She was watching him expectantly, so Trent nodded. A smile spread across her face and his heart turned over a little. He looked away and tucked his hands in his pockets. If something as simple as staying in put that look on her face, he’d gladly do it.

Trent sat on the edge of a dainty wing chair. Somewhere in the kitchen there was a soft ding and Mara hopped up.

“It's time for me to put the lasagna in the oven. It doesn't take that long to bake. Do you want a beer while we wait?”

His gaze followed the sway of her hips as she rushed to the kitchen.

“Trent? Hello, earth to Trent.” Mara stood in the doorway to the kitchen, waving her hands back and forth like an air traffic controller.

He looked up, heat flooding his cheeks as he met her gaze. “Huh?”

“A beer. You want one?” She said the words slowly. Great, now she thought he was an idiot.

He gulped and nodded furiously. “Sure. A beer. Right.”

She narrowed her eyes at him before turning into the kitchen. As soon as she was out of sight, Trent’s strained smile fell.

It was Matt’s first year in the service and he worried about Mara being alone so much, especially on their birthday. Their parents weren’t keen on traveling from Florida again so soon after the holidays and Mara couldn’t get the vacation time to fly down to them. Trent no longer had a girlfriend so it hadn’t been any imposition to spend a little time with Mara. He’d arranged a perfectly safe birthday dinner in a public restaurant. They’d eat, dance a little and head home, end of story.

The plan did not include a cozy dinner for two, followed by a movie on the couch with only a remote control as chaperone.

And it definitely didn't include licking her from the top of her head to her pretty little purple-painted toes.

Shit.

CHAPTER TWO

“So I hope you don't mind if I finish my exercise routine. The food will be ready in about an hour.” Mara returned from the kitchen and set the beer down on the side table next to Trent. He was perched on the edge of a wing chair looking uncomfortable as hell. His dark blond hair was spiked up at the top like he'd been running his hands through it.

“Uh, sure. No problem.” He took a sip of his beer and rubbed his hands together. He was looking everywhere but at her.

She picked up the remote control and navigated the DVD to the place she wanted to start. Not that she really needed the video. She'd practiced how to tease him all week and fantasized about it for years.

Tonight she would finally seduce Trent.

They’d gotten closer than ever since Matt’s deployment. She knew her brother was behind Trent’s sudden interest in keeping her company but she didn’t mind at all. She was a big girl, despite what her brother seemed to think. It was ironic; her overprotective twin was actually pushing the object of her interest right in her path. If she had her way, she’d get a lot more for her birthday than a Hallmark card.

“Namaste. Let's breathe deeply and reach for the sky.”

Following the instructions of the melodic voice on the DVD, Mara stretched her hands over her head, knowing her tank top would rise and reveal several inches of belly.

“Now swan dive; touch the ground.”

Mara bent slowly and touched her fingertips to the polished hardwood. She peeked at Trent from the corner of her eye. He held his beer with a death grip. His sky blue eyes stood out in stark relief against the blush on his cheeks.

“Reach for the sky again. Sun Salutations.”

Mara turned so her profile faced Trent. This way he got the full effect when she bent over. She was a little curvier than what was in fashion, but more than one of her ex-boyfriends had commented that her back view could bring a man to his knees.

She bent slowly, keeping her legs straight, her bottom pert as she touched the floor. A strangled sound came from behind her. “You okay Trent?”

He cleared his throat a few times. “Wow. You're, uh … really flexible.”

She arched her back a little as she reached toward the ceiling again. “Yeah, well, I do yoga regularly and I also jog a few times a week.”

He made a soft sound that could have been anything from “Working out is great” to “Come take my clothes off.”

“Downward Facing Dog. Spread those fingers. Sink your heels to the floor.”

Mara smiled a little as she transitioned into Downward Facing Dog pose. It was one of her favorite positions anyway but it had the added bonus of letting her wiggle her bottom in Trent's face.

“Would you mind spotting me?” She smiled up at him brightly. Hopefully he wouldn’t know enough about yoga to realize that people didn't use spotters.

“Sure, what do you need me to do?” He hopped up and stood next to her. She looked up in time to catch him looking at her bottom again.

“I’ve been having some back pain so I think I just need you to steady me as I come back up.”

He moved a little closer and tentatively touched her waist. “Here?”

She stood up straight and then pulled him behind her. “Right behind me actually. We're about to do more Sun Salutations and I need a little help when I bend.”

Sure enough, the instructor's soothing voice told them to reach for the sky again. Mara stretched her hands up, feeling Trent's fingers clench uncertainly against her skin as she moved. She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. “Are you ready?”

He shook his head slowly, as if in a daze. “Not really but go ahead. I wouldn't want you to hurt yourself.”