Whenever he meant, his bewildered possessiveness was sincere, and when and why didn’t matter anymore and the little voice screaming in my head was drowned out by the loud whooshing sound of desire pulsing through my veins. I leaned forward.
Hudson didn’t hesitate for a second, meeting my mouth with his. As doubtful as his words had been, his lips were confident and firm. He moved a hand behind my neck to direct me, deepening the kiss, stroking my tongue with his own. He sucked and licked into me, sending shivers down my spine and I imagined his wet, hot mouth on other parts of my body. I sighed.
Without his mouth leaving mine, he pulled me to a standing position. This was better. I could press my body into him, feel his lust along my belly, get the contact that I yearned for. I ran my hands through his hair and down along the base of his neck, enjoying the tingles shooting through my limbs as he moaned against my lips.
A sharp buzzer made us both jump and pull away. I put a hand over chest, my heart beating rapidly from the scare and from the intense kiss.
Hudson grinned. “The intercom,” he explained, his voice ragged. He moved behind his desk and pushed a button. “Yes?”
The secretary’s voice poured into the room again. “I’m about to leave, Mr. Pierce. Is there anything else you need?”
“No, thank you, Patricia. You may go.” He’d gotten control of his voice now. Amazing. I was still reeling.
Hudson put one hand on his hip and stared at me, as if wondering what to do with a problem in front of him. It both heated and chilled me simultaneously, to be looked at so intensely, to be considered so scientifically.
I hugged my arms around myself. “What?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.” He grabbed his jacket off the seat chair and extended his hand to me. “Come, Alayna.”
My body responded to his command before my brain could decide to. I took his hand, the warmth of it rekindling the fire he’d started in my mouth.
He led me to an elevator in the back corner of his office that I hadn’t noticed before. Inside the car, he entered a code into the panel and we traveled what felt like one flight up. The doors opened to a fully furnished loft, styled in the same modern design as his office below. Floor to ceiling windows lined one whole wall. The theme was echoed throughout the sprawling space, glass walls partitioning off a dining room, a sitting area, and peeking behind half-drawn curtains, a bedroom.
I quickly looked away from the bed, scandalized by the wicked thoughts that flashed through my mind at the sight of his personal space, and met Hudson’s gaze, aware of the amusement in his eyes. I flushed.
He walked to the kitchen and opened a cupboard pulling out two glasses. “Can I get you some iced tea?”
“Sure.” I wondered if he always had iced tea or if he’d stocked it specifically for me. I followed him to the kitchen, climbing up onto a sleek metallic looking barstool. “You live here?”
He opened the freezer and grabbed a handful of ice cubes, dropping half in each of the glasses. “Sometimes I stay here. But I don’t consider it my home.”
I looked around the loft again, realization setting in. “Hudson! Is this your fuck pad?”
“Sometimes.” He poured tea into our glasses and then turned to hand me one across the counter.
I took the glass from him, sipping eagerly, needing the moisture for my suddenly dry mouth. “And you brought me here because...?”
He took a swallow of his tea, and licked his lips. He raised a brow. “Why do you think I brought you here?”
A sudden thrill set in followed by a wave of panic. I wasn’t ready for this, was I? I looked at my watch. There was no time. “Um, I have to leave for work in ten minutes.”
“Twenty minutes. You have a driver.”
I shifted, the inside of my legs feeling sticky and moist. “That’s still not a whole lot of time.”
Hudson came around the counter, took my tea from my hand and set it down with his. “Not a whole lot of time for what?”
My throat felt like it had closed, but somehow I managed weak words. “Are you going to make me say it?”
He grinned as he swiveled me around, then caged me against the bar. “No. Not now. If you say it I won’t be able to resist you, and, as you said, there’s not enough time. So instead I’ll have to settle for a sample.”
His mouth sealed over mine, consuming my lips and my tongue with heated frenzy. My hands crawled up his vest, yearning to be on his skin. I could feel the hard, broad muscles of his chest underneath my fingertips. Jesus, this man had to work out, the sculpted definition of his torso evident through two layers of clothing. I wanted to run my nails over his body, aching to discover if he had hair or was bare-chested, desperate to be naked against him.