Total pages in book: 15
Estimated words: 13338 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 67(@200wpm)___ 53(@250wpm)___ 44(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 13338 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 67(@200wpm)___ 53(@250wpm)___ 44(@300wpm)
“How about we take a bath together?” he suggested, giving her that look. The one that melted her panties and made her feel like the only woman in the world who mattered.
She nodded, feeling lighter for the first time in months. “I’ll go run the water.” And pick out a bath fragrance that wouldn’t leave him feeling too girly when they were through.
Smiling, she headed to the bathroom and started her tasks, closing the drain, turning on the faucet, and waiting for the water to rise. After checking the temperature, she looked over her bubble bath and soak choices. Feeling naughty, she added a bath bomb called Sex Bomb from her collection. The potent, seductive scents of clary, sage and ylang-ylang, all so-called aphrodisiacs, began to dissolve and fizz in the warm water. As eager as she felt for him, she wasn’t sure she needed the aphrodisiac but it certainly wouldn’t hurt.
She took a few minutes to pull her hair into a messy bun and wash up so she’d feel fresh and clean when she climbed into Dash’s arms. While she did her thing, she talked to him through the closed door, letting him know she was almost ready. When he didn’t immediately join her, she assumed he hadn’t heard her over the sound of the running water.
She shut the faucet, and stepped into the bedroom naked to get her man—only to find him, shirt off, jeans still on, asleep on top of the made bed.
She sighed, disappointment running through her, along with an understanding of how bone-deep tired he must be. He needed sleep more than a bath, but he couldn’t get a good night’s rest while dressed. She stepped back into the bathroom, grabbed her silk robe, and put it on before walking back to the bed.
She leaned over and brushed his long hair off his face and kissed his cheek. “Dash, wake up. Let’s get you out of your clothes so you can rest.”
He blinked up at her, his eyes half-mast. “What happened?”
“You fell asleep. You’re exhausted.”
He groaned. “The bath.” He tried to push himself up, but she saw the effort it took as he fell back to the bed with a groan.
She shook her head. “No. Just take off your jeans, get under the covers, and I’ll join you after I take a quick one,” she said, trying to sound brighter than she felt. After flying across the country to see her, he didn’t deserve to feel guilt or deal with her disappointment that, once again, things weren’t working out because of their insane schedules.
He pulled himself to a sitting position, and as he stripped, she turned down the covers on the bed. As if his body was giving him no choice, he lay down and his eyes immediately closed.
She bent and kissed his lips, then headed for her Sex Bomb bath.
Alone.
* * *
Instead of waking up with time to be together, they both jumped at the sound of Dash’s phone ringing. “Dammit.” He grabbed his cell and took the call. “Be right there,” he muttered.
Putting down the phone, he rolled to face her. “I flew across the country to see you and I fell asleep.” Raw pain etched his features along with regret flashing in his eyes.
“It’s okay.” She ran her hand along his cheek. “It’s the gesture that counts.”
“And that’s all I can give you right now. But I’ll be back and we’ll sort things out, okay?”
She nodded, doing her best to blink back tears. It wasn’t fair for him to see them. Their busy lives were no more his fault than hers.
“I love what I do but I don’t love anything more than I love you,” Dash said, sealing his lips over hers for too short a time.
Then he was sliding out of bed and pulling his jeans back on. He closed himself in the bathroom and she heard the water run briefly. He stepped back out, his shirt on, and he slipped into his sneakers. Then he kissed her once more before rushing out the door.
Two more endless weeks and he’d be back home. Though her movie wouldn’t be complete, she would talk to Xander and Sasha and see if someone could take over for the last half.
She loved her new career, too. But she didn’t love anything more than she loved him.
Chapter Three
Dash took a bow on the stage at the last concert of the Original Kings US tour in Santa Clara, California. He was beyond ready to get home to his wife. His trip back east only served to make him miss her even more, making him mentally kick his own ass a bunch of times for falling asleep instead of taking advantage of the little time they had together.
But ever since, they’d made a bigger effort to talk on the phone or FaceTime, even if it was just for a few quick seconds. Enough to say I love you. He’d wanted to ask her to join him for the last couple of shows, but that would have been selfish. He knew she was mid-production on an important movie.