Page 26 of Dangerous Temptation
She felt warmth in her cheeks and a sudden heaviness in her breasts. Their clinch had been hot and fast, but he had suckled her so hard her nipples hadn’t relaxed for the rest of the day. They perked up again at the memory and she looked worriedly at the door.
The massage therapist was waiting on the threshold, her heavy massage table folded up and leaning against her leg.
Elena opened the door again, this time wide enough to have a conversation. ‘I’m not sure I understand.’
‘Mr Wolfe said you might be having some soreness.’
Elena’s face went from warm to blazing hot.
‘From all the hiking you’ve been doing?’ the woman continued.
‘Mmm, yes.’ Elena cleared her throat. ‘And I’ve been at the computer a lot. Come in.’
She wasn’t an idiot. She had proof that the masseuse had been sent by Alex. She wasn’t sure if he’d sent her to score points or act as an apology, but she wasn’t going to refuse the gift. Her shoulder was about to make her cry, and a massage was a luxury she hadn’t been able to indulge in much, especially from a professional. She was sure that whoever he hired would be far superior to the massage-school students who practised their craft on the cheap at the local Y.
Tabitha entered and gave herself a shake. ‘It’s a brisk one out there today.’
‘Yes, it is.’
The woman looked around the tiny cabin. ‘Where would you like me to set up?’
Elena bit her lip. There wasn’t a lot of room. Finally, she decided to use the space where she did yoga, but that meant moving the coffee table. If the circumstances were strange after what she was used to, Tabitha didn’t say anything. She set up her supplies and then washed her hands in the bathroom while Elena stripped down and got under the sheets.
‘Any particular spots I should pay attention to?’ the woman asked as she came back into the room.
‘My neck and shoulders,’ Elena said. She couldn’t tell her about the other place. That mat in the gym might have been good for sit-ups, but not for the exercise she’d engaged in. Her butt was still tender from bouncing upon it. ‘And my bottom.’
The words were out before she could stop them, but why not? Why get a massage and still have a part of her body hurt? She blushed with her face tucked into the table’s support ring, but the woman made no comment until she touched her back.
‘Oh, hon. You’re tight.’
‘I’ve been working a lot,’ Elena confessed.
‘Too much. It may take a while to work this tension out.’
‘Whatever you have time for would be great.’
‘Time?’ That got a chuckle out of the masseuse. ‘I have all the time in the world. Your …’
She paused as if she didn’t know what word to use.
‘Mr Wolfe,’ she began again, ‘hired me for the whole day. I’m supposed to give you whatever treatments you want or need. Hot stones, aromatherapy, reflexology …’
‘The whole day?’ Elena would have been thrilled with a fifteen-minute foot rub.
‘I believe his exact words were to “leave you limp”.’
Limp was an understatement.
By the time Tabitha left, Elena felt like her muscles were mush. All traces of stress and tension had been systematically removed from her body. In their place was peace, near light-headedness and an indefinable euphoria. She stretched out along the sofa, her lazy limbs falling in comfortable repose. The couch was still tucked up against the breakfast bar, but she didn’t have the energy to move it back into place.
‘Oh, my God,’ she murmured. She felt almost as good as she had after sex.
Almost.
As if she’d summoned him up, her fingers brushed against the hoodie that was still draped over the sofa’s back. It had cooled, but the fleece was still soft. Impulsively, she pulled it over herself. It dropped on top of her, but so did a stiff white envelope.
She frowned, but then she remembered taking it out of her backpack. Curiosity got the best of her, and she worked her finger under the flap. When she unfolded the piece of paper inside, her mouth dropped open. She didn’t know what she’d been expecting, but it wasn’t this. Her gaze skimmed over the results of a check-up from a month ago at the medical clinic at the Federal Correctional Institution at Otisville.
