Bodywork (25 page)

They stared at each other in the shower, and as they fell into bed again, something was different.

Shane rolled her onto her back and
covered
her with his body
.
“Let’s try something vanilla
.”

She smiled at up at him,
but her
grin fad
ed
when his expression changed from amused to intense.

He kissed her slowly, with a tenderness he’d never before employed. His lips coaxed an answering sigh from her, and when his tongue met hers, it was with an inviting glide, no forceful entry.

He kissed her like he had all the time in the world. With each press of his lips, she grew more
aroused
. Her brea
sts brushed his chest and his firm
nipples. Her belly felt moist from the wetness at his cock
—
his very thick, very large cock. Knowing he wanted her so much
made her frantic to have him
.

But Shane wouldn’t be budged. He patiently kissed her until she couldn’t do anything but follow his lead, fully under his spell. She ran her hands through his hair and tightened her grip when his lips trailed from her mouth
to her neck and lower.
He worshipped her breasts
, plumping them with his hands before drawing each nipple into his mouth, where he’d suck and bite gently as she thrashed under him.

“God, I want you,” she moaned when he left her breasts and kissed his way to her pussy.

He licked her. He sucked her. He nipped her flesh and slid his thumbs through her folds. While he feasted, he eased his pinkie
finger
into her channel before withdrawing the slick digit. Then he eased it
around
the rim of her anus while he sucked her clit.

She arched into him. “Shane. Please. Fuck me, baby.” She was barely aware of what she said, drawn to him in a way she’d never been to anyone else. This was more than sex. More than a playful need to be exciting and sexy and wanted.

He penetrated her ass and sucked harder on her clit, and she came
in a rush
. Still climaxing, she didn’t
want
him to leave her. But he
shimmied over her body in a flash and slid
his thick shaft inside her while they made love.

Leaning up on his elbows, he watched her as he thrust inside her, his rhythm fast and furious as he reached his end.
It didn’t take him long, and then they both experienced the joy of true togetherness, coming with each other
face to face.
And
heart to heart
, the romantic inside of her added.

Shane didn’t know what to think. He couldn’t stop kissing her once he finished coming.
O
h
fuck.
He loved her. He knew it. He’d hoped not to feel this again, because Shelby was so much more than Lisa had been. That date last week had sealed
it, as much as he’d hoped he’d idealized
their time
together
.

Taking her earlier had been incredible. He was able to play the domineering male to her submissive female, and fucking her had been
amazing
. But this…

He kissed her lips again and sighed into her mouth when she kissed him back.

This tenderness was new to them both. It added a
definite
emotional aspect to their weekly get-together’s he wasn’t sure she’d accept. And though he didn’t want to scare her away, he couldn’t stop himself from showing her how he felt.

They parted and lay on their sides, still holding each other.

“Wow.” She blinked at him, her lips parted, still glossy from his kiss.

“Yeah, wow.” He smiled and traced her cheek. “We need to clean up.”

“I know.” She didn’t move. “That was special. I liked it.” She seemed shy
now, adding yet another layer to
the
complex, beautiful, emotionally guarded woman
.

He
stared into her eyes, caught by the shadows the candlelight flickered over her
face
.
“You know, I like you when you’re mean.”

She frowned. “I
wasn’t mean. Well, not today.”

“But I especially like you like this. Soft, sexy. Naked,” he added and earned a chuckle.

“Well, I love your kinky side. But this was great too.” She stared at his mouth and leaned
forward
for a kiss. “I don’t think we’ve done this before. Kissing like this.”

“It’s nice. Is it too vanilla for you?” he teased, but a part of him
needed to know
.

Shelby shook her head, and her hair trailed over her shoulder and
over the slope of her breast
, like a mink stole. “Not at all. I have to confess something.”

“What?” he asked softly.

“Vanilla is my favorite flavor.” She
sighed
. “I think I was born to be boring.”

“Yeah, right. Honey, you are so damn sexy
I about come in my pants whenever I’m near you. We’ve played doctor, house burglar, and you’ve seduced me in a red teddy you still need to wear for me again. You might like the flavor, but you’re anything but ordinary.”

She smiled at him. “So what does that make us?”

“Two sexed-
up friends who like each other?”
Love each other?

