All Through the Night (28 page)

Her lips parted at his husky tone, and her big eyes stared up at him. “I do?”

He wrapped that silky tendril around his finger and rubbed it with his thumb. “Hmmm. It’s almost the exact same shade as your eyes.”

Her laugh got carried off on the wind. “You mean plain old brown?”

“There’s nothing plain about you, Asia, especially your coloring.” They had reached her car, and he opened her door for her. He saw her surprise at the gentlemanly gesture, and it pleased him. “I’ll see you at work tomorrow?”

“I’ll be there.”

Pretending to be much struck, Cameron said, “I just realized. You didn’t buy anything. I hope my presence didn’t inhibit you?”

Her small nose went into the air. “Not at all. I only wanted to see what they had.”

He couldn’t resist teasing her. “You didn’t find anything you liked, huh?”

Those dark mysterious eyes of hers stared at him, and she said, “I found you, now didn’t I?”

Cameron stepped back, stunned and so horny his stomach cramped.

She smiled with triumph. “Tomorrow, Cameron.”

He watched her drive away. The next two days would be torture, waiting to get her in his bed, open to him, willing. He shook with need, then glanced down at the bag in his hand.

He’d use the time until then to study up on this kinky preference of hers, just to make sure he got it right.

That thought had him grinning. Were there rules to spanking? A time frame to follow? Did you jump right into it, or ease the way? Did the spanking follow the sex, or was it a form of foreplay?

He didn’t know, but he’d sure as hell find out.

He shivered from a particularly harsh blast of icy wind, and realized he’d barely noticed the cold while Asia was close to him. Now that she’d left, he felt frozen. He hurried to his own car.

He had some studying to do.

Asia crawled into bed that night and pulled the thick covers to her chin. The sheets were icy cold, making her shiver, and she curled into a tight ball. It had been so very long since she’d felt a large male body in bed beside her, sharing warmth and comfort.

Sharing pleasure.

During her marriage, she’d learned to dread the nights her husband reached for her. Lovemaking had been tedious at best, uncomfortable and embarrassing at worst. His preferences at trying anything and everything—including discipline—whether she enjoyed it or not, had worn her down. He’d told her it was necessary, that she wasn’t exciting enough, her body not sexy enough, to get him aroused without the added elements. After a while she’d begun to believe him, and it had taken a lot for her to finally realize he was the one with the problems, not her.

In the process, she’d gotten completely turned off sex. But she wasn’t an idiot. She knew it wasn’t always like that.

She didn’t think it’d be like that with Cameron.

Thinking his name brought an image of him to mind. She rolled to her back and closed her eyes. Cameron, with his straight black hair. Not as straight or as black as Erica’s, but in many ways more appealing, at least to her.

His hair had a chestnut cast to it in the light. And though she knew he was only in his early thirties, a bit of silver showed in his sideburns. His hair was a little too long at the nape, as if regular haircuts weren’t high on his list of priorities. And judging by how often it was tousled, he didn’t bother much with combs, either. She imagined him showering, shaving, combing his hair—and ending his personal grooming right there. She smiled.

The mental picture of him in the shower lingered, but his suits were so concealing, she could only guess at his physique. He was tall, lean in the middle, and his feet and hands were large. Beyond that, she didn’t know.

She liked his eyes best. The many times when they’d spoken, his vivid blue eyes had been very direct. He tended to focus on her with a lot of intensity.

She shivered, but it wasn’t from cold.

So many times her mind had wandered while chatting with him. Her heart would race, her skin would flush. She’d thought him dangerous to her, a threat to her independence, and she’d deliberately kept their association as casual, as businesslike, as possible.

But now she’d sought him out.

Would his eyes look that intense, hot from within, when he made love with her? That alone would be nice, she decided, remembering how her husband had always looked… distant from her. He’d treated her like nothing more than a convenient body, using her to gain his own pleasure.

Cameron would be aware of her, she was sure.

Was he at home right now, watching that risque movie? Was he excited? Hard?

Her own soft groan sounded in the silence of her empty bedroom. Rolling to her side, she looked out the window. Snowflakes fell steadily, making patterns on the dark window. She could just make out the faint glow of colored Christmas lights on the house across the street.

Cameron would be alone for Christmas, just like her.

Her heart gave a funny little thump, sort of a poignant pain. The holidays were so lonely, so sad. If she and Cameron were together…

No! She wanted this one night of sex, but that was all. She didn’t want or need another relationship, and sharing a holiday, especially one as emotional as Christmas, would definitely be a commitment of sorts. Wouldn’t it?

She shook her head. Her independence was important to her, and she did just fine on her own. A steady relationship would intrude on that.

Was Cameron watching the movie? Was he thinking of her?

Disturbed by her own conflicting, changing thoughts, she sat up abruptly and turned on the light. Curiosity swamped her, made her body hot and tingly. She reached for the phone and dialed the operator. Cameron was too new to the area to be in the phone book, but the operator had a listing for him.

Asia clutched the phone, daring herself to call him, to ask him… what? If he was pleasuring himself? She imagined what that would entail and sensation exploded, like a tide of moist warmth, making her breath catch. She could easily visualize his large strong hand wrapped around his erection. She could see his beautiful blue eyes vague with lust, his hard jaw clenched, thighs and abdomen tensed as he stroked faster and faster…

She gasped with the image, feeling her own measure of burning excitement. Shaking, breathing too hard and fast, she bit her lip and dialed the number.

