~~~
Sipping on her glass of wine, Nicki fiddled with her napkin and tried to disguise her disgust with their host. Luckily Caleb always managed to put up with the bullshit better than she could. Charming and garrulous, Caleb kept up the conversation for both of them. He matched the repulsive man’s braggadocio stories, outdoing him every time. Glancing up at Rep. Stephen Freeman, Nicki wondered if all politicians were as disgustingly transparent as Sen. Michaels and their current client.
Even while chatting with Caleb, Freeman never took his lecherous gaze off of Nicki. Raking his eyes over her figure, he paused at every key body part, practically licking his lips. Was it their powerful positions, Nicki wondered? Or the fact that over the years they’d been taught that whatever or whoever caught their fancy, they could have. Money, influence, and especially women were theirs for the taking. It was disquieting at best that the only elected official with a worse womanizing reputation than Senator Michaels was their client, Rep. Freeman. The fact that the two of them were the golden boys in their respective political parties underscored that a moral compass was unnecessary equipment for budding presidential candidates. Which was why this race for the U. S. Senate was as important as it was. Whoever won, the lucky man was on a fast track to the presidency.
Apparently not capable of shame, Freeman interrupted his leering examination of her long enough to diss his opponent.
“So, Nicki, did that scurrilous bastard make a pass at you? I swear he can’t keep his prick in his pants around any woman. He’s like a rabid dog. Any bitch he sees, he assumes she must be in heat—for him. With someone who is as lovely as you are, his tongue must have been dragging on the floor.”
Caleb winked discreetly at Nicki confirming that the hypocrisy coming out of Freeman’s mouth was pure gold.
Freeman was too busy frowning at the imagined exploits of his opponent to notice Nicki and Caleb’s reaction. His mouth tipped up in disgust.
“It’s a good thing for Senator Michaels that womanizing is no longer considered an impediment to achieving high elected office. The public doesn’t seem to care anymore. Since Clinton’s time, the public has accepted that ‘men will be men,’ and given the pressure powerful men are under they can be forgiven the occasional indiscretion.”
Nicki was proud of herself that she managed to swallow her mouthful of salad without choking. This man truly was a piece of work. It was a good thing that Caleb was there to cover her incredulity. Nicki was usually good at masking her feelings. A poker face was a necessity in their line of work. But both Michaels and Freeman tried her sensibilities. Perhaps because one or the other of them had a sure shot at the presidency. After he knocked off his opponent and won the Senate race, that is.
Apparently unaware of the disdainful glances she and Caleb were exchanging, Freeman focused a serious frown on her. At least his frown seemed genuine, not like his politician’s plastic smile that curved his lips while his eyes remained cold and banked with contempt.
“Now, my dear, please remember that our wonderfully oblivious public could care less who is fucking whom, but they do care about who is stealing from the public trough. We all know goddamned well that Michaels bought his Senate seat. And I’m convinced that his money came from very unsavory sources. Now you and your egregiously expensive company need to give me irrefutable proof. Ironclad. Please understand: as I told that arrogant boss of yours, I don’t want to beat the insufferable son of a bitch. I want to crucify him.”
His lips quirked up in a smarmy grin.
“Senator Michaels gives politicians a bad name. It’s my public duty to stop him. Crush him.”
Pinning her with a hard glare he added, “You should know, Nicki, I take my public duty very seriously.”
Nicki struggled with how to respond. If she’d heard even a sliver of irony in his self-important vow, she could almost appreciate his attempt at wit. But Freeman’s pledge was devoid of any semblance of sarcasm.
Pasting an equally disingenuous smile on her face, Nicki said, “It’s good to meet a politician who takes his public duty seriously,
Stephen.
”
Freeman puffed up like a peacock and nodded in agreement. His lack of humility or even an inkling that she was making fun of him confirmed that he was as soulless as he appeared.
Chapter 2
Nicki slid the keycard into the slot on her hotel suite door and walked into the dark room. Fumbling for the light, she smelled an exotic odor. Her momentary flash of fear morphed to excitement. Who else would wear Ambre Topkapi cologne at over $500 an ounce except someone who was as vain as he was gorgeous? Mixed with his unique masculine scent, the expensive cologne was intoxicating. Nicki sucked in a deep breath. Rafe’s soft command was as sexy as his smell.
