When they reached the room, Sed directed her to the bathroom. He turned on the taps to fill the large garden tub.

“What are you doing?”

“Pampering you. Get in the tub. I’ll call room service.”

“I don’t want to be pampered.”

“Too bad. I’m pampering.”

That big tub did look inviting. And there was a complimentary bottle of bubble bath on the edge of the tub. “Okay.”

Sed let out a relieved sigh. He probably thought this fixed things. Well, it didn’t. Nothing would fix this.

“I’ll be right back.” And when he kissed her—for a fleeting moment—she started to believe that things really were going to be okay.

Less than twenty minutes later, she was already feeling more like herself. Fragrant bubbles tickling the bare skin of her shoulders, Jessica leaned forward in the tub and opened her mouth to accept the spoonful of chocolate mousse Sed offered. Her eyes rolled up in her head as she licked every decadent trace of dessert from the spoon. Smooth, sweet, and rich. She rubbed the mousse between the roof of her mouth and tongue, reluctant to swallow. Chocolate made everything better. Even her fucked up life.

Jessica groaned. “It’s so good.”

“It can’t be half as good as watching you eat it.” He grinned at her and scooped another spoonful from the tall parfait glass.

“Aren’t you going to have any?” she asked, eagerly accepting another bite of his treat.

His grin widened and one of his adorable dimples made an appearance. “I’m saving my appetite for dessert.”

“You can climb in here with me, you know.” Sex with Sed was even better at taking her mind off things than chocolate. And more than anything, she longed for blank thoughts.

Sitting next to the tub, still fully clothed, Sed shook his head. “We both know where that will lead. You’ve had a hard day, sweetheart. I want you to relax.”

She’d forgotten how sweet he could be at times. “It’s hard to relax when I keep thinking about that stupid vid—”

He silenced her by stuffing a large strawberry in her mouth. She chewed, the sour tang of the fruit contrasting with the sweet chocolate still stimulating her taste buds.

“Then stop thinking about it.” He reached across the expanse of lily-scented bubbles and stroked a strand of hair from her cheek.

“You are taking my mind off things.”

Both dimples made an appearance this time. Her heart skipped a beat. Why couldn’t he be like this all the time?

“I am?”

“Well, you and the chocolate.” She opened her mouth, ready for her next bite.

He laughed. “Honest to a fault. Are you sure you want to be a lawyer?”

Her heart went from recovery to the pit of despair in one beat. “I’m not sure it’s even possible now. My reputation is ruined.”

“In a couple of weeks, it will be old news. No one will remember it.”

“I will.”

He gave her a pitying look and reached for the bottle of champagne chilling in a silver bucket near his hip. He sloshed some pale amber liquid into a flute and held it out to her. “More champagne?”

She nodded and reached for the glass.

Sed took a long swig out of the bottle. She watched his throat work as he swallowed and squeezed her thighs together to alleviate the building throb between them. She probably shouldn’t want him after the day she’d had, but she did. What was it about this man that made her so stupid? And slutty? God, the whole world knew how much she liked to fuck him now—how she’d go to any lengths to please him sexually—and did that stop her from wanting him? No. Sed lowered the bottle and stuffed it back into the ice bucket, accompanied by the rattle of melting ice.

He covered his mouth with the back of his hand and chuckled. “That shit goes straight to your head.”

“I don’t think you’re supposed to chug half the bottle.” Though three glasses deep, she was working on it. She rested her wrist on the edge of the tub, her half-full flute tilted precariously. “Since you refuse to fuck me, can I have some more chocolate, please?”

“I’m not refusing. I just don’t think that’s what you really want right now.”

“You don’t know a goddamned thing about what I want.” Her eyes filled with unexpected tears. “Why won’t you ever listen to me?” If sex had been his idea, she’d already be on her back with him thrusting into her slutty, needy body.

He brushed a tear away with his thumb. “Shh, sweetheart, I’m not going to take advantage of you when you’re this upset.” He extended a spoonful of mousse toward her.

Oh yeah? Well, if he wasn’t going to do as she asked, she’d just have to seduce him then. She waited until the spoon touched her bottom lip then slowly drew her tongue over it. She repeated the motion again and again, knowing what kind of thoughts she encouraged. Sed watched her lick his offering one thin layer at a time. He couldn’t take his eyes off her mouth or the carefully timed strokes of her tongue. She sucked the remaining mousse from the spoon. “Mmmmm.”

Sed answered her murmur of pleasure with a soft curse.

Her eyes drifted down his body, wishing he’d get naked already. The chocolate and champagne weren’t doing it for her. She could still think. Her eyes settled on the crotch of his jeans. Anything ready to tango in his pants? Getting there, but only half-mast. She could do better.

“What are you looking at?” he asked.

Her gaze lifted to his. He had one eyebrow raised at her.

“I want more.”

“More what?”

“You know what I want, Sed. Give it to me.” She opened her mouth for another bite.

He scooped another spoonful of mousse. “If you don’t stop that, I’m going to give it to you real good here in a minute. And then you’re going to get pissed at me for taking advantage of you.”

“Why would I get pissed if you give me what I need?”

“Jess, you’re not thinking clearly. The last thing you need right now is sex.”

She completely disagreed with him. No surprise there. Jessica rubbed her mouth over the soft dessert, licking the chocolate from her coated lips in bliss. She kept her eyes closed, but she assumed he watched with undivided attention. Her tongue stroked the underside of the spoon repetitively and then dipped into the depression on top.

“I wish I was a spoon,” he murmured.

After she licked all traces of dessert from the spoon, she moaned, “More, Sed. I need more.”

He fed her another spoonful of mousse, and another.

“Yes, Sed. Give it to me. More.”

He scraped the spoon against the sides of the glass and gave his final offering. She finished the last bite and opened her eyes.

He rattled the spoon in the glass. “It’s all gone.”

She glanced at the glass, noting the film of mousse on its inner surface. “There’s a little left. Don’t waste it.”

He rubbed his index finger along the inner surface of the glass and offered it to her, his breath catching. She licked his finger from base to tip and then sucked it into her mouth. The salt of his skin mingled with the sweet, rich taste of chocolate.

“Jess,” he gasped.

She sucked his finger gently, drawing her mouth back to the tip, and working her tongue along its underside, before she sucked it deep again. She released his finger and took a sip of her champagne. “Are you sure there isn’t any more?” Her eyes drifted down to his lap again. His cock strained against his pants as a thick, rigid pole along the inside of his left thigh.

How was he not in the tub already?

“I can order you another.”

“I think I’ve had enough chocolate. What else do you have to offer?” She glanced down at his lap suggestively.

He didn’t seem to notice. “Champagne.”

“Excellent champagne,” she murmured and took another gulp of the sparkling beverage.

“Strawberries.” He lifted a lid off a plate sitting beside him on the floor. The smell of beef and grease filled the air. “And a hamburger.”