“You can all get back to work,” Jason said.
He lifted her from the chair and carried her into the den, shutting the door and locking it behind him. He headed over to the couch, settling into the cushion with her on his lap.
Unable to control the tremors racking her body, Lauren plastered herself to him, soaking up his strength and embracing his heat.
“What is it?” he asked, his voice gruff yet soothing. “Seeing a mouse has you this spooked?”
Now that the initial shock and fear had begun to subside, embarrassment flooded her.
As hard as it was for her to revisit the past, he deserved an explanation. “For a minute, it wasn’t the mouse I was seeing but a rat in New York. The first apartment I lived in was a hole in the wall above a restaurant. It was all I could afford and the rats used to run inside the walls. I could hear them at night.” She shuddered at the memory of the scurrying sounds behind the thin walls.
His palm settled on the center of her back, strong, warm and reassuring.
“Sounds awful.” Jason wished she hadn’t had to go through that experience alone.
“That’s not the worst part. One night I was in bed reading and I heard something. I looked up and there it was on the nightstand. Before I could blink, it ran near me and ended up in my bed.” The tremors began again and her entire body shook against him.
He slipped his hand beneath her shirt and ran it up and down her bare, braless back,
gritting his teeth against the sensation of caressing her skin. “You’re safe now.” But soothing her couldn’t undo the past.
“The mouse was in the kitchen!” She burrowed her face into his neck. Her breath was hot and arousing, though her intent was anything but.
“I’ll set some traps, okay?” He didn’t know much about mouse traps, but they’d be easy enough to find.
Without lifting her head, she nodded, her fingers holding on to his shirt in a death grip. “I can’t see another one. It just does something to me.”
Her revulsion and fear hit him hard. “I can’t promise, but I’ll do the best I can.” He waited but she didn’t release him. Didn’t move her head from his neck.
He inhaled the fragrant scent of her hair, his body hardening.
He fought against the sensation and shifted, intending to get up and start working on the rodent problem. But she didn’t budge.
So he slowly lowered his hand from her back, hoping she’d take the hint and move. Before the comfort he wanted to offer lost out to the desire she so effortlessly ignited. Again, she remained in place, her body aligned with his.
So he waited while her tension gradually eased. Her muscles relaxed and she looked up at him, gratitude in her green eyes.
But when she inched back on his lap, her bottom came into direct contact with his rock-hard erection. Her eyes opened wide in understanding and in an instant her pupils darkened and her cheeks flushed.
“If you want those traps set now, you’d better let me get up,” he said, his warning clear.
“You locked the door, right? There are still workmen around?” she asked.
He nodded.
“Then what if I still need more comfort?” She ran her tongue over her bottom lip, dampening the full flesh, seducing him with that simple gesture. She shifted her hips until her thighs bracketed his. “Besides, don’t you want to know how I used to ignore the rats and finally fell asleep?”
She rotated her body seductively until she cupped him in his denim-covered sheath. Despite the thick barrier, he could swear he felt her heat.
“How?” he managed to ask.
A smile pulled at her lips, but there was no teasing. Just pure honesty as she said, “I’d think about you. It was the only time I’d let myself go back to the time we spent together.” She drew a deep breath. “During the day I was driven to succeed, but at night, when I was afraid, I dreamed about you.”
He ran his fingers through her hair, regret swamping him. “I wish I’d known.”
It shocked him how much he wished he could have taken care of her.
“You’re here now.” She reached up and began unbuttoning her shirt, releasing one tantalizing button at a time. She wanted him, yes. But she was clearly using sex to feel better.