Bachelor's Special by Christine Warner Page A

most sets of women’s underwear, she felt too exposed. She turned to the side slightly and folded her legs up. Not that it helped, but it made her feel a bit less exposed.
    Chet slid his feet from his sandals, brushing a hand through his hair. The heat from the sun wasn’t the only thing scorching her skin. She trickled several droplets of water over her arms, but she couldn’t drag her focus from his toned flesh.
    Jill soaked in his ripped abs and the obvious package of goodies covered by his brown swimsuit—the same sexy brown as his hair. Damn, did a man have a right to fill out a pair of swimming trunks like that? Flecks of hair, just enough to give him a manly appeal, covered the etched muscles of his long, tan legs.
    She licked her lips, hoping she could still speak. “Do you want some privacy?” Yes, say yes. She needed an excuse to make an escape without coming off like someone desperate to be making an exit.
    …
    Hell no, he didn’t want privacy. Through the shield of his sunglasses, he inspected her body from the tips of her pink-painted toenails to the top of her brightly flowered swimming cap. Did people still actually wear those things? “No, you look comfortable. Stay and enjoy the day.”
    “Oh…are you sure?”
    “Sure.”
    Amazed at his own ability to talk without his tongue hitting the cement, Chet turned to throw his towel and sunglasses on a nearby lounge chair. Damn.
    The red and white polka-dot halter-style suit featured a tight bodice, but her slender hips and shapely thighs hiding beneath a matching skirt grabbed his attention until all oxygen left his blood. Even showing less skin than the average girl on the beach, she far exceeded sexy and alluring.
    Get a grip, Castle. She’s off limits, no matter how delectable.
    He turned and stepped onto the diving board. He bounced along the surface as he made his way over the water. When he looked at Jill’s bathing cap covering her head, he held back his grin. The neon rubber flowers reminded him of something his grandmother would’ve worn, but there the similarity ended. Everything beneath that cap was far from making him think of Grandma.
    When he hit the water, the coolness didn’t alleviate the heat coursing through his veins. Swimming beneath the surface, he made his way to her raft and flipped it over. He might be asking for trouble, but he didn’t care. Whatever sizzled between them wouldn’t be squashed. This attraction had grown out of control—and he hated and loved the pull she had over him at the same time. A little flirtatious play was allowed. After all, they were both of age.
    They surfaced at the same time, laughing. He wrapped his arms around her waist. Hers clung to his shoulders, palms resting on his collarbone. She smelled of pool water and sunshine. For a brief moment he looked below the water’s surface at her sunglasses sinking to the bottom. He trailed one thumb across her eyes to clear away the water clinging to her lashes. She smiled up at him and that twinge—the one invading his groin with increasing frequency as of late—pushed against his swim trunks in force.
    Together they bobbed in the deep end, their legs working beneath the water to keep them afloat. Her fingers moved along his collarbone to grip his shoulders, and he realized he’d just made a huge mistake.
    This woman probably had no idea of the power she exuded over him. He’d sworn to himself he’d stay away from her sexually. The only thing they could share was friendship, and the other night had shown him Jill could be his friend. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d had such innocent fun with a woman. But damn, friendship didn’t stop him from fantasizing about something more.
    Back off, Castle . He couldn’t become involved, especially after she’d told him about her experiences with those other men who should’ve acted like her bosses but failed. Chet was a “love-’em-and-leave-’em” type of guy and she was a “for keeps”