LEATHER AND LACE (BAD BOYS & GOOD GIRLS, #1) (10 page)

“What things? Specifically. You entering my club. Or us.”

“This was supposed to be a tour. Nothing more.”

“And you got one. Nothing we did was something you opposed. Not everything is black and white, Mia. We’re into each other and so what. It’s not like I tried to fuck you in the produce section of Save Mart. Is that what this is about?” he demanded, refusing to let her shrink away from him.

She shook her head. “It’s still out in the open.”

“I said I’d give you a tour and look around, sweetheart. This is a sex club, not a goddamn bakery.”

She glared right back. “I didn’t expect to get a sample!”

“No? Strange, you sure seemed to like the menu offered up.” He held her, roughly pulling her against him. The points on her arm where his fingers touched her tingled.

“Please,” she whispered.
So much for being a professional!

“
Please
what?” He stared down at her and in the red light she noticed his dilated pupils made his sapphire blue eyes almost flash violet in the hall lighting.

Not helping!
But Christ, if she could look away, or stop him when he tugged her closer, she might have a fighting chance to pull herself together.

No such luck.

“I just need...”

“You’re asking for something and I bet you have no idea what it is. Being in a place like my club takes courage. Be honest with me and yourself. You’re not being truthful. And that’s the only problem we’ve got.”

Every cell in her body ached to tell him he was right. Beg him to do more than talk to her. How could she help other women overcome their fears, if she was flying higher than a kite, threatening to crash and burn? And all she had to do was tell Brandon that he turned her on like no other! Except this wasn’t about her need for sexual gratification.
Hello?

This was her grad project.

She’d let him get to her, so much so that her body hummed and her plans melted. Her knees wobbled and would have unhinged if he removed his hands from her. She inhaled a deep, cleansing breath.

“Brandon, it’s not that simple.” She struggled to gather her thoughts. Even now, well aware he was as dangerous as an addictive drug, she was ready to climb on top of him and finish what they’d started.

“I’m not letting you go without an explanation,” he assured her, and she believed him. He had the power to command her. His words and body, his expressions, everything about him delivered her from rational thinking into the world of hot and wild and now.

She was a goner if she didn’t reel in her out of control attraction to him.

“Okay. I swear at first I thought you knew. It’s not like I could shout out my reasons for being here. And I tried to tell you...only you were so cocky. Not that your attitude and behavior are an excuse for mine.” Oh crap. She was rambling. “I wanted to tell you.”

“Do you realize you’ve yet to answer my goddamn question? Can’t you just come right out and tell me how much of what Pen said is true?” He stared down at her with his inexorable expression that delved inside her core deep.

A fair question, only she didn’t have the answer.

Only a half-assed rationalization that she’d gotten lost in a way that felt liberating. If it weren’t for how he worked her over with his provocative skills she might be on track with her research, but blind to her own needs. In minutes Brandon proved he was more than a hard-bodied businessman. He said he could read her, and he was right.

He’d blown apart her ideas, her goals. “I never expected to come here tonight and let you grind...”
Grind your massive hard-on against my ass
.

“But I did. You liked it. Do you need a reminder?” He cupped her face and kissed her.

Holy hell.
Never had she met a man like McLemore.

He was all fire and promised to fulfill her wildest fantasies.

When their mouths parted, she rasped, “That’ll do.”

Bowing her head against his shoulder, she felt more confused than before. Things she’d kept bottled up refused to remain locked away after kissing Brandon. She hadn’t felt this shaken since Beau had dropped the bomb that he’d proposed to another woman.

God, she hadn’t seen him since spring. Almost a year ago, she’d listened to Beau lay down a line of bull a mile long. At first, she’d blamed herself for being blind in dating a two-timing jerk. She’d demanded to know if the other woman realized he’d basically screwed them both over. Beau had laughed in her face, relaying his fiancée was a woman he’d previously dated, and she knew the score. He’d justified himself by telling her,
“Love’s got nothing to do with marrying. This is a lifetime contract and her family has connections in Houston. Besides, honeybunch, you just aren’t the marrying kind—not with the things you’re into. Hanging out with whores and addicts—you can’t escape what you were meant for.”

