Free Tempted by a Dangerous Man by Cleo Peitsche Page A

dryer, Corbin came out of the bathroom, his hair dripping, beads of water trailing seductively down his chest. The white towel around his waist begged to be yanked away.  
    “Want me to do you?” I innocently held up the dryer.
    That devilish light appeared in his eyes. “Always.”  
    “No wonder you don’t want me getting dressed.” I tried to sound scandalized.
    “No time for fooling around, I’m afraid.” He pushed wet hair out of his face and grinned. “Lend me a hand?” He went into the main part of the cabin. I followed him, admiring the strong lines of his back and broad shoulders. He had amazing legs, too. I could have stared at his calves for hours.  
    He headed toward what I’d thought was the broom closet and pulled out two garment bags. “Can you?”
    Frowning, I took the garment bags from him. I recognized the boutique name on one. La Diva. I knew of it, but I had never set foot inside. It was way out of my price range. The snooty saleswomen probably would have called the police if I had even walked by the door too slowly.
    Corbin opened a cabinet under the sink and extracted two shoe boxes. I couldn’t help but notice that one was twice the size of the other.
    “You have big feet.”
    He smirked as he turned. “I know.”
    We stared at each other, grinning. My smile faltered as I remembered a news story I’d seen.  
    “What?” Corbin used his body to corral me toward the bedroom. He placed the shoeboxes on the bed and then took the garment bags from me, hanging them up on metal hooks that arced from the wood walls.
    “Celebrities buy these expensive German Shepherds for, say, fifty thousand dollars. And the dogs are like family pets. Playing catch and doing tricks. You’d never know that they’re capable of ripping someone’s throat out.” I shuddered. “You’re like that.”
    Corbin frowned. “Anything else?”
    “Didn’t mean it as an insult,” I said. “Just an observation. You look dangerous, but in a socially acceptable way. Like a professional sports player.” I licked my lips. “There is one thing. I think Zachary’s family deserves to have him back, so—”
    “Do I scare you?”
    “Yes.”  
    “Audrey. Baby.” He grabbed my shoulders, aimed for my mouth, but when I lifted my chin to meet him, he veered away, planted a gentle kiss on my forehead. He squeezed my shoulders. “Less thinking, more dressing.”
    I glanced at the hanging bags. “What is that?”
    “Dress for you, suit for me. We’re going out.”
    “Where?”
    “Dinner, of course.”  
    A little flutter of worry raced through me. “We’re snowshoeing down in formal wear?”
    “Nah. I drove up.”
    “How?”
    “Got behind the wheel, put the key in the ignition… let me know if I’m going too fast.” He smirked, and I tried to rip off his towel.  
    But he evaded me without missing a beat and unzipped the La Diva garment bag. I gasped. The dress inside was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. The fabric was an iridescent black that reminded me of a butterfly’s wing on a summer day. It was sleeveless—now I was really glad for that razor in the shower—and short. The waist nipped in, and the skirt flared.
    Corbin unzipped it and slid it off the hanger. He held it low and open for me to step into.
    Bracing myself against his shoulder, I stepped into the dress and helped him pull it up.  
    “Turn,” he said, his voice husky. He was breathing faster now, and there was a look on his face that I’d never seen before.
    I turned, and he zipped up the back. The dress was a perfect fit. Without a full mirror, I couldn’t be certain of how it looked, but it felt like a second skin. A much more beautiful second skin.
    “How is it?” I found myself biting my lip, nervous.
    Corbin walked around me. “If ever there was a woman who deserved nice clothing, it’s you.”
    After all the filthy ways he’d fucked me, blushing really should have been physically impossible, but a flush