room swung open, and a second later I was greeted with the most beautiful view of my entire life: Julian Lefray naked. Well, naked except for an itty bitty hotel towel wrapped around his waist. He could have been the Eighth Wonder of the World. Every single inch of his defined arms, chest, and abs were right there for me to see. Tan, toned, and still dripping wet from his shower.
My mouth fell open.
“You’re early,” he said, his hazel eyes widening.
“You’re naked,” I replied.
I blushed the moment the words left my mouth. A quick glance to my left confirmed that the cleaning lady had stopped pushing her cart and was standing there gawking at the two of us.
“Ah, sorry,” Julian said with a bemused smile aimed at the maid. He didn’t even know the effect those dimples had on my girly parts. One word: Ijustgotpregnant. Yeah, that’s one word.
“Well it’s clear you two have business to attend to,” she said, wagging her finger at him and stepping closer.
“Oh jeez.”
I huffed out a breath and pushed past Julian into his hotel room before the woman could start giving me pamphlets from her church.
Our shoulders brushed as I stepped past Julian and I inhaled the scent of his body wash: clean, masculine, fresh. It was just what I’d expected and the last thing I needed as I tried to piece together my resolve.
“I swear this isn’t how it will be,” he said, closing the door behind him and holding his hands up in an innocent gesture.
I dropped my laptop bag on a lounge chair in the suite’s living room and then spun around to face him.
Abort! Abort! Staring at him when he was only wearing a towel was not good for my sensibilities. Before I could help myself, my gaze followed the contours of his chiseled torso, down over his abs, until I found myself staring at his hand gripping the towel right in front of his crotch.
Welp, I just stared at my boss’ crotch for like a solid ten seconds. That’ll help the situation. I gulped and looked away.
“I really thought we would have an office space by now,” he said.
“Don’t worry about it, I understand,” I said, admiring the fine art on the hotel room walls. Yes, oh how very nice. I love sailboats. They’re much better to look at than Julian’s naked torso.
I saw him run his hand through his damp hair out of the corner of my eye and then he took a step forward.
“I worked out a little longer than usual so I’m running a bit late.”
I squeezed my eyes shut.
“Okay, well…” I waved my hand to silence him. I was two seconds away from embarrassing myself, and I really needed to prevent that from happening. “It wasn’t that awkward before, but now we’re just standing here talking and you’re wearing nothing but a towel, so maybe you should go get dressed already.”
“Right.” He laughed, then spun to head into his room.
“Make yourself at home!” he called as he shut himself in his room.
Only after his door was closed did I let my eyes wander around his space. It was remarkably tidy for a single guy’s hotel room. No pizza boxes or beer cans littered the floor. A half-read New York Times sat beside an empty coffee cup on the living room table. He’d even taken the time to refold his newspaper as neatly as possible.
“Did that woman outside think that you were a prostitute?” Julian yelled through his door.
I smiled. “Yeah, is she used to a parade of them lined up for room 3002?”
“Ha ha. Sadly, my only visitor is Gary from room service.”
I smiled as I stepped toward the window to admire his view.
“Okay, so I suppose I just look the part,” I joked as the door to his room swung open.
He stepped out wearing gray slacks and a crisp white button-down. He was still finishing buttoning his shirt, so I was momentarily graced with one last glimpse of his chest. Buff—check. Tan—check. Just a sprinkling of chest hair that made my mouth water—check.
I glanced up to see him eyeing me with curiosity. He’d shaved away the stubble I’d grown familiar with the day before and had taken the time to style his hair after he’d gotten dressed. He looked like a consummate business man. Too bad the rest of him didn’t fit the bill. He’d developed a tan from our time spent outdoors while looking at properties, which only made his features more appealing.