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“My back hurts from being on my feet for so long.”
“Press your thumbs into the quadratus lumborum muscle. It relieves some of the pressure.”
“The what?”
Without thinking, I reached to her back, pressing three fingers in the muscle in question. Val straightened, then leaned into my touch.
“Just here.”
After I took my hand away, she pressed her thumbs at either side of the spine.
“Ah, that’s so good.... Where did you learn about this?”
“From my fitness instructor.”
“Figures,” she mumbled, more to herself.
“Figures what?”
“That you like to work out.” She pointed at my chest, then promptly dropped her hand, as if just realizing what she’d done.
I smiled lazily. “Oh, yeah? You like... the package, Val?”
“I’m trying to decide if my honesty will go to your head.”
I laughed, and Val playfully slapped my shoulder.
“Well, you probably own a mirror, and you see what I see, so there’s no reason for me to be dishonest.”
Despite knowing it wasn’t the smartest thing, I leaned closer.
“I want to hear you say it, Valentina.”
She narrowed her eyes, as if weighing the pros and cons.
“No, I don’t think I will. Too much self-confidence is as bad as no confidence. It’s what my dad used to say. He was Irish and tried to pass all sorts of weird sayings as old Irish proverbs, but my friend Google disagrees. I think Dad just made them up. But I like them.”
She relaxed—until I moved even closer. “Don’t think I’m letting you off the hook about the other thing.”
Val licked her lips, then shrugged one shoulder playfully. “Suit yourself. I can’t be pressured.”
I wiggled my eyebrows. “No, but I bet you can be... persuaded.”
“By you?”
“Obviously.”
“Mmmm... I don’t think so, Mr. Sloane. You lack the proper persuasion tools.”
That was a sweet challenge.
“And what might those be?”
“Think I’m gonna make it easy for you?”
“Give me a hint.”
Val spoke the next words with utmost seriousness. “Well, bribery works better than persuasion, if I’m honest. If my sisters are to be believed, I can be talked into crazy things whenever there is ice cream involved. I, on the other hand, can convince them to do crazy things with my famous cheesecake.”
