Teasing Trent (The Alexanders) (2 page)

Mara bent over slowly, angling her back so she pressed against Trent from hip to thigh.
 

“Oh crap …” Trent muttered.
 

*
 
*
 
*
 
*
 
*

Trent gulped. He had no doubt Mara now realized exactly how much he wanted her. The evidence of that was currently trying to poke its way through her yoga shorts. He'd never thought of exercise as sensual before but he wasn't sure if he would survive this yoga session.
 

He looked at where her bottom snuggled up against his groin. Her ass was full and heart-shaped, more than enough to fill his hands just the way he liked. His fingers flexed at her waist and she made a soft sound.
 

“Are you okay? Do you need any help getting up?” He hoped he hadn't gripped her too hard in the midst of his fantasizing. He was supposed to help her with her stretches, not imagine her stretched out on top of him.

“I’m fine. I just have a leg cramp.” She sat down on the floor abruptly.

“Well at least that's something I have some experience with. I used to get them when I played football. Let me see.” Trent kneeled beside her and helped her stretch her leg out. “Lie back and let me massage it out.”
 

As soon as she stretched out on her back, Trent realized this was an incredibly stupid idea. He was supposed to look at her on her back while he massaged her thigh without being visibly turned on?
 

Right.
 

Well, if he did this carefully maybe she wouldn’t know. He could hold her leg and stretch it out without her getting a glimpse of the Olympic-sized pole vault in his pants.
 

Mara startled slightly when Trent lifted her right leg and placed it on his shoulder. She looked up, and their gazes caught and held. For a long moment, Trent wondered if they were imagining the same thing : Him holding her leg up with both stark naked.

“I’m just going to apply a little pressure and you can press back against me.” He leaned forward, forcing her thigh to press into her chest. “That's it. That's not too much pressure, is it? How does that feel?”
 

How does that feel? You like that baby?

“Shit.” Trent closed his eyes as the erotic images played out in his mind. He opened them to see Mara watching him. She raised a hand and ran it gently over his hair.

A loud
ding
came from the kitchen and Mara jumped. Trent released her leg and moved back, appalled at what he'd almost done. Another second and he'd have hooked a finger in the waistband of those little shorts and tugged them to the side. Another second after that, he'd have been massaging her from the inside out right in the middle of her living room.

“You should go get the food, Mara.” He moved away from her and ran a hand over his face. She looked hurt for a second before sitting up straight.
 

“Sorry. I'm just in a bad mood today. I don’t mean to take it out on you, princess.” He leaned over and kissed her lightly on the forehead before sitting on the couch.

“No problem. Thanks for taking care of my leg.” She rose in a graceful motion and walked over to the DVD player. The screen went black for a few moments before the words
An Affair to Remember
rolled across the screen.

“You're going to torture me with a chick flick now? Isn’t that something girls only do to their boyfriends?”
 

Mara looked over her shoulder and stuck her tongue out. “You're practically my boyfriend anyway. You take me out to dinner, you fix stuff when it breaks and you're the one I call when I see a bug. The only thing you don’t do is…” She quickly looked away. Her cheeks flushed pink.

“I’ll just go get the food now.” She rushed into the kitchen.
 

The only thing you don't do is make love to me.

The thought hung in the air as palpably as if she'd spoken it aloud. Trent dropped his head into his hands and sighed. He really hoped Mara wasn't in a chatty mood. Because if their conversation went back to boyfriend duties, he feared he'd give her a demonstration of
exactly
what he could do for her.
 

Mara pulled the bread from the oven and placed it carefully on top of the stove. She looked over at the uncorked wine and the lasagna she’d already arranged on her best plates. Everything was ready to go — except her confidence.

Get it together girl. It’s time to go after what you want.
 

“You need any help?” Trent’s voice floated in from the living room.
 

Sure thing big boy. Just strip your clothes off for me. It’ll save time later.

“No thanks. I’ve got it.” Mara chuckled and blew out a breath, rolling her head from side to side. She'd already gotten a leg cramp and put her foot in her mouth by calling him her boyfriend. Being a seductress was hard work. Especially when she wasn't even sure if it was working.
 

Whatever the outcome, I have to see this through.
 

The unresolved sexual tension between them had gone on for too long. Ever since freshman year in college when she'd walked into Matt’s dorm room and come face to face with a shirtless Trent, she'd known.

He was
The One
.
 

He’d tutored her in chemistry, cheered her on at volleyball games and helped Matt intimidate her ex-boyfriends. He’d been right there with her twin brother as her biggest supporter or shoulder to cry on, whichever she needed most.

All the while not knowing she was in love with him.

Mara picked up the two plates of lasagna and carried them out to the coffee table. Trent sat up straight when she approached, moving to allow her room to maneuver. He wouldn’t meet her eyes but his gaze lingered on the swells of her breasts when she bent over to place the food on the table.
 

Good.

Now she just had to get him to relax. Much easier said than done. After her yoga torture session, the poor guy was strung tighter than her grandma’s clothesline.

She bustled back to the kitchen and scooped up the bread basket and the bottle of wine. That didn’t leave much room for her to hold the two empty wine glasses but she managed to hook them into the cradle of her arm. A second later, she deposited it all on the coffee table with a distinctive
clank.

“Mara, all you had to do was ask for help.” Trent sounded faintly amused. She wrinkled her nose at him. He treated her like a cross between a friend and an annoying little sister. Something she hoped would change this weekend.
 

“It’s okay. I got it all. Wine?” She poured two glasses before he answered and took a healthy gulp of hers.
 

She was nervous as hell and the wary look on his face didn’t help any.

