“Yep. Aiden just left, and Juan’s headed to his office to finish up for the day. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to shake them off.”
Caitie stepped back and he walked inside, whistling as he took in the view from the windows. “Christ, that looks inviting.” He grinned. “You wanna swap rooms with me?”
“I kind of thought we’d be sharing a room,” Caitie said, biting her lip. “Unless you don’t want to.”
His expression softened. “Of course I want to. Why do you think I’m here? Did you really think I’d come all this way to show Aiden some flooring tiles? It took everything I had not to pick you up at the airport and whisk you away to the nearest motel.” His eyes dropped, taking in her professional skirt suit and pale silk blouse. It was opened at the neck, revealing her delicate throat and chest. “I like it when you’re dressed for business. You look damn hot.”
“It’s just a suit.”
“It makes me want to bend you over a desk and show you who’s boss.”
She tilted her head. “I think we both know who’s boss.”
He doffed an imaginary cap. “Yes, ma’am.”
“This room you’ve got. Where is it?” she asked.
“Across the hall.”
“So you’ll be sneaking over here in the middle of the night like a teenage kid in his parents’ house?” she asked.
“Nope. I’ll be bringing my suitcase in here and unpacking it, before spending the weekend with the girl I’ve been thinking about ever since I saw her last.” He ran his finger down her neck, letting it linger in the hollow of her throat. “And then I’m going to act out every single thing we talked about on Skype, and show you where teasing gets you.”
She looked at him through her eyelashes. “You didn’t complain at the time. You kept asking for more.”
“But now that I’m touching the real thing, I realize the screen has been a poor substitute.” He unbuttoned her shirt, pushing it from her body, before slipping his hands inside. They were warm as they caressed her stomach, her hips, and her waist, before moving up to her bra.
“This is designed to drive me insane,” he said, tracing his fingers around the fabric. “As if you’re naked, but you’re actually covered. It’s messing with my mind.”
“It’s a nude bra. It doesn’t show through white silk.”
“It’s a tease.” He grinned, pushing the straps from her shoulders, before he pressed a kiss to her skin. “But you know how much I like to be teased.”
He moved his lips down, brushing against her chest before reaching the swell of her breasts. Nudging her bra away, he captured her nipple between his teeth, wetting it as he pulled her into his mouth. Her eyes rolled back with pleasure.
He carried her to the bed, throwing her on it so she bounced softly on the mattress. In that moment it felt like everything in her world was finally coming together.
The contract, the wedding, the man. Was it possible to have it all?
* * *
“Have you ever thought about exposure therapy?” Breck asked, as he poured them both a cup of coffee. “I was reading about it the other day. You could start with something easy, like dangling your legs in the pool or something. Work your way up to the open water.”
Caitie looked up from her laptop. She’d been catching up on yesterday’s emails. “Not really.” She frowned, wondering why he was bringing this up.
“You know, the hotel’s got an indoor pool.”
“What?” This time, he had her full attention.
“An indoor pool. It’s got to be the easiest place to start. Dipping your toes in, physically and metaphorically.”
“That sounds very deep.”
“Nah, we’d start at the shallow end.”
“Very funny.” She shook her head. “And I’m perfectly happy avoiding pools, for now.”
“But are you happy?” He handed her a steaming mug. “Or are you afraid?” He sat in the chair opposite her, crossing his legs.