“Hose off?”
She snorted a laugh. Classic, reading-her-mind Luke. “Exactly.”
She raced out to her car, wanting to get in and out of the shower before Luke even started. The thought of them being naked at the same time only a few walls apart made her feel…uneasy.
No, uneasy is the wrong word. The word you’re looking for is sexy.
Please shut up, brain.
Here at the lab, of all places, she could not feel sexy, couldn’t think about sexy things or sexy times or how damn sexy she was sure Luke would look with wet hair.
She turned on the cold water full blast and stood under the showerhead for five solid minutes. Hosing off, indeed.
The hotel-type shampoo and conditioner would have to do, but at least she no longer smelled like the inside of a tractor. She pulled on clean jeans and a thin, frilly top she’d never wear to work, but it was the only shirt in her trunk. She usually had gym clothes, including a sports bra, but she didn’t even have that. She finished towel drying her hair, tossed her rank clothes in a plastic bag and returned to the lab.
Luke was already there, wearing jeans and a white, semi-frayed Penn Med T-shirt that fit him so perfectly it made her whimper.
“Holy hell.”
“What?” Natalie asked, self-consciously twisting her damp hair over one shoulder.
“Your shirt is see-through. You’re not wearing a…”
“Oh!” She grabbed a lab coat and quickly pulled it on, buttoning the two middle buttons. “It was the only one in the car…and my…everything else is too smelly to wear.”
His wide eyes were unmoving. “Damn, woman, you cannot…” He ran his hands through his damp—and yes, uber sexy—hair. “You can’t do that.”
“Do what?”
He waved a hand in front of her face and body. “Any of this, all of this. Wet hair, no makeup, transparent shirt, you looking all… And right after we… Just—don’t.” He spun on his heels and walked away, rubbing a hand along the base of his neck. His T-shirt strained tight over his arms and back. His butt in those jeans looked too good for words.
“Well, then you don’t do that.”
He wheeled around. “I’m not doing anything.”
She tipped her chin and har-harred at the ceiling.
“Unlike you,” he said dryly, “I’m dressed completely appropriate for where we are.”
“You might not appreciate a tight-fitting, thin cotton Hanes over a well-defined male chest, but I do.” Too much talking, Nat. “So just put on your own freaking lab coat.” She turned away until she heard him pull one off a hanger.
“Okay, look,” he said. “Things got out of control earlier—my fault. But it’s okay. I don’t want to kiss you again.”
Natalie spun around, her mouth gaping as she looked for something to throw at him. Ivy’s old microscope would do quite nicely.
“No— No,” he continued. “I mean I do want to kiss you again. But I don’t.”
“If you think that’s a clearer explanation…”
“Sorry, no.” He shook his head, looking more perplexed that she felt. “I mean, we both have reasons to not blow off our jobs. Mine happens to be a very important reason. I have a hell of a lot riding on being here.”
Natalie crossed her arms. Could Luke’s reason be any more important than the mental health of her brother? Or her best friend’s job? But she nodded anyway. She didn’t care about his reasons; whatever it took to keep his lips out of kissing range.
“Also,” Luke said, running another hand through his hair, “I’m not ready to date.”
“Date?” she repeated, sidestepping the potential hit to her ego. “Who said anything about dating?
He rubbed his three-am-shadowed jaw, the one that had brushed against her mouth, causing delicious stings. “We could sleep together, though, because that wouldn’t mean anything.”
Natalie’s mouth dropped open again.
“Pause whatever you’re about to yell at me,” Luke said, preempting the lava of outrage bubbling in her chest. “Dammit, why can’t I talk to you like a normal person? I’m usually very well-spoken.”
“So speak.”
She watched his shoulders lift as he took in a slow breath.
“I haven’t really dated since the divorce. There’ve been women, but nothing even remotely serious. I don’t know if it’s because I need more time, or if I’m so screwed up that I’ve got a mental hang-up about relationships now.”