“Friends or fiends?”

“Oh, I like fiends better.
”

They laughed together and spent the next hour talking about any and everything. The sex had become more. Shane just hoped Shelby could handle it, because he couldn’t go back now. Not after he’d seen
the warm, loving part of her
.

Unfortunately, she left at midnight. And his bed had never felt
lonelier
.

He spent the next two days at work and did his best to pretend she didn’t exist. They’d made plans to meet for breakfast Sunday morning
. Just for food, not sex. T
hey’d get
to that
Monday night.

Scheduling
sex
had been fun at first. Exciting trysts, an adventurous affair. But now it seemed a little tawdry considering he wanted Shelby to be a more permanent part of his life. It amazed him that after Lisa he could feel this way again, but there it was. He’d never been one to stick his head in the sand overlong, and his mourning for Lisa
—
or rather, the relationship he’d
thought
he’d had with Lisa
—
had ended.

Friday night rolled around, and he agree
d
to meet Mac at Botelli
Mia
’s, a new steak and seafood restaurant in Queen Anne. Mac apparently knew the owner, and
Shane
and his friend
were seated
at a trendy booth big enough to fit six comfortably.

“See, it pays to have friends in high places,” Mac bragged as he looked at the line outside.

“Whatever.” Shane indulged his friend’s humor. Mac had been in a good mood all
night. “You get laid or what?”

Mac’s eyes widened. “Why do you say that?”

“You’re smiling at me.”

“
Fuck you.
” Mac lowered his menu and narrowed his gaze. “
Although,
I should be asking you the same thing. You’re different lately.”

I’m
in
love.

The waiter arrived
,
and Shane ordered a beer. It seemed like a perfect night to drink his worries away. They made small talk until the waiter brought their drinks, then they ordered.

After the waiter left, Mac raised his glass. “To Shelby.”

Shane paused with his glass in the air. “What?”

“You know, that chick you had a thing for?”

“Oh
, her.” Shane tapped Mac’s
glass. “To Shelby.”

“May you finally find her and get some peace.” Mac took a large swallow. “Come on, man. What’s up? You’re hot for this chick, then nothing? But you look content. More than you’ve been in a long time.”

“So maybe I got lucky a few times.”

“A few times?”

“Dude, lower your voice.”

Mac leaned over the table. “What the hell, man
?
You never said anything.”

“I’m past the age of kiss and tell, Mac.”

“I don’t need details, Mary. But a heads up would be nice. I’ve been trying to find a way to get you back with the Amazon, and here you’re already plowing pleasureville.”

Shane drank more. “You kill me with your language.”

“Hey,
I’m
the product of a college degree.
” Mac was
in fact a college graduate
, but you’d never know it to talk to him. The guy acted like he’d been raised among wolves, or along the docks among sailors. God knew he swore like one.
Typical Marine.
“So no interest in Shelby anymore?”

“I didn’t say that.”
At all.
“But you know I’m not looking for anything permanent. Some sex did the trick though. I’m much more relaxed.” Shane
sighed happily
. “I’ll live to be ninety now, at least.”

“Must have been some sex.”

“You have
no
idea.”

Mac teased him some more before he
suddenly turned mute
. He glanced over Shane’s shoulder and swore. “Damn, that woman kills me.”

Shane followed his glance and saw Maggie, Shelby’s friend. The blonde wore tight jeans and a teal blue tank top that showed off toned shoulders and tanned arms. She was sexy, if a guy leaned toward
cornflower blue eyes, a petite frame and
nice rack
. B
ut b
ehind her came his idea of the ideal woman.

Shelby Vanzant. Her hair had been pulled back in a ponytail. Gold hoops hung from her earlo
bes, and her eyes sparkled like the topaz jewelry he’d bought his mother for Christmas last year. She wore jeans and a casual tee-shirt and managed to outshine every woman in the place.

Maggie spotted him and waved. She and Shelby joined them, Shelby looking as guarded as he suddenly felt.

“Hey Shane. Mac.” She gave his friend a short nod.

“
Maggie
. Shelby.” Mac’s voice warmed.

Shane whipped back around. “You know Shelby?”

“You know Mac?” Shelby asked him, standing in front of their table with her friend.

