Page 32 of Boss of Her

Jade nodded. Hard limits, soft limits, negotiation. It was enough to make her head spin. It was just like Simone to give her what amounted to kinky homework.

“None of your answers will be set in stone,” Simone said. “You can change your mind at any time, just say the word. It’s only natural that your tastes will change the more we explore. And regardless of your answers, wewillbe taking it slow. You’re too inexperienced to know your limits, so I’m not going to throw you in the deep end, understand?”

“I understand.” Jade couldn’t deny that Simone’s careful, considerate approach reassured her. At the same time, no small part of her longed to jump into the deep end with Simone.

But that was dangerous. She was already taking a chance in trusting Simone. She had to keep her head.

“Take your time filling it out.At home, might I add. This conversation aside, we do not mix work and play.” Simone leaned forward, her eyes locking onto Jade’s. “And I’m very much looking forward to playing with you.”

Heat rose through Jade’s body. How was it that Simone could make her come apart with just a look and a few words?

How was Jade supposed to work alongside her every day without falling to pieces?

Simone’s lips curled into a slight smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Jade.”

Jade mumbled a goodbye, slipping the questionnaire into her bag as she left the office. Her body still burned as she made her way down to the parking garage beneath the building, where her car was parked in the space reserved for Simone’s assistant.

She slipped into her car. As she set her bag on the passenger seat, the questionnaire slid out of the top and fell down into the footwell.

Jade picked it up. There was no harm in taking another peek at it before she got home. As she flipped through the questionnaire, she imagined herself with Simone, doing each of the activities within its pages. Some made her heart race, her body sizzle. Some made her squirm in her seat at just the thought.

But others made her hesitate.Blindfolds. Gags.Both excited her. At the same time, the idea of not being able to see anything, or say anything, was anxiety-inducing. She’d be completely at Simone’s mercy. And that was a level of trust she could never see herself having in another person.

‘No’ to blindfolds and gags. And ‘no’ to anything to do with extreme pain.

But spanking and impact play? Those were a definiteyes. She didn’t know why they appealed to her. But she could still feel the way her body flooded with heat when Simone showed her all those whips in the private room that night, describing each sensation they created.The thrill of a whip against your skin… the brush of a flogger… the sweet sting of a riding crop…

A gentle ache grew between Jade’s legs. She closed her eyes, sinking into her seat. Her hand crept down her stomach, over her pants, down to where her thighs met—

The chatter of voices echoed through the parking garage. Jade opened her eyes, glancing at her rearview mirror to see a pair of women stroll by.

Snapping herself out of her trance, Jade tossed the questionnaire onto the passenger seat. But as she started her car and pulled out of the parking lot, her mind raced with thoughts of all the enticing things Simone had to teach her.

CHAPTER 14

It was the moment Simone had been waiting for. No, the moment she had orchestrated. After weeks—months—of negotiations, she had a meeting with Ashton herself to discuss the acquisition of The Ashton Star.

And all she could think about was Jade.

Jade, the moment they’d kissed in her office and she’d dissolved at the touch of Simone’s lips. Jade, in the private room at Club Velvet, entranced by everything around her. Jade, coming apart in her arms, her head tipping back as she pulsed against Simone’s fingers, quivering in orgasmic bliss.

Jade, pledging herself to her, proclaimingI belong to you.

She glanced at Jade in the seat next to her, her laptop in front of her, eager and ready as always.She’d look better at my feet.Simone had told herself she wouldn’t mix business with pleasure, but with every day that passed, the temptation was becoming harder to resist.

Focus.It was bad enough that her meeting with Ashton had been changed to a phone call at the last minute. Simone couldn’t afford for it to be derailed any further.

She turned her attention to the voice echoing through the conference room speaker. It belonged to Ashton’s nephew and her current COO, Evan.

“Thank you again for agreeing to this change of plans,” he said. “Apologies for the late notice.”

“I was looking forward to speaking with Ashton in person, but this will suffice,” Simone said. “When will she be joining us?”

Evan cleared his throat. “Yes, about that. There’s been another change of plans. Ashton is unable to join us today. I will be representing her instead.”

Simone held back a curse. She’d already had countless meetings with Evan and Ashton’s other executives, all of which had been fruitless. If she was going to get her hands on The Ashton Star, she needed to talk to Ashton herself.

“I trust Ashton is well?” Simone asked.

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