“You sit bent over too much. I bet it has something to do with your height.”
She closed her eyes and relaxed fractionally. “How do you know that?”
“I have a younger sister almost as tall as you. When she was younger, she always hunched, but my mom always griped at her about it. When she’s tired, like you are, she resorts to it.”
Maria’s aching muscles relaxed under his ministrations.
“Why don’t we take a break?” he asked.
“What kind of break?”
“A hot bath. I’ve got this huge tub, and you could take advantage of it. Soak away some of these aches.”
“What would you be doing?”
He chuckled. “I’ll stay out here and work.”
That smacked of special treatment, and she could feel her spine stiffen. “That’s okay.”
He leaned forward to press his mouth on the side of her neck. “Maria, no one doubts you’re a top rate agent, at least not me. But you’ve been working on fumes since you arrived on Oahu. You need to take a moment, gather your thoughts. It might even lead to a breakthrough.”
She wanted to fight him. In the years she had been an agent, and basically since her mother died, she had always done her share. It was her way. Her father couldn’t handle everything himself, and he’d needed her. She’d had no choice when she entered the FBI. Any kind of slacking on her part would make her stand out in a bad way. She was not the kind of woman who sat by and let others do work. But even as she thought it, she knew she was already losing the battle. Inch by inch, she eased back against him as he spoke.
“Okay. Let me get my toiletry bag.”
He stood then held out his hand. She looked at it for a second. She was unaccustomed to such behavior. Rome might be a tough cop and an even tougher Dom, but he had the manners of a gentleman. It was as if he treasured her in some way she couldn’t comprehend. She didn’t think she would ever get used to him. She took his hand and let him help her up. He brushed his mouth over hers, humming as he did it. The vibrations tickled her lips and sent tiny little pulses of heat dancing through her blood. Then he was moving away.
“I’ll start the water. Takes a while to get hot.”
She watched him walk away, allowing her gaze to slip down his back. The jeans he’d slipped on earlier were worn and fit like an old ball glove. She sighed, partly because she couldn’t figure out how she ended up with such a delicious man, and partly because of his behavior. She knew he had been an infantry sergeant when he was in the Marines. He had fought, killed, and had several shootings under his belt as a cop. Not to mention he liked to order her around. She shivered at the thought and forced herself to get her bag. There was something so wonderful about the makeup of Rome Carino. Just when she thought she knew him, he surprised her. She wasn’t so sure she liked it. She found her bag just inside the door where she had left it.
As she walked to the bathroom, she thought of her earlier behavior. She never told anyone about her mother’s death. It was just easier to let people think her mother died in some kind of accident or of cancer. She’d learned long ago that allowing people to believe in that was easier than explaining what happened. With Rome, though, she seemed not to have any issues. His silence hadn’t hurt. In fact, just the small touch to her back did more than any words of condolences had done in the last sixteen years.
She stepped into the bathroom and realized he wasn’t kidding. She hadn’t been in there before and was mesmerized by it. Even the bathroom in her house back in the DC area wasn’t this wonderful. Light grey ceramic tile on the floor, red accents, a double sink vanity, and then there was the tub. It sat next to a wide ceiling-to-floor window. It was a claw foot and about three times the size of any other she had ever seen.
“Where did you get that?”
He smiled at her, and she tried to keep her heart from falling down at his feet. He had one of those smiles that lit up his whole face, including his eyes. There probably wasn’t a woman alive that could resist that smile. To keep herself busy, she placed her bag on the counter.
“It came with the house. It was the one thing that sold me. That and the kitchen.”
He was pouring in some kind of oil. It was lightly scented but not flowery, thank goodness. She really hated anything that reminded her of a garden. Instead it was almost masculine in the scent.
“Come here,” he said and held out his hand.
She did so without hesitation. Maria saw no reason to resist him. Even if she wanted to, she didn’t think she could. She was tired, and with the cozy warmth of the moist heat of the bathroom surrounding her, she allowed her entire body to relax. He tugged on the waistline of her jeans and pulled her in between his legs. She smiled when he slipped the button open and then tugged down the zipper.