All the Right Moves(28)

“No. I was stupid to sign up for the class. It sounded interesting and I couldn’t resist, although I should have audited it instead. I don’t need the credits, but I can’t have a fail on my records.”

“Ah, an overachiever.”

“Um, no, definitely not, just impulsive. Why are you looking at me like that?” She tried to stare him down but he wouldn’t lose the small mystery smile, as if he knew something about her she didn’t. It was ridiculous. He was only privy to what she wanted him to know. “Stop it.”

“Next question—sensitivity to internal bodily cues.”

Oh, perfect...she was experiencing a bunch of those right now. His shoulders were exceptionally broad, and why hadn’t she noticed before? She liked watching him tap his finger on the current question while he scanned the bottom of the page. His nails were trimmed and clean and his fingers were exceptionally long without being too slender. Huh.

He glanced up, met her eyes and smiled. “Did you want the example? Or will you bite my head off?”

“I spaced out for a second, but I know this—” She did. She really did. The answer had been on the tip of her tongue before she’d gotten distracted. “Damn it, I had it.”

John got up and walked around the counter until he was at her back. “You’re too tense,” he said, moving his hands to her shoulders. “Try to relax.”

“Easy for you to say.”

“Right.” He used his thumbs at the base of her neck, where she seemed to carry most of the tension. “Drop your chin.”

“Ouch.”

“You have a knot here.”

“I noticed.”

He didn’t let up. “Breathe slow and deep,” he said, his voice a low hypnotic murmur that made her think of other things she liked slow and deep. “You’re tensing again.”

Ha. No kidding. The thought of him naked in her bed was more than she could hope to handle. She stared down into the sink and focused on the popping bubbles.

“Take longer to breathe out.” His deep baritone yanked her back over to the dark side.

She almost told him that trying to relax would work so much better if he stopped speaking. But then she might have to explain how she was letting her libido take over her entire frontal lobe.

“Bet you hold your breath a lot during exams.” He moved his hands toward her shoulder blades, sinking his fingers into the muscle and rubbing out the tension.

“Yes, and clench my teeth.”

“Like you’re doing now?”

“I’m not—” Cassie shuddered and gripped the edge of the counter to keep from pooling into mush on the linoleum floor. This was pretty relaxed for her. He just didn’t know it.

“That could be why you test poorly. You let the tension escalate into panic.”

“Other way around. I tense and panic because I can’t remember the answer.” Closing her eyes, she let out a throaty moan and didn’t care that it sounded like she’d had an orgasm. “You’re good at this.”

“Feeling mellower?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“The last question...internal bodily cues—where does the sensitivity originate?”

“The visceral organs.”

“Bingo.”

“Huh. I wasn’t even thinking about it.”

“I know.” His fingers glided up the side of her neck. No, not his fingers, it was his lips and warm breath that whispered against her sensitized skin...his hands continued to knead her shoulders and back.

“You do realize you’ll have to come to class with me tomorrow.”

He chuckled, the vibration from his mouth making her skin tingle. “Give you a massage while you take your exam?”

“Exactly.”

“Talk to your professor and let me know how that works out.” He was no longer touching her, she realized with a jolt. His hands and mouth had been on her a second ago.

Cassie spun around so fast she almost lost her balance. “What are you doing?”

“Removing myself from harm’s way.” He’d already reclaimed his stool and had transferred his attention to the book.

“But—but...”

His eyebrows went up in amusement. “Yes?”

“You have great hands, really, you should do that for a living.” She stretched her neck to the side and flexed her shoulders, acutely aware of the ache in her breasts. Damn it, she didn’t care about cleaning or studying...she could do those things later. “But if you need more practice, I’m here for you.”