Letting Loose!

Mara Fox

www.millsandboon.co.uk

I dedicate this book to Kate Schaefer, the strongest woman in my life—a mom who held it all together for her three kids, went to school at night, worked all day and still had time to make us feel as if we were the most important people in her world. She could do anything and she proved it whenever our lives got tough. When Lil Kate had cancer she never missed a surgery or a long day of chemotherapy—she fought for Lil Kate’s life by my side.

Mama—I can never give you what you’ve given me. But I can tell you how much you mean to me and how you inspire my writing.

I love you so much. This one’s for you.

Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Coming Next Month

Prologue

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN you aren’t going to have a traditional bachelorette party?” Tina Henderson wiped the perspiration from her neck and nearly bare breasts with a swipe from her towel. “I’ve got the most magnificent stripper in mind for the party. He’s called ‘The Bandit.’” She leaned forward and added in a stage whisper, “And he’s hung like a stallion.”

“I’m not going anywhere near some naked male stranger when I’m about to be married,” Emma Daniels protested vigorously.

“Okay, okay, fine, Emma—though it’s too bad since you’re going to be stuck with the same sex partner for the rest of your life.” Tina shuddered.

“Just think how good we’ll get at pleasing each other sexually,” Emma said with a confidence she hadn’t had months ago, before her cruise of self-discovery. During a little jaunt to the Bahamas, she’d discovered her sensual self with the help of a handsome boy toy. A man who had turned out to be not just a toy, but Mr. Right.

Except, Tina didn’t really believe there was a right guy…only the right guy for the moment. Mr. Right Now. “You were coming out of your shell so well, having fun, meeting people. When you fell in love you reverted back to your uptight self,” she complained.

“No, I committed. And it’s amazing.”

But Emma’s bold talk was spoiled when a man entered the coed sauna and she immediately adjusted her towel to cover her thong.

Sometimes, Emma still acted like the girl next door.

“This stripper’s amazing,” Tina coaxed. “You’ll regret it if you don’t have him at your party—” she winked “—or just have him.”

“Even you wouldn’t do that.”

Tina mopped some sweat off her arm. “Be careful. You know that I’ll do just about anything.” Her attention wandered when a man stripped down to a thong and displayed a rather stunning set of abs.

“Hello? Tina, are you paying attention? No stripper. In fact, I’m having a coed bachelorette party.”

“It’s rather inconvenient, you acquiring a backbone now, when I’ve got my heart set on The Bandit.”

“Your heart isn’t set on anything, only your libido.”

“That hurts.” She shrugged. “But it’s true. Take that man who just came into the sauna.”

“The one you’ve been drooling over?”

“Absolutely. My libido is definitely set on that guy.” Tina smiled, and then slowly uncrossed her legs and casually adjusted her thong.

“You may have to cut short your own little striptease. It appears his girlfriend has come to save him.”

“Damn.” Tina shrugged as the woman settled herself beside the man with a proprietary air.

“You are so naughty. What have you got against relationships, anyway?”

“Have you seen the divorce statistics? Divorce is what keeps us lawyers in four-hundred-dollar shoes.” She wriggled her manicured toes.

“Stop being so cynical. If half of all marriages fail, that means half of them last forever,” Emma insisted. “Look at how understanding Tony was about my fertility problem. We’re going to last forever, for sure.”

“I guess that’s the glass-is-half-full way to look at the divorce statistics. And Tony was pretty good about that. Of course, if he hadn’t been, I was prepared to do something drastic,” Tina teased. She actually liked it when Emma stood up to her. “But it’s safer and a whole lot cheaper if you just play the field.” Tina preened for the man whose gaze kept straying to her toned body, despite that he was spoken for.

“I know you’re cynical because of your job,” Emma said, waving off Tina’s immediate protest, “and because of being bounced around during your childhood. But you had enough faith to put yourself through school, and then make something of your life. Why is it so hard to believe in love?”

“I could love an unlimited supply of designer shoes, I think, although my attention span is woefully short.”

Emma just smiled that annoying I’m-your-best-friend-who-knows-you-better-than-you-know-your-self smile.

Tina wondered how a loner like herself had ever ended up with a best friend. Emma had sort of snuck up on her.

“How is Tyler? What kinda cases is he taking these days?” Emma said with another one of those stupid smiles.

“Criminal cases, I imagine, since that’s what he does.” Tina gave the ab man a teasing smile, and then shrugged so her erect nipples pressed against the thin material of her top. She didn’t have many inhibitions: where she’d grown up there had been no privacy, no room to herself, no real parents to look after her. She’d had to fight for anything she’d wanted, using her brain, and later her body, to her advantage.

“Stop that.”

“Stop what?”

Emma straightened up. “Stop flirting with someone else’s boyfriend. She’s going to attack you with those lethal-looking fingernails.”

“I’ll bet my manicure against her manicure any day.”

“You won’t be as pretty with bloody gouges on your face. Besides, there might be a weapon under that towel.”

“The only thing she’s hiding under there is cellulite. What does she expect? She should go work out. Why should I sweat at the gym, and then hide my body just to make her feel good?” Tina’s voice got a little shrill. Lately, she’d been going to the gym just to kill time, and to try to get rid of the lethargy dogging her evenings.

Emma held up a hand. “Shhh. What’s wrong with you? Since when do you have to poach? You usually only act like that when you’re pissed off, and since talking about Tyler seems to piss you off, I think you might consider the ramifications, counselor.”

“Ramifications?” Tina rubbed her index finger and her middle finger together, a nervous habit she hated. She never thought about Tyler. He’d overstepped her careful boundaries, for which he’d been banished, and then buried, as deeply as all the rest of the shit in her past.

“Okay, ignore the obvious if you think you can. You may not care about romance, but I want it, all of it. And I don’t want to ruin this special time by spending the evening of my party watching some stripper and throwing up on my best friend.”

“Well, thanks for thinking of me, but I’d rather get stinking drunk than get caught up in any romance.” Tina shuddered for effect, making her breasts giggle. The man across the sauna made eye contact with her chest, making her grin. His girlfriend grabbed his arm, muttered something in his ear and then pulled him to his feet.

“That wasn’t nice.”

“I’m in a rut, and he looked like he could pull me out. It’s frustrating—my job’s going great, and I’m still restless. What’s wrong with me?”

“Nothing a relationship with Mr. Right wouldn’t cure.”

“Right. I’ll take The Bandit.”

“That’s not a relationship. You’re dangerous in this mood. That poor guy is going to get it from his girlfriend. She couldn’t wait to get him outta here.”

“I can’t help it.”

“Just try to concentrate on the party, okay? This is my night, so I get what I want. And I want a cruise theme.” She blew out a breath. “Tony’s family is huge, and we’re going to be inundated with them.” She eyed Tina. “But the more the merrier, so if you want to invite…”

She knew whom Emma would suggest she invite if Tina allowed her to continue. “We can start on the beach, and then move the later portion of the party to a nice inside suite. The guests who are interested can get rooms for the evening. And your hair won’t get all frizzy.”

Emma ran a hand tentatively through her hair.

Tina smiled. Mentioning frizz usually distracted Emma from those topics Tina most wanted to avoid.

“A bonfire with those flaming torches would be nice,” Emma said, sounding wistful. “It would be informal and fun.”

Tina resisted the urge to sigh.

“We could go for a walk in the moonlight.”

When Emma got that distant look, Tina knew she was remembering the beach where she’d met Tony. It wasn’t hard to see the magic between them.

I’m not jealous. “Everyone will be waiting for the falling-down-drunk part of the party, so we should at least get them started with those drinks mixed in coconuts.”

Emma shook her head. “Not everyone will be looking to get drunk.”

“Yeah, well, without The Bandit, you need to spice up the party somehow. You’ll regret not having him. Believe me, it would make it a memorable evening. One fortunate lady might have even gotten lucky with him.”

“No one sleeps with a stripper—especially not you. You’re not desperate. You’re just in a little rut.”

“Thanks.” Ever since the cruise, when Emma’s life had fallen into place, Tina’s seemed to have fallen apart. She couldn’t seem to find a man to satisfy her.

