He hadn’t said anything.
She undressed quickly. First one boot and then the other kicked off in opposite directions. Then she was unsnapping her jeans. He watched her hand slide her zipper down as if she were reenacting his favorite wet dream. The glide of denim over her hips had him drawing in breath through his open mouth. He must be dreaming. It couldn’t be happening this fast, this easy. Her jeans slipped down legs that were slim and smooth yet well muscled enough to pass the physical endurance required in the police academy. She stepped out, kicked them aside, and reached for the hem of her tee.
Scott licked his lips. Breathing no longer seemed to be a necessity.
Then she stood in only her bra and panties. He smiled. He’d been right. She still wore lacy little nothings. Pale blue scraps that hugged all his favorite parts of her.
She came forward slowly, a seductive invitation in her eyes. The heat was all his. He half expected steam to rise from his skin where the shower rained on him.
She ran a finger down his chest, streaming with water. “Like what you see, Sam?”
Sam? Who the hell— Oh yeah.
“I like.”
“It could get better.”
The hand he’d braced on the tile wall clenched as Scott struggled for air. Don’t touch. The two words were scrolling across his mind’s eye like a news alert. Somehow he knew if he touched her too soon he’d break the spell. But oh how he wanted to touch and hold and squeeze and stroke until he made her purr.
She stepped one foot over the rim into the shower. He moved back to give her space. Water splashed across her shoulders, soaking her hair and lacy bra as she joined him and closed the curtain behind her.
They were just inches apart. He could feel the heat rising off her skin while his own seemed to sizzle under the assault of the water’s warm cascade.
He glanced down. The telltale dark buds of her nipples had appeared and pushed against the damp lace of her bra. Definitely, a world-class dream. Only much, much better. She was here.
She lifted a hand and pressed it palm flat against the middle of his chest. “Did you miss me, Sam?”
“Uh-huh.” Geesh. Where was his brain? Oh yeah.
“It’s been a while.” She added her other hand to the first, brushing her palms in outward circles over his dark flat nipples.
He sucked in a breath as the flesh-on-flesh contact sent whatever remained of the blood flowing through his brain surging south to his groin. This was her game, for now. He was letting her take the lead but, damn, his balls felt about to burst and he hadn’t even touched her.
“You look good. No more Hulk.” She ran a finger around one of his nipples and smiled as it beaded up. “All this lean smooth muscle is very tempting. But you know that, don’t you?”
“Whatever you say, Noel.” He let out his breath when she smiled. He’d guessed right. She was trying to find a way into her alter ego. He liked this way just fine.
She moved in on him until they touched from chest to knee. She pressed a knee hard between his, wiggling it until he widened his stance. Her thigh slipped between his, nudging them farther apart until her hip pressed against his erection. Then she did a little hip wiggle that wrung an involuntary sound of lust out of him.
“Now that I’ve got your attention, I need to know that I can trust you, Sam.” She reached up and traced her finger across his damp lips. “Can I trust you?”
“With your life.”
She looked up into his face, her gaze narrowing as she assessed the truth of his reply.
He gazed back steadily at her, letting her in a little more than he was comfortable with doing. He owed her that. But only that. He still loved her but he had begun to realize he no longer had the right to burden her with it.
After a moment she tossed her head and smiled to herself, as if she had captured some secret he didn’t know he had given up.
She eased up off him and raked a hand down his chest. She took her time, letting her nails graze the shallow ridges of his ribs, tickle his belly, and finally lower until her fingers touched his cock.
“You like me to touch you?”
“I do.” Scott felt his blood scorching though his body. But this could be a really bad idea.
“Really bad.” Her whispered reply came as a shock. Had he spoken?
“Shut up, Sam.” She squeezed his erection, pumping it a little with her hand.
His laugh came out a bit strangled. “Question is, can I trust you?”
“I suppose we’ll find out. If you want to.”
“Hell yes.” He leaned forward and kissed her, his tongue slipping through to entangle with hers.