They settled on the couch and picked up their plates, the silence between them comfortable. She loved when they just spent casual time together like this. Trent didn’t need to fill the silence with meaningless chatter. The night only had a few awkward moments, such as when she caught Trent staring at her mouth while she ate. She'd licked her fork and his eyes had widened.
 

After that, he didn’t look up anymore.

He ate his lasagna with hearty appreciation. It was nice to see him enjoying something she’d cooked. She didn’t get to pamper him nearly enough.
 

When he finished, he set his plate down and stretched out, resting his arms on the back of the couch. “That was great. I haven’t had good home-cooked lasagna in forever.”

Mara sent him a sly look. “Didn’t what’s-her-name ever cook for you?” She couldn’t help the sneer in her voice. Trent’s last girlfriend had been a bona fide bitch.

Trent didn’t answer right away but the corners of his lips turned up. “I’m going to plead the Fifth on that one. I know better than to incriminate myself.”

“Uh huh. I’ll take that as a no, then.” Mara cleared their plates and then refilled both their wine glasses. The movie on the screen had ended and the credits were rolling. She’d been so focused on Trent’s thigh rubbing up against hers that she’d barely paid any attention to the plot.
 

When she leaned across him to place his wine glass on the side table next to him, their arms touched. He stiffened but didn’t move. When she turned to look at him, their faces were so close they were almost kissing.

It’s now or never. Just do something.

Mara leaned closer and brushed her lips against his. He stilled, his dark eyes going soft and slumberous as he regarded her from beneath lowered lashes.
 

“Mara? What are you doing?” he whispered.

She leaned forward and captured his lips in another soft kiss before nipping his lower lip gently. “I’m kissing you.” Then she swung her leg up and settled into his lap.
 

Their mouths merged in a kiss so deep and wet Mara forgot her surroundings. Trent tunneled a hand into her hair and steadied her as he took control of the kiss, the little bite of pain as he gripped her hair a complete turn-on. He licked into her mouth and sucked her bottom lip gently. She let out a soft sigh as she settled against an impressive erection.
 

Where’s he been hiding that?

“Whoa, wait a minute.” Trent pulled back suddenly and deposited her none too gently on the couch next to him.
 

“What’s the matter? Why’d you stop?” Mara pulled her knees up to her chest, feeling suddenly vulnerable. When Trent turned to her with guilt-stricken eyes, she felt even worse.

“Oh, I get it. I’m not your type or whatever.” Mara resisted the urge to point out his continued erection. She knew all too well a guy could get turned on by a woman he didn't even particularly like.
 

“It’s not that, Mara. You’re gorgeous. You’re any man’s type. But this is not a good idea. For a lot of reasons.” Trent ran his hands through his hair until the ends stood up in wild disarray. “You're like my little sister for Christ's sake.”

“I am
not
your sister.” Mara looked at the half empty wine glasses on the table, watching the way the lamplight glowed on the edges of the glass. Anything was better than looking into his eyes as he figured out a way to let her down easy. She had more pride than that.
 

“You know what I mean. Look, I should probably take off.” Trent made a show of going over to the window to look outside. Mara watched the steady snowfall from her seat on the couch.
 

Her stomach clenched. He’d really have to leave soon or risk being caught out in a blizzard.
Some birthday this turned out to be.
A little wine, an old movie and … a big fat rejection. Her plan for seduction had failed miserably. Even worse, now they would act all awkward around each other.

“Well, thanks for coming by so I didn’t have to celebrate alone.” She tried not to let her disappointment come through in her voice. It wasn’t his fault that she’d expected more from the evening.
 

“I’ll just use your bathroom before I go. It looks like it might be a slow ride getting home.” Trent flashed a quick grin before ducking down the hall.

Mara carried their wine glasses to the kitchen and loaded the dishwasher before coming back to sit on the couch. She leaned forward and peered at the bathroom door, noting that the light remained on. Ten more minutes passed before she got up and stood by the door.

“What the hell is he doing in there?” she muttered. She almost knocked before realizing the potential for embarrassment.
 

She paced back and forth a few times before deciding to change clothes while she waited. Her attempt at sexiness hadn’t worked anyway. She might as well be comfortable in her favorite pair of sweatpants.
 

The door to her room was slightly ajar, so she pushed it open. The connecting door that led from the bathroom into her bedroom was wide open and bright fluorescent light spilled into the room.

“I don’t remember leaving that door open … ” She stopped talking mid-sentence.
 

Trent was in her room. Standing next to her bed.

Holding her cotton candy pink vibrator.

Trent now knew what hitting the lottery felt like. It was a little bit of
holy cannoli
mixed with a lot of
are you kidding me?
all topped off with
what the hell?
icing. Plus an orgasm. He was pretty sure he’d already had one of those.

Mara, his sweet little Mara, owned a vibrator.
A vibrator.
Plus an entire drawer of other things he was shocked she even knew about.

The door to the bedroom burst open and Mara stopped in her tracks when she saw him. His brain sent the order to move or at least explain that he hadn’t been snooping but just trying to leave her birthday present on the nightstand. But no, he just stood there with his mouth hanging open.

“What are you doing with all these … ” he stopped, at a loss to describe the contents of the drawer he’d found hanging open.

“Sex toys?” Mara offered innocently.

He was instantly hard as a rock just hearing the words leave her mouth. The silence stretched between them as he thought of all the things in her drawer. He looked over at the purple down comforter on her bed. An image of her nude, reclining on the comforter, her long legs spread while she worked herself with the vibrator filled his mind. He groaned and closed his eyes.