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The look she gave him now was timid, skittering away before he could figure out what it meant. "I want to trust
you, but it's not easy. I really don't think I'd be able to sleep."
"Can we at least try?"
 "Why?"
She seemed frustrated, and maybe he was pushing her. But he only had a few days left, including the day they'd
have to pack and fly home. Once they returned to the real world, with all the outside commitments of family and
jobs and life in general, would she give him a chance? Or would she chalk up her experiences here and try to get on
with her life? Was it even fair of him to want or expect more? She'd had so little fun and missed out on so much
sensual growth, without a sin­gle male-female relationship. But he wanted to be the man to give her those things
she'd missed; all the flirt­ing and small gifts and new touches.
He could do it. His lifestyle wasn't so inhibited that he couldn't bend a little and buy her flowers and choc­olates
on occasion. The thought of squandering the money in such a frivolous way had always seemed re­pugnant, but to
make her happy, he'd do it. He would enjoy doing it.
And his house, though set out in the country away from the congestion of rushing people, was adequate in size,
even without all the renovations finished. It wasn't fancy, but it was solid and secure.A good invest­ment:
He shied away from that thought, that logical rea­soning, because it made him feel like an ass. Brandi needed and
wanted fun and laughter, not sensibility. And he'd find a way to give it to her.
The sun peeked out, reflecting on all the wet sur­faces, chasing away the last of the clouds. Sebastian leaned down
and pressed a quick hard kiss to Brandi's mouth, determined despite her resistance.
"I want to sleep with you because you're warm and soft and smell sweet." Her face flamed and she looked away.
Sebastian chuckled. "Besides, I think you'll like it. I know I will. It's a nice feeling to be cuddled close all night
with someone you care about."
She didn't deny that she cared, though she did chew on her bottom lip in a fretful way. He counted that as a step
forward; what the hell? He was an optimist, and if he chose to count almost everything as progress, it was nobody's
business but his own.
"If you don't like it, if it bothers you, we'll deal with it, okay? You liked sleeping with me on the couch."
She stopped, looking down at her feet. "The couch is not a bed, and you were sitting. I know it's silly, but it makes
a difference."
"Look at it this way. Last week, did you think you'd find yourself sleeping with a man on a couch, regard­less of
what position he was in?"
"Last week I couldn't have imagined doing any of the things we've done."
"But you don't regret them?"
She shook her head, and her small smile showed her new confidence. Even more than the belated sunshine, it
warmed him. He slipped his arm around her and held her close to his side. "We'll just see how it goes. You can
even sleep in that long granny gown if it'll make you feel better."
She blinked at him. "Well, of course I'll wear my nightgown!"
Sebastian laughed at her vehemence. She probably didn't realize how damn sexy the gown looked on her slight
frame.Sexy and feminine. It draped her body, hinting at curves, and her rosy nipples showed through the material.
Just thinking of it made him semierect once again. He had the hair-trigger reaction of a teenager around her.
 And unlike Brandi, he slept in the nude.
He looked at the bright sun. There were way too many hours between now and bedtime. And at the mo­ment, he
wasn't at all sure he'd last that long.
The dress had costa smallfortune, and Brandi had been very resistant to his buying it. But Sebastian had been
insistent and he'd made it a birthday present, so she couldn't really refuse. Now, as he moved her around the dance
floor, she knew it was the perfect dress for her. When Sebastian had first seen her in it, he'd given his approval with
a low whistle and a heated look that spoke volumes.
She felt sexy, but the sexiness came from the simplic­ity of the dress and Sebastian's attentiveness. He hadn't
tried to coerce her into anything low cut or ultra short. He'd bypassed all the dresses that might have made her
uncomfortable and she appreciated his sen­sitivity.
The dress landed just above her knees and had a two-inch slit up one leg. It hugged what it covered, not tightly,
just doing a lot to emphasize her slight figure. The front of the dress rose to her neck, but in the back, it dipped to
her shoulder blades. Right now, Brandi could feel the warmth of Sebastian's fingers as theycoasted over her skin.
The man couldn't stop touching her, and she loved it.
She tried not to think about the coming night, be­cause thinking of it made her queasy. She didn't want to mess
things up by behaving like a ninny, or showing her cowardice. And she trusted him now, completely. But that
didn't mean she'd be able to rest easy in his arms all night. If she had the nightmare, if she froze up and kept him
awake, it would put a damper on their time together, and they only had a few days left.
The music ended and Sebastian smiled down at her. "What are you thinking about?"
He seemed in no hurry to leave the dance floor. That suited Brandi. Now that she felt comfortable dancing, she'd
gladly do so all night with Sebastian. "I was wondering about you.Where you live, if your work takes you away
from home very often."
A guarded expression came over his face and he took her hand, leading her back to their table. After seating her,
he asked, "Why so curious all of a sud­den?"
Brandi didn't know where the questions had come from, or why. It was probably because she wanted to see more
of him, in more normal circumstances, even though she knew that was impossible. Their time to­gether seemed
magical and unreal. In a way itwasun­real because they were simply too different to form any lasting relationship.
Sebastian was the most vital, en­ergetic, appealing man she'd ever met.
And she was still a timid shadow of a woman. That wouldn't change, no matter how she wished it could. "Brandi?"
He took her hand across the table touching her again. She smiled to herself, loving the constant contact with him, [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]