Amber detoured to the kitchen for a big glass of wine. She paused before putting the bottle back in the fridge, shrugged, and carried it into the bathroom too, along with a magazine. The hot water felt delicious as she submerged herself in it. She added a big dump of scented bath salts, the expensive ones that she carefully rationed out, then swished the water around to dissolve them. The scent of ylang ylang rose on the steam surrounding her.
The heat gradually seeped into her body, thawing her frozen feet. She let out another tension-relieving sigh. It had been a crap day. Now she had no car and no job prospect. And she hadn’t seen Duncan in days.
Which really should be the least of her worries. She rolled her eyes at her ridiculous girlish thoughts.
She sipped wine and flipped through the magazine. How sex helps menstrual cramps.
Huh. That might be good to know. She didn’t have horrible cramps, but still, they weren’t fun. She skimmed through the article. Endorphins…made sense.
She paged through advertisements to an article about sex positions. Athletic sex positions. Heh. That definitely made her think of Duncan. She squinted at one picture. Was that even physically possible?
She sipped more wine.
She lounged there for a long time. She heard Easton come home. A while later, he banged on the door. “What are you doing in there?”
“Having a bath.”
“Oh. Okay.”
She finished her magazine and tossed it to the floor. Leaning her head back, she tipped the last of the second glass of wine into her mouth. She heard the security buzzer and the door opening and closing, then male voices. Probably Jamie.
It was so nice that Easton had someone. Jamie seemed like a good guy, and damn, he was hot.
Not as hot as Duncan.
Why did her thoughts keep coming back to him?
Another knock rattled the door. “Hey, gorgeous. Did you drown in there?”
She sat bolt upright, water sloshing around her. “Duncan?”
“Yeah.” Duncan’s muffled voice came through the door. “So you’re alive.”
“I’m alive.” She blinked.
“I don’t need to break the door down and rescue you?”
“Um, it’s not locked.”
A pause. “Is that an invitation?”
“No!” Her eyes flew wide open.
He laughed. “Kidding. I came to see how your interview went and if you want to go out for dinner or something.”
Ugh. The interview.
But that unhappy memory passed in seconds as her heart gave a little kick of happiness at seeing him again. “Dinner. Sure. I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Okay. I’ll just hang with Easton here.”
A smile tugged at her lips. “Okay.”
Amber climbed out and dried off. She felt unaccountably edgy and indecisive. She stared at the open cupboard. Should she put on her ylang ylang body lotion? She didn’t want to keep Duncan waiting. She quickly rubbed on scented lotion, dragged her hair out from the topknot she’d piled it in, and ran a brush through it. Then, in her robe, she opened the door and slipped down the hall to her bedroom.
Dinner. Okay. More uncertainty, standing in front of her closet. Jeans. A sweater. She pulled out a soft blue sweater. She selected her nicest bra and panties, white lacy ones, and was soon dressed. She rushed through putting on some eye shadow and mascara, aware of Duncan waiting for her.
When she entered the living room, Duncan and Easton were sitting drinking beer and laughing about something. That was…cool.
“Hey, you’re ready.” Duncan rose, his height and broad shoulders filling the space. “That was quick. You look great.”
“Thanks.”
He moved closer to her and kissed her cheek. Her heart softened. He was so big and yet so gentle and easygoing. Off the ice. But she’d been startled to see how intense and aggressive he could be on the ice, battling guys for the puck, slamming them into the boards. But she’d also seen his caring side too, when his teammate had been knocked brutally to the ice and he’d skated straight to him and helped him.
“Feel like I haven’t seen you in a year,” he murmured. “Wanna do more than kiss your cheek.”
She smiled up at him. “Like buy me dinner?”
His slow grin made her lower belly flutter. “Yeah. That too.”
They stood smiling at each other until Easton clapped his hands. “Okay, kids! Go for dinner or get a room.”
Amber gave him a reproving look, but she was smiling. Her crappy day felt so much better now. She looped a big scarf around her neck and pulled on her black wool jacket. “See you later, Easton.” In the elevator, she turned to Duncan to ask where they were going, but he grabbed her and wrapped her up in a huge hug, pulling her against him. His mouth found hers and pressed a long, hard kiss on hers. She gripped his shoulders, then relaxed into his arms and opened her mouth to him. His tongue licked inside and stroked hers, and heat flowed through her body, pooling low in her belly. Her heart beat fast and her breathing was choppy when the elevator doors slid open on the main floor and he pulled back.
“Wow,” she said.
He released her, but not totally, taking one of her hands in his to walk her across the lobby. “Yeah. That’s what I’m talking about.”
She smiled. “So where are we going for dinner?”
“Fernando’s.”
“Never heard of it.”
“Another little place that’s a favorite of mine.”