That was definitely something she’d have to rectify.
Marc mentally gave himself a good hard scolding and lectured himself on keeping his hands off her, despite the sexual sparks arcing between them. What the hell had he been thinking? He’d nearly kissed her. Thank God common sense had dictated, and sound reason found its way back into his brain before he did something he’d regret later. Yeah, later. Because he certainly wouldn’t regret it while he was doing it with her. Oh no. Not at all. If he had her in his arms, he’d enjoy every damn minute of it. Exploring that curvaceous body of hers, kissing that lush mouth, running his thumbs and his tongue over her gorgeous pink nipples. Yeah, he’d glimpsed those pert buds through her track jacket. All hard and swollen and begging for his mouth.
His cock swelled almost painfully, and he shifted to hide his arousal. Marc clenched his jaw to stifle a moan and moved to the embankment. He turned to her. “Need a hand?”
Her eyes snapped up, as if she too had been lost in thought. “No, I’m good, thanks.”
She climbed from the water and he followed behind her. She grabbed her iPod, murmured something under her breath about it being ruined, and walked to the running track. When she reached the trail, she turned to him, soaking wet. A cool fall breeze blew over them and she gave a slight shiver. As he took in the bedraggled sight of her, his protective instincts kicked into high gear. Sure he was a security specialist, a bodyguard for a living, but whatever had suddenly come over him went deeper than that. Candace was strong and capable, but there was a guarded vulnerability in her eyes that really got to him. Had she been hurt in the past?
She jerked her thumb toward the inn. “I need to head back.”
“I’m with you on that.”
Candace scanned the length of him, then her eyes widened, almost apologetically. “I never thought. You probably don’t have a change of clothes with you.”
“I do. In my van. I come equipped.” He neglected to tell her that his van also came equipped with a security camera, recording their actions even now, as they stood there staring at each other.
She exhaled a relieved breath and began to make her way back. “Good. I’d hate to cost you a day’s work by having you go home to change.”
Jesus, how refreshing. Marc was used to hanging around pampered movie stars who didn’t give a rat’s ass if their actions resulted in him losing a day’s work. Candace really was different from those divas. She seemed so natural, so down to earth.
Marc hurried his steps to catch up and decided to probe for information. If he was going to protect her without her knowledge, he needed to know more about her.
“How long have you been a designer?”
“Officially for about five years now. Although, in reality more like twenty-five.”
“Twenty-five?”
She laughed. “Yeah, Lindsay, Anna and I have been tearing our rooms apart and putting them back together since we were kids.”
Testing her, he said, “Your mom and dad must have loved that.”
She hesitated for a moment before continuing, “Oh, they sure did. I can’t tell you how many times they grounded me until I put everything in order again.”
The fact that she included her father in the picture didn’t elude him. “Tell me, Candace, what do you do for fun in Mason Creek?”
“You mean you’re not from around here?”
Damn. So much for blending in as a local and keeping his cover. It was a small town, yet still big enough that not everyone knew everyone else. “I’m new in town. Been sleeping in my van until my new shop is ready.” He resisted the urge to cringe at his bold-faced lie.
“New shop?”
“Yeah, new workshop,” he said, not bothering to elaborate.
“Your parents aren’t from around here?”
“No. We’re from the city.” He neglected to tell her which city.
“Relatives?”
“No.”
“Then what brings a city boy to Mason Creek?”
He gestured toward his van. “Work. So you never did tell me what you do around here for fun.”
Ignoring his comment, she said, “Maybe once we get the inn finished, you’ll be able to get a room until your place is ready.” She crinkled her nose and her green eyes glistened in the sunlight. “On the other hand, maybe it’s not such a great idea.”
“Why?”
“Well, I never thought to consider—”
“Consider what?”
“That any of the rooms would appeal to you.”
He furrowed his brow, confused. “Why wouldn’t they appeal to me?”
“It’s just that, well, we’re designing fantasy-inspired theme rooms.”
That took him by surprise. “Really?”
Candace grinned. “Yeah, really.”
“You mean to tell me Pamina hired you to create sex rooms?”
She nodded and chuckled lightly, obviously enjoying the easy flow of conversation as much as he was. “I know. Who would have thought? She doesn’t seem the type, does she?”
Suddenly intrigued, he said, “Speaking of types, tell me more about these rooms and exactly what you’re planning on doing with yours.”
3
Oh God, she was smitten.
As they walked back to the inn, she described with both enthusiasm and detail how she wanted to create a room designed for stamina to accommodate the actively inclined. With genuine interest, Marc listened to her ramble on, and she really liked that about him. Most men couldn’t care less about what she had to say and would tune her out whenever she talked about her work. But not Marc. He really paid attention to every detail, even asking intelligent questions, making her wonder if he had a background in design.
She enjoyed talking to him, and it occurred to her that they had a lot in common, a lot of similar interests. Candace appreciated the way his dark passionate eyes widened with intrigue and fascination as she described her concepts, and the way that nice mouth of his turned up at the corners when he smiled or probed for more information. He was strong and protective and so damn adorable, it had her feeling all
