Free Layers Crossed by Lacey Silks Page B

come on when I
saw one. Up until now I’d tried to restrain myself. I wanted her
like no other woman, but I didn’t want to push her too far, too
early. While I didn’t want to scare her by showing what I felt for
her (which I wasn’t too sure of either), I wouldn’t have been
surprised if she reciprocated my feelings.
    “So explain
this to me. You’ve got a great job, looks like financial security,
pretty much everything most women seek in life. Why would you dance
at a strip club? Why such an outrageous bet? There’s plenty of
stuff you could have done to feel free and alive and unrestrained.
Getting naked on a stage seemed…”
    “Pointless?”
    “Exactly. Not
that you weren’t amazing and beautiful. I’ve never seen anyone as
gorgeous as you.”
    The memory of
her glistening body revived those long forgotten primitive
needs.
    Emma let out
an exasperated breath as if she was about to bare her soul to me.
“Thank you. You’re very kind. Cross Enterprises is a serious
business I’d known I’d be part of ever since I can remember. I
mean, you’ve met my family. They’re my everything. I guess
sometimes I just feel like doing things no one will expect me to.
Doing them because I choose to. Whether it’s a bet or a dare – I’m
still the one who’s making that final choice. And don’t get me
wrong, I love my job, but the work I’ve been assigned thus far
didn’t exactly fulfill my need to do something more worthy and
important. My brothers get to chase the bad guys all the time. They
got to go undercover for all sorts of assignments when they were
younger; why can’t I? I’m trained just as well.”
    “But you’re a
woman,” I blurted, immediately regretting my words. There was no
way Emma would take to any kind of male chauvinism.
    “Seriously,
you’re gonna go there? I know you’re from the country, Cowboy, but
this is the twenty-first century, where a woman can do whatever she
wants, whenever she wants, and whomever she wants.”
    That last part
nearly caused my balls to contract. Her forward nature and strength
would definitely take getting used to, yet was so stimulating. And
most of all, I loved how easily we could carry on a conversation,
taking my attention away from the fact that we were going at ten
times the speed of an average car. I leaned in, tucking the stray
hair behind her ear.
    “I bet there
are things women still prefer done the old-fashioned way,” I
countered.
    “Like what?”
She swallowed nervously. The evident pulse at the side of her neck
drew me closer to her, until the sweet smell of her breath reached
my face.
    “Like opening
car doors for ladies, pulling their chair out when getting ready to
sit down to dinner, or letting her know politely when the button on
her shirt has popped so she can cover herself up.”
    I gently
touched the hem of her shirt where her breasts spread the fabric
outward, revealing the see-through laced bra underneath. Even if
I’d already seen much more of her body, this way, a little bit
covered up, was much sexier.
    My finger
brushed the curve of her cleavage, and she held her breath. I
lifted my other hand toward the shirt and fastened the misbehaving
button. Sitting this close to her was infuriating. The smell of her
floral perfume filled me from the bottom up, propelling my pulse to
rush. Her scent was that last ingredient needed to drive me over
the edge.
    “Thank you,”
she whispered.
    “You’re
welcome.” I leaned back in my chair again. This would be one hell
of a week. Could I really be the gentleman I was taught to be? With
Emma around, all bets were off. She was like a drug I needed. I
longed to hear what would come out of her intelligent mouth next.
Some men would call it a smart mouth, but I found it clever and
intriguing. The need to protect her from the work she sought grew
with each second. As much as I didn’t think the job I’d hired her
for was dangerous just yet, with my past and what John Huntz was
capable of,