"I'm sure. Too many shadows."

"Could you...?"

Jamie closed his eyes again, but his ears strained to make up for that chivalry, as if he could possibly hear a towel being unwound over the sound of the rolling jets. He counted to ten, then twenty, sure that there'd be some global shift once she was naked in the water with him. At the very least, she'd splash a little.

"Can we even count it as skinny-dipping if you keep your eyes closed the whole time?"

That would be a tragedy, so Jamie opened his eyes immediately. And there she was. The swirling bubbles hid most of her body. All of it, really. He could see much more of her skin while he was sitting in class. But the few inches of her shoulders seemed startling bare above the water. Fascinatingly bare. Her dark hair just brushed along her collarbone when she moved. Water danced and dipped just an inch below that, teasing him with her nudity each time a little trough showed more skin.

Jamie forced his eyes up to her face, then realized it didn't matter. She was too busy checking out his chest to notice. He slid up a little straighter in response.

"So," she finally said. "I did it." Her smile started small, but it didn't take long for it to spread across her face.

"You certainly did. How's it feel?"

"I don't know yet." She slid a few inches to her right, coming a little closer, though there was still two feet of tub between them. From this angle, she was looking right out into the yard. A breeze stirred her hair, and he watched her take a deep breath. "It's like a cave in here. A secret."

"Yeah. Exactly."

Beyond the trellis walls, the day exploded in brightness and light. The people out there moved through their Sunday world. And no one knew Jamie and Olivia were tucked into these shadows, nude beneath the water. Her foot brushed his. He breathed very carefully.

When he'd dared her to skinny-dip with him, Jamie had felt in control. A little superior. Just as he should, as the man tasked with teaching her how to loosen up. But this wasn't like a casual dip with a tipsy girl who'd tossed her bikini top away like an unneeded jacket. This was Olivia Bishop, whose nudity seemed a precious, guarded thing. And just the glimpse of her naked shoulders felt risque. Now Jamie didn't feel superior and calm. He felt nervous and so aroused that he was thankful for the shroud of bubbling water. Not cool to casually lounge around with a throbbing erection.

Not cool at all.

"Look at that," she whispered, and for a moment, Jamie worried the waters had cleared. But she pointed out toward the sunlight, to the hummingbird feeder he'd hung on a small tree. Two green birds danced there, swiping at each other as they competed for the sugar water.

But Olivia was smiling, so he watched her instead.

"This is really neat," she said. "Thank you."

"Oh, you're welcome," he said with an irony she seemed to miss.

"I feel different."

"Yeah?"

She turned and aimed that smile at him, and it tilted in a naughty way he'd never seen on her. "Yeah."

Jamie shifted his leg so that it slid against hers, and there was no mistaking the excitement that sparked in her eyes. "I feel strange calling you Ms. Bishop when I'm supposed to be teaching you today."

"That's because you shouldn't be calling me that and you know it."

"Okay, I'll call you Olivia then." He reached for the champagne glasses and handed her one, taking the opportunity to slide a little closer. Now his calf rested naturally against hers. "Your name is beautiful. I don't think I've met an Olivia before, and I meet a lot of people at the brewery."

"It's old-fashioned," she sighed.

"It's pretty," he insisted, not adding that it suited her perfectly. She wouldn't appreciate it, because it was old-fashioned, and that was exactly why it fit her.

Sighing, she ducked down a little farther in her seat and sipped champagne. Her expression was soft. Dreamy. And her cheeks had turned pink in the steam.

Jamie touched her temple, sliding back a strand of hair that stuck to her dampening skin. When she turned toward him, he touched his thumb to her lower lip, loving the soft give of her flesh.

She watched him, waiting, all her nervousness floating away on the steam. And hell if he could wait a moment longer.

He kissed her, very conscious of keeping his hand on her shoulder as he slid next to her. And it was strange, here in the heat, almost as if their whole bodies were part of the kiss. Every part of her was as hot and wet as her mouth at that moment. When her hand slid over his shoulders, it was as sensual as the lick of her tongue. When her knee pressed into his thigh, it slipped over him.

He tried to take it slow, but she slanted her mouth and wound her fingers into his hair. The buoyancy alone pushed him closer, and he had to brace himself to keep from covering her completely. His hand landed on her hip. His fingers naturally curved to hold her. And then his palm was sliding up her side, exploring her body, shifting her closer.

At first he thought it was only the push of water against him, but then he realized her knee was sliding between his thighs. Jamie tried to find an impossible balance between getting her closer and keeping his distance. But a moment later, his restraint had wound so tightly that it simply shattered and floated away. Olivia was trying to deepen the kiss, and now her thigh slid along his cock as her leg fit more snugly between his.

