by Cat Schield
Which made everything so much worse.
Keeping his attraction to her buttoned down had been way easier when he had reason to suspect her character and motives. Now, as she began to sing, Paul’s spirits sank. Her clear, sweet voice captivated the children. Their parents looked beyond grateful to see their sons and daughters so happy. And some of the nursing staff were singing along.
Before her topsy-turvy world had intersected with his, Paul never would’ve imagined himself attracted to a free spirit like Lia. Her ideas about the rejuvenating effects of music and aromatherapies seemed more like wishful thinking than practical fact. Yet he couldn’t deny Grady’s marked improvement.
Or his own shifting opinion.
Over the next hour Lia demonstrated an extensive repertoire of familiar children’s songs. When at long last she signaled the end of the performance with a princess-worthy curtsy and waved goodbye, Paul wasn’t surprised at the sharp tug his heart gave when she shifted her full attention to him.
“Sorry that took so long,” she said as they headed for the elevator.
“That was something,” he remarked, struggling to sort out his muddled emotions as they stepped into the car.
She eyed him while they descended, letting the princess character drop away and becoming Lia in costume once more.
“From your tone I can’t tell if that’s good or bad.”
“The kids really love you.”
“Seeing their favorite princess come to life is a wonderful distraction for them.”
“And you do this every week?”
Lia nodded. “I try to.”
They reached the sidewalk and turned in the direction of the estate.
“Why?”
“You of all people should understand,” she said, tugging at the fingers of one long yellow glove.
The movement snared Paul’s attention and he noticed an immediate and sharp uptick in his heartbeat as he watched her slide the material down her arm. The practiced move wasn’t at all provocative or sexy, but made his breath quicken all the same.
“Why do you think I should understand?”
“Because of all the charity work your family does.”
“Philanthropy and wealth usually go hand in hand.”
“There’s a difference between writing a big check and giving time and energy to a cause. Your family actively participates because that’s what’s rooted in their personal values.”
Yet part of those values was defined by the idea that because of their good fortune the Wattses owed something to those less fortunate. Lia had no largesse, so why was she driven to help others? What compelled her to dress up and sing to children or to help Grady get better?
Despite all the facts he’d gleaned about her, today’s hospital visit demonstrated how little he actually knew—or understood—about her.
“Thanks for coming along today,” Lia said, rousing Paul from his thoughts.
He noticed that they were nearing the estate and found himself suddenly reluctant to part ways. “Do you want to come in for a drink?”
For a beat she stared at him as if debating how to respond, and then she shook her head. “I can’t figure you out.”
“The feeling is mutual.”
“All week long you’ve been avoiding me. Now today you come with me to the hospital and invite me for a drink. What’s changed?”
What could he say? That he found her charming, her company invigorating? That avoiding her wasn’t helping his peace of mind? He already knew their temperaments were completely different. Maybe if they spent more time together her eccentric ways and quirky beliefs would turn him off once and for all.
“Oh,” she continued. “I’ll bet you’re scheming to get me drunk in the hopes I’ll slip up and say something damning.”
“Now who’s the suspicious one,” he retorted, wishing this was going more smoothly. As much as he didn’t want to put his cards on the table, Paul realized he had to give her a peek at his hand if he hoped to entice her to extend their time together. “Maybe I enjoyed your company this afternoon and don’t want it to end.”
She blinked at him. “I’m sorry? Did I just hear you right? You enjoyed my company?”
“Do you want to join me for a drink or not?” he grumbled.
She tapped her finger against her lips, making a show of giving consideration to his invitation. “Well, since you asked so sweetly...sure. Let me change and check on Grady. It won’t take me more than ten minutes.”
“Need any help?” he asked, eyeing the gown’s complicated lacings. “I’ve never undressed a princess before.” The declaration came out of nowhere, surprising them both.
“If I thought you actually meant that,” she said in a breathless rush, “I’d take you up on your offer.”
Paul opened his mouth to either take back his remark or to double down, but before he decided which, Lia threw up both hands and shook her head vigorously.
“No. Don’t say anything more.” She began retreating toward the house. “I’ll be back in ten minutes. That should give you plenty of time to figure out how to get yourself out of trouble.”
* * *
Lia’s buoyant mood lingered as she walked along the garden paths that led to the house. When she’d donned the Belle costume, she’d never imagined such a magical afternoon. She’d spent the last seven days anxious and miserable over Paul’s pronounced disapproval, unsure how to cope with her body’s irresistible response to his physical appeal or to manage the push and pull of apprehension and lust that kept her off-balance.
Before today, if asked to describe Paul, Lia would have used words like confident and authoritative. Yet at the hospital today he’d shown her a different side, demonstrating he could be reflective and more openminded than she’d imagined. This brief respite from his distrust was a welcome change.
To her relief she encountered no one on the way to her bedroom. Grady’s door was closed, indicating he was resting, no doubt worn out from his latest round of physical therapy. Before leaving for the hospital, she’d popped in to show off her costume. His delight at her appearance had been nearly a match for the children.
