“You do plan on getting out of there sometime today, right?”
She paused, almost forgetting he was out there. “Hey, be a good sport and wait your turn. This is fun.”
She heard him chuckle over the spray of water. “Don’t get to take showers much where you’re from, huh?”
“Funny. I take showers all the time but I love this one. And what’s the name of this shampoo and body wash? Both smell wonderful.”
“It’s called Misty Rain and the formula was created by a woman who used to live here years ago.” Winston thought there was no reason to tell her the woman had been his grandmother. And that in addition to the shampoo and body wash, there was also soap and lotion, all with the same patented ingredients.
“I love it. As soon as I go to the store, I’m going to buy some.”
“You can’t,” he said through the shower door. “It’s not sold in any stores. Only online.” There was also no need to tell her that since his brother had retired from the NFL, he’d set up shop on the west coast where all the Misty Rain products were produced.
“Okay, stand back. I’m coming out.”
He wondered how she’d known he’d been right there by the shower door all this time. He stepped back and she opened the door wearing a huge white velour bath robe. She had tied the sash around her waist real tight but that didn’t do any good since he’d already seen the body underneath.
She smiled then and he knew she was up to something. “While you’re taking a shower you don’t mind if I look around inside, do you?”
He frowned. “Yes, I do mind. Under no circumstances are you to bother Chambers. He lives and works in another part of the house and can’t be disturbed. Doing so will put him in a bad mood and you wouldn’t want that.”
No, she didn’t. The last thing she wanted was for Dr. Chambers to deny her an interview. “We didn’t grab my duffel bag.”
“Too late now. I’ll go back for it when the rain stops.”
He stepped inside the shower house and as soon as he did so, Ainsley quickly made her way toward the first door she saw. She wouldn’t disturb the doctor; she would just let him know she was here. She reached out and tried opening the door and couldn’t. It was locked.
“It’s a good thing I locked all the doors, huh?”
Ainsley jerked around. Winston was standing in the middle of the shower door shamelessly naked and grinning at her. She stared, chewing the insides of her cheeks, grateful it wasn’t her tongue. Lordy. She’d recalled him being built, but not this built. He hadn’t been ashamed of showing his body that night and he wasn’t ashamed of showing it now. Her gaze roamed all over him and came back to his middle each and every time. It was swollen. Hard. Fully erect.
“Ainsley?”
Licking her lips, she forced her eyes up when he called her name. “Yes?”
“Something told me you couldn’t be trusted to do what you were told, so I locked all the doors.”
She glared. “So what am I supposed to do while you’re taking a shower?”
He chuckled. “Enjoy watching the rain.”
He then closed the shower door, shutting off her view of him and his naked body.
* * *
Any hopes of Ainsley leaving anytime soon were dashed each and every time a lightning bolt rocketed across the sky, Winston thought, standing at the kitchen counter preparing sandwiches. He had made quick work of his shower after remembering how she had picked the lock to one of the gates yesterday.
“Will Dr. Chambers be joining us for lunch?” she asked him.
You wish. “No.”
“Why not? He has to eat sometime.”
“Yes, and he prefers eating alone and not with uninvited guests.”
“I take it that means he knows I’m here.”
Winston placed the sandwiches on a plate. “Yes, he knows. He was informed by Charley that we had an intruder the exact same time that I was.”
She didn’t say anything for a minute and then finally asked, “Dr. Chambers really is a recluse, isn’t he?”
He shrugged. “Is that what you heard?”
“Yes. No one has ever met him and he’s never been interviewed. But his studies on the use of sea creatures for medicinal purposes are well documented. I checked out one of his books from the library a few days ago.”
“Did you?”
“Yes. I found his work fascinating. He’s a brilliant scientist.”
Winston tried not to let her compliment go to his head and said, “He prefers to be thought of as a biologist.”
“There’s a difference?”
