Pleasure for Pleasure (17 page)

“I thought we could do something mundane, to simulate everyday interactions between two lovers, so we'll go to the grocery store. I need to pick up some things, anyway.”

“I'm supposed to make eyes at you and caress your hair over fresh produce?”

“That's entirely up to you.”

“Hmm, how would the Ideal Man grocery shop, I wonder?”

Trent picked up a bottle of salad dressing from the table and made as though he was inspecting it for purchase. He went over to where Josie stood at the sink, grabbed her by the waist, and pulled her to him. Their bodies molded together in all the right places. He gazed into her eyes as if searching for the secrets of her heart.

“Look here, darling. This condiment is high in sodium. What do you think about that?”

Josie tried to appear annoyed, but a grin gave her away. “Could you at least try to be serious?”

He pulled her closer as she squirmed to get away. “Only if you promise to share with me all your most intimate thoughts about ranch dressing.”

J
OSIE ADMITTED
to herself in the produce aisle that she might have made a grave mistake. She'd realized too late that taking one impossibly sexy man, telling him the secret to every woman's heart, and then asking him to try out his newly learned skills on her was a recipe for emotional disaster.

But everything would work out fine if she could just keep her heart out of it. That should be no problem as long as she reminded herself every thirty seconds or so that Trent was only acting, that he wasn't really interested in a relationship with her—or anyone else for that matter. He was still the same old wolf, nicely outfitted in a new sheep costume.

Trent slid his arm around her waist and pulled her close as she inspected an apple.

“One little bite won't hurt you,” he said. “That snake over there just told me so.”

“Isn't that supposed to be my line?”

She dropped the apple into a bag with the rest that had passed inspection. Without making a single comment on the wickedness of women leading men into temptation, Trent dutifully took the bag of apples from her and tied it, then put it in the cart.

“What's next on your list, dear?”

Wow, was he ever trying to pass tonight's test.

“Um…” Josie frowned, at a complete loss over what
she'd cook for dinner during the week. As usual, she had forgotten to make a list.

“I was thinking I could make dinner one night, whatever you want. Pick it out, and I'll cook it,” Trent said.

If he kept on like this, Josie was going to have to strip him down and make love to him right next to the cantaloupes and honeydew melons.

“Don't make such a tempting offer unless you really mean it,” she warned.

“I'm serious. Next lesson, we'll meet at your place and I'll cook.”

“You know
how
to cook?”

Trent put a hand over his heart and staggered backward, as if wounded. “So little faith you have.”

She shrugged. “Sorry, most guys I've dated knew how to cook meat on the grill, and that was it.”

“How about my specialty, seafood lasagna?”

He still hadn't cracked a smile, but Josie couldn't get her brain to form a mental picture of Trent in the kitchen baking lasagna.

“That sounds great.”

They moved through the aisles, Josie picking out items she regularly bought, plus a few dinners, and Trent selecting the ingredients for the meal he would make. She couldn't help but be intrigued by his selections. Real garlic, for instance. She couldn't even recall if she'd ever met a man who knew what to do with a clove of garlic.

When they reached the checkout, Trent separated the things he'd selected and paid for them himself, in spite of Josie's protest that she'd cover it since they were doing
her
grocery shopping.

At the car, he unloaded the cart into her trunk and then turned to Josie.

“How'd I do?” he asked.

“That depends on whether or not you're really going to make seafood lasagna for me.”

“I wasn't acting tonight. I'm making dinner for you.”

“Ah, so you really are the Ideal Man.”

He grinned. “Your words, not mine.”

“Do you know what the Ideal Man's lover does for him after he so valiantly helps her shop for groceries?” Josie asked.

“Rubs his feet?”

“No.” She took a step forward and the distance between them shrunk to a matter of inches.

“I give up.”

“She shows her gratitude in the way every man appreciates most, with physical affection.”

Trent slid his hands around her waist. “This, I like.”

His pelvis pressed into her and she felt him grow hard against her belly. Then he sat on the bumper of the car and pulled her between his legs, bringing his mouth to hers at the same time.

Josie kissed him with all she had.

