Seductive Reasoning (4 page)

Kate reached for a glass of water
sitting on a tray in the center of the coffee table. She bared her slender
throat as she sipped, then placed the glass back on the table. “I include love
poems because I don’t want my customers or this audience”--she gestured with
her hand--“to get the idea that my only interest in lingerie is to sell better
sex. I want them to realize that great sex is just a side benefit to having a
deeply satisfying and emotional relationship with someone you care about. For
me, love is as necessary to life as food and water. No one can exist without
it. And poetry adds an aura of romance.”

The audience applauded.

Seth shifted uncomfortably on the
sofa at Kate’s words. Love, romance, and sappy sentiments meant surrender, and
he had no time for that surrender crap. He’d rather channel his energy into
work, especially since he was so close to proving his theory. Time enough for
love and sex later.

“What do you think of her
statement, Dr. Fallon?”

Seth glanced at Kate. Her eyes
appeared guileless, but full of challenge. Lightly, she trailed her fingers
over the top of his hand in an absent-minded way as if she didn’t realize what
she was doing, but he knew differently. Why did he feel slightly more
suspicious?

He nearly shifted closer to feel
more of her touch, to have her caress him more fully. She winked because she
knew her teasing gesture went unnoticed by everyone, but him.

Heat curled in his belly and moved
lower. Seth shifted in his seat suddenly mortified he might have an erection on
television. Mark would never let him hear the end of it.

“I respectfully disagree.” Seth
smiled in an effort to dazzle Kate and the audience. Why not use his charm if
it helped him get his point across? “How could a person’s choice of clothing
have anything to do with their astrological sign? It’s scientifically not
logical. Studies have proven that people choose clothing because of their
personality type and influences from their parents and friends. I do agree with
Ms. Summers that humans require love and the touch of other human beings, but I
think homo sapiens do quite well without falling in love or having sexual relationships.”

Ms. Landers smiled. He didn’t like
the look of her smile either. His scalp itched. Was he being set up?

“Stay with us, audience and
television viewers. When we return, we’ll continue this discussion on astrology
and intimate relationships after this brief commercial break.”

A petite, red-haired woman rushed
the stage in a blue-caped blur and smoothed Ms. Lander’s straight blonde hair
back from her face with a brush. She then patted her nose with a powder puff
and retouched her lipstick.

After the woman left, Ms. Landers
turned to them. “You’re both doing great. Your on-air chemistry is amazing.”

Chemistry? The only chemistry Seth
considered important occurred in a laboratory. Everything happening here
resembled an explosion of conflicting personalities. What made him think this
show was a good idea?

A camera operator signaled Ms.
Landers that the commercial had ended. With another five-finger count down, a
red light flashed on the main camera.

“Welcome back to our show.” Ms.
Landers shifted her attention to Kate. “Would you care to respond to Dr.
Fallon’s statement that people can live without falling in love or having
intimate relationships? And how can your specially designed, astrologically
accurate lingerie aid us?”

Kate, the evil temptress, grasped
Seth’s hand and gave it one quick pat with a subtle rub over the pulse point in
his wrist before he jerked his hand away. He cut his gaze upward and she licked
her lips. What was she up to?

Seth swallowed. Hard. Hell,
everything went hard. Afraid to move, he hoped his students weren’t watching
this show.

Kate tilted her face toward him. “I
find it interesting that you think people can have productive and meaningful
lives without love and physical intimacy. Dr. Fallon, don’t you agree people
sometimes react out of character when a full moon occurs?”

The way she called him Dr. Fallon
eased under his skin and turned him on. “I don’t think the moon, whether full
or otherwise, affects people’s behavior.”

She raised her brows as if
surprised by his reply. “When captivated by these changes in the stars and
planets, I’ve known people to unleash their inhibitions under the moon’s
silvery light by skinny dipping in a lake with male and female friends.”

Laughter rippled through the
audience.

“When the moon is full, lovers come
together.” Kate looked at him like a teacher to a student. “The moon brings the
woman to her man. Moonlight, love, kisses and raw hot sex just goes together.”