She made a little noise into his mouth. A murmur of surprise or pleasure, he wasn't sure, because his mind was occupied with the sensation of her skin against his shaft and his hands spreading over her back. She was so very naked. Every inch of her wet and available. His hands slid up to her neck, then down...slowly down, following her spine all the way to the base, then he spread his hands out, shaping her ass, holding her hips.

This time she moaned more loudly, and he had no trouble interpreting the sound.

Jamie eased her back, loving that her breath came as hard as his. He dragged his mouth down her neck as her fingers clutched his head. He set her back and lifted her hips, forcing her to stand so that he could see her. Her eyes were closed, her lips parted, and Jamie followed the trickles of beaded water that slid from her neck to her naked breasts. He kissed her collarbone, then followed the water with his mouth. When his lips closed over her nipple, Olivia gasped so loudly that he worried he'd hurt her. But then her fingers twisted into his hair and held him close, and he growled with approval.

Her small breasts barely curved into his palm, but she was incredibly sensitive. When he traced his tongue around the dark rose of her areola, her hands shook against him. When he scraped his teeth against her nipple she sobbed. She was amazing. He could do this for hours, coaxing every imaginable sound of pleasure from her mouth. It was like a pretty game, finding the places that pleased her. Even licking the pale skin along the side of her breast made her whimper. He teased her before closing his mouth over the peak again.

"I can't..." she breathed.

Jamie let her nipple slide from his mouth with such slowness that she groaned.

"I can't stand up anymore," she whispered.

"Well, then...you'd better sit down."

She put one knee on the seat next to his hip, then lifted the other to straddle him.

For a split second, Jamie considered just sliding into her right then. Just easing her hips down and filling her, because he'd never wanted anything more. Nothing. No woman, no fantasy had ever left him so desperate.

She looked down at him, her damp hair stuck to her neck in dark coils. Her eyes so wide he could fall right into them. Her chest rose and fell as she panted, waiting.

"Shit," he murmured, then pulled her down for a kiss. His cock was caught between them, pressed tight to her belly. Every time she even breathed, she slid white-hot pleasure into his shaft. Christ, what would it feel like when he got inside of her? He wound her hair around his fist and kissed her harder.

She was wild, her nails biting into his biceps, her hips shifting against him. Jamie's world was one big pulsing wave of lust. He dropped one hand down her back and slid his fingers along the seam of her body. He stroked her, loving the way she writhed against him, teasing her until she nearly sobbed.

Just as he was about to plunge two fingers deep within her, the world stopped. Everything stopped. They both froze, pulling back to look at each other in shock.

Jamie had no idea how long they'd been in the hot tub together, but he'd neglected to set the timer for long enough. The new silence roared in his ears. The water settled and became a quiet pond.

Olivia's eyes got even wider. She glanced around as if remembering where she was. "Oh," she said, the word whispering cool air over his cheek.

He took a deep, quiet breath, then slipped his fingers over the tight pearl of her clitoris.

"Oh," she said again, her hips jerking against him.

He was back in control now, somehow, in the quiet water. He could think a little, and he knew he didn't want this to end in the next few minutes. So he touched her slowly, carefully, drawing out her sounds of pleasure again. He followed the folds of her sex, teased her clit, tortured her by tracing her opening without ever pushing inside. And it was torture for him, too. To have his cock pressed so tightly between their bodies when everything he wanted was inches away.

Finally she dragged his face up and kissed him hard. "Jesus, you're good at this," she growled against his mouth.

He gave a pained laugh as she sat back.

"Do you have...protection?"

Why the fuck had he left his jeans five hundred miles away? He gestured vaguely toward them, but couldn't look away from the site of her perched on his thighs. Her breasts were lovely, her nipples still hard and dark, and now he could see all the way down to the dark triangle of hair between her legs.

"Jamie," she said, her voice urgent. "Condoms?"

"In my jeans," he managed to grumble.

She leaned forward again, her body squeezing his cock so hard he saw stars of pleasure. Her arm reached past him to snag the pile of clothes.

"Thanks," he gasped, taking the jeans from her hands to pull a condom out. Then he paused for an awkward moment, trapped by her body.

"Oh," she said, scooting back to drop off his knees.

Jamie stood, slipping the condom on, aware of the way her eyes took him in. As he sank back into the water he grabbed her hand and floated her toward him. He slid a little lower so she'd have room to put her knees on the seat and kneel above him. Then he took his cock in hand and guided her down. He could watch through the clear water. When the head notched against her opening, he heard the way she drew in a deep breath and held it.

