Red Shoes & A Diary

by Mia Zachary

  Her skin felt hot, heightening the color in her cheeks. Her parted lips appeared soft and moist and red. Smoke-blue shadow made her eyes look wider than usual, emphasized the sparkle of excitement. The woman in the mirror looked like the alter ego from her diaries. She looked wild, wanton.

  She looked like a woman who was about to get laid.

  Meghan Foster, Sex Goddess in Training. She winked at herself as the elevator doors slid open onto the eighth floor. Head high, shoulders back, she sauntered down the hallway to suite 809. Funny about fate. If she hadn’t checked into the wrong room, she never would have found the right guy.

  She’d barely knocked before the door swung open. Oh, wow. Nick stood tall and relaxed, sure of himself and his rightful place in the universe. He radiated an innate vitality that attracted her like a moth to a flame.

  He wore a black tuxedo that fit his body as though tailor-made. The open jacket revealed a blue, green and white floral vest. The snowy linen of his shirt contrasted starkly against his olive skin. A pair of black western boots and the diamond stud gracing his left earlobe offset the elegance of his attire.

  The man gave sexy a new definition.

  Suddenly she was in his arms. Meghan shut her eyes and breathed in the scent of his skin. She could feel his heart pounding in time with hers. She brushed her fingers along his jaw down to the hollow of his throat and into the open collar of his shirt, exploring the differing textures of his skin.

  His fingers caressed the sides of her face as his mouth captured hers, urgent and demanding. His hands were everywhere at once, sliding, squeezing, stroking. When he sucked her tongue deeper into his mouth, she felt the pull all the way down to the apex of her thighs.

  With a soft groan of reluctance, she broke the kiss so he could close the door. No need to shock the neighbors. If that kiss was anything to judge by, she was in for an incredible night. She was ready, more than ready, for her sexual adventure to begin. Meghan clutched her evening bag a little tighter and nervously headed toward the bedroom.

  “Not so fast, Trouble.” Nick caught her hand before she could take another step.

  “I thought— Um, aren’t we—?”

  “Yeah, we are. But we’ve got all night. First, I had a special meal sent up for us. Come into the living room.”

  The scent of fresh flowers and spicy candles filled the room. Romantic music floated from the radio, blending softly with the breeze whispering through the open doors. Out on the balcony, a table was set with crystal, china and more candles. A rolling cart sat next to the rail.

  While Nick dimmed the lights, Meghan dropped her purse on a chair and stood in the center of the room, waiting. His approach was that of a dangerous animal barely held by an invisible leash. The very air seemed electrified.

  The look in his eyes was wild and hungry as he stalked toward her. His mouth curved into a devastating smile, the kind a predator would wear. Her instinct was to run for her life. Her desire was to throw herself into his arms and beg him to fulfill her darkest fantasies.

  His gaze never left her as he took her fingers. He turned her hand and then pressed his mouth to the sensitive spot on her wrist. Her pulse beat riotously against his lips and she knew that if she ran, it would be toward him.

  Nick held out his arm and turned her around in a slow circle. His eyes focused on her face, then slowly took in the length of her body. “You look ravishing tonight, Ms. Foster.”

  “You look like just the man to ravish me, Mr. Alexander.” She hardly recognized her own voice. “Could I possibly convince you to skip right to dessert?”

  He looked tempted for a moment, then shook his head. Tucking her hand into his elbow, he guided her out to the balcony. After seating her, he took the other chair and removed one of the covered dishes from the cart.

  “Nick, I don’t have a plate, or any cutlery.”

  “You won’t need them.”

  He lifted the lid and chose a dark black olive from a crystal bowl. Holding it lightly between his fingers, he reached out, a devilish grin on his handsome face. She leaned forward to take the glistening olive between her lips. When she extended her tongue to lick the brine from his fingertips, his pupils dilated in response.

  Clearing his throat, Nick poured a glass of champagne and held it for her. The taste of the wine burst on her tongue like the tang of ripe grapes. He turned the glass and drank from the same spot her mouth had touched. The heat rose in her face as she watched the intimate gesture.