“Leave the lights off… for the moment. Come here. Stand in front of me.” He added in a patently false voice, “Please.”
Nicki swallowed her excitement. Determined to be as blasé as he was, she purred, “Hmm, you prefer not to see me? Does that allow you to pretend that I am whoever you wish me to be? Perhaps some unsuspecting woman who walked in the room and you can order her to do anything you desire—and she’ll obey?”
His low chuckle sent shards of anticipation flaring through her weary body.
“Yes, to part one of your question. I can and will do whatever I wish to the woman standing before me. And yes, you will obey. As to the second part, that you could be
simply any
woman? You are sorely mistaken. There is only one you, Nicki. And you are the only woman I love and will ever love.”
Nicki forced herself to smile, to appear cool, willing her trembling legs to stop shaking. She shrugged and tossed her head.
“You love me, but you don’t want to see me? You prefer to keep me in the dark? Again, that begs the question. Either you don’t like my body
or
you want me to be whatever and whoever you want at the moment.”
“Did anyone ever tell you that you talk too much? And that occasionally you say and do foolish things? Such as imply that I don’t like your body? That I don’t crave it like an addict craves heroin? Or a blind man longs to see the light?”
Rafe shifted in his chair. Even in the dark, his intensity was tangible. Nicki took an involuntary step backward.
His voice dropped further, a quiet sound with an intimation of menace.
“Go stand by the window, Nicki. Open the drapes.”
Nicki frowned. Now he wanted to have her in front of the windows, visible to anyone who looked their way?
As if he could read her mind, he laughed softly.
“No Darling, I’m not putting you on display. You are mine, only mine. But I want to savor you. See you take off one piece of your outrageous clothing at a time—while the moonlight heightens your every curve, amplifies your breathtaking beauty. You needn’t be concerned about privacy. We are on the top floor of a fifty-story building. Only the stars and I will see you naked.”
Nicki strolled toward the floor-to-ceiling windows affecting as much nonchalance as she could conjure. Damn, how did he mange to do this to her? Reduce her to a bundle of emotions, a giddy girl longing for his touch. She punched the automatic opening device on the draperies and blinked at the sudden light flooding the dark room. The sensation was momentary. In seconds her eyes adjusted and the room settled into an exotic blend of silvery moonlight and sumptuous shadows. Nicki sucked in a gasp of air as tingles of excitement cascaded over her. Leave it to her sensualist lover to know precisely how to set the scene, to enhance his—and,
her—
pleasure.
“Unzip your dress, Nikita.”
Nicki quivered at his use of her full name. Only her father and Rafe knew her Russian name. To protect her from his old and new enemies, Yuri Petrokov had sent his infant daughter to America with the Valley girl name Nicki Powers instead of the incendiary Nikita Petrokov. Like Rafe, Nicki liked the hint of danger her given name evoked. But it was a danger she and her father trusted only to Rafe.
Reaching back, Nicki slid the zipper slowly down the length of her dress to where it ended at her curvy bottom. She eased the clingy fabric over her hips inch by inch then gave it a little push, sliding the miniscule concoction to the floor. Gratified by Rafe’s audible intake of air, she lifted her chin and perched her hands on her hips, confident he would approve of her risqué underwear. How could he not approve? He’d given her the silky black pushup bra that put her lush breasts on display. The matching panties hung low on her hips, barely covering her ass. She’d added the lace-topped thigh-high silk stockings because she knew the effect they had on her sexually charged lover. Groaning, she realized that she dressed for him even when he wasn’t there.
His voice, tinged with desire, brought her back to the present.
“Now, Darling, the bra. But take it off slowly. Let me relish the revelation of your dazzling breasts. And, Nicki? When you take off the bra, offer your breasts to me like the treasures that they are.”
Nicki swallowed hard fighting against the sensations his erotic command invoked. She knew how much he liked the unveiling of her body. How he savored it, craved it. His fevered gaze underscored the heady power she had. But his response drove her to a high peak of desire, made her want to throw off her clothes and beg him to take her. As much as she wanted to tease him, torture him, make him pay for what he did to her agitated body, she was nonetheless helpless to disobey.
