LEARNING CURVES

by Joanne Rock

  Her lips tilted toward him. He wanted nothing more than to accept that tempting offer and to lose himself in her kiss, but first he would make sure this was one lesson she'd never forget. He scooped her off her feet, into his arms and backed them through the service door.

  The rinse cycle got them right away, spraying over Maddy's leg and Cal's hand, but it didn't begin to douse the heat her soft curves inspired. For a little thing, she was an armful.

  "Cal!" she cried his name between fits of laughter.

  "Too late now, Professor." He spoke the words into her ear so she could hear him over the noise. "You're all mine."

  Her body went still. Her giggles evaporated, their sound replaced by the clank of Cal's boots on the metal-grate walkway alongside the machinery. They would be safe on the narrow passage, but they'd be plenty wet by the time they were through.

  Cal strode through a mist of water toward the soap cycle. When they neared the nozzles spraying pink bubbles, she wiggled in his arms.

  "Stop here." She reached for one of the foaming jets before he could put her down, grazing his forearm with a tantalizing brush of silk-covered breasts. She evidently had no idea what kind of torture she wreaked with her movements. "Gotcha."

  Before he knew what she was about, she'd blasted his chest with suds, plastering his T-shirt to his skin.

  "I could spray you back pretty easily." He glanced down at her weapon and then stared meaningfully at the enticing target her chest would make. The heavy mist in the air already made her blouse cling to the lacy bra she wore beneath. "But I think I'll take my revenge another way."

  He flicked the hose out of her hand. As it flew back into position, it spewed froth in every direction, covering his back and her legs with soap. He backed her up against the wall, shielding her from the worst of the light rain with his body. Slowly he eased her to her feet, making sure he planted her high heels safely away from the grates in the floor.

  Maddy moaned low in her throat as he slid his hands up the sides of her slippery thighs. He paused at the leather of her skirt, teasing one finger along her hem in lazy circles. Her fingers clenched his shoulders, and she swayed on her tiny heels.

  "Please, Cal." She whispered the words. Yet he was so close to her now, so attuned to her reactions, he detected every nuance of her voice despite the thunderous machines.

  "Revenge, in this case, is far from sweet." He slipped his hands beneath her skirt and cupped her hips. He pulled her against him, molding her to him. His mind registered the fact that she'd neglected to wear the black lace panties, but if he thought about it for long, he would never finish the lesson.

  The full body contact, even clothed, sapped his brain cells and fired his blood to a painful degree. The cool water didn't make a dent in the heat between them.

  "You can just take all the revenge you want." She hitched his T-shirt up and splayed red-tipped fingers across his chest. "I've got all night."

  "Honey, you don't have a clue what you're offering me." Cal pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it to the floor, but he hesitated over the buttons to her wet blouse.

  She tipped her chin at him. "I think I might." She leaned into him, teasing him with the fullness of her breasts.

  Wet denim became his hated enemy. It occurred to him he was more hot for her than he'd ever been for any other woman, and he hadn't even kissed her yet tonight.

  He traced the outline of her lips with one finger. Jets of water streamed full-speed into his back, urging him to part her thighs and lose himself inside her. But a woman like Madeline deserved thorough appreciation. He hadn't worshiped her the way he wanted to, yet she seemed to be on fast forward along with his libido. On his next lap around her mouth, Maddy pulled his finger between her lips and gently sucked the tip.

  He'd have to save worshiping for their next time together, damn it. He didn't have the power to fight Maddy if she was hell-bent on seduction.

  "Tell me this is what you want." Cal undid her buttons with fingers long accustomed to manipulating the most delicate of engines. Her wet bra clung to her curves for less than a blink before he flicked that away, too.

  "This is what I want," Maddy replied, her clear brown gaze tinged with desire but aware enough to know what she said.

  Needing no further urging, Cal turned to catch a handful of bubbles. He held them over her body for a long moment, until she squirmed just a little. Then he spread them over her breasts, being careful to evenly distribute the suds between them.

