Conference Cupid (3 page)

For the second time he wiped the sweat
from his palms; wouldn’t help to the get the supplies slippery. He took one of
the small towels from the insulated bag, rolled it into a tube, and placed it
where her neck would go. If nothing else he’d get his hands on her silky smooth
body.

If only I can get them to stop
sweating.

Keary
had always
been like some kind of icon to him. Head cheerleader from his hometown’s rival
high school he watched her from the stands and wished his family would move
across town so he’d at least be able to pass her in the halls.

If he’d been bulkier in high school he
might have been able to try out for the football team.

Yeah, right.

In high school he was reed thin and his
parents didn’t even think about contacts until his senior year.

And moving across town? What a laugh.
Devin’s family lived in the best part of town. Only a complete catastrophe
would have sent them from the palatial estate they called home. He would have
traded it in a second for the middle class neighborhood
Keary
lived in. Those homes housed teens who could sneak in after curfew without a
swat team descending.

The music stopped and Devin froze. He’d
been hoping he could set up and leave a note before she came out of the
bathroom. That way she’d call for the complimentary massage and he’d show up to
give it. Not that he knew a lot about
giving
massages, but he’d enjoyed
so many since he took over the hotel he figured he’d be able to wing it.

Placing the warm blanket over the sheeted
cushioned table, he stood erect as footsteps neared. That wasn’t the only thing
erect, though.  Devin moved behind the table so her first glance wouldn’t
show his aroused state.

Be naked. Be naked. Be naked.

That way if she threw him out at least
he’d get a glance. Why was it that the second he thought of
Keary
Galloway, he transformed back into a horny high school kid? No other woman had
such a heady effect on him.

Damn, hotel robe.

Still she looked luscious.
And scared.
Keary
stopped
mid-step, staring at him with her eyes wide with shock. His tongue felt thick
in his throat. He cleared it. “Ms. Galloway, part of the extras that come with
this suite is a first night complimentary massage. I’m Devin, and I’m here to
make sure when you go to sleep tonight your body is completely relaxed.”

He waited while she tried to make sense of
his lie. The massage was complimentary, but it had nothing to do with the
suite. He’d overheard enough of what these romance writers dreamed of. Now he
planned on becoming part of a fantasy.

Well,
his
at least.

“How....wonderful.
I thought you were a model?”

Good question. Now why didn’t I think
of that?

“Actually, I work for the hotel.”
That’s
it; try to stick close to the truth.
“I know one of the models and agreed
to help out tonight. They were a little short handed.”

Short handed. He’d had to go out of his
way to stage his modeling debut. Not exactly an easy task—keeping the rest of
the staff from noticing that the owner was prancing around half naked in a loin
cloth.

Keary
pulled the
robe around her tighter and her eyes narrowed.

“Sorry I startled you. I was trying to set
up quickly and get out so you’d see the note and call down when you were
ready.” He pointed to his half written note.

With a bit of hesitation she advanced in
his direction. Once on the other side of the table she took the note from his
hands.

“No problem. A massage would be nice.
Although I just came from the Jacuzzi so I’m pretty relaxed already.” She
glanced at the table.

“I’ll leave the room so you can slip on to
the table and under the blanket. When you’re ready call out and I’ll come back
in. If you were dressed, I’d say take everything off. Of course you can leave
underwear on if you prefer. But since you’re undressed, you just need to slip
off the robe.” He forced his eyes to stay on hers and not rake over her body
the way he wanted them to as he rambled on like an idiot.

She looked away. Devin was glad that he
wasn’t the only one scared shitless of what was coming next. She nodded and he
left the room. Practically collapsing on the sofa, Devin held his head in his
hands and tried to take calming breaths.

Can I go to jail for this?

They did offer massages at his hotel. This
one was complimentary.
As long as she agreed to it?
Hell, she’d never find out who his
true identity anyway.

“I’m ready.”

Devin wondered if his legs would hold him.
Of all the things he’d dreamed a naked
Keary
would
say to him, ‘I’m ready’ topped his fantasy list. He wiped his palms on the side
of his pants one last time.

She lay face down on the table, holding
the rolled towel in her hand. “Wasn’t sure what to do with this?”

Devin took the warm cloth from her hand
and placed it in the warming bag. “No problem. We’ll start this way.” If
anything it would serve him better. At least it would give him time to get his
nerves under control.

“Start this way?”

“Scoot up a little and place your face in
the hole there. That’s right. Normally I would start with you on your back but
there’s no reason for you to have to flip over now. We’ll start this way and
end with your face. Relax.”

He moved her blonde hair to the side of
her head. Silk. The strands slipped through his fingers like silk ribbons.

He tucked the blanket around her legs and
pumped lotion on to his hands. Peeling the coverlet from her back, he placed
his hands on her shoulders and hoped she hadn’t had too many experiences with
professional massages. He worked her neck and shoulders, his palms tingling at
the soft texture of her sweet skin.

If only my tongue could retrace the
movements of my hands.

He peeled the blanket down further so it
exposed just a hint of ass and his erection pushed against the fabric of his
pants.

Starting at the base of her spine he
placed his palms down and pushed up toward her neck. His hands glided over her
silken body and she moaned.

Devin’s arms tensed and his cock grew even
bigger. “Am I hurting you? I could ease up a little.”

“No. It feels great.
Decadent.
I may drift off to sleep.”

Oh, it felt great all right.

The mere touch of her skin decreased the
amount of room in his pants and they started to
become uncomfortable.
“If you fall asleep, even better.
Just shows I’m doing my
job right.”

 If she did fall asleep would he
touch higher and lower than the legal limit?

No. Not without her consent.

But he’d want to. He couldn’t touch
certain places without her asking for it. And he’d go out of his way to make
her ask.

