Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. Louis began to chew again, his cheeks darkening as though he were blushing, and Nate…Well, Nate looked the same as he always did. Intense.
“Try a bite of this.” Nate held up a forkful of the main course, the fish perfectly cooked, the aroma heavenly.
Still, she hesitated. Maybe it was just to watch his jaw clench. Some masochistic part of her enjoyed challenging him. Sparring.
He shook his head. “I can out-stubborn you, Truly, and you know it. Now, be a good girl and open your mouth. Or I may have to spank you.”
She opened her mouth, chewing automatically, tasting nothing. She knew her eyes were wide, knew her cheeks were heating. Spank her. He may have to spank her. She couldn’t get the words, or the images they immediately created out of her head.
And he knew it.
The fork clattered to his plate. “We heard your old boss harassed you. That when you wouldn’t do what he wanted, he had you fired.”
She choked on the last bit of fish and watched Clay groan, burying his face in his hands. She could have sworn she heard him mumble, “Way to break the mood, buddy.” But maybe that was just wishful thinking on her part.
“I may really fire Robert now.” The three men looked at her, indignant on her behalf, and she sighed. “It wasn’t me. He didn’t harass me. Not that way. There was an intern and, well, I just helped her escape the situation intact. Clive Garret would never, in a million years, hit on someone like me.”
Louis turned in his chair. “Someone like you?”
She rolled her eyes and stood up, gesturing to her body, currently encased in a baggy T-shirt and long brown broom skirt. “I don’t think I have to spell it out, guys. His tastes aren’t all that unusual. He likes a little less cushion. A little more sex appeal. But that’s ancient history. I’m working for myself, and I have three fantastic clients. So everything turned out all right in the end.”
“Clay, Lou, go and wait in th
e other room. Truly and I will clean up these dishes.”
Nate’s deep voice was commanding. Clay looked like he wanted to argue, but Louis wrapped an arm around his shoulder and guided him out the door. Truly watched them disappear into the living room, and turned back to Nate, her brow furrowed.
He shook his head, gathering up the plates and dumping them into the sink loudly. She picked up her plate, gazing with longing at Clay’s dessert, and joined him at the counter.
She turned to gather up the dirty pots and pans, but Nate was too fast for her. He stepped closer, his body flush against hers and his thickly muscled arms blocking her in on both sides. He turned on the water behind her, adding dishwashing liquid before catching her eye.
His voice was rough, almost a growl. “We’ll get to the someone like you comment in a minute. First, I want you to know that I’m glad that jackass didn’t touch you. I’m not a violent man by nature, but when I thought he’d tried to force himself on you…” He closed his eyes for a moment, and Truly found herself fascinated by the sooty shadow of his long lashes. No man should have lashes like that.
She was so lost in her study that she didn’t think of holding back her question. “Why do you care, Nate? Why did you want to know?”
His lids lifted and from this close she could see that his chocolate-colored irises were flecked with bits of amber. God, she wished he would kiss her.
“I wanted to know because I needed to be sure. Sure that you didn’t need time to heal. That I didn’t have to punch his face in. Or wait.”
Her breath was ripped out of her lungs. “Wait for what?”
He narrowed his gaze, and Truly found herself whipped around until she was facing the sink, the warm stream of water filling the room with the fragrant aroma of the lavender dish soap foaming over the plates. He turned off the water before it could overflow.
“Nate, what are we—?”
He shushed her. “Now who’s impatient?” Nate pressed his hips against her back, and she gasped, the heat from his erection burning her through her cotton skirt. He slid his hands down her bare arms, and she shivered, watching as his fingers intertwined with hers and disappeared beneath the bubbles.
As he caressed her palms and wrists, he pressed his lips against her temple. “We’re supposed to be doing the dishes, aren’t we? But all I can think about is how soft your lips were this morning, and how much I want to taste your bare nipples under my tongue.”
His hands lifted from hers and cupped her breasts, soaking her T-shirt. “Damn. I’ve gotten you all wet. Now we have to take your top off.”
Truly was in a daze, allowing him to raise her arms above her head and remove her shirt. He had gotten her wet, and it was more than just her white lace bra, now transparent and clinging to her skin. She looked down at her breasts, never willing to stay confined for long, and noticed they were swelling above the cups. Begging for attention. The dirty little harlots.
Nate’s mouth opened over her shoulder and a raw sound of need emerged. “Jesus, Truly. You’re killing me.” He unsnapped the front clasp of her bra and cupped her heavy breasts in his hands.
“Wait. Your sister…the children…we can’t.” She couldn’t focus. Not with those skilled and powerful hands caressing her. So much better than she’d imagined. So much hotter, rougher. Perfect.
He bit her shoulder lightly, licking the spot as though to soothe. “They’re gone for a few days to visit family. Spur of the moment. Is that all you’r worried about? What about Clay and Louis in the other room? They could hear us. They could come in, wondering what was taking us so long.”