  Her nipples seemed to peek through no matter how diligently he covered them up. Or perhaps he just had a good eye for them. He scraped away a little patch of foam to taste one.

  Maddy's fingers clawed through his hair. Who would have guessed she'd hidden such a craving for carnal pleasures beneath the tweed jackets she'd worn just last week?

  Tenderness for that woman, the one he'd admired even without the miniskirts, made him seek out her lips for a long, lazy, liquid kind of kiss. She tasted like bubble gum and soap. She was heaven incarnate.

  "I need you now, Maddy." He felt it only right to warn her. This wasn't exactly what he'd had in mind for a seduction, but now that they'd started, he'd sell his soul along with Perfect Timing and all five of his antique cars if she'd only let him complete this quest for bliss.

  "I think I need you more. I have protection in my purse."

  He was so grateful for her willingness he would have pounded down the door of every convenience store in town if need be. He retrieved her miniature leather satchel from where it had fallen. "You are blessedly prepared, sweetheart. Just stay right there."

  Shucking the jeans he'd come to hate, Cal kicked free the last of his clothing and sheathed himself. He lifted Maddy and her stilettos right off the ground. Wrapping one of her legs around each of his hips, he knew a moment of absolute satisfaction when she locked her heels behind his back.

  All traces of nervousness from earlier in the evening had vanished. The student became the teacher as she squeezed her legs tightly around him and shimmied her hips over his erection.

  A low moan rumbled through him, along with a powerful urge to possess Maddy in every way known to man. Her slick heat lured him, made him burn with a need so fierce it scared him.

  "I'll try to not hurt you," he whispered, backing her against the wall. He steeled himself as he positioned her over him, determined to make her first time wonderful for her.

  "Not a chance." Maddy framed his face with her hands and held his gaze for a long moment before she plunged downward.

  At her slight wince, Cal knew a moment's regret that he hadn't initiated her in a more gentle way. Then he lost all ability to think or regret as she seemed to recover with remarkable speed, if her alluring wriggles against him were any indication. He held still for as long as he could, then lifted her just a little.

  The squeal she made encouraged him.

  Cool water and pink bubbles continued to pelt him, but they sizzled off the heat of his back. His blood scorched his veins, his pulse pounded in his temples to a dull roar, and he couldn't hold Maddy close enough. He lifted her up and pulled her back down the length of him, seeking a completion he feared he wouldn't find in just one night with her.

  He touched her burning point, slipped his fingers across the taut heat of her where their bodies met. She arched back like a bow, offering herself to him until he found a rhythm that reverberated through them both.

  Her body shuddered around his in waves, and he followed her in moments.

  Cal held her throughout another rinse cycle, unable to move. Finally, she slid away from him and straightened her skirt.

  "Wow."

  Her lone comment pleased him more than a litany of praise. He couldn't wait to take her home and slide between the sheets of her bed for more rock-the-world mating lessons.

  He retrieved his jeans and dressed, stealing occasional glimpses of her as she adjusted her blouse and stockings. God, she was gorgeous.

  As he stepped into his boots
, he leaned over to kiss her on the forehead. "You ready for a few more rounds like that one?"

  "Are you kidding?" She peeled off her heels and grinned up at him like a kid who'd just blown her whole allowance on bubble gum. "I've got enough material now for a whole paper."

  Cal tried to not wince at the blow to his ego. They'd just practically reinvented sex and apparently she'd been too busy taking notes to realize it. "Ah. That was good research then?"

  "The best." She arched up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek, but Cal didn't know that he was in the mood for any more kissing—or research—tonight. He had been so concerned Maddy might get hurt if they initiated a physical relationship that he'd never stopped to consider what it might do to him.

  And somehow tonight, in the unlikely heaven of his Perfect Timing shop, Cal had apparently been seduced by the master teacher.

