Page 510 of Manhattan Bossholes

“You always manage to surprise me. So soft, so sweet,” he whispered in my ear as he gently stroked me. “I’ve never met anyone like you, Natalie Reynolds.”

James knew exactly how to touch me so I couldn’t find the words to answer him. Instead, I pushed against his hand, burying my face against his neck. He’d barely started exploring me and yet here I was, already close to coming.

“Hold on,” he whispered in my ear. “I’m going to make you beg.”

James swirled his fingers against me for a few seconds longer, bringing me even closer to coming, then stopped abruptly. He leaned back to study my face, a little grin on his lips.

“James,” I cried out, agonized. “Don’t tease me like that.”

“You want me to keep going?”

I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him closer, and nodded against his neck.

“Say please,” he whispered, his lips brushing against my ear. “Say it and I’ll give you what you want.”

“Please,” I said in a shaky voice.

With that, he picked me up and carried me to the front of the boat. I closed my eyes as he navigated the narrow ledge, and only opened them again once I felt him gently placing me on a cushion.

James draped his body over mine and propped himself up, caressing my hair. “I’ve wanted to make love to you all day.”

A tremor ran through me, not just because I was desperate for him too.

He’d never called it ‘making love’ before.

But it was exactly what it felt like we were about to do. James was tender in a way I’d never experienced as he worshiped my body. The hot sex we’d had in the past was mind-blowing, but our connection in the moonlight felt different. Deeper. When we kissed, it felt like we were giving part of ourselves to each other. I felt connected to James in a way I’d never experienced, and it left me feeling vulnerable and a little scared at the intensity of emotions swirling inside of me.

When I came, I didn’t hold back, releasing a scream of pleasure that echoed across the water. James found his release right after me, shouting my name.

We clung together in the afterglow, panting, smiling, and trading kisses.

There were so many things I wanted to say to him, so many emotions that I felt like I had to express to him. The weight of the unfamiliar sensation made me vulnerable, and a little weepy.

James pulled me to his chest, and I could hear his heart pounding.

“You…you do things to me,” he said.

I laughed softly at the vague comment, but my heart knew exactly what he meant. I wanted to soak up the happiness of the moment so I could remember it forever.

James pulled back to stare at me. “I mean it. You make me want to share things that I’ve never shared with anyone. Like being here, on my father’s boat. This was supposed to be my getaway from the world. From everyone. But all I want to do now is be here with you. This boat feels like our place.”

The sincerity in his eyes nearly brought tears to mine. There was no question what I was feeling for the man.

I was falling in love with James Branson.

I almost felt desperate to say the words to him, but I forced myself not to. Not yet. I had to be sure that I wasn’t imagining this connection we were sharing.

But deep down I knew that for the first time ever, I was willing to give this love thing a shot.

The warning voice in my head, the one that always whispered that people were going to get sick of me, that any good thing I found wasn’t going to last, was quiet for a change. I could only hope it would stay that way.

20

JAMES

Launch night.

How I hated those words. All of the work and stress and nonstop promotion were about to culminate in a fashion show and party that could make or break Branson Design’s couture line. Reporters always asked if I was excited when we launched new lines, and I repeated all the right buzzwords back to give them the perfect soundbite they needed.