Illegal Motion: A Loveswept Classic Romance

by Donna Kauffman

  Nick was watching her intently. He’d been completely captivated by her deep, husky laugh, and more than a little pleased to have been the reason for it. He realized that he’d truly relaxed for the first time since Eric had left.

  Was that what brought a frown to her face? That she’d been enjoying his company? Was she afraid Eric would be jealous? Or maybe she didn’t want to see Eric. Just wishful thinking on his part? Either way, it was a sure bet that Eric Miller wanted to see Willa. And from the looks Miller had given her when he hadn’t been occupied with looking at himself in the mirrors, Nick would say the boy wonder had a lot more than business on his mind.

  “What’s wrong? Is our time up already?” Nick asked.

  “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just—”

  “Not used to having fun with your clients?” Willa’s quick flash of guilt was as soothing to his wounded pride as it was intriguing. Had Eric, or someone else, hurt her so badly that she was afraid to loosen up?

  “Actually we have enough time to go through the stretches,” she said, quickly scooping up the clipboard, then rising onto her knees beside him. “After tonight I’ll work up a routine for you. You’ll need to set up your first few workouts so I can supervise them and make any necessary changes. After that, any of the people here on staff will be able to help you.”

  Willa smiled in relief when Nick seemed to accept their return to business. His last taunt had hit too close to home. She put down her clipboard and positioned herself next to his legs. She reached out, intending to bend his bad knee, but stopped just short of actually touching the nicely filled-out white sweats. Suddenly the idea of touching him took on wholly unprofessional dimensions.

  “It’s the left knee.”

  Nick’s voice was strained as if he were in pain. But she hadn’t done anything yet. Focusing on the knee and not the man it belonged to, she gently gripped his leg, one hand under his thigh, the other on his calf. It was like touching granite. She paused for a moment, her fingers flexing together as she grappled with the sensations racing through her. Nick remained perfectly still—too still—and she looked up to see his jaw tighten into a grimace.

  Before she could ask him if he was hurt, he abruptly sat up.

  “Did I hurt you?” she asked quickly. “Are you in pain?”

  “Yeah, you might say that.” Nick let out a short laugh. “Listen, I know we have a few minutes left. But I can tell you’re in a hurry to get out of here, so why don’t we finish this some other time? I still have my Monday appointment, so we can do this then.” Maybe by Monday his sweats wouldn’t tent like a teenager with his first crush every time she touched him.

  Willa didn’t know what had happened, but she was coward enough to take his suggestion. In the past few hours her feelings toward Nick Logan had gone through as many ups and downs as if she’d been on an emotional roller coaster.

  “Monday sounds fine,” she answered, hurrying to collect the training files and clipboards. She was halfway to the door when he caught up with her and stopped her by placing his hand on the door over her shoulder.

  He was so close that Willa could smell his skin. The faint musky scent invaded her nostrils and she wondered distractedly if a taste of him would adequately make up for the meals she’d missed today. Dangerous thoughts. She swallowed in a vain attempt to moisten her throat. He was so close. They were eye to eye—or rather eye to lips.

  “Who has got you in such a panic, Willa? I hope it’s not me. I’m harmless.” Proving he was anything but, he shifted his weight forward until their bodies were almost touching. “That means it must be your date this evening. That’s a real shame, Willa. I think a man should keep his woman quivering in anticipation.” His gaze fastened on her trembling lower lip. “Not shaking in her shoes.”

  THREE

  His woman … quivering. Willa gasped, her lips parting slightly.

  That did it. Nick lost the tenuous hold on his control and gave in to the urge to touch her. Lifting his hand, he toyed first with a wisp of her hair. Her eyes dilated at his brief touch and he continued, running his fingertip across her lower lip and wondering what it would taste like. He knew he had to stop, and even started to move back when she lifted her hand. His good intentions went up in smoke when she ran her finger lightly over the scrape of beard along his jawline.

  “You know, you should smile more often,” she said, the return of the husky edge to her voice driving him crazy.