  * * *

  Chapter 9

  « ^ »

  Two days after her soapy initiation into womanhood, Madeline scrounged through her office desk drawer in a frantic search for her last stash of caramels. She had three hours until her afternoon class and—with thoughts of Cal still plaguing her—she needed more chewing satisfaction than mere gum could provide.

  Digging through paper clips and old file folders, Madeline wondered for the umpteenth time what had gone wrong the other night. What had started out as the most earth-moving evening of her life had rapidly deteriorated into the most awkward. And somehow, it had been all her fault.

  Spying the familiar bag of her all-time-favorite treat, Madeline seized it and tore into the candy. Maybe if she allowed herself the luxury of devouring the whole bag, she would stop thinking about the way Cal had slowly retreated into long silences on the return trip to her house that night.

  She traced the problems back to the aftermath of their car wash encounter. Everything had been going well until she'd told him how inspiring his lesson had been. What man wouldn't be flattered to hear that?

  Of course, maybe she hadn't precisely said she'd been inspired. She tapped her temple with a pencil, trying to recall the exact conversation. Maybe she'd said something about him giving her a wealth of material to use for her research paper.

  Another comment that should have flattered him, right?

  Madeline looked down at the empty wrappers on her desk blotter. Six caramels into her binge and she still felt as miserable as she had when she'd started.

  A niggling voice in the back of her mind told her why. Maybe Cal hadn't wanted to hear about her research paper five minutes after consummating their relationship.

  Hadn't her parents' divorce taught her anything? Her mother hadn't wanted to hear about her father's adventures in physics every day. She especially didn't want to hear about it in light of the modest salary he made before he reached full professorship.

  Normal people didn't enjoy being around absentminded scholars like her and her father, who lived, breathed and slept their work. Which only confirmed what she had known all along—she and her sociology research didn't belong in a relationship with a man. From the time she'd entered her graduate program, she had slated her twenties as the time of her life to dedicate to her job. Maybe once she'd carved out an academic niche for herself, she'd have time for a man.

  She swept the caramel bag off her desktop and back into the drawer in disgust. Of course her life hadn't fallen neatly into the plan she'd created. But then, she didn't ever have much luck fitting into people's plans for her.

  She'd disappointed her dad by not entering a "real" science field. She'd frustrated her university superiors by not sticking with the type of sociology she'd always excelled at in the past. And she had probably disappointed Cal by talking about her dissertation project five minutes after the most profound experience of her life instead of telling him how incredible he'd made her feel.

  Of course, she had probably retreated to blabbering about her projects because work was her comfort zone. She had been nervous and unsure of herself in the awkward moments following their provocative union.

  No wonder he had dropped her off at her doorstep without coming inside. She'd unwittingly offended the man who'd been her closest friend four years running. Her mistake seemed all the more disgraceful considering Cal had tried his best to keep things platonic between them.

  Madeline stared down at the blank notebook she'd planned to use for recording her impressions of the final step in the mating ritual. To write about what had happened between her and Cal seemed crass now, an act bound to cheapen an encounter that had awed her in its raw power.

  She closed the notebook and slid it to the side of her desk, vowing she would not tarnish her night with Cal any more than she already had. Sooner or later, she would find a way to confront him and apologize.

  With any luck, she could salvage their friendship. A more intimate relationship, however, was out of the question. Academic nerds like Madeline just weren't cut out for normal social interactions with people.

  A young woman's voice at the door provided welcome relief from her depressing thoughts.

  "Um … Professor Watson?"

  Madeline turned to find Cal's brainy sister, Allison Turner, at her office door. A throng of students dogged the hallway behind her, indicating the end of a class period.

  "Come on in, Allison." Madeline noted the girl's blond braids and the colored beads spanning her neck and wrists. She wore a tie-dyed shirt and embroidered jeans with a little peace sign stitched on one knee. Apparently Allison had ditched her cowgirl phase for the hippie look. "And, please, let's not be formal. You can call me Madeline."

  Allison smiled. "Thanks. I'll only just be a minute, and I'm sorry to bother you." She closed the door behind her and sank into one of the office chairs, dropping her denim backpack beside her on the floor.