Seth shook his head. “That’s
absurd. A full moon has nothing to do with sexual encounters. Basic human
nature causes humans to reproduce.”

Kate leaned toward him. The front
of her dress dipped, giving him a tantalizing view of the tops of her breasts.
The breath clogged in his lungs.

“I agree.” Ms. Lander’s voice drew
his attention away from Kate’s breasts. “Humanity’s baser instincts are
definitely--”

Kate covered the tiny microphone
pinned to her dress with her hand. “When was the last time you had a sexual
encounter?” Kate’s silky voice dropped low enough for only him to hear.

Seth covered his microphone as well
and leaned slightly toward her. “What about you, Ms. Summers?”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“Speak up, you two, so we can all
share in the conversation,” Ms. Landers said.

“Let me put it this way,” Seth’s
voice sounded soft. “Any encounters sexual or otherwise that I may have had
recently were not connected to astrology or the presence of a full moon.”

Kate cocked her brow and gave Seth
a little nod as if to say touché. “Okay. As I was saying to Dr. Fallon, I think
a woman needs to use all the tools available to satisfy her sexual needs and
the needs of her man, whether it’s astrology, lingerie, sex toys or whatever.”

“Sex toys?” Ms. Lander’s voice
lifted in excitement. “Please tell us more.”

Kate threw Seth a secretive smile.

Damn, what happened to the
scientific discussion? Seth suddenly felt adrift without a pair of oars, a fish
out of the proverbial water. He came here tonight to discuss astronomy, not sex
toys. Astronomy he knew. He had no clue about sex toys.

He searched for an exit sign, an
escape route. What the hell kind of show was this anyway? He had thought this
was one of those safe House and Garden type shows!

“At Star Dust and Sexy Nights, I
have a variety of discerning catalogues of sexual devices a woman can use with
her man, not only for her own physical pleasure, but for his as well.”

“Please explain.” Ms. Landers
gestured with her hand.

Appalled at the question, Seth
didn’t want Kate to explain, but he knew without a doubt there would be no
stopping her. “I think we should get back to the subject of astronomy after
all--”

“There are a variety of choices, if
you will, of different sizes and colors.” Kate laid her hand on Seth’s thigh
and threw him a look challenging him to remove her hand. “A couple makes a
selection depending on their mood and their level of trust and emotional
intimacy.”

Oh, God. He imagined Mark and his
date sitting in front of the tube, watching him squirm. Not to mention his
students. A hot blush grew over his face, part embarrassment, and part anger.
I’m
an astronomy professor, not Dr. Ruth!

Damn it! He admitted freely Kate
attracted him like no other woman, but tonight proved she didn’t fit into his
world. The woman spun way out of control. Hell, so did he.

“What do you think, professor?”

Ms. Lander’s voice jolted Seth from
his thoughts. He cleared his throat and tried to muster the remainder of his
dignity. “I thought we were here to discuss the science of astronomy. Not the
theories of lingerie and sexual devices.”

Kate touched his hand. “Oh, but all
three go together.”

Ms. Landers leaned forward, a
little too eagerly in Seth’s opinion, like a shark circling for the kill. “What
do you mean?”

Kate inhaled a deep breath, and
Seth couldn’t help but notice how the front of her dress outlined her breasts
right down to their perky tips.

His gaze skimmed down her legs and
back up again to the generous view of thigh she presented to him and the
audience. Christ, the hem of her dress barely covered her fanny. Was she
wearing underwear?

“Professor, where a person’s ruling
planet is at a particular moment affects how they feel about themselves and how
they react to situations or events. For instance, the professor is a Virgo.”

They’d never discussed anything
personal. “How do you know?” He made a desperate attempt to resist the
captivating smile spread over her pretty mouth.

“Piece of cake, professor. For one
thing, you’re a teacher. You also conceal your emotions or at least try to. You
have an eye for detail and you’re analytical.”

Damn, she’d pegged him well. Not
that he would ever let her know.

“You remember the passions and
sexual drive of your youth, but your zeal has yet to be fully awakened. You
only sense the desires lying ahead. But these will be uncovered by Vulcan,
Virgo’s true ruler.”

