Burning Seduction by Vella Day Page A

hands to himself.
    He stepped inside, closed the door, and held up the bottle. “Would you like me to open the wine?”
    His smoothness meter had dipped to zero. As much as he wanted to hug her, he didn’t trust himself. She slipped the bottle from his fingers and smiled. Damn if she didn’t know what she did to him.
    “There’s no hurry. I want to show you around first.”
    Duh . That was why she’d invited him, and all he could think of was eating quickly and then being with her. “I’d love to see your place.” He slipped out of his jacket and placed in on the back of the dining room chair.
    While the kitchen was small, he liked that it opened up to the dining room. She set the bottle on the counter and returned. “I only moved in two days ago and haven’t had time to do much in the way of decorating.”
    “Looks great to me.” He’d always planned to put up pictures in his place, but he never seemed to have the time.
    “I’ll show you where I do my work first. I was so excited to get two bedrooms.”
    As they walked past the living room, he checked it out. It was simple, yet nice. He loved the large sofa and very comfortable chairs, but he’d pictured her buying something a bit more rustic. These pieces had more of a masculine flair. “It looks comfortable in here.”
    “You like the sofa?”
    “Yes.” He wouldn’t mind making love with her on that.
    “Those three pieces belonged to Bill Goddard. When I redid his office, his wife insisted I give away everything, and she seemed delighted that I wanted these pieces.”
    He whistled. “She could have made a lot at a consignment shop.”
    “I know, right? She said the transition to being without him would be easier if she wasn’t surrounded by his things.” Charlotte threaded an arm through his. “You can enjoy it after dinner.”
    His cock hardened. He hoped she was thinking of a repeat performance like the one they’d had on her dad’s couch.
    Her office was small, but given the number of windows, it would be filled with a lot of light during the day. She had a desk and a long table that was covered with fabric swatches and other assorted decorating items. He should make his spare room into an office. “I like it.”
    “Thank you.” She opened the door between the two rooms. “My bath is a bit small, but it works for me. Lastly, this is my bedroom.”
    Trent had to work hard to hold in his groan. As soon as he saw the large bed piled deep with pillows, his mind shot to a place where it didn’t need to be. “Nice.” He sucked at knowing the right thing to say.
    Charlotte turned and faced him. “You want to help me cook dinner?”
    I’d rather help you undress. “Me? I can do the basics, as I demonstrated in the cabin, but if it’s fancier than scrambled eggs, hamburgers on the grill, or spaghetti, you might be on your own.”
    She laughed. “We’ll try together. Sharon promised me it was a no fail recipe.”
    He’d heard Vic brag about his assistant’s cooking. “Then I’m game.” He followed her into the kitchen and caught himself staring at her ass. He needed to take his mind off of sex. “How’s the decorating gig going?”
    She swiveled around and his gaze latched onto her breasts—breasts that he could see quite well through her rather translucent top.
    “We paint tomorrow, and then I can start doing my magic.”
    “You’re moving quickly.” He always had suspected Charlotte of being a hellfire when it came to her job. “What’s Mrs. Goddard like to work with?”
    He told himself he wasn’t trying to find information about the possible suspect, but that wouldn’t be completely true. Getting Charlotte’s perspective would be extremely helpful. His team had cleared the scene the day after the murder, and the next day, the woman was knocking on Charlotte’s store asking her to redecorate.
    “Easiest woman I’ve ever worked with. She sweet and nice and doesn’t fuss.”
    He laughed. “Perhaps I should go into