by Jamie Wesley
Val shook her head. “Look at you with all the answers. What do I get out of it?”
Malcolm grinned. “The joy of my company?”
She would not smile. “You’re full of shit.”
“And you still can’t resist me.”
Somehow she found herself right in front of him. Breathing in his spicy scent. Looking directly into his dark eyes. For some reason, he hadn’t shaved. She liked the scruff way too much. “Like you can resist me?”
An eyebrow lifted. “Now who’s arrogant?”
She shrugged. “I prefer truthful. And yes, I can resist you.”
But did she really want to? He was used to being in control. There was fire under that cool, polished exterior. She wanted to unleash it. She wanted to blow his mind. After the kisses they’d shared, she was damn near positive he could blow hers.
He moved closer. “Won’t it be fun to try?”
Oh, yes. This was going to be the most fun. Seducing the ultra-confident Malcolm had zoomed up her priority list to land right below winning the Sex Sells contest. If he was concentrating on her, then he couldn’t be thinking about his Sex Sells presentation, right? A thought that that had occurred to her last night as she’d stared at her ceiling. She’d tried to dismiss it, but that was a lot harder with Malcolm here in person. But hey, they were both getting something out of the deal. “Fine. I’ll do it.”
He rubbed his hands together. “Great. When can we start? I want private lessons.”
Of course he did. Her eyes narrowed. Was he up to something? “How private?”
He shook his head. “Now, Val, you’re making my proposition sound awfully dirty. We agreed to a strictly professional relationship, don’t you remember? Or do you want to forget it? I know you think I’m a stick in the mud, but I can adjust plans on the fly if need be.”
She fought back a smile. Who was this guy? Where had Mr. Uptight gone? And why did she like him so much?
“Okay, but private lessons will cost you extra.” She needed all the money she could get. Especially if she didn’t win the Sex Sells competition. Business loans from the bank were nice, but she still needed to eat and the more money she had, the faster she could pay back the money. “Be prepared to work.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“Excellent.” Val gave free rein to the smile she’d been holding back.
He frowned. “Why? You sound and look entirely too happy.”
She snapped her fingers. “Oh, did I forget to mention the showcase at the end of the week? As someone who has purchased private lessons from me, you’re obligated to participate.” She blinked innocently. “You’re not going to back out, are you?”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he said through clenched teeth. The arrogance that had dominated his face a moment ago seemed to have taken a sudden vacation. A truly delightful development.
Oh, yes, this was going to be fun. In so many ways.
FIVE
Thumping music with a pulsating beat greeted Malcolm when he returned to Val’s rehearsal studio later that afternoon. She’d instructed him to come back after her classes were done for the day. The woman in question was poised above him, swinging on her pole. He leaned against the wall and relished the opportunity to have a private show.
Her legs were outstretched as she spun and dove around the pole, her rhythm perfectly synced to the music. She contorted her gorgeous, athletic body into positions that managed to be both athletic and ridiculously sexy. Her passion and fierce determination were plain to see on her face and in her every move.
As the last notes of the Janet Jackson song played, Val struck a pose. Her back arched, and she raised her right arm above her head in a triumphant, unapologetically sexy move. He could easily picture her in an advertisement for his company. If you wear Satisfied Lingerie, your innate power, beauty, and confidence will shine through. His fingers itched for his computer to type his thoughts. But that would have to wait. He had a dance routine to learn.
Malcolm stepped away from the wall and applauded.
Val’s gaze swung down to him. With her usual grace, she alighted from the pole. “Hey. Sorry, I didn’t see you come in.”
“No need to apologize. You looked like you were having fun.” He’d sure as hell enjoyed watching her with no one else around.
She grabbed a towel and wiped the sweat off her face. “Thanks. I was.”
“Is that the routine you’re going to do tonight?”
“Hmm, something like that.”
A noncommittal answer if he’d ever heard one. But before he could dwell on it much longer, Val tossed the towel to the side and planted her hands on her hips.
“We should get to work,” she said. “Since this is for your sister’s wedding, am I wrong to assume she wants to do a waltz?”
“I suggested we choreograph a routine to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme song. She didn’t think that was funny.” He huffed and rolled his eyes like his sister had when he’d made the offhand suggestion. “‘This is an elegant affair, Malcolm. We will not be doing The Carlton at the Ritz-Carlton.’”
Val laughed. “Yeah, weddings are serious business.”
Malcolm shrugged. “I’m inclined to think it’s her fiancé. I’m Kevin Hart compared to him. I don’t think he’s laughed once in his entire life.”
“Aww, protective older brother,” Val said, her voice softening. She clasped a hand over her heart. “That is the cutest thing.”
Cute? What every man wanted to hear from the woman who’d…captured his attention. “Thanks. If my sister wants a waltz, she’s going to get a waltz.”
“Aww, big brother doing whatever it takes to make his little sister happy. I change my mind. That is the cutest thing ever.”
He snorted. “Okay. Enough. You ready, Ms. Dance Instructor?”
“Always.” She picked up her iPod. “She requested Stand By Me, right?” After he nodded, she tapped the screen a couple of times. Music began to play through the speakers. “Have you ever danced the waltz?”
