Hot Secrets Read Free Page B

urgent, and oddly edgy. “What are you saying to me, Lauren?
Is something scaring you? Is there something you need to tell—”
    “No,” she said quickly, thinking
again how terribly, horribly bad she was at seduction. The man now
thought she was in some sort of danger. “I mean yes.” She’d gone
this far, she wasn’t going to back down. Not when Royce Walker had
her trapped in a small corner and she liked it so very , very much. Lauren reached out,
forcing herself to act on her desire to touch him, flattening her
hand on his deliciously perfect chest. Inhibitions be damned , she vowed. “I… want…”
    “You want what?”
    “You.” Oh my God, had she really
just said that?
    His eyes narrowed, his voice
lowering an octave. “Are you saying that scares you?”
    “In a good way,” she admitted
softly, then louder, “In a good way.
    Suddenly Julie’s voice broke
into their exchange. “Sorry to break up the party, but it’s cake
time, and everyone is looking for Lauren.”
    Lauren could have screamed at
her friend’s untimely interruption.
    Royce seemed to agree, flicking
a quick look over his shoulder and saying, rather than asking,
“Give us one minute.”
    Julie cleared her throat.
“Hurry.” And then she was gone.
    Royce fixed Lauren with a probing stare, his eyes
roaming her face, searching, his expression giving away nothing.
“You better go be with your father. We’ll talk afterwards.”
    Her heart thundered in her
chest, and real fear, the kind made of rejection, balled in her
chest. No way was she going to wonder what he meant through the
rest of the party. “There’s nothing to talk about. You want me or
you don’t. Which is it, Royce?”
    His reply came in actions, not
words. He tipped his head down and brushed his lips across hers.
The touch was brief, but somehow possessive and powerful, and a
shiver of pure arousal charged down her spine and spread to other,
much more intimate places.
    “Oh, I want you,” he said, his
voice whiskey rough, where it had been a cool breeze only moments
before. “Which is exactly why we need to talk.”
    Her stomach lurched. Not the
‘talk’ thing again. Why did they need to talk? Talking was what she
wanted to avoid. She needed an escape, not an inquiry.
    Royce surprised her and laughed.
“Stop frowning.” He chucked her lightly on the chin. “Go celebrate
with your father so we can get out of here.” His mouth was so near
her ear, she felt the warmth of his breath. “ Together, Lauren.”
    ***
    Ten minutes later, Lauren was on
stage in the front of the room, trying to focus on her father and
the birthday gifts he was opening, not on Royce and what would come
after the party. But truth be told, her father’s public persona
meant far more to him than she did. Oh, he wanted her here, and he
wanted her to run for office, but only because it was good for his
image, for his politics, for that damn dynasty he, and his father
before him who’d also been a politician, aspired to create. And
because her political career would keep him in the spotlight
without the pressure of holding office.
    As usual, her stepmother Sharon
stood quietly by his side, her long brown hair swept into an
elegant knot at her neck, her exotic features carefully crafted into a mask of happiness
and dedication. The press loved her. Her husband adored her for all
the wrong reasons.
    Sharon’s gaze rushed over Lauren
and she moved towards her, her clingy light blue dress bringing to
mind the word inappropriate. She was so
tired of that word, but the truth was, Sharon was inappropriate. Sharon knew it too, and she knew
Lauren knew it. It was her father who didn’t seem to see things
clearly. Mr. Practical and Conservative looked the other way for a
set of surgically enhanced breasts that made him feel vibrant and
young.
    “Lauren, dear,” Sharon drawled,
stepping to her side. “You seem distracted.”
    Lauren’s teeth ground together
but she managed a nonchalant shrug. “You