Temporary Fix (6 page)

“I…” She hesitated, feeling shy even after all they’d shared together. “It’s no big deal. Let it go.”

Dark eyes met her own. “Not a chance, baby, but it can wait until we’re more comfortable.”

With that said, he lowered Kelli gently to the floor, stepped over to the stone handles and set the water flowing. Remi puttered around the lavish room, opening and closing cabinets until he came back with his tanned arms full of thick towels, a bottle of wine and a single crystal glass.

“Make yourself at home,” she said with heavy sarcasm, barely restraining herself from rolling her eyes at his egotistical assumption.

“Just getting started, baby,” he assured her, dumping the towels by the side of the tub. He set the bottle and glass on the clear shelf designed just for that purpose. “Now, let’s get comfortable.”

This time she didn’t even bother to protest as he swung her up in his arms, stepped into the tub and settled them both into the warm, swirling water. Remi reached up to open the wine, filled the glass, then put the bottle back on the shelf.

He tucked himself behind Kelli, his legs bracketing her own as his arms circled loosely around her waist. He moved the glass to her lips and she sipped and gave in, leaning her head back against his firm chest.

Remi leant down to tease his lips against hers, loving the soft fullness. He tried to grasp the frayed edges of his brain. He couldn’t remember a time when being with a woman had shaken him like this. Reaching deep down inside him to the centre of his soul.

And all he could think was,
Now what? What can I say or do to make her finally believe in me?
Because there was no way in hell he wanted to give this pleasure up, or the sheer rightness of the connection he felt between them.

Taking a deep breath and saying a silent prayer for divine guidance, Remi finally spoke.

“Now, let’s talk about this bathroom, baby. ‘Cause something like this doesn’t just happen. Not without a magic lamp and three wishes.”

  
Women loved to talk about themselves, their pasts and their experiences and every other damn thing that floated through their minds. He didn’t mind—it entertained him. But now Kelli sat there, back taut with tension, refusing to discuss an office bathroom that would put others to shame.

“It’s not a big deal.” She refused to look at him, keeping her attention fixed on the unique stone faucets quickly filling the tub with steaming hot water.

Don’t push
, he warned himself, but failed to take his own advice. “If it’s not a big deal, then why not just tell me?”

She jerked her shoulder when he tried to coax her to turn around. “Fine, but one snort of laughter and you’ll be walking funny for a week.”

“Deal,” He pressed a swift kiss to the nape of her neck before relaxing against the wide end of the mini-pool.

Restlessly, Kelli swirled her fingers through the water. “I grew up in and out of foster homes. Not the classiest of places to start your life, but it didn’t matter to me. I knew one day I’d get out. I’d make something of myself.” The more she confessed, the faster her words flowed, like she wanted to get them all out at once.

“When I was about eight or so, all the foster kids were taken to this big, fancy house. The orphanage’s major donor’s house. Anyway, I’d never seen anything so beautiful, filled with pretty objects, paintings so vibrant it would bring tears to your eyes. The donor’s daughter warned us girls not to touch anything. She didn’t want her toys sullied by our poor, trashy touch. I didn’t care. I was just thrilled to be there, around such elegance. The daughter grew bored showing off for the poor kids and went to find something else to amuse her. The rest of the girls didn’t move, but I couldn’t stop myself. I had to see what else was out there. Left on my own, I wandered in and out of rooms that were so beautiful I wanted to cry.”

His heart felt like it would break for the sad little girl awed by her first glimpse of artistic beauty. Not able to speak over the emotional lump in his throat, Remi gave her a gentle squeeze and laid his head on top of hers.

“The last room blew my mind. It was a huge bathroom that looked more like a private spa than a place to shower and brush your teeth. The whole time I was in there, I could hear the daughter’s words running through my mind. Right then and there, I was determined to prove her wrong. I would have everything she said I was too dirty to touch.”

“You did it,
chèr
,” Remi’s eyes filled with tears he wouldn’t allow to fall. A single sniff or glimpse of pity and Kelli would shut down so fast he wouldn’t see it happen. But he did have pity for the lonely little girl she’d been. The past had created the woman who’d captured his interest, then touched his heart. “And you did it all on your own, without anyone handing it to you on a silver platter.”

Her slender, silky shoulders jerked in a casual shrug as she tried to brush away his praise. “It’s not a huge deal.”

“Yeah, Kelli, it is.” Why wouldn’t she accept the praise she deserved? A sincere appreciation of her abilities, intelligence and drive. “It sounds like the little bitch from your childhood was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Given everything she wanted before she even asked for it. You, on the other hand, worked your ass off to make this company a success. The life you’ve made is a testament to your hard work, intelligence and stubborn determination to thrive.”

Remi reached for the light green square of soap and used the mint-infused bar to rub slick circles on the smooth skin of her back. He used one hand to cup and rinse the suds from her, then pressed tender kisses to her sweet flesh.

The simple feel of her in his arms as warm water slid and teased between them had his cock swelling with need. Kelli noticed the revival of his desire and turned to look at him over her shoulder. “Are you popping little blue pills when I’m not looking?”

He smiled at the dig, not in the least bit offended. Hell, if it hadn’t been happening to him, Remi would have assumed the same thing. “
Chère,
the only thing affecting my cock is you. No pills, blue or otherwise, need apply.”

Surprised pleasure flashed in her eyes before she dropped her gaze and turned her head. “You flatter all your women this way?”

