Release Me Read online

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  Cobblestone Press

  www.cobblestone-press.com

  Copyright ©2006 by Karen Erickson

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  NOTICE: This work is copyrighted. It is licensed only for use by the original purchaser. Making copies of this work or distributing it to any unauthorized person by any means, including without limit email, floppy disk, file transfer, paper print out, or any other method constitutes a violation of International copyright law and subjects the violator to severe fines or imprisonment.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Release Me

  Copyright© 2006 Karen Erickson

  ISBN: 1-60088-034-7

  Cover Artist: Croco Designs

  Editor: Melanie Noto

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  Cobblestone Press, LLC

  www.cobblestone-press.com

  Dedication

  To my husband for all of his love and support. And to my three kids for being so understanding while Mom spent all her time on the computer! Finally, to Shelli for believing in me and helping me to tighten up this story. You rock!

  Chapter One

  "Did I tell you I'm taking control of my orgasms?” Sommer stuffed the last of her blueberry muffin into her mouth. “I'm so tired of counting on someone else, I decided to take action and make them happen myself."

  "Honey, you're preaching to the choir. It's about time you take control of your own body,” Noura said.

  Sommer pressed the phone between her ear and shoulder. Her friend and coworker was right. She'd been telling Sommer that for years, but she'd been so repressed she thought she had no other choice but to count on a man to give her mind blowing orgasms. The problem? Most men she'd been with hadn't given her any mind blowing orgasms. No multiple orgasms, no feeling like she was going to die orgasms, nothing. Oh, sometimes a pleasant washing over sort of feeling would happen. But nothing that rocked her world.

  "I bought a vibrator online,” she confessed in a hushed whisper, not wanting anyone to hear her. Not that anyone was in her office, but talking about it made her uncomfortable. “Ordered it online. It came yesterday."

  "So did you come yesterday?” Noura asked.

  Sommer giggled. Yes, she had. A few times. She'd been so sensitive down there by the end of her vibrator breaking in session that it had taken her forever just to pee. But she didn't need to share the dirty details. “I did."

  "Well, vibrators are great, but you need to find yourself a real man. Some big, strapping guy who'll take you on your desk at work. Someone you don't care about, a delicious man you just want to have sex with. Get a few of those potential orgasms out of your system, only with a warm body versus a battery operated machine."

  "Oh, yeah. But just who the heck can I find around here to ravish me on my desk?” Sommer shivered as she remembered a handsome man she'd seen in the elevator a few days ago. Tall and broad shouldered, with dark hair and a nice ass. She'd been unable to look at him straight on, but from what she could tell by her glimpse of his profile he had high cheekbones, perfectly sculpted lips, and beautiful eyes. Dreamy.

  Noura snorted, so loudly Sommer had to hold the phone away from her ear. “There's no one at work who would even qualify as Ravish on the Desk material. Please. Although there are probably some interesting prospects in the building. We should go on a hunt some day soon."

  "Great. So what do we say when we spot a hunky one? ‘Hey, could you come back to my office and have wild monkey sex with me? I'm trying to regain control of my orgasms.'” Sommer giggled again. “I don't think so."

  "We're not going to be blatant, Sommer. Come on! But it doesn't hurt to see who's closest to us. You never know. We could find some hot man for you to do in no time."

  Sommer thought of Mr. Hot Man in the Elevator and twirled the phone cord around her index finger. He was probably a client of one of the businesses in the building. A one shot deal. She'd most likely never see him again. “I think I'm better off with my vibrator for now."

  "A vibrator doesn't have hands, a mouth, or a tongue,” Noura said. “A vibrator can only satisfy you for so long."

  "Yeah, yeah, tell me about it,” Sommer muttered as she started composing an email to a client. Nothing happened. She moved the mouse across the screen. Nothing. Typed furiously on the keyboard. Nada. Crap.

  "It's true, you can get vibrated for only so long, and then it's going to become an addiction and no guy will ever be able to satisfy you—"

  "Shit!” Sommer banged her fists on her now useless keyboard. “Look, Noura, I gotta go. My computer just died on me again.” She disconnected and hit the button that quick-dialed the receptionist. She had a huge project due in two days and she was barely halfway finished. She did not need her computer to fritz out on her now. “Hey, Joanie. You got the number for that IT place on the fourth floor? My computer just died."

  "I'll call them for you,” Joanie said. “Do you need them to come right away?"

  "Definitely. It's an emergency. Thanks.” Sommer hung up, then punched the keys on her keyboard to no avail. It was frozen solid, had been freezing on her for the past couple of weeks, but she'd always brushed it off, restarted the computer, and gone on her merry way. That probably wasn't the best way to handle a computer problem, but she never had the time to worry about it, always told herself she'd deal with it later. Big mistake.

  Her phone rang and she snatched it up. “A tech is coming down to your office right now. Watch for him."

  "Thanks, Joanie. I appreciate it."

  While she waited, she decided to go through her stack of mail, something she'd been neglecting as of late. As a junior account executive for a small advertising firm, Sommer had been swamped with various projects the senior executive had dumped on her. She didn't mind. She loved her work and was dedicated. With no boyfriend take up her time, she spent lots of late nights at the office. She figured all this hard work would eventually pay off, so why not put in as much time as she could before life got in the way?

