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“Thank you.” He was studying her, looking casual and relaxed. “Round two. I admire your drive. You know what you want, and you fearlessly go for it.”
She smiled. That was a trait she was proud of, and she had thought they were opposites in that. She’d been wrong. He had integrity and strength, and he would push through any obstacle to protect those he cared about. “I’m impressed by your laidback attitude. I used to be frustrated with it. Now that I’ve met some of your family, I understand better why you chose to appear that way on the surface. They’re intense.”
“That’s a nice way of putting it, but, yeah, being chill’s my defense against them. I…I never want to be seen to take anything too seriously after some things that happened when I was a kid—but that’s a story for another day.”
Her heart went out to him. “Anyway. I like that you’re your own person despite their attempts to mold you into something else.”
“What’s next?” he asked. “I mean, I’ve got more compliments if you want them, but I’d like to see what else this entails.”
She consulted the booklet. “Step two: discuss something your partner does that turns you on. That’s easy.” She hesitated only a second before continuing. “Shirtless push-ups.”
“Yeah?” He was grinning.
“Definitely. I might also add coming out of the bathroom wearing only a towel.”
“I’m sensing a theme.” His hands went to the buttons of his shirt that she’d toyed with in the closet. “Should I take this off?”
“Not here.” She glanced around, but the staff had set up the room so that from her perspective on the floor she couldn’t see any of the other couples. “Is there anything about me…?”
“I get into watching you when you work,” he said. “You chew on the end of your pencil, twist your hair up into a ponytail and take it down again five minutes later, and you tap your fingers on the edge of the table.”
“Those sound more like annoying habits than things that would turn anyone on.” She couldn’t deny what he said. She did all of those things, sometimes without conscious thought when she was deep into her work. She’d always been a little embarrassed to have anyone catch her doing them. Her tics had seemed silly to her, not sexy.
“Not annoying, appealing. You’ve got a sexy walk, too. I like watching you come and go. I’ve been doing that since we first met.”
“Oh,” she felt a blush rising. “I thought you didn’t like me.”
He sat up then, bringing him closer to her. “If I wasn’t into you, would I have kissed you at that party?”
He had a point. He’d claimed to be drunk, but he’d since confessed that he hadn’t been. What might have happened between them if they’d both reacted differently to that kiss? She suddenly wished she knew. “Okay,” she said, “moving on. Step three…” She sucked in a breath when she turned the page.
“What is it?” He leaned over her shoulder to read and gave a low chuckle that went straight through her. “We’re supposed to share a sexual fantasy. That could be fun. Let me see. Like most men I’d like a weekend in a hotel room with a couple of super-hot chicks.”
She smacked his arm. “Cliché. But I can play that game, too. I want to be swept off my feet and taken by private jet to Paris by a handsome billionaire. I’ll be swimming in red roses and champagne.”
“Where’s the sex?” he asked.
“On the plane, of course, and at some posh hotel in Paris.”
“I thought you’d be more of a Monte Carlo kind of woman. More drama and risk there.”
She shrugged. “If that’s where the jet takes us, I’ll adapt.”
He laughed at that. “I’m sure you would. Out of ideas yet or are you ready for a second round?”
“I’ve got more,” she said. “I want to have smoking hot, fast sex in an elevator.”
“On the way to the penthouse suite?”
“Of course. I’ve got it all planned out. The man will be a stranger. Someone I meet in a bar or at a party. I’ll be wearing sky high heels and something slinky and short. You know, the kind of dress that just covers my ass. He’ll invite me up for a drink, in the elevator that only goes to his floor. Once we’re alone, he’ll push me against the wall, and you can imagine the rest…”
She’d actually had that fantasy. In the past, the man had been faceless. He wasn’t anymore. Owen was now her partner.
“I’m not sure I do know the rest. How about some details?” he coaxed her.
“Use your imagination. Your turn.” She could come up with those details easily enough, but she was already getting turned on, and she wanted to hear what he had to say.
“I’m at a party or a bar and see a beautiful woman wearing a body-hugging dress across the room.”