“Maybe you’ll meet someone at the party.” Emma patted her arm, and Tina resisted the urge to pull away. She wasn’t used to sympathy, and usually resented it. But for some reason, Emma mattered to her.

And it still surprised the hell out of her.

“What? And have the night ruined? There are rules against men interfering with our female fun, you know.”

“Since when are you a stickler for rules? I agree that the girls should have a little fun, but no strippers. Promise me.”

Tina rubbed her fingers together. It was an old nervous habit she’d thought she’d conquered. It certainly wasn’t appropriate for a hotshot lawyer who looked to make partner in Jacksonville’s biggest law firm. She glanced down at her fancy manicure and realized that technically, her fingers were crossed.

“Tina, promise me!”

Those naughty fingers, Tina grinned.

“Okay, I promise.”

1

“TINA, THAT STRIPPER’S amazing. What an ass. And those abs. It’s amazing what little strips of leather can do for a man. I just wish I had the chance to tear off all that leather—with my teeth.” Lindsay bared her perfect pearly whites.

Tina noted that Lindsay’s toothy smile looked almost feral in her pinched, anorexic face.

“Here’s to men in leather.” Lindsay raised her glass in a mock toast, expensive rings sparkling on every one of her bony fingers.

The Bandit certainly had Tina’s vote, and between his gyrations and the leather straps shifting over his tan muscles, he certainly had everyone’s attention.

Tina blurrily considered that she was almost drunk.

Good thing, too, because Emma’s usually placid eyes were the color of a storm at sea. Tony could be seen trying to calm her, but Tina knew she was in trouble for hiring The Bandit, and then sneaking him into the hotel with all those luscious leather straps hidden under a trench coat.

Lindsay was right. Leather made a man hot.

Tina was also hot.

She’d been fired up all the way into the hotel after the dinner and the bonfire. But only because The Bandit was due to arrive.

Maybe she should have taken The Bandit directly to her hotel room: gotten sweaty and mussed while taking off each section of leather, piece by piece, inch by sexy inch—instead of hanging here with all of these couples.

She didn’t do the couple thing. After they’d had a wonderful time on the cruise, Tyler seemed to have that couple’s thing in mind, and she’d nixed it…after letting him get embarrassingly close.

He’d been the first man to actually spend the whole night at her place. And she didn’t do that sort of thing. No matter how good the sex, the guy went home after. She might stay over at his place, but rarely. She didn’t like the morning-after awkwardness or the intimacy.

Unwillingly, her eyes strayed to the corner where Tyler sat with an attractive woman perched practically on his lap; obstinately, she refused to look away when those blue eyes challenged.

She never backed down from a challenge.

And getting a professional stripper into her bed was going to be something. The Bandit would definitely make her forget anything she might feel for Tyler.

Tina looked over at Emma and Tony again. Didn’t they know what a mistake they were making? From what she’d seen growing up, there was no such thing as a couple. Just two people unwilling to admit they would eventually get tired of each other, get tired of having sex with each other.

Emma finally broke away from Tony, and then got directly in Tina’s face.

“Why did you bring him?” Emma gestured with her chin. “You promised,” she hissed.

In a sexy little bronze dress with a plunging neckline embroidered in gold, Emma looked great.

Too bad it wasn’t The Bandit kind of hot.

But the neckline of her flimsy dress was suspiciously askew and Emma’s nipples were at attention. Tina suspected Tony had very recently had his clever fingers deep inside the silk. “Aren’t you glad you didn’t wear the bra?”

Emma blushed. “Yes, he definitely likes the dress.”

“What’s not to like? But it’s the boobs, not the dress he’s enamored with.”

One of the girls gathered around The Bandit actually moaned.

Emma resumed looking disgusted. “How could you do this?”

“I had my fingers crossed when I promised. You know I do that sometimes.”

“So it’s my fault because I didn’t look at your damn fingers? Is this part of the I-don’t-understand-how-friendship-works problem? Or is it about your recent troubles with your social life?” Emma looked really upset and worried.

Tina’s gut rolled, and she didn’t know if it was from the alcohol or the hurt look on Emma’s face. Emma was a good friend, one of the few people Tina trusted, and she’d gone and blown it because…well, for no good reason. “I’m sorry. I’ll take him away in a few minutes.”

“What are we going to tell the girls? And how much did you pay? I mean, I don’t want you to be out a lot of money…” Emma’s eyes widened as she saw him caressing the leather shield in front of his groin. “He can’t be built like that? It’s padding, or something. Right?” Her voice rose.

“Watch out, honey. You’re drooling, and Tony’s watching. Don’t worry about the money or that equipment going to waste. I have every intention of taking him to my room and stripping him down to the bare essentials. I’ll give you a blow by blow in the morning, so to speak.”

“Tina, you can’t have sex with a stripper. What are you thinking?”

“Of course I can.” She looked toward the corner.

Emma noticed right away. “I’m sorry. I had no idea Sheila would hook Tyler for the evening.”

There was another half scream, half sob from the women watching the stripper. Tina saw one of the paralegals from work stuff a bill in his thong. “Why would I pine for a regular man when I can have a little party of my own with The Bandit? I’ve been thinking about this guy since he came to my friend’s party last month. Now I’m gonna put all of my curiosity to bed, and let that fantasy throw me over its shoulder and carry me away.”

Emma shook her head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea. But I have to admit, I’m glad he’s not going to be staying for the whole party. I think Tony’s going to have a fit. He wouldn’t have minded if I had a stripper. He’s just not comfortable watching, and neither am I.”

“Just think how desperate he’ll be to please you after seeing the competition. He’s gonna put both hands down into that dress.”

Emma blushed. “I’m still not pleased that you broke your promise. But I’m not going to tell Tony anything except that the girls at the office insisted we invite a stripper as a joke, so long as you get him out of here so it’s not obvious that you brought him along for the evening. You know The Bandit may not sleep with you. He’s a stripper, not a prostitute.”

“I’ll be very persuasive. I’m sure I’m not the first client who wanted a little something extra.”

Emma shivered. “Be careful. You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into.” She shook her head as if to clear it. “I’d better get back to Tony.”

Tina started breathing again. Miraculously, Emma was going to forgive her, again. “You do that. I’m gonna get another drink and let the girls have just a few more minutes of The Bandit’s time before I whisk him away to be my own little plaything.” Tina headed for the bar where one of her favorite judges was waiting in line. They did a little verbal sparring—it wouldn’t have been sporting otherwise. And then Tina wandered to the outskirts of the group worshipping The Bandit.

Let them grope him.

She could afford to be generous when she was the one who would be with him at the end of the night.

The girls were giving him a good time, but the stripper gave her a wink as she settled on a chair. She knew it was part of the act but she was prepared to offer him quite a sum. And while she’d never paid for sex before, she didn’t think a stripper would protest too much.

TYLER WALDEN finally escaped Sheila’s wandering hands, and then made his way to the balcony where he could look out over the tree line. He took a deep breath. It was difficult watching Tina drooling over the stripper. He wiped his brow. Funny how he could maintain icy control in the courtroom, but have Tina waltz into any other room and he couldn’t think straight.

“Tough, huh?” His best friend, Nelson, joined him after carefully shutting the French doors behind them. Perspiration dotted the bald spot on Nelson’s head and his fine blond hair. “It’s hot in there.”

“In more ways than one.” Tyler smiled halfheartedly.

Nelson took off his glasses and wiped them on his shirt. “If only she’d look at you like she looks at him. Instead, she’s staring a hole right through you.”

“No chance of her looking at me that way.”

“That’s because you’re not prancing around in leather. But I bet you’re just as fit as that guy—now that you spend all your time at the gym instead of out having a beer with me.” Nelson patted his overflowing middle.

Tyler smiled at his buddy, but the grin quickly faded. “I think she’s actually contemplating sleeping with that stripper.”

“Naw, women only look at strippers. They don’t touch.” Nelson made a motion like that of the gyrating stripper.

“She has a very determined look in her eye. I know that look.”

