As soon as she said it, a wave of heat slapped her in the face as if she left an air-conditioned hotel in the middle of a southern summer. It wasn’t just a massage. Maybe for Lena, who was doing her job. But for Jess it would be an exercise in self-control. Lena’s touch had excited her even before they had kissed. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe she should take back her offer. Maybe—
“Oh, thank you.” Lena’s grateful smile lit up her face, and Jess knew she was lost.
“Wonderful idea. But you need to change her diaper before I can show her off.” Her mom handed Ella over with a grin.
Jess pasted a light smile on her face she didn’t feel at all. “I’ll let you two get back to your work, and I’ll take a nap with Ella.”
Not that she would be able to relax for a second, but at least she could work out a strategy. She worked in a profession that included touching semi-naked people all the time, and she’d never once felt even a twinge of arousal. So if she was assisting Lena at her work, she’d approach it exactly the way she approached her own work.
And she had only three hours to get in the right frame of mind.
Chapter Eighteen
Lena trailed both hands down Jess’s back, then pulled up the towel to cover her. After an hour of oiling skin, kneading muscles, and pressing trigger points, Jess was still as stiff and full of knots as the pines at the beach house. Lena had tried every trick in her book, but it still hadn’t been enough to get Jess to relax. She would never have accepted Jess’s offer if she had known how uncomfortable the experience would be for her.
Remembering her client, she suppressed a sigh and pasted on a smile. “Never forget a sheet or towel after the massage. Unless you find another method of keeping warm together.”
Patty giggled, as she’d been doing all evening. Maybe Jess hadn’t been able to relax with that sound. “Thank you, Lena. And you too.” She awkwardly patted Jess’s back. “I’ll go and wash my hands and change.”
Lena’s fingers itched to stroke through Jess’s ruffled hair, but that would be highly inappropriate. She went to the head of the table and squatted down to eye level instead. “Thank you. Everything okay?”
Jess lifted her head out of the headrest and met Lena’s gaze. “Sure. Everything is perfect.” But her eyes were the color of a stormy sea, and tiny lines showing her tension belied the tone.
Patty’s giggles announced she finished dressing, and Lena rose to show her out. She couldn’t wait to return to Jess and see if she could help her lose some of that tension.
When she came back into the room, Jess had crossed her arms under her head to raise her upper body a little. “Your patience is amazing.”
“Just because I showed her the same techniques about a million times? Was it too uncomfortable?” She picked up a towel that had fallen to the floor and folded it. Not that it needed folding since it was going to be washed, but at least it kept her gaze off Jess’s shoulders. Her toned, bare shoulders that gleamed golden in the candlelight.
“No, it was okay. But I hope for the sake of her partner she’ll be a bit more active when she massages them. Sometimes her touch didn’t even register with me.” She snorted. “And the constant giggling.”
“She was nervous. It’s not every day you get to touch a naked stranger.”
Jess smiled. “You’re too nice. Are you nervous when you teach these courses?”
“Nope.” That wasn’t a lie. Normally, she wasn’t. But today she had been nervous, just not for the reasons Jess suggested. It had thrown her that Jess wasn’t a stranger. She could handle touching random people; that did nothing to her. But knowing the woman on the table was the woman who had kissed her passionately three nights ago was something completely different. And that was why she should go get the towels from the bathroom and start the washing machine to give Jess time to get up and get dressed.
Instead, she placed the folded towel on the small table and stepped closer. “I’m sorry the massage wasn’t relaxing. Let me make it up to you.” She held up the bottle of massage oil and raised her eyebrows.
Something flickered in Jess’s eyes. Hesitation? Attraction? The reflection of the candlelight?
Whatever it was, it captivated Lena and filled her with sparkling energy she couldn’t wait to share with Jess.
With a decisive nod, Jess lowered her head and returned her arms to her sides under the towel covering her.
Lena took her position at Jess’s side and slowly removed the towel. Flawless skin hid the coiled muscles she knew she’d find. “Whenever you want me to stop, tell me.” She poured a generous portion of the massage oil into her left hand and put the bottle away.
Then, as the oil warmed in her hand and the scent of jasmine and orange rose, she trickled it onto Jess’s spine. Drop by drop, she moved from between her shoulder blades to the slight dip in her lower back. Goosebumps followed.
“Too cold?” Lena placed her free hand on Jess’s lower back. The skin was warm beneath her palm. And incredibly soft. But she didn’t want to think about that now.
“No.” Jess’s voice was muffled by the headrest, and the muscles vibrated beneath Lena’s touch.
With long strokes along Jess’s spine, over her shoulder blades, and back down again, Lena distributed the oil and warmed both her hands and Jess’s skin.
The muscles stiffened under her fingers, but after a few repetitions, Jess let go and Lena was able to separate the problematic areas from the general tension. The area between her shoulder blades and neck called for Lena’s attention. Her focus was on