“Technically no, but a biologist’s duty is more clearly defined,” he said, walking to the table with their sandwiches and placing the plate there. “A scientist mostly deals with natural or physical science, whereas biology is considered a natural science. A marine biologist studies organisms that live in salt water. You might want to remember that, if you ever get the chance to talk to Dr. Chambers. He has a pet peeve about being referred to as a scientist.” He then turned to stroll over to the refrigerator for the lemonade.
“I can’t wait until I meet Dr. Chambers.”
Instead of opening the refrigerator, he turned and leaned against it. She sounded so sure of herself that he almost believed her. But he of all people knew the kind of meeting she was banking on was highly unlikely. He compressed his mouth as he watched Ainsley take a bite of the sandwich and lick her lips, his presence all but forgotten.
Too bad he couldn’t say the same. She definitely looked out of place sitting at his kitchen table wearing a bathrobe. And he knew for a fact, there was nothing else under that robe. He had been there when she’d tossed all her clothing in the washer. And because they’d left behind her duffel bag, she was going to have to wait for her clothes to dry before she came out of that robe.
Out of that robe...
Now that was a thought he didn’t wish to entertain. It wouldn’t be so bad if he didn’t know what she looked like, but because he did, he was having a hard time staying focused. Over the years he’d had his share of women, yet for the life of him, he didn’t understand why she was different.
She was beautiful but then in his book all females were. But she had the kind of beauty that stood out. And she had a great body, which made for a deadly combination. He had been clobbered in the groin by both the first time he’d seen her walking into that nightclub. And last but not least, she knew how to use that body. He recalled touching her everywhere, tasting her everywhere. His tongue had moved all over the smooth skin on her face, lower to her shoulder blades, blazed a trail to her breasts and down past the indentation of her navel. It was then he’d become acquainted with her personal scent, and the moment he had absorbed it through his nostrils, he’d almost gone over the edge. And then when he’d tasted her between the legs, he’d been a goner.
“Hey, what’s going on with that cold drink?”
Her words snapped him out of his reverie and he opened the refrigerator and retrieved a pitcher of lemonade. Grabbing a couple glasses as well, he walked back to the table and sat down. “You sound confident that you’re going to meet the good doctor. Does that mean you’ve changed your mind about our deal?”
“I told you earlier that I have not.”
Winston took a bite of his sandwich, trying like hell to downplay the effect sitting across from her was having on him. “Then nothing has changed. Why are you here, Ainsley? I hope you didn’t think you could come back and change my mind. When Dr. Chambers is ready to let the world in on his life, then I’m sure that he will.”
She put down her sandwich and he could tell she was trying to school her expression to hide her frustrations. “But why would he want to wait? Viagra took the world by storm and no man’s life has been the same. If this new drug he’s produced is bigger than Viagra, then we’re talking about a massive explosion here. Once it’s approved by the FDA, he’ll be courted by every pharmaceutical company in the world. But first he’ll need t
o sell the concept to them. If you recall, at first they were skeptical about something called a sexual enhancement drug.”
He chuckled, seeing her angle...at least the one she wanted him to see. “And you think an interview will get people more comfortable with Norjamin?”
“Yes, and I’m sure once I talk to Dr.—”
“He’s not to be disturbed. So eat your lunch. I’m hoping the rain stops so—”
“So I can leave?”
“Yes, so you can leave.” And that was plainly and honestly put. He wasn’t sure just how long his libido would last with her here. Her scent was getting to him again, and he was tempted to do something foolish—like admitting he was Dr. Chambers.
They continued eating in silence but a degree of uneasiness slid up his spine when, instead of slacking off, the rain started coming down in torrents. The roof was definitely taking a beating and he didn’t want to think what was happening to the poor bridge.
As if she’d read his thoughts, she glanced out the window and keeping her tone light, she smiled and said, “Um, looks like you won’t be getting rid of me any time soon, Winston.”
