NICE GIRL TO LOVE (THE COMPLETE THREE-BOOK COLLECTION)(10)

With some waterproof accessories.

She was stripped bare and just about done filling up the tub when her cell phone jangled from her bag in the bedroom. Groaning, she hurried out to grab the phone, answering it without checking the caller id. “Hello?”

“That was a quick shower.”

Abby almost fell headfirst into the tub. Luckily, she managed to hang on to her wits though. “You know, I’m really starting to hate your investigator.”

Connor chuckled. “Actually, Skylar gave me your cell number before I went to pick up the flowers. She figured I’d need it in case you slammed the door in my face.”

“So it’s true, blood really is thicker than milkshakes,” she grumbled as she stomped over to the tub to shut off the water before it overfilled. “What do you want, Connor?”

“Now there’s a loaded question.”

The sigh she aimed at herself bounced off the tiled walls in stereo. She’d walked right into that one.

There was a brief silence over the phone line and then a very curious, “Are you talking to me from the bathroom?”

Oh my, Miss Manners would have a conniption. “Yes. But to be clear, I’m not using the bathroom or anything.”

His quiet laughter was the stuff of bath-time fodder. The deep sound went through her like whiskey as she perched on the tub edge and swished a lazy hand through the water.

She heard him suck in a soft breath. And every nerve in her body flared to life at the sound.

“You’re taking a bath.” His voice was a full octave lower, his tone almost reverent.

Startled, Abby looked around to check the walls for eyes. A pair of piercing blue eyes in particular…a distinctly sexy set that always looked deep in thought. “No. Not yet, anyway.”

Another pause. “So what’s stopping you?”

“You.”

Was it possible to hear someone smile?

“So because of me, your water’s getting cold?”

“Exactly. Now if you’d hurry and tell me what you want, I could get back to my bath before it gets any colder.”

“Maybe what I want is to join you in the tub. What are the chances of that happening?”

“None to none at all.” Liar.

He made a disappointed sound, but didn’t give up that easily. “I promise I’ll behave. Unless, you’re going to do something in the bath that you’d need privacy for.” He put just enough goading in his tone to tick her off, but not enough for her to hang up on him. “Is that the case?”

Yes. And the jerk was being deliberately obtuse about it.

She maintained radio silence.

“Because if it is, I don’t have to behave. I could…misbehave.”

Her jaw locked at his audacity. A firm believer that one should never negotiate with terrorists, she decided to instead fight fire with fire. “Since it doesn’t look like I’m getting rid of you anytime soon, I’m just going to go ahead and start…my bath.” She grinned in triumph when a quiet groan came from his end.

Placing her phone on the counter, she dropped her towel and slid into the water. The slow, purring sound she let out wasn’t for his benefit. But it seemed to affect him all the same.

“Am I on speaker?” The words were smoky, stilted.

“Mmm hmm.” Her eyelids drifted closed as she sank back against the tub, letting the hot water unravel the tension from this crazy day. “Connor, you have maybe a minute before I start dozing off so if you have something to say, you better say it now.”

“Have dinner with me.”

She bolted upright—to avoid taking in a gaping mouthful of bath water. “Dinner? Why?”

“Because the next time you’re in that tub, I want to be there with you. And, well, I figure it’d be wise for us to eat beforehand.”

He was smiling again, she could hear it.

The guy had balls, she had to give him that. “What on earth makes you think I’d agree to take a bath with you?”

“Nothing but sheer hope.”

She resisted the urge to melt at that, reminding herself that this was a veteran player she was talking to here.

And she’d barely even cut it in little league.

“I don’t think dinner would be a good idea.”

“Okay, lunch then. Afternoon baths are fun too.”

Dang it, she was really close to laughing. “No. And don’t you dare suggest breakfast or dessert. Or brunch!”

“Well then we have a problem. Call me old fashioned but I’d really like to feed you before we take a bath together.”

Somehow, she managed to smother the life out of a burgeoning giggle. “That was a blanket no. To the bath also.”

“Fine. But you don’t know what you’re missing. I’ll have you know, I give a pretty mean underwater massage.”

Ooh, that was low. Her achy muscles wanted in. But her common sense knew better. “Oh, I believe you. I’d be more surprised if you told me you gave a nice one.”

“Ouch. Okay, okay, I deserved that. Well, since you’ve now clearly moved on to the brutally honest portion of our phone call, why don’t you explain why you told me to leave earlier?”

“Brian already covered all that,” she skirted.

“So that was the only reason? Honoring that favor?”