  He continued to feed her bite after bite of cheese, Gulf shrimp, fresh-baked croissant and backfin crabmeat. She sucked his fingers after each morsel, enjoying his unguarded reactions. She’d once written a similar fantasy, in which her lover catered to her culinary whims before satisfying her sexual ones. How wonderful to have life imitate art.

  Nick chose a large strawberry and knelt before her. As he spread her knees, his thumb stroked hot circles inside of her thigh. The other hand trailed the berry along the opposite thigh. Then he bent his head to lick the sticky red juice from her skin.

  He placed the berry between his parted lips, lifted his head to hers, leaning forward. She met him halfway and pressed her mouth against his. He bit the fruit in half and its essence ran over her tongue. She wasn’t sure which was sweeter, the strawberry or the taste of his kiss.

  One type of hunger had been satisfied, but another kind was growing inside her. Something powerful and overwhelming that made her breathing shallow and her pulse rapid. She sat back in her chair and stared down into Nick’s green eyes.

  “Soo…what’s for dessert?”

  “Anything you ever wanted…or dreamed of wanting.”

  She gasped softly, taken aback by the seriousness of his tone and the intensity of his gaze. His voice was filled with both temptation and promise. Feeling light-headed, Meghan realized she was holding her breath. She slowly exhaled as she fought an unexpected urge to cry.

  It was perfect. He was perfect.

  Nick had no idea what he was offering her, or how badly she wanted to accept. She trusted him but suddenly felt afraid. Could reality possibly measure up to her wildly vivid fantasies? There was no doubt in her mind that he would be a fabulous lover. It was herself that she doubted.

  “It’s been a while. I hope you understand if…”

  Alex placed a finger against her lips. He was surprised to see apprehension steal over her features. He figured she’d be eager to live out the scenes in her journal and get “crazy naked,” as she’d put it last night.

  “It’s okay, Meghan. Whatever happens is okay. Whatever doesn’t happen is okay, too.”

  The tension vanished from around her eyes and she gave him a sweetly seductive smile. Her voice was soft, husky with emotion. “Make all of my dreams come true tonight, Nick.”

  Still kneeling at her feet, he dropped his chin, briefly closing his eyes. “Nick.” How ironic that he had to keep playing a role in order to get her to stop playing one. He wanted to be himself, wanted her to be with the real Alex. Just as he wanted to be with “Elise,” the real Meghan.

  “I can’t do that unless you keep your part of our bargain. Be open and adventurous tonight. Let go and show me the darker side of you.”

  For a second, her brows furrowed in confusion. She must have recognized his choice of words from her diary. Damn. He’d better watch it until he could return the book and explain why he had it. His mistake almost broke the mood.

  “All right, Nick. Tell me what you want.”

  “No. Tonight is for you. Just for you. All I ask is that you trust me.”

  What he really wanted to do was sweep everything to the floor and take her right there on the table. Instead, he stood up and held out his hand, giving her the choice of accepting it.

  Meghan didn’t hesitate to reach for him. Her small hand felt warm in his as together they stepped through the door. He let go of her just long enough to take off his tuxedo jacket and drape it over the armchair. Then he guided her over to the couch.r />
  He gathered her onto his lap, pulling off her shoes. He wrapped one arm around her waist and caressed her bare thigh with his other hand. He breathed in the spicy floral scent of her as she leaned close to loosen his tie.

  After opening the top buttons of his shirt, Meghan rained sweet little kisses along his jaw and throat. Sliding one hand behind his neck, she stroked her fingers through his hair.

  “I want you, Nick. In every possible way.”

  Every possible way? Images from her journal flashed across his mind. It was going to be one hell of a night.

  The first brush of her soft lips against his mouth whetted his appetite. The second touch had him wanting to devour her. Her kisses were tentative, teasing, and he met each one with a restrained passion. Finally, finally she deepened the kiss, her tongue exploring his mouth in lazy circles.

