All the Pretty Poses (Pretty #2)(32)
Author: M. Leighton

It’s my turn to flinch as he touches my one raw nerve. “I don’t trust anybody.”

“But you can trust me. I’m not the boy I once was, Kennedy. I’ll give you nothing but the truth. Nothing.”

I bite my lip nervously, one reservation still preventing me from diving headlong into everything that Reese is offering.

He must sense my reluctance. “What?” he asks. “What is it?”

“I don’t want to be another of your cruise flings, Reese.”

“You’re not. You could never be.”

I raise my eyes to meet his. “I don’t believe you.”

“Then do it anyway and let me prove it to you. You’re nothing like them and nothing I’ve said or done should tell you otherwise.”

“But Reese—”

“Look, you sleep on it. Just give me tomorrow. And by the end of the day, you won’t even want to say ‘no’.”

I’m tired of arguing, tired of trying to fight it. Tired of trying to fight this, fight him. “Okay,” I agree, relief loosening every taut muscle in my body. I don’t think I was fully aware of how very hard it has been to feign indifference to Reese, to pretend that I want nothing to do with him.

His smile is brilliant and I have the sudden urge to reach over and drag him down on top of me.

Reese gives me some sort of pleased man-growl kind of thing as he leans in toward me. Slowly. Closer and closer. I don’t move away. I just watch his luminous eyes draw near, letting myself get lost in them. For just a moment.

“God, I can’t wait for morning,” he says, his lips so close to mine, I can feel his warm breath fanning them. But Reese doesn’t kiss me. As much as I want him to, he brushes his mouth over my cheek then nuzzles it before pulling away. “Get some sleep. Tomorrow’s going to be a beautiful day.”

I nod as Reese rises and walks toward the door. When he’s half out in the hallway, he stops and looks back at me. He smiles again and winks before he disappears, closing the door behind him.

********

I’m awakened by the tickle of lips and the light scratch of short scruff as someone kisses the curve of my neck. The warmth that floods my body has nothing to do with the heat radiating from the hard, masculine form at my back.

I open my bleary eyes to glance at the bedside clock. Not even 6:00 AM yet. “Don’t you sleep?”

“Not when this is waiting for me in the next room. Do you feel like working out?”

I take a moment to do a quick self-assessment. No nausea, no lightheadedness, and the boat seems to be more stable this morning. “Yeah, I think I do.”

“Good,” Reese says, biting my earlobe and then smacking my butt through the covers before he scoots off the bed. “I brought you some tantalizing clothes to wear. I’ll give you a minute to change and then we’ll go.”

“Wait, I’ll need some things from my room,” I tell him, leaning up onto my elbow.

“I brought your toiletries. Anything else?” Reese looks awfully proud of himself.

“I…uh…I guess not.”

“Five minutes,” he says, opening the door. Before he exits, he glances back at me, his lagoon-colored eyes twinkling. “Unless you need some help getting dressed. In that case—”

“No, I don’t,” I tell him, trying not to smile. “I’ll be out in five minutes.”

I can hear his dejected sigh all the way across the room before he shuts the door, muttering, “I don’t know why you’d turn down a perfectly good offer of help.”

I shake my head as I crawl from the warmth of the plush duvet and head for the en-suite bathroom. My guts are a jittery mess knowing that Reese is waiting for me and that today he’s going to be turning up the charm (and likely the heat) big time.

For one heartbeat, the bitter skeptic in me starts to speak up, but I smother her with my happiness until I don’t hear her at all anymore. Five minutes later, I’m opening the stateroom door to find Reese leaning up against the wall, arms and ankles crossed, waiting for me.

His eyes rake me from head to toe, taking in the skintight leggings and snug cap-sleeved tee that he brought me. I stop and let him look his fill. Then, since I’m feeling happy and plucky, I decide to give him the same treatment.

I start at Reese’s white sneakers, working my way up the loose black running pants that hang just right on his slim hips to the flat stomach that’s so perfectly defined beneath his dark purple fitted tank top. His well-developed pecs are clearly discernible beneath the fabric, his wide shoulders and muscular arms left open to my roving gaze.

When I skim his tanned throat and reach his face, his expression has turned from playful to fiery. His eyes are dark and his jaw is clenched. “I should warn you,” he says softly, pushing away from the wall and walking to within an inch of me. He stops, looming over me until I have to crane my neck to maintain eye contact. “If you do that again, I’ll haul your perfect little ass back into that room and give you the spanking you deserve for teasing me like that. Got it?”

A thrill races along my nerve endings, bringing my skin to tingling life at his nearness. “Got it.”

“Wanna try it again and see if I’m telling the truth?”

He leans in ever so slightly, his chest brushing mine, my ni**les hardening in response. He’s teasing me and, for some reason, it’s making me feel light and playful rather than defensive. Light and playful and daring. I arch my back the tiniest bit, rubbing my br**sts against him in an almost imperceptible way. In exotic dancing, I learned all sorts of subtle ways to move my body to titillate and entice. I’ve just never used them on a man up close before.

“Holy shit, woman. You didn’t tell me you liked to play with fire,” he growls.

“What would be the fun in warning you?” I ask with a grin.

“I’m gonna count to three. One…two…”

Before he can get to three, I slide out from between him and the wall and, with a tiny squeal, move quickly down the hall. When I glance back over my shoulder, his eyes are glued to my butt. Giving it an extra little swing, I turn my head and smile.

Reese might be right. This might be the best few weeks of my life.

Until it’s over.

********

When we reach the gym, it’s empty. “I guess we beat Brian this morning,” I say as Reese opens the door for me.

“Nope. He won’t be working you out anymore,” he admits, making his way to the stereo to turn on the music.