Page 115 of Tease Me

“I know that now. It took me a long time to believe myself, though. This year has helped.”

He smiled. “You’re one of the most erotic women I know.”

“Why, thank you, Mr. Addison.”

“I mean it, Jane. Too many women are worried about their appearanceto truly let their bodies take over.”

I nodded, absorbing his words.

“I’m more interested in a woman’s open mind than how flat her stomach is.”

“No offense, but you’re not like most men.”

“I’ll think you’ll find I’m exactly like most men.”

I huffed, not entirely sure if I agreed with him.

“Here are some words of wisdom for you. Everybody gets old. Your body will wrinkle and sag with age. That’s inevitable. But your mind is what keeps you young.” He placed his hand on my knee. “Retain your sense of adventure. Do things spontaneously. Prance around naked and have sex on the kitchen counter. Thosesorts ofthings will keep you young and make you feel much more alive than any Botox needle will.”

I entwined my fingers into his and breathed a contented sigh as I committed his words of wisdom to my brain.The water bubbled around us. Thestars twinkled above us.And asthe handsome man beside me held my hand, I tried to memorize everything about this truly exquisite moment.

It was an eternity before Henry unhooked our fingers. “Come on. You need to get ready for work.”

“Oh, bugger.” It was a rotten realization, butnonetheless,I let him lead me from the spa. He handed me a towel, and I dried myself off and redressed.

Carrying the ice bucket and glasses, we made our way back downstairs.

At the kitchen counter, I smiled at him. “Thank you for a wonderful evening.”

He kissed me. . . just a gentle, brief kiss. “Thank you, too. Now, off you go. Don’t want you getting into trouble.”

I huffed. “That’s true.”

“Oh, yeah. Was everything all right this morning?”

“Yes, it was fine.” I decided against enlightening Henry about what had happened after he left.

We said our goodbyes and I made my way back to my room. By the timeI’dshowered and dressedin my clothesfor work I had just over an hour until I needed to head downstairs to start my shift.

I cooked salmon for dinner, taking particular care tomake sureit was still dark pink in the middle, yetthe skin was nice and crispy.From the fridge,I pulled out a crunchy salad that came in a packet and took about six seconds to toss.My stomach practically barked at me as I carried my dinner onto my balcony to eat.

Crispy-skin salmon was one of my favorite meals, and luckily for me, it was quick and easy to make. The first mouthful was heaven, as was every one after that. Within minutes, I’d devoured the whole lot.

A cool breeze drifted off the ocean and I went inside, grabbeda jacket and mydiary, and returned to my seat.

I turned to the 23rd of September, and at the top, I wrote,Mr. Henry Addison, Room 52, my suave tutor.

In intimate detail,I described what we’d done in the spa and more importantly, how it had made me feel.I didn’t hold back and wrotedowneverything from feeling uncomfortable about the experience to how incredible it had been.

As I described how Henry had taught me yet another way to explore the intricacies of my body, I wroteUncharted Watersbeneath his name.

I closed my diary, and as I sipped a glass of water and stared out at the millions of stars across the inky black sky, I wondered how many more lessons I could learn before this year was over.

Chapter Thirty-One

At the end of my shift, I had every intention of going to my room and crawling into bed for a long sleep. However, once I stepped onto my balcony, I changed my mind. The weather was magnificent.

I dressed in my workout gear, pulled on my Nike runners, grabbed a hat and sunglasses, and headed back out my door.Ignoring Needledick as I crossed the lobby, I stepped through the sliding glass doors and was eternally grateful for my decision to go outside becausewalking up toward me wasone of the hottest men on the planet.

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