Experimenting With Ed (2 page)

Claire shook her head, brushing away his reaction as a figment of her imagination.
Her
reaction, now—that was a result of too many hours spent in the lab, where the only males in sight were Gordon and some of the rats. It had been a long time since she had been this close to a guy, much less such a big, gorgeous, muscular specimen. Not only was she staring again, Claire realized, but now she was drooling too. Glancing away with an effort, she saw they had almost walked past her street.

“Oh,” she pointed across the intersection, “turn here.”

He did the same thing he had at each crossing, holding her back with a hand against her arm as he checked for traffic before ushering her across. Something about this careful gesture melted her insides into a ball of goo. Claire swallowed.

“That’s my building,” she rasped. Clearing her throat, she tried for a tone that was a little less…lustful. “I’m fine from here. You’d better get back. Your break must be almost over by now.”

Ed dismissed that idea with a single shake of his head.

She shrugged, hiding her pleased grin by digging in her purse for her keys. The whistle kept getting in her way until, with a frustrated growl, she yanked it out and tilted the purse so random coins, breath mints, a tampon and her key ring slid to one corner. She grasped the keys and held them up like a trophy.

With a gentle tug, Ed pulled the keys from her fingers and opened the door for her. As she stepped into her building in front of him, Claire felt the first stirrings of anxiety. Was he planning on staying? Despite rescuing her from Gordon and walking her home and the sweet way he’d held her back until he was sure the street was clear, Ed was still very much a stranger.

“Don’t be scared.” The way he said the words, like a command, made her heart beat even faster, although she wasn’t sure if that was from arousal or fear.

“I’m not,” she threw over her shoulder mock-carelessly as she climbed the stairs to her second-floor apartment. The elevator was temperamental at best, so she preferred to take the steps and not risk a couple-hour stop between floors while the handyman thumped and swore in Russian above her. Being trapped in the elevator with Ed, though… She cut off that train of thought. Her heart could only take so much.

“I won’t hurt you,” Ed said from behind her, obviously not believing her protestation.

Claire glanced back again, this time meeting his eyes. “I know,” she said.

She did know. At least, she was pretty sure. Kind of sure?

Turning back to climb the last few steps, she rolled her eyes at her worries. If this was how she acted when she was around a hot guy, she really needed to get out more.

“This is my place,” she said, her eyes darting around.

Should I invite him in?
she wondered. Her body was screaming “Yes!” but her mind was more cautious and the words didn’t leave her mouth. She stepped back as he unlocked her door with one of the keys he still held and pushed the door open, holding it for her as he remained in the hallway.

“Thanks,” she said in an embarrassing squeak as she turned toward him. “For walking me home, I mean. And using up your break, when I’m sure you have a ton of things you needed to do—”

She broke off, her mouth still open and her eyes wide, as he moved toward her. Taking her hand, he placed her keys in her palm and gently folded her fingers around them. After staring dumbly at her hand for several seconds, she looked up at him.

“Lock the door,” he ordered.

She could only nod, giving him a dorky half wave as she backed into her apartment and gently closed the door. She twisted the deadbolt and let her weight sag against the painted metal, feeling as if she hadn’t taken a breath in the past fifteen minutes.

“Oh boy,” she sighed. Her knees quivered and she sank to the floor. If this was her reaction to a simple touch on the hand, what would she have done if he’d kissed her? A grin stretched across her face at the thought. Shaking her head, she pushed herself to her feet.

It was official. She really, really needed to get out more.

Chapter Two

He was waiting for her.

As Claire skipped down the few steps to the street, she saw him standing in front of her building. She stopped and stared at him.

“Didn’t you leave last night?” she blurted.

“Came back.”

“Um, okay. Why?” Her feet began working again, and as she got closer, she saw Ed had indeed shaved, so he must have been home at some time.

“Walk you to work.”

Claire blinked. “Not to be repetitive, but…why?”

“You’re little. It’s not safe.” He hadn’t moved since they began talking but stood still, watching her carefully.

“It’s seven in the morning. What could happen to me? And how did you know I walked to work?”

“Guessed.”

She cocked her head. “Uh-huh. How did you know what time I go to work?”

“Didn’t.”

“So how long have you been out here?”

Ed shrugged. “‘Bout an hour before the sun came up.”

“Six?” she asked incredulously.

He gave an affirmative shrug.

Shaking her head, Claire hitched her computer bag up on her shoulder. “Is this weird? Should I be worried?”

She thought he might have flinched a little at that.

“I can walk behind you,” he offered. “You don’t have to talk to me.”

“Uh, no.” Claire almost smiled at that. “That would definitely be weird. And uncomfortable. Well, come on then—you want to walk, let’s walk.”

When Ed held out a hand, she stared at it for a second.

