He just quirked up an eyebrow. “Do you want to sleep with me while we’re here, or not?”
Leave it to Seth to get right to the point.
Not that he had much of a choice, she reasoned. He had to know where to put the suitcases. Her desperate gaze landed on the carton of water he’d carried in and set on an entryway table. “Do you think I could have one of those waters?” she asked.
“Sure.” He stepped over to the table and extricated one of the bottles from the plastic. He cracked open the lid and handed it to her. She drank, glancing furtively at his face while she did.
?
?No strings attached? We both walk away afterward?”
“It would be for the best. But God knows that while we’re here, I’ll want you,” he said, his simple, primal honesty sending a thrill through her. His gaze sunk over her face. “Again and again.”
She spilled some of the water on her chin, set off balance by his quiet, restrained intensity. “It’s like I told you in that parking lot. Now that it started, I can’t imagine stopping until this thing has played out.”
“What if I’m not fully convinced, like you are, that it’s ‘for the best’ to keep it to mere getaway sex?” she asked frankly, wiping her chin.
“You mean because you feel I’m unreasonable about thinking we wouldn’t work in the real world?”
She laughed. “In the unreal world, right? Hollywood? Yeah. That’s what I mean.”
“I told you we don’t have to agree on everything to enjoy each other. It’s up to you whether or not you want to explore this . . . heat between us. If you think it would be a bad idea, then we’ll sleep in separate bedrooms. I’d understand completely.” He paused, considering. “I wouldn’t like it though.”
Some of the heat he’d referred to seemed to rush through her now. Her cheeks burned. Her sex tingled.
Don’t agree. You know what might happen.
But what if that dreaded thing had already occurred, and she was just blinding herself to that fact? Her work wasn’t available here in these woods to distract her. It was just Seth and her.
She agreed with Seth though. She wasn’t a coward. If she left this “heat” between them unexplored, she’d regret it. A lot.
“It all seems a little mercenary, the way you talk about it.” She met his stare unflinchingly. “But maybe you’re right to be straightforward. What’s more honest than wanting someone? And I think we both know that applies to us, in spades,” she added wryly under her breath. She inhaled for courage. “So I guess that’s it. It would be stupid for us to sleep in separate rooms. Stupid and dishonest.”
He nodded once, unsmiling. He looked quite formidable.
“Since we’re being honest, I want you to know that I’ll use protection when we’re together,” he said. “But I’m healthy. I just had a physical a few weeks ago, and I haven’t been with anyone else since then.”
She gave him a grateful smile, appreciating him bringing up the topic. His straightforward candor. “Yeah. I’m healthy too. My physical was more like months ago, but I haven’t been with anyone since then, either,” she admitted, hating the rush of color in her cheeks at the admission. She cleared her throat. “Plus, I’m on the pill.” He remained unmoving. Unsmiling. “Don’t look so serious, Seth,” she chided lightly, even though deep down, she was a little intimidated by her agreement to his proposal . . . by the laying out of the rules and boundaries. She started to peel the wig off, wincing. “It doesn’t match a sexy, no-strings-attached situation, you know.”
“That’s what you keep calling it, not me,” he said, picking up four large bags at once.
“What do you call it?” she demanded, freezing in her task.
He cast an amused, resigned glance her way as he straightened. “Trouble worth risking.”
She stood there, speechless, watching him saunter away.
Ten
He put away the supplies and re-familiarized himself with the property. Afterward, he made several calls, including one to Charles to update him on their arrival. While he did so, he closely studied the entrance to the property and the surrounding woods. He’d been certain no one had followed them from St. Louis. He was alone in these woods.
Alone with Gia.
When he’d spoken to John Corcoran, the owner of the residence, while they were stopped on the road earlier, John had encouraged them to choose any suite they liked, including the master. Seth had put their things in a large guest suite, however, not wanting to infringe too greatly on John and Jennifer’s hospitality and privacy. The suite was nearly as large as the master, and equally as comfortable. Plus, it possessed one feature he found extremely appealing . . .
Gia was showering when he finished his call. The thought of joining her in the shower tempted him—a lot. But she would be clean and sweet by now, while he still felt grubby and stiff from the long drive. Instead, he grabbed some clothes and showered in the bathroom of a second, smaller guest room.
Gia was standing in the well-appointed, modern kitchen when he entered it a while later. She pulled her hand back hastily from a teakettle when she saw him, as if she’d been caught red-handed at something. He came to a standstill several feet into the kitchen when he took in her appearance. She stared at him with huge eyes, her self-consciousness obvious.