Carpathian 21 - Dark Peril

legs, and the back was a long train that reached her ankles. The lace was utterly sheer. Transparent. Only a few darker webs of fabric tried to hide anything, and it was more teasing than hiding. If she put the thing on, her curvy body would be on display. There were no panties or bra.

    She cleared her throat. “You want me to wear this?”

    “When we are alone together.”

    That same soft, compelling voice. No demands. It would be her decision. But he had said this would please him. Did she want to do this for him? Could she? Her fingers touched the lace with a kind of reverence. She wasn’t the kind of woman who could pull it off, but . . .

    Solange pulled the next one out to see if maybe that one would give her more confidence. This was a duster, a shimmering metallic red that fell all the way to the floor. At first she breathed a sigh of relief, but as she studied it, she realized the fabric stretched and would fit like a glove over her breasts, would cinch tightly at her waist and flare to the floor with the front completely open from the waist down. A generous portion of her breasts would be revealed by the V-neck. She stepped back, swallowing hard.

    “Have you heard of underwear?” She dared to ask because she couldn’t see him.

    “I would like my woman available to me when we are alone,” he replied in that same calm voice. But the way his tone lowered when he said available to me sent another wave of arousal crashing through her.

    She took a breath and looked at the next dress. This time she was more prepared, but still shocked when she saw the dress—if it could be called that. This was nothing but film and straps, a micromini halter dress with a see-through front just barely there and the back was nothing but pieces of thin strips all the way down, hugging the form so the very edges of her bottom would peek out with every step. There was more skin than material down the back.

    “I’ve never worn anything like this in my life. I’ve never even seen such a thing.”

    “You are not comfortable with your body, kessake . Dressing this way will not only please me, but it will make you very aware of how sexy you really are.”

    She swallowed hard and forced herself to look at the emerald green dress. Again, it was very short. Made to hug her curvy figure and show it off, the material stretched over and clung to skin. This one also had spaghetti straps, scooped low in the front. A vee of straps laddered down the dress both in the front and back, revealing bare skin. Most of her chest would be bare, and what was covered could be clearly seen through the thin fabric. Due to the straps the dress was as open in the front as it was in the back.

    She frowned at herself in the mirror. “I’ve been in a battle. I need to . . .”

    “Bathe? The water is hot. And then you can put on your choice and come eat.”

    She shivered. Another bath in front of him. But if she could do that, then surely she could wear one of his dresses.

    She forced herself to pull off her shirt. At once she caught sight of herself in the large, full-length mirror.
    Her breasts were full, high, and her nipples peaked in the cool of the cavern. Her hair was wild and with her tilted cat’s eyes, she looked . . . exotic . . . if she didn’t look too harshly at herself. She’d never been so aware of herself as a female—and that was it, that was the problem, she realized with a gasp. Dominic Dragonseeker made her feel completely, utterly, absolutely feminine when she was alone with him.

    She peeled off her jeans and stared at her body. She was short, but she had an hourglass figure. Juliette had once described her as a “pocket Venus” and she’d looked it up. To her shock, the description had been one of a voluptuous, beautiful woman. Well, she wasn’t beautiful, but she was definitely voluptuous.

    “I don’t have a razor.” She didn’t want to walk out nude in front of him and she couldn’t find much to wrap around her. “And I need a robe.” The moment the words were out of her mouth, she bit down hard on her lip. He’d asked her not to cover up her body and that was the first thing she was looking to do. But honestly, did women just walk around naked in front of their men? Without shaving their legs first? She should have asked Juliette or MaryAnn that question, too.

    Dominic suddenly appeared behind her in the mirror, a good foot taller than she was. He seemed to dominate the small space and it