“Computer,” he said.

“Oh! Right. You sure?” When he nodded, she grinned. “Cool. You might change your mind when you feel how heavy it is. It’s like the thousand-pound laptop.”

“It’s fine.” He shouldered it easily.

“Well, wow.” Claire spun in a circle before striding down the sidewalk with Ed easily keeping pace. “I feel so light and free with just my purse. You should walk me to work every day.”

“Okay.”

She darted a quick glance at his face and saw he was serious. “That’s all right. I don’t really need my own Secret Service agent. I’ve taken a self-defense class and everything.”

His grunt sounded a little amused.

“Hey,” she protested, trying to hold back her smile. “Don’t knock a good poke to the eye. I have every confidence I could get myself out of a tight situation with this,” she held up an index finger, “and maybe a well-placed knee to the groin.”

This grunt was annoyed. “Shouldn’t be walking by yourself. You’re tiny.”

“You keep saying that.” Claire made a face. “You make me sound like I’m five years old.”

“No. You’re not a kid.” His eyes flicked up and down her body in a way that made heat pool in her belly. He nodded once. “A mouse.”

“A mouse?” She stopped to glare at him, fists on hips.

For the first time since she’d met him, he looked uncertain. “A pretty mouse?”

Claire shook her head. “Nope. Not much better.”

“A beautiful mouse?”

At that, she let her fists relax and started walking again. “Maybe.”

He kept pace with her. “You’re just…well, brown hair and big eyes and you’re soft— I mean,
look
soft…”

Hiding a grin, Claire felt any remaining indignation slip away. If she could reduce the mighty bouncer to practically stammering, it was worth being compared to a rodent.

Ed must have missed her smile, since he was floundering on. “And I saw last night how guys look at you. All hungry and predatory.”

“Really?” She couldn’t keep the pleased note out of her voice at that one, although disappointment quickly set in. “Oh, you mean Gordon. Yeah, he’s not a cat—more of a toad.”

“No.” Ed gave a single, short shake of his head. “Just walking through the club. They were all watching.”

“Oh.” She was smiling again.

“You hadn’t been there before.” The way he stated that, so certain, as if she couldn’t have been in or he would have noticed her, was more flattering than any kind of attention she could have gotten from a club full of other men.

“No. I’m not really a party girl. We were just out last night because Gordon found out he’s a finalist for a big endowment, so the whole lab—well, all four of us—went out. It’s a pretty big deal. If he gets this, he won’t ever have to scrounge for grant money again. Just the interest would pay his salary and fund his research for the rest of his career,” she explained. “That’s a pretty big ‘if’ though.”

“Research?”

“Cancer research.” She sighed. “That’s the part that makes it hard for me. I believe in the research but working for Gordon…”

“Didn’t care for him.” Ed’s even, understated words made her laugh.

“Exactly,” she agreed. “He is, as I mentioned before, a toad of a man. I’ve started sending out my résumé, actually. And it’s not just working for Gordon, it’s also…well, I’ll show you.” They’d reached the low-slung limestone building that housed the lab. “Do you want to come in?”

At Ed’s short nod, she unlocked the door and held it open for him. Claire led the way, flicking on the fluorescent lights as she went. She passed Gordon’s office and then the one she shared with Nadine and Joelle. Both rooms were dark. Claire doubted any of her three coworkers would be in much before noon after their late night.

She stopped at the third door, automatically tapping the security code on a small keypad. A small green light next to the door blinked and Claire heard the lock click as it released. She pushed open the door and reached for the row of light switches just inside.

The lab was divided into two sections, separated by a wall made mostly of glass. Through it, Claire could see the rats stirring in their cages as the lights flickered to full brightness. She dropped her purse on a table by the door.

“I don’t like this place,” Ed stated.

Claire glanced at him in surprise. “Sorry—do you not like rats? I know a lot of people don’t. I should have asked before I dragged you in here.”

He gave a short shake of his head, staring through the glass at the rows of cages. “No. Rats are fine.”

“Sure?” When he nodded, Claire grinned. “Want to meet Wilma, then?”

He gave her a sideways glance and shrugged. “Sure.”

Yanking off her coat, she hung it in the closet and grabbed a couple of white lab jackets, tossing one to Ed. He caught it but didn’t put it on. His face was strained.

“You don’t have to wear it,” Claire assured him. “It’s just to keep your shirt clean.”

He handed the coat back to her. “Do you have to?”

Stopping with the white jacket halfway on, she looked at him in surprise. “No, I guess not. I just have my scrubby clothes on anyway—no meetings today.” She grinned. “Don’t care for the mad scientist look?”

Although she was joking, she thought he might have flinched again. Letting the coat slip back down her arms, she tossed both of the jackets over a chair.

“Better?” she asked.

