Free One Hot Momma by Cara North Page B

functioning on a whole different level now. Nothing, not the pain, the frustration, the fact that he was not supposed to like her anymore, or the fact that technically she was being paid to take care of him mattered. She put the cloth back in the tub and started to pick up the whole thing to leave.
    “ Layla .” She hesitated. He smiled. Then he drew his face to a scowl. “You’re not done yet.”
    “I… I don’t understand.” She turned to look at him, set the tub down, folded her arms, and waited. He looked to his tented shorts then back to her. Her eyes rounded, and her mouth opened into a perfect little ‘O’. “I thought since Jack was here he would…”
    “Jack can’t do what I need you to do.” Rafe bit his lower lip and watched her expression. Heat crept up her neck and spread over her face. He loved to see her blush.
    “But, I thought…”
    “Oh, I’m still mad at you for several reasons.” However, he was having trouble at the moment recalling any reason other than her rejecting the marriage proposals. “But I am also right handed, and I can’t take care of that with my left,” he lied. “So I need you to do it.”
    “You want me to…”
    “You’re here to take care of me right, do what I can’t do. Well, I can’t do that, and I will be in more pain if you don’t. Do you want that Layla ?” It was dirty and down right rotten of him to do this to her, but at the moment, he didn’t care. He needed to keep her emotionally at a distance, but he desperately wanted her physically closer to him.
    Layla looked at the scoundrel who had possessed her Rafe and wondered exactly how hard he had hit his head in that fall. It was a challenge. He was daring her to take this over the line. An internal war began at once. The part of her that wanted to be with him for the rest of her life wondered why she stood there gawking when she had wanted to touch him the moment his boxers began to rise. The other part didn’t want to feel like a hooker. She was being paid to look after him after all. Her teeth clenched and released over and over again. He waited. His brown eyes were challenging and mischievous. If he were better, she would lunge onto him and show him exactly how well she could take care of all his needs. She looked at the door. He had regular visitors.
    “I need to lock the door,” she squeaked out.
    “Fine,” he said in a flat tone, but his cock twitched. He wasn’t oblivious to her, and maybe, just maybe, she could take this time to not only show him that she could take care of him and the children as a wife and mother, but she could also work her way back into his heart and ultimately remain in his life for the rest of hers. If she could just get him used to having her around…
    Rafe watched Layla walk to the door. Something was different about her. Maybe it was the meds. Maybe it was the way she became more like a predator the moment the door locked and she turned to look at him with that same hungry expression he remembered from the picnic.
    “Do you want me to do it my way, or would you rather give me directions?” She moved to the left side of the bed and gently climbed in. She looked at him with those dazzling blue eyes and waited.
    “It’s a simple stroke up and down.” He wanted to sound less out of breath, but his heart was thumping and his self-control was waning.
    She didn’t hesitate. She slid the elastic band of the boxers over his hips and half way down his thighs. He was completely exposed to her. In the morning light, she could now see every last bit of his naked body. Her breath caught, and her right hand slid around his shaft. Rafe couldn’t believe how much relief a simple touch could bring. She held him entirely too loosely. The gentle strokes she made were more teasing than effective.
    “Harder,” he whispered and watched her hand on him. Her grip firmed.
    “It’s not very slippery.” She was breathless, and he wondered if she was as turned on as he was.