Placing the cover up around her back he
moved down to the bottom of the table and lifted it from under her right leg.
He tucked the cloth back the way his masseuse did to him every Monday. Only he
let it ride a bit higher so it rode up to the top of her hip, exposing a small
part of her adorable butt cheek.

Starting at her foot, he massaged until
his hands caressed the top of her thigh and ran over the tip of her ass near
her hip. Sweat built on his brow as he mustered more control than he’d ever had
to in his entire life. If he slid his hand a few inches to the left he could
explore the area that his youthful dreams were made of.

Whenever the temptation became more than
he could handle, he switched to another body part until it was time for her to
turn over. As he massaged her neck and shoulders from the front, he let his
long fingers slide down until they neared the start of fleshy breasts.

He didn’t want to stop touching her, but
if he continued much longer she’d know this was a scam. It had been an hour and
ten minutes as it was. “How do you feel?
Rested?”

Keary
moaned as
if in protest that he stopped. “Like Gumby. I think I could be bent in any
direction.”

What he wouldn’t give for the opportunity
to
bend her in a few directions so he could worship the rest of her
body, and devote himself to her pleasure. “Good.”

He lifted his hands from her skin and instantly
missed what he’d spent so many years going without.

He’d had women.
Plenty
of them.
The richer he became, the more abundant they became. But none
of them were
Keary
. Maybe if he could just make love
to her, he’d be able to move beyond his childhood fantasy.

Deep down he knew his biggest fear—that
he’d never want to stop.
Didn’t matter.
He’d never
experience the glorious sensations inside those sugar walls.

But then again, he’d never thought he’d be
touching her silken skin either.

Chapter Five

“I’ll wait in the other room while you
change.” Devin walked away before she could respond.

Willpower.
It
took willpower to keep her mouth shut and not beg him to stay. She wanted to
promise him any amount of money to keep his hands on her and move them to
territory that begged for a man’s touch. These places had been neglected for
too long.

The door closed and
Keary
sighed. She’d never had a professional massage before. Just the memory of this
attractive man touching her had her body tingling.
You’ve been alone for too
long.
Stop thinking about seducing Mr.
Golden Touch.
Get your act together. He needs his table.
You need your sanity.

Keary
lifted
herself up on her elbows and swung her feet over the edge. As she slid down,
her left foot twisted and she fell to the floor with a thud. An unladylike
expletive slipped from her mouth followed by a loud groan.

Devin burst through the door like the
masked avenger to save the day and scooped her up in his arms. “Are you okay?”

“Twisted my ankle and fell.” She looked up
into his hungry eyes and realized she was naked. His breathing became heavier
and instinctively she knew it wasn’t from carrying her weight.

His black eyes, darker than moonlight
pitch, scaled her nakedness and he swallowed hard.  There was no mistaking
his interest.
Keary
quivered and her nipples hardened
in response.

Devin made no attempt to put her down. The
warmth of his hands seared her flesh. He looked at the bed and panic flooded
her mind as moisture flooded between her legs.

“Could you put me down in the other room
on the couch? And I could use the bathrobe.”

“Of course.”
The
husky timbre to his voice mingled with a soft whisper, charging the air with
sexual intent.

With an intake of breath, he brought her
to the sofa in a few quick strides. He placed her down softly and went back to
retrieve the bathrobe which had been deposited on the bed.
Keary
lay stretched out and naked, her mind running a mile a minute. She looked up
and he stood in front of her, clutching the robe. His jaw tightened but his
eyes made no excuses for his lengthy stare.

Reaching up,
Keary
took the robe. Their fingers touched and she let out a sigh. She placed the
soft material around her and closed the tie around her waist.

“Which ankle is it?”

“My left.”

Devin reached down and touched it, his
fingers caressing. “Does this hurt?” He moved the ankle slowly from side to
side.

“Not bad, just a little.” She winced.

“Let me get you some ice just in case it
swells. It’s not broken.”

Keary
nodded and
watched him get ice from the chilling champagne bucket and roll it in a towel.
He took the opened bottle and poured a glass.

Returning to her with a slow-paced
saunter, he sat on the edge of the couch and passed her the full glass.
“Drink.
It’ll dull the pain.”

The only pain right now existed between
her legs, the pain of longing. “I normally don’t drink and I’ve had one glass
already. If I pass out you’ll end up putting me to bed.”

“My pleasure.”
He
wrapped the towel around her ankle and the cold made her foot jump.
“Too cold?”

“A little but I’ll get used to it.” 
She’d suffer through it because her foot needed it, but she hated feeling cold.

“So, what’s it like to be a writer?”

She blinked and realized he didn’t know
she was unpublished. “I’m fairly new at it. Fiction writing that is. By day,
I’m a technical writer.
Directions for use.
Contracts, that sort of thing.
I’d love to be able to write
full time. I’ve just finished my first full-length novel.”

He managed to still look impressed and
Keary
continued. “I was introduced to a woman who’d
published a few novels and we became friends. She encouraged me and had me join
her writers group. I’d just gone to my first meeting when they talked me into
this conference.”

“Is that a bad thing?” He placed the cloth
on the coffee table and started to massage her ankle.

His warm fingers felt like heaven compared
to the ice, and were much more effective. “No, it’s a good thing. I’m just
nervous.”

And getting more
nervous with every stroke of his fingers.

He raised one eyebrow in question.

“I have to pitch tomorrow.”

“Pitch?
You have
a softball game?”

Keary
laughed.
“Editors and agents are here at the conference. We get to make two appointments
and have about five minutes with each to pitch the concept of a completed
manuscript. If the person is interested, you get a request which gets read
ahead of the slush pile. It’s a guaranteed read. So the pitch has to be good. A
few minutes is all you get to
hook
them.”