“Like this?” He extended his arms out, and the muscles flexed.
“Perfect.” Her voice trembled. Far too telling. She bit at her lip and his gaze lingered there. He rubbed at the back of his neck. “Hands out, please,” she tried to tease.
“And I’m supposed to kiss you now? The biting your lip signal?” He arched an eyebrow, his blue eyes sparkling enticingly at her.
She quivered with anticipation. “Slow down, Rambo, slow down.”
He laughed. “So early I was a ‘too-slow chap’ and now I’m supposed to slow down?”
“I’m in the middle of important research here,” she teased.
“I’ll give you research.” He pumped his eyebrows.
Mia laughed. “Arms out,” she commanded. She wanted to kiss him so badly but teasing like this was almost as fun. Almost.
Zeke groaned, and obeyed.
She put her palms on top of his hands and then very slowly ran them up his taut forearms, over the rounded bumps of his glorious bicep muscles, and to his shoulders. His gaze was locked on her the entire time. All teasing left his blue eyes and they were filled with only desire for her. He was every bit as affected by her touching him as she was by doing it.
She kept her hands on his shoulders, splaying her fingers and exploring the muscles there. “One to ten?” she got out in a raspy voice.
“Ten,” he said softly. “Definitely, definitely a ten.”
“Whoa.” She eased in closer. “So we’re doing well with the touching.”
“I think we’re getting the hang of it. But you could … keep testing if you’d like.”
“I’d like that.” She licked her lips and his gaze got warmer.
Mia was afraid she’d combust before this game was over. She was grateful he’d had her turn the fireplace off. She stepped in closer and inched her hands from his shoulders down along the muscles of his upper back and then slowly worked her way back up, massaging gently as she went. She kneaded the muscles, amazed by how huge and strong he was.
Zeke actually closed his eyes and let out a soft groan. “Ten,” he murmured. “All day long.”
She smiled.
He opened his eyes and his gaze was so fiery hot on her she could hardly keep her focus. Then his hands wrapped around her lower back and rubbed softly up and down, leaving lovely tingles in their wake. “One to ten?” he asked huskily.
Mia closed her eyes and savored his touch. She felt warm all over. “Ten,” she managed.
He hauled her closer and all she could think about was this perfect man holding her. He was a ten in her book.
“I’m not through with the experiment,” she managed to say, but her voice was so breathy she should’ve been embarrassed.
He cocked his head but didn’t release her. “Oh. By all means, finish your experiment. But don’t expect me to let you go.”
Mia smiled. “I can live with that.”
He pulled her even closer, his hands moving tantalizingly across her back. Their bodies fit perfectly together. Her breath all rushed out. Was it too early to scream out that she fancied him? Definitely. She might find herself barmily letting it escape anyway.
She ran her hands up from his back, along his neck and into his hair. For a few seconds, she tickled his scalp and was rewarded with a deep moan and him closing his eyes. “One to ten?” she asked, still trailing her fingers over his scalp.
“What’s our rating scale again?”
She laughed, but she was so gone over him she could hardly remember.
His eyes opened and he captured her with a hungry gaze.
“What’s the number for ‘please never stop touching me, I’m in your power and putty in your hands’?”