Natalie no longer wanted to throw a microscope at his head. She hadn’t once considered that Luke’s ex had actually damaged him. She worked fast to keep her heart from going all melty and sympathetic.
“Luke, it’s fine. We were two consenting adults having a little fun.”
“A lot of fun,” he said, lifting one of those smoldering grins.
“We broke an amusement park ride.”
“Started a forest fire.”
She swallowed. “But I can’t have fun with you—and it’s not only about working together.” When Luke’s mouth opened, she held up a hand. “Let me finish. You said we could just sleep together because it wouldn’t mean anything. But when I have sex, it means everything, and I don’t want an everything right now, not with anyone.” She paused, wondering if she should tell him why. She thought about Jack the rat—the last guy to break her trust. Then she thought about Luke—the first guy to. “Your head can’t do a relationship and my heart can’t. See? I might be just as screwed up as you.” She laughed, trying to make light of the situation before it got heavy. “And even if somehow your head and my heart were miraculously ready, a relationship would be impossible.”
Luke shifted his stance. “Because?”
“Simple.” She took a beat. “Hershey.”
“What about it?”
“I’m never leaving.”
After a moment, Luke nodded, like it finally dawned on him. “And I’ll never live here.”
Even though she was expecting it, his answer was majorly deflating, the final nail in the coffin. “See?”
He nodded again. “Everything you said makes sense, but you’re wrong about one thing.”
She made herself laugh again and pulled out a pair of latex gloves. “I seriously doubt that. But I’m curious. Which one thing was I wrong about?”
“What we do together means something to me.” The way he looked at her made her heart beat fast. “I like you, Natalie.”
She could not let that mean anything to her. “That’s natural. I’m likable.”
He dropped his chin and exhaled. “Fine, never mind. You’re right about everything and let’s move on.”
“Good answer.”
It was a relief to be on the same page again, but when she glanced at Luke and caught him giving her body a lightning-fast scan, pausing briefly at where her bra should’ve been…
Whoa. If his eyes make me feel like this, what will his hands—
“Time to check the molds!” she blurted, turning away. She blew out a breath and ran a hand along the back of her neck. Was it damp from her hair or from Luke?
It hadn’t been the full three hours, but most of the molds were set. Maybe this all-nighter was a better idea than she’d hoped. Only a few of the pans were still on the gooey side, probably because they were close to a heater vent. She showed Luke how to carefully pop the squares from the plastic molds, then left him to check her cell.
“I very rarely eat the stuff.”
“What?” she asked when she finished reading emails.
“Chocolate.”
They started on blending the second batch of samples. He tossed her a box of cold butter.
“With that attitude, I’m surprised they let you cross into Hershey city limits.”
He laughed. “You sound like my parents. When they found out why I’m here—to observe your project—they had double heart attacks. They even staged an intervention, brought in my brothers and Roxy, and you know Dex is here.”
“Take this
,” Natalie said, passing him a set of clean molds. “Once this is done blending, start filling.” She adjusted her safety glasses. “Why an intervention?”
“They think the same way you do, that my sole mission in life is to rid the planet of chocolate.”
“Isn’t it?” She couldn’t help grinning, even as Luke shot her a look through his goggles.
“It’s a family thing, too. They worry the Elliott name will be tarnished if one of us goes against Hershey. Roxy was plenty pissed about it. She said I don’t come home enough to understand the situation.” He moved the mixing bowl onto the counter. “Maybe she’s right. I don’t come home enough.”
“Why is that?” She lifted her glasses so she could really look at him. “Philly’s not that far away.”
It took a while for him to answer, and it couldn’t have been because he was concentrating on filling the molds. This batch was as messy as his first.
“My ex didn’t like Hershey,” he finally said, keeping his gaze fixed on his job. “She hated it.”
Sacrilege! “She what?”
“We had our engagement party here, but after that, she never came back. She didn’t like me coming home, either.”
