Business Pleasures (Pleasures of the Heart) Read Online Free Page A

and meet his gaze. “They only make you a warrior, strong and beautiful.”
    Standing, he took her hand and pulled her to her feet. A moment later, he turned her to face the mirrored closet doors. He swiped her hair from her neck and kissed the spot where it met her shoulder. Then, slowly, he lowered the zipper.
    Holding her gaze in the mirror, he glided his hands up her arms to rest on her shoulders. When he slid the straps from her shoulders, she gripped his wrist, stopping him. Her heart beat so hard she feared she’d go into cardiac arrest. Yet, it wasn’t Kenton she feared. No, she dreaded his rejection.
    “I’ve wanted you since you walked into the interview five years ago. It was a bonus for me that you had an AA in business law.” He kissed her cheek and slid his lips to her ear where he gently bit her earlobe.
    Her panties dampened even more and speech seem to be impossible right then. Watching him in the mirror, she loosened her hold on his wrist. His eyes brightened slightly as if her reaction satisfied him in a way she didn’t understand.
    “Relax and don’t move.” The deep rumble of his voice rippled through her, sending a jolt of electrical current straight to her core. Anticipation held her perfectly still as he slid the dress down her body to pool at her feet. Only then did she allow her hands to fall to her sides.
    The urge to cover herself or run out the door made her skin itch. Her gaze darted to the long jagged scar that ran from the top of her right breast, disappeared under her bra, and continued down to her belly button. Although the nightmare of the day Roger scored her skin with the knife had blurred, the reminder of how he kept her on the short leash stared at her every time she looked in the mirror.
    Raising her gaze back to Kenton’s, she let out a shaky breath, but focused on his face. His warm fingers caressed her back in soothing, massaging movements, starting at the base of her back then travelling up to her bra. With an efficient movement, he unhooked her bra.
    She gasped and covered her breasts with her arms. The corners of his lips lifted as he pressed them to her ear. “I said don’t move.”
    Then he nipped her on the neck, sending a shot of hot desire through her. Damn, if that was her punishment then why should she be good? His brown gaze dipped to her scarred breasts as she lowered her hands, taking the bra with them. Her nipples hardened under his stare and her skin tingled.
    With his index finger, he circled her right nipple, barely touching the skin. After the third rotation, he guided his finger to her scar and traced it down to her navel. “Why did he do it?”
    She frowned, drawing her brows together. “Control.”
    Kenton fisted his hand over her stomach and drew her closer to him. “Control should never be about fear. No one should ever be forced into giving control over to someone else.”
    Confusion clouded her thoughts as she stared at him. “I don’t understand.”
    A smile formed and he kissed her temple. “I like to be in full control when I make love with my partner. And she has to be able to give it, willingly. Can you do that, Aimee?”
    She’d fought for the past five year to gain control over everything in her life because the thought of being controlled again pissed her off and scared the shit out of her. Looking in the mirror at them, she realized what he meant. “You mean as some kind of sexual play?”
    “I promise only pleasure.”
    “I can’t explain why, but I want to trust you.” The words might be hard to say, but she couldn’t resist being honest. Sure, she wanted to swear off men, to assume they were all dangerous and therefore protect herself from further harm by avoiding relationships altogether, but another part of her was a woman—a live and very hungry woman who missed being touched and desired. She wanted to trust him, wanted to give in to the desire he awakened.
    He kissed the top of her shoulder, all the while holding her