feast. The flickering light didn’t give any hint beyond the faint rebuke in her words, so he had no idea if she was surprised to see him, or relieved.
“I told you I would be.”
“Can I trust you to keep your promises?”
“Yes,” Tru said seriously.
If he was a bastard, he was an honest one. He’d never promised a woman anything he couldn’t deliver, not even to get what he wanted.
And he wanted Penelope Sheehan. A lot.
“I wondered. Not for me,” she said, hunching her shoulders. “It would hit Adrian hard if you vanished on us. He’s starting to think he can trust you.”
Now he wasn’t sure if she meant Adrian . . . or herself. He needed to tread carefully, reassure without making more promises. Not an easy task when she looked so tired and worried, the weight of the world on her shoulders. The unfamiliar urge to swear he’d make it all better, somehow, bubbled up. Through sheer will, he quashed that impulse.
“I’ll stick to the terms of our agreement. I won’t disappear.”
That should satisfy her. And tomorrow he’d kiss her again. Tru was surprised how much he looked forward to that. Just a kiss. And to seeing if he could rouse her to a little more enthusiasm.
A shimmer of awareness prickled over his skin. He shifted and saw that she was watching him.
“Thank you,” she said, voice low.
Those words couldn’t come easy; she was used to people giving way to her. She wasn’t accustomed to bargaining for what she needed. The Orchid gestured, and people made room. Maybe she did need somebody like Tru in her life, at least for a while. To remind her what it was to be human. Ironic, that, when he’d almost forgotten. They fell on opposite sides of the spectrum. He was too much animal, and she was too much magic.
“Long day?”
When Pen nodded, he eased in behind her. Her quiescence moved him to unexpected optimism . She must trust you a little to allow you her back. Without asking permission, he rested his hands on her shoulders, finding the knots that came from hours behind the wheel. Someone unused to driving would hurt after hours of it, both from bad roads and from wrestling the truck.
“Go ahead.” Her words were soft, even if her body was tense.
People don’t touch her like this .
In a way, that permission was more intimate than sex. Which should have put him off. But he’d gentled women this way before, conditioning them to crave his touch. It wouldn’t be any different this time. Would it?
With light pressure, he rubbed the tension away, thumbs circling counter to his kneading fingers. First she sat still, but the longer he worked, the more she leaned, tipping forward so he could reach more of her. He didn’t comment on the silent invitation, merely worked his way down her spine in confident strokes. She made small sounds now and then, but it wasn’t sexual, only the pleasure of relaxing muscles. Soon he was simply caressing her back in delicate passes while little shivers stole up her spine.
“Is this where you seduce me?” she asked, amusement threading her tone.
But she didn’t sound wholly unwilling to go further. He’d love to draw her back against him, her tempting ass against his hard cock, and kiss the curve of her throat. Too soon for that.
He chuckled. “Hardly. I just thought I’d make you feel better. I promised to take care of you, after all.”
“So you did.” Thoughtful tone. “My ass is sore too, you know. You want to rub it for me?”
It was a joke.
Maybe?
She wasn’t flirting, he thought, or daring him. More curious, as if she wanted to see how far he’d go, if he believed it was beneath him to provide a kindness without the hope of immediate sexual gratifi - cation. He decided to surprise her.
“Roll over on your blanket, and I will.”
She eyed him. “Seriously?”
“Sure.”
“You won’t try to take my pants off?”
That conjured all kinds of delicious images. It had been a long time since he’d kept a woman long
“I told you I would be.”
“Can I trust you to keep your promises?”
“Yes,” Tru said seriously.
If he was a bastard, he was an honest one. He’d never promised a woman anything he couldn’t deliver, not even to get what he wanted.
And he wanted Penelope Sheehan. A lot.
“I wondered. Not for me,” she said, hunching her shoulders. “It would hit Adrian hard if you vanished on us. He’s starting to think he can trust you.”
Now he wasn’t sure if she meant Adrian . . . or herself. He needed to tread carefully, reassure without making more promises. Not an easy task when she looked so tired and worried, the weight of the world on her shoulders. The unfamiliar urge to swear he’d make it all better, somehow, bubbled up. Through sheer will, he quashed that impulse.
“I’ll stick to the terms of our agreement. I won’t disappear.”
That should satisfy her. And tomorrow he’d kiss her again. Tru was surprised how much he looked forward to that. Just a kiss. And to seeing if he could rouse her to a little more enthusiasm.
A shimmer of awareness prickled over his skin. He shifted and saw that she was watching him.
“Thank you,” she said, voice low.
Those words couldn’t come easy; she was used to people giving way to her. She wasn’t accustomed to bargaining for what she needed. The Orchid gestured, and people made room. Maybe she did need somebody like Tru in her life, at least for a while. To remind her what it was to be human. Ironic, that, when he’d almost forgotten. They fell on opposite sides of the spectrum. He was too much animal, and she was too much magic.
“Long day?”
When Pen nodded, he eased in behind her. Her quiescence moved him to unexpected optimism . She must trust you a little to allow you her back. Without asking permission, he rested his hands on her shoulders, finding the knots that came from hours behind the wheel. Someone unused to driving would hurt after hours of it, both from bad roads and from wrestling the truck.
“Go ahead.” Her words were soft, even if her body was tense.
People don’t touch her like this .
In a way, that permission was more intimate than sex. Which should have put him off. But he’d gentled women this way before, conditioning them to crave his touch. It wouldn’t be any different this time. Would it?
With light pressure, he rubbed the tension away, thumbs circling counter to his kneading fingers. First she sat still, but the longer he worked, the more she leaned, tipping forward so he could reach more of her. He didn’t comment on the silent invitation, merely worked his way down her spine in confident strokes. She made small sounds now and then, but it wasn’t sexual, only the pleasure of relaxing muscles. Soon he was simply caressing her back in delicate passes while little shivers stole up her spine.
“Is this where you seduce me?” she asked, amusement threading her tone.
But she didn’t sound wholly unwilling to go further. He’d love to draw her back against him, her tempting ass against his hard cock, and kiss the curve of her throat. Too soon for that.
He chuckled. “Hardly. I just thought I’d make you feel better. I promised to take care of you, after all.”
“So you did.” Thoughtful tone. “My ass is sore too, you know. You want to rub it for me?”
It was a joke.
Maybe?
She wasn’t flirting, he thought, or daring him. More curious, as if she wanted to see how far he’d go, if he believed it was beneath him to provide a kindness without the hope of immediate sexual gratifi - cation. He decided to surprise her.
“Roll over on your blanket, and I will.”
She eyed him. “Seriously?”
“Sure.”
“You won’t try to take my pants off?”
That conjured all kinds of delicious images. It had been a long time since he’d kept a woman long
Similar Books
