Page 42 of High Seduction
Gold. Textiles. Dazzling colours and comfortable leather. It was like watchingHomes Beautiful, international version, only instead of being on the TV it was right freaking there in front of her.
She was a little shell-shocked by the time Tim joined her in the sunroom. An unpretentious name for a room the size of her main floor that was filled with greenery and exotic blooms.
“You comfortable?” Tim grabbed a bottle off the side counter and poured sparkling liquid into two fluted glasses waiting there.
Erin’s jaw snapped up as she fought to find words. “What the hell is going on, Tim?”
He shrugged. “I told you, Matthew and I go back a ways. He’s got money, and I like spending it for him. We get along fine.”
“So Jason isn’t off summoning the police right now?”
Tim shook his head and handed her a glass, the stem cool against her fingers. “Of course not. I’m sure he left the room and immediately phoned Matt to make sure we were on the up-and-up, but seriously. Think about it, Erin. Would anyone really show up out of the blue and announce they were staying for three days if they hadn’t been invited?” He raised a brow. “Right? I mean, that would take more chutzpa than even I’ve got.”
“True.” Erin accepted the glass and sniffed cautiously. “Only you have to admit this is far outside my usual lifestyle.”
“I don’t live this way on a daily basis, either. Makes it more enjoyable when I do.” Tim raised his glass to her in salute. “To three days of luxury and relaxing.”
Their glasses touched, and a crystal click echoed off the walls. Erin could no longer hold back her grin. “To three days of decadence.”
The flash of desire in his eyes promised that their time would be enjoyable for many reasons.
Heat trickled up her spine as Tim strolled through the room, but she answered his casual comments with matching nonchalance.
For the past month he’d done everything he’d said he would. He’d let her be in charge, hadn’t pushed for more in the bedroom than what a typical vanilla couple would enjoy. And he was talented enough that she’d had fun. But—
The look of ecstasy on Alisha’s face only a few hours earlier had changed things. Rocked the world that Erin had been fighting to maintain—a world where she didn’t step outside the very clear boundaries she’d set.
Yet the longing to accept more from Tim was real. While that scared the hell out of her, Erin tucked up her fears and let the other side of her desires escape.
Maybe it was wrong, but for this short while, in a new and somewhat unreal setting, maybe the rules she’d been following so closely for so long could be slightly bent. Maybe, as with Alisha and Devon, there was a place for her to simply take what it was that gave her the most pleasure.
Now she had to work up the courage to let Tim know the rules were temporarily changing.
CHAPTER12
Jason led them up a staircase that could have fit in any royal manor, the wood surfaces polished to a sparkling shine. All the while the man at Erin’s side distracted her more than the opulence glittering around them.
He waited for her to enter the room first before accepting a key from their guide. Tim closed and locked the door silently behind them.
If she’d thought Tim’s condo was over the top, this remote palace was another step up the incredible scale. Only the carpets and leather couches and gilded-framed mirrors didn’t have a chance when she was fixated on something far better. Tim stood at her side, his fingers playing softly with hers as they stopped in the center of the living room.
“Our backpacks look very out of place,” she noted, retreating to the floor-to-ceiling windows.
“Backpacks don’t care.” He grinned. “Come on. You said shower and sleep, so let’s get ourselves a little of that. Jason informed me he’ll send up breakfast, and Matt should be back sometime well before noon.”
“Lovely.” Erin twisted her fingers together before deliberately jerking them apart. Bullshit if she would turn into some wilting flower just because she was about to ask for...
God, am I really going to ask for...?
Tim tilted his head. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
He caught her hands in his, calm and reassurance in his presence. “Trust me. Matthew is a great guy, and we’re not going to be kicked to the curb in the middle of the night. Or staked in our beds, or anything weird.”
Erin took a deep breath. “I trust you.”
She stepped away slowly, his gaze still pinned to her as she separated their fingers. Then she lifted her hands and undid her top button. Pulled the fabric free from her pants.
