Run for Covers

To his relief, though, as soon as he lay down and pulled a towel over him, the effect of his recent sleepless nights began to take effect. Drowsiness edged out visions of the attractive redhead he didn’t want to think about.

He must have dozed because he had no idea how much time had passed before Sandra’s voice intruded.

“I’m so sorry I took so long. Just go back to sleep. We’re fine on time.” Her fingers, slick and warm with oil, sank into the tight muscles of his neck and shoulders.

He grunted, too sleepy to open his eyes, and Sandra must have recognized his pitiful condition because she took mercy on him. Instead of her usual deep muscle massage, she worked him over with a gentle kneading that let sleep crowd his brain.

He dropped off again to the steady glide of her hands on his skin. Long pleasant moments of unconsciousness when he was aware of nothing but her strokes easing the tension from along his spine, his lower back, his butt, his thighs. Yet pImages** of red waves spilling over creamy curves lingered in his mind, creeping in when his guard went down.

This drugged half sleep presented the perfect opportunity for Tori Ford to accomplish her objective—forcing him to give in to their potent chemistry. He was aware of her in a way he’d never been aware of any woman before. Not even his ex-fiancée. Tori had a power over him that he didn’t understand as he lay here with visions of her heightening his senses, memories of her flashing gaze and quick smiles.

He found a much-needed distraction when Sandra paused to pour more oil. She warmed it in her palms before pulling her hands down his thighs in long strokes. Her light touch affected him in a way her more aggressive massages never did, and thoughts of another woman’s hands lingered in his drowsy imagination. Forbidden thoughts about how her hands would feel on him. And all he had to do was stop resisting to find out if the reality would come close to the fantasy.

Adam guessed it would, which is why that stubborn voice reminded him to resist. Giving into that bold redhead would be playing with fire. Tori Ford was far from the solid, focused type of woman who respected what it took to successfully mix business with pleasure. And that was the kind of woman he wanted in his life, one with common goals and interests, not some fly-by-night wild child who wanted fun to be the be-all and end-all of her existence.

His ex-fiancée had already shown him that even a woman who seemed perfect might not be. Adam would be a lot more cautious the next time around.

And what was going on with his feet? He couldn’t ever remember Sandra paying such careful attention to that part of his body before. Not that he was complaining. Not when she rolled his foot in slow circles, massaged his insteps and worked each toe for so long that warmth radiated up his leg….

Adam must have dozed again because when he awoke, she’d returned to his thighs, and damned if she hadn’t awakened another part of his body, too. Those steady strokes rerouted his blood flow to a region that had no business waking up right now.

With a mild sense of disbelief, he willed away the sensation. He’d locked onto Sandra’s services not long after his arrival in town and had been directly responsible for getting her the position as head massage therapist in the Wedding Wing’s new spa. Not once in all the months she’d been providing her services had Adam ever become aroused.

But there it was, a familiar—and unwelcome—feeling rushing to his crotch, a precursor to an erection. Good thing he was lying on his stomach or he’d have been royally embarrassed.

This was Tori Ford’s fault. If not for her relentless pursuit, he wouldn’t have had sex on the brain when his defenses were down. And he didn’t stand a chance of containing his arousal when slick fingers dipped between his thighs, a light touch that somehow teased and tempted.

It had been way too long since he’d had sex.

Exhaling heavily, he gave in to the inevitable and forced open his eyes. “Let’s cut this short today, Sandra.”

When she didn’t reply or even slow down, Adam got his first clue that something wasn’t right.

“Sandra?”

Still no reply, just that constant kneading into places more intimate than she’d ever gone before. And that was when he realized something else his drugged brain hadn’t caught before.

Her hands were smaller, which explained the lightweight massage.

For someone who’d been lulled into a near coma, Adam’s reflexes were dead-on when he twisted around to grab a slender wrist…and found himself facing a redheaded troublemaker.

“Having fun back there, Ms. Ford?” he asked, sounding a lot more in control than he felt.

With an iron grip on her wrist, he forced her to stop those teasing strokes and dragged her around to face him.

Not even the dim lighting concealed the flash of challenge in her eyes. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I was.” She gave a tug to break his grip, but he didn’t let go. “You’ve got nice biscuits. I’m in trouble now. You’re going to haunt my dreams.”

“I’m the one in trouble.”

Her smile widened. “Why don’t you just let go, Adam. You’re attracted to me and I’m attracted to you. We can have a good time together.”

“You’re a guest in my hotel.”

Impulse demanded he get off this table and out of reach, but he swung around and sat up instead. His nakedness was her problem, not his. And as she’d been the one massaging him to near arousal…she could deal with the sight of that, too.

But Tori was ready for him. Starting her gaze at his feet, she worked her way up his body. The gleam in those midnight eyes grew brighter along the way.

“What part of ‘no’ don’t you understand?” he asked.

“The part about why you’re using the word. You seem to be enjoying yourself.” She gazed pointedly at his crotch. “I want to understand why you stopped me.”

“You mean aside from the fact that I thought you were my usual massage therapist having a very unusual effect on me?”

She nodded. “Am I moving too fast, Adam? Will it help if I slow down?”

“I don’t mix business with pleasure, Ms. Ford.”

She pursed her lips in a pouty expression that dragged his gaze from her flashing eyes to that delightful mouth. The urge to drag her into his arms and kiss those lips was so strong that only stubbornness saved him.

“What do you do for pleasure, Adam?”

He wondered what had prompted the change in tactics, but he wouldn’t buy into her game. He’d already delineated the boundaries and wouldn’t back down now just because his crotch throbbed and he wanted her to ease the ache she’d created.

She stood barely a foot away, and he noticed for the first time she wore sweatpants and a ribbed T-shirt that clung to her curves, leaving nothing to the imagination. She’d pulled her hair back in a ponytail, giving him a clean shot of her face.