Tyler had never felt jealous in his life, especially jealous of some low-life stripper. But the green monster was alive and kicking inside him now. “Apparently, it’s really over between us. She isn’t interested in me. She’s interested in…” Tyler gestured toward the room where they could still see the women and the stripper through the glass. “Maybe I need a change of scenery. I could go home to Georgia. Then I wouldn’t have to see her so often.”

“Wait a minute, pal. Before you contemplate a change of state, I think you should know that she’s going to be disappointed if she finally gets into his pants. The guy’s obviously heavily padded. She’s going to be paying a fortune to spend her evening with a cotton lining.”

“Why should I care?” Tyler turned his back on the doors.

“You could have her tonight.” His friend’s blue eyes were earnest behind his glasses.

“I’d have to knock her out and carry her out of the room. The only way she’d let me touch her again is if she were unconscious.”

“Naw. That would only aggravate your old football injury. Let’s face it, guy, you’ve got a bad back. I’ve got a better idea.” Nelson’s face suddenly turned mischievous. He punched his friend in the shoulder and said, “You should switch with the stripper. Then you can hook into this fantasy. If it’s good enough, she might take you back. And if not—” he shrugged “—then you nailed her one last time.”

“Nelson, you’ve got to be kidding me. That’s damn desperate, not to mention disgusting.”

“Yeah, and what are you if not damn desperate? You’ve been crying over her for months now, ever since just after the cruise.”

“I am not crying.”

“You do everything but. What about the woman has you so tied up in knots?”

“She wanted me on the cruise. We had a great time. Conversation, chemistry, sex, we had it all. Then we come back, we have a few great dates, and then bam, she literally slams her door in my face. No reason. It’s just over. She doesn’t do relationships. No foul, it’s just over.” He shook his head. “But it’s not over for me.”

Nelson just looked pointedly at the stripper.

“I’m not that desperate.”

“Okay.” Nelson turned to go. “It’s your funeral.”

Tyler shook his head. “What makes you think I could impersonate a stripper?”

“Got a cock?”

Tyler sighed. “I mean, how am I supposed to arrange to trade places with him? And then how am I supposed to convince Tina that I’m The Bandit? We’ve been together before.”

“Just as long as the alcohol keeps flowing, she won’t be as sharp as usual. As for the costume, just offer bandit boy a couple of hundred dollars for the leather straps and mask. He’ll probably jump at the opportunity to make a fast buck. If you’re wearing that mask, she’ll never see who she’s really with. This is the moment when all the extra time you’ve put in at the gym trying to forget her pays off.”

Tyler grabbed the iron railing in a hard grip. While he usually trusted Nelson’s judgment, this was outrageous. “This is nuts.” Tyler ran his fingers through his hair. “It’s playing with her life, real life, and she’ll probably hate me in the morning.”

Assuming I can pull off being a stripper.

Nelson fiddled with his watch. “I don’t think it’s a huge risk. Tina likes a little spice in her life. She might be intrigued enough to give you another shot, or she might be aroused enough to keep you busy for the rest of the weekend. Or…”

“Or?”

“Or she might give you a black eye.”

“She might do more than give me a black eye. She’s certainly the toughest woman I’ve ever met.” Tyler rubbed his face as if he could already feel the bruises. “Yeah, can’t figure why you’ve got it so badly for her, other than the body, I mean. She’s earned her reputation.”

“You mean The Shark thing? She’s an enigma, that’s for sure—a woman who looks like a debutante and swears like a soldier,” Tyler mused. “I remember when she actually stared down a client’s abusive husband who confronted her with a gun outside of the courtroom. Next day, she waltzed with the governor at a fund-raiser, and got her picture in the paper. She’s amazing.”

“So she’s tough, and she cleans up nicely. My assistant claims she spends a fortune to get her hair done. She’s catty.”

“Which one?” Tyler asked.

Nelson chortled. “Both of them. Beth’s overfed and grumpy. And Tina, she’s like a sleek little Egyptian cat. But her claws are lethal.”

Tyler shrugged. “What’s interesting about being sweet and nice?”

“She’s as hard as they come. No softer emotions. I just don’t find that especially attractive in a woman.”

Tyler barely paid attention to Nelson’s observations. Everyone said the same thing: Tina was a fantastic lawyer, and a hell of a lay, for those lucky enough to have been singled out, but not sympathetic, and certainly not relationship material. But people were his specialty, and he saw something in her that she tried hard to hide. Call it vulnerability. Call it bravado. The woman had serious depth.

“There’s more to her than meets the eye. Some of her clients are real charity cases, which means she isn’t representing everyone just for the money. There’s another motivation. One I don’t understand yet.”

“So she takes on pro bono. Everyone decent does. But you never see her clients turn to her and give her a hug.”

“No, she definitely doesn’t invite hugs.” Tyler grinned. He didn’t know why he found it amusing, the way Tina intimidated everyone. He had a feeling she worked at it. “She’s fascinating, full of contradictions. She’s the most amazing puzzle. Where does she come from? And why is she so scary?”

“Hey, I’m not knocking her. She’s a fantastic lawyer.” Nelson ran his hand over his thinning hair. “And I have an ulterior motive. I’m confident that when you get to see her as much as you want, you’ll eventually get tired of her. Just like all the other women you’ve dated. Then maybe you’ll stop moping. I was the one who encouraged you to go on that cruise, so I feel obligated to help you out now.”

“I do not mope.”

“Could have fooled me.”

“I’m just confused. I’ve never been tied in knots by a woman, didn’t even know what it meant.”

“You don’t have to stay confused. Do some research, run a background check. That ought to solve the mystery that is Tina Henderson so you can get on with your life. And I can get on with mine.” Nelson tipped his head toward the doors.

“That wouldn’t be sporting. The kind of research I want to do is up close and personal. I want her to tell me everything with her hair spread out on my pillow.”

“That sounds like the old you—I guess there’s hope for you yet. Maybe you should follow her around. Find out what she’s doing. James Bond stuff.”

Tyler turned and his eyes met Tina’s cool, assessing gaze as if there weren’t a room, a crowd, and a piece of glass between them. Then she dismissed him to look back at the stripper.

He knew he would never get to Tina by normal means: flowers, candy or romance, the things that all the other women in his life had wanted.

Not Tina. He’d tried everything from roses to orchids. He’d sent tickets for opera performances and basketball games. She’d even sent back the little lawyer bear he’d had made especially for her. For once in his life, something hadn’t fallen into place. She hadn’t gone out with him since the night she’d let him stay over at her place.

He couldn’t stop thinking about her. She was the one challenge he hadn’t mastered. She’d barely given him a chance. So what did he have to lose? Just his reputation and his pride. “It’s a crazy idea, me impersonating a stripper. Can you imagine what would happen if anyone ever found out?”

“You can’t be disbarred for fulfilling a sexual fantasy in the privacy of a hotel room.”

“She’ll laugh at me.”

“I don’t think she has your sense of humor. Either she’ll be intrigued, or angry.” Nelson put his hand on Tyler’s arm. “Look, she can’t afford to make it public that she intended to take a stripper to bed, any more than you can afford to be caught impersonating a stripper. She might kick you in the balls, but that won’t damage your career as a lawyer, though maybe your career as a stripper.” He chuckled.

Maybe Nelson was right, maybe it would take something wild and crazy to get her attention. And Tyler definitely wanted her attention—which was a new situation for him.

Tyler looked back into the room where another one of the women gave out a gasping scream as The Bandit grabbed and fondled her breast through her dress.

“Technically, he’s not supposed to touch them.”

“He’s definitely gonna touch her if you don’t do something about it. She has that predatory look.”

Tyler turned to Nelson. “Can you catch this guy when he goes to the bathroom? Offer him a thousand dollars for the getup.”

“A thousand? Man, are you crazy?”

Tyler just looked at him.

“Yeah, I guess you are, and at least you’re good for it.” Nelson put a hand on Tyler’s shoulder. “In the meantime, keep both Sheila and Peggy warm for me.”

Tyler grimaced. “I only agreed to come along with Sheila so I could get close to Tina. Guess that makes me a louse.”

