Page 9 of Lovers at Seaside
His eyes narrowed, and he stepped distractingly closer. His hand slid around her waist, pulling her against his hard body. He lowered his face until she could feel his warm breath on her lips. Holy mother of hotness, she couldn’t breathe.
“What…?”
“Helping you relax,” he said with a sinful curve to his lips before he slanted his beautiful mouth over hers in a deep, sensual kiss.
The first stroke of his tongue took her from shocked towhoa, this is nice. The next catapulted her fromniceto she had no idea what, because her brain stopped functioning. His lips were soft, the kiss was hard, and he explored her mouth like he owned it, sending spirals of ecstasy whizzing through her. She’d forgotten what it felt like to be kissedfor real, not as part of a scene, and oh baby, did she want more. She went up on her toes, trying to intensify the kiss, completely unaware that the elevator had come to a stop on Abe’s floor. Grayson stepped back, his hand still searing heat at her waist.
“Better?”Calm. Cool. Collected.
So unfair.
She lifted a hand to her tingling lips. “Mm-hm.”
As the doors began to close, he held them open. She wished he’d let them close and would kiss her again. He brushed the pad of his thumb just below her lower lip, probably fixing the lipstick his incredible mouth had smudged. She had the crazy urge to lick his thumb. To pull it into her mouth and tease it with her tongue.
“I’ll be more careful of your lipstick next time.” The firm press of his hand on her lower back brought reality in again.
He guided her out of the elevator and down the hall on noodle-like legs. She stopped a few feet from Abe’s suite to allow her synapses to begin firing again, as she remembered why she was there. When she’d called the resort and found out that Abe lived there, she’d been surprised to hear he had a round-the-clock nurse and failing health.
“What’s wrong?” Grayson asked.
“I’m nervous. That was…”Insane.“Intense. And unexpected and probably inappropriate. But”—she motioned around his broad chest—“that’s all your maleness coming out and trying to help.I think.”
“It was,” he said easily.
Well, nothing like clarification. It would have been nice to hear something about howmaybe it had started that way, but…Ugh! Okay, so you’re not interested in me? Do you exude sex and desire around all of your friends?She shook her head to try to focus on why she was there. What if Abe refused to see her? What if he yelled at her? What if he said horrible things about Bert? But Grayson was too distracting, and all her thoughts tumbled out.
“I’ve met with high-powered filmmakers, directors, and producers, and I’m even more nervous meeting Bert’s brother. Abe despised him, and I don’t know what to expect, or if he even knew about our relationship. How could he? Bert said they hadn’t spoken in forever. And I’m rambling. I’ve already told you all this. And you kissed me. You kissed me like…like…”Shutupshutup!“Nerves. Sorry.”
Grayson placed his strong hands on her shoulders, and his piercing, confident stare silenced the voices in her head. She waited with bated breath for him to rescue her. To say she didn’t have to do this so she could run back into the elevator, maybe steal a kissor fifty, and hole up in her house again until she forgot about seeing Abe altogether. Why, oh why, did Grayson make her feel like she could let down her guard? It was so much easier to push through everything when she was inParkermode.
“You’re doing this for Bert,” he reminded her solemnly. “And you’re doing this for yourself. You can do this, Parker, and I’ll be right here by your side if you need me.”
She wanted to kick him in the knees for not refusing to let her go through with it, but how could she when she’d insisted in the car that she needed to do this? When his hand found her back again and gave her a nudge toward the door, she forced herself to straighten her spine and told herself this was just another role. A role she’d brought on herself.
She slid a practiced smile into place as the door opened, revealing a tall, svelte, older woman with cold blue eyes.
“Yes?”
Parker had expected a plump, homely nurse, not a beautiful white-haired woman with perfect makeup, wearing a tight black skirt and a sharp white blouse. Grayson’s hand pressed a little more firmly on her back, and she was thankful for the support.
“Hi. I’m Parker Collins, a friend of Abe’s brother, Bert Stein.”
The woman didn’t waste any smiles, or any breath, as she waited for Parker to continue speaking. Given her flat affect, Parker wondered if she’d even known Abe had a brother.
“Is Abe available?” She should have called, but she hadn’t expected there to be a guard nurse on duty.
“Please come in.” The nurse stepped aside and waved toward a Victorian-style couch by the windows. “Have a seat and I’ll see if he’s available. Ms. Collins and…?”
“Friend,” Grayson said casually, and guided Parker across the silent room. Long velvet curtains, an antique claw-footed desk, a Victorian-style armchair, and a grand piano gave the room a hands-off museum feel.
When the nurse disappeared behind two heavy wooden doors, Parker whispered, “Friend?”
“The focus shouldn’t be on me. I’m here for you, not for him.”
Her heart soaked that right in, a sliver of happiness to calm her worries.
The nurse took a long time before she returned, gracing them with the same icy expression.
