“Then go for it. Seduce him when he comes by tomorrow night. That’s what I would do.”
“Hellooo. Are you missing something here, Erin? He only slept with me because the vials got switched. Besides, he’s not going to want to sleep with me tomorrow because I’ll be giving him a libido suppressant.”
Erin lifted one eyebrow, her lips curled. “Then switch them again.”
Laura’s eyes opened wide in surprise at her friend’s suggestion. She never would have considered doing such a thing. “I couldn’t do that.”
“Tsk, tsk, Laura—always the good girl. Always following the rules and coloring within the lines. Let me ask you a question. Did you enjoy yourself?”
The word enjoy was an understatement. “Yes.”
“Did he enjoy himself?”
She recalled the heated, lustful look in his eyes. The way his body had reacted to her touch and the way he moaned in delight at the peak of his orgasm. A tremor rippled through her just thinking about it.
“I guess so.”
Erin waved her hand and rushed on. “Of course he did. And he would enjoy himself again. You both would. So what’s the big issue?”
Laura rolled her eyes heavenward. “The big issue? Let’s try it’s immoral…” She stretched out that last word. “Besides, what about the experiment? We have to present our findings to the board next week. If we don’t have the results they’re looking for, our grant won’t be approved, and then we’re out of a job. All of us. Including you,” she lectured, wagging her finger to emphasize the point.
“The key words being next week, Laura. You still have plenty of time. Plenty of time to test the experiment and plenty of time to slip between the sheets with a hunk of a guy who has a reputation for fulfilling every woman’s secret desire.”
Laura eyed her friend. She had no doubt he could fulfill her every desire. Come to think of it, he already had.
“I didn’t know you were so devious. Remind me to fire you in the morning,” she said good-naturedly.
Erin grinned and pulled up in front of Laura’s apartment. “Just think about it.”
Laura folded her arms across her chest. “I did, and I’m not doing it,” she said firmly. “Thanks for the lift, Erin. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Laura, wait. Do you really have errands to run in the morning?”
“No,” she admitted honestly.
“I’ll swing by and pick you up for the game. There is no sense in us taking two cars when I have to drive right by here anyway.”
Laura nodded in agreement. “Sounds good. I’ll see you then.” She climbed from the car, waved to her friend, and hurried up the walkway to her building. How on earth could Erin have suggested something so ludicrous?
She tried to push their absurd conversation to the back of her mind, but despite her efforts it kept creeping back. She pulled open the heavy glass door to the front entrance and stepped inside. All she wanted to do was have a warm bath, a hot cup of tea, and crawl into bed and get a good night’s sleep before tomorrow’s ball game. She did not want to spend one more second thinking about doing something so devious. Because the more she thought about it, the better it sounded.
Oh hell!
Chapter 5
Still clad in her company softball uniform, Laura kicked back on a cushioned lounger in the director’s private, tree-fringed backyard while she sipped ice-cold lemonade and nursed her sore elbow. She tipped her chin, drinking in the warm afternoon sun rays as the floral arrangement beside her perfumed the air and enticed her senses.
Why the director had insisted on her playing first base during the game was beyond her. Well, maybe not totally beyond her. Since everyone knew she couldn’t even catch a cold with a Kleenex, playing first base gave the director and his personal handpicked team an unfair advantage. That may bring happiness and harmony into his life, but it sure as hell didn’t bring it into hers!
Her gaze sifted over her coworkers and settled on Jay. Moving toward her, he walked around the perimeter of the kidney-shaped pool and negotiated his way through the crowd. Gaze riveted, she appraised him as he approached. He’d changed out of his tight, ass-hugging, thigh-molding uniform and into a pair of deep blue knee-length swim shorts that rode low on his hips and exposed his athletic body. She acknowledged the sudden flare of need as her glance flitted across his face and panned down the length of him, registering every delicious detail of his bronzed skin, sculpted chest, and tight abdominals. As she devoured him from afar, a restless ache settled deep between her legs.
She brushed her tongue over her dry lips as she debated which look she preferred more, the tight softball uniform or the sexy, low-slung swim trunks. Suddenly Erin’s devious suggestion to switch the vials rushed through her mind like a windstorm and caused her blood to stir. A wave of lust clawed to the surface despite her efforts to bank her desires.
Laura glanced around and noticed that she wasn’t the only one taking pleasure in the view. With heat in their eyes, a few women in the pool called out for him to join them.
After he gave a quick nod of acknowledgment, his glance returned to Laura. His eyes glimmered with dark sensuality as his gaze collided with hers. Warmth and familiarity resonated through her. With long, determined strides he continued to close the gap between them.
Out of nowhere, Sue from finance pounced before him like a dog, or rather, bitch in heat, blocking his path. Lord, if the woman had a tail, it’d be wagging.
They spoke for a moment, but Laura couldn’t hear the exchange over the loud volleyball game in the pool.
Head swung back, Sue’s long blond hair bounced over her waify shoulders as she shared a private chuckle with Jay. Her long, lithe attributes certainly fit Jay’s descriptive requirements.
The woman looked like she was waiting for