Seth laughed and shook his head,
relaxed now because they were talking astronomy, his expertise, his world.
“Vulcan was the Roman God of Fire and metalworking. There is no Vulcan planet
or star out there.” He waved his hand through the air. “Much less one that would
have any influence whatsoever on my life or sex drive.”

Kate lifted her chin. “Vulcan has
yet to be discovered by astronomers, but I have no doubt it is out there ready
to shine its throbbing allure on you.”

“Ridiculous.” Seth cocked his head
in her direction. “What about you? What’s your sign?” He curved the second and
third fingers of his hands into mock quotations marks.

The audience tittered with
laughter.

“Yes, Ms. Summers what’s your
sign?” Ms. Landers smiled. “After all, turnabout is fair play.”

“I’m an Aries.” Kate’s voice rang
with pride. “Typically, they are adventurous, ambitious, and full of energy.
They are open to new ideas and they love freedom. In their personal
relationships, they don’t believe in holding back, either emotionally or physically.
They tend to have a high sex drive and make very passionate and loyal lovers,
but we are one-man women.”

Seth had the sudden urge to push
her buttons a little bit more. “You said typically. Do all of these things
apply to you?”

“Most of them. Yes.”

“Go on,” Ms. Landers replied.

“Well, as I said earlier, love and
sex are necessities in life. As my sign indicates, without them I wouldn’t be
happy.” She turned to Seth and hesitated. An expression of profound longing
filled her gaze and touched him deep inside. A longing for something missing
from her life.

He didn’t want to know all this. He
agreed to appear on this show for one thing and one thing only. And it wasn’t
Kate Summers.

“Is love and sex a necessary part
of your life?” Kate asked

His empathy quickly turned to
annoyance when the audience shouted and demanded he answer.

“Are you going to answer the
question, professor?” Ms. Landers raised her voice above the shouts from the
audience.

Seth wanted this show over with.
The audience chanted and he knew he had to answer. Well, hell, he loved his
family. He had affection for his friends, and he loved his work. Sex and
physical love weren’t essential to his happiness, but he wouldn’t tell her
that. “I derive most of my happiness from my work.”

“That’s sad.” Concern filled Kate’s
eyes.

Shock suffused him. “Sad? Why?”

“Because there are so many
pleasures to be found in physical and emotional love, pleasures that have
nothing to do with work or intelligence. That’s part of the reason I’m in the
lingerie business.”

“Are you opposed to the physical
world, professor?” Ms. Landers asked.

Seth shifted in his seat, thankful
Kate had inched away from him and his
physical world
was no longer
evident to the audience. “Of course not. I just don’t understand why society puts
so much emphasis on it. A person’s mind is what is most important. Not looks or
sex.”

“Don’t you ever just enjoy living
for the moment?” Kate turned to him with that isn’t-life-grand look in her
eyes. “Just experience the world or the woman with you--or even wrapped around
you? Or you may be inside her making love and finding a primal rhythm for just
the two of you. Don’t you ever just take pleasure in the fact you are a man
able to make love to a woman? Don’t you enjoy being male to her female?”

An image flashed in his mind of his
body wrapped around Kate, her mouth plastered to his, his hands stroking her--.
Get a grip, Fallon.
“If you take the time to look, study, and understand
life, there is more out there than just lingerie and sex. My particular field
of astronomy holds little or no relevance to how I interpret life around me.
Don’t you ever stop to examine your world, without the benefits of astrology,
rather than just be in the moment?”

Kate sighed. “I stop and smell the
roses. I appreciate them for their scent and their beauty. I don’t analyze why
they smell the way they do or why they are beautiful. Neither do I examine
people this way.”

Seth looked her dead in the eye.
“Maybe you should.”

Kate laughed, a light-hearted
rippling sound that made Seth want to reach out and touch her. “Getting
physical, touching, kissing and making love feels good. Lingerie is fun. It’s
also sexy and irresistible. Here, let me show you.”

Oh, God. She was going to put some
on!

Kate rose from her chair and walked
to the rack of clothing behind her. She lifted some kind of filmy scrap of
material and handed it to Seth.