Page 35 of Veiled Fantasies

He smiled and paused with his hands frozen over the keyboard. The harsh noon light filtered through the sheer curtain behind him, bathing his fair hair in gold. Her eyes swept the desk. A small gap in his sea of paperwork held a single water glass. Then she caught his eyes, fixed right on her. Glad eyes. Delighted even. Erik pushed himself up from the chair and came to her with a knock-out kiss she was totally unprepared for.

A+ for the man in the white button-down shirt and…boxer shorts?

She giggled. What happened to the slacks?

“I thought this office had a dress code,” she teased, fingering the waistband of his boxers as he tugged her close.

His hands slid down, dipping just below her hips. “I need about ten minutes to finish up,” he whispered between kisses.

“Ten,” she agreed, her mental stop watch already ticking.

He worked her lips in a final kiss. “Nine…”

“Eight.” Her voice slowed, stretching the moment.

“Seven,” Erik breathed.

He was so close, so warm.

“Six.” Why was life always a countdown?

Five went into overtime as Erik’s body went flush with hers, lining up comfortably, his hands finding the perfect grooves.

Four was heated, hands smoothing her back in curvy patterns that left her breathless for more.

Where three, two, and one went, she couldn’t tell. It was all one long kiss now. They were two musical instruments tuning up for a duet.Piano, adagio.Soft and slow.

Finally, her slow-motion clock sounded zero. “What about work?”

“First things first,” he mumbled, lips unwilling to break from hers.

Fine with her.

When Erik ducked to kiss her throat, she caught a glimpse of herself in the full-length mirror over his shoulder. The view consisted of his broad back with happy bits of Jill sticking out around the edges. Her head and arms wrapped around his torso. Her legs, ready to wrap around him, too.

She was mesmerized. She’d never been one to linger in front of mirrors because it was too easy to spot her flaws. Hair, nose, clothes—none of them ever quite what she wished they might be. But this?

“What?” Erik murmured, seeing her look past him.

Caught red-handed. “I like seeing us together,” she mumbled, nodding toward the mirror.

He turned for a peek at the reflection, bouncing a smile to her through it before going back to her neck. A master at his craft, concentrated.

Or so she thought. She was still admiring the view when Erik paused and raised his head with a mischievous look. Now what did he think he was up to?

He pulled free and half circled her so that she was in front, facing the mirror. “Now we share the view,” he whispered, angling his eyes to their reflection as he massaged her neck with slow kisses.

If that’s all he’d done, she might have managed to stay in control. But his right hand began combing through her hair, loosening her braid.Andantenow; a little faster, from the nape of her neck and along her scalp. He seemed to savor every inch. She held her breath for what might come next.

His left hand slid down her body, taunting her. Where might it stop? He brushed the sides of her breast then followed the gentle curve to her hip. There, maybe? His eyes teased hers in the mirror. No, back up. Raising her shirt as he did it, he eased it off. She alternated between opening and shutting her eyes, catching furtive glimpses of herself quivering as he discarded her bra.

She barely recognized herself. Was it really her? The woman in the mirror looked confident, dreamy, even sexy. She had to be to attract this incredible man who was doing such unbelievable things to her body. Cupping her breasts with sure hands, he circled her nipples with this thumbs until they strained for more.

The wall of mirrors created a dance hall. Any minute now and she’d be up on her toes, twirling in his arms. She could do anything, the mirrors promised, and all of it would be perfect. With this partner, even she could approach perfection.

Another kiss, and he worked her pants off, leaving her completely exposed. His warm bulk lent her newfound confidence and she looked on, voyeur to her own pleasure. She watched herself stretch long like a cat, swaying her hips left, then right. Her shoulders shifted with his touch. All the parts of her body that she’d always wished to be different suddenly seemed just right.

What was the word? Oh, yes. Brazen.

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