Page 16 of Climb Me Maybe
"This okay?"she asks, seeming to notice my tension.
"Yeah," I say, voice rougher than intended."Just nice, being able to see you."
Such a smooth talker, Brady.
She smiles and works around my chest muscles methodically, but she's carefully avoiding my nipples.Part of me wishes she'd touch them.What would her skilled fingers feel like there?Would she use the same firm pressure or something softer, more teasing?
Christ, Brady.My nipples are definitely stiff now.
"Your pecs are pretty tight," she murmurs, working deeper into the muscle."All that rope work and reaching overhead."
Her hands move lower, pressing into my ribs, then lower still to my stomach.I suck in a breath as her fingers find the ridges of my abs, working the muscles with slow, deliberate strokes.
"Breathe," she reminds me softly."Don't hold your breath."
But it's hard to breathe when her touch feels this good, when every stroke sends heat shooting through my body.She works my obliques, the muscles along my sides, and I can feel my body…responding.
No.Not now.
But my body doesn't listen.Blood rushes south, and I feel myself getting hard beneath the sheet.
I try to think about anything else—tree climbing techniques, safety protocols, my to-do list—but her hands inching down my stomach are undoing all my control.
"Shit," I breathe when I realize there's no hiding it."I'm sorry.I?—"
"Hey."Her hands still, and she smiles at me with those warm brown eyes."It's completely normal.Please don't worry about it."
My face burns with embarrassment."I'm not usually—I mean, I don't?—"
"Brady."Her voice is gentle, reassuring."It's a physiological response to touch.There's nothing to be embarrassed about."
The matter-of-fact way she says it, without judgment or awkwardness, makes some of the tension leave my shoulders.
"You sure?"
"Positive."She gives me another soft smile."Can I finish up here?"
I nod, and she continues working my stomach muscles, her touch professional, but somehow more intimate now that the…er…elephantin the room has been acknowledged.
When she's finished, I feel boneless and energized at the same time.She covers me with the sheet and steps back, and I have to resist the urge to pull her down onto the table with me.
Oh man, I’m toast.
I get dressed and stare out the window of the cabin.
"Same time tomorrow?I left it open for you,” she asks when she comes back in, and there's something in her tone that tells me the earlier situation didn't change anything between us.
"Yeah," I say, probably too quickly, then clear my throat."Yes.I'd like that."
Her smile is warm and genuine."Good.I'll see you then."
As I walk back to my cabin, I’m wondering why I wish somethinghadchanged.
CHAPTER5
IMOGEN
I’m trying to concentrate on refilling my oils, but every scent carries traces of him.
