Geomancist (Seven Forbidden Arts 5)

His gaze darkened. “If someone walks into your room in the middle of the night, he’s a dead man.”

She raised a brow. “Like you?”

“I don’t count.” He motioned for her to turn over. “No one is going to catch me here.” He added with humor, “If someone comes, I’ll hide under your bed.” When she still didn’t move, he urged, “Come on, kitten. This is going to feel good. I promise.”

It wasn’t wise to let him stay, but his presence was comforting. She could do with a friend, if only for a little while.

“Fine,” she said, turning onto her stomach. “But only for a few minutes.”

“That’s my kitten.”

She glanced at him from over her shoulder. “Your father, is he still in Scotland?”

Sean straddled her hips and rubbed his palms together, presumably to warm his hands. “Aye.”

The consideration made her smile. Not wanting to touch her with cold hands was another display of unexpected sweetness. “What about your mom?”

“She died in childbirth,” he said matter of factly.

“Oh.” Sympathy tightened her chest. “I’m sorry.”

“Me, too.” He smoothed his palms over her shoulders in circular movements as he added thoughtfully, “I would’ve liked to know her.”

“That’s a backrub, not a massage,” she said to lighten the mood.

“Is that so?” He tickled her sides. “How about this?”

She wriggled to get away and had to press her face into the pillow to muffle a laugh. “Stop! They’ll hear me.”

“You see?” He moved his hands down her back. “Only a few seconds in my capable hands, and you’re already feeling better.” Slipping his hands under the fabric of her T-shirt, he dragged his palms over her naked back.

She barely contained a sigh of pleasure. He reversed his path, trailing his fingers down her spine to her lower back and up again. On the second round, his fingertips skimmed her ribs and brushed over the sides of her breasts. A shiver ran through her, and goose bumps broke out on her skin.

Something in the atmosphere shifted. She felt it instinctively. Nothing was said, but his intention had gone from playful to sexual in less than a second.

“Turn over, kitten,” he said in a low voice.

There were so many reasons why she shouldn’t do this. For starters, Juan would kill him if he ever found out that Sean looked at her with more than platonic interest. This was hardly the time for her body to react to a man who was supposed to be her business rival. But everything had changed when Juan decided she could reenact his dead wife. And Sean was right about one thing. His touch did make her feel better. More than that. It felt good. Too good, maybe. Yet, when he took her shoulders and turned her, she didn’t resist. Instead, she stretched out on her back and stared up at his handsome face.

A serious expression replaced all signs of his earlier banter. “Last night, when I came to check on you, you were on the phone.”

Where was he going with this? “Yes.”

“With a man?”

Ah. Comprehension dawned. “Yes.”

He tensed. “You said you loved him.”

She smiled. “I did.”

“Before I go on, I need to know.”

Go on with what? Her stomach fluttered. “Know what?”

He almost sounded jealous. “Is there someone in your life?”

“Someone like a boyfriend?” she teased.

His face darkened. “Yes. Boyfriend, lover.” He narrowed his eyes. “Future husband?”

“No.”

The tight set of his jaw didn’t ease. “Who was it then?”

“My brother, Matthew.”

Only then did his shoulders relax. “Good.”

Holding her breath, she said, “Why are you asking?”

“Because I won’t do what I’m going to do if you’re with someone.”

“Do what?” she asked a tad breathless.

His answer was to stretch out over her until the length of his body covered hers. The fabric of his jeans felt rough against her legs. He held his weight on his arms, but she was acutely aware of his hard chest that slightly flattened her breasts and most of all the hard-on that rested snugly between her legs. A flush of heat spread through her lower body. Cupping her face, he searched her eyes. Suddenly, the moment felt heavy, like a turning point. Maybe this was a mistake.

Wait. It definitely was a mistake. The risks were too high.

“Sean,” she whispered, biting her lip.

He wrapped his arms around her and turned them around so that she was on top. “Does it feel safer like this? Now you’ve got the control.”

It didn’t feel safer, but her fear had nothing to do with Sean taking what she wasn’t prepared to give. Her fear was for a different reason, one she didn’t want to think about. If only for a few minutes, she wanted to forget.

Taking her lack of protest as his cue, he gripped her shoulders and gently pushed her into a sitting position to straddle him. The hard length of his erection pressed against her folds. When he rolled his hips to increase the pressure, she caught herself with her palms on his chest. Fire erupted in her nerve endings as he stroked his jean-clad erection over her clit.