All big hands made for enticing punishments and whisper-soft caresses.
My brain sucks for getting me into trouble.
I can’t help it when my breath catches a little too sharply.
He finally glances up, his eyes shadowy and unreadable. But I can hear the amusement in his voice when he realizes I’m here.
“Margot? What’s wrong?”
I undo my robe and let it fall off my shoulders.
His gaze flicks down my body, ravenous, devouring me inch by inch.
I might just self-combust before I reach the hot tub.
The bathing suit I chose is red, a little alluring and a lot daring. It’s a one piece, but only the tiniest swathe of material connects the two parts.
The cool night makes me shiver, contrasting with the burn under my skin.
“Nothing’s wrong, Kane. I just thought maybe you wouldn’t mind some company to try out the hot tub,” I say, stepping closer.
He nods slowly and gives me some room to get in.
The bubbling water feels glorious against the cold air.
I almost groan with delight. Thankfully, I’m not that far gone.
Not yet.
“I don’t mind,” he confirms, clearing his throat. “Got it working this evening and figured I’d try it out. The kids went down fast after dinner. Barely made it through the opening credits, and I figured I’d let them sleep after the ride through town.”
“Mmm, good idea.” I rest my head on the lip of the tub. “I haven’t been in one of these for a while. Usually, I just do pools and jacuzzis in Arizona or Mexico.”
“Water hits different in Maine. You ever use this one much?”
“Yeah, when we were kids.” I look at him slowly, taking him in. He’s watching me with that intensity he often has, like he’s never thought about staring at anything else. “Although I never used to appreciate it then. It was too small to swim much as a kid.”
“But you do now?”
“Not sharing the tub with a brother who wants to dunk you until you’re panicking definitely helps.”
He chuckles, then we go silent.
The jets stream against my lower back, comfortingly fizzy.
Why wasn’t getting this fixed my first priority?
“How are you feeling?” he asks after a long moment.
I shrug.
Today was a long day, and this helps more than I ever dreamed.
“I finally called my mom. Predictably, she doesn’t think Gramps left anything valuable here.”
“No? What about sentimental?”
“She doesn’t think anythinghasvalue if some expert can’t put a price on it.” I dip my fingers into the water, twirling them idly. “I’m not sure Elvira Blackthorn ever had a sentimental thought in her life. I get it, though. Gramps hurt her bad when she was young. He caused a lot of trouble in our family, putting the Blackthorn name on a pedestal, but…” I stop and sigh. “I dunno. It’s just a lot. And then there’s the prowler stuff and the police report.”