Natalie stopped everything she was doing to concentration on Luke, what he’d just said. And what it might say about him. “But your family’s here. Sorry, but wasn’t that kind of terrible of her?”
He shrugged, spilling more chocolate on the side of the pan. “I’m not making excuses for her, but I saw her point, and I agreed with her—she was my wife, I had to. I love the vibe and energy of big cities. Living in Philly’s a perfect fit for me. For now.” He rubbed his jaw with the back of his hand, like he had something more to say, but then didn’t. “I started seeing Hershey through Celeste’s eyes. It happened subtly. First, I didn’t come home for my mother’s birthday. Then I didn’t visit at Christmas. After a few years, I hardly came home at all.” He paused and lifted his chin, staring straight ahead. “It hurt my parents. It still does, I can tell. But I don’t know how to fix it.”
“Just come home more often,” Natalie said, even though Luke hadn’t asked for her opinion. “All they want is to have their son under their roof, sleeping in his old bed, hanging out in the kitchen.”
“You think it’s that simple?”
Probably not, but it was a start. Natalie knew firsthand how complicated family dynamics could be. Her own parents were struggling with their marriage, fighting to hold onto what normalcy they had. If she focused on Luke’s family issue, she wouldn’t have to think about her own.
“Maybe,” she said. “I saw your mother tonight. Totally over the moon that you’re here.”
“She’s made me breakfast in bed every morning.” He smiled sheepishly. “It’s kind of embarrassing.”
“Oh, let her spoil you. It won’t damage your reputation with the feds.”
He laughed. “Thank you, Natalie.”
“For what?” She reached for a roll of paper towels to wipe up Luke’s misses.
“I don’t know. For listening. Not judging me.”
Warm spots blossomed in her chest. Not lust this time, but…something like the makings of friendship. Since when did she want to be friends with Luke?
“Who says I’m not judging you? And what’s so wrong with settling in Hershey? I grew up in a town even tinier and turned out reasonably normal.”
Luke gave her a look. “Uh-huh.”
“Shut it.”
He snickered under his breath. “This pan’s done. Want me to do another?”
She pulled the mixing bowl away from him. “We can’t afford to waste any more product.”
“Hey, I’m a rookie.”
“You’re a suckie.”
He unleashed another of those deep, manly laughs. She’d never made a guy laugh so consistently before. It was like he understood her, got her unlike anyone else. Thinking that way caused an annoying flutter to erupt in her stomach, so she netted those butterflies.
“See the first squares we pulled?” She pointed to the other side of the counter. “Two of them should fit together like magnets. The little groove on the bottom is where the serum will go.”
“Ingenious.” He knocked his shoulder against hers. “For a townie.”
“You might mean that as an insult, but it’s not.”
“I wouldn’t dare insult you, not while you’re wielding a wooden spoon covered in Amazonian cocoa.”
Natalie sighed and pushed up her glasses. “Hershey, Pennsylvania is an amazing legacy. I know you studied the town’s history; it was a requirement for every student. So you know how the Milton Hershey private school started as an orphanage, and about its current scholarships and free student housing, the factories and jobs, how his legacy is over a hundred years old. And it’s not just about selling the best damn chocolate in this country.”
“You and Roxy should get together,” Luke said. “She’s as fired up as you are.” He gave her shoulder another nudge. But did this one linger? “And I have no issue that you choose to live here. It’s just not my thing.”
Thanks for reminding me of that for the hundredth time. “Lucky we’re not dating, then.”
“Very lucky.” He gave her shoulder a third nudge. This time it definitely lingered.
“’Cause if we were,” she said, “I’d make you buy me a tricked-out Amish buggy, and we’d cruise Intercourse.”
He leaned toward her and lowered his voice. “Can you believe that name?”
“Tourists love it. It’s only potty minds like you”—she pressed a dot of unset chocolate on the tip of his nose—“that dirty it up.”
Luke set down his pan and spoon. “Woman, did you just smear chocolate on my person?” He grabbed a paper towel and wiped it off.
