The Tao Of Sex by Jade Lee Page B

expect to support two dozen people.”
    “I can, and I will.” He straightened, showing her a dragon’s determination in every line of his body. “But I must get my education. That is why the temple goes even longer without electricity.”
    She studied him, but he could not read her face. Did she understand what he was trying to do? Could she comprehend the drive to succeed—not for himself, but for all who depended on him?
    She pushed to her feet. Her motions were smooth and infinitely feminine. Then she touched him—a gentle hand laid on his shoulders. He felt the warmth of her body all the way through to his soul. “I had no idea,” she whispered. “I can’t even imagine. The pressure must be incredible.”
    He shook his head. “I have borne the responsibility since my earliest days.”
    “I can see that,” she said softly, admiration in her tone. “But isn’t it hard? I mean, desperately, horribly hard? Don’t you long for something more, something beyond the everyday drudgery?”
    He should step away from her. The feel of her hand was drugging him. It brought out fantasies that leeched all the blood from his brain. But he could not force himself to break the connection. Instead, he wrapped his hand around hers and brought it to his lips. “It is my dream to support my family,” he said. He wanted to kiss her, but that was one of the most cardinal rules between teacher and student: no kisses, no touching except to demonstrate. And no sexual relations whatsoever.
    “Nathan…” she murmured. Her face was flushed, her breath coming in short, quick pants. Her inner tigress was riding her hard. He had to stop this.
    He dropped his forehead against hers, allowing himself the connection while keeping his distance from her lips. “What is your dream?” he asked. “What do you yearn for?”
    She shuddered. He guessed that the tigress inside her fought the restraint of simple conversation. But she was not a woman to give in to simple lust. “See, that’s the thing, Nathan. Everybody else has dreams, but I…I just want money. We’ve got the basics, but a cushion would make me breathe so much easier.”
    Her scent pervaded his mind. It rose from her skin and fogged his senses. “But there are many ways to make money,” he said. “How will you—”
    “Stockbroker,” she answered, the word rushed out and breathless. “It’s all about hard work with them. The harder they work, the more they get. And I plan to work very, very hard.”
    He had no doubt about that. How sad that her dream and her fortune would never come about. Whether she understood it or not, the tigress in her would override her mundane desires. In time, the quest for immortality would become paramount. She would leave everything she knew to train at the temple. It wasn’t what she wanted. It certainly wasn’t what Nathan wanted for her. But he had seen it happen too many times. Spirit would choose. Her mind and body would have no choice but to follow.
    “What about you?” she asked, her voice a low rasp that further fogged his mind. He knew that a relationship between them was doomed to disaster, and yet she called to him on so many levels. Her body was the least of her lures. She was focused on the same things he was: supporting a family and trying to create a better life for them. And she was kind, trying to talk to him as a person and not as a tool. Those two things alone were so rare in his life. He could not think of another soul—save maybe his sister—who acted in such a way.
    “Nathan?” she pressed, clearly wondering about his silence. “I’m sorry. Have I come at a bad time? You’re probably really busy—”
    “And if I am?” he pressed, wondering exactly how generous she was. “Would you leave me alone now? What about the football game tonight?”
    Tracy bit her lip, her anxiety obvious. “I won’t go. I’ll lock myself in my room and study the book you gave me.”
    “It won’t be enough,” he said.