Mandy waited with indrawn breath for his next words. There was a shadow of pain on his face for a moment there. What did he need to forget? His voice sounded husky and his head bowed slightly before he suddenly looked up again and said lightly, “I’ve recorded some music here. This was the first part of the house to be completely done and I’ve been coming over, working on some personal stuff.”
He walked on ahead and Mandy followed him, eyes drawn to him again and again as she looked around the large studio.
“There’s a lot of headroom here for writing and just meditating,” Ethan went on. “It’s acoustically isolated, which will prevent the neighbors from complaining – if I had any. I’ve got some new music I’m working on. I’d like you to hear it.”
Mandy nodded eagerly and watched him go over to one of the machines. He turned on a switch and then another knob. Mandy hid a good-natured wince as she waited to hear the loud, intense, crash ‘n’ bang that was The Strum’s music. But to her surprise, this arrangement, which was a guitar solo, was far more serious though filled with deep, raging riffs.
Ethan was smiling as he viewed her awed expression. “It’s for my upcoming solo bass CD. Fans have been chomping at the bit for it, and you could say I’ve been under a bit of pressure. But now I can’t wait to get back to recording and working on it more. You could say I’ve suddenly got some serious inspiration.” He turned off the music, eyes never leaving hers.
Mandy chewed on her trembling bottom lip as Ethan’s look spanned her face with a more intimate, even teasing perusal. Was he talking about her? He’d said and shown her so much already. In some ways, he had spoken to her inner self more intensely than she’d have imagined possible. Swallowing to give life to her strangled vocal chords, she said simply, “I like.” She waved her hands to encompass the room with its high-tech recording gear and the revealing paintings on the walls that scared and excited her at the same time. Much like the way she felt about her desire for Ethan.
He must have read something in her eyes. Seen the indecision and wonder on her face. She didn’t want to be here. Didn’t want to feel anything for Ethan; be it affinity, longing, or even compassion for whatever demons, whatever suffering and struggling he was weighed under. Certainly didn’t want to feel this pulsing urge in her hidden core for the compact heat of him surrounding her, especially when he hadn’t even touched her.
“Thank you for showing me this place. I feel like I know you a lot better now – in ways that will help us work great together. I can’t wait for the tour when we can…”
“Ssh,” he said quietly, his index finger reaching out and resting on her lips. Silenced by the shaft of lust that tore through her just by that one touch on her mouth, Mandy gasped, resisting the insane urge to nip that one sexy digit with her teeth before wrapping her lips around it and sucking hard.
Mandy whimpered soundlessly in shamed desire.
Not moving the finger away, he stared deeply into her face.
“Every once in a while, I want something. The first time I met you, I didn’t know exactly what it was about you. All I could tell was that it had the power to break me down and yet set me on a star shooting through the sky. You could very well be the end of me, Mandy Sloane. But why am I not afraid?”
He inched in a little bit closer and Mandy’s nostrils flared as she drew in the scent of him. Could smell his clean warmth, his sexy aroma, the hint of martini, and then the faint yet distinct scent of masculine arousal that echoed to her very core.
“I have to go,” Mandy blurted out, turning around sharply and heading for the door. Like she knew exactly where she was going. As if she could simply stride out and skip off somewhere safe, far away from his masculine fire. But instead, she felt more than heard him move behind her as she attempted to open the door. His arm shot out to push it closed with a snap, making Mandy gasp as she spun around in outrage, only to have her body pinned by his, effectively trapping her with her back against the door. It brought back a sense of déjà vu that reminded her in neon colors why she never should have come here with Ethan. Should never have left the safety of her house.
“Running. Always running away,” he said softly in a low, chiding tone. Up close, his striking handsomeness was almost blinding. His tanned, rugged good looks further sexed up by his five o’clock shadow and all that sinfully blond hair. And those eyes. Oh, those killer blues. They were staring at her lips like the answer to eternity could be found within them. Captive in more ways than one, Mandy wriggled against him, hands pushing wildly against his hard chest. She only made him groan as her soft curves rubbed against his hard, heated body.