Nelson smiled. “Makes you human, man, but it’s my guess Tina intends to take the stripper to her room tonight, and the only reason she’s sticking around is to flaunt what she’s got lined up for the evening. If you’re flaunting, too, it’s going to get very interesting.”

Tyler tightened his hand on the balcony rail, which felt very solid beneath his fingers, an anchor of sorts. “You know this is crazy, don’t you? I’ve never done anything this crazy, even in college.”

“You only live once, so a little crazy isn’t a bad thing.”

Tyler reluctantly let go of the rail, and then made his way back inside through the crush of people to Sheila, who immediately draped herself over him. Absently, he ran his hand down the silky smooth skin of her bare leg. If he’d been interested, the dress she had on would have made for excellent access, and because he was accustomed to taking advantage of such access, his fingers crept under the hem.

When he looked across the room Tina had moved in closer to the stripper. Her expression was hard, as if she’d caught his move on Sheila.

Could Nelson be right? Could Tina be just a little jealous? Tyler’s naughty fingers slid deeper under Sheila’s dress. For the first time in the evening he was aroused and Sheila obligingly rubbed up against him as she leaned in to whisper intimately in his ear.

Tyler didn’t have a clue as to what Sheila said to him. She was just like all the other women in his life. They’d take one look at him and his bank book and they’d trip all over themselves to get to him. It didn’t feel real, and it certainly wasn’t a challenge.

As far as he was concerned, Tina was the only woman in the room worth going for. Practically grinding his teeth, he watched her sliding bills in the stripper’s thong with bold, seductive moves, unabashedly stroking the man. And the stripper enjoyed her attention.

Why not? Tina’s tall figure might not be generous but she was perfectly proportioned, graceful and charismatic. Her straight hair complimented that narrow face, and she had those gorgeous changeable hazel eyes. When he’d made love to her, those eyes had gone a soft golden color that he desperately wanted to see again.

If he had any doubts about his plan to get Tina, now was the time to give them up. The Bandit was going to have Tina tonight over Tyler’s dead body. No one knew anything about the man. He might harm her, or worse, he might please her.

Tyler intended to touch and caress Tina until she begged, and then possess her fully, if only for one more night. He doubted Tina would ever commit to anyone—she’d come out and told him that she wasn’t interested. He wasn’t supposed to be hurt because she didn’t do relationships. It had been fun: the cruise, the fling afterward, a short-term romance. She’d laid it all out for him, explaining patiently that she didn’t want more. That she needed nothing from him or anyone else.

It only made him crazy wondering. Why was she so independent? And why, when he’d already scored with her, did he still dream about her? He hadn’t actually had sex with a woman since he’d been with Tina that last night at her home. She’d wound herself around him all night long, and then woken him up with a cup of coffee and a boot out the door. Later, she’d explained why she preferred not to see him again. Logically. Coolly.

It only made him burn.

So what would she think about a man crazy enough about her to do something really desperate? Tyler wondered bleakly. Would she be cool or could he make her burn?

“DOES OUR Bandit need a ride home?” The female voice drifted through the closed restroom door as Tyler awkwardly buckled the last piece of the loin plate into place.

“That’s probably Lindsay. She must have dropped almost a hundred trying to get a hold of my cock.” The stripper chuckled softly as he tucked his T-shirt into his jeans. Tyler thought he would probably be a huge disappointment to his audience if they could see him now. He looked just like a regular guy.

“I’ll be walking him out.”

This time it was Tina’s voice. She sounded as if she hired a stripper every night of the week, and it made Tyler wince as he adjusted his newly acquired faux fur.

“Good for you.”

Lindsay again, dripping venom.

The Bandit picked his head up. “Wow, Lindsay sounds lethal. You might have to rescue your lady.” The guy stuffed Nelson’s money carelessly into his pocket.

“Believe me, Tina can handle herself.”

“I don’t know, that lady, Lindsay, sounds like she wants to walk all over someone in those tiny little heel and leave a trail of bloody gouge marks behind. It would be an awesome cat fight. Too bad you paid me to get lost.”

“I’m glad you remember. Can you wait here for at least fifteen minutes?”

“Sure, man, good luck. Just remember to grind it.” The stripper thrust his hips forward. “That’s the secret to success.”

Tyler tried moving in the leather, and the chains clinked all over his body. He felt as if he were going into an ancient battle. The Bandit had put the whole costume he’d stripped off during the show, including the mask and loin plate, on Tyler. The fur draped over his shoulders helped to hide the difference in his skin tone.

“There are some toys in the bag.”

“Toys?”

“Some chains, cuffs, a blindfold. There are some whips and more leather. A decent piece of fur. Some ladies get off on the fur, some on the pain.” He shrugged. “You never know.”

“Sounds like you’ve moonlighted before.”

The stripper held his hands out. “Hey, it’s my job to please the ladies.”

“And you take your job seriously.” Tyler looked into the mirror. He didn’t look like a bandit; the fur made him look more like a Neanderthal.

He grimaced. Could this possibly work? Or would Tina take one look at him and laugh in his face?

He’d better see if he could grind it. He thrust his hips forward and the ridiculous loin plate exaggerated his movements.

The stripper nodded. “Not bad. You’re buff enough. Good abs. Just try to tilt your pelvis towards the ceiling.”

He tried again. I hope I don’t throw my back out again. Because of his old football injury, he sometimes had trouble with the muscles in his lower back.

But this time it would be worth it. Better than winning the homecoming game, better than anything.

“That’s perfect.” The stripper adjusted a few of the straps and then tucked things in. “Now you’re all set.”

“Thanks for your help.”

“No problem. I made a fortune tonight.”

Tyler took a deep breath and he opened the door. Tina stood directly outside. Her face was flushed, and she leaned forward on the balls of her feet as if anticipating…something more than she should have expected when hiring a stripper.

She smiled a slow, intimate smile. “Wow, you look so primitive.” It came out like a purr. “I thought you might have gotten more comfortable. Taken something off…”

“I didn’t think that’s what you had in mind,” he said deeply, suggestively. His loins swelled. He couldn’t seem to help it.

Tina’s baser instincts appeared to be fully engaged, and he planned to fully enjoy them.

Or was it the alcohol?

Why did he care? Suddenly he felt as primitive as he looked. He’d taken matters into his own hands, and all he wanted was to throw her over his shoulder and give her everything she appeared to want from him.

“You took so long and I’m so…ready,” she breathed.

Tyler sucked in a breath at the sight of those heavy eyes and slick mouth. Her nipples stood at attention, and he had to clench his hands to keep from reaching out and touching her.

“Lead the way.” Fortunately, the stripper hadn’t spoken in a normal voice during the show. His deep tones had obviously been for effect. Tyler just hoped Tina was too drunk to notice the difference.

“My pleasure.” She took his arm and led him to the elevators, leaning heavily on him.

He should have felt stupid dressed as a Neanderthal, but Tina’s reaction had him getting into the part, especially when the elevator doors closed, and she boldly reached around him to pat his ass and then squeeze his buns.

“You’re so deliciously tight back there. You must work out all the time.” She pressed her hips against his. “I thought we might have a little workout session of our own before you go home.”

“I don’t mind getting a little physical after a performance.” He couldn’t resist. He ran his fingers over her collarbones, slipping down over her breasts, sliding over silk, and her erect nipples, mesmerized by the glow of desire in those golden eyes. “Especially with such an exceptionally beautiful woman.”

“Ohhhh, that feels so good.”

“Yes, it does.” His voice sounded guttural but it wasn’t an affectation.

“You have such beautiful blue eyes,” she murmured.

“Thank you.”

“Were they blue—” she gestured, and almost lost her balance “—before?”

Tyler steadied her. He didn’t panic, though he hadn’t even noticed the color of the stripper’s eyes. Instead, he improvised. “Naw, they’re contacts. I just put them in now. I didn’t have time to do it before the performance.”

Tina’s brow furrowed.

He resisted the urge to kiss her. But mouth-kissing protocol might be different for strippers; besides, she’d probably recognize him if he kissed her.

