Hands On. Debbi Rawlins

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СКАЧАТЬ looked inside as she was expected to. “Has Mr. Blankenship been running this place long?”

      The other woman’s brows pulled together in a slight frown and she seemed to briefly assess Cassie. “I don’t know. I’ve only been with him for a few months. Your husband seems to be taking a long time.”

      Cassie waved a dismissive hand, privately wondering about Dalton himself. “He’s probably wiping down his new toy. His mother just bought him the Jag.” She sighed dramatically. “I’m a little nervous about being here.”

      Mary Jane’s expression softened. “Everyone is nervous at first.”

      “Frankly, even though I was the one who pushed Dalton into this, I don’t know anything about Mr. Blankenship. Like how long he’s been doing this…his success rate…or anything.”

      Understanding registered in Mary Jane’s eyes. If Cassie’s questions had made her suspicious, the crisis was over. “Don’t worry. Really.” She wrinkled her nose. “I can’t quote statistics, but I know that most couples leave here with renewed interest in each other. Of the repeats, four out of five marriages remain intact.”

      “Repeats?”

      “You know, after a month or so, most couples come back for a refresher course.”

      Oh, brother. Cassie’s stomach flipped flopped. One week here was bad enough.

      Mary Jane started for the door. “Where is that husband of yours?”

      “Here I am.” Dalton appeared in the doorway suddenly. “You girls miss me?”

      “Girls?” Cassie gave him an arched look.

      “What? Is that politically incorrect?” He shrugged, directing a wink at Mary Jane as he set down their two suitcases.

      Cassie made a sound of exasperation. “See why I need a couch for him?”

      He gave her a private warning look. “Come on now, honey, you aren’t going to start that again.”

      Mary Jane smiled and then looked at her watch. “Oops! Cocktail hour has started. Freshen up, and then come on down and meet the group.” She closed the door on her way out.

      “The closet is over there.” Cassie pointed and then headed for the bathroom.

      “Excuse me.”

      She glanced at him.

      “Are you expecting me to carry your bag to the closet? Wouldn’t that be politically incorrect?”

      She put a hand on her hip. “Did I ask you to carry it?”

      He smiled and picked up her bag along with his. “Don’t get huffy. It was only a question.”

      “Do you want the bathroom first?”

      “No, you go ahead.” Ignoring her curt tone, he added, “See, we can be pretty civil when we put our minds to it.”

      He signaled something with his eyes she didn’t understand. But it would have to wait. Nature called insistently. She slipped into the bathroom and closed the door. After she’d taken care of the important business, she splashed her face with water that wasn’t nearly as cold as her feet.

      What was she so nervous about? Everything was going smoothly. Mary Jane was a bit of an airhead, which worked to their advantage. From all reports, Bask shunned violence. If anything went wrong, and he got suspicious, he’d be the first one to hit the road.

      So why was she so edgy? Even if they were discovered, Dalton was here. He had a lot of experience. He could easily handle any physical confrontation.

      Oh, God. Talk about being an airhead. Dalton was the problem. No more denying it.

      She gave her face another dousing before she dried off. How could she possibly find that aggravating man so sexy? Sure, he had great biceps. With the way his polo shirt hugged his arms, anyone would notice. Just like the fit of his snug jeans. Of course she’d taken note of his great butt. Any red-blooded woman would.

      She groaned and threw the towel back on the rack. She’d have to get out both her hairbrush and toothbrush before she went downstairs. For now she combed her fingers through her hair. It hung limp from the humidity but she wasn’t trying to impress anyone. She gave it an extra fluff and then opened the door.

      Dalton was sprawled out across the bed. Not just on one side, but more in the middle. He grinned and patted the side closest to her. “Great mattress. Come try it out.”

      She swallowed. “I’ll flip you for it.”

      “Cassie…” He drawled her name like a warning.

      “Heads you get the bed. Tails you get the floor.”

      “Come on, honey.” Before she could respond, he put a silencing finger to his lips, and crooked his other one, beckoning her to come closer.

      She hesitated at first, but he looked serious, not like he was baiting her, so she carefully sat on the edge of the mattress. He shook his head and motioned for her to move closer. She inched in, and leaned toward him.

      He cupped the back of her neck and drew her close to his face. “I think the room is bugged,” he whispered.

      “Are you kidding?” She spoke too loudly and he put a finger to her lips. She had the ridiculous urge to suck it into her mouth, and she tried to move back.

      He held her firmly in place. “Come on, honey, just a quickie like the old days. Those people will still be down there.” And then in a voice so low she could barely hear, he said, “Just play along. Anything you have to say they shouldn’t hear, you’ll have to get real close like this and whisper.”

      He’d pushed back her hair, his lips brushing the side of her ear as he spoke. Goose bumps surfaced on her skin. She’d absolutely die if he saw them.

      “Where did you see the bugs?”

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