Page 32 of Bedroom Therapy

It took several moments before she drifted back to earth. But when she finally felt the firmness of the mattress beneath her shoulders, reality slammed back into her.

Zachary was out there in the living room. And she wondered how in the world she was ever going to face him now.

“Amanda,” he murmured, as if he knew exactly where her thoughts had landed now that the fires sweeping across her body had been put out.

“What?” she asked, knowing that the question had come out high and sharp as she reached for the shorts and panties she’d discarded and dragged them on.

“Don’t be embarrassed.”

“Why not?” She fumbled across the bed for her tee shirt and bra. Laying down the phone, she quickly got herself dressed again—because she was going to make damn sure that he didn’t come down the hall and find her naked.

Her head swung to the door. He wouldn’t come in here? Not now, when she was feeling totally exposed and vulnerable.

Never in her life would she have imagined making herself come when someone else knew what she was doing. And certainly not with a man who was right in the same house with her.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes,” she snapped.

“Amanda, that was very, very pleasurable—for both of us.”

When she didn’t answer, he pressed, “Wasn’t it?”

Honesty made her answer, “Yes.”

“Then there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. You’d tell that to your readers, wouldn’t you? That what we just did is only another expression of your sexuality. Of our relationship.”

She laughed. “Who’s the advice columnist here?”

“You are. And now you have a better understanding of a very . . . stimulating aspect of man/woman sexuality.”

She closed her eyes, letting the words and the soft tone of his voice sink in. “Okay.”

“I’m going to hang up, now.”

Her eyes blinked open. She wanted to shout, “No,” because the phone had become a necessary extension of her body—a connection to Zachary. But the connection snapped, and she lay back against the bed. Reaching over she laid the phone on the bedside table.

She’d wanted him to keep talking, wanted him to convince her that he didn’t think less of her after what they’d just done. Now, she stared at a crack in the ceiling, thinking that it would be impossible to face the man in the living room.

She still had his phone number. Maybe she should just call him up and ask him to leave. That idea had some appeal. But it made her angry with herself. She was no coward, and she wasn’t going to take the easy way out here.

She hadn’t been the only one who reached orgasm a few minutes ago. Zachary had done it, too. And if she asked him to leave, she would never find out what that extraordinary phone call had meant to him.

Was he just having some fun with her? It certainly hadn’t sounded that way. It had sounded like he’d been totally involved in what they were doing. It sounded like he’d enjoyed himself as much as she had. But she knew from personal experience that men were perfectly capable of taking advantage of women.

She thought about Bob Burns and squeezed her hands into fists. He’d started off making her trust him, and then he’d used his intimate knowledge of her to start rumors about her on campus.

He’d used her, and she hadn’t even known what was happening until it was too late. Could Zachary Grant be the same kind of guy?

She didn’t think so. But there was no way to be sure—except by getting to know him better. And he’d just made that a whole lot harder.

On the other hand, she knew he was inviting her to come out of the bedroom when the rich aroma of fresh brewed coffee drifted down the hall and wafted under the door.

She dragged in a deep breath. He’d put on a pot of some blend that smelled very, very good.

Getting up, she walked stiffly to the bathroom and ran a comb through her hair. Telling herself she couldn’t hide forever, she walked slowly down the hall to the kitchen.

Apparently he’d stopped to do some shopping. The coffee machine on the counter was almost full of dark liquid. Beside the pot sat a mug, a bottle of caramel syrup and a carton of heavy cream.

---