Read Be My Queen for Free Online Page B

guy in the store? Probably. None of the other women in the changing room had men waiting. Lavender's door opened and she stuck out her hand. He took it and let her draw him in. The gaps in the bra's pale lace showed off her dark skin nicely, but the darker, richer one might go better with her coloring.
    "Does it fit?" It looked fine to him, but then, he had never worn one. Some of his exes had complained about straps digging in and fabric itching.
    "It's fine. Do you like it?"
    Diego pressed his face against her shoulder and lowered his head until her breasts touched his cheeks. "It's perfect."
    Lavender laughed. "Is that all it takes to be perfect?"
    "As long as you like it, I do."
    She crossed her arms over her beautiful chest. "Really?"
    "As long as you like it and it looks beautiful on you and makes me want to see you without it, it's perfect."
    She grinned and turned, so she was looking at him over her shoulder. "Really?"
    He nodded.
    "Then unfasten me and pick out the one I should try next."
    Really? She smiled at him in the mirror. Maybe a week was all he'd need to win her heart.
    *~*~*
    Lavender liked the way Diego looked at her. As if she was his heart's desire. Of course, she wasn't, but for today, she'd pretend she was.
    He held his hands an inch from her skin and waited for her to consent to his help, even though she'd already said yes. And he didn't touch her just anywhere. She was a treasure, a porcelain doll, a Fabergé egg: fragile and special and irreplaceable.

Chapter Eight
    Diego set two bras and a camisole Lavender looked particularly good in on the counter, and placed the small bottle of the lavender-scented perfume beside them.
    "Plus whatever she doesn't want me to see." He passed his credit card to the cashier. "A girl must keep her secrets."
    The cashier grinned. Lavender scowled. "I could buy out the store."
    "You won't, because then I can't take you to dinner." He pointed toward the nightie section. "Call me when you need my signature."
    Too bad this store didn't have a wider color selection. Lavender would look adorable in a baby-doll, especially this transparent one. Lavender took it out of his hands and hung it back up. "I would never wear that."
    "Wrong color?"
    She rolled her eyes. He followed her to the counter, where the purchases were safely bagged. He signed the screen. She hadn't spent as much as he thought she would. The mysterious thing couldn't have cost more than the bras.
    "Now where?" He knew better than to ask to carry the bag.
    "Home." She looked down at herself. "This isn't what I planned on wearing."
    If they went back, she might find some excuse not to go out with him. She was the fish he had at the end of his line, and he was coaxing her in. He stopped in front of a shop window. Inside was a dress with not just any purple flowers on it. "You have to try this on."
    "I can't."
    "Why not?"
    Lavender rustled the bag.
    Diego scanned the mall. "Change in the restroom?"
    Lavender shook her head. "You have an answer for everything."
    "I do." Diego grinned.
    He walked her to the ladies' room. "The bra that opens in front?"
    She eyed him and pushed the door open. He leaned against the wall opposite the door. Whatever she came out wearing would be beautiful, simply because she was wearing it.
    *~*~*
    Lavender pulled off the girdle's tag. That man was frustrating. He'd just spent over a hundred dollars on her, and he planned to spend more. She wasn't a kept girl or a mistress. She didn't need him paying for everything. A trip to the secondhand store and a bottle of purple dye would keep her happy for a long time.
    But she'd seen him in action this afternoon. He was stubborn when paying for stuff, so she'd let him. Maybe he'd hit his credit limit. That would show him.
    But what made him the most infuriating was how pretty the new bra and girdle made her, so feminine, so female. Or maybe that was just because of the way he looked at her.
    Infuriating to the bone.
    *~*~*
    Diego held the dress