She had been so unbelievably naïve.
Now, here she was, being what he needed her to be all over again. She would play the game, and she no longer felt the need to impress him with what she knew of his interests. She’d enjoy sharing some of her own so Trevor better hold on.
“Looks like this is it,” he said.
Her stomach flopped. She could have sworn she heard the splat as if she had dropped a rotten tomato on the floor.
Time to be on.
Time to be a couple.
They turned onto a long, asphalt drive winding through a canopy of trees. Around a couple of corners, the property opened up and the driveway led up to a circular pull-through in front of a sprawling, blue lake estate. She caught glimpses of the shimmering blue water rippling on the surface through the pine branches surrounding the property.
On the other end of the house stood a four-car garage with vehicles lined up in front of it. Trevor had said that a few coworkers vying for the partnership would be there, so she hoped the cars belonged to his boss, because she hated being the last to arrive.
Of course, that couldn’t be helped since there was that detour for clothes and the time it took for her to change in the dressing room after they checked out, and the repacking of her suitcase.
Totally Trevor’s fault for not telling her he needed a specific kind of girl. She glanced down at the blue flannel she had layered over her white tank top and jean capris. She had tamed her hair with a loose side braid trailing over her shoulder. Total girl next door material…and if she were being one hundred percent honest, a weight had been lifted off her shoulders with the change. This Piper didn’t need to check her lipstick every twenty minutes. She didn’t need to smooth her hair anytime a breeze blew.
This Piper could pull up a lawn chair at the edge of the lake, basking in the scents of burgers and hot dogs, and ease into being Trevor’s girlfriend.
The door to the lake house flew open and a robust, boisterous man wearing a huge smile stepped out. “It’s about time you made it, Trevor, my boy. You and your beautiful lady here almost missed the couples’ massages.”
This Piper, despite her brief lakeside fantasy, did not have a hot dog in her future because she was apparently going to be naked in a room with an equally naked Trevor.
“Trevor?”
His smile slipped a tad, but he tried covering it with a squeeze of her hand as he tugged her alongside him and up the front steps.
“We did not agree on naked,” she muttered.
He squeezed her hand again.
She dug her fingernails into his skin, satisfied with his brief flinch.
He reached out to shake hands with the man on the porch who’d just crushed her hot dog dreams. “Sorry, Mr. Williams. We hit a traffic snag about an hour outside of the city. A total mess.” He hooked his arm around her waist and pulled her forward. “I’d like you to meet my girlfriend, Piper Bradley. Piper, this is my boss, Davidson Williams.”
She reached out her hand and smiled despite the sheer panic that had set in. “Nice to finally meet you, Mr. Williams.”
He took her hand in both of his. “Oh, none of that now. Please, call me Davidson.”
“All right, Davidson. Really, you needn’t have gone through so much trouble. I don’t mind if we skip the massage—”
He patted her hand. “Don’t be silly, my dear. I want everyone to start out relaxed and refreshed. I have a whole schedule of activities for the entire weekend.”
He leaned in and winked.
Hmmm, that winking thing seemed to be catching.
“Actually, my lovely wife made the schedule, bless her. Unfortunately, a few things came up with the kids and their extracurriculars that called her away unexpectedly, but hopefully she’ll be back in time for you to meet her.”
Williams, though thick around the middle, stood tall and proud. His hair had gone almost completely gray. Between his build, his exuberance, his kids still being in school, and that gray hair, Piper might have had better luck nailing Jell-O to a wall than guessing his age.
She smiled. “I’d like that. What kind of extracurriculars are your kids in?”
“My! No one has ever asked.” He nudged Trevor with his elbow. “You found a good one here, my boy. You remember what I said about not letting her get away.” With his wallet in hand and opened to his pictures, he stood next to her. “We’ve got twin ballerinas. Sasha and Sabrina.”
What looked to be seven or eight-year-old, raven-haired beauties stared up from the picture. She’d seen their ballet gowns before. They’d been designed by Blush, one of her biggest competitors.
She schooled her features and pretended that she didn’t have more than a general interest in the girls or dance.
It was harder than she thought, but she managed it.
Just add actress to her resume.
“They’re stunning. You must be so proud,” she said as she handed back the wallet.
“Well, I can’t take all the credit, it’s mainly their mother’s doing. The woman is a saint. Anyway, enough about that, grab your bags and come on in. I saved your suite and the massage therapists are in there waiting. I’ll introduce you to everyone else after.”
“Yes, sir,” Trevor said with a nod and winning smile.
Such a boob.
Davidson led them to through to a room at the back corner of the house, nearest to the lake. At least that was something.
She’d have liked to take in the post and beam lake house, only the wood, the furnishings, the huge windows, they all disappeared in the horror of what they were about to do.
She’d have the best view while naked, in a room with Trevor, getting a rub down.
“I so loathe you right now,” she whispered.
“Yeah, well, get in line. I’m not too thrilled with me right now either.” His otherwise jovial tone had vanished, leaving harshness in its wake. She could almost believe he meant it. If he hadn’t eye-humped her when she came out of her building that morning.
Sure, he was mad about it. She didn't believe that for a minute.
Trevor wanted to see her naked.
That he couldn’t deny…but not like this. In his fantasy, they were both naked.
Okay, so they were both going to be naked.
Piper eyed the ladies standing over the massage tables, her brows furrowed, and she wrung her hands. The wide openness of the room mocked him. There was nowhere to change privately. And of course, why would there be in a couple’s massage?
He shed his suit jacket and tossed it over a leather easy chair in the corner.
He made eye contact with Piper and willed her to understand what he was about to do. He popped a button on his shirt and grinned at her. “Oh, come on, baby. You can’t still be mad at me.” He wrapped his arms around her waist, leaned in, and laid his lips against the soft spot just under her ear.
Christ. He’d done it for show, but the soft skin stretched over her delicate neck demanded that he continue to linger there, breathing her in.
His willpower vanished with her sweet scent. He didn’t know what he'd expected.
Or maybe he did. He expected her to smell the way she looked when she met him in front of her building. But no, a warm hint of lemon cream floated over her skin, fruity and sweet, and before he thought better of it, he flicked the tip of his tongue against her.