a meeting. Even though he had been almost an hour late and she’d been ready to leave, she had called her sister Autumn, who’d convinced her to stay.
She’d been caught off guard by his good looks. She’d seen pictures of him, but those photos hadn’t done the milk-chocolate Adonis justice.
“Here’s the outfit,” Danni said, causing Winter to jump, as if Danni could see the direction her naughty mind was going. “If you head down in about fifteen to twenty minutes, that should be fine.”
“Okay,” Winter mumbled as Danni closed the door behind her. She glanced at the black lace material lying on the bed and the stylish black-and-white masquerade mask that would complete her overall look. She hadn’t really modeled since she was in college, but desperate times called for desperate measures. There was no doubt in her mind that the group of women downstairs were ready to purchase one-of-a-kind Bare Sophistication pieces.
* * *
“I can’t believe I forgot the spare key,” Taheim Reed whispered to himself as he tiptoed through the door of his condo and quickly made his way to the flight of stairs leading to the second floor.
When his sister, Kaya, had asked if she could use his condo for her best friend’s bachelorette party, Taheim had immediately agreed. Kaya was his heart and there was nothing that he—or his older brother, Ajay—wouldn’t do for her, even if that meant having a bunch of tipsy women in his place. So he’d packed an overnight bag and headed to his friend Jaleen’s condo so that Kaya could have the freedom to do as she pleased. But forgetting the spare key to his friend’s place wasn’t part of the plan. Especially since Jaleen was out of town. Now he was sneaking into his own home, attempting to go unseen by his sister or any of the other women in attendance.
When he hit the top of the stairs, he briefly looked over the banister to see if his eyes were playing tricks on him. What the hell is going on? he thought as he observed several women strutting around his place in lingerie. He expected to see half-naked women at a bachelor party, but a bachelorette party? It didn’t make sense. When he caught a glimpse of Kaya talking to another attractive woman in lace lingerie, he figured it was best if he got the key and exited as quickly as possible.
As he made his way down the hall, he thought about the fact he had never asked Kaya what type of bachelorette party she was throwing. He trusted his sister to be responsible and the last thing he wanted was to hear the details of the type of night she was preparing. Seeing as his condo had turned into a scene right out of a late-night adult reality show, he probably should have asked a few more questions.
He opened the double doors of his bedroom and immediately stopped in his tracks. Standing in the middle of his sunken living room, slowly pulling up a pair of thigh-high stockings, was the sexiest woman he’d ever laid eyes on.
Her back was completely bare with the exception of a pearl thong delicately placed between two plump cheeks he was dying to get his hands on. Her long hair was delicately draped to one side in soft brown curls. The black heels adorning her feet were the type meant to stay on in the bedroom...the kind that appeared in every man’s fantasy. Similar to the type of fantasy Taheim was witnessing right now.
He didn’t know who this seductress was in his room and damned if he even cared. Obviously, like the other women downstairs, she was participating in whatever was going on for the bachelorette party. But unlike the other women he’d seen, this one made every fiber in his body come to life. What man wouldn’t be standing on high alert upon finding an attractive woman half-naked in his bedroom? But that wasn’t all that had him salivating over her as if he were a starved man who’d just been told he could have anything on the menu. It was the crazy notion that this woman was in his bedroom for him and him only, his for the taking.
Taheim could definitely have his share of women, but looking at the tempting beauty oblivious to his arrival made him feel as if it had been months since he’d had sex instead of weeks.
She lifted her right leg and slightly bent her back as she tied the black ribbon at the top of her thigh-high stockings. When she lightly adjusted the pearls at the top of the thong, Taheim sucked in a breath, unable to hold back his lust any longer.
He let out a slow whistle as he took a gradual perusal of her body from her thighs and up her back, lingering at the delicate slope of her neck.
At the sound of his voice, she began to slowly turn her head over her left shoulder to the door where he was standing. His heart began beating faster as he waited for her to completely turn around to face where he stood. When she finally did, she gasped in surprise. He was sure her gasp was nothing in comparison to the groan that had escaped his lips.
The black-and-white mask covering half of her face only enticed him more. Who was this woman? And how did he get so lucky as to find her in his bedroom? He was so busy taking in his fill of her that he almost didn’t realize that she was removing her mask. He waited in anticipation as inch by inch she revealed herself. Once the mask was completely removed, it took every ounce of energy he had to try to maintain a neutral face.
Of course it’s her. It had to be the world’s idea of playing a cruel joke on him. Was she the worst date he’d ever had? Hell yeah. Was she still extremely beautiful? Absolutely. Did she still elicit feelings inside him that he wished would just go away? Of course she did. Was she the last person he wanted to see in his bedroom? Not really.
How, out of all the women in the world, was she the one standing in his bedroom wearing barely anything? Then she bit her lip, obvious desire in her gaze...and he lost his train of thought completely.
Cover yourself, Winter thought to herself. She wanted to grab the blanket draped over the sofa so that Taheim would stop looking at her as though he wanted to cross the room and drag her to the bed. Even worse, she was sure she would willingly let him drag her anywhere.
She’d seen him at a couple events in Chicago since their blind date and had learned a bit more about him. But they had both managed to avoid each other most of the time, and when they didn’t, they’d just ended up arguing about unrelated things. Even when they’d caught each other’s gazes on occasion, it hadn’t been anything like the sexual chemistry currently floating through the room.
“Kaya said I could come in here to change,” she said nervously. She didn’t even know why she was so nervous. One thing Winter didn’t do was get nervous around men. Especially men she couldn’t stand.
“No problem.” She waited for him to say more, but his eyes trailed down to her body, reminding her that he had an unobstructed view of the most risqué part of the lingerie.
She quickly moved her hands to cover the front part of her thong and was rewarded by Taheim sucking in his breath in admiration.
“You look beautiful,” he said as he brought his gaze back to her face. She blinked several times, caught off guard by his sincerity.
“Thanks.”
“I just forgot something.” He walked over to his dresser and pulled out what looked like a key. When he turned back to her, he didn’t say anything.
She didn’t know what was more awkward: the fact that he couldn’t seem to find his voice after seeing her in little to no clothing, or the fact that she usually had a lot to say, but she, too, couldn’t find the right words at the moment.
She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn’t realize he was walking toward her until he was only a few inches away.
What is he up to? And why wasn’t she backing away from him instead of moving closer?
When he reached her, he studied her eyes before his gaze dropped to her lips. She didn’t want to mess up her lipstick, but she couldn’t help but lick them. The groan that escaped his mouth made her bring her eyes toward his lips, as well. In her spare time, Winter often liked to paint, and the shape of his lips was the perfect