  Boring, boring, boring, she thought as she shuffled through the envelopes. If anyone had anything important to say, they sent it via email, and since she couldn't open her email program, she was stuck. Maybe she could grab one of the laptops the advertising team shared and work from that, although her important information was stored on her actual computer. Hopefully, if the global freezing hadn't wiped it out.

  She was so stupid for not backing up her files. Very important files, she reminded herself. Suddenly the Garbage song started playing her head. “Stupid Girl—"

  A soft knock sounded on her office door and Sommer glanced up. She sucked in a breath, practically choking on the air she inhaled. As if her imagination had conjured him up, there stood the very man she'd been lusting after—the man from the elevator. In the flesh.

  Unable to speak, she cleared her throat, coughed, and waved him in.

  "You're having trouble with your computer?” he asked.

  Aha. He was from the IT company. A computer geek. He blinked at her from behind his glasses and she sucked in too much air yet again. He had the most beautiful eyes she'd ever seen. Long, black lashes surrounded irises that wavered between green and blue. The thin wire rimmed glasses he wore only accentuated their intensity, their masculine beauty. Suddenly hypnotized, she gazed into them.

  "Your computer, Miss Daniels?” he asked politely, look
ing at her as if she'd lost her marbles.

  She nodded and sat up straighter in her chair. Trying to be serious and businesslike, when she wanted nothing more but to throw herself at his feet and beg him to touch her. “Yes, it keeps freezing up and shutting itself down. I don't know what's wrong with it."

  "Let me take a look at it,” he said, walking over to her so he stood next to her chair. “Is it under your desk?"

  Sommer looked up at him. The sudden image of him beneath her desk, touching her bare legs, filled her thoughts and she blinked—and tried to banish the naughty thoughts. He smiled at her and just like that, she felt her panties grow wet.

  "Your tower. Is it under your desk?” He sounded as if he were talking to an imbecile.

  "Oh, yes. Of course it is.” She laughed nervously. “I'm sorry. I'm a little slow on the uptake this afternoon. I have a huge deadline at the end of the week and computer problems are the last thing I need right now."

  "Well, let me get under there, Miss Daniels, and I'll take a look at it."

  Still sitting with her delectable legs crossed and her short skirt hitched up to reveal a lengthy expanse of thigh, Sommer pushed away from the desk.

  Ted Maxwell licked his lips in anticipation. He normally wasn't a leg man; he preferred a nice ass to grab hold of and squeeze. But legs like hers demanded attention and imagination. Yes, indeed, he could see himself grabbing her slender ankles, running his hands up her shapely calves to the inside of her thighs, then pushing them open so he could tongue her pussy with long, slow licks...

  Shit. He needed to focus, to fix this sexy woman's computer and get the hell out of her office. Why did frickin’ Stan have to call in sick today? Ted cursed his employee for about the 70th time since this morning. He hadn't made a repair call like this for months. Hell, he didn't have to. He spent all his time in the office. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been out in the field.

  He tried to power up her computer, but it wouldn't even turn on. Not good. He shook his head and muttered an oath.

  "Do you think you'll be able to fix it this afternoon?” Sommer asked in her sweet voice.

  Ted grunted. “Do you have another computer you can work on while I try to repair this one?"

  She sighed, the sound washing over him and making his dick stand at attention. He could imagine her sighing just like that right before he kissed her. Touched her. Entered her from behind, on top, whatever. “I have a laptop, but the information I need for my project is saved on this computer."

  "You don't back it up?” He came out from underneath her desk but still sat on the floor, facing her—and abruptly realized his face was level with her crossed legs. Her crotch. He willed her to uncross and cross her legs, a la the movie “Basic Instinct", so he could catch a glimpse of panties, or no panties. Either one would please him just fine.

  Miss Daniels bit down on her lip, drawing his gaze to the sweet fullness of it. Her lips were plump, ripe. Kissable. She shook her head. “Not as often as I should, it seems."

  "Everyone learns that lesson when something like this happens.” He reached back under the desk, unplugged all the cords and dragged out the tower. “I'll take this back to my office and see what I can do with it."

  "Oh, that would be wonderful.” She smiled at him, and he felt as if he'd been punched in the gut. Damn, she was beautiful. Big brown eyes, full lips, smooth skin. Her brown hair was pulled back in a severe ponytail that he longed to undo, to watch all that hair fall around her sweet face. “I'll be working late tonight, so please don't hesitate to call if you fix it before the evening is over."

  "No problem.” Oh, he longed to call her all right. Just not in the way she was expecting. He had other computers to worry about and other emergency repairs to make, and considering he was down a man for the day, he was running way behind. But that wasn't going to stop him from working on Miss Sommer Daniels’ computer the minute he got back to the office.

  Other clients, be damned.

  Chapter Two

  Sommer was exhausted. Her eyes hurt after staring at the laptop for so long. It was well past seven o'clock, and the offices were deserted except for her. The quiet and lack of distractions allowed her to concentrate. She'd basically had to start over on her project from scratch, trying to recall what she had done so far, although she knew she wasn't remembering everything. But she'd come up with some new ideas that were even better than her original plan. So maybe it wasn't such a bad thing that her computer had decided to freak out on her.

