She broke the kiss and tugged at the hem of his shirt. "This needs to come off."
"You're bossy."
She shoved it up. "You have no idea." He ducked and let her drag the fabric over his head, and she dropped it on the deck. "Wow." Flattening both hands on his chest, she sighed. "Okay. That's just rude."
"Excuse me?"
She traced her fingers across his abs. "I know you had your shirt off earlier, but I guess the gator distracted me more than I realized. But damn… work out much?"
"I jog."
"You do more than that."
"Maybe I lift a little."
"You can lift me anytime you want." He’d appreciated her humor, but right now, her chattiness turned out to be a welcome surprise. He’d never liked intimate moments to be filled with silence. Not only was it boring, it made him nervous.
"I'll add bench press Juniper to my regimen." Holding her gaze, he tugged at the bottom of her shirt. "It's only fair."
She raised her arms and he flung the fabric across the deck, leaving her in a black lace bra.
"You're staring," she said.
"Appreciating. There's a difference," he said. "And looking to see if the clasp is in the front, which would make this easier."
A mosquito the size of a paperclip landed on his shoulder and bit down like it wanted more than his blood. He smacked it, and she burst out laughing.
"We’d better take this inside," he said. "Otherwise, we'll be slapping each other and not in a good way."
"That might be fun."
"For you, maybe." He lifted her off the lounge chair. "You'd be smacking me left and right. And even though I'd want to save you from those monsters, my gentlemanly upbringing wouldn't allow me to strike you."
"Not even if it was on my ass, and I was begging?" She rested her hands on his shoulders and smiled like she was daring him.
"I can't believe you just said that." He walked her backward through the slider, pressing his mouth to hers in a hot, wild, kiss.
She caught her elbow on the frame and yelped.
"Shit, sorry." He twisted and clipped his hip on the corner of the counter. "Fuck."
She moved around him, patting his shoulder as he grabbed his side. "You good, Aegis Network Operator Fox?"
"Flesh wound," he mumbled.
"You lost a fight with a countertop."
"Strategic sacrifice." He caught her hand. "Come here, bedroom's this way."
Unable to remember the last time he’d had this much fun, he pulled her down the hall. Hell, sex, while always “fun”, hadn't been ever full of banter. At least, not this kind, and he liked it.
He liked Juniper.
"Impressive." She paused two steps inside his room. "You decorate this place yourself?"
She strolled across the room and ran her fingers over the foot of the king size bed.
"I wouldn't call it decorated."