Their kisses were no longer new and unfamiliar. They explored now, enjoyed a familiar heat, an easy rhythm that only came with familiarity. If she didn't know better, Josie would have thought she was kissing her one true love and not just a temporary lover.

“Mmm—” He pulled away. “Let's don't do this in a parking lot. I'm sure we can come up with someplace that has a little more atmosphere.”

Let's don't do
this?
Did he mean what she hoped he meant? Josie's insides heated up at the prospect of making love to Trent again. Forget Erika Li and her silly
rules. What Josie needed was sex with Trent, and lots of it.

A teenager pushing a long line of carts past them gawked openly, proving Trent's point.

“Not an exhibitionist, eh?” Josie whispered.

“Some things deserve the honor of privacy.”

“Some things like what?”

He slid his hands down her waist to the curve of her rear end and squeezed. “Like this.”

“But no one's looking now. Don't you like the thrill of possibly getting caught?”

He narrowed his eyes at her. “I'm not one of your kooky sex school rejects.”

“My students are not rejects!”

“Okay, but they are kooky.”

“Aren't you forgetting that
you
are one of my students now?”

“But I don't sit around in a circle with a bunch of other losers whining about sex problems.”

“Ah, I see.”

He pulled her closer. “I'm smart enough to talk the sexy instructor into giving me private, hands-on, one-on-one lessons.”

 

J
OSIE YAWNED
and scanned her list of things to do before leaving on the weekend retreat. As far as she could tell, everything was done, but she was too exhausted to care much if she'd forgotten anything. The final details had been handled, the students had been registered, and today was the day they would head for the wilderness. For two days and three nights, Josie would be leading workshops in the woods, roughing it in a remote cabin, fighting off mosquitoes and Trent.

Ever since the last lesson she'd had with Trent two
weeks ago, she'd been avoiding him for reasons she couldn't explain and didn't want to think about. She'd canceled this week's lesson with the excuse that she was too busy working at the center—and that had been true. Pretty much.

She stared into her half-empty suitcase, wondering what on earth a woman was supposed to pack for a sensual adventure trip. More specifically, a sensual adventure trip on which she was the sensuality instructor.

When her doorbell rang she realized it was time for Trent to pick her up, and she wasn't even finished packing. She hurried to let him in. He stood in the doorway holding several bags.

“Hey, I brought your gear.”

“Gear?” He didn't have a bicycle in one of those bags, did he?

“You can't go biking without the proper attire, the right shoes, a pair of padded gloves, and a helmet. I need you to check all this stuff out and tell me if it fits. I had to guess on the sizes, so I brought several of each.”

“Oh, that kind of gear. Sorry, I'm running a little late. I'll just hurry and try these things on.”

He nodded and took a seat on her couch.

Josie was at her bedroom door when she remembered her manners. “Thank you,” she said, stopping in the doorway. “For bringing me these things. It was really thoughtful.”

He shrugged. “No problem. There's also some sun-block and bug repellent in there.”

Inside the bedroom, Josie dug into the bag and pulled out several garments. Very skimpy garments, in her estimation. Was this really what female mountain bikers wore these days, or was this Trent's idea of a joke?
There were a couple of brightly colored spandex tops that amounted to little more than sports bras, along with matching bike shorts short enough to qualify as hot pants. She dropped the outfits back into the bag and stormed out to the living room again.

“You're joking, right?”

Trent looked up innocently from last month's issue of
Cosmo,
which he'd found on her end table. “About what?”

“You don't really expect me to go trekking into the wilderness dressed like this.” She held up the bag that advertised his business, Extreme Sports, in jagged black letters.

“What's wrong with those outfits?” he asked. But she could see by the barely repressed smile that he was baiting her.

“I'm not even remotely toned enough to go out in public in this much spandex.”

“Believe me, you're toned enough. I picked those out specifically with your, uh, figure in mind.” The corner of his mouth twitched, and Josie had a nearly uncontrollable urge to climb onto his lap and kiss him senseless.

First she would kiss him, then she'd strangle him.

“I bet you did,” she said. “I'm not wearing these.”

“Those clothes make perfect sense for the sport. It's going to be hot, and if you feel self-conscious, don't worry, we'll hardly see anyone else. The people we do see will be busy navigating the trails, not evaluating your fashion statement.”

