Page 395 of Tormented Billionaire Romance Series

I leapt up from the couch, my nerves on sudden alert. The apartment may have been ready for Elijah, even though I wasn’t planning on him today. Now,Ihad to be prepared, too. I ran into the bedroom and checked my hair in the mirror, deciding I looked all right. I decided not to put on any makeup or perfume. He should see me the way I most naturally was, the way that I was when I came to work, except that I had on my ordinary Saturday afternoon clothes, just a blouse and jeans and slippers. I decided to look as if I didn’t have any expectations.

With that decision made, I went to the kitchen to check what I had to drink. I should be able to offer the boss some basic hospitality. In the fridge were a couple of big bottles of iced tea, one with lemon, one with raspberry. I checked the ice trays in the freezer. They were full. Satisfied with that, I went to the cupboard and got out a couple of nice glasses and a tray, and took them into the living room and put them on the coffee table.

I have drinks ready,I texted him.Let me know when you’re almost here.

A thumbs-up sign from Elijah came in response.

My heart felt like a jumping frog. That wouldn’t do. I shouldn’t act as if there were anything to be nervous about. He wasn’t coming to inspect my home. He was coming to visit. His visit was about the two of us just enjoying each other’s company.

I sat on the couch, with the glasses ready on the coffee table in front of me, and kept myself calm while I waited.

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When Elijah showed up at my door upon my ringing him up from downstairs, I saw him in a way I’d never seen him before. He was no more dressed for work than I was, and I knew it was silly to expect him to be in his usual business suit and tie on a Saturday afternoon. Neither of us was working today.

He looked like a model in designer casual clothing, such as you’d see in an issue ofGentlemen’s Quarterly.His clothes — a knit pullover sweater, a pair of Dockers slacks, a pair of well-polished loafers — were impeccable, but not for the office.

So help me, this guy was not capable of looking anything less than sexy.

“Hi, Corinne,” he said, as casually as he looked.

“Come in, Elijah,” I replied, ushering him into my apartment.

I shut the door behind him, and there we were, alone together, in my place, just the two of us. In private, behind a closed door.

“Would you like a glass of iced tea?” I asked him.

“Sure,” he said.

But, I seemed to be rooted to the spot, staring into his handsomeness and the unsettlingly cool hotness of his eyes.

Elijah reached out with one hand, and I still didn’t move — not even when he gently sifted his fingers through my hair. All I did was stand there with my heart skipping and let him.

Half-whispering, I said, “I was…going to get some tea…”

“I know,” he said, still softly feeling my hair. He took a step closer, and still I stayed right where I was and didn’t move. Elijah, however, did move. He came closer still, bringing the masculine beauty of that face close to mine, letting me feel his breath on my own face. I thought I would just melt into a puddle right there. He brought his lips to mine and gently let our lips touch.

It was just a tender meeting of the lips, but it was enough to make both of us forget about any refreshments. I dared to touch Elijah’s face. He answered by kissing me a little harder, a little more intently. My breath trembled. As if to steady and reassure me, he put one arm around me.

I returned his kiss, with the same intent as he’d shown in kissing me. From that point, neither of us wanted to turn back. I let him take me completely in his arms and put both arms around him. Our lips opened a bit, deepening the kiss. The tip of Elijah’s tongue danced at the opening of my mouth. He leaned into the kiss a little more and I answered him, kissing him back a little harder, hard enough to encourage him not to stop.

The kiss lingered. Then, with me in his arms and our faces hovering close together, Elijah said, “Want to go sit down?”

“Yes,” I said. And, hand in hand, we went over to the couch.

Our lips hardly left each other, one kiss melting into the next, his tongue probing more into my mouth. Our breath was now hot on each other’s cheeks and chin.

Elijah’s hands and mine roamed over each other’s body, and I got my first feel of what I’d admired in the gym. The muscles of his shoulders, back, and chest, even under his sweater, were so cut, so hard, so full of manly power. I began to moan softly into his kisses. He moaned softly back.

He leaned back against one arm of the sofa and pulled me down on top of him and into another burning kiss. His hands moved down my shoulders to the middle of my back and lingered there as if searching for something. The clasp of my bra, perhaps? My heart skipped a little more at the thought. Then his hands moved a little lower.How far down would they go? Would he move down enough to feel my bottom?

He broke from our kissing and lifted my face up to look into my eyes. “Corinne?”

“Yes?”

“I want to ask you something.”

“What?”

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