On one or two songs, she had wanted his voice-and Dan had looked over the lyrics and started the process of working out the harmonies with her. Toward the end of their discussion, as they were singing parts to the basic melodic framework, Juliet’s voice had started cracking with fatigue, and even she had to admit she was too tired to work profitably.
Dan noticed her hands shaking from the caffeine as she put on her shoes and had snatched the car keys out of her hand, holding them over her head. “Your hands are shaking, you’re exhausted. I’m driving.”
When they arrived at Juliet’s house, she snatched the keys back and unlocked the front door. Dan had stayed at her house more than once, so he carried his suitcase in with him, putting it down next to the couch.
“I’m going to get a shower,” Juliet told him. “Make yourself at home, as usual.” She gave him a friendly grin and Dan nodded, heading straight for the kitchen. He had managed to take a nap on the flight over, but he was always hungry-and Juliet was a good cook who always had a well-stocked fridge.
He heard the water come on from the direction of Juliet’s bedroom; he concluded that she had left the door to the master bath open in case he needed to ask her something. Dan closed his eyes, standing in front of the fridge.
For a moment his brain was consumed with an image of the curvy woman standing in the shower, water sluicing down her body. He had never seen her naked, but he could easily imagine-a shiver moved down his spine, a bolt of arousal heading straight for his cock at the thought of her.
He groaned, pressing his forehead against the cold fridge door. One or the other of them had been in a relationship the entire time they had known each other-until now. For once, they were both single.
Maybe it would have been a better idea to stay in a hotel, Dan thought. It was potentially dangerous for them to both be under the same roof, both single, and with the overwhelming attraction he felt for her-dangerous, at least, if she returned his interest. Dan forced his eyes open and opened the fridge, making himself to go through the motions of building a sandwich with automatic movements.
Juliet stepped into the kitchen just as he was finishing his first sandwich and working on his second one. Dan held himself back from staring at her; her dark hair was down, still damp from the shower, and clinging to her face, neck and shoulders.
She was in pajamas, with no bra on underneath the tee shirt she wore; the cool air had made her nipples press against the thin fabric.
“Feeling better?” he asked, tearing his gaze away from her chest. Juliet grinned, nodding and heading toward the fridge.
“The hot water worked out most of the kinks in my neck and shoulders, at least,” she said, taking out a pitcher of filtered water and pouring herself a glass. Dan closed his eyes while her back was turned to him for just a moment; the way her pajamas clung to her skin was almost unbearable. He took a shaky breath and opened his eyes in time for her to turn back around to face him.
“I’m still too keyed up to sleep,” she said. Dan chuckled, standing up from the bar stool he had taken to eat at the counter. I can think of several ways to make you tired enough to sleep, he thought deep, deep down in the back of his mind.
“Wanna watch TV for a little while then?”
Juliet nodded and he followed her into the living room, trying not to stare too much at the sway of her hips. Instead, he settled himself on the couch near her as Juliet turned on the television and flipped through channels until she found something she wanted to watch.
After a few moments, Dan felt comfortable and confident enough to pull Juliet back to lie against him. She peered up at him suspiciously.
“What? You need to relax. It’s not like we haven’t laid about like this before.” That was true enough-they had even fell asleep once after a particularly crazy show, tangled up in each other’s limbs on the couch on a tour bus. But his motivation wasn’t quite so simple this time, he thought, breathing in the scent that radiated from her hair and body; it was like fresh roses after a summer rain.
“My hair is going to get your shirt wet,” she told him, though she didn’t stir, instead relaxing against his shoulder. Dan rolled his eyes.
“Like I even care about that. It’ll dry.” Dan fought against the urge to wrap his arms around her, to reach up and cop a feel of her breasts through her tee shirt. He wanted more than anything to feel her nipples harden under his palm, to hear the catch in her breath that would signal her arousal, but he reminded himself that she was too exhausted to think rationally, to make up her mind.
Instead, he moved his hands to her shoulders and began slowly kneading the tight muscles there, finding the knots that long hours of work and awkward sleep had formed. Juliet moaned softly, relaxing into him by degrees.
“Where did you learn how to give a proper massage?” she asked him absently, turning her head to direct his fingers where they would do the most good. Dan chuckled.
“From you, of course.” Juliet had magic hands; he had discovered it when they had been on tour together. He had been complaining of a cramp in his neck one night after a show and she had raised an eyebrow, gesturing for him to turn around.
He had and she had gone to work at once, her small, deft hands soothing and working away the tightness in his muscles until he couldn’t even remember the pain that had been there before. She had repeated the favor a few more times, and Dan had paid attention to what she did, committing the pressure of her hands to memory. His girlfriends had had plenty of good things to say about his newfound skill.
“You’re really good at this,” Juliet murmured, and Dan felt himself getting drowsy as she started to doze off. His hands ceased to massage and instead caressed slowly, until he felt her breathing slow to a sleeping pace. He ran his fingers through her hair, feeling the silkiness of the drying strands.
Juliet shifted, getting more comfortable against his body, and Dan felt a hot pulse of lust run through him as she curled up into him, wrapping an arm around his waist. Dan decided suddenly that he would have no opportunity like the one presently before him; he leaned in and pressed his lips to her temple, holding her close and breathing in her scent slowly. Juliet stirred and he backed off, directing his attention to the TV until she subsided.
Juliet stirred again, and Dan held his breath. Her eyes stayed closed but in the midst of her sleep, she moved up, planting a sleepy kiss on his lips. “I’m glad you’re here, Dan,” she mumbled, giving him another all-too-brief kiss.
“You’re supposed to be asleep,” he whispered, not wanting to wake her if she was. Juliet stretched against him, her lips dropping down to his neck. Dan was torn; he didn’t want to take advantage of her-it certainly wasn’t right to do anything with a woman who was asleep and not aware of what she was doing. But by the same token, the feel of her lips against his skin, the way her body pressed against him, was too much for him to ignore.
“Mm, you smell good.” Juliet nuzzled against his neck and then seemed to fall back into a deep sleep, her arms tightening around him for just a moment before they relaxed. Dan stayed tense for several moments until he was certain she would stay asleep. He sighed, unable to help himself as he slowly caressed her back, trying to pay attention to the television show.
After about an hour, Juliet stirred against him again, this time waking up completely. She yawned, her back arching in a luxurious stretch, and she opened her eyes. Dan tried to suppress the smile that started to form on his lips; Juliet started when she realized that she had slept wrapped up in his arms, with her head cushioned by his chest.