What was happening to him? When had he lost his ability to compartmentalize his feelings, to keep his trainee firmly penned in a place in his mind where she couldn’t get anywhere near his heart?
It had happened without his permission, skipping past his rational mind to lodge directly in his soul. He could play at being Master Professional Trainer all he liked with her, but he could no longer deny it. Skylar had seen past his façade to the real man beneath. From the instant he’d taken her hand when she’d first arrived on the island, he’d lost his heart to her. It was a relief to finally admit it, if only to himself.
The question was—what the hell was he going to do about it?
He walked quickly toward the tub, holding Skylar’s wet, shivering body close, not caring that his clothes were getting soaked. Unable to help himself, he nuzzled his face against her neck, breathing in her scent, his cock hard with lust. He longed to kiss her, to make love to her, to hold her in his arms and never let her go.
He was losing his fucking mind.
Gripping himself hard by the metaphorical scruff of his own neck, he made one last, desperate effort to wrestle himself back into professional trainer mode.
He had turned on the hot tub heater while she was doing her time-out in the corner, and steam was now rising gently from its surface. He set her down on the wooden bench that circled the tub so that her feet slipped into the water.
“Oh, it’s hot, Sir,” she cried, pulling them back. She was still shivering, her arms now wrapped tightly around her torso.
“Take your time,” he said, hoping his voice didn’t betray the war going on inside him. “It feels hotter than it is because your body is chilled. Ease yourself in slowly.”
Tentatively, she dipped her feet in again, this time settling them on the top step, the water up to her ankles. She looked so lovely, her soft cheeks flushed, her blond hair soaked to dark honey, her rosy nipples hard as marbles.
His tenuous resolve shattered in the face of her breathtaking beauty. Before he could stop himself, he kicked off his boots and pulled his shirt over his head. Unzipping his jeans, he took them off, along with his underwear and socks.
Naked, he stepped into the tub beside her, quickly lowering himself into the steaming water. He reached for the button mounted on the back wall and pushed it, causing the water to froth and churn. He held out his arms to her, fully aware his behavior at the moment was completely inappropriate, but beyond caring.
Eyes wide, Skylar slid into the water beside him. He pulled her onto his lap, her back to him, and wrapped his arms around her still-chilled body, holding her until the shivering stopped. She felt so good against him, her body supple and strong, her skin soft as rose petals.
He shouldn’t be doing this. He had no excuse, other than his own weakness and his own desires. Even during oral sex training, on the rare occasions he used his own body rather than a volunteer male sub, he would only open his fly and expose himself enough to give the trainee sufficient access. And it wasn’t like she needed him in the tub with her. She was only chilled, and in no particular need of hands-on aftercare.
But it felt so good—so right—to hold her in his arms. She relaxed back against him with a contented sigh. He remained rock hard. All he had to do was shift her just so, angle himself and slide his shaft into that hot, wet cunt…
Fuck. What the hell was he doing?
He lifted her abruptly from his lap and set her down beside him. Getting to his feet, he reached for a towel from the nearby stack and quickly wrapped it around his waist. His cock tented the towel and he turned away, embarrassed at his lack of control, even as he still yearned to take her into his arms. “You can soak a while longer,” he said brusquely. “Someone will be along to collect you.”
Grabbing his clothing, he strode to the bathroom just down the hall. He sat down in one of the stalls and dropped his head into his hands.
He had no right to behave toward his trainee as he just had. She had enough to cope with just learning the basics without his complicating things by getting personal. Way, way too personal. If he couldn’t pull himself together, he’d have to ask Mistress Ella for a different assignment.
Meanwhile, his erection refused to flag, and there was no way he could concentrate. Spitting on his hand, he fisted his cock and roughly, rapidly jerked himself off in an effort to regain some control. He came fast, images of Skylar in the throes of her water-induced orgasm fueling his lust. He sat on the commode a while longer as his pulse slowed and his mind cleared.