About Last Night... by Stephanie Bond Page B

unstuck."
    He looked up, as if appealing to a higher power, then sighed and handed her a towel.
    "Thank you." She dunked the thick towel under the water, dissolving mounds of bubbles, and spread it over her nakedness.
    But her heart thumped wildly at the thought of Derek seeing her yet again in a state of near undress, especially when she was so
    recently sated on thoughts of him. "Okay, I'm ready."
    His large fingers curled around the edge of the shower curtain, and he pushed it aside slowly. The cool air hit her bits of
    exposed skin and sent a chill down her neck. She shivered, an all-over body shimmy, although she conceded she couldn't blame
    her reaction entirely on the elements. The man was huge, especially from her angle, his proportions nearly those of a
    professional athlete. A memory surfaced that Steve had once told her he had a pal who had played college football. Perhaps
    he'd meant Derek.
    He ran a hand down over his face and looked at her through his fingers. "What is a person thinking when she shoves her toe
    up a faucet?"
    Janine averted her eyes. She certainly couldn't tell him what she'd been doing. "I wasn't thinking."
    "Obviously," he said, his expression bewildered. He slid the curtain to the wall, then lowered himself to one knee.
    She felt at a terrible disadvantage at this lower level, not to mention naked and submerged. The towel covered her, but clung
    to her figure in a manner that belied its purpose. Of course, it didn't matter, since the man seemed completely unfazed. He
    leaned close to the faucet, so close she could feel his breath on her bare leg. Thank goodness she'd shaved them earlier.
    He swept a soap wrapper and an empty miniature shampoo bottle from the side of the tub into the trash to clear a spot, then
    picked up the dripping metal razor and gave her a pointed look. "You used my razor?"
    She bit her lower lip. "To shave my legs. I thought it was Steve's."
    His jaw tightened as he set aside the razor. "It isn't."
    He didn't have a girlfriend, she realized suddenly. At least not a live-in. Not even a lady friend who occasionally spent the
    night, else he would be used to sharing his razor. Then she frowned. Not that she'd ever used Steve's.
    "Would you please turn off the motor so I can think?" he asked, his voice strained.
    "I can't reach the switch," she said, pointing over his shoulder.
    He stabbed the button in the corner of the tub ledge and the rumbling motor died abruptly, taking the soothing bubbles with it.
    Suddenly the room fell so quiet, she could hear the calling of birds outside the skylight, where daybreak was well under way.
    The eve of her supposed wedding day. She felt light-headed and realized she hadn't eaten in hours. And Derek's imposing
    nearness was tripping her claustrophobic tendencies.
    He gripped the side of the tub and perused her foot from all directions, then he glanced back at her. "Can't you just pull it
    out?"
    She scratched her nose, realizing too late her hand was covered with suds. Sputtering the bubbles away from her mouth, she
    said, "If I could, I wouldn't have called you."
    He pursed his mouth, then said, "I'm not a plumber."
    "Do something," she pleaded. "The water's getting cold, and I'm shriveling up."
    "Really? Gee, and you've only been in here for an hour."
    She frowned at his teasing. "You were the one who suggested I take a long, hot bath."
    He laughed, then turned his attention back to her foot. "Except I don't recall suggesting that you insert your toe into the metal
    pipe coming out of the wall."
    She pressed her lips together and braced for his touch. He clasped her foot gently, but firmly, and his fingers sent arrows of
    tingly sensations exploding up her leg, reminiscent of her climax. She grunted and he looked over his shoulder.
    "My leg is asleep," she explained.
    He isolated his grip to the base of her toe, wriggling it side to side. The inside lip of the faucet dug into her tender skin.
    "Ouch! Not so hard."
    "I'm sorry," he said,