quickened pulse. The dream rushed
back to her and she stiffened in his arms. When she stepped away, he
released her.
Moving away, he leaned nonchalantly against the counter and
watched her pull a glass down from the cabinet. The short robe lifted
and she felt the heat of his stare when her butt cheek peeped out.
.From the corner of her eyes, she saw the smile on his face. He
looked like he enjoyed watching her move around the kitchen. With
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her back still to him, she placed the white rose he had given her into
the tall clear glass.
His elbow rested lightly on the countertop. "Did you have a good
girl's day out?"
"Yes, it was very relaxing." Taking a deep breath, her shoulders
lifted and she turned around to face him.
"I see you got your hair cut." His eyes started at the top of her head
and slowly made its way down. A slight grin lifted the corner of his
mouth when she clenched the robe tighter around her. By doing so,
she unwittingly allowed him to see the outline of her breast even
better. His appraising eyes continued and he nodded. "I like it, looks
really good."
Her husband never noticed anything about her, especially not when
she got her hair cut. Once, she had even cut it from the middle of her
back to her collar and it took him nearly three weeks before he asked
if she had done something different. Yet Casey noticed it right away.
Wait, how did he know they had a girl's day out? Paige opened her
mouth to ask, but there was a knock on the door again, so she turned
and went to the door. This time however, she looked out the peep
hole and sighed.
Opening the door, Rosa came in with her usual whirlwind self, and
a big smile. "Hey Papí." Her hand trailed along his shoulder and
Paige felt her hackles rise slightly and shook her head at her reaction.
There was absolutely no reason for her to be jealous. Casey's eyes
never left her face.
She felt herself flush when his eyes crinkled in the corners and his
lip rose slightly in a knowing smile.
Rosa plopped down on the sofa and threw her long legs up on the
coffee table. With her hands resting behind her head, she made
herself at home in the small living room.
"I will be right back." Paige ducked her head and felt Casey's eyes
following her to the bedroom. She closed the door without looking
back at him.
Leaning against the door, she took a deep breath to calm her
pounding heart. Why was she having such a reaction to a man she
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had barely met, not even twenty four hours ago. "Yet you slept with
him." She grumbled to herself and released a sigh. Slipping quickly
into her undergarments, she slipped on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and
headed back out to the living room.
Casey sat on the loveseat by the window, but Rosa was gone. He
responded to her questioning look. "She went back to her room, said
she had to get something for you."
Paige remembered a package was supposed to be delivered. But
that quickly left her mind when Casey patted the seat next to him.
She shook her head no, deciding it wasn't a good idea to snuggle with
him. She leaned against the bar that separated the kitchen from the
living area.
"I won't bite." He smiled and wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Too
hard."
Paige laughed nervously. "Uh, Casey, about last night." She
couldn't bring herself to look at him.
"I told you Paige, I wanted you and I still do." He lounged back on
the seat, one arm thrown casually across the back.
"I, uh. I'm married. I shouldn't have done that." She inspected her
manicured nail.
"I also remember telling you that your husband was a lucky man.
So, yeah, I'm aware you are married and I don't care." He spoke
softly. He patted the seat once again.
She heard the honesty in his words, and once again shook her head,
but this time she stared at him. She had to end this. She was in Japan
to work, not have an ongoing affair with a younger man. She opened
her mouth to speak, before she could, the look on his face stopped