Malcolm’s lips tilted upward. “No, they don’t spend much time on ballroom dancing in business school.”
“They should,” she shot back.
“Why?” he asked, laughing. Val was never afraid to speak her mind. And he loved it.
“Because dancing is amazing.” The “duh” was implied. “Since this is your first time doing the waltz, we’re going to start with a basic American-style left box step. Place your right hand on my shoulder.” She placed her right hand in his left hand. “Turn your head to the side.”
Malcolm jerked back in surprise. “I’m not supposed to look at you?”
“Correct.”
He frowned. “That seems…impersonal. Illogical. Isn’t a dance about the connection between the participants?”
Val shrugged. “I didn’t make the rules.” She waved him back to her. “And eye contact isn’t the only way to make and sustain a connection.”
***
As soon as her hand made contact with his, Val understood how true her last statement was. A shiver traveled from her hand to all other parts of her body. But that wasn’t important right now. Teach, then seduce.
She counted off the steps. “Left foot forward, right foot to the side, left foot meets right foot. And turn. Right foot back, left foot goes to the side, right foot to left foot. And turn. Then repeat it all.”
He followed the steps, easily maintaining the rhythm of the music.
She looked up at him. “You’re doing great. You lied. You can dance.”
Malcolm smiled. “You didn’t ask if I could dance. You asked if I danced.”
Val tilted her head in acknowledgment. “Touché.”
“And hey, of course I can dance,” he said, his eyebrows drawing together in affront. “I’m black. Rhythm is our birthright.”
“Pssht.” Val shook her head. “I used to believe that until I danced with guys with two left feet and started teaching classes.”
“But I’m not them. I’m me.” Said so simply, but confidently.
She was starting to believe, maybe, just maybe, he was correct. He was unlike anyone she’d ever met. They continued to glide across the floor, moving as one, unbreakable unit.
“What are you doing to me, Valerie Shaw?”
It was only then, when he spoke, that she realized that they hadn’t maintained the proper distance between them. No, his leg had slipped in between hers. His mouth was temptingly close. And he’d been right about eye contact. Somehow, their gazes had found each other. His dark eyes, so close and so beautiful, mesmerized her. She couldn’t have looked away even if someone declared her the winner of the Sex Sells contest at that very moment.
He pressed his hand against her back and drew her closer. There was no way she could resist. She didn’t want to resist. She didn’t want to be anywhere other than where she was right now. Now they weren’t even moving. Just standing in the middle of the room, staring at each other. A moment not only fraught with sexual tension, but an emotional connection that couldn’t be.
She stepped away. “I’m not doing anything to you. I’m teaching you how to dance the waltz. Now, that you have the basic steps down, we can move on to the actual routine.”
He frowned. “I have to do more than that?”
She shouldn’t find his pouting so cute. But she did. Everything he did was attractive. She latched on to the opportunity he’d given her to lighten the mood. She wrinkled her nose. “Based on what you’ve told me about your sister, I’m going with yeah.”
His face brightened. “Does that mean you’re going to sneak in The Carlton?”
“Umm, no. But I promise to make you look good.”
He grinned. “I do that on my own.”
Val rolled her eyes. She’d walked straight into that one. “Come on, Harvard. We have more work to do, assuming your head doesn’t swell any bigger and knock you off balance.” She walked him through the routine she’d choreographed in her head as soon as she’d agreed to give him lessons. “At the end, you’re going to walk her over to her husband.”
Malcolm nodded. “She’ll love that.”
Val winked. “I know. I’m good.”
He stepped close. His scent, a mixture of pine and citrus, wound its way around her. “Thank you for helping me.”
“You’re welcome,” she whispered. What was happening to her? Usually, she was the one in charge in her interactions with the opposite sex, but he made her feel and act like a giggly teen without much effort. She didn’t stop him when he cupped her cheeks in his hands and searched her eyes. What was he looking for?
“Do you know how incredibly talented and beautiful you are?” he murmured.
If he were any other guy, she would’ve already been rolling her eyes. But he sounded so sincere. Even scarier, she almost believed him. She pushed her lips up in her most flirtatious smile. “No. Why don’t you tell me?”
“Let’s start with how you hold everyone in the audience in the palm of your hand every time you perform. They’re on the edge of their seat waiting to see what you’ll do next. Including me.” A small grin teased his lips. “Especially me. Then there are your eyes. The way you watch me like you can see straight into my soul. They’re beautiful.”
Who was trying to seduce whom? At the moment, she didn’t give a flying flip. She wanted the moment to go on forever. She wanted him to kiss her. Val licked her lips. “Oh. Thank you.”
He groaned. “Don’t do that.”
She frowned. “Do what?”
“Lick your lips.”
She slid a finger down his hard chest. “Drives you crazy, huh?”
His eyes darkened. “You have no idea.”
Oh, yes. This was the Malcolm she liked and wanted. “And if I don’t obey?”
“I can’t be held responsible for my actions.”
