TANTALIZING

by Lori Foster

  He wrapped around her, his chest to her back and he hugged her tight. His heart pounded frantically and she felt it inside herself, reverberating with her own wild heartbeat. "Josie," he said on a whispered groan. And she knew he was coming, his thrusts more sporadic, deeper, and incredibly, she came with him, crying out her surprise.

  Long minutes passed and neither of them moved. Josie was content. His body, his indescribable scent, surrounded her in gentle waves of pleasure. She could feel the calming of his heartbeat, his gentle, uneven breaths against her skin.

  "Woman, you're something else."

  She wondered how he could talk, even though his words had sounded weak and breathless. She relished his weight on her body, the soft kisses he pressed to her shoulders and nape and ear. He made a soft sound and said, "I could stay like this forever."

  Mustering her strength, she managed to whisper, "That's because you're not the one being squashed into the cold counter."

  He chuckled as he straightened and carefully stepped away. "Hey, you were the one in charge. You should have said something if you didn't like it."

  Her sigh sounded entirely too much like satisfaction. "I liked it."

  "I know."

  She smiled at his teasing and forced herself to stand. "This is a downright ignominious position to find myself in."

  She heard him zipping his pants, but couldn't quite find the courage to face him. Her fingers shook as she struggled with her panties, which seemed to be twisted around her knees.

  "I think you look damn cute. And enticing." He patted her bare bottom with his large hand, then assisted her in straightening her clothes. "Are you okay?"

  That brought her gaze to his face. "I'm...fine." She could feel the hot blush creeping up to her hairline. After all, she was still bare-breasted, and her hair was more down than up. She started to cross her arms over her chest, but hesitated when he covered them himself with his hot palms.

  "I wish I had planned this better. But I only had the one condom with me."

  "Oh." Her blushing face seemed to pulse, making her very aware of how obvious her embarrassment must be. He was so cavalier about it all, like making love in the kitchen was something he'd done dozens of times. And maybe it was, she admitted to herself, not liking the idea one bit.

  Nick grinned, enjoying himself at her expense. "Of course, I could give you more pleasure, if that's what you want. I'm stoic and brave and all those other manly things. And we did have an agreement. I'll sacrifice my needs for yours if you're still feeling greedy. If you're in the mood for a little more fun."

  She didn't quite know how to deal with him. He was all the things Susan claimed – arrogant and cocky, used to female adoration. She pulled away and slipped into her bra and T-shirt, then turned to the sink. As she ran water into the coffeepot, she could feel his gaze on her back, moving over her like a warm touch.

  She drew a steadying breath and glanced back at him. "I think I can manage to be as stoic as you. But since you're here, we might as well get a few things straight."

  His smile disappeared. "What things?"

  "Our agreement, of course."

  Disbelief spread over his face. "Little witch."

  She ignored his muttered insult and measured out the coffee grains. Mustering her courage, she blurted, "Did you laugh at me after we made love on the boat?"

  "As I remember, I was too busy trying to devise ways to keep from tripping myself up to find any humor in the situation."

  Josie considered that. "You know, now that I think about it, a lot of things make sense. The way you kept insisting I not call you by name, your hesitance to take me to your house. Your surprise that I was willing to go with you at all."

  "I thought you'd back down. Bob had repeated Susan's description of you – and you didn't look a damn thing like what I expected. It's for certain you didn't act the way I thought you would."

  Knowing Susan, it wasn't difficult to imagine the picture she'd painted. "I thought you would be the way my sister described Bob. I expected you to run in the opposite direction when you saw what a wild woman I was."

  He came to stand directly in front of her, and his large hot hand settled on her hip, his long fingers spread to caress her bottom. "A million ideas went through my mind when I first saw you, and running wasn't one of them." He leaned down and kissed her, gently, teasing. "Are we done talking now? I can think of better things we could be doing."

  She faltered at his direct manner and provocative touch, but had the remaining wits to mention an irrefutable fact. "You said you were out of condoms."

