Maddie laughed. “You and Wyatt play catch? What are you, twelve?”
Her jab didn’t seem to faze him. In fact, nothing fazed this man. She’d figured that out from the moment he’d showed up in Paradise three years ago, around the same time she’d come home from college. They’d both started working for Owen at the same time too, though as they stood there in his living room, she realized this was the first time they’d ever been truly alone.
“How ’bout we quit the chitchat and just get on with it?” he suggested in that lazy drawl of his. “Take off your clothes.”
Her cheeks flamed. “What? Now?”
“Now’s as good a time as any.”
Good point. She really hadn’t come here for small talk, had she? But now that she and Cooper were alone, in close quarters, she was wondering if maybe she’d made a mistake. Could she really sleep with him? This was bound to be crazy awkward and—awkward is the problem, a little voice reminded her.
Ah well. She’d already gone this far, propositioning the guy. Might as well see it through. The impulse to plow ahead was a familiar one—she never backed down from a challenge, ever. It drove her older brothers mad how easily she was willing to take chances. Skydiving when she was nineteen, bungee jumping on that family trip to the Grand Canyon when she was twenty. She’d always been a daredevil, even as a kid, though it was kind of funny that the only time she didn’t have buckets of courage was when she was in the company of men. Sure, she could hold her own as one of the guys, but not when it came to flirting or seduction. She was always Maddie the buddy, never Maddie the temptress.
Taking a deep breath, she reached for the little zipper at the side of her dress and tugged it down. She dropped the spaghetti straps off her shoulders then began to wiggle out of her dress.
Rolling his eyes, Cooper held up a hand. “Slower. You’ve got to create some anticipation.”
She tightened her lips. “Seriously? You want me to do a striptease? That’s so sleazy!”
A low laugh rumbled out of his chest. “It’s sexy,” he corrected. “You want to know how to turn a man on? Well, I’m telling you. And if you’re going to complain about it, then the lesson’s over, darlin’.”
He had a point. Relaxing her mouth, she touched the straps of her dress again, but this time she toyed with them, sliding them down a fraction of an inch.
“There you go.” Cooper’s gruff voice held a note of encouragement.
Moistening her dry lips, she pushed her bodice lower, the straps hanging down, the top of the dress revealing only a hint of her black lace bra. She met Cooper’s eyes, floored by the sudden glimmer of lust she saw in them. Oh. Maybe the slow and sexy thing did work. Feeling emboldened by his reaction, she let the dress fall lower, so that her bra cups were exposed.
He hitched a breath. “Lord, those are big.”
For once in her life, she found herself grateful for the size of her chest. The appreciation on Cooper’s face spurred her confidence. Locking her gaze with his, she slowly peeled the dress off, hesitating as it snagged on her hips, then letting the material drop. It pooled in a silky puddle at her feet and she kicked it away with the toe of one black flat. She suddenly wished she’d worn heels. From the cinematic stripteases she remembered, women always wore heels with their lingerie, right?
Well, too late for heels, but the lacy lingerie seemed to be doing the trick. When Maddie glanced at Cooper’s groin, she saw the definite bulge beneath his faded blue jeans. “It’s up,” she murmured.
“Sure is.” His black eyes focused on her chest. “Take the bra off, darlin’.”
She obliged him. The cool air met her bare breasts, instantly making her nipples go rigid. On a whim, she cupped her breasts, pushing them together as her thumbs toyed with her puckered nipples. “You like?” she asked, feeling somewhat awkward.
His gaze heated. “Fuck yes. Now get rid of the panties.”
“Yes, sir.”
A moment later, she stood before him fully naked, and as he stared with unabashed lust at her body, she felt a jolt of discomfort. This was Cooper! Why was she letting him see her naked? And yet, along with the apprehension came a rush of liquid desire between her legs. God, she was turned on.
“Now come here and take my clothes off,” he ordered, his tone low and almost lethal.
As her heart pounded, she moved toward him and gripped the hem of his black T-shirt. Her fingers trembled as she bunched up the material.
“Touch my chest when you’re lifting the shirt up,” he said in a husky voice. “Scrape your nails over my skin.”
She did as he asked, and was rewarded by another sharp intake of breath. Without his shirt, Cooper looked even sexier and more feral than usual. His chest was perfectly sculpted, his skin tanned and smooth, and there was a nasty-looking scar right above one hip. She traced it with her finger, meeting his eyes. “Where’d you get that?”