Excerpt from LEARNING PASSION

Another choice selection:

            Neil leaned back against the wall and inhaled deeply.   That gardenia scent  that Ann had started wearing lately was like a come-hither signal to his pheromones.  He studied her from beneath half-closed lids.  Her hair was coming loose from the stylish chignon, framing her face in curling tendrils, and her cheeks were still a little flushed from the excitement of the party, maybe from the alcohol. 

            What would alcohol do to her inhibitions?

            They disembarked from the elevator and he unlocked the house door, then opened the security gate and hauled it shut again.  Neither of them switched on a light. The room was in semi-darkness, lit only by the dim glow of the fire.  They were all alone, and he could feel a pleasant tumescense swelling in his groin.  He glanced sideways at his wife, speculating.    

            “Would you like another drink, a nightcap?” He moved toward the wet bar.

            Ann shook her head and a few more ringlets sprang free.  “No, I don’t think so.” She stretched a little, covering a small yawn with her hand.   “I’m going to bed.” 

            Neil watched her breasts move under the tight tunic she was wearing.  Hers were real, he thought, not the saline-filled hemispheres Melinda liked to put on display.

            He smiled his most charming smile and held out a hand in invitation.  “Stay with me for just a few minutes, Ann.  I need to unwind.”

            “Sure.”

            She made herself comfortable on the davenport, and he took a seat daringly close to her, then stretched his arm across the back of the seat, like a teenager on his first date. 

            She’d become accustomed to him, he realized.  In small ways, he’d been wooing her all evening—taking her hand to lead her through the throng of revelers, putting his palm on the small of her back to signal her to move forward, standing so close their hips touched as he introduced her to various managers and their families, holding her against his body warmth as they walked to the car.   

             He edged his arm a little further across the back of the davenport, willing her to accept his touch.   Then, holding his breath, he brushed her shoulder with his fingers. 

            She turned to look at him, her eyes wide in surprise. 

            But she didn’t leap up and run for the hills.