Anew: Book One: Awakened Read Online Free

big chance?”
    Most people thought I was insane
at the time but that isn’t worth mentioning.
    “It paid off,” I say. “Slade
Enterprises is pre-eminent in the global market. We have complete penetration
into every aspect of security and defense worldwide.”
    I watch with amusement as my
choice of words prompts a blush that spreads across her lovely features. She
really is remarkably beautiful but I wouldn’t have expected anything less.
    “Of course,” I add, “some claim
that we’re more oriented toward offense than defense but that’s just
semantics.”
    She raises a finely tapered
brow. “Is it? Clauswitz said that war is nothing more than an extension of
diplomacy. Are you saying that it’s nothing more than a variant of defense?”
    My mouth drops open. I snap it
shut as I contemplate her familiarity with the 19 th century Prussian
general and military theorist whose insights into the nature of war helped
shape my own.
    “It can be seen that way,” I say
as I try to remember if Susannah ever expressed the slightest interest in
Clauswitz or any aspect of war theory for that matter but I’m coming up blank.
“How is it that you’re familiar with his work?”
    Softly, with a thread of
frustration, she says, “I can’t explain how I know anything, at least not yet.”
    I’d like to consider the
possible ramifications of what she knows but the play of light from the
torchères along the swell of her breasts proves too distracting. All I can do
is stare at her.
    She looks up, meeting my gaze.
Something flickers behind her eyes--uncertainty, arousal, some combination of
both? She frowns, as though confronted by a puzzle she is determined to solve.
    “Do we know each other?” she
asks.
    “You tell me. Do we?”
    A flash of annoyance darts
across her face, further knocking me off balance. Clearly, she resents my
refusal to be more forthcoming.
    With hindsight, I realize that
I’ve made assumptions about her that urgently need to be revisited. She has a
far stronger will than I expected as well as the courage to act on it. That
could prove troublesome but at the same time I can’t deny that it’s highly
provocative.
    I’m far more entertained by her
than I expected. Far more aroused as well but I can control that. I have to.
    “I feel as though I should know
you,” she says. “But at the same time I’m fairly certain that we’ve never met
before.”
    “We haven’t.”
    She seems to accept that, at
least for the moment. I draw her into a conversation about the finer points of
war theory. She has a fairly comprehensive grasp of the subject. If this was an
interview for a job with my firm, she’d be acing it.
    We’ve gotten to a comparison of
the differences between Clauswitz, Machiavelli, and Sun Tsu when Hodgkin
appears with the entrees. Mine is a filet in peppercorn sauce. Hers is pasta
primavera. When he’s poured the wines and departed, I realize that she’s
staring at my plate with what can only be described as salacious intent. I can
practically see her mouth watering.
    “I thought you didn’t eat meat,”
I say. Susannah didn’t. I expected Amelia to be the same.
    “Don’t I?” She’s still staring
at the filet. If she’s anywhere near as avid in her other appetites--
    On impulse, I move her plate and
glass off to the side and put mine between us. I cut a small piece of the filet
and offer it to her. She hesitates but the temptation proves too much. As our
gazes meet, she reaches for the fork.
    I withdraw it slightly and say,
“Open your mouth.”
    After a moment’s hesitation, she
does so. I make a mental note that she can be compliant when she’s given
sufficient incentive and take the piece of filet off the fork. Using my
fingers, I slowly slide it between her lips. Her small white teeth grab on and
do the rest. By the time she finishes chewing and swallows, her eyes are closed
and she has an ecstatic look on her face.
    My cock, which has been hard
since she walked out