She’d stormed at Beau, letting her temper get the best of her. He’d judged her based on her grad school internship at a women’s shelter. He also assured her that he’d be willing to screw her on the side—same as before—and made her a sickening offer:
“I have business associates and they already said they’d like to meet you. These men are important business contacts, looking for a good time. They’re willing to cut me a deal.”

In disbelief, she’d listened to him assure her the executives from the bank were into edgy stuff—some were his relatives! He’d informed her like it was a great opportunity.
“These men pay top dollar for a woman like you. Nice hotels, dinner and a couple of hours of fun. We both win, sugar pie. What you’re into is hardly suitable for a respectable woman.”

She’d slapped Beau’s face. And it was like something had snapped in him and he backhanded her. From bad, it got worse. He’d relayed obscene suggestions of what he intended to do to her. He’d only stopped when she’d picked up a knife and threatened to call the cops. His last words to her:
“Typical move for a piece of ass.”

That was the last time she’d seen him. She’d shied away from dating since that ugly disaster of a breakup, preferring to concentrate on her education. Something no man could take away. She’d submerged herself in grad school, and kept her bedroom persona locked away.

Only now, she was both bewildered and aroused by Brandon, but also in need of graduating. Inside this hallway, and under the glowing red light with this man, she felt an affinity. Like he wouldn’t ever judge her in bed. Their irresistible seismic connection excited and scared her.

How could she find another innovative project for this semester? One that would get her the recognition she needed to snag a top job in a large city. This project was her ticket out of Paris and away from small-minded people. If she ran out that door and left the premises, she’d never have a second chance.

“What Mr. Penrose said was correct.” She turned up her face and met Brandon’s unwavering stare. “It’s true. I’m collecting information. That’s what I’m doing here.”

He pushed off from her, releasing his hold on her hips, and narrowed his eyes. “Are you telling me this is some sort of game?”

She crossed her arms over her chest, which under his scorching glare felt all too naked. “Not a game. Never.”

“But you just said you’re only here to see how things are done and gather research. Did I miss something?”

“Things didn’t go as I planned. I graduate in May. This is part of my master’s degree thesis. Kissing you was a big mistake. Huge. Awful.” His features tensed.
Oh shit
. She just made it seem like kissing him sucked. She closed her eyes. This was coming out wrong. “I didn’t mean that kissing you was bad—you’re making this difficult to explain.”

“Maybe you’ll feel otherwise with one of the studs down the hall. Any one of them can show you a real good time.” His voice cut through her like a blade and she opened her eyes. He backed up, staring at her with an intense ferocity this time. “Seeing how you only have a matter of months, why settle for one flavor? Hell girl, you might want to try a ride on every man in the place.”

He was being mean for some reason and she stepped forward, unable to keep from defending herself. “You don’t have a clue about me.”

His eyes roved pointedly over her body. “Don’t I? Sugar, I know plenty of women just like you.”

He better not imply she was some sort of tramp. “Don’t you dare pretend to know the tiniest thing about me. You don’t even know my whole name!”

“Doesn’t really matter.” He laughed short and bitterly, towering over her. “I’m not the one kissing you to see how it feels, just so I can fill out a report.”

“Excuse me, if I was mistaken about your intent.” She couldn’t extinguish the fire taking hold of her temper. “Silly me, I thought you were only interested in me for a
night
. What’d you mean when you said ‘
an hour would do’
?”

“Don’t twist my words,” he growled.

“I’m not. Seems like you’re the one trying to pretend as if what you had in mind was supposed to really mean something lasting.”

“I guess from your vantage point you’ve got me and this place all figured out.” He closed the distance that separated them, crowding her body with his larger, virile one, and instinctively she moved back until she was flush with the wall.

Caught between a rock-hard body and the wall, she realized her mistake and just as fast, she straightened, coming up onto her tiptoes. “Don’t waste your dom tactics on me. I’m not interested in what you’re serving up.”

