01 - The Heartbreaker Read Online Free

anguish of today, until she could think of nothing but him. Her nipples puckered and her breasts grew heavy, while between her legs, slick moisture dampened her panties.
    She tilted her head back to give him greater access to her throat and he sucked harder on her sensitive flesh, drawing a direct connection to more aroused body parts. A wash of sensation rushed over her and she gripped his waist harder in response.
    “Oh yes.” As if from a distance, she heard her voice, raw, hoarse, and full of desire.
    “You like?” he asked.
    She forced her heavy eyelids open to meet his hot stare. “Rhetorical question, right?”
    A seductive grin lifted his lips and he dipped his head once more, this time to soothe the sensitive flesh of her neck with his tongue.
    “Mmm.” The man definitely had a way about him, Sloane thought.
    “Faith.”
    It took her a moment to register that he was talking to her. “Yes?”
    “Nothing. I just like the sound of your name.”
    She smiled, wishing he were calling her by her real name; wishing his rough voice would call out Sloane as he came inside her. Emboldened by the byplay between them, she raked her fingernails higher, rasping against his chest and hair-roughened skin. “I hope you like that too.”
    Before he could reply, a loud knock interrupted them. “I’ve got it.” He strode to the door like the confident male he was,heedless of his untucked shirt or disheveled hair. He opened it a crack, and Sloane realized he was looking out for her privacy.
    She appreciated his chivalry, considering this didn’t mean anything more to him than a one-night stand.
    “I’ll take it,” she heard him say. Then he turned back toward her, pushing a room service tray into the room, and kicked the door closed behind him.
    “What’s that?” she asked, taking in the two glasses and the champagne bottle in an ice bucket.
    “You didn’t strike me as the type of woman who indulges in one-night stands very often. So I wanted to make this . . . more special.” To her surprise, a red flush rose to his cheeks.
    Embarrassment. He’d gone out of his way to make this nice for her and he was embarrassed by the gesture. She stepped forward, more confident in her stride. “What makes you think this isn’t my normal MO?” she asked, truly curious.
    “It’s a hunch and I’m usually accurate. Because despite the sexy dress, your speech is refined, your expression was sometimes hesitant, and by the look in those eyes, you’re running from some deep, dark secret. It could be a lousy day, a lost job, but you’re looking to get away from it all. You just don’t jump into bed with strange men every day. I’d stake my life on it,” he said with all the confidence of a cocky male.
    “All this from one look?”
    He grinned. “I’m a journalist. Observation is my specialty. What’s yours?”
    “Interior design,” she said on autopilot, unable to think about anything except this revelation.
    A reporter of any kind could wreak havoc with her father’s presidential plans, and despite the hurt and betrayal lingering inside her, she loved the man. All the more reason to keep her real name from Chase.
    She inched forward on her high heels. “You must be very good at your job because you’re right. This isn’t an everydayoccurrence,” she admitted. One trick she’d learned from her parents was to feed reporters as much truth as possible so as not to make them more wary.
    “I like being right.”
    She laughed. “Which makes you a typical man.”
    “Right now I’d settle for being your man. Drink?” He gestured to the champagne with a sweep of his hand.
    His thoughtfulness still pleased her. “I’d rather pick up where we left off and save the champagne till later.” More honesty, Sloane thought. She wanted him as much now if not more than before.
    Grabbing her hand, he walked to the oversize chair in the corner and sat down. “Join me.” He tugged on her hand, his meaning clear.
    She drew a