“Why can't I just wear a T-shirt and some regular shorts?”

“You can if you want. The shorts I brought just have a little extra padding in the seat for comfort, and the
fabric of the outfits is a special microfiber that keeps moisture away from your skin.”

Okay, so the outfits didn't sound so scandalous when he put it that way. “And I don't suppose these special fabrics come in a loose-fitting variety.”

“Sure they do. I just wanted to see you in tight clothes, that's all.”

If he really thought she'd look sexy in the bike outfits, then maybe it would be a good idea to wear them. But then she pictured her rear end clad in padded spandex shorts and she shuddered. She'd just have to stay seated on her bike as much as possible. And never let Trent walk behind her. She'd also have to constantly think about sucking in her belly, so it would be just like being naked. Great, she was going on a naked biking trip.

She hurriedly packed her bag and loaded it in Trent's SUV parked outside her apartment. They had made a van available for students who didn't want to drive to Lake Tahoe, but for themselves, Trent insisted that he would drive and Josie could ride with him.

Josie had spent the past two weeks working night and day at the center, making one last-ditch effort to save it from bankruptcy. Her mother had wandered in to help on occasion, and Erika had done a fabulous job keeping the place running smoothly for the customers, but still, Josie was exhausted. What she needed was a real long-weekend vacation, not a working one.

Trent tried to talk to her during the ride, but she dozed off as they were driving through Oakland, and didn't wake up until they'd pulled in to the state park.

Josie yawned and stretched, momentarily bewildered to find herself alone in a strange vehicle. They were parked in the shade of a grove of trees, next to a rustic,
wood building. Moments later Trent came walking out of the building and smiled at her.

He opened her door and offered his hand for her to climb out. “You crashed hard. Back around Sacramento, I thought you were just being a really good listener until you started snoring.”

She wrinkled up her brow. “I snored?”

“You drooled a little, too. I just got us registered, but there was a booking mix-up. They put us in separate cabins.”

Josie felt a little twinge of giddiness that Trent had even assumed they'd be sharing a cabin. “I'm sure they could still put us in the same cabin. That is, if we want to share one.”

Trent gave Josie a once-over. “You and I both need our rest, and I have a feeling that if we're in a cabin together, one thing we
won't
be doing is resting.”

Josie stifled a yawn. A good night's rest sounded so heavenly right now. After weeks of working night and day at the center, she couldn't argue with his logic.

“Well, if you don't mind sleeping alone…”

“Really it's for my own good as much as yours. I need all the physical strength I can get to lead a weekend full of tours.” He smiled sheepishly.

Josie shrugged her acceptance. A bed, empty or not, was all she wanted now.

“We can leave the truck and the luggage here and walk to the cabins. It's a short walk through the woods. Someone will bring our luggage on an electric car.”

Rubbing her eyes and blinking in the shaded sunlight, Josie followed Trent as they made their way along a paved trail.

A few minutes later they came to a small cabin. “Here we are.”

“Is this my cabin or yours?”

“Yours. Mine's supposed to be a couple of minutes farther down the path.” He pulled a key out of his pocket and handed it to her.

Josie took the key and fumbled to get the door open. Once she'd succeeded, she turned to Trent. “I'm not sure how I'll manage to stay awake to greet my students as they arrive.”

He gave her a sympathetic look. “Why don't you stay here and get some more rest? Just tell me what I need to do for everyone this evening.”

She recalled mumbling some instructions before she let herself into the cabin and fell into bed.

What must have been hours later, she sat up in bed to find that it was light outside, but it looked more like bright morning light than what she'd fallen asleep to.

The clock on the nightstand confirmed that it was eight-thirty in the morning. Uh-oh. She had a seminar starting in a half hour, and she didn't even know her way around the campgrounds yet.

Someone knocked at the door and Josie shuffled out of bed to answer. She noticed on the way that the cabin was a pretty well-equipped one, complete with a cozy fireplace sitting area and a kitchenette.

Trent was at the door. “Morning, Sleeping Beauty. I brought coffee,” he said, holding up a thermos.

“Thank you. I can't believe how long I slept. I have a seminar at nine, and I'm not even prepared.”

“Sorry, I would have woken you if I'd known.”