French-Italian, a particularly Swiss mixture of tones with an amazingly sophisticated and seductive quality—and he can definitely hold his own in an intelligent conversation. I sat next to him at a dinner party last Christmas, in fact, and he actually seemed engaged while I bored him with my opinions on all the hot button public policy issues I was dealing with for my grants. Probably just good acting on his part, but I can appreciate the effort.
Really, as I think back, he’s always been rather sweet to me—whenever I’ve been cornered by circumstance and trapped into talking with him. I normally steer away from men so handsome, except as fantasy fodder.
I stray toward the end of the pool, pretending to watch the activity across the deck so my eavesdropping won’t be so obvious. I’m pleasantly surprised to discover Amy is gushing to Kai over her recent engagement and the news that she’s having a baby. It seems so sincere when he comments on how she’s glowing, how women are always incredibly beautiful when they are pregnant, and her fiancé is a lucky man. There’s a wistful tone in his voice that makes me wonder. I guess I had Kai pegged as a playboy based on looks alone. The idea that he’d envy a man settling down to start a family might make me reassess my assumptions. Then again, what else would a charming man say, even if he’d rather die than get married and suffer through a woman’s pregnancy?
My good luck, someone else overhears Amy’s news and distracts her with congratulations, and Kai starts to climb up the steps from the pool. I’m so entranced watching water sheet down his rounded pecs, much like my own wetness seeping through my panties and down my inner thighs, that I almost miss my opportunity. Coming to my senses at the last possible second, I set aside my drink and scoop up a fluffy towel from the pile Donna has put out on a glass patio end table. As Kai takes the last two steps up out of the pool, his long, tanned fingers combing back his shoulder length gold hair, I’m there to greet him with a big unfurled towel.
The pale green eyes settle directly on me, and a wide smile blossoms across his bronzed face, taking me by surprise. With those cheekbones, that hard jawline, he could be a model or a Hollywood heartthrob. It requires all my concentration not to stare dumbly at his lips, almost too plump and pretty for a man, almost . They are a dusty rose color over perfect, straight white teeth.
Kai accepts the towel from me as he steps up onto the deck, rising close to a foot above my five-foot-four. His large, warm hands brush mine as he takes the huge bath sheet and wraps it along his hips, very low, so that it looks like he could be naked underneath it. My gaze trails down over the pronounced musculature of his lower abs and pelvis. I can’t help imagining what those muscles look like flexing while he drives his—
“Thank you, Julia.”
I glance up to find those green eyes still focused tight on my face, and heat floods my cheeks. Not just because it’s probably clear from my expression that I’m lusting after him, but because he actually remembered my name.
This is the point at which I usually balk, mutter something under my breath, and excuse myself. Or when I fall back on bringing up the most intellectually challenging, libido-killing topic that comes to mind. I take a second to stop myself, my heart pounding hard but steady in my chest, echoing and vibrating in my ears and the pit of my stomach.
With effort, I put on a smile, small and shy compared to his. “You’re welcome. It’s such a pleasant surprise to see you here tonight.” A small gesture, that, but it’s a herculean effort for me. This gets a brief, warm chuckle out of him that sends a moment of panic through me. Is he laughing at my pathetic attempt at flirtation?
“I didn’t expect to hear that from you,” he admits, and I tilt my head quizzically without meaning to. “Well, see me, yes. You did
Really, as I think back, he’s always been rather sweet to me—whenever I’ve been cornered by circumstance and trapped into talking with him. I normally steer away from men so handsome, except as fantasy fodder.
I stray toward the end of the pool, pretending to watch the activity across the deck so my eavesdropping won’t be so obvious. I’m pleasantly surprised to discover Amy is gushing to Kai over her recent engagement and the news that she’s having a baby. It seems so sincere when he comments on how she’s glowing, how women are always incredibly beautiful when they are pregnant, and her fiancé is a lucky man. There’s a wistful tone in his voice that makes me wonder. I guess I had Kai pegged as a playboy based on looks alone. The idea that he’d envy a man settling down to start a family might make me reassess my assumptions. Then again, what else would a charming man say, even if he’d rather die than get married and suffer through a woman’s pregnancy?
My good luck, someone else overhears Amy’s news and distracts her with congratulations, and Kai starts to climb up the steps from the pool. I’m so entranced watching water sheet down his rounded pecs, much like my own wetness seeping through my panties and down my inner thighs, that I almost miss my opportunity. Coming to my senses at the last possible second, I set aside my drink and scoop up a fluffy towel from the pile Donna has put out on a glass patio end table. As Kai takes the last two steps up out of the pool, his long, tanned fingers combing back his shoulder length gold hair, I’m there to greet him with a big unfurled towel.
The pale green eyes settle directly on me, and a wide smile blossoms across his bronzed face, taking me by surprise. With those cheekbones, that hard jawline, he could be a model or a Hollywood heartthrob. It requires all my concentration not to stare dumbly at his lips, almost too plump and pretty for a man, almost . They are a dusty rose color over perfect, straight white teeth.
Kai accepts the towel from me as he steps up onto the deck, rising close to a foot above my five-foot-four. His large, warm hands brush mine as he takes the huge bath sheet and wraps it along his hips, very low, so that it looks like he could be naked underneath it. My gaze trails down over the pronounced musculature of his lower abs and pelvis. I can’t help imagining what those muscles look like flexing while he drives his—
“Thank you, Julia.”
I glance up to find those green eyes still focused tight on my face, and heat floods my cheeks. Not just because it’s probably clear from my expression that I’m lusting after him, but because he actually remembered my name.
This is the point at which I usually balk, mutter something under my breath, and excuse myself. Or when I fall back on bringing up the most intellectually challenging, libido-killing topic that comes to mind. I take a second to stop myself, my heart pounding hard but steady in my chest, echoing and vibrating in my ears and the pit of my stomach.
With effort, I put on a smile, small and shy compared to his. “You’re welcome. It’s such a pleasant surprise to see you here tonight.” A small gesture, that, but it’s a herculean effort for me. This gets a brief, warm chuckle out of him that sends a moment of panic through me. Is he laughing at my pathetic attempt at flirtation?
“I didn’t expect to hear that from you,” he admits, and I tilt my head quizzically without meaning to. “Well, see me, yes. You did
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