Her words struck a discordant note with him. It was getting dark and if the rain didn’t let up, it meant she would have to stay the night. He would rather she didn’t. When it came to affairs, he believed in the B and M concept. Brief and meaningless.
“I wouldn’t be all smiles about that if I were you,” he said as his expression darkened. “The outside doors of this house have locks but there aren’t any on the inner doors.”
She fully faced him and stared him down. “Are you implying there’s a chance you’d come into my room uninvited?”
Now it was his time to smile. “Um, I’m just saying.”
Ainsley had no comeback and the room got quiet. Only the pounding rain was heard. In his mind it beat an erotic rhythm that started a throbbing sensation in his groin. He would love pounding into her the same way the rain was doing to the roof. The thought stirred his blood and had his chest heaving. He loved being intimate with a woman especially when it was raining. It somehow triggered primitive urges in him to mate.
“So, where’s this Charley guy?” she finally asked, interrupting his thoughts. He glanced over at her and saw her wipe her mouth on the napkin and then take a sip of her drink.
“He’s around,” Winston said, shifting in his seat, feeling a tightening around his middle. And then after taking a sip of his own drink, he spoke up loudly. “Charley, someone wants to meet you.”
She glanced around as if she expected some human to materialize from around the corner or from another room. He inwardly smiled when a section of his kitchen wall opened to reveal a panel board that was flashing. And when Charley replied, “Charley on duty,” she covered her hand with her mouth in shock.
Smiling at Ainsley, Winston said, “He trying to tell you in a nice way he can’t socialize while he’s working.”
Once the shock wore off, Ainsley began laughing and couldn’t seem to stop.
“You find something funny?” Winston broke in to ask her.
She shook her head, wiped the tears from her eyes as her laughter slowly began subsiding. “Sorry, but Charley’s not a man.”
Leaning over the table, Winston whispered, “Better not say that too loud. He has a thing for Siri.”
Ainsley raised a brow. “The iPhone announcer?”
“One and the same.”
That made Ainsley start laughing again and she concluded she needed the laugh because everything that had happened today had been downright silly. First, her thinking she could use her expertise and skill as a pole dancer to scale that flagpole. It worked but she hadn’t gotten across the fence undetected. And just to think, it wasn’t a man but a machine who’d ratted on her.
“So what all can Charley do?”
Winston’s voice sank lower when he said, “Whatever he can do, I can do better.”
She rolled her eyes. “We’re talking about in the way of security, right?” Did he have to look so striking sitting across from her in a bathrobe? This entire thing was strange at best. Why was he still wearing one? She was waiting for her clothes to dry but what was his excuse? The only conclusion she could reach was that he didn’t intend to let her out of his sight for one minute. Not even for the time it took to put on clothes.
“In that case there’s none that can compare. Charley’s state-of-the-art and the brainchild of one of my friends who own a security company in New York,” he interrupted her thoughts to say.
“Charley’s cute.” And she figured he was wondering how she knew that. “I like a man with a lot of buttons that I can push.”
Winston chuckled. “He thinks you’re cute, too, and he enjoyed seeing you earlier in your bra and panties.”
The smile was quickly wiped from her face. “He saw me in the shower before I undressed?”
“No, he saw you, like I did, when you did that pole and stripped down afterward to put on your jeans and top. Charley got a thrill but it wasn’t anything I hadn’t seen before. In fact, I saw a lot more skin that night. Tasted it, too.”
She glared at him. “Glad you recall that episode because it won’t happen again.”
His smile widened. “And that’s where our thought processes differ because I’m going to try like hell to make sure it does happen again, Ainsley.”
Deciding not to waste time going back and forth with him on an issue that was dead in the water, she said, “Since we have time to kill, you want to show me around while my clothes are drying?”
“I’d rather not.”
She shrugged. “Then suit yourself. We can just sit here and enjoy the rain.”
