for your thoughts, pretty lady?”
Caresse refused to answer and turned her head away.
Graham stepped back in front of her and gathered her into his arms as music floated from his car speakers. Graham softly rocked her in his arms, and she felt her body loosen under his touch. She let him softly sway with her, drawing on his strength and breathing in his scent. She began to caress his back and snuggle her head deeper into his chest. Her breathing began to deepen and her heart started to race.
Then it happened, she lifted her head and sought his lips. Tenderly she kissed him, no longer denying her need to feel his kisses numb her senses. They molded their bodies so closely together that the thought of them being strangers vanished from her mind. All she knew was that she had been lonely for too long.
When their kiss finally ended, Graham caressed the side of Caresse’s face, then hugged her tight. Her touch felt so natural he didn’t want to let her go. But he had to know why she was always putting walls between them. He had to know why she felt she didn’t need a man. Whoever wounded her heart had made his job of trying to make her feel secure hard as hell. He had to get a straight answer.
“First, you run away from me. And now you’re kissing me like you’re the woman I’ve sought all of my life. What’s going on?”
Caresse shook her head at the realization of his words. He still desires me after all of this? The question made a slight grin come to her lips.
“Did I amuse you?” Graham questioned as he tipped her head up to meet his gaze.
Caresse felt a blush cover her face as she grinned uncontrollably and a slight sparkle danced in Graham’s eyes as his mouth twitched with amusement. At that moment, she could feel her heart leap in her chest.
“No. I wasn’t smiling at you. I mean, I was, but... it wasn’t at your question. Am I making any sense?”
“Yes and no.” Graham straightened and rubbed the back of his neck.
“Start with the no,” she said, while fingering his silk tie.
“No, you don’t make sense. If you did, I wouldn’t wonder why you get under my skin. And yes, because I could see you didn’t know you were still in the running.”
“In the running for what?”
Graham leaned back and sized her up. “To be America’s next top model. C’mon Caresse, you know. I’m not playing some game here. I want you to be in my life. To win that spot of my heart that yearns for my better half.”
“You want a lot.”
“And we both know you’re capable of giving me that, and so much more.”
Chapter 6
Graham sat across from Caresse and watched her fumble with the sleeve of his borrowed dress shirt. As it softly enveloped her frame, he realized it was one of the sexiest images he’d ever had the opportunity to scrutinize. He couldn’t determine if it was the fact that she seemed comfortable in the bulky garment that appealed to him or the fact that he knew she was partially naked beneath since her clothes were being laundered. He tried to take his mind off his sudden postulations by assessing the scrape on her heel.
“It looks like you’ll live. But you were right to think iodine and a bandage were needed,” he stated as he cleaned the abrasion.
“Thanks for the TLC. Do all of your lady friends receive such wonderful service?”
Graham met her gaze and gave her a narrowed glinting glance. He knew Caresse was on another fishing expedition. “I can see you like to do a lot of assuming in your spare time, don’t you?”
Caresse became shocked and appalled at his statement. “Me? I-I was asking a logical question. I mean, you’ve been so kind, and you aren’t having any difficulty patching me up. So, I thought—”
“You mean you assumed that I have many lady friends that I’ve nursed. I hate to burst your bubble, but I learned how to patch people up because I come from a large family, not by healing damsels in distress.”
The cynicism of his remark grated on her.
Caresse refused to answer and turned her head away.
Graham stepped back in front of her and gathered her into his arms as music floated from his car speakers. Graham softly rocked her in his arms, and she felt her body loosen under his touch. She let him softly sway with her, drawing on his strength and breathing in his scent. She began to caress his back and snuggle her head deeper into his chest. Her breathing began to deepen and her heart started to race.
Then it happened, she lifted her head and sought his lips. Tenderly she kissed him, no longer denying her need to feel his kisses numb her senses. They molded their bodies so closely together that the thought of them being strangers vanished from her mind. All she knew was that she had been lonely for too long.
When their kiss finally ended, Graham caressed the side of Caresse’s face, then hugged her tight. Her touch felt so natural he didn’t want to let her go. But he had to know why she was always putting walls between them. He had to know why she felt she didn’t need a man. Whoever wounded her heart had made his job of trying to make her feel secure hard as hell. He had to get a straight answer.
“First, you run away from me. And now you’re kissing me like you’re the woman I’ve sought all of my life. What’s going on?”
Caresse shook her head at the realization of his words. He still desires me after all of this? The question made a slight grin come to her lips.
“Did I amuse you?” Graham questioned as he tipped her head up to meet his gaze.
Caresse felt a blush cover her face as she grinned uncontrollably and a slight sparkle danced in Graham’s eyes as his mouth twitched with amusement. At that moment, she could feel her heart leap in her chest.
“No. I wasn’t smiling at you. I mean, I was, but... it wasn’t at your question. Am I making any sense?”
“Yes and no.” Graham straightened and rubbed the back of his neck.
“Start with the no,” she said, while fingering his silk tie.
“No, you don’t make sense. If you did, I wouldn’t wonder why you get under my skin. And yes, because I could see you didn’t know you were still in the running.”
“In the running for what?”
Graham leaned back and sized her up. “To be America’s next top model. C’mon Caresse, you know. I’m not playing some game here. I want you to be in my life. To win that spot of my heart that yearns for my better half.”
“You want a lot.”
“And we both know you’re capable of giving me that, and so much more.”
Chapter 6
Graham sat across from Caresse and watched her fumble with the sleeve of his borrowed dress shirt. As it softly enveloped her frame, he realized it was one of the sexiest images he’d ever had the opportunity to scrutinize. He couldn’t determine if it was the fact that she seemed comfortable in the bulky garment that appealed to him or the fact that he knew she was partially naked beneath since her clothes were being laundered. He tried to take his mind off his sudden postulations by assessing the scrape on her heel.
“It looks like you’ll live. But you were right to think iodine and a bandage were needed,” he stated as he cleaned the abrasion.
“Thanks for the TLC. Do all of your lady friends receive such wonderful service?”
Graham met her gaze and gave her a narrowed glinting glance. He knew Caresse was on another fishing expedition. “I can see you like to do a lot of assuming in your spare time, don’t you?”
Caresse became shocked and appalled at his statement. “Me? I-I was asking a logical question. I mean, you’ve been so kind, and you aren’t having any difficulty patching me up. So, I thought—”
“You mean you assumed that I have many lady friends that I’ve nursed. I hate to burst your bubble, but I learned how to patch people up because I come from a large family, not by healing damsels in distress.”
The cynicism of his remark grated on her.
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