  He spoke in a low rumble against her lips. "I also said there were other things we could do, other ways for me to pleasure you without needing protection." His eyes met hers, bright and hot. "Right now, I'm more than willing to show you all of them. Tasting you, touching you, is incredibly sweet. Giving you pleasure gives me pleasure. And I love the way you moan, the way your belly tightens and your nipples—"

  A soft moan escaped before she managed to turn her face away. "Nick."

  With a huge, regretful sigh, he looped his arms around her and held her loosely. "All right, what were you saying?"

  She gave him a disgruntled frown. "I don't remember."

  "Oh, yeah. You thought I was Bob. And he probably would have been horrified to see you. Horrified and frightened half to death."

  "That's what I figured."

  "He's hung up on your sister, you know."

  Having Nick so close made it difficult to carry on the casual conversation. But he seemed to have no problem with it, so she forged ahead; they really did need to get things straightened out. "He's the one who sent Susan the chocolates?"

  "Yup."

  "And he's probably the one who told her he didn't approve of my job."

  "That'd be Bob. But I doubt he really cares one way or the other what you do. He's just willing to say anything to agree with Susan."

  "Susan likes him, too. She was so pleased with his gift. When it arrived, she was all but jumping up and down."

  Nick touched her hair, winding one long curl around his finger. "And what did you do?"

  She wasn't about to tell him how hurt and betrayed she'd felt. That wouldn't have been in keeping with her new image. "I wasn't sure what to do, except that I knew I couldn't see you again."

  "Hmm." He kissed her quickly and stepped away. "Finish the coffee and let's go sit in the other room. I don't trust these tiny kitchen chairs you have. I'm afraid they might collapse under me."

  Josie eyed the delicate chairs and silently agreed.

  It took an entire pot of coffee and a lot of explaining before they sorted out the whole conf using mess. By the end of the explanations, Nick had Josie mostly in his lap on the short love seat and he'd removed the pins from her hair so that he could play with it. In one way or another, he touched her constantly, his hands busy, his mouth hungry.

  "I want to see you tomorrow, Josie. Will you go to the movies with me?"

  She shook her head. As soon as she'd left Susan's shop, she'd accepted an invitation from one of her clients. She could have cancelled if she'd wanted to, but with everything she'd just learned, including his deception and her volatile reaction to him, she didn't trust herself to be with him again so soon. He was playing games while she was falling hard. She needed time to think, to regroup. "I already made other plans, Nick."

  Through narrowed eyes, he studied her face a long moment, his gaze probing, then looked down at her clasped hands. "What about Monday?"

  She shrugged helplessly. "I can't. Mondays are late nights for me."

  He seemed disgruntled by her answer. Josie had the feeling few women ever turned him down. She almost relented; seeing the disappointment in his sensual gaze made her feel the same. But she had a responsibility to her patients, and as tempting as he was, her responsibilities took precedence over her newfound pleasure.

  "How late?"

  "It depends on who needs what done. But I can't rush my visits.
For many of my clients, I'm the only company they get on a regular basis."

  He sighed, obviously frustrated but willing to concede. He cupped her cheek and stared down at her. "You're pretty incredible. Do you know that?"

  "It's not so much. I enjoy their company, and they enjoy mine."

  "Does it involve much traveling?"

  "Some. A lot of the people I work with now or worked with in the past, live in this complex, which is one reason I bought here. It's easier to keep an eye on things."

  "You know, I did wonder about that. I had all these old folks staring me down, looking at me like I was an interloper. I didn't understand it at first."

  "Young people in the complex are always a curiosity. I'm surprised Mrs. Wiley didn't come out and question you."

  "She didn't need to. I went to her to find out which condo you lived in." He pulled the rolled catalog from his back pocket. "She gave me this and I promised to try to come up with some kind of inexpensive advertising promotion for her."

