Caged Read Free

in the end, easy to make.
    Repacking her portfolio with drawings of her designs and a
briefcase with samples for a final time, she went upstairs and took a hot
shower. Being in charge of her career kept her striving forward. The good and
the bad were on her shoulders alone. She welcomed the challenges and could
handle whatever was thrown her way.
    An hour later she was on Cromwell Road, hailing a cab to
take her to The Dorchester.
    Before she’d finished paying the driver, a doorman stepped
forward and opened the car door. He was holding an umbrella to protect her from
the drizzle as she made her way into the posh hotel. Thanking him, she looked
around the lobby. She couldn’t remember where she was supposed to meet Max.
Before she could pull the note from her purse, she found him standing near one
of the restaurants.
    He looked calm and gorgeous. Shifting the shawl from
covering her head to her shoulders, she stood a little straighter. After
seconds passed, she sucked in a breath and took a few steps to close the
distance between them.
    “Hello, Max, I’m Gabrielle Porter. Gabby.” She held out her
hand and her stomach dropped when he lifted it to his lips. Giving him her real
name was a risk. No one at Succulent knew who she was and couldn’t connect
her jewelry line to the woman who enjoyed submitting to men.
    Looking into his intense, light-blue eyes, she silently
reaffirmed she’d made the right decision to meet him. There was what she
believed was joy and passion, amongst other things, reflecting back at her from
his beautiful gaze. Need and sensuality were there as well, although patience
seemed to shine brighter than everything else.
    “Gabby suits you.”
    “Thank you.” She blushed, suddenly unsure what to say or how
to act with the man who had the incredible ability to send her screaming into a
climax.
    Apparently she was turned-on by him, both in and out of the
club. With Max for less than a minute and she wanted to sink to her knees and
beg to take his cock in her mouth. Before the image had fully settled in her
mind, she reminded herself of the line she’d chosen to walk. She would not move
too fast into the sexual arena. She didn’t want to jeopardize their play at the
club if the personal thing didn’t work.
    “Shall we go in?”
    “Yes, sounds good. I’m afraid I can’t stay out too late. I
have a big meeting tomorrow morning.” She wanted to get her plan to leave early
out there so it wasn’t looked at as a poor excuse to escape.
    “Don’t worry. I’d planned on us having dinner this evening,
nothing else.”
    “Oh, okay.” Somehow his words eased her nerves, but didn’t
help alleviate her raging need. Nothing would sort out her passion except his
touch. She needed to move on, as it wasn’t going to happen. She wasn’t pleased
with his quick confirmation. Maybe secretly she’d wanted him to make a play for
her at least once.
    “Please, baby girl, don’t be disappointed. I’m trying hard
to keep our previous play at the club out of my head. Trust me, it’s
difficult.”
    “Seriously? You definitely make it appear as if it weren’t a
problem.” It was driving her nuts how easy he made accepting her position look.
It definitely wasn’t easy for her.
    “Calm? Not really, but I am happy because you’re here,” he
offered with a small smile.
    They stopped in front of the maître d’ who asked for their
coats. She took her shawl off, holding it out for the man to take. Max stepped
up behind her and put one arm lightly around her waist. Spreading his hand
across her stomach, he used the other to hold out his coat. When he moved in
closer, the breath she’d been about to take stopped in the back of her throat.
His hard-on nudged her lower back and she had proof of exactly how their
meeting was affecting him.
    “Table for two, Stephenson.”
    “Yes sir, right this way.”
    A feeling of intimacy settled in her as they were shown to a
table behind a pillar. Once they were