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“I would’ve liked to have watched you make your selection,” she continued. The tension in Charlotte’s body built with every increasingly targeted swipe of her fingertips.

“To see what you discarded because it wasn’t good enough.”

She worked more quickly, her breath landing hotter and more urgently on the back of Charlotte’s neck. “To see your expression when you decided this is what would make you irresistible.”

Charlotte fell forward, her splayed hands landing on the cold countertop. As her knees weakened, Charlotte dropped her head, losing herself in the skillful ministrations of Alex’s elegant fingers keeping her right on the brink.

“Look up,” Alex demanded, her words a deep rumble dripping with lust. “I want you to see how exquisite you look when you come.”

Charlotte’s body trembled as she dropped to her elbows.

She didn’t trust her legs to support her; Alex’s fingers pulled her over the edge.

At the last moment, she tossed her head back, but it wasn’t herself she watched. While Charlotte’s body shuddered, Alex bit down on her bottom lip as she knitted her eyebrows together. Her pained expression was one of the most beautiful things Charlotte had ever seen. It was as if she’d had the orgasm too.

Panting, Charlotte turned in Alex’s arms. She kissed her hungrily as she fumbled with the zipper on the back of Alex’s dress. “I want you so bad,” she groaned before getting frustrated with the tiny clasp at the top of the dress and deciding to pull it up over her waist instead.

Alex smiled against her lips, kissing her twice more before pulling away and reaching for her blazer. “I can’t,”

she said with open regret as she glanced at her smartwatch.

“I have a call in ten.”

Charlotte rested against the bathroom counter as the trembling in her body grew fainter. She smiled as she watched Alex compose herself. She would’ve told her that ten minutes was plenty of time, but she was getting the sense that Alex didn’t like to rush.

“I suppose you’ll have to owe me one,” Charlotte decided.

Moving out of the way so Alex could make full use of the mirror to touch up her makeup, Charlotte stood o to the side and buttoned her shirt.

“I have to go to a party tonight. Do you want to come?”

Alex didn’t look away from the mirror as she painted her lips a dark shade of red.

“Twice in one day?” Charlotte chuckled. “How generous.”

Alex rolled her eyes, but her momentary smile played on her lips. “I can’t say it will be much fun, but it’s on a boat.”

“A boat?” Charlotte smoothed down the crumpled fabric of her suit. “Is it a high-seas adventure?”

“Nothing quite so grand. A moonlit ride around Biscayne Bay.”

Turning back to face her, Alex was radiant. With a flutter in her stomach, she wished she could tell her to push her meeting back. To stay with her until she’d had a chance to kiss all her lipstick o again, but she didn’t.

“Count me in.”

RIDING HIGH ON RESIDUAL EUPHORIA, Charlotte practically floated to her car. Instead of lunch, she decided on a trip to the mall during her break.

Her nearest option was a fancy outdoor shopping center with stores the likes of Gucci and Louis Vuitton. Setting her sights on the more feasible possibility of Nordstrom, Charlotte parked her car in a garage and walked across cobblestone steps into the Mediterranean architecture of Merrick Park.

There we

ren’t as many people strolling around the outdoor space as she might’ve expected, but they were the same sort who had time for a spa visit in the middle of most people’s workday. A few men were there in suits, but mostly rich women in pricy workout clothes wandered about, the kind of clothes that made an easy transition from spin class to a drink with girlfriends. The kind Charlotte had never needed. Old t-shirts and shorts worked just fine. But if someone was stupid enough to spend a hundred bucks on leggings meant to be sweated in, that was their problem.

Riding the elevator to the third level to not mess up her clothes with perspiration, Charlotte leaned against the metal handrail and allowed herself to feel satisfied. Seduction had been the right choice, even though it hadn’t gone exactly as planned.

Stepping out into the blinding afternoon after the brief darkness of the elevator, Charlotte couldn’t help grinning even if it meant she looked certifiable to the nanny pushing a set of twins getting onto the elevator.

A party was a huge step. It could be the perfect opportunity to meet the rich clientele Alex allegedly attended to personally. The people who had evaded her detection at the spa.