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‘Oh …’ Skye flushed. ‘Is that not what you had in mind?’

‘I’d hoped. But you realize, if we don’t go home, my parents are going to know …’

She wondered if that embarrassed him, asked, ‘Does that bother you?’

‘Not at all. You?’

She thought about it, and although she worried that Janey wouldn’t be happy about her new association with TJ, she had to admit, ‘A little. I don’t want to hurt your mom. But I also really want to stay.’

‘Hurt her?’

‘She warned you away from me.’

‘Um, no. Or yes, I guess. But she most certainly was looking out for you, not me.’

Unsure of what to say to that, Skye just said, ‘Okay. Let’s stay.’

His green eyes lit with a sincere smile. ‘That’s settled then. I’ll let them know we won’t be home. In the meantime …’ He got up and walked through to the lounge, came back with the room service menu. ‘Why don’t you order? Then we can have a shower while we wait?’

Skye moved to grab the menu, winced as her body, tender and sore, rebelled at just that small shift.

TJ saw it. ‘How bad?’

Six, she thought. But said, ‘A four maybe,’ because she didn’t want to waste the time she had left with him.

‘Little liar.’ He took her mouth in a quick kiss. ‘I’ll run a bath instead.’

He walked away, and Skye couldn’t help but watch him, his muscular ass and thighs rippling as he strutted away, the muscles in his broad back flexing easily beneath his golden skin.

‘Could you order me a burger?’ He turned, caught her looking. ‘You like what you see?’ he asked with an arrogant smirk.

Skye couldn’t even deny it. ‘You know I do.’

TJ’s grin was wicked, his green eyes devilish. ‘Same goes, pretty girl.’ He took a step towards her, stopped, shook his head. ‘No. Bath first,’ he said to himself. And when Skye laughed, he pointed at her, accused, ‘You’re trouble,’ before walking away.

Seconds later, she heard the water run as he filled the tub. Skye perused the menu. She chose linguini for herself and then called room service and ordered.

By the time she’d hung up, TJ was back, a single flute of champagne in hand. He passed it to her and, the moment she took it, he reached forward and scooped her out of the bed and into his arms. Skye yelped and tried to balance the flute to stop from spilling on the lush carpet beneath them.

‘I have legs, you know,’ she drawled, but only because she hated to admit how much she liked being carried by him. It was new and sweet and exciting. It was an intimacy she would never have allowed another man, if only because it left her completely vulnerable.

TJ just grinned. ‘You have great legs. But I like the way we fit.’ He carried her into the bathroom, set her on her feet by the tub, and gently unfurled her fingers from the glass of champagne so she could climb into the hot water.

Skye sighed as the heat seeped into her sore muscles. Her heart skipped a beat when TJ didn’t leave her but slid in behind her. He passed her the champagne again, stretched his long legs on either side of her and pulled her back into his chest. He tormented her, his fingers trailing drops of water down her arm and then her chest to her breast. He circled her nipples, first one and then the other, with his middle finger.

Skye relaxed back against him. ‘What’s your usual routine the night before a ride?’

‘Rest. If there’s a gym near where I’m staying, I’ll go in, maybe stretch and foam roll, sauna if there is one. Otherwise, I try to stretch in the hotel room.’

‘You stay in hotels?’

‘Yeah. Not ones as nice as this usually. But I’m too old to rough it.’ When she snorted, he bit her shoulder gently. ‘I’ve got over a decade on you, and most of it rife with bull-riding accidents.’

‘Your right hip?’ she asked because she’d seen him favouring it.

‘My right hip. Both shoulders. Right wrist. Back. Neck. Knees. Right ankle and foot. My body has some miles on it.’ He wrapped both arms around her. ‘Thank God my credit card does too.’

‘Do you get nervous – when you ride?’