Page 28 of His to Explore
“That this was exactly what I needed?”
I kiss the top of her head. “I know you had a tough week. You were feeling shitty about being in your apartment. I wanted to help you reset. To take control again.”
She giggles again. “So you forced your way in and tied me up?”
I grin against her hair. “Well, when you put it that way…”
She pulls away from my chest to look at me, and fuck, she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Her lips are all swollen and red from my kisses, her hair a mess. But the best thing is how relaxed she looks. How content. I did that for her.
“I was hoping this would help you to feel more comfortable in your space,” I tell her. “Hopefully now when you think about your home, you’ll think about this before any of the negative shit comes into your mind.”
Her smile is sassy. “My darkest fantasy coming to life is definitely pretty memorable.”
I go on, because I want to make sure she understands this. “Maybe it’s crazy and counterintuitive,” I tell her. “But I thought fulfilling this particular fantasy might remind you of how far you’ve come. Think about it, Kensie—you’re brave enough to ask for what you want. Brave enough to explore and figure out what you like, what you’re looking for. That’s a big fucking deal.”
Her face softens even more. “It’s hard for me to see myself that way. I don’t feel very brave.”
I press a soft kiss to her lips. “You trust me, right?” She nods automatically. “Then don’t worry about what you see in yourself for now. Trust me when I tell you that you’re brave and strong and beautiful. Everything you’ve done—leaving him, remaking your life with your job, this apartment, your time at the club—all of that inspires the hell out of me.”
I kiss her again and smile. “And you have to believe me because you just said you trust me, so you know I’m not lying.”
She kisses me back, deeper this time, and pretty soon she’s under me once again, legs spread as she takes me into her body, as we make each other feel good. As she takes just one more step into reclaiming her power, reaching for what she wants.
And when it’s over, she snuggles into me again—and she doesn’t ask me to leave. Instead, we fall asleep together, in her bed, for the first time.
I wish with everything in me it won’t be the last.
KENSIE
“Not to alarm you,” Gemma says, sidling up beside me. “But there’s a seriously gorgeous man over there who can’t keep his eyes off you.”
My eyes snap up from the inventory I’ve been doing behind the counter to see Grant standing across the gallery. Just like Gemma said, his eyes are glued to me, and my cheeks immediately heat at the intensity of his gaze.
“You know him,” Gemma practically squeals in my ear. “You should see your face right now! I demand you tell me the story. Have you slept with this man?”
“Be quiet,” I hiss back, eyes darting around the space. We’ve got several potential customers wandering around and the last thing I want to do is cause a scene. “He’s going to hear you.”
Across the room, Grant’s lips quirk up and I get the feeling he already knows exactly what we’re whispering about over here. I sigh as he begins to walk in our direction, all the while trying to pretend a flock of butterflies hasn’t taken flight in my belly.
Why is he here? He’s dropped me off at work a few mornings in the weeks since our intruder fantasy encounter, so he obviously knows where the gallery is, but he has yet to visit me here.
I’m not sure how I feel about it.
“Good afternoon, ladies,” Grant says in that deep, rumbly voice that always makes my center clench.
“Well,hello,” Gemma practically coos, and I kick her under the counter. “And who might you be? And, more importantly, how do you know my dear friend Kensie here?’
My gaze locks with Grant and I just know we’re thinking the same thing.Well, boss, we met when I was referred to his services as a Dom and we’ve been fucking in increasingly kinky ways ever since.He smirks and I swear my blush goes ten shades darker.
“We met through a mutual friend,” Grant says, which technically isn’t even a lie. Not that I’d really call Jane a friend. I find the P.I./Domme who introduced us to be terrifying, honestly.
“How lovely,” Gemma says, sounding way too giddy about this whole thing. She’s been trying to get me to start dating for ages, and I know she’s thrilled at her assumption I’m finally doing just that with the man at our counter. I want to tell her it’s not like that, but describing what our relationship is actually like to my boss is one hundred percent not happening.
“Kensie mentioned that you might be able to help me source some investment pieces,” he says to my boss. “But I was hoping she might do the honors and show me around.” He leans in close, dropping his voice to a charming murmur. “I don’t know shit about art, but I’m hoping Kensie might teach me some things.”
Gemma’s eyes are wide as saucers, and despite my embarrassment there’s a part of me that wants to laugh. I can’t blame her for being affected by the man. God knows he’s persuaded me to drop my panties on more than one occasion with just the purr of that voice.
“Of course,” she finally manages to squeak out, clearly flustered. “Kensie knows everything about every artist featured here. You’ll definitely be in good hands with her.”