“He’s a friend of mine.”

“His best friend,” Mac added.
To Shane he explained,
“Shelby’s been working on my knee. She’s got great hands.”

His suggestive leer didn’t seem to sit well with Maggie. Or with Shane.

Maggie cut in, “There’s a line outside. Could we join you two for dinner?”

Shane didn’t think that
was
a good idea.
T
hey’d agreed to kee
p their relationship private. But after seeing Mac with her, he
didn’t mind if everyone knew
about them. He would have said something then if he hadn’t thought he might lose Shelby because of it. He didn’t intend to do anything to screw up his chances with the woman if he could help it.

“Sure.” Mac scooted toward the wall and Maggie sat next to him, leaving Shelby standing by herself.

With a helpless shrug, sh
e joined Shane
. W
hen her l
eg touched his, the lower half of his body
roared to
life
.

“You two been here before?” he asked, his concentration on Maggie, though he couldn’t help noticing Mac’s satisfied smile. The bastard was definitely up to something. Seeing Shelby without telling him? This unexpected invitation to a Friday night dinner that didn’t include pizza?

“Nope. First time.” Maggie
blinked, all innocence
.

Mac
couldn’t seem to take his gaze from her
.

“You know Maggie works for Mac,” Shelby added.

“Oh?” He turned to Mac. “Funny, you never mentioned you’d hired a new employee.”

“Yeah? Well you haven’t mentioned a few things to me either. Guess we’ll call it even.”

Hell. Mac had hired Shelby’s best friend, and he was now one of her clients. Either his best friend had a thing for Shelby, or he was out to try to help Shane. Which meant
there was a good chance the oaf might sabotage his relationship before it got off the ground.
Shit.

“Oh no. I forgot to lock up at the gym.” Maggie turned to Mac, her eyes wide.
“I left all that expensive equipment out.”

Shane had no clue what she was talking about, but Mac swore. “Come on.” He prodded her out of the booth.
“You two enjoy dinner, on me. Maggie and I have to fix a problem at the gym.”

Maggie fr
owned at Shelby. “But she’s my ride.”

“I’ll take you home. Shane
, hitch a ride
with Shelby. Later, guys.”

Mac and Maggie left before Shane or Shelby could protest.

They sat next to each other for a moment before Shelby moved across
the table
. “Good. I can see you now.”

“What the hell was that all about?”

She shook her head. “I have no idea, but Maggie dragged me here. I was planning on spending tonight curled up with a good book.”

“A romance?”

She smiled. “
What else?
”

He
knew what she liked to read, because they’d talked about her likes and dislikes. He
remembered everything about her.

“
Technically it’s a romantic suspense. Romance with mystery
.” She tapped the table. “Like the mystery of our friends working on something we should probably know about. I had no idea Mac was your friend.”

“Don’t you remember me telling you about Jameson’s Gym?”

She snapped. “That’s where I heard that name. Maggie had me convinced she’d mentioned it.” Shelby
groaned
. “They’re onto us.”

“They have to be,” he agreed.

The waiter brought out their food. Well, his and Mac’s.

“Oh, steak.” Shelby
winked
at him. “My favorite.”

“Dig in. Mac’s paying.” They both
had a laugh and started eating
.

“So what do we do about Mac and Maggie?” he asked. “He never told me your best friend was working for him. Or that he’d met you.” And that last bit bothered him.

“Maggie dragged me to her aerobics class at his gym
last Friday
. She’s really good
, if you’re into the step routine
.
I met Mac there. He’s a funny guy.
A little too pushy for my taste, but
nice
enough
.”

“Nice?”
Nice
was the kiss of death. He
suddenly
felt much better.

“Well, he’s handsome too,
i
f you’re into
brawny
guys with too much muscle.” She paused. “I mean that in the nicest way.”

Another nice. His grin widened.
“You know, you can order anything you want tonight. It’s on Mac.” He motioned to the waiter for another beer.

“He’s
a
good friend
of yours
, isn’t he?”

“Yep. Best buddy for years. We met in the Corps and reconnected out here. He’s a hell of a guy. Rough on the outside, but a decent man. And he likes the ladies,” he warned.

She raised a brow. “Jealous?”

“Of him or you?”

“Huh?”