Employed by the Boss (Managing the Bosses 7)

Reluctantly, she released him.

His hands were both back on her body then, moving up over her ribcage, and from there over her shoulders to slide down her arms. When they moved back up, he heard her pull in a deep breath and let it out slowly, shuddering on the exhale. He glanced up at her face, offering a quick smile, and she answered it with one of her own.

“See?” he said, his voice husky with desire. “Not so bad, right?”

“No,” she agreed, laughter in her voice. “You’re not.”

Lifting her with one hand, just enough to get the second beneath her, he opened the catch of the bra on her teddy. Erica arched to give him more room, then sank back against the bed as he slid the straps down her arms and the bra down, stopping at her hips.

“Beautiful,” he said again.

She must have expected him to take advantage of the newly bared skin, her back arching like she was offering herself to his hands, his mouth. Not yet. He reached up to cradle the back of her head in his hand instead, gently working the tie that held it free of her hair. The hand pulled her up to meet his kiss as he leaned down once more, and when she sighed against his mouth he tightened his fingers enough to pull, making her gasp. His teeth caught her lower lip gently between them, and then he drew back to kiss her jaw, her throat. The supporting hand slid down the back of her neck, and she let her head tip onto the pillow, golden hair spilling out around her on the white sheets.

The kisses moved down the line of her throat, and he nipped just hard enough to sting, soothing the slight pain with his tongue. Erica was making little sounds, like she couldn’t stop them from escaping, every time his mouth touched her skin. Gasps and high-pitched little whimpers. He groaned against her when she writhed beneath him, hands clutching at his shoulders. His hand lowered her back to the pillow, and he traced the curve of her collarbone with his mouth. Her skin tasted like her, sweet with just a hint of salt.

He sat up, eyes sliding over her body again, letting her feel the look as solid as a touch. Still looking at her, he unbuttoned his shirt, and pulled it off his body, throwing it aside. His pants and socks followed in short order, and then he was in front of her in nothing but his underwear. His hands curled around her wrists, lifted them until her arms rested above her head again. He liked her like that, stretched out and exposed, bared for his eyes and his mouth and his hands. He’d been waiting so long for her to see him. He smiled, and his hands stroked down along her waist again to wrap around her thighs.

For the space of a heartbeat, Mark didn’t move. His eyes looked down into hers, and they were both still, the sound of their breathing loud in the quiet room. Then his hands pulled her legs abruptly open, and two fingers stroked over her still-clothed sex. Her hips rolled to follow the touch, but he didn’t grant her another.

Carefully, he settled the weight of his body down over hers, skin to skin, though he still held himself up with one arm. He could feel the curve of her mound against his stomach, and the way she hitched her hips upward, hoping for some friction. He gave her a smile he knew was wicked. The kind of smile that had women he took to bed looking up at him with wide eyes and parted lips.

“Until you beg,” he said, voice low. Hungry. “Ask nicely, and I’ll eat you out, baby.”

He could see in her face that she was almost ready to oblige him, but she didn’t open her mouth. Her jaw tightened, her expression going stubborn, and Mark almost laughed. She was just the type to try to hold out as long as she could. He wanted her to. Wanted to taste her slow and thorough and all he wanted.

He pressed an open-mouthed kiss to the skin between her breasts, and his free hand came up to cup one, palm rubbing over her nipple. His mouth moved up the other, with little licks and kisses. Her spine arched, a silent plea for more. Instead, he switched, rubbing her other nipple with his palm, his mouth drawing the same teasing path along the curve of her left breast without ever touching her nipple.

“Please,” Erica breathed.

Mark smiled against her skin, began tracing a path down her stomach to her belly button. Maybe she wasn’t so good at holding out after all, and that was okay, too. He didn’t care.

“What was that? I’m not sure I heard you.”

“Please,” she repeated as the tip of his tongue drew slow circles around her navel. “Mark, please.”

He pretended to consider, head tipping to the side.

“I don’t think you want it enough,” he said finally, looking up at her. He nipped at the skin just above the waistband of her where her teddy clung, teasing. “You’ll have to convince me.”

The look on her face when she lifted her head enough to meet his gaze said that she was going to seriously hurt him if he didn’t get to it. “I’m going to kick you out of your own bed, is what I’m going to do,” she snapped. “Come on, Mark. Fuck.”

Laughing, Mark trailed kisses down her thighs and along her calf to her ankle. Erica rocked her hips against empty air. His mouth moved to her other leg, and he kissed slowly, slowly back up again.

“Mark,” she gasped, “Fuck, Mark. Please. Touch me.”

“I am touching you,” he said evenly.

“That’s not what I mean and you know it. This is cruel and unusual.”

He laughed. “No. It’s not, is it?” His smile was audible. “Tell me what you want, Erica. Tell me where you want me to touch.”

“Touch my clit, Mark, please. Your mouth.” She shifted, legs held open by the breadth of his shoulders between them. “You promised me your mouth. I want it. Need it. Going to fucking combust if you don’t touch me.”

“Yeah,” he said, and the teasing had gone from his voice. “I did promise you that.”

His hands pulled her thighs open wider, tipping her hips up, and he licked a slow stripe over the lace of the teddy, feeling the scratch of it under his tongue. Erica’s hips bucked into his hands.

“Mark. Please. Take them off. I want to feel you. Damn it. Please.”