“I like your eyes blue. But what’s your real eye color?”

She had a death grip on the strip of fur around his neck.

“Kinda hazel, I guess. These contacts were worth the money if they turn you on.” His hands came around to lift and caress her breasts.

Tina sucked in a breath. “I’ve never done this before, but I promise to pay you enough to make this worth it.”

“Honey, anything you pay would just be icing on the cake. You feel so delicious.” He thought about what he’d say if she offered to pay, and despite his pride he knew she’d be suspicious if he turned down the money cold.

“Hmmm. You certainly know where to touch a girl.”

Tyler could feel her flesh swelling in anticipation of his touch, and he knew from past experience that she had on a skimpy little thong under that skirt that molded around her ass so lovingly.

The elevator dinged. And he nudged her shoulder. “Ladies first. Which room?”

“Sixteen.”

Tina listed against him so he guided her down the hallway.

It seemed to take forever to reach the door. Then she handed him the key card to the room. He bent down and when her fingers slipped down toward the loin plate, he almost groaned aloud anticipating her touch.

When the door was finally standing open, he dropped his leather bag of tricks. Then he looked down the hallway, first to the right and then the left.

Tina smiled her siren’s smile from where she leaned against the wall, unsteady and obviously excited. She ran her wicked fingers leisurely up his naked thigh.

She whispered, “Don’t worry, no one’s going to see us, and I really want you.” She traced where her necklace dipped down between her visibly sensitized breasts. “I really want you. And it’s more than making Tyler pay for bringing that cow Sheila to the party.”

Tina couldn’t believe she’d said that, or thought it. When had she ever felt jealous of Tyler or any man? Jealousy was an emotion she couldn’t afford. It meant you felt something more than just desire. It led to stupid things like commitments, which never lasted. Lives that became flat and defeating. She could feel her desire fizzling, as it had with other men in the past few months. She hadn’t even told Emma about her forced celibacy. “Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”

Suddenly, The Bandit’s strong hands came around her, pinning her up against the door by her shoulders. Tina barely had time to register that her feet were dangling above the floor, when he ground the leather loin plate against her hips. She automatically opened her legs to let him apply pressure where she most needed it, moaning with the pleasure of it.

Would he simply take her? Was that what she needed?

He leaned in, his breath was warm on her face, and she lifted her mouth to kiss him. The mask would make a kiss feel strange and exciting.

Instead of kissing her, he buried his face in her neck. “You feel so good, my little warrior.”

The endearment was so much better than the insipid princess that The Bandit had called her when he’d met her in the lobby before the party. It had her biting him gently on the shoulder, careful not to draw blood. But she was beginning to feel hungry again. The juices were definitely flowing this time, and she knew her desire wouldn’t stall, not if he continued to touch her like that under her linen skirt.

It was probably better that he didn’t seem to want to kiss her. Remember, he’s a stripper. It’s his job to turn you on, and make you crazy. It’s just a bonus that he’s gonna cure what ails you.

Her body certainly remembered he was a stripper—a very hot one. She thought she might come right here up against the wall. Why didn’t they just go inside, and get this over with? She was so ready.

But the sound of the elevator had him easing her back to the ground. She grabbed the doorframe in order to stay on her feet. Was it the alcohol or The Bandit that made her legs wobble? He grinned at her, all gorgeous teeth under the mask. Had his teeth been that nice before?

She lost her train of thought as an older couple went by with their bags in tow. They both looked shocked. Tina couldn’t help herself; feeling naughty, she winked at them. The Bandit nodded like a gentleman, and then pushed Tina into the room roughly enough to raise her temperature. He shut the door behind them with an echoing thud.

“I think we shocked them. They might have had heart attacks right in the hallway,” Tina said, laughing.

He didn’t say a word; he just picked Tina up, and threw her over his shoulder like a caveman. Her purse dangled a minute before she dropped it on the floor.

“Hey,” she laughed, pounding on his back. “With all of those muscles, you’d think you could be more of a gentleman in how you sweep me off my foot, feet.” It should have embarrassed her—she was usually articulate. But, hey, he was going to get paid to have sex with her no matter that the most articulate lawyer in town was sloppy drunk. Or was it the adventure that had her so giddy?

“Probably drunk,” she said aloud.

“Sweeping you off your feet is for the good guys. I’m just going to tie you up, strip off your clothes, and then I’m going to push myself into you until you scream for mercy.”

His voice was gravelly, and she couldn’t remember if he’d spoken like that earlier. Maybe it was for her benefit. But his words made her shiver with anticipation. “It definitely works for me.”

He practically threw her down on the bed, and then stood over her. “Do you want something from the bar?”

She raised her arms above her head. “No, I’ve had enough, and I have to remember enough to tell the girls if it’s padding in your pants or the real thing. I’m hoping it’s the real thing.” She lazily plucked at her nipple through her three-hundred-dollar shirt. Then, remembering, she took two folded bills out of the pocket of her skirt. She handed them to him, hardly believing she was desperate enough to pay to get out of this rut. What the heck was wrong with her? She fought her way up from the bottom of the food chain and she wasn’t going to let a man interfere with her life now. Even if she had to pay for it from now on. “You’d better be worth it.”

“Bitch.”

“Yeah. That’s what they call me behind my back. They call me The Shark to my face. I’m a hell of a hard-ass in the courtroom, and off…I…mean…out.”

He hardly looked at the money. He looked directly at her, hungrily. He absently took the bills and put them in his bag. Then he dropped the bag on the ground as if it meant nothing.

“Sit up,” he demanded.

“Huh?”

“You ready for sleep or you want to play?” He reached down to unbuckle one of the leather straps wrapped tightly around his waist.

She sat up on the end of the bed. “I definitely want to play.”

“Unbutton the shirt or I’ll rip it off.”

Tina hesitated a second; ripping it off sounded sexy but practicality forced her to strip off her shirt. She hadn’t always had nice things to wear.

She told herself the sexy little bra she had on underneath, hardly more than a scoop of nylon cupping her breasts, would certainly turn him on.

He knelt, the leather in his hands.

Tina pulled back a little. “I’m not into pain.” She stated emphatically.

“I won’t hurt you.”

Did he sound familiar? Hadn’t she heard that voice say those words before? But before she could concentrate he sucked her nipple right out of the nylon cup, and into his warm wet mouth, deeply into his mouth.

It was just a tiny bit forceful, almost too intense, but she didn’t want him to quit. No, she leaned into him, putting a hand on each of those buff arms. “Ahh, that feels so good,” she told him.

He laved her nipple, and then reached around her to release the hook on her bra with one expert flick. “I guess you do this all of the time.” Did she sound disappointed? What was wrong with having an experienced man? Just because she had never paid for sex didn’t mean it wouldn’t be wonderful.

“I only want you. I can only think of you.”

He sounded so sincere. Tina rubbed her fingers together as he removed her bra, and then threw it on the floor. Then he took the leather belt and fastened it around her breasts with the buckle in the back.

Tina looked down in surprise. The leather didn’t exactly cover her breasts: they overflowed the leather binding above and underneath, her nipples resting on top like little cherries.

“You’re beautiful.” He ran his fingers back and forth over the leather and her tender flesh.

Tina moaned. Leather was sexy. Her breasts bulged and the pressure felt amazing. “More,” she whispered. “I want more of the leather.”

His smile was feral under the mask. “My pleasure.”

Taking off a thin, braided piece wrapped around his forearm, he looked at her with a wicked light in his eyes. “You sure you aren’t into pain? I could whip you with this strap until you offer me everything I want from you.”

The hard-ass of the courtroom could feel her eyes widening as she wondered if he really meant it. She shook her head emphatically.

The moment he hesitated felt like a lifetime.

Next he took the strap, and then wrapped it around her waist, tightly, and then knotted it where the leather got thin. The strap was tight sitting up against her belly button.

Tina sat up and looked down. It might have seemed silly but the leather looked sexy nipping in her waist and making her feel like a warrior woman from one of those ridiculous TV shows.

“More.”

