It's All Relative(35)

Kai glanced back at her, and his expression froze, like something she was doing was equally distracting to him. They stared at each other in silence for a second, and Jessie swore that if she leaned in to kiss him, he’d lean in too. She let the fantasy fill her for the briefest moment, until the accompanying horror flooded over the top of it. They couldn’t.

Looking away, Kai seemed to snap out of it, too. “Uh…” Frowning, he scratched his shoulder blade. “I got stung today…stupid bees.”

He seemed so sullen about the incident that Jessie couldn’t keep from laughing. Kai snapped his eyes to her; his weren’t amused. Smoothing her face, Jessie finally stopped her giggle. Kai smiled at her restraint and reached behind her. The move brought his bare chest in contact with her arm. He was colder than she was, and a shiver went through her entire body, but she was certain his temperature had nothing to do with that. Her eyes half-closed, her breath increased. They shouldn’t.

Finding whatever he was looking for on his messy bed, Kai started to straighten. When he noticed her face, he paused. His body was still leaning against her arm, and his head was directly in front of hers. His tropical eyes flashed over her face, taking in the desire that she knew was apparent in her features, clear in her fast breath. His gaze flicked down to her mouth, and his tongue darted out to briefly wet his bottom lip. Grotesqueness filled Jessie, but it was squashed by the rising need for him to press those lips to hers. They couldn’t. They shouldn’t. But…if he did…she would, too.

Kai leaned in, and Jessie leaned forward. When she was certain it was happening, that they were going to willingly cross that line, Kai suddenly flinched and pulled back. Irritation on his face, he ran a hand over his shoulder to rub a spot on his back. Taking long, slow breaths, Jessie moved away. No…they couldn’t.

As Kai’s face twisted in discomfort, he lifted a jar of what appeared to be a natural salve for stings, bites, and burns. His expression miserable, he pleaded for her help. “Please?”

Grateful to have something to do other than fantasize about kissing him, Jessie took the jar of ointment. As he twisted around to show her his back, Jessie’s eyes ran over the tattoo across his shoulder blade. It curled and spiraled in a delightful way, and it took everything inside her to not trace the lines. Focusing elsewhere, she finally noticed the angry red welts upon his skin. Several of them. Jessie laughed again as she unscrewed the cap. “What happened to you? You walk into a swarm of killer bees?”

Kai hung his head with a sigh as she rubbed a nasty bump on his back. He flinched then groaned in relief. “No…honey bees.”

Jessie laughed harder, and he looked over his shoulder and glared at her. Biting back her giggles, she applied some healing cream to the spots that he hadn’t been able to reach. Smiling, Kai shook his head. “My boss is studying why the bees are dying, and I was helping him.” He shrugged. “Apparently, I suck at it, and the bees let me know…repeatedly.”

Enjoying the feel of his skin under her fingertips, Jessie finished up with all the angry areas that she could see. “Oh,” she quietly stated as she studied the pleasing contrast in their skin tones. “Well, at least you’re not allergic.” She twisted her lip as she thought about that. She wasn’t allergic either. Was that a genetic thing? She wasn’t sure. Sighing, she added, “Maybe you won’t have to do that again for a while.”

Kai grinned as he looked back at her. “Next time, I won’t try to be so macho…and I’ll put on the damn suit.” He shook his head. “I just didn’t realize how offensive bees found me. Now I sort of hope all the little bastards die.”

Jessie giggled and then let out another wistful sigh. She didn’t find him offensive at all. Since a good deal of the cream was still on her fingers, she started to work out the kinks in his shoulders; he had had a long day. With a groan, Kai relaxed in her hands. Even though the professional side of her immediately kicked in, the satisfied noise he’d just made gave her a small thrill.

He let out another one just like it. “God, Jessie…you’re amazing. You should do this for a living.”

Pausing, Jessie laughed. “I do, Kai.”

He looked back at her with a grin. “Really?” She nodded, and he closed his eyes. “Well, good, you’re amazing at it.”

Her hands drifted down his back, trailing along his spine and working outwards. “You should come by my work sometime. This would be so much better if I had some oil, and you were lying down.” He held his breath, and a different sort of massage immediately flew through Jessie’s mind. Her fingers low on his back, she sucked on her lip and tried not to engage the fantasy spinning through her head. She couldn’t entirely push it out, though.

Kai slowly twisted his head to look at her. Face serious, he quietly said, “I think I’d like that.”

She had no idea if he was talking about seeing her at work, or if he was sharing her fantasy; since the image had popped into her head, she had to assume it had popped into his, as well. And when his eyes flicked to her lips, she was certain it had. Jessie watched his face, watched the desire and conflict building. She knew her expression matched his. She also knew letting this feeling run away with them was wrong and stupid and would lead to nowhere good. Giving him one last squeeze, Jessie removed her hands from his skin. “All done.”