“Women were made to be flattered and I enjoyed doing it, but, Kelli”—he easily turned her slippery body to face him, her knees tucked dangerously close to the proof of his desire—”my dick hasn’t been this hard this quickly since I hit puberty. And it’s sure as hell not another woman keeping me at the edge of my control.”

A futile attempt to separate the contact between them, which Remi easily subdued by giving her arms a firm squeeze. “Nope, we’re doing this. You asked me to stay even after you knew my feelings. We’re not going to avoid the elephant in the room until you decide to run or pretend I didn’t mean a word I said.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” she stubbornly replied, her chin tilted up. “But just because I wanted sex with you doesn’t mean this is any type of relationship.”

Hot, bright temper flared at Kelli’s reduction of his feelings and their connection. Yeah, it’d taken him a while to get over himself, but he’d come here, hadn’t he? Bared what was left of his soul to her, hoping for another chance to make a better impression. Shit, Remi’d even confessed the family fairytale to her. “We’re in a relationship, Kelli. We have been from the moment you asked me to stay. Now, I’m willing to work on whatever issues you can throw at me, but I’ll be damned if you dismiss my feelings like they don’t matter.”

“How am I supposed to believe you, believe in this, us?” Her beautiful eyes held a world of longing along with a healthy dose of disbelief. “We haven’t spoken to each other in months. All of a sudden you show up here, declare your intentions, so to speak, and then expect me to jump on board without catching my breath.”

Yeah, when said out loud it did sound pretty stupid, but Remi couldn’t change the truth, and he said so. “I owned up to being an asshole when we first met. I’ve apologised for it, repeatedly. Either accept it or hit me.”

She drew back, her dark brows drawn together in confusion. “Hit you?”

“Yeah—hit me, smack me, break my nose—whatever will make you feel better.”

“Physical violence does it for you?” Sarcasm hung heavy in her words as she tried to pull away from the grasp of his arms. “That’s really sick, Douget.”

           
He shook his head. “Look I can’t take away what I did before. I’m offering to make it up to you any way I can. I want us to move past this, past your distrust and into something real.” The words were spoken from the heart, and he knew his emotions were visible for her to see.

           
“Just give me a minute, please,” she whispered, lowering her eyes.

           
Remi did as she asked while his heart pounded in dread.
Damn it
, he thought, his Cajun temper spiking. He’d confirmed another date just after asking Kelli out, while she’d still been in the room. Yeah, it had sucked. Yes, he was the ultimate asshole, but how much punishment should a man have to take in order to be forgiven?

Sweet heaven, she couldn’t think. Not when Remi looked at her with such bright emotion shining in his eyes. Everything about this night felt surreal, out of sync with reality. What she had bargained for, one night in his arms, had apparently never crossed his thick, macho mind.

‘Scratch an itch,’ Kelli had told him. They both needed to get over whatever chemistry had pulled them together in the first place. Instead, he’d declared his intentions, or something like that, and expected her to fall into place.

With jerky movements, she got out of the tub, ran a towel over her wet body and pulled her robe on. Remi still lounged in the tub, looking like an angel ready to be tempted, his dark hair forming little curls thanks to the heat and dampness. Slumberous black eyes blinked innocently under her scrutiny as the edge of his sensuous lips curved up.

“Keep looking at me like that,
chère
, and we’ll never get things settled between us.” The Louisiana accent thickened as he settled himself in the tub, strong arms resting on the lip by the headrest.

“And how am I looking at you?”

Dumb ass
. She wanted to smack herself before the words had left her mouth. Just because Remi looked like a wet dream brought to life and could fuck better than any of her fantasies didn’t mean she should encourage him. Not if she wanted answers, not if she wanted the truth. A strange heat in her stomach only encouraged her belief that she was on the right path.

“Like I’m your favourite flavour of ice-cream on a hot summer day,” he responded in a low, husky tone. “You can lick me anywhere you want, Kelli.” He stretched his arms out in a mock attempt to look harmless.

Kelli snorted in disbelief at the image. “Remi, you may be a lot of things, but harmless and innocent aren’t on the list.”

Dropping the wounded warrior look, he pinned her with the heat of his black gaze. “At least I got you to admit there’s more to me than a vain, asshole player.”

The sheer sincerity in his voice drained her resistance and she sank to the cold floor, the wide folds of her robe keeping her covered from neck to knee. If he looked sincere, sounded sincere and acted sincere, then either he was an Oscar-calibre actor or the man actually meant the wonderful things he said.

Kelli was a natural risk-taker. She’d never have been able to succeed in this business if she hadn’t been willing to take a chance now and then. But business was one thing and her personal emotions a totally different thing. As a young child, her heart had taken many a beating after she had been rejected by foster home after foster home. Kelli had learnt to keep her vulnerable side protected from the harsher realties of the world.

Now Remi lay there, covered in nothing but a sheen of water, asking her to allow him past her well-honed defences. To trust him, trust he wouldn’t hurt her or use her growing feelings against her.

“I need to start drinking more,” she muttered to the room in general.

“There’s a bottle of wine in your future if you ditch the robe.”

“Lech.”

“Tease.”

“Sex fiend.”

“Goddess.”

Heat rushed to her cheeks at his words. God, Kelli didn’t think her heart could take it if he wasn’t sincere. But if he was…if he was, then maybe there was a chance for the happily-ever-after she’d always secretly dreamed of.

He clasped her shoulders in his strong hands and drew Kelli to her feet. “Come on. I need to take you home. You’re about to fall down on your feet.”