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“Have you everbeen stalked by clients who refused to end things?”

“Yes. Twice.”

Lori sucked ina breath, although she could see how it might happen. “What did you do?”

“The firstwoman’s family stepped in and got her psychological care. The second woman wasarrested when she tried to kill me.”

Gasping again,she sat up straight on the bed. “She tried to kill you?”

Ander nodded,but his face was closed off, so she didn’t push for the rest of the story.Sometimes, over the last few months, she’d pushed too hard and Ander had shutdown and wouldn’t be genuine with her for the rest of the evening. She wascareful now.

“Have you everbeen arrested?” she asked, purposefully changing the subject.

“No.”

Lori stared athim, almost disbelieving.

“I’m extremelycareful,” he explained. “And now I only work through referrals. I do myresearch on all new clients before we discuss terms of any kind.” When Lorinodded, he lifted his eyebrows again. “Any more to this little inquisition?”

“Sorry,” shesaid, smiling ruefully. “I’m just nosy, and I don’t know anything about all this.”

“You don’treally need to know all the background for our engagements to be successful.”

“Well,” Lorisaid, sticking out her chin at his cool, lofty tone. “Iwantto know.”

Ander’s liptwitched.

She scowled athim, although she wasn’t genuinely annoyed with his obvious amusement. Hereally was irresistible when he repressed a smile that way. He onlyoccasionally showed her the practiced smile anymore—the sensual, urbane one shedespised.

Her eyesdrifted down to take in his bare chest, lingering on the tight muscles of hisbelly. His boxers were riding low on his lean hips, and she found the waistbandstrangely tempting.

Randomly, shewondered what he’d do if she just yanked his boxers down without warning. Shewas hit with the overwhelming urge to do so.

She resisted.Such a gesture seemed too presumptuous and intimate for the nature of theirrelationship. It wasn’t like they were a couple where such a playful, teasingact would be natural.

When her eyesdrifted back up to his face, she caught his eyes lower on her own body than herface. Had he been leering at her the way she’d been leering at him? His eyesadjusted quickly, focusing on her face with a casual smile. But she feltweirdly self-conscious and glanced down at herself. Her beautiful silk gown waswrinkled and disarranged. Her breasts were full, but the clingy gown didn’tgive her as much support as a bra would have. Her belly and waist were trim,but her hips and ass were curvier than she’d like.

It was nice tothink he’d been admiring her gorgeousness but she wasn’t entirely convinced.

All of thesereflections were giving her definite ideas, however. She rolled over to glanceat the clock and was relieved to see that it wasn’t even ten yet.

They had a lotof time. She’d already had three amazing orgasms this evening, and she had thisgorgeous, talented man at her disposal for two more hours. Plenty of time formore.

She grinned athim, feeling remarkably pleased with herself.

Ander chuckled.“Why do I suddenly feel like a piece of meat?”

Lori laughedtoo and spontaneously rolled on top of him, loving the feel of his hard, leanbody beneath her. They were both grinning now, and their gazes met andlingered.

Something warmfilled her chest as they smiled at each other, and she leaned down unconsciouslybefore she jerked to a stop with a gasp.

She wasn’tentirely positive, but she might have just almost kissed him. Without havingany intention of doing so.

It wasinevitable, she supposed. The lines in a relationship like theirs were bound toget a little blurred. In general, she was doing a good job keeping things inperspective. One near slip-up wasn’t the end of the world, so she wouldn’t letit bother her.

But her heartwas pounding painfully as she stared down at Ander. His lips were parted slightlyand the expression in his blue-gray eyes transformed from warm to deep to alittle confused.

Distracted bythe memory of what he’d said the minute before, she frowned and asked, “I don’treally make you feel like a piece of meat, do I?” She still occasionallysuffered from lingering guilt over participating in prostitution, even in acontext such as this. And she really didn’t want to objectify Ander more thanhis profession would necessitate.

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