Red Hots by Yvette Hines Page A

place and the right way.”
    Kindle
buried her face in her hand and gripped the phone tighter. Oh, damn, I
really should have researched this. I investigate everything that has to do
with my career, why didn’t I do the same with this? I knew what Emmalee was
into. Well, at least a general idea. However, I walked into that restaurant
practically blind.
     She’d
never even been physically disciplined as a child by her father or been in a
fight and had anyone hit her. Her anxiety spiked higher and she considered
calling him.
    “Maybe
I should just cancel.” Making her way back into the bedroom, she went to her
bed and sat down.
    “Don’t
do that.” Emmalee sighed. “Look, Kin, you’ve already agreed to see him. Knowing
him the way I do, he will not do anything without explaining it to you first.
If you get over there and decide you can’t go through with it after you hear
him out, then say so and it will be done. Your choice to submit is always your choice.”
    This
time Kindle inhaled slower and let it seep from her parted lips softly. “Okay.
I still have a problem of what to wear.”
    “Something
comfortable.” Emmalee stopped talking as the sound of a food processor whirled
in the background, halting her speech for a moment.
    Kindle
waited.
    When
it was quiet again, she continued. “If you two actually do a session tonight,
you will not want anything constricting against your skin. Yoga pants and a
t-shirt.”
    It
seemed so casual, too casual for Kindle’s liking. She didn’t really own a lot
of ‘dress down’ items and when she wore fitness gear, it was only to the gym.
Rising from the bed, she went to her dresser, taking her friend’s experienced
advice, Kindle agreed. “All right, I’ll trust you on this.”
    “Smart
woman,” Emmalee teased.
    At
that moment, Kindle’s cell phone vibrated against her face letting her know a
text message was coming through. Pulling the phone away from her face, she read
the name in the indicator bubble—Masaun Hawkes.
    “Emmalee,
I have to go.” Kindle pulled her bottom drawer open and removed one of her
college t-shirts and a pair of cotton pants.
    “No
problem. I need to get dinner on the table anyway. Love ya.”
    “Same
here. I’ll call you next week.” Kindle hung up then pressed the message icon
with her thumb.
    Her
heart lifted when she saw Masaun’s address then instantly it plummeted when she
saw the words at the end—HAT. GLOVES. SCARF. SHOES. TRENCHCOAT. NOTHING ELSE.
    So,
much for yoga pants and shirt. There
was no easing into this.
    She
swore this man got off on pushing her to the extreme of her tolerance.
Evidently, her association with Masaun was going to take her through her long
list of Nevers.
    Never
let a man control the relationship.
    Never
been struck.
    Never
gone out to meet a man nude beneath a long coat. Not even any of her
ex-boyfriends had gotten that sort of surprise at their door.
    Can
I do this?
    She
could risk showing up in jeans and a turtleneck and see how he’d respond. Most
likely send her packing.
    Do
I dare do this for Masaun?
    Yes, was the small, whispered response
from somewhere deep in her core. Listening to that voice, not evaluating it was
pure lunacy, but she went back into her closet and started pulling out the
articles.  
    After
a quick shower where she washed and shaved, she toweled off then applied lotion
everywhere. If the possibility was there that Masaun would see her completely
nude, she wanted to take the extra minutes to prepare herself right. Done, she
brushed her hair and put it back into a ponytail like it had been while she
cleaned her home. Not wanting to prolong the time, she dressed then
straightened up her room. She refused to have it in complete disarray as it had
been last night while she was out meeting with him.
    All
too soon she was walking in the crisp fall night air to her car. She was
thankful it wasn’t too chilly yet at night. In a little over a month, it would
be Halloween and at