Although Lia raced through her transformation she took longer than ten minutes. Because the elaborate wig and heavy gown left her feeling sweaty, she grabbed a quick shower and hastily reapplied mascara and red lipstick because she wanted Paul to see her as attractive. Reluctant to keep him waiting too long, she drew her wet hair into a sleek topknot, and just before she headed out the door, swept powder over her nose, obliterating her freckles. She’d noticed how often Paul’s gaze focused on the imperfection. No doubt he found them unsightly.
By the time she reached the carriage house, Lia was trembling with anticipation. How many nights had she gone to bed in Ava Watts’s old bedroom only to find sleep elusive? Over and over she called herself a fool for letting the cybersecurity specialist get beneath her skin. While the man treated her like a thief out to steal the heirloom silver, she was tormented by fantasies of him making love to her with all the passion and intensity of a man who craved closeness and intimacy. And today, all he’d had to do was show her a little kindness and she was all in.
“Sorry I took so long,” she said, covertly scanning his expression in search of reassurance. Was the man attracted to her or not? She couldn’t tell. “The wig and dress left me feeling grimy so I showered.”
He stepped close and lowered his head, breathing her in. “Damn, you smell good.”
A lightning storm of awareness electrified Lia’s whole body. She leaned back and peered up at his expression. He watched her through half-lidded eyes, predatory hunger smoldering in their green depths. Her pulse accelerated as his lips took on a sensual curve. The last time she’d seen that smile had been that afternoon at his beach house. Heat raced through her veins, bringing lethargy to her muscles and sparking hop
e. Emboldened, she reached out and cupped his cheek.
“You are attracted to me,” she murmured, awestruck and filled with delight. “What happened last time was real.”
“Very real.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close. “And something I promised myself would never happen again.”
Crushing herself against his hard body, Lia breathed in his masculine scent. She wanted to burrow her hands beneath his clothes and slide her palms along his warm skin. “Why not?”
“You are pretending to be my cousin.” His muscles tensed. “My first cousin.”
“Pretending being the operative word.” While Lia recognized that his argument held no water, she’d spent enough time in Charleston to understand that appearances were everything. “As long as we’re careful and don’t get caught...”
“Do you seriously think that’s what I’m worried about?” He took her hands and eased them from his body, his grip gentle despite his frustrated tone. “Getting caught?”
“Isn’t it?” She blinked at him in confusion as he set her free and took a half step back.
His bemused expression might have led her to ask more questions if her body wasn’t aching with the sharpest longing. Day and night, she’d tormented herself with revisiting that kiss at his beach house, taking things past the moment when he’d stopped. She’d imagined a hundred variations. Them going inside and making love in his bed. Him drawing her into the hot tub and making her come while she floated on a raft of bubbles. Her dropping to her knees to pleasure him in full sight of the beach while he held tight to the deck railing and shouted his pleasure.
“Look, if you’re worried that I might fall for you...” She shook her head, hoping she could be convincing. “Don’t. I find you attractive. It’s just sex.”
From the first stirring of physical attraction, she’d accepted that they had no future. Even before she started posing as his first cousin, he’d regarded her with suspicion and she doubted he’d ever fully trust her. In so many ways, from their upbringings to their temperaments, they were completely incompatible. Never in her wildest daydreams could she imagine he’d walk into a public venue and be proud to call her his date much less his girlfriend.
But their chemistry couldn’t be denied. That left sex. Great sex. Because after being kissed by Paul Watts, Lia knew the guy would be fantastic in bed. She shivered in anticipation of his strong hands running over her naked body. Just imagining how he would slide his finger through the slippery wetness between her thighs caused her body to clench in pleasure.
“Just sex,” he echoed, murmuring the two words in a contemplative tone. “And in a week you’ll be gone.”
While her heart bucked painfully in her chest, Lia nodded. “That’s the plan.”
“Nobody could possibly fall for someone that fast.” He raked her expression with hard green eyes. “I mean it’s only a week.”
“Absolutely.” Damn the man could talk, but she was starting to see a glimmer of hope. “That’s not enough time to get attached.”
Lia wasn’t sure which of them moved first, but the next thing she knew, he’d cupped the back of her neck in his hand and her fingers had tunneled into his hair. Then they were lip-locked and moaning beneath the onslaught of desire and need.
“That’s more like it,” Lia murmured a long while later after he released her lips and trailed kisses down her throat. “Damn, you are good at that.”
“At what?”
He brought his teeth together on the place where her neck and shoulder joined. Pleasure shot through her at the tantalizing pain of his bite. She groaned as his tongue flicked over the spot, soothing the sting. Desire tore through her. Lia couldn’t recall ever feeling so alive or invigorated.
“Kissing,” she said. “I thought maybe you were too focused on chasing bad guys to ever make time for a love life.”
“So you thought I was inexperienced when it came to women?”
