heads or sat in stony silence. “Ruth, perhaps you and I could meet, one on one. It would be easier to listen to your concerns and address them without wasting everyone’s time.”
Reid was disgusted. He’d been standing off to the side, listening and watching. He’d hired Ruth years ago as the assistant marketing director, but she had become an impediment to change. Well, any sort of change that she hadn’t initiated, he realized. He’d always though that the woman was fiercely loyal. But now he was starting to realize that it might not be loyalty. It seemed more likely territoriality than loyalty to the company. The woman wanted to protect her territory and any change in the game plan, any change she hadn’t thought up herself, was a threat to her turf.
He was incredibly impressed with how well Selena handled Ruth’s objections. She was cool and composed, beautiful and professional.
Reid smiled, thinking about last night. She hadn’t been cool or composed at any point during the night. Not even close. As soon as he’d touched her, Selena had been on fire.
Damn, he wanted her. Again! Would this overwhelming desire for the woman ever ease?
He hoped not.
Pushing those thoughts aside, he stepped fully in to the conference room. “I think that’s an excellent idea, Selena.” Everyone spun around, most with mouths hanging open in shock. He knew they were wondering which he would support, the new idea or Ruth.
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