She unhooked the front clasp and lifted her breasts to him. The lavish globes overflowed her hands. Although his face was masked by the shadows, the glow from his cigarette revealed the hunger in his eyes. Her breasts felt heavy, tingly. Her nipples hardened and tightened under his gaze. She gnawed on her bottom lip determined not to let him see how much his open appraisal aroused her, how it fanned the smoldering flames in her belly.
Not able to hold back her soft moan, she whispered, “Please, Rafe. I… I need you.”
Rafe ground out his cigarette and rose to his feet. How could he explain to her what the sight of her did to him? How he’d waited for over an hour for her to arrive. How he’d anticipated her entrance. But nothing he imagined could come close to the real Nicki. In the moonlight her bright red hair blazed. The rosy flush on her cheeks deepened under his scrutiny. Dark brows and thick lashes highlighted the unusual tilt to her eyes. But it was the color that was most arresting. In the darkened room her eyes shone like bright yellow stars. A stark narrow band of black circled the gleaming topaz. Rafe had never seen a she-wolf in the wild. He was confident if he did, she would look like Nicki.
As much as his body cried out to hold her, Rafe forced himself to step back. He had to see the rest of her. He growled remembering Senator Michaels’ lewd reference to her pubic hair. If only the asshole knew. Nicki was a natural redhead, but there was no confirming evidence between her legs. No, Rafe’s audacious lover had removed all the hair and replaced it with the most erotic adornment he’d ever seen.
Motioning to her panties, he murmured, “Take them off. Leave on the stockings and those outrageous shoes.”
Nicki gasped at his peremptory command. Her face flamed but she made an obvious effort to compose herself. Lifting her chin at a saucy angle, she turned her back to him. Winking at him over her shoulder, she bent over and wiggled her glorious bottom. Rafe choked, watching his personal sex kitten pull her panties down, baring the finest ass he’d ever seen. He tried to swallow, but it was an impossible task. She stepped out of her panties dragging them off over one high-heeled shoe then the other. Turning to face him, with a careless flip of her fingers, she tossed him the lacy scrap. Rafe closed his eyes and buried his nose in the fragrant silk. After a moment, he forced himself to look at her bare crotch.
The sight of her brazen embellishment never failed to send his dick into orbit. Before they’d met, Nicki had tattooed an astonishing multicolored snake on her mound. The impudent serpent’s daring tongue hovered audaciously close to her clitoris.
At the thought of the Senator and his cronies ogling her, rage thundered through his veins. It was a wonder his pounding heart didn’t crash through his chest. It didn’t help knowing that the Senator would die a violent death if he approached her again.
Rafe focused on the beautiful woman in front of him. Reminding himself how he wanted to hold her, taste her, drink in her erotic smell, he throttled his fury at the man who had insulted her. This was not the time for anger. He would deal with the Senator later. Now was the time to show Nicki how much he loved her.
The first time they met, her unusual fragrance, a mix of spice and sweet, called to him at a primal level. Now overladen with the musky odor of her arousal, Rafe gave in to its siren call. Unable to resist the draw of her heady fragrance, he moved toward her. Pulling her into his arms, an involuntary moan escaped his lips. Her lush body overwhelmed him. Weaving his hands in her fiery curls, he tipped her head back, baring her throat to his lips. He nipped at the tender flesh, delighting in her soft whimpers. Tightening his grip on her hair he lifted her chin and began to kiss her. He was gentle at first, relishing her tiny gasps as he licked across the seam of her mouth forcing it open with his tongue. Once inside, the heat that had been building since she walked in the room flared. He drove deeper, harder into her mouth. Her whispery moans changed to groans. She grabbed at his hair tugging at the short strands, digging her fingernails into his scalp. Her urgency ignited his. His prick was iron hard, screaming for attention, impossible to ignore.
“Please, Rafe, please take me. Take me now. I’m crazy for you. I need you now.”
“Oh yeah, baby. I’ll take you.”
With a low animal growl, Rafe hauled her up against his body and wrapped her legs around his waist. Capturing her hands in one of his, he pressed her against the window, her hands above her head.
Hit with countless sensations, Nicki cried out. The slick cold of the window on her bare backside shocked her. Rafe’s arousal was hard against her belly. The rasp of his beard shadow scraped the tender skin on her throat. But nothing was more compelling than his husky commands, the naughty words he whispered in her ear, telling her what he was going to do to her, how she made him feel, and how he was going to fuck her harder, deeper than he ever had.