Page 40 of Pretty Wild

My hand wraps around her slender waist, gently drawing her body closer to mine. “Nope. Never.”

“That’s…criminal, Marcus.”

I snort. “I can think of a lot of things that are considered criminal, but no one taking a bath in my tub isn’t one of them.”

Exasperated, she huffs out a long breath. “No, I’m serious. Any woman would fall at your feet for just an hour in that bad boy. I mean, the jets, the steam, the massager.”

“There’s a massager?”

Her mouth falls open. “Are you joking? That pad with the little knobs on it is a massager, Marcus. How did you not know that?”

Again, I lift my shoulders casually. “I don’t know. Hallie picked it after I had the space specifications ironed out. That’s probably why the damn thing was so expensive,” I say, scratching my chin with my available hand.

“Uhh, yeah. I imagine it wasn’t cheap,” she states incredulously. “I can’t believe it’s never been used. I bet you’d like it. You know, after a long, hard day, you can fill it with hot water, some lavender oils, and use that massager. Your back and your muscles would thank you.”

“A shower does all that,” I reason, even though it really doesn’t.

“No, it most certainly does not. One of these days, I’ll show you. We’ll get you all set up with a nice, relaxing bath, and you can try out the jets and massager.”

My eyebrows shoot toward my hairline. “You’re gonna show me…from inside the tub? That’s pretty much the only way I can envision enjoying that thing.”

“So, there has to be a naked woman in there with you in order to take a bath?”

A smile stretches across my lips. “Absolutely.”

She sighs. “Don’t sound like there’d be much relaxing going on.”

“Oh, there won’t be,” I assure her, giving her side a gentle squeeze before releasing my hold on her. “What do you say we head down, and I start dinner.”

“I assume that’s not a euphemism for anything dirty, right?”

I snort a laugh. “Nope. Unless you want it to be,” I reply with a wink.

“For an hour in that bathtub, I might be willing to negotiate,” she says, moving toward the stairs.

My cock? It goes completely hard in my jeans. I can practically feel her mouth around me, which makes it incredibly difficult to walk down the stairs without looking like I’m suddenly bowlegged.

When we reach the kitchen, Buddy jumps up and joins us. Ryan enters the open space and looks around. “Wow, this is beautiful too.”

“Do you cook?” I find myself asking, approaching the bowls with the cut potatoes and sliced vegetables ready to go in the oven.

Ryan laughs. “Uhh, no. I’m a pro at reading a menu though.” She makes a face, knowing how that makes her sound. “That probably makes me snobby or spoiled, and I suppose I am. My parents had a live-in assistant, and by that I mean a woman who cooked, cleaned, and practically took care of everything house-related. Not to mention the gardener who came two times a week to take care of any mowing, landscaping, and the pool.

“You had a pool?” I ask, starting the oven to roast the potatoes.

“In Southern California, everyone has a pool,” she states with a smirk.

“Well, in northwest Wisconsin, not many do. Especially with the lake so close. If people want to go swimming, they just go there.”

She makes a face. “Charming.”

I bark out a laugh and place the potatoes on a greased cookie sheet. “You get used to it.”

Once the timer is set, I get the vegetables situated in the steamer basket. I have carrots, asparagus, broccoli, and red pepper all sliced and ready. The water starts to boil, so I turn down the heat and place the basket inside, tossing a slice of raw carrot straight into Buddy’s open mouth. I read online that carrots and broccoli are a healthy snack for dogs, so he’s been given just a couple of small pieces while I was slicing them earlier.

“What is that contraption?” she asks, peeking inside the steamer before I close the lid, giving Buddy a pet on the head as she does.

“It’s a steamer. I bought if off Amazon.” Turning around, I lean against the counter and cross my arms over my chest. “I try to grill my food as much as possible, but I love steamed vegetables. So this twenty-dollar appliance is one of my best friends.”

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