Seduce Me

In her hands was a pale green bottle. 'The healing ointment,' she said, and sat on the coffee table right in front of him, between his sprawled legs.

An unwittingly erotic position that made his fantasies even harder to let go of.

She looked into his eyes. 'What's the matter?' Other than being hard as a rock and you being oblivious to what you're doing to me, nothing. Nothing at all. 'How did you know my knee is killing me? Or which one, for that matter.'

'You're favoring your right one here and there.' She opened the buttons down the sides of his sweats from mid-thigh to the hem. She uncapped the bottle and poured some of the stuff into her hands, rubbing them together, her gaze dropping to his right knee, and the six-inch-long scar running down the side of the kneecap.

'It smells awful,' he said, wrinkling his nose.

'But it will feel heavenly.' She put her hands on him, and he hissed in an involuntary breath.

'Cold? Sorry.'

'No, it's…' Heavenly. Only he had no idea if that was because the stuff was soothing or because her hands were on him, rubbing slowly, so achingly slowly, that the rest of him wished it could cry out and feign hurt, too.

'How long since the surgery?' she asked quietly. 'The last one? Nearly eight months now. It's fine. It's healed.'

'And yet you left basketball.'

His gaze lifted from her fingers on his flesh up to her eyes. 'Fine and healed to walk are one thing. Fine and healed to play on a NBA court is another entirely.'

'That must have destroyed you.'

In all this time, no one had ever just put it out on the, table like she just had, not even his family. Avoidance had been done in love and affection, but it had hurt regardless. 'Yes,' he said a little thickly, shocked to find his emotions so close to the surface. 'It did for a while.'

'So what do you do now? With your free time, I mean.'

'Let the general public dunk me at carnivals.'

'Surely you needn't have been forced out of basketball entirely. You could… I don't know. Coach. Announce. Ref-'

'I do. I run leagues and ref for the rec center. Not exactly demanding, I know, but the change of pace was good. Now I watch late night TV without worrying about curfew. I eat what I want, drink what I want. I exercise for fun instead of necessity, and I no longer have to answer to a committee on every little decision I make, including, but not limited to, what kind of shoes I wear and how many hours of sleep I get a night.'

'That must be… freeing.'

'Yeah. So is not having to be a role model when I never asked to be one. So is walking onto a court and knowing there's no pressure, only fun.'

'And you really don't miss it?'

Her heart was in her eyes. For him.

He stared down at her hands on his knee, and then put his hands on her, resting his palms on her thighs. Easy enough to do, since she sat between his sprawled legs. 'I've something better to talk about. Massaging you, for instance.'

She laughed. 'I can't believe the lines you have. Do you expect me to fall for them? Really?'

'Are you saying you don't want me to return the favor?' Leaning in, he took a nibble out of her shoulder, gratified to hear her suck in her breath. 'Because I've got great hands, Sam.'

A helpless little moan escaped her when he started a trail of open-mouthed kisses back up to her throat. 'Are you just trying to avoid talking?'

His hands gently squeezed her thighs and then moved to her waist. He lifted her from the table and set her on his lap.

Perfect. 'Why would I do that?'

'I don't-' Another sexy little half whimper when he took the lobe of her ear lightly between his teeth. 'I don't know.'

'I have nothing against talking,' he murmured, and made his way down her jaw, his hands encircling her, gliding up and down her slim spine. 'You talk all you want.' Mouth to her ear now, he added, 'While I kiss you from head to toe.'

Laughing, she leaned away from him. 'Your knee must feel all better.'

'Actually…' He stretched it out. 'Yes. Much.'

She smiled sweetly. 'Good.' Rising, she grabbed the bottle and held it out to him. 'You can take this with you. Rub it on a couple of times a day-'

Her words were cut off when he tugged her back down, pulled her against him and covered her mouth with his. A little overwhelmed, Sam went still for a second.

Apparently he took this for a challenge because he softened his hold immediately, as if instinctively knowing she could resist his aggressive hunger, but not slow and seductive desire…

He slid a hand into her hair at the nape of her neck, the other arm banding low on her hips, all while gently, tenderly, playing at her mouth with his knowing, talented one. He kissed one side, and then the other, and then slowly licked her lower lip until she let it tremble open.

And only then did he glide his tongue against hers in an age-old dance that had her hips mimicking the motion, and giving away what her mind had resisted but her body had no intention of withstanding.

'Your bathing suit is still damp.' Over the material of her dress, his hand slipped down her back again, lower this time, over the curve of a buttock, which he palmed.

Her eyes drifted shut, and she let out a little shiver of anticipation.

'Cold?' he murmured, pulling her even closer, his hands warm on her body

'No.'

His gaze met hers, his fingers spread wide on her belly now, the very tips just brushing the underside of her breast, which tightened in its eagerness. 'Sure?'

She nodded, silently admitting it wasn't a chill giving her goose bumps and hard nipples.

A soft smile curved his mouth, which he touched lightly to hers, just as the hand on her back softened its grip as well, soothing now as it stroked the length of her. 'You really did invite me up here just to put that lotion on my knee, didn't you. Not to have wild, uninhibited sex-'

'That's right.' She laughed, touched her forehead to his. 'But I've thought about… wild, uninhibited sex. A lot. Does that count?'

'Oh, yeah.' His sigh was long-suffering. 'I guess it's another cold shower night for me.'

That got a choked laugh out of her. 'Another?'

'I spent a half hour in one after the midnight bodysurfing event.'

'What, the ocean wasn't cold enough for you?'

'Not with you in it.'

He saw a cocky smile break over her face, and he groaned. 'Oh boy, now I've done it, I've given you even more power over me.'

'I have a feeling you never let anyone have power over you,' she said.

'Not often, I'll give you that. That lotion is good stuff. What other magic do you have?'

'That was it. My one trick.'

Cocking his head, he studied her, a small smile playing on his lips. 'I doubt that. You're an interesting woman, Sam. I like that. I like you.'

'I'm not so interesting.'

'You run a cafe that serves sandwiches like ham, seaweed, artichoke hearts and mozzarella cheese on whole wheat, and yet you can't make brownies to save your life. You're a natural around kids and yet the thought of settling down with a man in a relationship gives you hives-'

'You're not exactly one to talk-'

'But this is about you.' He touched a finger to her cheek. 'You're nervous dangling above a small tank of water and yet you'll surf in the ocean.' Laughing, he shook his head. 'A bundle of contradictions, but the sexiest bundle