Turn It Up by Inez Kelley

love, it’ll never last. But don’t regret it when he moves on.”
    The twanging note pierced her heart like a knife.
     
     
    “Strip.” Charlie cocked her eyebrow and held up the oil.
    Arms crossed, Bastian fumed from the center of his bedroom. “No.”
    “You’re not being fair. If I go along with whatever surprises you have lined up, you have to give me the same chance to win the deal. You want my heart, I want your body, even-Steven.”
    “I’m not taking my clothes off.”
    “A massage through your clothes is going to get awfully messy.”
    “Then forget about it.”
    From the stubborn set to his jaw, Charlie knew he wouldn’t budge. So she changed tactics. “Fine, then I’m not going anywhere with you Saturday. In fact, I’ll see you at the station and only at the station. The whole thing is off. No thinking about marriage, no trying for sex. Nothing.”
    Bastian snorted. “Going out with me is a little different from getting naked and letting you rub oil all over me.”
    “I don’t think so.” Charlie tossed the oil back in her tapestry bag and crossed her arms to mimic him.
    “I’ll get naked when you wear white.”
    Unable to stop it, she let a sultry grin curl her lip. “Afraid you can’t resist me?”
    “Frankly, yes, I am afraid. I can’t control how my body responds to you.”
    “You’ve turned me upside down and sideways here. Two days ago, I had a best friend. Now I have a boyfriend who won’t sleep with me.”
    “The common denominator in those phrases is friend. I’m still your friend. That doesn’t go away, in bed or out.”
    “If I stop touching you, the physical feelings go away. I carry my emotions everywhere, all the time, in every look and every word. There’s no such thing as a cold shower for the heart. You tell me who’s taking a bigger risk.”
    Released in a whisper, the words hit him. His lips parted and his chest stilled. He focused on her face, searching for answers she struggled to find.
    “What does that mean exactly?”
    One step brought her to him. Arms looped around his neck, she looked into his face. The hope there stole her breath. He really did love her. He dared her to believe. Slowly, his arms uncrossed and circled her waist, large firm hands splaying on her back. Maybe he didn’t understand what his touch did to her, also.
    It means that forever is too big but I can’t lose you. I’m scared.
    “It means…I’m not saying yes. I’m just saying…if there was any person who could make me believe forever might last, it would be you.”
    A swallow flexed his throat. “It will. We’ve been working for this for six years without knowing it. You trust me the way I trust you, completely and without question. That is real love. It’s what’ll make it work between us.”
    “Then trust me now.”
    “Resisting you is hard. I’m fighting myself, too.”
    On tiptoes, she grazed his mouth with a kiss. “Please.”
    White lines formed around his lips and she knew he was struggling. “Nothing is going to stand at attention while you resist me.”
    She deliberately pouted and his eyes fell to her mouth. She rarely used such overt feminine wiles on Bastian but this time they worked. His opposition crumbled. His arms went slack before falling. His eyes closed with a sigh. “Fine, but the pants stay on.”
    “Boxers, no pants.” A protest rose and she pressed one finger to his mouth. “I promise not to touch anywhere covered by cotton. Deal?”
    He took a step back, guarded warning on his face. “When I say stop, you stop. No games. This will not lead to sex, got it?”
    “Nothing will happen we’re not both totally in agreement with, okay? Now strip, you big chicken.”
    Grumbling under his breath, he yanked the shirt over his head and tossed it on the chair. He whipped around and faced the bed. The muscles in his back rippled as a muted snap and the scrape of a zipper sounded. He shucked the jeans to the same chair before climbing facedown on the