Jess Michaels by Taboo

her cheeks. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the items she had created: the half-finished restraints, the open lockbox on the table that held a few dildos, a scrap of fabric that was on its way to being a scandalous piece of lingerie. They were the tools of lusty men bent on having their every desire.
    A bit like the one before her.
    “Working late, eh?” he asked, lifting the restraints and turning to dangle them on one finger in her direction.
    She pursed her lips. “I have no choice. Since you insist that I be available to you at your discretion, I must use whatever time I do have to myself to fulfill my obligations. These people have paid me a great deal of money in exchange for their goods. It would be wrong of me to renege on my promise to deliver.”
    “How nice that you keep your word for money. Perhaps if I had only paid you, you would have shown up all those years ago,” he said, his voice chilly. “Do you have a pair of these that are finished?”
    Cassandra couldn’t help raising her brows in surprise. Then she smoothed the reaction from her face. He wanted to shock and embarrass her. There was little she could do to prevent him from taking what he desired, but at least she could deny him this one satisfaction.
    “Yes, upstairs.”
    Now his brows lifted. “Your own personal collection?”
    She nodded, the motion difficult in the face of his intense scrutiny. “Yes.”
    “Lead the way,” he said, motioning his hand toward the door with false gallantry. “I want to see the toy box of the master toy maker herself.”
    Cassandra narrowed her eyes at his sarcasm, but said nothing. Instead, she turned and opened the parlor door, leading the way to her chamber upstairs in anything but companionable silence. Before she pushed the door open, she drew a deep breath.
    This room was her sanctuary, her private escape. There was no denying Nathan access, but once he had been inside, she knew she would never see the room the same way again. He would burn his presence into every inch of space until he stifled her.
    But she had no choice. She had to let him in…in every way, or suffer the consequences.
    So she opened the door and motioned for him to enter.

Chapter Five
    C assandra shut the bedroom door, letting her head rest against the cool surface for a long moment as she gathered her wavering nerves. Finally, she pivoted and watched Nathan move around her room. He seemed as aware of his effect on her space as she was, and took his time looking at her furniture, examining her subdued artwork, and glancing out her window toward her garden in the dark below.
    “Not what I pictured,” he said, turning back to her. “I assumed a woman with your checkered past would have much more blatant taste. Is there some other chamber where you entertained your protectors?”
    She frowned, anger and hurt bubbling up in her chest. “So many insults, I can scarce keep up with them all. What has put you in such a foul mood, Nathan?”
    He seemed surprised by her direct question and shook his head in response. “I was simply reminded of the past tonight, reminded of what a fool I was. I am always in a foul mood after that.”
    She nodded slowly. “And just who reminded you?”
    He locked eyes with her. “My parents. My father.”
    Cassandra couldn’t help but stiffen as she thought of the Marquis of Herstale. He had hated her from the moment he realized she was more to his son than merely a brief affair. The man had done everything in his power to separate them. And he had won in the end, at a hefty cost to everyone involved.
    “I see,” she said softly. “And so you came here tonight to punish me?”
    Again, Nathan’s gaze swung to her and he stared at her for a long moment, as if he hadn’t truly seen her until that moment. He opened his mouth and shut it a few times before he whispered, “I don’t know, Cassandra. I truly do not know.”
    She wanted to turn away, but it was impossible when she could finally see a