  In addition to her new ideas was the fact that she'd met the hot IT guy. He was so gorgeous, she thought as her toes curled inside her shoes. He'd called her a few minutes ago, and his deep, delicious voice had informed her that he'd already repaired her computer. Now she anxiously awaited his arrival and smoothed a hand over her already smooth hair, having just touched up her lipstick. He probably wouldn't even notice her, was probably some sort of nerd who was only into his computers. At least, that's what she told herself.

  He appeared in her doorway and she experienced an odd sense of deja vu. Only this time, he had her computer tucked under one muscular arm and his shirtsleeves were rolled up, revealing tanned forearms sprinkled with dark hair. Surprising, considering he was a desk jockey. The first couple of buttons of his shirt were undone, and his hair was a bit rumpled. Sexy, she thought as he walked towards her with long, purposeful strides. Very sexy.

  "Here you go, Miss Daniels,” he said, setting the tower on top of her desk.

  "Thank you,” she breathed, a little heady from his intoxicating nearness. He smelled good, he felt good—and he hadn't even touched her. Yet.

  She bit back the urge to giggle. “Please, call me Sommer."

  "All right ... Sommer.” Her name sounded wonderful passing from his lips. Her heart started to beat faster. “May I get under your desk to put this back where it belongs?"

  "Of course.” She pushed away from the desk in her wheeled chair, allowing him the room to crawl beneath it. His khaki pants strained across his butt as he went down on all fours and she sat there entranced, staring at it. Admiring it. She could imagine herself touching it. She clenched her hands in her lap to restrain herself.

  She sat there, her heart rate accelerating, and breathed in his scent, her ankles crossed beneath the chair, her knees apart, not even realizing she wasn't sitting in a ladylike position in her skirt until he came up on his knees in front of her desk and looked directly between her legs—right at her crotch. She knew he could most likely see her baby blue satin panties. Her breath hitched in her throat, and she realized she couldn't move even if she tried.

  Those beautiful eyes lifted slowly, meeting hers, and the unadulterated lust she saw reflected in them made her want to spread her legs wider. “You're all set, Miss Daniels. Oh, I mean ... Sommer."

  She licked her lips, and his gaze followed the movement of her tongue. She tensed involuntarily at him watching her. Sommer had never been so aware of a man's reaction. “Thank you—um, I never did get your name."

  Oh, she sounded tacky, but she knew he'd never told her. And she desperately wanted to know the name of the man who was about to ravish her. Hopefully.

  His eyes caressed her crotch again, and then he glanced up. “My name is Ted."

  Rhymes with bed. Oh, God, she had the sudden image of grabbing him by the ends of his hair and shoving his head between her legs while she sprawled naked on her bed. She wanted to feel his lips and tongue and teeth at her very center.

  "Nice to meet you, Ted,” she managed to say.

  His eyes never left hers as one big warm hand came up to cup her knee, his long fingers caressing her skin. She gulped, closed her eyes for a moment, and then opened them to find his head bent, pressing a soft kiss to the inside of her knee. His lips lingered, his hand slipping down to close around her ankle and she sighed.

  What was happening to her? What was happening between the two of them? The right thing would be to push him away, to tell him to stop, and ki
ck him out of her office.

  But his lips felt so good on her skin and his hands were big and warm—she could only imagine how they would feel touching her all over. She realized she didn't care about doing the right thing. She wanted to do him instead.

  "Nice to meet you too, Sommer,” he said against her knee, kissing it again. His other hand grasped her right ankle and he simultaneously smoothed both hands up her legs, over her calves to rest at her knees, spreading them slightly.

  His eyes met hers, questioning, looking for her invitation. She gave it with a slight nod of her head, her lips trembling, her entire body quaking as his hands slid up her thighs, beneath her skirt. She widened her legs as much as she could in her chair and licked her lips. He groaned out loud.

  "I imagined doing this earlier when I was under your desk,” he admitted, his voice husky. His fingers grazed her sensitive skin.

  "I imagined you doing this to me earlier,” she admitted, watching him. His fingers crept higher on her leg, then higher still, until they brushed the front of her panties. She gasped, and her stomach tightened.

  His eyes met hers. “Then I guess we both want the same thing?"

  Sommer pressed her lips together, and nodded. Ted tugged at the waistband of her panties and she lifted her hips, allowing him to slip them off. He pulled them down her legs, over her knees, down her calves, and finally off her ankles. He held the scrap of pale blue lace and satin to his face and breathed deeply, inhaling her scent. Then he shoved the garment into his pocket. “A memento for later."

  She could only imagine what he would do with her panties. Her entire body throbbed at the thought of it. Unbelievable—she was sitting in her chair at her desk with a man's head between her legs, after he'd just smelled her panties and shoved them into his pocket. He took off his glasses and set them on top of her desk. Then he turned to her, his fingers creeping up her leg to her naked pussy, and sliding just in between her lips, barely touching her.