  “I haven’t had much to smile about lately,” he answered honestly, then sucked in his breath when her finger brushed his lower lip. “Willa, I—”

  A loud gurgling sound interrupted him and Willa jumped away from him as if coming out of a trance. Flustered, she looked around, wondering what had made that noise. When the sound repeated itself, her expression turned to one of mortification.

  Although he was not sure whether he should be frustrated or relieved at the interruption, the cause nevertheless made him smile. “Gee, I sure hope this guy plans on feeding you.” Her skin darkened further and he gave in to the urge to soothe her embarrassment. Placing a finger under her chin, he gently turned her face back to his. “Just promise me you’ll order something big and expensive. Deal?” His efforts earned him a smile and a nod. It made him want to kiss her, to tell her that Eric Miller was a bastard and demand that she cancel their date and— “Good night, Willa,” he said abruptly, his voice still hoarse. He leaned down to scoop up the cane he’d dropped during their heated exchange and walked back across the now deserted room to get his gym bag.

  Willa clasped the clipboard to her chest and pushed through the door. Once in the hall, she leaned against the wall and took in several deep breaths. It didn’t help. Without a doubt she was in over her head. Way over her head.

  She hurried toward her office before Nick could come out and find her still standing there. Eric was waiting in her office. She had to be clearheaded if she was going to pull this off.

  Willa wasn’t sure if she had any willpower left to deal with Eric and this whole mess tonight. What she really wanted was to go home and sink into a tub full of steaming water, drink a glass of chilled wine, and pretend the past two days had never happened. Then she thought of Nick, and how for a moment he’d seemed to look into her soul and request her help in healing his. She couldn’t ignore that, or her responsibility to him. Whatever his motives were for the little scene in the doorway, she still needed to clear his name. And her own.

  She was a fool if she thought for one minute that he had any real desire for her. He believed she had betrayed him, cost him a part of his life. Even if she exonerated herself, there was no way he could ever look at her without being reminded of his past and her significant role in it. And for that she couldn’t blame him. She had to clear him and stay clear of him.

  Eric straightened immediately from behind her desk as she entered the room. Before Willa could question him on what he was doing, he asked her a question.

  “Where have you been? I feel like I’ve been waiting for hours.” His pout made Willa sick.

  Swallowing her distaste, she said, “Sorry I’m late, Eric. My last appointment ran a little long.”

  “Well, are you ready to go?” Eric jammed his hand through his salon-styled blond hair and shifted from one foot to the other. He seemed impatient, almost edgy.

  “I still have to shower and help Kelly lock up. It will only take about thirty minutes, but if you’d rather not—”

  “No, that’s okay.” Eric walked toward her, looking contrite over his less than polite greeting. “I’m sorry, Willa, I guess I’m just anxious to be alone with you.”

  He touched her arm, and she casually moved away. “Why don’t you go ahead to the restaurant and order our drinks,” she said, her voice bright. And about ten appetizers, she added silently. “I’ll meet you there.”

  “That’s okay. I’ll wait here.”

  She hadn’t forgotten he’d been behind her desk when she’d come in and she wasn’t about to leave hi
m in her office alone again. “Why don’t you wait upstairs in the reception-area lounge? It’s closing time, so I don’t think you’ll be bothered.”

  “I’ll be counting the minutes.” Eric flashed his perfect teeth. “I’m really glad to be seeing you again.”

  As he bent his head closer Willa reached behind her and opened the door. “The sooner I leave, the sooner I’ll be back.” She backed through the doorway and pointed up the hallway. “Just head up those stairs and take a right.”

  Eric had no choice but to leave the office. Willa locked the door and headed the opposite way down the hall.

  Twenty minutes later she emerged from the locker room, showered and changed, though not exactly refreshed. Pulling her hair into a ponytail, she fixed it with one of her favorite green puffy bands. She adjusted a thin leather belt over a forest-green print shirt. She couldn’t stop her thoughts from wandering to Nick and imagining what it would be like to dress for him, to see his blue eyes light up in admiration. Her smile broadened as she recalled the way his gaze had all but devoured her in her green track suit. She was sure Nick would like her to dress down—preferably completely.