  Josie stared down blankly at the Golden Goodies catalog, which had fallen open to show pictures of various-sized candles and love-inspired board games. She couldn't quite manage to pull her fascinated gaze away, even though she'd seen the thing dozens of times. The difference now, of course, was that she wondered if Nick would enjoy playing any of the inventive games, winning prizes that varied from kisses to "winner's choice." She had a feeling she knew what his choice would be.

  Josie cleared her throat. "A supplier gives her the catalogs and fills the orders, then the selling is up to her. And she's pretty good at it. But I suppose she does need a wider audience than the complex allows."

  Nick turned the page, perusing the items for sale. He looked surprised. "Why, that old fraud. This stuff isn't X-rated. The way she carried on, I thought she was selling something really hot."

  Tilting her head, Josie asked, "Like what?"

  He opened his mouth, then faltered. "Never mind."

  She smiled. "For most older folks, scented lotions and feather boas are pretty risqué. They love Mrs. Wiley's parties. It makes them feel young again, and daring."

  "Have you ever been to one?"

  Without looking at him, Josie flipped to another page, studying the variety of handheld fans and flavored lipsticks. "Once or twice." She cleared her throat. "There was a party here the night we met. I think I mentioned it – remember? That was one of Mrs. Wiley's."

  "Ah. So that's the reason you didn't want to come back here."

  Josie didn't correct him. But the truth was, she hadn't wanted to return because she hadn't wanted to see his disappointment when he realized what a domestic homebody she really was. She'd talked her way around that, but the risk was still there, because she knew from Susan's dire predictions that no man would tolerate her demanding schedule for long – certainly not a man used to female adoration, like Nick. Hopefully, before he grew tired of her harried schedule, she'd be able to glut herself on his unique charms and be sated. For a while.

  Nick brought her out of her reverie with a gentle nudge. "Have you ever bought anything from her?"

  "A few things."

  His eyes glittered at her. "Show me."

  "No."

  He laughed at her cowardice. "Before we're through, I'll get you over your shyness." His taunting voice was low and sensual, and then he kissed her deeply.

  Before we're through... Josie wondered how much or how little time she'd actually have with Nick. When he lifted his mouth from hers, it took her several moments to get her eyes to open. When she finally succeeded, he smiled.

  "Sometime, if it's okay, I'd like to go with you to visit your friends."

  That took her by surprise. In a way, his interest pleased her, but it wouldn't be a good idea to introduce him to too many people. The more he invaded her life, the harder it would be when he left, which would be sooner than later. Sounding as noncommittal as possible, she murmured, "We'll see."

  He nodded. "Good. Now what about the rest of the week? When will you be free?"

  "What do you have in mind?"

  "We could go back to the boat, and this time I promise to show you the river at night. It's beautiful to look at all the lights on the water, to smell the moisture in the air and hear the sounds." He put his mouth to her ear and spoke in a rough whisper. "We could make love on the deck, Josie, under the stars. Mist rises off the river and everything gets covered in dew. Your skin would be slippery and..."

  She shivered before she could stop herself, then remembered how he'd told her his parents were dead. Annoyance came back, but not quite as strong this time. Not with him so close. "Is it your boat?"

  "I'm making love to you and you want to know who the damn boat belongs to?"

  His feigned affront didn't deter her. "I'm just trying to figure out what's true and what you made up."

  With an expression that showed his annoyance, Nick gave the shortest possible explanation. "It still legally belongs to my father. But when my parents divorced, it more or less became mine to use."

  The sarcasm couldn't be missed, and Josie felt stung. Nick didn't want her to delve into his past, into his personal life. Their time together would center only on the physical. It was what she'd claimed to want, but now she felt uncomfortable. She started to rise, but before she could move an inch, Nick's arms tightened around her.

  "Damn it, Josie, do we really need to discuss this?"

  She blinked, surprised by his outburst. "Of course not. I didn't mean to pry."

