Free Shades of Pleasure: Five Stories of Domination and Submission by Tawny Taylor

and ten times more confused
than she’d been the night before. She ached to tell Kyler everything, including
what Matt was holding over her head, and why she was so desperate to hold onto
her job. But there were some secrets she simply couldn’t tell anyone,
especially people from work.
    Only Ashley knew, and that was because they’d been friends
for so long.
    She showered and donned the fluffy white robe Kyler had
given her last night. There was a knock at the door, just as she’d exited the
attached bathroom. A towel wrapped around her long hair, she padded barefoot
across the world’s softest carpet to open the door.
    Kyler.
    Her heart did a weird little hop in her chest. “Hi.”
    “Good morning.” His gaze swept down her body then back up.
“Do you need a little longer?”
    “Just a few minutes. Sorry, I didn’t realize we were on a
schedule. I never sleep in this late.”
    “It’s okay.” He smiled and her heart did another lurch in
her chest. It was the oddest sensation. Strange and yet kind of good too.
“Whenever you’re ready, come on down for breakfast.”
    “Will do. Thanks.” She wanted to say more, but she didn’t.
She just waited for him to turn away and then shut the door.
    Anxious to get downstairs, she rushed to dress, throwing on
yesterday’s clothes—sans the used underwear—and hurried downstairs. She found
him in the kitchen, looking all domestic, stirring something in a huge frying
pan on the stove.
    Whatever it was, it smelled amazing.
    Talk about amazing, he was wearing a pair of sweats and a
snug tank top that provided her very first view of bare arms and shoulders.
    Droooool!
    “What are you cooking there?” she asked, her gaze focused on
his narrow waist. She could imagine herself smoothing her hands around his
sides, and tucking herself against his back. Instead, she stopped at the raised
counter and slipped into a bar stool.
    “It’s my own creation. Egg beaters, vegi sausage, and
cheese, onions and peppers. Would you like to try some? Or can I make you
something else?”
    Elena’s mouth was watering, and she realized just how
starving she was. It seemed her jittery nerves weren’t going to stand in the
way of eating this morning. “If that concoction tastes as great as it smells,
you may need to make another batch. I might eat it all.”
    He chuckled. What a great sound it was. She could listen to
him do that for hours.
    He served up two plates, poured a couple of glasses of
orange juice, set the newspaper between their plates and joined her at the bar.
Such a gentleman, he didn’t take a bite until she did.
    Was this guy for real?
    She stared at the Homes section of the paper as she ate,
forced herself to pretend he wasn’t there, just to get something solid in her
stomach. She had a feeling she was going to need it.
    Kyler seemed to respect her need for a little bit of quiet.
He sat silent beside her, eating, reading the financial section. Just as she
took her last bite, he folded the paper and cleared his throat. “Now that we’re
both rested—and full—I want to talk to you about Becker.”
    She pushed her empty plate forward and set her elbows on the
hard countertop. She flattened her hands on the cool surface. “Yeah.”
    If only she were there for a different reason, like on a
date. This sucked.
    “I want to ask you again to tell me what Becker’s holding
over your head.”
    Staring at the black stone, the flecks of brown and gold,
she shook her head. “It doesn’t matter.” A cordless phone sat within reach. She
picked it up, weighed it in her hand, flipped it over and stared at the glowing
keypad.
    She heard him sigh heavily.
    He gently took the phone from her and set it on the counter.
“I’m trying to find a way to handle this situation so that neither of us gets
hurt in the process. But if you don’t tell me, I can’t guarantee to do that.”
    How she wished he could handle Becker without her getting in
the middle.
    She glanced up at him,