  The idea of undressing for him was undeniably tantalizing, especially since it would only happen in the safe confines of her imagination. Enchanted by the idea of working through her distraction with Nick by playing out their earlier scene to a more satisfying, and perfectly private, conclusion, she let her thoughts drift.

  Sensuous images filled her head, startling her with their intensity, but she willingly followed their lead. After all, she reasoned, the stronger the medicine, the better the cure. After a moment or two a new sensation skittered over her heated skin, but it was slow to overpower the other, increasingly erotic ones. It took her a long moment to realize the tingling awareness was trying to tell her she was no longer alone.

  Embarrassed at being caught fantasizing, absurdly feeling as if her erotic thoughts were displayed over her head in a cartoonlike bubble, she looked around in what she hoped was a nonchalant manner. She didn’t pull it off.

  Leaning against the wall, a self-assured smile spreading lazily over his face and erasing any doubt about how long he’d been standing there, was Nick.

  She tried to blame it on her steamy musings, but he seemed even sexier than before. His fresh-from-the-shower appeal only served to strengthen the energy that seemed to radiate from him. It certainly energized her. She took in his appearance all at once, and it was like grabbing a hot wire. His faded, snug jeans proved her guesses about his well-developed thighs had been correct. She noticed that his knee wasn’t—couldn’t be—bandaged any longer. What else wasn’t he wearing under those jeans?

  Realizing she was gawking, she returned her gaze to his face—which sent her already electrified system sizzling into overload. His wet black hair was curlier now, the longer strands in the back clinging to his bared neck. Her gaze helplessly tracked the tiny beads of water as they trickled off the ends of his curls, slowly sliding down the side of his jaw.

  His low chuckle made her vibrate. She fought the absurd desire to look over his head to see if his thoughts were conveniently on display, as moments ago she had felt hers were.

  Feeling silly and defenseless, but mostly embarrassed at being caught in such a vulnerable state, she had a sudden, desperate need to wipe the smirk off his face. So it was to her horror that she blurted out, “Don’t you own anything that doesn’t fit you like a second skin?” That remark only served to broaden his grin to downright lethal proportions, and she quickly added, “You, uh, you took a long time getting dressed. You do know we close soon?”

  “Would you believe I lost track of time while I was fantasizing about you in the sauna?” Nick’s smile broadened wickedly when her blush deepened to a fiery scarlet. “Picture it. There I am, all relaxed, when I feel a slight draft. I look up, and you’re standing in front of me, wearing one of those thick club towels. One corner is tucked snugly above your breast.”

  His seductive words were spoken in that velvety voice. In the back of her mind, she was perversely irritated at how much better his fantasy was than hers. His low groan roused her like a douse of cold water. Not trusting herself to speak, she looked away, snapping the sensual web he was expertly weaving, and stalked past him toward the stairs. At that moment she didn’t care if he followed her or stayed the night.

  She stopped just outside the door to the reception area and took a deep, calming breath. Pressing her hands to her cheeks, she willed them to cool off, hoping Eric attributed her flushed skin to a hot shower. She pushed through the door, letting it swing shut behind her.

  She didn’t pay attention to the soft thud as the door connected with Nick’s toe, or the colorful string of curses that followed. Her mind was focused solely on collecting her so-called date and getting the hell out of there before something else happened. Kelly could deal with that dream-weaving devil.

  She didn’t stop to consider that she would be spending the next several hours of her life valiantly trying to clear that devil’s good name. Not to mention her own.

  Willa found Eric bending low over the counter, facing in the other direction. He had apparently put his charm to use, as Kelly was gone and the place was already locked up. Too rattled to pay attention to what he was doing now, just wanting to leave, she pasted on a bright smile and said in an overly cheerful rush, “Eric, there you are. Sorry I kept you waiting.”

