Alix (The Coven's Grove Chronicles #1) Read Free Page A

satisfied. “What now?”
    A little smirk touched Alix’s lips. “Now you take off your shirt.”
    He flashed his pearly whites in an ear-to-ear grin. “Ah, time for the fun to begin.”
    “Yes indeed,” she replied, as she rolled her stool over to the sink.
    Troy stepped away from the table, untucking his shirt. He took hold of the bottom hem, and peeled the tight fitting garment off in one fluid motion. The pendant lights above cast deep shadows across his chiseled body. Delectably sculpted abs contracted as he moved. The sensual lines of definition found on his hips, delved into his low-cut jeans, teasing the eye with the promise of more wonders to be found below. Knots of muscle tightened across his back and shoulders, as he twisted to climb up onto the table.
    A faint gasp echoed through the curtained room.
    For a split second Alix thought that it had come from her. But then she realized she had been biting down on her lower lip while watching Troy undress, as if she’d never seen a man take his shirt off before. Such a sound couldn’t possibly have come from her. She looked around the room.
    A spot in the curtains closest to the front swayed with strength far beyond what mere heating from the vent might have caused. A familiar, drawn-out whistle followed, leaving no doubts as to whom was responsible.
    Alix narrowed her eyes. “Sam, could you take the cat outside? She’s makin’ a lot of noise. She might be in heat or something.”
    A faint, dejected “fine” came through the curtain, and the sound of Sam’s hard-bottomed shoes sliding across the linoleum faded, as she shuffled away.
    Troy laughed. “Have I become a problem?”
    Alix shook her head. “Nah, you’re fine. We just get a little punchy this late at night.” She quickly washed her hands in the sink, pulled on some rubber gloves, and grabbed a new disposable razor out of its packaging. “All right, I need you to lay back. Time to shave.”
    Troy stretched out on the table, his athletic body beckoning to every wanting part of her. Again, she was reminded of how long it had been since she’d felt the touch of a man—a man that she wanted to be touched by.
    Alix cleared her throat, as she rolled up to him. “Ready?”
    “Yep.”
    She looked down at the two slabs of pectoral muscle that sloped downward in the center, creating a tight ravine filled with hair. Swallowing, Alix began to lather a dot of shaving gel into the light ginger field on his chest.
    He flexed involuntarily from the initial coolness of the gel. The once smooth plains of his chest became mountains of taut muscle. He chuckled, “No easing into that part.”
    “Sorry,” Alix replied dryly, continuing to rub his chest. Tiny beads of sweat started to form on the small of her back, as the constant contact and sensual motion of her hand drove her thoughts into places that weren’t appropriate for the workplace. This is going to be the end of me, she thought. “So what brought you into the shop?” she asked, desperate to find something to corral her mind back into focus.
    “Heard this place was the best.” He paused and thought for a moment, then said, “I’m going out of town for a few days. For some reason I just felt…I don’t know. I just felt I needed a little extra something. To cover my bases, ya know.”
    Given Alix’s past, she knew exactly what he meant. “Yeah, I get it.” Finished with the gel, she continued to shave the area, being careful not to damage the smooth skin. “So, where you’re going, is it dangerous?”
    “A little. But I suppose there’s an element of danger every time I suit up for the job.”
    “You a cop?” Alix didn’t peg him for a crime fighter, but who could tell these days.
    “No, an EMT.” He shifted a bit when she lifted the razor, causing those beautiful muscles to roll all along his body. “Most of the time we get called to deal with a heart attack, or somebody chokin’ on a spoon or something. But every so often,