Secrets Vol. 2(18)

I gaze into his eyes, and when I feel every inch of my skin burning, yearning for his touch, I look away. "Just do it, Cole. I know this is your way of telling me that my idea was good, but flawed. Just make it right and do what you want." My voice sounds curt, but I didn't mean to be. I'm beyond nervous and I don't know what he wants to do.

Cole nods and leaves the room for a moment. The tension drains from me as soon as he walks away. I sit down on a chair and cross my legs, scolding myself, Focus, Anna. When Cole returns, he has an arm full of plastic bottles and a few paint brushes.

Confused, I ask, "What are those for?"

He takes one bottle and pours clear contents into another container, "To make the crystals stick."

I watch him as he mixes three clear liquids and then shakes the bottle hard. The muscles in his arms bulge slightly as he does it. My eyes are on his arms and my brain isn't working. He stops, pours the contents into a cup, grabs a brush and says, "Up." He passes me and walks to the other side of the room. He points to a stool and says, "Sit."

I have no idea what he's doing. It isn't until the brush is dipped in the clear liquid and the brush is coming at me that I pull back and ask, "What are you doing?"

He glances up at me. Cole is in work mode. His eyes have glossed over, but he snaps out of it when he hears my voice, "Applying the crystals. I'll paint on the adhesive and place them by hand. Then we can pour on more so that they still look loose and flowing." He's staring at me, absorbing my confused expression. He laughs, and rubs his face with the heel of his hand. "I forgot the box of crystals on the table. No wonder you were confused." As he hurries off to grab the box, I sit there with my jaw hanging open.

When Cole returns, he dips the brush again, and dots the cold viscous contents three times on my throat. Then he turns to the box and selects three different sized crystals, all white, and applies them. They stick. A smile spreads across his lips and his brush dips into the mixture again, moving lower this time.

I sit on the stool with my hands on the seat, fingers crushing the wood. Every time his brush touches me, I try not to flinch. It's so cold. And then he presses the crystals to my skin. His warm fingers brush against me as he does it. I can't breathe. My arms start to shake as his brush caresses the top of my breast. Cole stops what he's doing and looks up at my face. His attention had been concentrated on the curve of my breast and which stones to put where, but when I start shaking, he blinks twice and looks up at me.

"What's wrong?" he asks. His voice is too soft. I don't notice because I'm ready to crawl out of my skin. His little touches are driving me insane. His fingers have already seared a path across my chest and the closer he gets to my nipple, the more I can't stand it. That sexy blue gaze meets mine.

I want to say that I can't do this. I want to throw myself at him, but I don't. My nails dig into the wood, "Nothing," I say. "I just... well, this is kind of a bit much." I know I'm rambling, but I can't stop myself. For some reason it doesn't matter how many nude paintings I've seen, it's entirely different when I'm the naked girl being painted. Literally. With glue. And then getting bedazzled by Cole's perfect fingers. My brain snaps as I'm speaking. I can feel it happening, but can't stop the rush of words. "And the glue, and the crystals - Cole - it's just..."

He stills me with a firm hand on my shoulder. I look into his eyes, at those dark lashes, "It's a little more personal than you thought it'd be?" I nod once, and he averts his gaze. Cole's hand releases my shoulder and I shiver. "Yeah, it's that way for me, too." He clears his throat and looks back up at me. "Do you want to stop?"

Sadness pours through me and I shake my head. "I wanted to do this. I wanted..." my voice is strained.

Cole pushes the hair out of his eyes, and says, "I know. And this is a great idea. I know exactly what I want to do... " he breathes hard, "but it's strange because it's you. I know you." He looks at me for a moment and realizes how silly he sounds. A smile lines his lips and he sits down on the table. "So, we both want this, but it's - "

"Awkward. Awkward as hell," I slouch on my stool. While we were talking, my arms have tried to fold over my breasts three times. Each time I had to stop myself or I'd shift the crystals. The glue hasn't dried yet.

"Yeah, it is." He glances up at me. Cole seems more relaxed than me. My gaze locks with his, my lips part. I know I'm gazing too long, staring at him, willing him to walk over to me and do unspeakable things to his intern, but I know he won't.

Cole lets the gaze linger. His voice pins me in place, "We need something to break the tension, to help you relax."

"Yeah," I reply, nodding, not taking my eyes off his. As he steps closer, my stomach flutters and my skin tingles. Cole stops before me. His hands are in his pockets. His shoulders are slumped forward slightly, like he's uncertain about something. And his gaze doesn't leave my face. The look in his eye makes my pulse pound harder.

Cole is standing so close that I can feel his breath on my skin. He leans closer to my face, and doesn't stop until we're nose to nose. I fight for control of my breath, trying to still my racing heart. He breaks the gaze, and looks down at my breasts covered in crystals, then lifts his eyes to my lips. When he speaks, I melt, "This shouldn't be like this... but it is. I want to have an excuse to touch you, anything... and now that I have one, I can't do it."