  Then she got up from his lap and stood before him. With a wicked gleam in her eyes, she reached behind her back and slowly unzipped her dress. The blue fabric slid off her body, trickled to her feet. His mouth went dry as he stared at her strapless bra and matching black thong panties.

  “I’ve been fantasizing about that set since I saw it in your luggage.”

  Those tiny excuses for underwear may as well have been spray-painted on. His fingers wouldn’t know the difference between the satin of the material and the satin of her gorgeous flesh. The candle’s light cast a warm glow over her, creating shadows and shades of tiger’s eye and gold on her skin.

  He ached to explore everything from the dampness of her invitingly parted lips to the smooth skin along her back, from the velvety softness of her breasts to the slick, wet passage between her thighs.

  His awareness of every detail of her heightened. He saw the pulse in her throat, seeming to echo the beating of his heart. He watched her breasts quiver as she breathed. He noticed the tightening of her abdominal muscles, the unconscious sway of her hips.

  “Are you planning to stare at me all night?” Her lips parted softly in a smile. “Or are you going to touch me?”

  Lust heated his blood until he felt like his whole body was on fire. He wanted her so badly it hurt. But passages from her diary held him in check.

  Freedom to give only as much as I want and take as much as I please… I choose to be with a man who makes my pleasure a priority, not an afterthought…

  “Believe me, Trouble, I plan to touch you. And taste you as well. Just show me where.”

  The tone of her skin on her face changed, deepened as her blood warmed. She was clearly embarrassed by his request, but the yearning in those beautifully expressive eyes devastated him. Lord, what a woman.

  “Show me,” he urged.

  She lifted her right hand and placed long elegant fingers against her lips. He leaned back on the sofa cushions, showing her the proof of his desire. The bulge in his tuxedo trousers strained against the material.

  “Where else?”

  Meghan raised her eyes back to his face and trailed her fingers along her chin and down her neck, while her left hand began to caress her right arm. When she ducked her head shyly, he did his best to reassure her.

  “You’re safe with me. I won’t do anything you don’t want. I won’t touch you anywhere you don’t ask.”

  After a few seconds, she raised her chin. Boldly looking into his eyes, she skimmed both hands across her breasts. She rubbed her nipples with her thumbs until they tightened visibly against the fabric of her bra. Then she slid her hands lower, along her belly toward those little panties.

  Alex’s brain shut down as her fingers moved to massage her hips and thighs. Then slowly, Meghan widened her stance and slid both palms up to the apex of her endless legs. When she caressed the satin material covering the gate to paradise, he pulled her to him. “Get over here.”

  She straddled his lap, her laughter turning into a gasp when he ripped off her bra and flung it aside. Her gasp became a moan as he cupped her naked breasts with both hands. The soft orbs just filled his palms, warming beneath his touch. Her nipples lengthened as he rolled them between his fingertips. As he gently squeezed and stroked, a sexy whimper escaped her.

  Sliding his fingers down her arms, he manacled her wrists and drew her hands behind her back. He leaned her slightly away from him until he had unlimited access to those pretty breasts. Meghan shivered at the first touch of his lips, instinctively rubbing herself on his lap.

  He kissed every millimeter of her right breast before sucking the pert nipple into his mouth. Her little sighs and murmurs were making him crazy. He eagerly anticipated the sounds she’d make when he finally sank his flesh into her.

  “Omigod.”

  She gasped, then pressed her left breast insistently to his lips. Following her unspoken demand, he licked that nipple before suckling it against the roof of his mouth.

  “Take off your shirt, Nick. I want to feel you against me.”

  He let go of her wrists and tore open his shirt, not caring when the buttons scattered across the sofa. He drew a shaky breath as her fingernails raked through the coarse hairs on his chest. She lightly grazed his nipples until they were as hard as her own.

  While he freed his arms from the sleeves, Meghan leaned forward to bite his earlobe playfully, sending another wave of need to his groin. Alex wrapped her in his arms, molding his lips to hers. She tangled her fingers in his hair and pulled his head closer, deepening the kiss as his hands followed the curve of her bare ass.

