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Nina grinned. “She’s a gem, boss. A wonderful young woman.”
Only one woman could make him say three words that he never thought would come out of his mouth. “I need help.” Really, when it came to Kara, the words weren’t all that difficult. “I’m not sure what to do. Can you help me, Nina?”
His assistant sprang out of her chair with an enthusiasm and speed that really shouldn’t be normal for a woman of her age, motioning vigorously to Marcie to join her. The two of them surrounded him, peppering him with questions.
He should have been embarrassed, but strangely enough, he was not. Simon Hudson, billionaire and co-owner of one of the most powerful corporations in the world, in a huddle with two female employees, listening raptly to every word the women spoke, to every bit of advice they gave.
Sam passed by them, smirking as he made his way to the elevator, obviously able to pick up part of the conversation even though they were speaking in low, conspiring voices.
Simon shot his brother a one-finger-salute when he saw Sam’s mocking expression, barely taking his eyes away from the two women in front of him who seemed to know the answers to all of the mysteries of women. Right now, to him, they were goddesses.
He completely ignored the snicker he heard from Sam as his brother walked away. The bastard. He couldn’t wait until the day that his elder brother needed advice.
Turning his attention back to Nina and Marcie, he listened and learned.
Kara let out an audible, heartfelt sigh as she sank deeper into Simon’s garden bathtub, the hot water and bubbles covering nearly her entire body, leaving only her head bobbing above the water. He had offered her the use of his tub in the master bath any time she wanted it, but she had never taken him up on the offer. She had a perfectly wonderful tub and shower attached to her own room, but it wasn’t nearly as elaborate as this one.
Admit it. It isn’t the size of the tub. It’s the fact that it’s his that made you come in here.
Frowning, she grabbed a large loofah sponge from the ledge of the tub and starting scrubbing her arms with enough force to make her skin burn. Damn it. She didn’t want to admit that she missed Simon so desperately that she wanted to use the tubheused, breathe inhisscent that lingered in his bathroom.
Refusing to have sex with him was your brilliant idea.
Yeah, it was. But she was seriously re-thinking that decision. It had felt like the right thing to do at the time. She wanted to be with him, secure in the knowledge that he trusted her completely. Not knowing what had happened to him could cause her to make other mistakes, to hurt him inadvertently. She couldn’t stand that thought. She’d hoped he might open up and share his trauma with her, let her help him through it.
But she had been dead wrong.
He had distanced himself, pulled away rather than share his internal torment. He hadn’t touched her, hadn’t kissed her, since she had told him that she couldn’t make love with him unless he told her aboutthe incident. What in the hell had happened to him? Had she pushed him too far, too fast? Would it have been better to settle for only what he was able to give?
I could let him tie me to the bed and fuck me senseless. That way, I can’t hurt him unintentionally.
She groaned as she stopped scrubbing her arms raw and lifted a leg from the water, resting it on a seat at the edge of the tub. God, the thought was tempting. She might be an independent woman, but she had loved his sexual dominance, his take-charge assault on her senses. In some strange way, it aroused her beyond endurance, and he exercised that alpha side of him every single time he touched her. Mixed with his added tenderness and vulnerability that peeked through on occasion, it was an impossible-to-forget lure that sucked her toward him like a moth to a flame.
Simon made her feel beautiful.
He made her feel safe.
God...she loved her primitive, protective, possessive male who had a heart of gold.
Lifting her leg, she ran the sponge over her calf, slowly toward her knee and gently across her thigh. Images flashed through her mind, making the sensitive flesh between her legs pulsate with need and causing her heart to miss a beat.
Being bound to Simon’s bed, at his mercy, his mouth devouring her.
On the couch, her wrists restrained while he rocked her world.
In the elevator, opening to him, him pummeling her until she screamed.
Three nights ago, holding him as he made her come apart.
Oh hell, he was her every erotic fantasy come to life in stunning, glorious color and there wasn’t a thing she didn’t love about him.
A lone tear streaked down her cheek as she switched legs and worked on the other one with the sponge.
Three days. It had only been three days and she was already a mess. The lonely yearning for him was already pulverizing her, swallowing her whole. Not only was he her erotic fantasy, he was her complete fantasy. The whole damn package. She had never met a man like him, and probably never would again.
He was sweet, although he would deny it.
He was tender, although he would deny that, too.