© 2010 Shelley Munro
When Maggie Drummond buys an erotic romance novel by mistake, she gets more than an unexpected eyeful. She gets an introduction to a world that arouses her to a fever pitch: Spanking.
Her boyfriend isn’t interested in pushing his vanilla-flavored sexual boundaries. Then there’s Connor Grey, who haunts her fantasies like a magical genie. As a source of masculine advice for her and her female friends, he’s off limits. The only safe place to explore her fetish is her anonymous blog.
The recent changes in Maggie don’t escape Connor’s notice. Now that her boyfriend has dropped her, he can finally—carefully—make his move. Given his family history, laying a hand on any woman, even in fun, is a line he’s reluctant to cross. But for Maggie? Anything the lady wants.
As Maggie gives in to the temptation to let Connor add some sin to her life, she finds herself juggling lies, half-truths, friendship and sensual delights. Her job is in jeopardy—and she’s falling in love. Exploring her fantasy is one thing, but she’s beginning to question if indulging her own pleasure is worth the cost to everyone around her. Especially Connor…
Warning: contains explicit sex, spanking, and the good, the bad and the ugly about friendship.
Enjoy the following excerpt for The Bottom Line:
A grin formed on Connor’s face when he read the blog entry. Most people would label it a smirk. Hell, he knew exactly where Maggie could find a man. He was that man. Damn, he couldn’t take this. He had to talk to her today, come to an understanding.
Half an hour later, he leaned on the intercom button, and a curious neighbor let him inside—probably to stop the racket at such an ungodly hour on a Sunday morning.
Taking the stairs two at a time, he raced up to the second floor and thumped on Maggie’s door. It took her a long time to answer. Finally, the door flew open. Maggie…her hair. It was the first time he’d ever seen it loose, and it rippled all the way down her back, stopping just above the curve of her ass.
“Hey.” Weak, Connor. He cleared the lump from his throat and sought something witty to say. His gaze slipped to her breasts. Rounded and sexy. Tempting. A distraction.
“Connor!” A soft blush crept over her cheeks and down her neck. “Having a good look?”
Connor wanted to explore the pink glow with his lips. “You shouldn’t answer the door dressed like that.”
“You’re early.” Maggie scowled, crossing her arms over her chest.
Watching her butt, he followed her into the kitchenette, mesmerized by the dark locks glinting under the artificial light. It took him another four steps before he realized all she wore was an oversize T-shirt. He glanced down. Great legs. Normally she hid them beneath ankle length skirts or baggy sweats.
“Should I make coffee?”
“Yes. I need a shower.” She padded down the passage and disappeared into a room at the end. Connor didn’t move until he heard the rattle of pipes and the distant spray of water. A visual formed in his mind. Dark hair dripping wet, nipples playing peek-a-boo while Maggie lazily soaped her body… Hell. The last thing he needed right now was to imagine her naked.
Coffee. Yeah. He forced himself to walk into the kitchen, arousal shooting through his veins and pooling in his groin. He needed to stick to the plan he’d formulated in the early hours of this morning, after he’d seen her blog entry. Talk to her today. Part A of the plan. Part B was keeping her permanently, but that was on a need-to-know basis.
Spanking—that might cause a few problems too, but first things first.
Coffee…
Connor was familiar with the layout of Maggie’s apartment since the Tight Five often hung out at her place. It didn’t take him long to make coffee. By the time the shower stopped, water dripped through the coffee filter and the fragrant scent of ground beans filled the kitchen.
He waited. Where was she? Five minutes passed, then five more. He imagined her drying her body, smoothing on her body lotion smelling of old-fashioned lavender, brushing the knots from her long hair and restraining it into the braid she favored.
He grasped the edge of the table until his knuckles whitened. Damn, he had to get his lust under control. He couldn’t touch her, except on a friendly basis. Not yet.
Patience, man. Cursing softly, he grabbed two white china mugs from the cupboard and poured coffee into them. He steeled himself when he heard footsteps. Seconds later he smelled lavender, and Maggie breezed into the kitchen.
“Why are you so early?” she asked. “Didn’t you see Gwen or whoever you’re going out with last night?”
“I’m not dating Gwen anymore. I’m solo for the moment.” As soon as he said the words, he regretted them. Damn, why did he sound like Romeo between Juliets? Despite public opinion, his bedroom didn’t have a revolving door.
“Since when? Won’t you walk lopsided now without a babe to balance you?” Maggie grinned and dropped into a stool beside him at the breakfast bar. She leaned over to switch on the stereo, her V-neck T-shirt gaping to display creamy white curves. His mind blanked, his fingers itching to touch her. Instead, he wrapped his hands around his mug and took a sip of coffee. Baby steps and patience.
“I thought you liked Gwen,” she added.
“I do like her, but I felt like I was dating my sister.”
Maggie’s brown eyes widened. “Ouch. You didn’t tell her that, did you?”