  Nick heard Willa’s animated greeting and scowled. He recalled in perfect detail her very expressive face during his improvised sauna scenario. He thought about how much he’d enjoy spending the rest of the night finding out if her body could be as delightfully aroused as her mind. Then he remembered that her body and her mind would be spending the rest of the evening, and possibly the night, with Eric Miller.

  Nick felt as if he had just been tackled and left strangely out of sync at a time when he desperately needed to rely on his instincts. Something about her date with Eric made him uneasy. Whatever she was up to, she was in over her head. He’d hung around hoping he could find out why Miller had been so keen to be alone in Willa’s office, but the door had been locked. So he told himself once again that his decision to follow them on her date was in his best interests and had nothing to do with any protective feelings he might have for Willa.

  Nick pushed through the door. “Hope I’m not interrupting any business.” Willa’s jolt at his inflection on that last word told him his instincts might be right this time. “Forget about me, Willa?” The implication that she’d forgotten him once before was clear, and her skin faded a bit more. The expression on her face should have kept his anger firmly in place; instead he felt like a louse for adding to her obvious distress.

  “Logan, what are you still doing here?” Eric’s tone made it clear he suspected Willa’s late arrival might have something to do with Nick.

  “That seems to be the popular question this evening.” Nick moved slowly toward the door, his unbandaged knee making him lean heavily on the cane. “The fact is, I’d like to leave this den of hospitality, if someone wouldn’t mind unlocking the door.”

  “Since everyone else is gone, why don’t we all leave together? Eric, are you coming?”

  Nick moved to open the door, but was almost trampled as Eric hurried to get there first. He caught Willa rolling her eyes at Miller’s macho “I’m her date, I’ll get the door” theatrics and couldn’t resist temptation. A grin split his face as he casually stuck out his cane in a standing-ovation variety of “no, let me” comebacks. When Eric stumbled, Nick pressed his advantage and leaned on the door so that Eric went sailing right on out before recovering his balance. Nick turned to Willa in time to catch the grin on her face before she smoothed it into a reproachful glare.

  Still, her lips twitched when Nick gave her a courtly bow and very calmly said, “After you, madam.”

  As she passed through the door Nick let his gaze travel over Willa’s khaki-covered backside as his hand slid down the gl
ass door to the handle. He carefully pressed the button to prevent the door from locking automatically and hoped Willa and Eric would make an early night of it.

  Now that the time had come to put her plan in motion, Willa began to have serious doubts. “Do you need a ride?” she asked Nick, not caring at this point what meaning he might read into her request.

  “No, thanks. Gave up my stick shift and leased an automatic after my knee surgery. Other than looking a bit awkward getting in and out, it’s no problem.”

  Nick bent down and grabbed his old leather bag that he’d dropped while holding the door. Willa found her gaze drawn to the fluid motion of flexing muscle as he bent over. The athletic grace of his huge body was breathtaking, and she couldn’t imagine him being awkward at much of anything.

  After Nick waved them off, Eric shepherded Willa toward his Porsche. It looked sinister somehow; an icy glow seemed to emanate from the glossy black finish as the rising moon caressed its sleek curves with an otherworldly light. An uncontrollable shiver slithered down her spine.

  Willa quickly decided she needed space and some time to get her act together before facing the evening ahead. She ducked out from under his arm.

  “Why don’t I meet you at the restaurant?” Forestalling his objection, she continued, “I hate leaving my car in an empty lot. I know it’s nothing fancy,” she said, gesturing to her small red Honda, “but it’s all I’ve got.”

  She waved and turned away, pretending not to notice his disgruntled expression. It took all of her willpower not to run to her car and lock herself inside.

  Eric left the table for at least the third time since they’d arrived. Willa stifled a yawn and toyed with the stem of her wineglass. Reviewing the evening, she came to the only conclusion possible: Mata Hari she wasn’t. Eric had been so busy ranting and raving about his unfair treatment by the Jaguars coaching staff this season that she hadn’t gotten a word in. Eric had always been self-centered, but tonight he’d seemed almost paranoid.