“So, you’re saying if I do this—” she licked her lips again—“then you’ll…”
“Yes. To whatever you’re thinking.” He lowered his head. She held her breath, waiting for that moment when she’d be transported to that magical place he’d taken her to last night when they kissed. Her eyes drifted close.
“Hey, Val!”
Val and Malcolm sprang apart. She spun toward the door, where Heather, the owner of the camp, was watching them, her face stamped with rampant curiosity. “Am I interrupting something?”
“No,” Val said quickly. Too quickly if Heather’s raised eyebrows were any indication. “We were finishing a dance lesson. Weren’t we?” she added when Malcolm didn’t say anything.
“Yes. I was about to leave.” He said goodbye to Val, nodded at Heather, and strode out the studio without a backward glance.
Val tried not to feel his loss too much. She came up short. Which was ridiculous. Yeah, she really was acting like a teenager with her first boyfriend. Which was crazy because she’d never been a typical teen. By the time she’d turned thirteen, her mom had made it clear that her revolving door of men were more important to her than her daughter and Val had learned to take care of herself.
Heather cleared her throat. “Val, what was that about?”
Val busied herself stacking chairs that didn’t need stacking. “What do you mean? I was giving him a lesson.”
“I’m sure you were.” Heather lessoned the impact of the sarcasm with a small smile. “Look, you two are both adults. You can certainly get involved with a camper if that’s what you want.”
“I can?” Val inwardly winced at the excitement in her voice. “I thought that might be against the rules.”
“Now, you’re concerned with the rules?” Val opened her mouth to respond, but Heather held up a hand. “Don’t worry. I get it. Hormones get the better of even the best of us. He’s not hard on the eyes.”
Val’s shoulders sagged in relief. “So you’re not going to fire me?”
“Never. I like you too much and get entirely too many compliments about you to do something that foolish. However—”
Val braced herself for whatever caveat was about to come.
“You’ll both have to sign releases saying your relationship is completely consensual.”
Val winced. “Really?”
“Yes. You’re not my first staffer to get involved with a camper, and my husband and I realized after the fact that we needed to protect ourselves just in case. I don’t want campers suing us for sexual harassment or running to the press with some crazy story about us running an undercover prostitution ring or pressuring them into stud service.”
Val winced again. “Ouch. I don’t think he would do something like that.”
Heather’s eyebrows arched. “Then he shouldn’t have any problem signing the consent form. Neither should you. Just be sure that’s what you want. You told me you came here to get away from men, remember?”
Yes, she remembered. Just not when she was with Malcolm, who had a habit of making her forget everything she thought she knew about men.
***
After Heather left, Val gathered her things to head back to her cabin. She stepped outside the studio and came up short. Malcolm was waiting. Of course he was. That seemed to be the way of things. Their way of things. When had a man ever made a point of waiting for her? Not barging in and demanding her time, but asking and hoping?
His lips tilted upward like he was thinking the same thing. Like they were a couple with a secret joke. A dangerous, dangerous thought. They weren’t a couple. Hell, at this point, they weren’t even having a fling. But they could be if she told him about the consent form, her dirty inner voice whispered.
He pushed away from the wall. “Have a good chat with Heather?”
Val adjusted the strap of her bag on her shoulder and made her way to him. “Yeah, you could say that.”
“She give you some things to think about?”
Val narrowed her eyes. “Why do you ask?”
He joined in step with her. “The length of time it took you to come out. She
and I had an interesting conversation. She asked if I planned to make it to sunrise yoga in the morning.”
Val smiled. “Oh, really? What did you tell her?”
“I said, ‘you never know.’”
She halted and stared at him. “Wait. Do you want to do sunrise yoga?”
“No, of course not. I lift weights and run for exercise.” There was the uptight Malcolm that amused her so. “But I didn’t want to hurt her feelings,” he continued. And there was the thoughtful Malcolm worming his way past her defenses without even trying.
Val picked up her pace like she could outdistance her feelings. “You’d like it.” She’d love it. Malcolm and his ass in the downward dog position? Yes, please.
He side-eyed her. “Doubtful.”
“Still that was nice of you not to turn her down cold. She loves this place and every single activity we offer. Maybe you aren’t so bad.”
Malcolm shook his head. “When are you going to believe I’m not the guy you have me pegged as?”
Good question. It was easier for her peace of mind to keep him in the box she’d put him in the first time they met. But damn him, he seemed determined to not only bust out of the box, but destroy it in the process, which was hella difficult for her peace of mind. “I’ll let you know.”
The side of his mouth kicked up in wry amusement. “You do that.”
They stepped outside. She immediately shaded her eyes from the bright sun with her hand. She glanced to the left and spotted a man and woman, who were wearing business suits and carrying briefcases, heading their way. They definitely weren’t campers or staff. They looked like Malcolm on his first day here. Val squinted. Something about the woman seemed familiar. Her hairstyle?
Val sucked in a breath. Oh God. She knew who they were.
The woman’s glasses, a retro 60s throwback with their wingtips, had caught her attention on the Sex Sells website and they looked exactly the same in person. She’d thought about finding the frames, which were way cooler than the boring silver frames she wore when she didn’t have her contacts in.
