Chapter 169
**Sara**
For the next forty-five minutes, I took every opportunity to make small appreciative noises. Tom's breathing would hitch each time, and his muscles would tense under Rachel's hands.
By the time the massage ended, we were both wound tight as springs.
"Take your time getting up," Amy said as they left. "There's water on the side table."
The door clicked shut behind them. I waited a heartbeat, then turned my head to look at Tom. His eyes were already on me, dark with desire.
"You," he growled, "are a menace."
I stretched again, letting the sheet slip dangerously low. "What did I do?"
"Those little noises you were making." He pushed up onto his elbows. "You knew exactly what you were doing."
"I was enjoying my massage." I blinked innocently. "Unlike someone who looked ready to snap that table in half."
"Because you were torturing me." His voice dropped to that low rumble that made my toes curl. "Every sigh, every moan..."
I propped myself up on one elbow, keeping the sheet around me. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I was just enjoying a very professional, very therapeutic massage."
"Professional?" He arched an eyebrow. "Is that why you made those little sounds every time she touched you?"
"Those were purely involuntary responses to muscle tension being released." I bit my lip to keep from smiling.
"Muscle tension." Tom's eyes darkened. "Right."
"What else would it be?" I swung my legs over the side of the table, keeping myself covered. "I'm a very tense person. All that studying, you know."
He watched me intently, his gaze following the line of the sheet. "Is that so?"
"Mhmm." I stood, clutching the fabric to my chest. "Just an innocent student getting a much-needed massage."
"About as innocent as that little show you put on."
"Show?" I widened my eyes. "What show?"
Tom rose from his table, not bothering to adjust his sheet as it slipped dangerously low on his hips. "The way you kept stretching..."
I backed away as he stalked toward me. "Good for circulation."
"The sighs..." Another step.
"Deep breathing is important." My back hit the wall.
"And that moan when she worked on your shoulders?" He planted his hands on either side of my head, caging me in.
Heat pooled in my belly at his proximity. "I told you, I was tense."
"Alright." His lips curved into a wicked smile. "If you say so."
My breath caught as he leaned in, his bare chest nearly touching mine. The heat radiating from his skin made it hard to think straight.
"Though..." His mouth brushed my ear. "If you're still feeling tense, I know some excellent techniques for relieving that."
I shivered despite myself. "Oh, do you?"
"Mhmm." His lips traced down my neck. "Very... hands-on methods."
"That sounds..." I swallowed hard as his teeth grazed my pulse point. "...unprofessional."
"Oh, extremely." His chuckle vibrated against my skin. "But highly effective."
My sheet started to slip. I grabbed it tighter, earning another dark laugh from Tom.
"Shy now?" His breath tickled my neck. "After that performance during the massage?"
"I was just being appreciative of professional services." I tilted my chin up, trying to maintain some dignity while pressed against the wall in nothing but a sheet.
His fingers traced the edge of the fabric at my shoulder. "Professional. Right."
"Very." I squirmed as his touch ghosted down my arm. "Completely therapeutic."
"Then why are you blushing?"
"It's warm in here."
"Is it?" His smirk was infuriating. "I hadn't noticed."
I glanced pointedly at his own barely-there sheet. "Obviously not."
"We should probably get dressed." Tom stepped back, but his eyes never left mine. "Unless you'd rather stay like this?"
"Dressed. Definitely dressed." I clutched my sheet tighter, though my body protested the increasing distance between us.
"Shame." He retrieved his clothes.
I watched him disappear behind the screen, my heart still racing. The rustle of clothing made my imagination run wild.
"You better not be peeking," he called out.
"As if." I rolled my eyes, though I'd definitely considered it. "I'm a lady."
His laugh echoed in the small space. "A lady who just spent an hour torturing me with those little noises."
"I did no such thing." I waited until I heard his footsteps move away before darting to grab my clothes. "You're the one who kept tensing up every time Rachel touched you."
"Because someone was being deliberately distracting."
I quickly dressed, my skin tingling from the massage and Tom's proximity. When I emerged, he leaned against the wall, looking unfairly put together in his casual clothes.
"Ready?" He pushed off the wall, extending his hand.
I took it, ignoring how such a simple touch could still send sparks through me.
We returned to our suite in comfortable silence, though the air between us crackled with unspoken tension.
The room felt different now - more intimate somehow. I kicked off my shoes and flopped onto the massive bed, spreading my arms wide. Tom followed suit, lying beside me with enough space between us to be proper but close enough that I could feel his warmth.
"This ceiling is fascinating," I deadpanned.
"Mmhmm. The crown molding is particularly riveting."
"Is that what we're calling it now?"
"Well, we could discuss the light fixtures instead." His fingers brushed against mine. "Or perhaps the textured paint job."
"You're ridiculous." But I couldn't stop the smile spreading across my face.
"Says the woman who just spent an hour making porn noises during a massage."
I gasped, swatting his arm. "I did not!"
"Oh god, right there," he mimicked in a breathy voice. "Harder, deeper..."
"I did NOT say that!" I propped myself on my elbow to glare at him, but his grin widened.
"You might as well have." His eyes danced with mischief. "Poor Rachel probably thought we were filming something inappropriate."
"You're the one who looked ready to snap that table in half every time she touched you."
"Because someone was being a tease."
I flopped back down, fighting a smile. "Takes one to know one."
His laugh rumbled through the mattress. We lay there in comfortable silence, our fingers barely touching, the tension from earlier settling into something softer but no less potent.
"The ceiling really is fascinating, though," I mused.
"Absolutely captivating."
I bit my lip to keep from giggling. Here we were, two adults lying fully clothed on a bed, pretending to be fascinated by interior design while carefully not touching each other.
"You know what would make it more interesting?" His voice had that dangerous edge that made my toes curl.
"What?"
"If we-"
A knock at the door cut him off. We both jumped, then laughed at our guilty reactions.
"Housekeeping!"
"Later!" we called out in unison, then dissolved into more laughter.
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