Nevaeh was tired, cranky, and out of sorts when she left her apartment the next morning for her meeting with Julian Devereaux. And she wasn’t very well prepared. She hadn’t gone back to the office after she’d decided to quit working for her father, so she had no notes other than the things she’d kept in her head.
And this might not be the best morning for a meeting because all she could think about was Aiden… his kiss… his hands… his embrace… She hated the fact that they’d both agreed to part ways. She knew it was the most sensible thing to do but she ached for him.
That kiss last night had made it impossible for her to do anything other than moon over the man, toss and turn in her bed thinking about him… naked… on top of her. And that
She chewed on her lower lip. Aiden lowered his head and brushed her mouth with his. He wanted to deepen the contact but restraint was needed now. Later when they were alone in his office…“I think I need to hide most of all from you, Aiden.”“Why is that?”“Because you see me in ways that no one else does.” The elevator doors opened before Aiden could respond and his brother stood there in the hallway waiting for them.“We’ll finish this conversation later.”“Oh… Will we?” Nevaeh asked in that sassy way of hers. She was getting herself back from the shock of seeing that photo. He was glad for it. He could deal with the ballsy woman better than the vulnerable one.“I just said we wo
She looked at her watch.“Damn it!” Nevaeh exclaimed slowly. Nevaeh was thirty minutes late for her meeting with Julian Devereaux. She wasn’t exactly sure of what she’d agreed to in Aiden’s office but she knew they’d discuss it further when he came to her house tonight for dinner. She called her housekeeper and informed her she’d have a guest for dinner. Then she stopped in front of the ‘Nevaeh’s Dresser’ corporate offices. Since their earlier meeting at Starbucks had been delayed, Julian had suggested they try for lunch. He was lounging against a low railing that lined the handicap ramp leading to the entrance, cigarette in one hand, cellphone in the other. The wind blew
Aiden was as familiar with the ‘Nevaeh’s Dresser’ organizational chart as he was with his own. He knew all the players in the company and the name Julian Devereaux wasn’t ringing any bells.“We’re checking him out. Seems like that picture of the two of you caused a stir, as well.” He didn’t give a crap about what people thought about him. Aiden had made himself stop caring the day his parents had moved them out of their large family home just off of Main Street and into a mobile home park. It was the same day that the local ‘Nevaeh’s Dresser’ announced record sales and plans to double the size of their store. But he didn’t like the fact that anyone was speculating on what was between him and Nevaeh. What he felt for her was too raw.
Appearances were a tricky thing, Aiden thought as he watched Nevaeh move through the crowded club. Anyone seeing her now would never have guessed at the vulnerability he’d witnessed in her home earlier. He’d ached to draw her into his arms and just hold her but Aiden knew he was just as much to blame for her current troubles. She was incandescent tonight, glowing with a light from within, as she moved among her high-society friends, the groupies who followed the deejay from club to club and the paparazzi that seemed to follow her everywhere she went. Aiden leaned against the wall in the VIP section and just watched her sparkle. He still had absolutely no idea what he was going to do with her other than take her to his bed. He knew that if he wanted her there, tonight, he should be a little more sociable but nightclubs like this left him cold. And pr
Aiden opened his car door and pocketed his keys. He escorted her into his house. As the door closed behind them, he felt a sense of rightness. Nevaeh belonged here. He could talk her into anything on his home turf. But he didn’t want to persuade her to stay. He wanted her as hot for him as he was for her. Aiden led her into the living room with the plasma screen TV on one wall and the tropical fish tank on the other. There was expensive art hanging on the wall that his decorator had purchased and the floor was made of marble he’d had imported from Italy. He didn’t want to acknowledge it but he knew that he’d been working hard his entire life for a moment like this one. And he wanted her to know that he wasn’t some poor kid who’d lost everything and lived on government sub
Nevaeh shifted again in his arms but it was futile. She wasn’t getting closer to him until he decided she was.“I need more, Aiden… I need more of you, more of this…”“Not yet, Neve,” he countered. She realized then that he was playing her. Not in a malicious way but in a... power way. One that made her submissive to him and his desires. He’d give her what she wanted but only on his agenda. She didn’t understand what his agenda was here. But she felt that he did have one. Her heart was pounding… She stepped away and looked at Aiden. His gray eyes were cold and flat. She saw the passion in him in the flush of his skin and the erection straining against the front of his pants. But she saw that he kept a part of himself locked away fr
He relished the sound of their names connected in his mind. He pressed one finger inside her, then added a second finger, pushing deep and finding that spot that would bring her the most pleasure. Aiden leaned down over her, taking her nipple in his mouth again, sucking her deep into his mouth. She was panting, his name falling from her lips in between pleas that made no sense. He drew her out until finally he touched that bud between her legs and brought her to climax.“Oh… Aiden… Oh, God! Yes!” she yelled and grasped his head, holding him to her like she’d never let go. Shivers still rocked her body as she came back into herself. Nevaeh couldn’t believe Aiden was still fully dressed. She shifted on the bed, reaching for him to draw him down to her. 
Nevaeh glanced at the alarm clock, afraid to move in case she woke Aiden. The illuminated dial read 2:30. She had always been a bit of an insomniac. She felt too vulnerable lying naked in his arms. She’d shown him too much of who she really was and now he had the power to hurt her. Really hurt her and she wasn’t sure she trusted him not to. Oh, he wouldn’t do it intentionally. He was too caring to deliberately hurt her but she was still… afraid. Sighing slightly, she tipped her head back, staring at his beard stubbled jaw in the dim light of the moon. The desire to touch him, to explore him now that he was sleeping and not watching her was so powerful… She wanted to memorize all the little details of his body so th