He didn’t wait for her to reply before seizing her mouth for another hard, demanding kiss that left her weak-kneed and flushed from head to toe. His fingers dug into her hip as she rocked into him, before he sent his palm coasting downward over her butt. When he lifted her against his growing erection, Lia panted in frustration at the pressure building in her.
His lips moved over the shell of her ear, awakening a million goose bumps. Adrift in pleasure, she didn’t expect the sharp nip on her earlobe or the way fireworks detonated in her loins, setting her on fire.
“Have you thought about us together?” he asked, his voice a low purr that sent a riot of tingles along her nerves.
She nodded.
“Is this how it went?”
“Sometimes.” She could scarcely speak above a whisper.
“Have you imagined me bending you over and taking you from behind.”
The image was only one of a hundred different scenarios she’d toyed with. “Yes.”
For a microsecond his whole body went perfectly still. “My mouth between your thighs, driving you crazy?”
“Yes.” This time she moaned the word.
His teeth raked down her neck. “I think about your mouth on me.”
“Yes,” she pleaded. “Oh, yes.”
“Wicked girl.” He sounded so pleased by her response.
She sighed in relief when his hand slid between her thighs, fingers applying the perfect pressure over the spot where she ached. While she rocked against his palm, his tongue plunged into her mouth over and over. Mindless, her arousal gaining intensity, she rubbed her clit against his hand. With the barrier of her clothes between them, equal parts frustration and delight prompted the incoherent sounds coming from her throat. At last she could take it no more.
“Damn it, Paul,” she panted, her desperation giving her voice a shrill edge.
He lifted his head and regarded her from beneath his thick dark lashes. “What?”
Even as she struggled to find the words to tell him what she wanted, he sent his fingers skimming beneath the waistband of her yoga pants and followed the neat landing strip to where she burned. The pleasure was so overwhelming that she huffed out a laugh to relieve some of the strain of keeping her delight bottled up.
“I was just thinking that I should’ve waxed an arrow to point the way for you.”
It was the first thing that popped into her head and one corner of his lips kicked up in a mocking salute.
“Baby, I know exactly where I’m going.” Even before he finished speaking, he stroked through her hot core.
The move left her just enough breath for an awestruck curse. “Damn.”
“You’re incredible,” he murmured, raking his teeth over her lower lip. “I can’t believe how wet you are. That’s so damn sexy.”
He stroked his fingers through her slippery wetness, whispering his admiration, letting her know how much he appreciated her. Moaning, she shifted her hips, wanting his fingers inside her. The building pressure was almost too much to bear.
“Please,” she panted, gathering a handful of his silky blond hair and tugging. “Make me come.”
“My pleasure.”
She shuddered in anticipation as he dropped to his knees and dragged her yoga pants and panties down her thighs. A moment later he leaned forward and drew his tongue along the seam that hid her sex from him. Lia’s muscles failed her and she would’ve collapsed without his supportive grip.
“Hold on,” he warned, a smile in his voice as his tongue speared into the heart of her.
An old commercial played through her head as Paul drove her excitement still higher. How many licks does it take to get Lia off? One. Two. Three. Just that fast she found herself coming. The speed and intensity of her climax blew her mind.
“Paul...” She threw her head back and welcomed the orgasm that blasted through her. Curses fell from her lips at the intensity of the p
leasure.
“Wow,” he murmured, trailing kisses across her abdomen as her muscles quaked with aftershocks. “You are a firecracker.”
Not surprising since she’d had a week of foreplay to prime the pump. To her dismay, he reached down and slid her pants back into place before getting to his feet.
“Are we done?”
He raised his eyebrows at her scandalized tone, but long lashes hid the expression in his gaze. The roughness in his voice, however, gave him away as he breathed, “I hope not.”
“Then kiss me again and let’s take this thing horizontal.”
He put his arm around her, hand sliding to cup her butt while he rubbed his erection against her hip. She savored the hard length of him poking at her and shimmied to add even more friction. The taste of herself on his lips made her eager to have her way with him in turn. Even though she hadn’t yet gotten her hands on the bulge behind his zipper, she could tell he was well built.
A staccato horn beeped nearby as someone locked a car. At the interruption of their thoroughly hot and promising embrace, Paul tore his mouth from hers. Female voices intruded on the sensual fog Lia had gotten caught up in. Paul’s hands fell away from her body as he abruptly stepped back. His physical withdrawal left her shivering as if doused with cold water. Her eyes flew open in time to see shutters slam down over his expression. Only his heightened color and his unwillingness to look at her hinted at the passion he’d recently demonstrated.
A second later a knock sounded on the carriage house door and Lia almost whimpered in disappointment as she recognized Poppy’s voice.
“Hey, Paul, are you there?”
A muscle jumped in his jaw as he shot a hard look at the door. “I have to answer that.”
“Of course.” She drew in a shaky breath as his gaze raked over her. Feeling exposed and raw in the aftermath of such all-consuming desire, Lia craved some privacy to recover her wits before facing the twins. “Can I borrow your bathroom?”