Page 28 of All Night with the Cowboy
“That’s gross.”
“Bet you haven’t exactly been a saint.”
“Um, compared to you? I’d to be lucky to have made my way through an entire box of condoms since I met you, but I’m guessing you’ve been keeping Durex in business.”
“How long have you been working on that one-liner?”
Lauren held up her glass. “Oh, I’ve been working on that one for hours.”
They sat in silence awhile longer, polishing off the bottle before Lauren set down her glass and rose.
“I need to work some magic on you before I get too drunk.”
Tanner looked up into her eyes. “Hmm, not sure if I trust you. I think you’re buzzed already.”
She rolled her eyes and walked into the house, coming back with a bag that he guessed contained her strapping and supplies. She pointed to her table, which was still set up.
“Lie down and stay still,” she ordered.
Tanner did as he was told, more relaxed than he’d been the first time around when she’d massaged him. This time she focused on slightly different parts of his body, rubbing into his muscles and pushing deep, and then strapping him up and making him look like she was trying to cover up as much of his skin as possible.
When she’d finished his lower half, she paused at his wrist. “Is it okay if I do a little work on this now? I’m worried about how badly you might have damaged all the ligaments and soft tissue here and it could end up being the most problematic of all your injuries.”
He turned his wrist over, palm open and facing the sky. “Do your worst, doc.”
Her fingers were warm and firm as she pressed into him, working his forearm and then down to his hand.When she looked up at him, bent down beside his lounger, her hair falling forward over her shoulder, eyes so big and brown as she gazed up, he felt something instead of him fall apart. All these years he’d tried to hate her, thought hehadhated her—but hate wasn’t the thing he was full of right now, far from it.
She broke their connection, her fingers moving again when before they’d paused, softly against his skin. She cut and pressed the strapping firmly, supporting his wrist as he stayed still, not moving a muscle.
When she’d finished, her fingers hit pause again, not leaving him. And when she looked up, even more wide-eyed than before, he still didn’t move. Lauren slowly rose, only halfway, and her hand hovered before moving to his shoulder. Tanner swallowed and waited, until she slowly, slowly bent down. Her hair fell against one of his cheeks as she pushed her palm into his shoulder with more force. For a second he wondered if he’d read the situation wrong, thought perhaps she was just leaning in to massage his shoulder, until her mouth finally found its way to his and she kissed him. Her lips gently brushed against his in a barely there touch, moving back and forth, tasting him, teasing him so bad. Tanner fought the urge to raise his hands and touch her hips, wishing he could coax her down to sit astride him, his fingers itching to wind around her long locks and anchor her in place. But she was the one who’d made the move, and he wasn’t going to push his luck. If she wanted to be in control, then dammit, she could be. And he didn’t know if the table could take it.
Just as he expected the kiss to deepen, for her to lean into him and dip her tongue into his mouth, she pulledback, fingertips stroking down his cheek. With her other hand she tucked her long hair behind one ear.
There was a gentle knock at the door followed by an enthusiastic“Bula!”from their butler.
“Dinner is served,” she whispered, leaving him lying there as she rose and disappeared.
Chapter 9
LAUREN watched Tanner rise and head off to bed. It had been a strange day. She’d thought their time together would be tense; that they’d fight or have such a weird animosity between them that it’d be hard to know what to say and how to behave around him. But oddly enough they’d fallen back into step, and she was finding it hard to piece together the fact they’d gone so long without seeing each other.
The truth was, she knew why they weren’t fighting, and it was because of what hadn’t changed between them. They’d had chemistry like she’d never imagined possible when they’d dated, and it hadn’t disappeared. It was the same reason she’d never had any other relationships, because she’d just never felt that same physical connection with any other guy. Life had been good to her, it simply hadn’t given her mind-blowing sex or the rush of adrenaline from a man that she’d experienced before with Tanner.
She thought about heading to the beach for a walk in the dark, with the lit torches to guide her, but decidedagainst it. She considered going outside and lying in a lounger for a bit, to enjoy the gentle sound of lapping waves, to maybe pour the last of the champagne—their second bottle—into her glass and curl up on the sofa with her book. But there was only one thing she truly wanted to do, and now that it was in her head…
Lauren emptied the rest of the bottle and drank slowly as she tried to muster some courage. Was he stripping off his clothes right now in his room? Was he naked beneath the sheets? She gulped, shutting her eyes and remembering the feel of his skin beneath hers when she’d been massaging him, or the soft, sensual push and pull of his lips against hers when they’d kissed.
She knocked back the rest of her glass, stood and steadied herself, and then headed for the bedrooms. She was barefoot and her feet made the softest padding noise on the timber floor as she walked to his door. She breathed deep and held up her hand. She paused, balling it into a fist, preparing to knock.
Stop.
She hesitated, her hand hovering. If she did this, there was no going back. There was no acting professional and maintaining the high road. Her head spun and she knew she’d had too much to drink. She’d prided herself her entire career on being professional, onnotgetting personal with her clients. Tanner was different, but it was still work, and she wondered whether she would regret it?
Lauren leaned against the door, a more-relaxed palm against it now—and her forehead too. She could almost feel him on the other side. Her fingertips ached, knowing that he was in there and how badly she wanted to touch him.
She took a few silent, deep breaths, then quietly pushed back and headed for her room, closing the door behind her and falling onto her bed. It was better this way, and even though it didn’t feel like the right decision now, she knew it would in the morning.
***
