Page 18 of Your Body On My Mind

And I didn't know what I was more disturbed about: that I was so eager to find out what the meaning of his words was, or that the slightest change in his demeanor had effectively separated Kaden's two sides. Best friend? Goodbye. Kaden, the… I had no idea what to call him, buthello.

My legs carried me to the center of the room and I crossed my arms. Promptly, I heard a chiding sound. "That's not one of the positions I would like to see you in."

"But…"

"And you only speak when I ask or allow you to, or when there's a serious problem to be dealt with."

Ready to turn his statement into a discussion, I opened my mouth. But I also remembered what I had read on the internet. So I decided to play along, at least for now.

"Got it?"

"I think I do."

"Try yes or no."

It was interesting to see how his words could have such an effect on me. One moment they fascinated me. The next, I felt irritated. This was not the way we usually communicated.

"Yes."

I heard his approach from behind and resisted the urge to turn toward him.

"Normally, you wouldn't just answer with a simple yes, you'd end the sentence with a title. Honorifics, if you want to look it up later. I'm not going to ask for it, though, because it has to be earned."

So he was just assuming I would later open the search engine and look up all the stuff he was about to throw at me?

"Hands behind your back. Keep your shoulders straight and your chin up."

As he spoke I corrected my position and immediately felt it would be exhausting to stay this way for a while.

"Well done, Nika," he praised after a moment. The words felt like getting hit by a freight train. Though there was no sensible reason for it, a tingling sensation began to creep up my spine.

I swallowed. Unable to grasp what exactly was happening. Was it intentional? Or was it the adrenaline coursing through my veins, making me feel high? As if my normal feelings were separated from what had just happened.

"Later on, I'm going to ask you to take off your shoes and your dress. Your underwear… but you can always say no. There is no obligation on your part to do anything. I just want you to be clear with me about the reasons why you don't want to do it," he went on. He was standing right behind me and I felt his hot breath on the nape of my neck. A delightful shiver ran down my spine, reminding me that my mouth could still compete with the Sahara. I couldn't even swallow.

Somehow, and I didn't know if I was comfortable with this, the moisture in my body seemed to gather in other places. I should have been really worried that Kaden could influence me like that with just a few sentences. But right now, I was enjoying it too much to raise my voice in protest.

"Let's see… I will ask you a series of questions and you will answer them as honestly as possible, okay?"

"Yes," I groaned. Ordinarily I would have thought about what he might ask me so I was prepared. But my brain was blank. A blank page waiting for him to write upon.

"How many relationships have you had in the last few years?"

This was an easy one. "Four."

"And how many of them have been happy?"

"I'm not with them anymore, am I? So they couldn't have been happy."

"Touché," he murmured, a little amused. "Then let me put it another way: how many of those men were capable of putting you in the state you're in now?"

So he knew… I took a sharp breath. The next moment I felt his hand on the small of my back. Warm. Supporting me. As if I had no reason to be ashamed.

I gritted my teeth. "Not one."

"Did they make you feel appreciated? Seduced you without thinking about getting laid?"

So Kaden had also become a relationship coach and psychologist in the last few years. Wonderful. My mouth was agape, and again I had a hard time with the depth of this question.

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