Cameron’s sleep-rough voice answered on the third ring. “Hello?”

Asia froze. Oh, God, he’d been
sleeping
, not indulging in erotic daydreams or self-pleasure! Talk about missing the mark.

Her mouth opened but nothing came out. She’d awakened him when she didn’t have a legitimate reason for calling.

“Hello?” he said again, this time with some impatience.

Asia slammed down the phone. Her heart galloped hard enough to hurt her ribs, and her stomach felt funny, kind of tight and sweet. In a rush she turned the light back off and slid under the covers, even pulling them over her head.

Cameron O’Reilly.

He turned her on, no doubt about it. Now if she could just not make a fool of herself, everything might go smoothly.

Cameron stared at the phone. Moving to one elbow he switched on the lamp at his bedside and checked the Caller I.D.
Asia Michaels
. A small curious smile tipped his mouth. There surely weren’t two women in all of Cuther with that particular unique name.

She’d called him—then chickened out.

What had she wanted?

Naked, he eased back against the pillows, plenty warm now, thank you very much.

Very slowly, the smile turned into a toothy grin. Oh, he knew what she wanted, he reminded himself. She wanted sex. She wanted kink.

She wanted him.

Arms crossed behind his head, Cameron glanced at the tape sitting on his dresser across the room. He hadn’t watched it yet. Because of what he’d overheard in the lounge, he hadn’t gotten much work done the rest of the day. He’d been too distracted with thoughts of Asia and how he’d make love to her.

His preoccupation on the job meant he’d had to bring several files home to finish on his personal computer. By the time he was done, his eyes were gritty and he’d wanted only a few hours’ sleep.

Now he only wanted Asia.

He wasn’t at all sure he’d be able to wait until Friday. He needed to taste her before that, just to tide him over.

Soon, he promised himself. Very soon.

Chapter Three

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“Cameron O’Reilly?” Erica repeated in disbelief, and fanned her face dramatically. “What a hunk!”

“You think?” Asia chewed her bottom lip.
She
thought him sexy as sin, especially now, but did other women think it too? “I mean, I admit I was surprised. He’s just such a… suit.”

Erica snorted. “Honey, all men are the same, white collar and blue collar alike. They’re all sex addicts.”

“I agree,” Becky said. “O’Reilly is hot.”

“You been checking him out?” Erica asked in some surprise.

“I’m not blind”—Becky sniffed with mock indignation—“if that’s what you mean.”

They all chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind getting to know him better myself,” Erica teased. “But he’s never really noticed me. When I talk to him, he’s polite, but always businesslike.”

Asia fiddled with her coffee stirrer, then admitted, “We’ve spoken several times.” She glanced up, then away. “At length.”

“Ah.” Erica grinned. “Do tell.”

She shrugged. “He sort of… sought me out. He comes to my office, hangs around a bit, or catches me in the halls, or right after meetings. I… I like him, but I got the feeling he wanted to get more personal, so I… brushed him off.”

“Are you nuts?”

Asia was sort of wondering that same thing herself, but for different reasons. “I just couldn’t see starting something that likely wouldn’t go anywhere.”

Becky touched her hand. “You were afraid he wouldn’t follow up?”

That nettled her new independent streak. “Ha! I wouldn’t want him to. It’s more likely that
I
wouldn’t follow up.”

Erica grinned. “That right?”

“Yes.” And then, “Why is it always the woman who’s supposed to sit around and wait for a damn phone call?”

Erica said, “Amen, sister. You’ll get no argument from me. That’s why even on dates, I buy my own meals, and I refuse flowers or gifts. If I want something, I can get it for myself. I don’t
need
a guy. But sometimes I want one. So I go on
my
schedule, not his.”

“Sounds to me,” Becky said, “that you both like playing hard to get.”

“No playing to it,” Erica corrected. “I
am
hard to get.”

Asia chuckled. She wasn’t playing, either, though her motivation differed from Erica’s. “Most of the guys here understand that I’m not interested, that it’s a waste of time to want more from me than casual conversation.”

Erica nodded knowingly. “But Cameron was new, so he didn’t know, and he’s been after you?”

“I figured he’d find out soon enough and leave me alone.”

“But he didn’t?”

She shook her head. “Whenever we’re in the same room together, he watches me, and he smiles if our gazes meet.”
And what a smile
, she thought privately,
enough to melt a woman’s bones
, so, of course it was hell on her reserve.

“And now you know he has kinky sexual preferences,” Erica pointed out with a sinner’s grin.

“Now I know,” Asia corrected, “that he has a healthy outlet. Honest, all the documentation I read said that what one fantasizes isn’t generally what one wants in a real-life situation, which is why it’s strictly a fantasy. Fantasies are safe. They are not, however, something we’d ever really try or even want to try.”

“I used to think about getting stranded on a desert island with three hunks,” Erica mused aloud. “None of us had clothes.”

Asia and Becky snickered.

“But granted, I like modern luxuries too much to want to rough it just for male attention. Besides, I imagine one day on an island is all it’d take for me to start looking pretty haggard. No lotion, no scented shampoo, no blow dryer…”

“No birth control,” Becky pointed out.

“And three men fighting for my body? That could get ugly.”

“Maybe they’d just share,” Asia suggested.

Erica shivered. “To tell you the truth, it’s fine as a fantasy, but the idea of three naked sweaty guys bumping up against one another with me in the middle just sort of ruins the fantasy of them being there for
me
.”