Free Red by Bianca D'Arc

lot easier than she’d have guessed.
    “Honey, I knew from the moment I saw you in that bathrobe that Deke was going to have my head on a pike. I’ll give you all you want and more. Anytime. Anywhere.” He claimed her lips one more time, but this kiss was different. It was less explosive but just as passionate, only in a different way. It was more deliberate. More like a claiming than just a mere kiss.
    When he drew back, they were both out of breath. She looked up into his golden eyes and made a decision. Reality could wait a few more minutes. This moment, right now, would never come again. She decided to grab onto it with both hands.
    “How about here? And now?” she whispered as she reached to unbuckle his belt.
    He stilled her hands by covering them with one of his. She looked up to meet his gaze, surprised he would call a halt. But the message in his eyes didn’t say stop . No, it held something even more disturbing.
    “If we do this, I need you to know it’s more than just a moment out of time. It means something to me. If it doesn’t mean anything to you, then I’d rather wait.”
    Wait? Was he kidding? When had a man ever asked to wait before having sex because he wanted it to be meaningful ? She tilted her head and looked deep into his eyes, seeing the seriousness there.
    “You really mean that, don’t you?”
    “With all my heart.”
    She sensed things were being said here without the actual words being spoken. If she had sex with him tonight, a line would be crossed. Things wouldn’t be the same between them. Between him and her brother. Between her and her brother, for that matter. So the bottom line was, it had to be worth it.
    Did she really think it was worth it? So much change to be with one man she’d only just met?
    Her heart leapt in her chest and she knew the answer was a resounding yes. She didn’t know all the changes that making love with Steven Redstone would create, but she could guess at some of them. Big changes. Was she ready for that kind of upheaval?
    She’d have to be. Because the alternative—walking away without knowing his lovemaking—was untenable. Unthinkable. Truly impossible.
    She needed him like she needed to breathe. She didn’t understand it, but she knew it in her heart. And Trisha was famous for following where her heart led. Leaping before looking was her usual mode of transport, so why should she change now?
    “It means something,” she told him, whispering her words in the darkened stillness of the lab.
    They were most likely alone in the building. She hadn’t seen anyone on the way in. There was a naughty aspect to having sex in an office building that appealed to her wilder side.
    “I don’t understand it,” she went on, holding his gaze as she spoke the words that would decide her fate. “I only just met you, but there’s a…connection, I guess you’d call it. Something draws me to you. Something profound and bigger than just the two of us. I don’t want to deny it. I want to give into it. To embrace it. To know what it’s like to be with you.”
    “Thank God.” He looked heavenward only for a moment and then returned to stare deep into her eyes. His hands went to her shoulders and caressed her through the thin fabric of her sparkly top. “You feel it too, don’t you? You feel the bond. I didn’t think it would be possible, but somehow…” His words trailed off as his lips claimed hers. The kiss they shared was fierce, protective and claiming all at once. Like a wild animal staking his territory, keeping it safe from all others.
    She went back to working on his belt buckle, pausing only when he lifted her stretchy top over her head. She was glad she’d packed her best undies for the trip. She knew the black lace of her bra showed off the creaminess of her skin to best advantage. He certainly seemed to appreciate it, making a sound deep in his throat that almost sounded like a growl. The smile that accompanied it told her he liked what he