His hands spanned her waist, and then traveled up to her breasts to caress her until she didn’t know if she wanted to bother with the leather she was so aroused.

He broke away from her, taking off his armbands one by one.

Tina ran her hands over the firm flesh of his arms. Up close he was just as buff as she remembered, but different somehow. Maybe it was the alcohol or his nearness that had her mind all fuzzy and other parts of her buzzing.

The Bandit fastened his leather cuffs to her ankles, leaving her Manolos in place.

“What are you going to do with these?” She turned her feet this way and then that way to admire how the cuffs looked with her shoes. They were the strangest, yet sexiest, accessories she’d ever worn with high heels.

Yes, everything about this turned her on.

Casually he produced a length of chain from the bag, tossing the length of it onto the floor and examining it before attaching it to one of the cuffs.

Tina gasped. She hadn’t really noticed the ring on the leather cuff.

He winked as if he were immensely pleased with himself.

She felt it kick her in the stomach. Those eyes, that cute little wink, they had such an effect on her. They reminded her…No. It just felt this good because she was so into this fantasy.

A few feet across from the foot of the bed was one of those standard wooden desks with literature about the hotel and the room service menu. The stripper ran the chain around one leg of the desk, and then brought it back so he could attach it to the cuff on her other ankle. Tina picked up her legs, which were now adorned with cuffs and chains that loosely bound her to a desk. It was definitely a novelty.

Experimentally, Tina pulled on the cuffs. The desk was either really heavy or it was bolted to the wall because it didn’t feel as if it might give way. She was bound by more than just fantasy now. And it gave her a thrill.

Especially when he stepped over the thin chain and stood between her legs like he’d just conquered her.

She lifted her fitted linen skirt up over her hips to bunch up against the leather strand at her waist. Bare except for her thong, she pleaded, “Please.” She ran her fingers over the silk of her thong, touching her dampened, hungry flesh.

He gazed down at her, his arousal pushing on the plate between his legs. Tina was betting it was all man in there, not any sort of lining or stuffing.

She ached to get a hold of the hard length of him.

Then he took off the tightest belt, the thick one that made his waist look so sexy.

Briefly, Tina wondered what he meant to do with it.

Without warning, he pulled her to her knees on the bed, chains jingling, and then jerked the thong from her hips.

She gasped in surprise.

When she was bare he threaded the leather between her legs. The strap was wide, and he eased her down until she was riding it. Then there was the most delicious pressure between her legs. Her knees wobbled, and she almost collapsed on the bed but he held her, keeping just enough pressure on the leather.

“How does that feel?” he asked.

“Oh, it feels so incredible.” She rubbed against the leather, back and forth. Unexpectedly, an explosive orgasm suddenly tore through her, leaving her almost breathless. “I’m getting your leather all wet,” she protested weakly.

He pushed her to the edge of the bed, sat her down with the strap between her legs and then knelt in front of her. “I’ll just have to clean it up.” He kept pressure on the leather, but he shifted it enough to tease her flesh on both sides with his tongue. It was like the leather band holding her breasts—her female flesh bulged out, pink and glistening.

In a moment he had her moaning and writhing beneath his tongue. “Oh, that’s amazing,” she cried as she shuddered with yet another incredible orgasm.

In a few minutes she was back, and this time she needed to touch him. She reached for him, and he stood stoically while she undid the buckle holding the pelvic plate in place. It was all him behind the loin plate. And he was so hard. When she got everything off, only a silky black thong lay between her hand and his swollen flesh. Lovingly she ran her fingers over his penis through the material.

He let go of the leather between her legs. “Close your eyes.”

“Just take me,” she begged. “No more games—I can’t take it.”

“Close your eyes and I’ll give you everything you need.”

She closed her eyes.

He lifted her head, and she felt him place a soft piece of leather over her eyes.

A blindfold. She couldn’t see anything. It definitely fed her fantasy but…

“I want to see you. Remember, I’m supposed to give out all of the details,” she protested.

He put her hands on his naked penis. “Feel me.”

She did, running her fingers over the hot length of him, writhing as he slid his fingers down between her legs. The chains made a slight noise when her legs trembled. It reminded her that she was lying there chained and blindfolded. She wanted to rub her legs together. She wanted him to put out the fire he’d created. Just one hard thrust.

“Please,” she breathed in the dark.

She heard him open a condom package, and in a moment he’d pushed her flat on her back on the bed.

“Thank you.” In her rush to have him she’d forgotten everything else.

He went down on her first; she could feel it, the hard, smooth surface of his teeth, the softness of his lips, and finally his tongue on her clitoris. She arched, gasping.

Then he left her. She bit her lip rather than beg him to come back. But she ached for him. It had never been this intense.

He touched her with the fur, rubbing it over her throat, down over her nipples.

Then the fur feathered softly over her abdomen. She held her breath.

Finally he swept the fur between her thighs. Her sigh was as soft as the fleece. At the same time his strong fingers explored, almost roughly, seeking the core of her. The contrast overwhelmed her.

She shuddered, so close to an unfamiliar edge.

Abruptly he pinned her to the bed with all of his weight, thrusting his penis inside her in one stunning stroke.

And then he pulled out. “Do you want this? Me?”

She arched up. “Yes!”

Still he held himself over her. She could feel that he was holding something back.

It didn’t matter. All she wanted was the release he could give her. Life should always feel this incredible.

“Please, Bandit, now. I’ll give you a tip. A bigger tip.”

“Are you begging?”

“Yes!”

“Don’t forget. You begged me.”

She made an angry, frustrated sound and tried to reach up and bite his neck. How could he make her feel so aroused, and then play games with her? “You bastard. Do what I bought you to do!”

He didn’t complain. Instead he laughed softly. With a shift of his hips he entered her again, slowly, and then harder. Plundering her. Sobbing, she wound her arms around his neck. Through the roar of pleasure, the clinking of the chains and the sweat from the leather blindfold, she could only imagine those heavenly blue eyes glinting with holy hell as he took her to heaven.

2

TINA WOKE TO FIND a hairy arm flung across the pillow. She blinked at it. Her head hurt and her mouth tasted like sour milk, indicating she’d had a little too much to drink. She remembered indulging every time Tyler had put his hand up Sheila’s skirt. Tina gritted her teeth. Why did she allow that man to get under her skin as easily as he’d gotten under Sheila’s skirt?

And who was the man lying beside her?

Slowly the details came into focus. This man must be The Bandit stripper. The one who’d given her so many orgasms she’d lost count. Of course, she’d been too drunk to count. Hadn’t she? It had to be the alcohol that had made her feel so giddy.

I can’t wait to tell that idiot MD that I was right. I wasn’t depressed. I just needed a change of male scenery.

She knew some people actually needed chemical help, but she wasn’t one of them. In her case it was more a mind-over-matter thing, as she’d recently explained to her doctor.

The stripper made a little snorting sound that interrupted her train of thought.

Why hadn’t he gone away?

Surely, strippers knew the protocol; even casual dates knew when to scoot out of a woman’s room. Tina herself always left the man’s house in the middle of the night to avoid those awkward mornings. The one time she’d brought a man home had been a mistake. She’d spent the next evening at Emma’s doing a silly thing Emma called a cry movie, and pigging out on Chinese food.

The hairy arm moved.

Tina had to admit she was at a loss and it was a rare thing for her. What to do with a stripper who’d overstayed his welcome? She’d certainly paid him enough. Even for all of those orgasms. But he was wonderful in the sack. Did she really want to get rid of him?

Maybe she could play nice and keep this particular option open. Seeing him had definitely been the best sort of therapy. And it would be cheaper than a shrink, the other option her MD had recommended.

She could probably even deduct him from her taxes for services rendered.

The other arm came up to drape around her shoulders. Tina should have felt claustrophobic. Hugging was foreign to her—an activity she avoided at all costs. Perhaps it was a postcoital connection or precoital possibilities that made this hug feel acceptable, but she couldn’t just lie here and accept an invasion of her privacy.

Remember to be nice. But, she fully intended to take charge here. After all, this was her hotel room and passive wasn’t her style.

