Are You Who I Think You Are? "Intimate Exposure" by Portia De Costa

From the moment Red Webster arrived at executive Vicki Renard's firm, sparks flew between them. The photographer is supposed to create a company profile for its new owner, but he spends most of his time flirting with her. His sexy teasing infuriates Vicki...and piques a desire to submit to him. His hypnotic eyes promise what she's been secretly craving: a sexually dominant master, like the ones in her favorite erotic novels.

Investigating his new business incognito, billionaire F. W. Shanley--aka Red--is turned on by Vicki's fiery personality and undeniable beauty. When he discovers her reading a BDSM novel on her eReader, he knows he's found a woman who shares his desires and promises to be a challenging submissive.

When Red arranges a weekend at a secluded hotel, Vicki agrees to indulge in no-strings-attached erotic fun. But can she commit to this kind of life with Red when he realizes they can have so much more?

I don't think it is a secret that the "face" we present to the world is often very different than what we know about ourselves or what we would want others to know about us. In fact, we often seek to present an external demeanor that is what we think others want to see in us. Now think on this: Dr Robert Schuler made this statement: "I am not what I think I am. I am not what you think I am. I am what I think you think I am." I have to admit that when I first heard that I was scratching my head for a bit until I got the point. That quote has been very helpful for me for many years and I think such is the case at the heart of this story.

No getting around, however, that the hero of this novella deliberately is portraying himself quite differently to Vicki and her co-workers than what he is in his normal life. He is not a "simple" anything as he functions as a business magnate of international reknown. Yet here he is working as a "simple" photographer with an eye to looking over one of his businesses in order to get on the inside where he can judge the routines, relationships, and attitudes of his employees. The last thing he ever expected is to run into a woman like Vicki with her beauty, her intelligence, and her interest in the "darker" and kinkier aspects of sexuality. His kind of woman, as it turns out.

This is a short read with some interesting BDSM ingredients and encounters but which are well told and which are safe, sane, and consensual. Yet at the heart of this story is the desire by a man who has everything for a relationship that can fill his heart, his emotional well with authentic love, something he has wanted and needed for a long time. It won't take a long time to read this story but it will be a fun read and one that is right down the alley of those who really like erotic romance. Ms de Costa is a very good writer and has done well with a smaller literary format in telling a well-balanced story. If you like a good love story spiced up with a little bit of BDSM, you'll like this one. I give it a rating of 3.75 out of 5.

This novella was released by Carina Press in February, 2012.