Then she eased down, her body taking him in, closing around him. He heard every flutter of her breath, every small gasp as his cock sank deeper.

Jamie didn't breathe at all. He was too busy feeling the tightness and the pressure. He was too busy watching as he pushed inside her.

Her hand pressed against his chest. Her fingers spread wide. "Wait," she gasped, breathing harder.

Jamie waited, his teeth clenched as he felt her muscles twitch around him, then ease slightly.

"Okay," she whispered.

Thank God. Jamie finally drew a breath, then settled her down the last couple of inches. And for a moment that was it. That was all they needed. They both held still, letting the hot water calm around them. She stared down at the place where their bodies joined, as if she were as enthralled as he.

And it was quiet. So quiet. Birds sang. A car passed on his street. Far away, a lawn mower buzzed.

Jamie swept his hands up her hips, her waist, until he cupped her breasts. He teased his thumbs over her nipples and her hips jerked. Hell, yeah. That was all that was needed to break the lethargy. She rolled her hips into him with a tortured sigh. He let her set the pace. At first she was slow and easy, but when he pinched her nipples, Olivia took him faster, slamming her hips hard into him when he teased more roughly.

His orgasm was already building at the base of his cock, so Jamie tried not to think about how hot she looked. How her lean body arched back as she rode him, thrusting her breasts more firmly into his touch. He tried not to notice that he could see his shaft slide out of her when she rose, tried not to feel the impossible tightness of her pussy when she slid back down. He tried not to hear the soft, dark sound of her holding back her cries so the neighbors wouldn't hear.

But when her whimpers grew louder and her hips worked faster, Jamie knew he couldn't hold out much more. He slid a little lower in the water, easing her farther back, then he braced one hand on her hip and slipped the other between them. He could feel the perfect contrast of his hardness and her yielding sex, but lust made him clumsy, and it took him a moment to find the right spot.

"Oh, God," she whispered when he finally stroked her clit. "Jamie. Oh, God." She kept her movements tight and quick now. He gritted his teeth against the constant pleasure. "Oh, God," she whispered over and over, while Jamie prayed for strength. Finally her whisper became a sob, and her hips spasmed against him, her sex squeezing impossibly tight. She buried her face in his neck and cried his name on a muffled scream, and he dug his fingers into her hip until the spasms stopped.

Her thighs were still shaking, but he eased her up until she sat above him again, eyes dazed.

And now he let himself notice everything as he braced her hips and surged into her. Her tousled hair and sleepy eyes. The way her flushed mouth parted on a hard gasp when he sank himself to the hilt. The jut of her nipples so dark against her pale skin.

She cried his name again, and he growled with satisfaction as he thrust into her with brutal lust. Finally, he came, grunting past his clenched teeth as he worked himself inside her until every last jolt of pleasure was done.

As soon as he loosened his hold, she collapsed against him, her body draping over his as if she were boneless.

Jamie managed a bark of strained laughter. "You okay?"

"No," she said against his shoulder.

"No?"

"No. I feel...full. And sore."

"Oh, sorry. I-"

"And that wasn't anything like fun."

"Um..." He pulled his head back, trying to read her face. "Olivia-"

"That was...metaphysical perfection."

She started to laugh and Jamie breathed a sigh of relief. "Really? Well, that blows away *You're a great kisser.' Metaphysical perfection?"

"Don't get a big head," she said. "I was there, too."

"Yeah, you definitely were."

"And...was I fun?" She was still smiling, but when she sat back to meet his gaze, he could see in her eyes that the question was real enough. Her hands rose to cover her breasts. Jamie tugged them away.

"Hey." He wrapped his fingers around hers and held her gaze. "You were a lot like perfect yourself."

Now her smile looked real. She bit her lip, looking like a proud schoolgirl. Damned appropriate. And between that naughty smile and her naked breasts and the fact that he was still inside her, Jamie felt his cock stir.

Her smile turned into an O of surprise.

"Be careful who you show all that fun to, Olivia," he said. "It's dangerous."

"I'm going to have to learn my own strength."

He winced when she laughed, but he did it with a smile. "All right, but let's test the boundaries of your newfound powers in bed this time. I don't want to know what pruning looks like on my junk."

She stood quickly, leaving him biting back a groan. And this time, when she stood naked next to the hot tub, she didn't ask him to turn around. "Hurry up, Mr. Donovan. Class resumes in five minutes."

"Five minutes," he muttered. But he thought that with Olivia, he just might be able to pull it off.

CHAPTER EIGHT.