Page 59 of Unbuttoning Her Brooding Boss

‘Insomniac,’ he half joked. But he sounded flat.

‘You’re worried?’

‘You’re astute.’

‘Not really. People who wake in the small hours are usually worried about something.’

‘So what are youworried about?’ he asked.

‘Getting cold,’ she smiled weakly.

But waking without him again had already made her cold. And looking at him now smote her heart. She wanted to wipe away the tortured expression that he was no longer able to mask.

She knew that intense loneliness and despair. She wanted to see him smiling, relaxed, laughing, sated. However she could.

The one way she wascertainshe could.

‘So many stars overhead,’ she murmured.

‘You revel in all of it, don’t you?’ he muttered. ‘All that enthusiasm... it’s real...’

‘That’s because it’s beautiful,’ she said simply.

‘So are you.’

She shook her head.

‘Youare.’ His voice sounded rough. ‘Right now you’re like a pearl, gleaming in the moonlight.’

‘It’s the pale skin,’ she joked. ‘Glows in the dark.’

‘The dress, the make-up, the finish suits you... but so does this...’ He stretched out his arm and grabbed her hand, drawing her closer. When she was near enough he slid his fingers through her hair. ‘So beautiful.’

‘You’re half blinded by the darkness.’

‘Just take the compliment,’ he growled. ‘Or do you want more?’

‘You know what I want more of,’ she murmured, her voice suddenly husky.

Sheknew exactly what she wanted. And she was doing it. She moved to stand between his feet, then knelt, letting the sheet drop in a pool around her as she did so.

She heard his indrawn breath.

‘Stephanie—’

‘Just let me,’ she interrupted, and ran her hands up his shins and over his knees. ‘You’ve done it for me so many times already.’

‘Not that many. Not enough.’ He put his hands on her waist. ‘And I like it.’

She pushed his hands away, knowing he wanted to lift her to his lap, but she wasn’t having it this time. She pressed her hands on his hard abs and pushed. ‘I like it too. So let me.’

He sank back into the chair.

Pleased, she smiled. Now she could explore him before being submerged in her own sensations. Now she could have the pleasure of taking him to those dizzying heights first for once. She’d relish the chance.

She stroked up his long, muscled legs. He had such a strong, fit body. ‘What do you do to work out?’

‘Run, mostly,’ he answered huskily. ‘You can run anywhere.’

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