(Indigo Lounge #3) Spiral (14 page)

His senses flooding with anticipation, he watched her pull her hair up and twist it in a bun and contented himself in washing her neck, watching the water slide over her creamy skin. Unable to resist, he cupped her shoulders and bent forward to inhale her intoxicating scent.

Her soft sigh was music to his ears.

“Tell me about the lingerie.”

“When my dad died, I inherited fifty-one per cent of his company. La Carezza specializes in lingerie for a certain type of woman.”

“I can tell,” he teased. She flicked a handful of water in his direction. “Not that sort, thank you very much. Yes, most of my designs are aimed for the sensualist but they’re not kinky or lewd. They’re designed to remind a woman that she’s wearing something special against her skin.”

He shifted a little to the side and plucked her underwear from the side of the tub. Rubbing it between his fingers, he nodded. “This isn’t silk but it feels like it. It feels more like the smoothest, lightest leather. It’s nothing like I’ve picked up in Victoria’s Secret, that’s for sure.”

Shit...nice one, Noah.
He watched her closely and breathed a sigh of relief when she didn’t react to his tactless comment.

Leia congratulated herself on keeping a straight face at the thought of Noah buying underwear for another woman but it was damned hard not to react to the twinge in her chest.

Clearing her throat she struggled to stay on subject aware that those blue eyes were fixed on her face. “It’s a fabric I had specially developed. It warms the skin especially when the woman is aroused.”

His eyes widened. “How the hell can you tell that?”

“Nanotech. This is one of the prototypes we’re testing. I’m working with engineers to iron out a few kinks before we go into full production.”

A wide grin slashed his lips. “You realize you’ve just divulged a trade secret? What’s going to stop me from taking your little panties here and selling them to the highest bidder?”

“Because I—” She stopped herself just in time.
I trust you
wasn’t something she’d intended to blurt out to a man she’d only just met. Although on some level she did.

He was the first man she’d trusted her body with in five years. Even though on some level he spelled danger for her, she’d taken the risk and reached out with what was broken and damaged inside her. But wherever that tiny bud of faith had sprung from and regardless of him saying he didn’t do light, she didn’t think a man like Noah King was ready to hear the silly utterings of a wounded soul. “Because you’ll never get it out in time. It’s new technology. It reacts to special chemicals in the woman’s body.

“So when you’re turned on it gets even silkier?” he asked.

“How do you know?”

“When I took it off you it felt like silk. Now it feels more like warm leather.”

“Yes. That’s the way it works.”

He brought it to his nose and sniffed.

“Noah!” She tried to grab it from him.

Laughing, he held it out of reach. “Sorry, sweetheart, I’m keeping this one. How many more of these have you got?”

His avid interest made her blush. Placing the panties out of her reach, he brushed his knuckled down her cheek. “How many, Leia?”

“A good selection.”

He replaced his knuckle with his mouth and she shivered, fresh waves of need rolling through her body.

“I’m so fucking glad you’re spending the week with me,” he breathed into her ear.

“Why?”

“Because the thought that you could be showing someone else your amazing body drives me nuts.”

“You would never have known what I looked like underneath.”

His chuckle was dark and decadent. “That’s what you think. I’ve seen you move without your underwear. It’s different from when you’re wearing them. Both are sexier than is legally recommended for any man’s blood pressure but I can tell the difference now. And I look forward to seeing you giving me a first class, hands-on demonstration of your talent.” He pulled her down, kissed her for a good long while before he released her. Tucking her against him, he trailed his fingers over the shaved area of her scalp. She trembled, getting as much pleasure from his touch as he seemed to derive from touching her there.

They stayed silent for several minutes, absorbing the sensations that came with exploring one another.

“So you’re a CEO of a successful company at almost twenty-three?”

She shook her head. “I elected not to take the CEO spot until I was twenty-five so I’m not in charge of the day-to-day running of La Carezza. I have a board of directors who run things. I vote on major decisions as and when it’s needed.” She thought of the papers Warren had sent over yesterday that needed her signature. Then she thought of Warren and what he’d think of what was happening here. She imagined his dark hazel eyes flickering with the barest hint of disappointment at letting her trust someone she’d only just met—

“I think it’s my turn to get pissed that you’ve drifted off.”

She laughed but it sounded forced even to her own ears. “I wasn’t pissed earlier.”

“Oh, really? Your cute nose was pointed in the air in a way that would make the royal family proud, and your fists were clenched. If I’d been closer I think you would’ve sucker-punched me.”

“Okay. Fine. I was a little...unsettled at the thought that you were thinking of someone else right after giving me—” She stopped and stared down into the swirling water.

“Giving you what?” he murmured in her ear.

“Right after giving me the best orgasm in my life,” she whispered.