Page 34 of Grumpy Boss's Secret

She dropped the candle, extinguishing it. She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his thick muscles shift under her embrace. He kissed her more passionately, drawing her closer to himself. Their hearts began to pound a rhythm as their hands began to explore one another. She inhaled as his hands grazed across her breast – still covered by her nightdress. He froze.

“If you…do you truly want to –” he stammered.

"I do," she said, breathless, and pressed her lips against his.

He wrapped her arms around her, pulling her onto the mattress beside him. He rolled her over until he was lying on top of her.

She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of his body’s weight on hers. He pressed against her, undulating slightly as he kissed her mouth hungrily. Slowly, reverently, he undressed her, unbuttoning her nightdress and then pulling the sides of it away. His heart hammered at the sight of her nakedness. He had lain with many women before, but they had never been this woman. She filled him with a feeling he had never known before.

The moonlight lit her small, soft breasts in a silver hue. He stared at her: her bosom as it rose and fell, her green eyes gazing up at him. Her delicate figure was now frailly exposed before him, at his mercy. He would be kind. He lay back down on top of her. She inhaled, treasuring the warmth of his bare skin against hers. He reached a hand out across the mattress, searching for her hand. He found it. It was warm and soft, and he laced his fingers through hers, wanting to be closer to her. To hold her tightly.

He stroked the side of her hand with his thumb, beginning to slide his tongue inside her mouth. The weight of his body pressed against her, undulating as their kissing became more passionate. He inhaled deeply, feeling her bare breasts press against his chest. She felt his free hand slide between her legs, pushing her thighs farther apart. She wrapped her legs around his back. He grunted and undulated more rapidly, almost as if he was thrusting even though he wasn’t inside her yet.

Gently, almost cautiously, he stroked her mound. Then his fingers explored inside of her. Heat coursed through him. He touched her as if she were an instrument and he was playing music. She responded with deep inhales, feeling the pleasure of his touch coursing through her. He slid his fingers in and out, using varying degrees of pressure and speed, readying her even more. She groaned, arching her head back and closing her eyes.

They were both panting, and. He was hard, almost bursting with the desire to unite with her. Feeling that she was ready, he lifted himself up over her. He entered her, rocking his hips against hers as he pushed his way deeper into the ecstasy of the feeling of her. His head rested against hers, and she could hear his soft inhale of pleasure in her ear. He could hear her soft gasps of pleasure as he moved inside her.

He began to thrust, gently at first and then more forcefully. Shockwaves of pleasure rippled through both of them, accelerating into a burst of ecstasy. She screamed, shattering the stillness of the night with a sound as powerful as the physical joy they had created together. He gasped and shivered, and slowly pulled himself out of her. He lay back down on top of her and found her fingers again. He held them, his face resting against her soft chest, taking deep breaths. She gazed at the ceiling, filled with exquisite warmth, and enjoyed the feeling of his skin pressing against hers.

My heart was doing somersaults. The sex…it was the same sex Ian and I had shared: how they moved, what they did. He was writing about us. I covered my face with my hands, giggling involuntarily.

“It could just be…maybe he’s just picking a night he had so he can write about it more convincingly,” I thought. Trying not to get my hopes up too much. Trying to stay rational.

It was impossible. I read the descriptions of Stacey's body. Her delicate figure, her pale skin gleaming in the moonlight. Her soft, small breasts. The way she inhaled when touched. I could feel my cheeks flushing. My heart was glowing with a tender feeling I'd never felt before. Did he really see me this way? Had he really experienced me this way, so reverently and adoringly?

“Oh, he’s going to kill me if he finds out I read this,” I thought. It felt like reading his diary.

Worth it.

There weren't many books after that. Just at the beginning of the next chapter, the outlaw went outside and notices a storm picking up. He could smell it in the wind. I sat there, staring at the last few words and holding my phone as if it was my anchor to a world I never wanted to leave.

Chapter Fourteen

It was seven-thirty when I finished reading. Slowly, I pulled myself away, leaning back in my chair and staring at the wall before me. Images from Ian's book flooded my mind, like a fireworks display of passion and colour, leaving an imprint I could still see even after the words had disappeared.

Did he love me? My heart was beating the tempo of a waltz. My fingers were gripping each other, my hands clasped.

“Well, I love him, that’s for sure,” I whispered.

What a way with words that man had. He perceived the world and described it in a poetic and starkly realistic way.

"I can't believe that stone-faced, grumpy son of a bitch wrote all that," I murmured, laughing and lifting my hands. I spun around in a circle, already dizzy with my emotions. "He's gorgeous. What a strange boy."

I could feel my smile on the palms of my hands. Now what?

"Now, I'm going home," I said. "I go to work tomorrow. I process all this…."

And then? I thought of the sex scene that Ian had written. My body purred with arousal.

"He will have to write another one in this book. I could help him do some research…."

I paused, grinning.

“Okay, Jozi,” I said. “Cool it. Go home. You’re still covered in dust bunnies.”

I left the mug of tea on my desk – I could wash it tomorrow – and picked up my lunchbox. Feeling almost sleepy and happy, I slung my purse over my shoulder and stepped out of my office.

I walked down the hall complacently, sure I was the last one left in the building. I heard a door close in the hallway as I entered the foyer. It sounded like it was coming from Ian's end of the hall. Frantically, I pressed the down button on the elevator. The doors dinged and swung open, and I dove inside. I hit the ground floor button, almost stumbling against the side of the elevator, and the doors closed.

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