  Her mouth was hot and demanding, her movements a little frantic. When she reached between their bodies to gently squeeze his penis through his trousers, he wondered how he would explain a stain to the dry cleaner.

  He shifted her until she was cradled in his arms and then stood up. She draped her left arm about his neck and kept kissing him as he carried her into the bedroom. Softly backlit by the table lamp, she lounged invitingly on the bed. Waiting. For him. An unfamiliar possessiveness gripped him by the throat, making speech impossible.

  When he joined her at the edge of the bed, she got to her knees, wrapped her arms about his waist. His hands slid up her beautiful body to cup her face between his palms. Her whiskey-colored eyes gazed into his with quiet trust.

  “I need you, Trouble. Let me love you.”

  She blinked, and he wasn’t sure which of them was more startled by his slip of the tongue. She stared into his eyes for a moment, as if searching for something.

  “Give yourself to me now, Meghan, and I swear you’ll never be sorry.”

  Surprise and a sudden sheen of tears filled her eyes. Alex brushed his lips across her forehead, understanding. What started as a game to bring her out of the journal and into his arms now had deeper meaning and far more risk. He was asking her to show him a part of herself she’d never revealed before. He was asking her to open her heart.

  He gently kissed her temples and cheeks before softly claiming her mouth. His left hand caressed the tender skin along her jaw as she parted her lips beneath his. He slid his other hand to her breast, his palm slowly caressing the soft mound until the nipple beaded again.

  Her hands slipped past his waist, her long nails lightly raking over his hips to his butt. He twitched when her fingers danced over his skin. “Ticklish, Nick?”

  Now both hands sought to torment him, causing him to strain forward until his erection pressed against her abdomen. He reached around to still her hands, then leaned down to nibble a sensitive spot below her ear in revenge.

  She shifted to one side, rubbing her cheek against the hair covering his chest. Then she captured one flat brown nipple between her lips. Alex groaned as she sucked and licked the hardened bud. With his hands occupied restraining hers, he could only give in and enjoy the erotic sensations.

  When she gently bit down on his vulnerable flesh, a bolt of pure lust shot straight down to his groin. He claimed her lips once again, kissing her with all the passion he felt inside. He tasted her excitement and responded in kind.

  Moments later, she leaned back to look
at him, the expression on her face faintly amused. The gleam in her golden brown eyes was pure mischief. “Those are very nice shorts. I happen to be quite fond of silk boxers.”

  He crossed his arms defensively. Busted. He wasn’t about to admit how much he liked the feel of the slick material sliding over his bare skin. Guys just didn’t talk about what they wore under their jeans.

  “As nice as those boxers are, they’d look better on the carpet.”

  Alex laughed. “Oh, yeah?”

  “Yes. It’s only fair. I stripped for you.”

  “Okay, Trouble. You asked for it.” Imitating a classic bump and grind, he slid his shorts over his hips, then stopped and turned. Glancing over his shoulder with a lascivious grin, he tugged the silk material off one cheek, then the other.

  Meghan whistled her encouragement. “Take it all off, baby!”

  Alex pivoted to watch her face as his underwear slithered down his thighs and pooled around his ankles. An arrogant smile spread across his face. The obvious appreciation in her expression reminded him of a deer caught in the high beams of a truck. So okay, he was bragging, but she hadn’t blinked in a really long time.

  The expression of enjoyment on her face shifted to one of need. She breathed his name on a moan and reached for him. The muscles of his shoulders and stomach tensed as he anticipated the first brush of her fingers on his hard flesh. He gulped in a draught of air when he felt her soft fingers wrap around his penis. She held it just firmly enough for him to feel his pulse against her palm.

  And then she moved her hand. Her fingers slid over the length of his shaft and cupped his testicles. Her fingers left a trail of fire wherever she touched him. He couldn’t possibly get any harder. Then she moved her hand again. He trembled with a need so fierce, it was all he could do to hold back.

  He fought for control as she stroked him, getting more confident, more brazen, as she watched his reactions. She was obviously proud that she could bring him to the edge like this.