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She laughed and felt herself relax a little. It felt good that he would joke with her. In the past, guys seemed to have only one thing on their mind. They didn’t seem to notice that she was a fellow human being; they weren’t interested in talking or laughing, only in getting between her legs.
“No, it doesn’t.” She ran her hands up over the back of his head. He didn’t have enough hair there to tangle in her fingers, but she loved the way he shivered when she stroked him there.
“Good. Now, we need to decide whether you want to go straight back to the lodge, or if you’d be more comfortable if we hung out for a while first.”
“Wow!”
“What?”
“I’m just surprised, I guess. You keep giving me the opportunity to back out.”
He leaned down until his forehead was resting against hers and looked into her eyes. “Believe me, I don’t want you to back out. But even more than that, I don’t want you to do anything you’re not comfortable with.” The way he smiled made him seem incredibly confident, and even more sexy when he added, “I don’t want you to back out, and I have to tell you that I don’t think you’ll regret it if we do.”
“Oh my word!” She shook her head with a smile. “Don’t you have a high opinion of yourself?”
He chuckled. “I don’t think it’s a high opinion, just accurate.”
The look in his eyes sent a shiver down her spine and made all the muscles in her stomach and lower tighten when he added, “You can let me know in the morning how accurate you think it is.”
He took hold of her hand and started walking them down towards the water’s edge. “But I wasn’t joking when I said that I don’t make a habit of doing this.”
She had to ask. “Why now, then? Why me?”
He turned to her as they walked, and the heat in his gaze set the butterflies swirling in her stomach. “I think why you is obvious; you’re …” He let his gaze travel over her, and she felt her body respond as if he were touching her with his hands instead. “You’re gorgeous. I think that no matter when I’d seenyou, I would’ve had to pursue you. As for why now …” He shrugged. “I guess there have been some changes in my life recently that have made me more open to … To being with someone.”
It was strange, but the way he phrased it –being with someone- made it sound more like he was talking about a relationship than a hookup. But that was probably just her. No way was she going to start thinking that he might want to share anything more with her than one night. Even if he did, she wasn’t looking for anything either. She had too much else going on in her life.
“What kind of changes?” She had to ask. It didn’t matter, it shouldn’t, but she didn’t like the idea that he might’ve just broken up with someone and just be using her as a … Well, whatever it might be, it really didn’t matter. See? Shesodidn’t have the hang of this hooking up thing, but she knew full well that it wasn’t supposed to be about so much thinking and feeling, only about physical pleasure. That was probably why she didn’t do it. She’d had boyfriends in the past, but to her, sex was part of the whole package of connecting with someone. She pulled herself together as they walked and had to stop herself from laughing at the thought that if she did connect with Lee tonight, it would only be with his package!
She looked up at him as she realized that he still hadn’t answered her question. Maybe he was just getting over a breakup and …
He curled his arm around her shoulders as they walked. “Just work stuff. I got a big promotion recently, and … Well, I suppose you could say that I now have more of a free rein in my career – and my life – than I’ve had before.”
Alyssa nodded. She wasn’t sure that what he said even made sense. But whether he was being truthful about the changes in his life only involving his work, or whether he was hiding something more personal, it really shouldn’t matter to her.
Chapter Three
“How about you?” Bentley asked as they walked down by the water’s edge. “What do you do?”
The way she laughed told him that whatever she did, she wasn’t thrilled about it. “You might want to change your mind about me when I tell you.”
He raised his eyebrows and smiled through pursed lips. “Wait, you’re not going to tell me that you’re a stripper, are you?”
She looked so shocked that he had to take her face between his hands and kiss her even as he laughed.
“Come on, Lizzie; you have to know that I’m only joking.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “You had me worried for a minute there.”
“Well, if you’re not a stripper, what else do you do that you think might put me off you?”
She smiled up at him; damn, she was gorgeous.
“I was thinking that you’d be put off because I’m so boring, not because I’m so …” She laughed. “I don’t even know what to call it. I’m probably about as far as you can get from a stripper.” She met his gaze, and he could see the hesitation in her eyes. “I’m an accountant.”
For some reason, that made him smile. He hadn’t known what to expect, but her answer made him happy – though why, he had no idea.
She made a face at him. “I know, it’s about as boring as it gets. There’s no need to laugh at me.”