  He reached for her hand and held it. "You're not prying. It's just... Your parents died when you were fifteen, and mine divorced. The effects were damn similar. They fought for years over everything material, and eventually, the boat was bestowed on me for lack of a better solution. Mother didn't want my father to have it, because then he might have shared it with Myra, the woman he married three months after the divorce became final. And my father didn't want my mother to have it because he was still too angry over her foisting me off on him."

  "What...what do you mean?"

  Nick sighed, then leaned his head back, his eyes closed. Josie realized he was shutting her out to some extent, but still he answered her question. "My mother thought it would be a cute trick to saddle my dad with me while he was trying to start a new life with his new wife. He saw through her, knew what she was doing, and pretty much resented us both. He tried to send me home, but Mom wouldn't let him."

  Josie stared, speechless. She couldn't imagine him being treated like an unwelcome intruder by the very people who should have loved him most. For her, it had been just the opposite, and she suddenly wanted to tell Susan again how much she appreciated all she'd done. Careful to hide her sympathy, she asked, "That must have been pretty rough."

  He shrugged, still not looking at her. "Naw. The only really tough part was putting up with Myra. For the most part, my mom and dad ignored me once everything was settled. But for some ridiculous reason, Myra saw me as competition. And she hated everything about me. She tried to change my friends, my clothes, even the school I attended. And she tried to make certain I stayed too busy to visit my grandfather."

  "Why? What did it matter to her?"

  "My grandfather had no use for her. And it bugged her. I used to spend two weeks every summer with him. But after Myra married my father, she convinced Dad that I needed some added responsibility and insisted I take on a summer job. It wasn't that I minded working, only that I missed Granddad."

  "She sounds like a bitch."

  He laughed with real humor, then opened his eyes and smiled down at her. "Myra wasn't unique. I haven't met a woman yet who didn't think she could improve me in one way or another."

  Josie stiffened. "I like you just the way you are."

  He didn't look as though he believed her. "I fought with Myra a lot, and likely made her more miserable than she made me. Graduation didn't come quick enough to suit either of us. The summer before my first year of college I moved out on my own. That's when I met Bob and
we roomed together to share expenses. He got a job as an assistant to an accountant, and I got a job with the college newspaper. I did the layout on all the ads." He flashed her a grin, his pensive mood lifting. "And as your sister can attest, I'm damn good at what I do now."

  It took her a moment, and then the words sank in. "Susan said Bob was the talented one. That he's solely responsible for making your business so successful."

  Rather than looking insulted, he grinned. "Yeah, well, Susan refused to work with me. If she'd known I was handling her file, she wouldn't have given us her business."

  Josie gasped. "You've lied to her, too! Oh my God, when Susan finds out you did her ads, she'll be furious. We'll all be running for cover."

  Nick winced, though his grin was still in place. "Is it truly necessary to tell her, do you think? I mean, right now, she likes Bob, and he likes her. I wouldn't want to cause them any trouble."

  Josie gave him a knowing look. "You just don't want Susan biting your face off. You're not fooling me."

  "Your sister is enough to instill fright in even the stoutest of men." He kissed her, but it was a tickling kiss because he couldn't stop smiling. "She already despises me, Josie. If she knows I talked Bob into tricking her, she'll run me out of town. Is that what you want?"

  As he asked it, his large hot hand smoothed over her abdomen and Josie inhaled. "No."

  "Good. Then let's make a pact. We'll do all we can to get your sister and Bob together – before we drop any truthful bombshells on her. Okay?"

  Since he was still stroking her, she nodded her agreement. Besides, if Susan knew the full truth, she would do her best to talk Josie out of spending time with Nick. That decided her more than anything else. "I don't suppose it will hurt to wait. As long as you eventually come clean. But Nick, you have to know, when she finds out Bob isn't all that's perfection, she won't be happy."

  "Why don't we let Bob worry about that? Besides, he may not be perfect, but he is perfect for her. At least that's what he keeps assuring me."

  "I hope he's right, because I don't want to see her hurt."