That sounded doable, Ainsley thought, if he wasn’t sitting there staring at her. It reminded her too much of the night they’d met and how he had ogled her then. The memories were causing goose bumps to form on her skin. No matter how she tried forgetting that night, she couldn’t.
“Too bad it hadn’t been raining that night we met,” he broke the silence to say.
Bewildered by his statement, she asked, “Why?”
He held her gaze when he replied. “I like making love to the sound of the rain. It does something to me each and every time. Makes me think of hot and wild sex.”
She swallowed, thinking that he was deliberately trying to get next to her and she refused to let him...although blood was rushing through her veins even now. His closeness was having an effect on her; she couldn’t and wouldn’t deny that. And he smelled good. Like man and rain. The scent of that body wash and shampoo clung to their bodies, but mingled with his natural aroma, it smelled differently. Like that of a robust man whose bones were made for jumping.
She tightened her hand on her glass thinking, at that moment, she needed something a lot stronger than lemonade. But first, she needed to get them out of this kitchen. It was huge but still intimate. “If you don’t want to show me around, then tell me more about Charley. What else can he do?”
“Can’t tell you.”
“Can’t or won’t?”
“Both, I imagine,” he drawled in a Southern accent she found way too sexy. He looked at her from beneath long, silky lashes and said in a low husky tone, “But there is a section of the estate I can show you.”
Ainsley felt her blood stir. “Which is?”
“Guest quarters. If this weather keeps up it will be impossible for you to leave before morning.”
For some reason the thought of sleeping under the same roof as him didn’t bother her. Maybe it should since she could feel that annoying ripple of attraction between them. Even now their gazes were hanging on to each other and there was no denying the currents of electricity in the air that had nothing to do with the storm roaring outside. “So...” she said, placing down her glass. “Can I trust you to do the right thing?”
“Not entirely,” he said in a velvety smooth voice, one that sent desire oozing up her spine. “If given the chance, I’ll have you naked in a heart
beat.”
“At least you’re honest.” She broke eye contact with him and looked out the window where she could see the ocean. Winston was a complication she didn’t need, and she figured they needed to change the subject and fast. “Even with all this bad weather, it’s beautiful here,” she said and meant it.
“It is. There’s nothing like making love on the beach.”
So much for changing the subject. She glanced back at him and felt desire ripple through her again. He was intentionally taunting her, making her lose focus, get too relaxed. She absently ran her fingers through her still-damp hair. She could just imagine how it looked. “I need to do something with this,” she said.
“Not really. I like you looking wild.”
She chuckled. “And crazy?”
He shook his head and glanced at her hair. “No, just wild. Just like you were that night.”
Yes, she was. But why was he making her remember?
“You even clawed up my back pretty damn good,” he added.
She frowned. “Hey, what about all those passion marks you put on me?”
There appeared a satisfied gleam in his eyes. “They’re all gone now. Want some more?”
His tone held a suggestive edge, one that was too dangerous to her peace of mind right now. “No thanks.”
Her eyes then narrowed on him, knowing it was time to set him straight. She was tired of his game-playing. “Look, I didn’t come here for this.”
He narrowed his gaze right back. “I know why you came, when I distinctly told you Chambers would not be doing an interview...unless you agreed to my terms. You didn’t and that should have been the end of it. But you’re back, so evidently that wasn’t the end. If you assume you can get me to change my mind then you’re wrong. I don’t act on emotions, I act on desires and at the moment I desire you to the point where I could probably eat you alive. I probably won’t be physically sated until I make love to you so hard you scream my name.”
Ainsley drew in a swift breath. His voice had an abrasive edge to it and she had a feeling he meant everything he’d said. Reading between the lines she couldn’t help but conclude that she’d been nothing more to him than a bed partner and, if they made out again, that’s all she ever would be. That’s how he dealt. He was not into lasting relationships, just physical ones. And right now he desired something physical with her and she had a feeling it would be even more explosive than the last time.
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