Page 18 of Opposites (Never) Attract
Beauty was pain after all.
He swung open the large door of the spa and allowed me to step in front of him.
I didn’t realize how nervous I was until the smell of lavender and eucalyptus surrounded me and my shoulders lowered. Finally, I was able to take a deep breath.
Why was I nervous?
Because someone from home was visiting and that almost never happened? Or was I nervous because this was Tag, and once upon a time I had a small, tiny, insignificant crush on him?
Ridiculous. Any teenage infatuation I’d had for this man had long since been buried.
Was it because the teenager I’d had that little crush on had grown into the most masculine and appealing man I’d seen in ages?
Maybe?
“Are you okay?” he asked me.
“Of course.”
“You look like you’re having a pretty intense conversation in your head.”
“I’m not.” I lied.
Behind the front desk stood Esme, a tall woman with caramel skin tones and the most perfect complexion in all of New York City. She was stunning, and before I could stop myself, I snuck a peek at Tag’s reaction to her.
He was checking out the marble detailing in the lobby.
“Hi, Esme,” I said.
“Ms. Calloway, so happy to have you back. And I see you’ve brought a friend.”
“An acquaintance,” I corrected her. “From out of town.”
Esme nodded. “I have your schedule ready. Your…acquaintance can choose his treatments from the menu.”
“I’ll do whatever she’s doing,” he said. He turned to watch an attendant wearing scrubs walking down the hallway to a treatment room with an IV bag.
Evil me, smiled. “Are you sure? Some of these treatments involve a little bit of…discomfort.”
“Why do you choose things that aren’t comfortable?” he asked me.
“Because they’re effective.”
He shrugged. “Am I going to have to get naked?”
I could have sworn Esme gasped.
It was the Taggert Durham effect.
Day in and day out, the most exquisite male models, famous musicians, actors and professional athletes walked through the doors of this spa, and Esme was unfazed.
There was something about Tag that just hit different.
Maybe it was all that testosterone. Maybe it was because he looked like he could lift any woman up and pin her to a wall if he wanted. Maybe it was the way he walked that signaled he could make a girl see stars.
So the idea of Tag stripping down, buck naked? Yes, perhaps I, too, shivered a little on the inside.
“Only if you wish,” Esme said. “However, most guests will leave their undergarments on. I’ll show you to your dressing rooms,” Esme said.
