Serenity (Inevitable #5)(32)

"Take a few minutes, hmm?" she murmured softly. "I'll be back in just a bit with some water for you."

She exited the room as quietly as she'd entered an hour earlier, and Matthew could no longer hold back the groan of mingled pleasure and mortification that escaped his lips.

'Jesus, please do not have let her noticed the fact that my cock was just tenting this sheet a few minutes ago,' he begged silently. 'It has obviously been way too long since you've had any action, Bennett. Maybe you should make sure you jack off before your next massage. Otherwise, you're really going to embarrass yourself."

The temptation was strong to just keep his eyes closed and drift off to sleep at this moment. He hadn't felt this relaxed and warm and content in a very long time, and the stress that was his constant companion these days seemed to have taken a temporary leave of absence. He stretched his arms and legs in opposite directions before slowly, reluctantly, easing his body off the table.

He dressed quickly, oddly reluctant to have Sasha catch him in the act of putting his clothes on, even though he'd just been naked as a jaybird in her presence for the last hour. True to her word, though, she had kept all the private parts of his body well covered at all times, and he hadn't felt the least bit awkward or embarrassed as he'd initially feared he might.



       
         
       
        

He was just pulling on his socks when she knocked gently on the door, entering at his bidding. She crossed over to where he sat on the chair, a glass of lemon and orange infused water in her hand. Matthew marveled yet again at how easily she moved, how light and graceful she was on her feet, and wondered aloud how many years she'd trained as a dancer.

Sasha smiled at his somewhat absentminded inquiry. "All my life, actually," she replied. "Since the time I was a very young girl right up until today. Oh, I don't do any formal dance training or classes these days, but dance certainly factors into my yoga practice. A lot of the yoga poses I do in my own practice and the classes I teach are influenced by dance."

"Do you miss the training?" he inquired casually, taking a long sip of the cool, refreshing water.

Her smile quickly vanished, replaced by a look of mingled annoyance and irritation, two emotions that he would have never attributed to the calm, even-tempered Sasha.

"No," was all she said in reply. "Those particular memories are not the most pleasant. So, how do you feel now? Are those shoulder and neck muscles a little looser?"

He allowed her to change the subject abruptly, having quickly picked up on the fact that her past dance training was not something she enjoyed discussing. He rolled his neck from side to side experimentally, and was pleasantly surprised to find how much looser it felt.

"I'd say so, yes," he replied, grinning broadly. "You've definitely got some magic in those fingers of yours."

Sasha laughed, her good humor quickly restored. "I do my best. Now, I'd like you to finish the whole glass of water, and then promise me you'll drink at least two or three more glasses this afternoon. Hydration is very important, and especially after a massage."

Dutifully, he downed the rest of the glass and nodded. "Okay, I promise."

She held out a sheet of paper to him. "Now, you can choose to do this or not, it's entirely up to you. But I took the liberty of writing down several types of vitamins and supplements that I think you should consider taking. Some help with stress, others with muscle recovery, and most are just for overall good health. I also included the names and addresses of a few different health food stores where you can pick these up if you decide to try them. Again, it's completely your decision, Matthew, but I do think taking these would do you a world of good."

He grinned, taking the sheet from her, and quickly scanning over what she'd written in a neat, artistic hand. "Ian warned me that you'd probably do this," he replied teasingly.

Sasha arched a dark blonde brow. "Did he now? Well, you see, Ian is a prime example of someone who just assumed he was getting plenty of vitamins and minerals from his daily diet and the generic supplements he was taking. It was something of an eye opener for him to realize that his regime wasn't quite as healthy as he'd always assumed. And I'm going to guess that your own diet isn't as disciplined as his  – given what you just told me about your current lifestyle." 

Matthew sighed, and folded the paper in half before tucking it inside his jacket pocket. "My diet can only be described as appalling right now," he admitted. "I think the only time I eat vegetables are when there's lettuce and tomato on my burger or club sandwich. And since I already know how you feel about drinking alcohol, I won't freak you out by admitting how many glasses of whisky I put away every night."