  She had the same ready smile as Cal, and maybe the same cheekbones, but the resemblance ended there. Allison's blue eyes and blond mane must have come from her mother. She had a cool, Nordic look, compared to Cal's golden brawn and tawny hair.

  "Take all the time you need." Madeline swiveled around to face her guest, wishing she could ask about Cal. "No one ever comes to see me during office hours until mid-semester grades are released."

  Except for Cal, of course. He had sat here on Monday morning, his long legs brushing against hers…

  "It's about Cal."

  Madeline sat straighter. "What about him?"

  Allison tucked one silvery braid behind her ear. "He's been a bear all week and he won't tell me what gives." Her brow furrowed. "Did he say anything to you the other night when you guys went out?"

  "Well, uh, no. Come to think of it, he didn't."

  Cal's sister folded her arms over her tie-dyed shirt and frowned. "If he said anything about me—like that I'm really disappointing him or something—I wish you'd let me in on it."

  Madeline shook her head. "Definitely not. We didn't talk about you specifically the other night, but I know for a fact he's not disappointed with you in the least." She leaned forward and gave Allison's hand a quick squeeze of encouragement. No doubt, the poor girl had been through a year of turmoil.

  Allison clutched Madeline's hand as if it were a life-line. "But how do you know? He's barely said three words the past two days, Madeline. I think he's mad because I sneaked out of the house Friday and crashed the Thunderbird."

  "I'm positive he's not angry with you." No, Cal was mad because Madeline had acted like an insensitive dweeb, but she didn't want to get into that topic with Cal's sixteen-year-old sister. "Cal has a Thunderbird, too?"

  "A fifty-eight, I think." Allison nodded absently. "He's just been so moody and quiet."

  A fifty-eight? Madeline wondered where he found these gems. If it was in half as nice shape as the Chevy, Cal's business obviously turned a handy profit.

  She thought about Allison's words, wishing she could help her. "Sometimes, when my dad acts like that, I just do a lot of extra talking to make up for him."

  Allison's b
lue eyes narrowed. "That works?"

  "Sure it does!" Madeline grasped a topic that might break Allison's grip. "I'm an expert at gabbing my way around unresponsive men."

  "Great! You can come have lunch with us and defuse the tension." Allison jumped up and tugged Madeline's captive arm.

  "What?" Fear weighted Madeline to her chair. The cowgirl-turned-hippie hadn't seriously proposed Madeline go see Cal right now, had she?

  "Cal said he'd swing by to have lunch with me today, but I'm scared we'll go somewhere and just stare at our club sandwiches for an hour."

  The hippie genius stared down at her with pleading blue eyes, looking just like the mischievous little sister Madeline would have gladly traded all her books for as a child.

  She had to face Cal sometime, didn't she?

  "Okay," Madeline agreed, allowing Allison to pull her to her feet. "But I do have a class this afternoon."

  Allison beamed. "You'll be back in plenty of time, I promise." She gave Madeline a quick hug and giggled. "Wait till Cal sees I've got you with me!"

  Madeline grabbed her purse and followed Allison out the door, thinking her bag of caramels would have made a much nicer meal than the awkward lunch to which she had just consigned herself. "He'll be surprised, all right."

  "And pleased!" Allison added, linking arms with Madeline as though they were old friends. "I just know he'll be in a better mood after he sees you."

  * * *

  For the first time since he'd dropped Madeline off at her door Tuesday night, Cal thought he might have a shot at improving his dark mood.

  He drove to the Louisville campus in a late-model Chevy spiffed up for Allison, a surprise gift she would flip over. This would definitely warrant a Brother of the Year award.

  He just needed to make sure he didn't somehow run into the Lady Scholar and botch this tentative attempt to be agreeable. Allison's happiness was too important for him to spoil it with his love life woes.

  He'd agreed to meet Allison at The Thinker statue at the main entrance. The horseshoe-shaped driveway made the perfect place for him to pull up curbside with his gift.