Page 5 of Mr. Scandalous

Spellbound, he simply stared.

She was leaning over, placing something in the window and oh, so slightly exposing just a hint of cleavage.

The provocative sight was enough to cause instant sweat to bead on the back of his neck despite the recent drop in late summer temperature.

A burst of wind snatched a red banner from the awning of a nearby building. It sailed down, fluttering in the breeze, until it caught on an updraft just above the storefront window at exactly the same time the woman glanced up.

For a whisper of a second it was a pure Kodak moment. The foxy, heart-faced woman framed by a crimson banner. The effect was mesmerizingly magical and even after the banner twisted and spiraled away into the wind, Alec couldn’t take his eyes off her.

His heart literally skipped a beat, and the unexpected arrhythmia alarmed him. Usually, the only time his pulse skittered was when he bungee-jumped or hang-glided or skydived.

The sun slipped out from behind a cloud, where it had been hiding and glinted off her mass of chestnut curls swept back so fetchingly in a loose ponytail. She wore a long-sleeved turquoise boho peasant blouse. Not exactly high fashion, but it was definitely romantic. His fingers itched to stroke both the tactile material and what lay intriguingly beyond.

He knew the correct terminology for her garment because he had four sisters who had spent their lives telling him about clothes. He owed them a debt of gratitude. The knowledge came in handy in his active dating life. Women were impressed when a cis male could converse intelligently about fashion.

Their gazes met.

And locked.

She possessed the most arrestingly blue eyes he’d ever seen.

Alec swallowed.

Hard.

She glanced away but then a moment later she was back, eyeing him with slow, deliberate intent until he felt as if he were a job applicant on an intense interview.

He couldn’t hustle into the shop quickly enough.

Wind chimes murmured a musical note as he pushed through the door. The rousing scent of cinnamon candles filled the small room and everywhere he looked he saw something seductive.

Peacock feathers and skimpy panties and black leather masks, whips and chains and swatches of sensual fabrics, erotic vibrators and edible body paint.

“May I help you?” she asked.

He jerked his head around and came face-to-face with his dream woman. Her name tag said her name was Eden.

Ah, a woman who crafted erotic gifts named Eden. How appropriate.

She smiled, her full mouth lifting at the corners.

He was aware of a high, humming sexual energy flowing between them like electricity buzzing through wires. Her impact was not the strike of a classic beauty but rather like the welcoming influence of a warm, rich hug. An invisible hug that wrapped around him like an aura—distinct and unmistakablyher.

She possessed a certain luster that whispered to something deep inside him. Something primal and patently masculine. Something sweetly taboo.

His heart skipped another beat.

Amazed at his aberrant reaction, Alec had to clear his throat before he could speak. “I need...”

Damn, how could he think when she was staring at him that way?

“Yes?” She raised a quizzical eyebrow.

I need. I need. I need.

What did he need? Frowning, Alec ripped his gaze from her lips and met those long-lashed, sky-blue eyes again. “Um...”

Brilliant, Ramsey, absolutely brilliant.

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