“You won’t even taste it?”
“Nope.”
With lightning fast speed, she pressed another dollop on his nose, positively not noticing how extra-delicious it made him. Like a sundae with a cherry on top, ready to be devoured.
“You did not just do that.”
“Didn’t I?” She put her hands on her hips and stuck out her chin.
She was purposefully daring him, and herself. To do what? She didn’t know but wouldn’t stop until she found out.
Luke took in the sight of her, looking all sassy and provoking. Irresistible in another time and place. But not this one.
Before she could see it coming, Luke flicked his hand, splattering chocolate across the front of her coat.
She sucked in a gasp, looked down at her coat, then up at him. “You…” she said in a low voice. “There will be no food fights in my lab.”
“Chocolate’s hardly a food.”
The spot of it on the end of his nose itched, but he didn’t wipe it off. He knew if he ignored it, it would drive Natalie crazy. The way she looked, with her freshly washed hair all curly and wild, and those stupid plastic safely glasses, Luke was suddenly in the mood to make her a little crazy.
He slid the pan of molds he’d just filled off the counter. “What if I sort of lob this at you? Dirty up your lab coat some more.”
He was joking, of course, but she narrowed her eyes, those brown eyes that could easily drive him crazy.
“I know you won’t.”
“No?” He cocked his arm, making her suck in another audible gasp. His mind flashed back to how she’d made the same noise when she was pinned beneath him. His vision was about to go blurry, so he set down the pan and backed away, too hot under the collar to make any kind of decision.
Besides, he was starting to respect this woman. He might’ve wanted to tear her clothes off—he was a man, after all. But he liked hanging with her. And he appreciated her insight when he told her about Celeste and his parents. And even though she’d joked about it, he knew she didn’t think any less of him for his mistakes.
She was a good…friend. Huh.
“Hey. You’re a betting man,” Natalie said, bringing him back to the present. “And we�
��ve got time until the rest of the molds set. How about a dare?”
“I eat dares for breakfast.”
“Apropos, because I dare you to taste some chocolate.” The full lips of his friend quirked into a grin. He wouldn’t mind tasting chocolate if her mouth was coated with it.
Stop. No mouth, no coated, no tasting.
“Oh, please,” Luke said, kicking the image from his brain. “It’s not like I’ve never had it before. I’ve got a major sweet tooth.”
She snorted. “You have a sweet tooth?”
“That’s why I stay away from it. I know my limits. One taste starts a frenzy.”
“No, it doesn’t. I’ve witnessed your extraordinary self-control.”
“Unwise to test it,” he said, trying to ignore how she was sizing him up with those big eyes. “I’m not as strong as you think so we better change the subject.”
“What if I put a tiny dab of it on your mouth?” she asked, still giving him that look, not changing the subject.
“I’d wipe it off.”
“What if I put it on my mouth?”
His confident smile slipped as he stared at the part of her body in question. Was she toying with him? Daring him? Luke didn’t know what the hell was going on. “Tempting,” he managed to say, fighting to hold that legendary self-control.
“You wouldn’t lick it off me as a favor?”
“Natalie, stop talking like that,” he said, hoping to snap her out of this…whatever. “What are you doing?”
She adjusted her plastic safety glasses and gazed off to the side. “I was just thinking.”
“About?”
“You removing chocolate from my body.”
He still couldn’t tell if she was teasing, so he shook his head. “Forget it. I’m not coming near you.”
She tilted her head. “You sure?”
Okay, Luke definitely knew that look, and it wasn’t a mere tease. Every muscle in his body steeled, trying hard to hold back. “An hour ago, you said you didn’t want to do this. Your heart, my head, not ready.”
“That’s still all true. So answer me this: Are we going to sleep together?”
Luke’s heart hammered at the amazing thought. But then he considered her heart when it came to sex. Not ready. “No,” he said, then considered his head when it came to a relationship. Not ready. “Are we dating?”
Kissing Her Crush Page 12