The Look of Love (The Sullivans #1)(8)

“Maybe another time, then,” she said as she walked naked across the room to her clothes, which he now saw were draped over a sofa chair in the corner.

Like hell. He was never, ever going to share Chloe with anyone. Not a woman and definitely not a man.

Once he convinced her to give him a chance, that is.

Problem was, he thought as he turned his back to let Ellen put on her clothes, he had a feeling convincing Chloe to trust him enough to give him a chance with her wasn’t going to be an easy task in the least.

Chapter Three

Chloe wanted nothing more than to drop her bag on the bedroom floor, throw herself on the bed, and curl up into a tight ball. But the wood floor looked really expensive and she’d already dripped on it enough.

Heading for the bathroom, she put her bag down on the tiled floor, then stripped off her wet, dirty clothes and put them in the sink. She would have loved to throw them away, but she didn’t have much with her and knew that she’d need them again in the near future. The best she could do for the time being was to wash them out and hang them up to dry. Of course, she knew the house must have a washer and dryer, but spending the night in a stranger’s house—not even the stranger who’d brought her here, but a brother she’d never met—was more than enough charity.

When she was finally naked, she moved to the shower and was reaching in to turn on the water when she noticed the huge whirlpool tub. She almost moaned aloud at the thought of lying in the warm water with jets massaging her legs and spine and feet.

Chloe looked back almost guiltily at the bathroom door before realizing she was being silly. It was locked and she was finally alone. Since Chase was insisting she stay here tonight, what was wrong with availing herself of the facilities? At least those attached to her bedroom.

She hadn’t been in a tub like this since she’d left—

No. She wouldn’t let herself think of that tonight. Chloe knew she didn’t have the luxury of pretending everything was okay—not by a long shot—but deep inside she felt safe. For one night, in this beautiful house, surrounded by grapevines.

She supposed, a few seconds later, that it was precisely that glorious sense of safety—and the memory of how nice it had been to feel so warm and protected in Chase’s arms—that had her body acting so off-kilter when she stepped into the hot water.

Her skin felt extra sensitive as she slowly submerged her hips and then legs and back into the large tub. Sighing with pleasure, she laid her head on the curved rim of the tub and looked up through a skylight that was pinging with the rain from outside. A heavy, heated throbbing pulsed at the tips of her br**sts, which felt even fuller than normal. And between her thighs…she was burning up down there. Heck, she’d been on fire from the moment Chase had held the ice pack against her cheek in his brother’s kitchen.

Both she and the girl in his bed had the same taste, it seemed.

Thinking of the naked stranger—Ellen, she’d said her name was—and her crazy offer to get it on three-way style had Chloe unexpectedly grinning as she scooted down in the tub and tilted her neck backward to get her hair wet in the hot water.

Mmmm, that felt good. She reached for the fancy bottle of shampoo by the side and began massaging the sweet-smelling liquid into her hair.

Chase had clearly been surprised by the naked woman—and by the fact that she wasn’t at all fazed by the idea of more than one person in her bed.

Chloe’s grin shifted into a semi-frown. Not just because she hadn’t thought people actually did that, but because she couldn’t understand Ellen’s thinking.

If Chase had been hers, she wouldn’t share him with anyone.

The shocking train of thought stopped Chloe cold. Soap dripped into her eyelashes and she dunked herself under the water, hoping to wash her unwelcome thoughts away, too, while she was at it.

What was wrong with her? Was she really that blockheaded? That full of fantasies and foolish dreams?

The only person she should be trusting, for a very long time, was herself.

And yet, hadn’t she been doing some verbal sparring with Chase out in the living room and kitchen? Borderline flirting, when she should have been wary. And then, when they’d found the naked woman waiting for him on the bed, she hadn’t been able to hold in her laughter. Finally laughing again had felt too good. She'd had to let it out. Amazingly, for a few moments, she’d almost felt like her old self.

Once upon a time Chloe had been a sensual woman. She hadn’t been one of those girls who was afraid of her own body. She’d loved being kissed. Caressed. She’d loved other things, too. Things her ex-husband had told her were bad. Dirty. Things she was supposed to be ashamed of. Just because she’d done a crummy job of picking a husband didn’t mean those urges, those desires, had ever really gone away.

They’d just gone into hiding.

And Chase was, quite obviously—and unfortunately—a master of hide-and-seek.

Chloe couldn’t believe her body had decided to leap to life now. Tonight of all nights, she should be focusing on getting sleep and food and figuring out what to do next.

Instead, she was lying in the bath thinking about Mr. Hotstuff with his green eyes and wicked grin. Not to mention the ridiculously great body—tall, broad-shouldered, muscular—that those eyes and grin came on.

Frustration ate at her. She had a bad feeling that if she got up out of this glorious tub, instead of sinking into what was sure to be a fantastically luxurious bed, she was going to be tossing and turning with unrequited lust all night.