“Oh no?” He placed his hands on either side of her head, caging her between his sculpted arms. “Since you’re the one keeping score, correct me, but I didn’t hear you complaining. Not when you were watching the windows. Or when I put my hands on your body. Or even when you ground your pretty little ass against my cock. Not one goddamn word about stopping or not being turned on. We both know—” He bent his head and whispered against her ear, “that you were about to come in your panties. I bet if I put my finger inside that pussy of yours, it would be wet, warm, and ready to be fucked senseless. So don’t lie to me,
little researcher
.”

His words lit a fire in her, and her temper enflamed her from the inside out. She began to shake, ramping up well past angry. The beat of her heart thudded in her temples. The space around them condensed into a sweltering inferno as she stared up at his gorgeous face.

God, she wasn’t about to let him have the last word. “I wanted to see down the hall and you weren’t supposed to... I didn’t expect... I’m collecting information... Data. For a report. It wasn’t my intention... to like what we did!”

To her horror, her quivering words tripped out of her mouth like blocks of wood. Her voiced tightened as her thoughts unraveled. She couldn’t finish. She lifted her trembling fingers and swiped a strand of hair behind her ear. How she hated her inability to talk when she got to the state of choking frustration. Inside her body it felt like a festering ball of broiling heat torched her nerves as she stood there silent and infuriated, glaring up into Brandon’s face.

“
Data
? Is that what you want? And here I thought you were just teasing me.” He raked his eyes down her body and a smug smile tugged at his lips. “Then sugar, let’s have at it. Let me show you how I can go the distance and have you screaming my name in less than ten minutes. If you’re pressed for time, five minutes would work with the things I know a woman like you prefers.”

Now, he’d done it! From muted vexation, she seethed, so enraged even her hair felt on fire. She no longer cared what he or anyone thought. “
A woman like me?
” She took a deep breath as she jerked away from the wall.

“Yeah, Mia. A woman like you,” he growled low, his piercing eyes undressing her.

“Can you stare any harder? I’m. Up. Here.” She jabbed him in the chest, punctuating each word. “Cowboy, you haven’t encountered anyone like me before, so don’t even pretend you could keep up.”

She drove her palms into his chest. It was either that or her hips. Didn’t matter. Her attempt at shoving him was a total joke. Under her hands, the muscular contours of his pecs didn’t yield but flexed, sensually provoking, utterly tempting.

They stood frozen, his heart thudding against her palms and their breathing coming out in gulps. The heat of his body permeated the space around her and she silently groaned. What in the heck would he look like without that shirt?

Dammit!
Her rogue brain was seriously demented if she couldn’t keep the thread of his insulting words in her grasp. “Whatever you might think you know about me, it’s all wrong.”

“Don’t think so. I got it right about you from the get go.” He backed away from her and she let her arms drop until her hands were safely against her sides. He stared down at her, displeasure written all over his face. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s timing. Mine is for shit and I can see you’re all talk. Probably a damn good skill for research.”

“Oh and how would you know?”

“Mia, let me set you straight on your assumptions. Just because I wear a Stetson and boots, and spend countless hours sweatin’ buckets in a saddle, don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m your average shit-kicker. Darlin’, I’ve got a college degree same as you, only I didn’t have to kiss anyone to earn it.” He punched in a code and propped open the side exit door. “The parking lot is right outside.”

Cool winter air entered the hall, swirling the ends of her hair. That’s the only part of her that outwardly moved. Stunned, she gaped at him as he strode down a narrow hall. He turned to tip his hat in her direction before he opened a door and stepped through the doorway. She expected a man with such a biting temper to slam the door, but he didn’t.

Her last vision of him was his profile as he shook his gorgeous head and the muscle along his jaw twitched. He was attempting to control himself. But why did this even matter to a man like him?
Wasn’t this just all sex and BDSM scenes anyway?

A resounding
NO!
reverberated in her head. Questions bloomed in her researcher mind, but right now, those were drowned out by the river of raw sensation racing in her blood. Her heart didn’t just pound, it crashed, and every beat thundered against her ribcage as she stood in the dim hall, her body and brain at odds with each other. What was it about Brandon that prompted in her a hedonistic desire to free fall when her mind demanded a backup plan?