Kate Hardy - British Bachelors - Delicious & Dangerous

‘If you think it’s going to make me squirm with embarrassment seeing an injured man in his birthday suit then I hate to disappoint you, Mr Treverne. Trust me—I’ve seen it all before!’

For the second time in a few short minutes Hal found himself worryingly bereft of an apt rejoinder and he didn’t like it. He didn’t like it one bit!

CHAPTER FOUR

THE LUXURIOUS BATHROOM adjacent to Hal’s equally opulent bedroom had a vast sunken bath and shower and a gleaming marble floor with a striking snakeskin finish. If Kit hadn’t known it to be true already, it screamed out that its owner was undoubtedly male, seriously charismatic and frighteningly rich. And so far her new employer was proving to be the most challenging one she’d ever worked for...

Dropping down onto a seriously comfy-looking chair, Hal handed over his crutches to her without preamble. It was nearly eleven o’clock at night and Kit knew that he was still tired, still hurting, and cranky because of it. Trying not to pay too much attention to the unhappy expression on his handsome face, she stood the crutches against the wall, leant down to the bath and turned on the taps.

As the water gushed out into the tub she glanced over her shoulder and asked, ‘What kind of temperature do you like?’

‘What?’

He was staring at her as though in a trance. Straightening, she crossed her arms over her chest, feeling as though she were suddenly being examined under the searching glare of an intense spotlight. It was hard to string a single coherent thought together when her heart felt as though she was careening downhill at breakneck speed because it beat so fast.

‘I asked what kind of temperature you wanted?’

‘Hot.’

Such a simple, commonplace word shouldn’t sound so...so provocative. But it did. And it didn’t help her case that she remembered telling Hal that she was hardly fazed by seeing a man’s naked body and had ‘seen it all before’. She didn’t doubt he thought she must be referring to her intimate experiences. Perhaps he thought she’d had several? The truth was she’d had just one briefly intimate liaison and that had turned out to be an unmitigated disaster. She’d been stupidly bluffing when she’d made her comment, so that he wouldn’t think he had the upper hand. And she’d called him egotistical!

‘Okay,’ she said.

‘I’ll need you to help me get in the water—also to put the waterproof cast protector on.’

‘Of course.’

‘Then I suppose I’d better get undressed.’

Swallowing hard at the very idea of seeing this man’s toned, athletic body bared for her eyes only—albeit so that he could take a bath—Kit had to dig deep to retain her composure. ‘Do you need any assistance with that?’ she asked.

Hal’s golden eyes glimmered almost painfully.

‘Not to get undressed, no. But you might as well stay in here until I’m ready to get into the bath. Think you can do that?’

‘No problem.’ She sensed heat flare in her cheeks even before she answered.

‘I’ll put a towel round me to spare your blushes,’ he declared, his tone indisputably provocative. ‘Even though you’ve assured me that you’ve seen it all before.’

Kit might have known he wouldn’t let her forget she’d said that. ‘Do you want me to put in some bath salts or foam?’ she enquired.

‘Some of that blue stuff on the shelf will do,’ he responded blithely, as if it scarcely mattered.

The ‘blue stuff’ he’d indicated was a seriously high-end exclusive product that probably cost the earth, she noted, a helpless little smile curving her lips. It certainly smelt nice. While Hal lifted off his sweater and T-shirt she kept herself occupied by watching over the bathwater and regularly testing the temperature. When he indicated that he was ready she turned off the taps and swivelled to see that he had wound a slim white bathtowel round the lower half of his torso, while he supported his injured leg on a handy footstool.

But that wasn’t the only thing Kit noticed. Exposed in all their glory, the sheer tantalising breadth of his shoulders and his strongly defined biceps were even more magnificent than she’d guessed they would be. But she couldn’t afford to let the fact distract her...not even for a second.

‘The bath is ready, so I think we’d better get the cast protector on,’ she said briskly.

‘Then let’s do it.’

With the waterproof protector fitted over his cast, Kit made sure to support him strongly as Hal gingerly lowered himself into the fragrant bubbles. Her heart raced in concern when she felt his muscles tensing and saw him bite his lip. ‘Is the water too hot?’ she breathed.

As she assisted him to position his injured leg on one of the marble bath sides he surprised her with an unrestrained grin. ‘It’s perfect. Just the way I like it.’

‘Good...that’s good.’

His even white teeth flashed another smile as he reached down beneath the bubbles to produce the now sopping wet towel that he’d wound round his hips to spare Kit’s blushes. He handed it to her.

‘You have no idea how good.’

Carrying the wet towel over to one of the pair of marble sinks to wring it out, she almost had to bite back a groan. She’d never known that just the sound of a man’s voice could be such a turn-on. And it didn’t help her to stay as safely immune as she wanted to when the man was as physically imposing and arresting as Hal Treverne.

She was appalled at herself for even daring to fantasise about someone like him when he had a reputation for dating some of the most beautiful women in the world. She didn’t delude herself that she came anywhere near that elite category! She reminded herself of the cast-iron rules she always worked by—to be utterly professional and impartial at all times and definitely not to get personally involved. Particularly when the client was a stunningly attractive male who wasn’t averse to teasing and provoking her. The last thing she wanted to do was find herself repeating the same soul-destroying pattern as her mother had...falling for a man who could only spell disaster. She’d already been burned by the brief, ill-judged liaison she’d had with a man who had turned out to be married...

‘Kit?’

‘Yes?’ She finished wringing out the wet towel and turned her head to acknowledge him. The steam from the hot water had created a pall of fine damp mist over his sculpted cheekbones and had made his thick dark hair curl against his neck even more rebelliously. Aside from the fact that the mere sight of him challenged her on almost every level, Kit couldn’t deny the pleasure she felt because he appeared so much more relaxed than she’d witnessed seeing him before.

‘Will you wash my hair for me?’

It seemed she was going to have another challenge.

Helplessly, Kit swirled her tongue over her lips, because they’d suddenly dried. Leaving the damp towel coiled in the sink, she caught a glimpse of her own flushed face and startled blue eyes in the mirror. Her fiery copper hair was once again drifting free from its topknot and the bathroom steam had misted her porcelain skin to make her resemble a girl who had just got out of her lover’s bed. Her insides executed a nervous cartwheel at the thought. Particularly as the lover she’d automatically envisaged had been Hal...

Smoothing her moist palms down over her jeans to dry them, Kit stepped slowly towards him. He was resting his head against the marble rim of the bath and she willed him not to notice how flushed she was. She desperately needed some time to restore her equilibrium. For goodness’ sake, he’s injured, she reminded herself. I’m here to do a job and to help aid his recuperation by providing practical help...not to act like some silly infatuated schoolgirl around him! She’d never been able to understand grown women who acted that way. And neither would she jeopardise her job or her peace of mind by mimicking them.