She didn’t passively accept anything. When she’d become an orphan and then a ward of the state at a tender age, she’d quickly learned that she had to fight for every little thing. Since then, she’d had this need to be in control. She thought of it as being the driver rather than the passenger. She just liked to drive.

She always drove.

“Do you mind moving your arm so I can get up?” Her tone was deadpan dry. But nice.

There was a moan from down inside the pillows.

“I don’t know what your problem is, since I’m the one who had too much to drink.”

Be sympathetic. Remember that you definitely want him again and again.

Another moan. However, it didn’t invoke any sympathy.

Rather annoyed, Tina told him, “Really, this is just silly. You’re a professional and you should have gotten out of here at a reasonable time instead of causing this awkward scene….” She softened her tone. “I definitely would have called you, or rather I would have called the service.”

She tried to stretch and became aware that at some point she’d been freed from the ankle cuffs. Then she became even more aware that her bladder was under more pressure than was comfortable. Still, she didn’t want to totally blow it. “I guess I could allow you to make it up to me. I haven’t exactly been myself since this dumb cruise I took in the spring, and you’ve definitely cured what ailed me.”

Maybe she sounded a little peevish, but she really needed to use the bathroom and grab a double espresso. Struggling against the weight of the arm wasn’t enjoyable.

Was she nuts to also feel like it was kind of cozy under the warmth of his arm?

Of course not. She wasn’t the cozy type any more than the hugging type. It must be the hangover.

“Please get up. This is getting embarrassing.”

“Just give me a second.” The voice sounded muffled but familiar.

Of course it was familiar—she’d just been intimate with the man. “I’ve given you more than a minute and I’m running out of patience.” There, she’d used her cutting courtroom voice. It should have him out of here in minutes. She hadn’t been christened The Shark for nothing.

The hand slid up her arm, intimately, seeking. It felt good, which angered her, so she reached over to push it away. Then she struggled out from under the dead weight until she came to the edge of the bed, where for some inexplicable reason, she hesitated.

She was naked.

She needed cover. The sheet and thin blanket were tangled around at least six feet of male flesh. The bedspread wasn’t an option, as it was probably gross from the hundreds of guests who stayed in this hotel. She had no robe, because she liked to be naked, and she was usually totally comfortable with her body. Yet she hesitated to get out of the bed.

Why? Why should this time be any different? Maybe it was the paid part of the situation that bothered her, since she’d never paid for sex before.

“Why should I have to get up when technically this is my bed bought and paid for?” she mused aloud.

“Because I seem to have thrown out my back.”

She looked over at him. With the mask gone and those incredible blue eyes blinking at her, there was no denying she’d seen that face before. “Tyler?” Her voice went shrill. “What the hell are you doing in my bed?”

Still lying on his stomach, he rubbed his hand over his beard-stubbled gorgeous face. “You hired me.”

“I did no such thing. I hired The Bandit.” She clung to the corner of the sheet as if it were a lifeline because her heart was sinking fast.

“You can negotiate for a refund, but I counted your orgasms last night, and I’m pretty sure you got your money’s worth.” He sounded so very smug.

“Get up. Get out. Just get.” Her voice rose with every get. Her heart was not sinking. She was just disappointed in Tyler for lying so spectacularly to her. And she was angry. Very angry, she told herself.

Okay, why wasn’t she furious?

“I can’t. I’ve thrown my back out.”

She scooted off the bed. It seemed safer to be naked and exposed than to be close to Tyler. “What exactly does that mean?” she asked scathingly.

“I’m having muscle spasms in my back, probably from our workout last night. I’ll be okay if you’ll soak a towel in hot water and lay it on my back. Eventually the muscles will loosen up, and I’ll be able to get up.”

“Our workout? It wasn’t even supposed to be you last night. And I will not soak a towel and put it on your back. I’m never touching you again. You…you, low-life probationer!”

“Okay, then just leave me. I’ll call down to the desk for some anti-inflammatory medication. I’ll request a later checkout, take a nap, and in a few hours I’ll be just fine.” He flexed his shoulders, and then with a grimace stopped trying to shift.

He looks like a fish floundering.

Offering him no sympathy, Tina looked around for her clothing. It was strewn around the room with an abandon that made her grind her teeth. “Technically, this is my hotel room.”

True, she hadn’t even brought in her overnight bag from the car—she’d barely had time to tuck her toothbrush into her purse because of some last-minute dinner glitch—but it was the principle of the thing.

“I’ll be happy to reimburse you the cost of the room,” he said so reasonably Tina just exploded.

“And what about the cost of our little interlude? What the hell did you think you were doing pretending to be a stripper?”

He started to shrug, and then tensed up again. The pain on his face stood out in stark relief, and for a moment she almost felt sorry for him.

“I’m not sure I knew what I was doing. All I could think about was that I didn’t want him to touch you. I’m sorry if I’ve caused you any embarrassment. But hey, I saved you from a stripper. Who knows where the man’s been or whether he even intended to use a condom!”

“I brought plenty of condoms!”

“You were too far gone to tell if he even used one or not.”

“I was not. I was in control. In fact I remember every detail….” She trailed off. The blush started at her forehead and seemed to travel down her body. She did remember every detail, and it had been incredible. And it had been Tyler.

She swallowed hard.

Tyler, who strode into a courtroom with the careless elegance of a 1940s actor. Tyler, with dark blond hair still streaked from the cruise, since he wore it just a little longer than was absolutely professional. Tyler, with eyes so intensely blue they warmed like a summer sky, which had his witnesses, both male and female, stammering to please during their testimonies.

He simply had that effect on people.

And that body. He’d sculpted it even more since the last time they’d made love. Tyler was so perfect, he was scary.

Not scary.

She was never scared.

And she just didn’t do relationships, even with perfect men.

Perfect? What was she thinking? He was just like every other man in the world, telling lies to get what he wanted. She couldn’t trust him!

“How could you?” she raged. “After I told you that I didn’t want to see you again? I think I was rather explicit after you stayed at my place. What part of never again didn’t you understand?”

She took a breath and then it hit her. She even pointed a finger at him. “And you had your hand up Sheila’s skirt last night. If you ever touch me again, I’m going to fillet you!”

Did he smile? Had he dared to smile? She would teach him while she had him at her mercy. Her own smile felt feral.

“You don’t mean that. You’re just angry.” His eyes were earnest. “You haven’t even given us a chance.”

“We were together on the cruise.”

“That wasn’t reality. It was a singles’ cruise. We have a lot in common in real life.”

“And we had a few dates after that, but you’re a lawyer, how many times do I have to tell you that I don’t date lawyers!”

“More times.”

She wanted to stomp her foot or throw something at him. “How many more times?”

“A lot more times.”

“Get up and get out!” She pointed at the door.

“No can do, unless you intend to help me out.” He sounded so matter-of-fact.

She cautioned herself to be calm, like him. This was no time to let her emotions rule her. “You need a hot towel placed on your back to loosen up the muscles? And then you’ll be able to get dressed and leave the room? I want to be very clear on what I need to do to get rid of you.”

“Some anti-inflammatory medicine would help if you have anything on you.”

“Massage therapist? Dancing girls? An eight-course meal brought in and fed to you with an after-dinner mint placed on the pillow?”

“I know, it’s a pain. This hardly ever happens anymore since I started strength training for my back. I probably shouldn’t have picked you up.”

“You call slinging me over your shoulder picking me up?” She laughed tauntingly. “Well, let me tell you, it’s hardly romantic, so you won’t have to do it again.”

“Don’t lie. You loved it. You were so hot I thought the sheets would catch fire.”

She pushed her hair back. How to argue when he was absolutely right? “I can’t help it if you’re such a loser you can’t lift your lover.” It sounded lame but it should at least put a dent in his ego.

“I’ll work up to the lifting part,” he offered.

“No way in hell. I’m not your lover anyway.” She stalked over to pick up her purse from where she’d dropped it on the floor, and then came back to sit on the edge of the bed while she rummaged through it. “I’ve got to have some anti-inflammatory in my purse.”

“Great.”

