Hotwire watched as Claire tried to stifle yet another yawn. She’d insisted on staying out of bed and watching television after lunch. She’d wanted to study for her finals, but he’d bullied her into resting. It hadn’t been that hard after he explained he’d already been in touch with the university and she was scheduled to take them all a week late.

      Graduating midyear had a lot of advantages, one of them being that she wasn’t under a graduation ceremony deadline. He was glad, because he got the impression that no amount of bullying or logic would have held her back if putting off taking the finals meant waiting to graduate.

      Unlike Josette, who had been content to take her education at a slower pace, Claire was driven to finish now. It could be because of finances, but he got the feeling there was more to it than that. He’d like to know what, and now that they were forced to be in one another’s company, he intended to live dangerously and indulge his curiosity about her.

      He stood and stretched. He’d been working on a security plan for a large computer manufacturer while surreptitiously watching Claire lose her battle with exhaustion.

      He walked over to her. “I think it’s time you went back to bed.”

      “It’s still the middle of the day.”

      He bent down and lifted her, noting with some concern that she didn’t complain at all. “If you want to get well enough to study for your finals, you need to rest so you can resume normal activities,” he said as he carried her through to the bedroom.

      She grimaced in pain as he tucked her into bed.

      “I’ll get you your meds. You haven’t had any since you got up earlier.”

      “No, thank you. I don’t need anything.” But her pain-dulled eyes denied her claim.

      “You don’t have to put on a tough front for my benefit. You need the pain medication and you’re taking it.”

      “It’s not a front.” Her all-too-kissable mouth flattened into an intractable line. “No meds.”

      “Why not?”

      “I don’t like drugs. Of any kind.”

      “It’s pain medication, sugar. You’re not shooting up heroin.”

      “No.”

      “You need it.”

      “No.”

      His teeth gritted with frustration. “You are being stupidly stubborn.”

      “Maybe you can do that thing you did last night with my feet?” she asked, like she was offering a concession. “It helped.”

      He shook his head, whether against his own urges or her denial, he wasn’t sure. “I know you’re into health food and all that, but a few doses of pain medication are not going to permanently damage your body.”

      “No.”

      “Don’t you know any other words?”

      “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be an irritant, but I really don’t want to take any more pills. If you don’t want to do the thing with my feet, that’s okay. I’ll be fine. Really.”

      “You’re a lousy liar.” He reached out and brushed her hair from her temple. “I’ll do the acupressure massage, but you have to promise to take the pain meds if it doesn’t help enough.”

      She said nothing and he knew he didn’t have her agreement.

      He would have to do a very thorough job with the massage. Uncovering her feet, he took one into his hand. He was thorough, using every bit of skill he had learned. Her eyes slid shut and her facial muscles relaxed slightly, telling him he was having an effect.

      He massaged up her calves, using a combination of kneading and acupressure to decrease the pain and leave her muscles pliant. When he reached her knees, he didn’t test his self-control by going any further. Instead, he moved to her hands, enjoying the feel of her soft skin more than he should as he tried to take away her pain.

      No matter what his reason for touching her, it was having a predictable effect on his body. As his kneading fingers moved up her arms to her shoulders, the covers slipped, revealing nipples as hard as his aching cock.

      He couldn’t help it—he groaned.

      Her eyes fluttered open. “Are you okay? If you’re tired of doing it, you can stop.”

      Was she really that naïve? Maybe her hurting head was clouding her reasoning. “I’m not tired of touching you.”

      “Oh.” Her eyes slid shut again and he continued the massage, his gaze sliding to those hard little nips over and over again.

      He wanted to see them without the barrier of her shirt. Would they be pink or a dusky brown? Sure as certain, right now they were flushed red with arousal.

      He continued the massage up her neck, and pressed gently against a series of acupressure points right up to the matching pair on top of her head and between her eyes. Unable to stop himself, he moved his fingers down her temples, her neck, and over her collarbone until he stilled with his fingertips on the upper swells of her breasts.

      She moaned, a soft, sexy sound. Her eyes opened again, this time the arousal in their brown depths unmistakable. “Hotwire?”

      “There is another natural pain reliever that’s even more effective than acupressure massage.”

      She licked her lips. “What?”

      “Pleasure. A long, extended climax will release chemicals into your bloodstream that obliterate pain.”

      “I…”

      He let his hands slide down just far enough to cup her generous breasts, playing his thumbs over the hard peaks. “If you won’t let me give you pain meds, sugar, let me give you pleasure.”

      “There’s something wrong with that reasoning, but I can’t quite work out what,” she said in a breathy voice.

      “Don’t try too hard. It’ll make your head ache worse.”

      Her lips tilted in a small smile. “Heaven forbid.”

      “Will you let me pleasure you, Claire?”

      “You can try.”

      “Is that a dare?”

      “No…I’m just not very responsive.”

      “Your body says otherwise.”

      Her brows drew together. “Yes, it’s really weird. I wonder if the concussion has something to do with it.”

      He shook his head at that bit of nonsense. “So, I have your permission to touch you intimately?”

      “Yes.” Then she hissed as he pinched her nipples and just as quickly released them.

      “Okay, there are a few rules for this kind of pleasuring.”

      “Rules?”

      “Number one, you need to stay relaxed. At all times.”