He still looked uncomfortable but his nod was relieved. “Thank you. I had a…bad experience with doctors.”

Now Claire was incredibly curious but it seemed a little early to be starting a game of twenty questions about a traumatic medical incident. After all, she’d only met him the night before. She figured she should wait until she had known him at least twenty-four hours before demanding a full medical history. She hid her grin, not wanting to have to explain to Ed what was funny.

“Come on then,” she said, leading the way into the other room. Ed placed her laptop carefully on a table and followed her. Flipping the latch on the wire top of Wilma’s cage, she reached in to lift out the rat. Holding the small animal in her hand, Claire performed the introductions with mock formality.

“Ed, meet Wilma. Wilma, this is Ed.”

To Claire’s amusement, he extended one index finger toward the rat. Wilma curled her tail around Claire’s wrist for balance and sat up, her nose and whiskers twitching as she sniffed him.

“Pleasure to meet you,” he said solemnly. Wilma rested both front paws on his finger and Claire laughed. It looked as if they were really shaking hands.

“This is the other reason,” she admitted. “Why I’m looking for another job, I mean. I know it’s a worthy cause and Wilma and the others are just rats, but…” Embarrassed, she looked down at the rodent. Wilma was busy examining a loose string on Claire’s sweatshirt cuff. “I just like them too much.” She gave a quick glance up at Ed, who was regarding her seriously. “Is that crazy?”

“No,” he told her. “Just human.”

She smiled at him, a wide grin of relief. “Thanks. I figured you’d think I was some crazy rat lady—doesn’t that sound awful? It’s just all the injections and the cages and they die so quickly… I’ll be better off doing cellular-level research. Can’t get too attached to a cell.” She watched as Ed stroked the rat’s head with one finger. “I think it’d be easier if the treatment was working.”

“It’s not?” he asked, looking up, and Claire shook her head.

“The celebration last night was a little premature,” she told him with a grimace. “Wilma here is part of the treatment group, and look.” Claire held the rat under her forelegs so she stood on her hind legs, belly exposed. “The original mammary tumor just keeps getting bigger—see that lump?” When Ed nodded, Claire continued, “Two new masses showed up in her last MRI. It’s the same with the entire treatment group. The injections are supposed to fool their immune systems into attacking the cancerous cells but nothing’s happening—nothing good, at least.”

“How’s he a finalist for the endowment then?” Ed asked curiously as Claire gently lowered the rat back into the cage.

“Oh, the idea behind the research is brilliant,” she explained, latching the cage. “It’s just not working.” She shrugged. “When the board of trustees sees the results—or lack of results—Gordon will never get that money and his original grant is almost completely spent.” She led the way over to a stainless steel sink, throwing a wry grin over her shoulder. “I won’t have to worry about quitting then—my job will just disappear.”

They washed their hands and left the room in silence. As Ed ushered her down the hall with a wide hand on her back, all thoughts of rats and research flew out of Claire’s head. The heat from his palm warmed her skin through the fabric of her sweatshirt and just that simple touch was enough to prickle her arms with goose bumps and dampen her pussy.

Ed’s head turned and he snagged her gaze. Her breath caught. It wasn’t her imagination this time—his eyes were molten silver, his face tight with desire.

“You want me.” His words were so certain, as if he could read her mind.

What do you say to that?
Claire wondered in a panic. “I—ah, what…” She stammered to a halt, at a complete loss for words. With a mental shrug, she gathered up her courage and met his eyes. “Yes,” she said baldly.

Before she could take another breath, Ed had her pinned against the wall and was kissing her—hard. He took over her mouth as desire crashed over Claire, rendering her oblivious to everything except his lips and tongue, the press of his body along hers and the cup of his oversized hand behind her head, cushioning her skull from the rough surface of the wall. He surrounded her, enveloping her in his heat and urgency.

As quickly as the kiss had begun, it ended. Claire groaned at the loss. Grabbing her hand, Ed tugged her down the hall, trying each doorknob as he passed. Claire stumbled after him, her brain unable to focus on anything except her body’s desperate need to have Ed’s mouth on hers again, his hands against her skin.

A door finally opened under Ed’s impatient hand and he pulled her inside, flicking on the lights as he swung the door closed behind them. She had a blurred glimpse of the familiar office supply closet, stocked with reams of paper, boxes of highlighters and binder clips, before he was kissing her again, one hand gripping her hip, holding her hard to him so the bulge of his erection pressed against her belly.

The rigid edge of a shelf dug into her back and she flinched away, trying to move without breaking the kiss, not wanting to sever that incredible connection of mouth on mouth, tongue against tongue, but Ed raised his head and the contact was gone. Before she could do any more than groan her disappointment, Claire felt the ground disappear from beneath her feet as Ed lifted her to sit on the shelf.