“Then you don’t need the hot towel?” She knew she sounded hopeful, but the nurse thing just didn’t appeal to her. There was no empathy in her soul, just impatience.

“I’ll be able to move as soon as the medication kicks in. I usually take the pills, and then I go back to sleep for an hour or so.”

She turned around and stomped into the bathroom, naked and too angry to feel awkward. She grabbed a towel and put it in the tub and then she turned on the hot tap full force. “I can’t believe this,” she muttered. “I can’t believe he lied to me. How could this have happened?” She watched the steam rise up from the running water with great satisfaction.

She’d sworn off Tyler after she’d been stupid enough to allow him to break her rule of no men at her home. Something about Tyler got under her skin. Well, she had no intention of dating a lawyer no matter how incredible the chemistry between them. The worst part was he seemed to want more than just sex.

Although the man was amazing at sex.

She wiped away the perspiration on her forehead from the steam rising up from the tub. The towel was going to melt if she didn’t get it out—which suited her purpose perfectly. She turned off the tap.

She reached down to touch the steaming towel and then drew away. “Ow.”

“Are you okay?”

“Just be quiet. Okay? I’m so angry with you right now. How dare you come back into my life when I specifically told you goodbye.”

“Jeez, I’m sorry. I couldn’t help it. I wanted you so badly I would have done anything to be the one you were looking at with that hunger on your face.”

She dropped the towel back into the tub with a satisfying splat. “Have you no pride?” she yelled. “There you are, a successful lawyer. Every woman in the field is trying to snag you. Yet you’ve been reduced to saying silly, sappy things to a woman who’s told you repeated times she doesn’t want anything to do with you. I should sue you for harassment—and use Beaterman as my lawyer while I’m at it.”

She managed to squeeze some of the excess water out of the towel by pressing the base of the bathroom trash can against the tub. Then she wrapped the towel in two other towels to avoid the prospect of the very hot water dripping on her naked body.

Guess it’s a good thing I didn’t bother to get dressed. And isn’t he going to be hot under the collar when I put this burning hot towel on his back?

“Beaterman’s an ass.”

“That’s exactly why I’d use him. He drives you crazy, and he’d bust your butt, just to impress me.” She eyed the steam coming off the towel. “This is really, really hot,” she warned him as she approached the bed.

“The hotter the better.” He grimaced again.

She felt her conscience kicking in. Too bad, since she felt like kicking him.

“No, I mean, it’s seriously hot.” She turned around just short of the bed to take it back and rinse it in cold water.

“I can stand a little heat, which is exactly why I’m still interested in you. Even if everyone tells me you’re a bitch. Even if they tell me you’re not someone to snag or bag. Even when you snarl at me.”

Tina turned around. Snarling.

“Well, you may have bagged me, but you certainly haven’t snagged me.” She leaned over the bed and dumped the hot towel directly on his back over the sheet.

Tyler made a sound, a cross between a moan and a grunt. He came up off the bed a few inches before falling back onto the bed. Those beautiful eyes actually rolled. “Damn. Damn. Damn!”

Were there tears in those incredible eyes or were they just watering? Tina didn’t know, but she felt like a murderer.

She dumped the towels she’d used to transport the hot towel, then grabbed a bottle of water from the minibar, opened it and poured the entire thing over his back.

His long ohhhhhh of relief made her sink down on the edge of the bed, still naked, vulnerable and now feeling guilty as hell.

“My ass is getting all wet,” she complained.

“So is mine,” he choked out.

“This isn’t going well.”

“That’s an understatement. I think you might have to call an ambulance—I think I’ve got second-degree burns.”

Guilt flared, though she didn’t let it show when she barked, “Let me see. You’re probably just being a big baby.” She pulled the wet sheet and sodden towel off his back. His skin was red under there, but she couldn’t see any blisters. “I’m sure you’ll feel fine after we rub some aloe vera on it.”

“Rub?”

“Yeah. I’ve got some in my purse. I intended to come early yesterday to lie by the pool, but there was a small crisis with the dinner, so I didn’t get a chance.”

“I don’t think I trust you to rub anything on me. It will probably be pure alcohol, not aloe vera.”

“I do have an entire minibar from which to choose my poison.”

“You are nasty.”

“A compliment. You must be cooling off.”

“Is the towel still warm? Just put it on my lower back. No rubbing.”

“I’ll rub if I want to. But don’t think that means I feel sorry for you. You’re the one who deceived me. I do not feel guilty.” She muttered the last part under her breath.

He moved his arm to get her attention. She placed the warm towel on his lower back and then risked a look into his face. “I’m sorry,” she found herself saying.

Those blue eyes met hers with a look of total sincerity. “And I’m sorry I deceived you. It was impulsive and stupid, and I shouldn’t have done it. But I’ll never forget or regret it.”

Tina’s heart fluttered, a very uncomfortable sensation. She climbed off the bed to get the aloe vera out of her bag. “I won’t forget it, either, and you definitely owe me two hundred bucks.”

“Don’t you think I was worth it, my little warrior?”

She bared her teeth. “Do you want me to dump a bottle of tequila on your back or the gel?” She held up the bottle but when she made eye contact she noticed he wasn’t looking at the gel, but at her breasts. “Stop.”

“I can’t help it. Your breasts are so beautiful, so perfect.”

“Just stop. I’m mad enough.”

“You’re not mad. You’re confused and you hate the sensation.”

“Get out of my head!” One of the things that bothered her about him was his ability to read her. He was a good lawyer, because he knew people. But she wasn’t going to allow him to get to know her. She had all kinds of things to hide, from him, from herself.

“Leave it. Find another woman. They’re falling all over themselves to get to you. Like Sheila.”

“I don’t want Sheila. I want to see you again.” He cocked an eyebrow. “I figure you owe me after almost burning me to death.”

“After what you did?”

“It was an excellent cause. Weren’t you just a little bit afraid to go home with a stripper you knew nothing about?”

She rubbed her fingers together. “I didn’t take him home. You know I never take anyone home.”

“I meant to a hotel room.” Those eyes smiled at her. “I know you don’t take men home. It’s what gives me hope.”

“I’m not afraid.”

“Sure.”

She wanted to wipe the smug look off his face. “I’m not afraid of anything. I’m a modern woman who can choose whom she goes to bed with. And I had condoms. A whole bunch of condoms.”

He looked her over. “You keep saying that, honey.”

“Why? You can’t do anything about it anyway.”

“Maybe, maybe not. Why are you walking around naked? It’s very callous of you.”

“To remind you of what you’re missing.”

“Really?”

“No. I just didn’t think it was a good idea to try to wring out hot towels in silk. Why should I mess up my clothes when you’ve already seen me in my skin?”

“It’s gorgeous skin.”

“Thank you.”

With the gel in one hand, she crawled carefully over to him. He seemed harmless, although entirely attractive.

She didn’t think she should straddle his waist. He’d probably cry if she did. Leaning over, she looked at his back. Still no blisters.

“I’m going to rub this gel on your back, so don’t act like a baby.”

“Just get it over with.”

She squirted the gel in her hands, rubbed them together and then started on the top of his shoulders. His shoulders were broad and muscular, a nice even tan color. She massaged, getting into a rhythm.

“Hmm, that feels so good.”

It did feel good. In fact, she’d scooted closer, her hip against his hip and hands flat on the muscular plains of his back. The puddle in the sheets didn’t bother her as it still felt warm. “I’m glad it doesn’t hurt,” she said lazily.

“No. It feels so good I guess I’ll have to tip you.” Did he sound as if he were breathing harder?

She sucked in her own breath. Did he have to remind her of what they’d done last night, especially when she had him naked and under her hands? Her nipples tightened and tingled.

She rubbed her moist hands lower, and lower, to the indent of his waist. “The skin is a little red back here. Are you sure I’m not hurting you?”

“Honey, you’re killing me.” He shifted under her hands.

“I should have given you the anti-inflammatory first.”

“This inflammation has nothing to do with my back muscles.”

She laughed.

“Maybe you should stop. Just give me the anti-inflammatory, and I’ll sleep it off.” He sounded disgruntled.

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