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Bunny stood in silence as Kitty’s car eased away from the curb. The only thing that broke her frustrated stare was the sensation of gnawing at her heel. She looked down to find Chablis fang-deep in patent leather.

“No,” Bunny shrieked, doing her best to shake loose the tiny pedigree’s teeth.

“Problem, Miss Love?” The doorman glared nervously at the two small fur balls, no doubt more concerned about the marble foyer than Bunny’s shoes.

“Any idea where I can borrow a car for the afternoon?”

His bushy eyebrows drew together. “Most everyone here takes the train or walks.” His expression brightened. “The big boss drove in today. You could ask him.”

Bunny’s heart fell. “Anyone else?” There was no way she’d ask Nate for his car. No way at all. “Anyone at all?”

He shook his head. “Shall I cancel your cab?”

Bunny nodded, dragging the girls toward the bank of elevators. The tiny poodles danced around her feet, succeeding in winding their leashes into a snarled, rhinestone mess. The middle set of doors slid open and the three shuffled on.

Bunny pressed the button to return upstairs, anxiety sitting like a knot in her chest. Nate had made no secret of the fact he did
not
want to see her. She pondered the two poodles at her feet, now sitting politely, pink tongues wagging. He wouldn’t be thrilled to see these two, either.

Oh well, if nothing else, perhaps he’d lend Bunny his BMW just to keep the three of them out of his sight.

o0o

Nate straightened, glaring at Bunny and the furry monsters draped around her ankles. He couldn’t believe his ears. “Absolutely not. Have you learned nothing from your past escapades?”

“It’s for the Cup.”

“No.” Disbelief welled in his gut. “Not even for the Cup.”

Bunny planted one fist on her hip and tipped her head. “I’m perfectly capable of driving your car. I’ve done it before.”

“And it still sticks in third. You destroyed the transmission. All of you—out of my office. You’re bad luck.”

Her brilliant eyes grew huge. “I’ve brought nothing but good luck to you. You’re just too stubborn to admit it.”

“What?” This time she’d gone too far. He stood and leaned on the desktop.

“Good luck? You sent me to the ER, sprained my back, spilled hot coffee down my crotch, and I can’t sit for more than five minutes without a cushion under my ass.” He raked a hand through his hair. “Is that a fair summary?”

Bunny stood quietly for several seconds, her gaze narrowing on his. “Is your eye twitching again? You really should try meditation.”

“Did you hear me?” he bellowed. “You’re bad luck.”

She took a step closer. Nate instinctively backed up, bumping the credenza and sending his family photos tumbling from their easels.

“It’s not uncommon for a series of mishaps to occur when someone’s energy is shifting. Perhaps the worst is over and you’re on your way to becoming a new you.” A bright grin spread across her luminous face.

Nate’s traitorous stomach twisted and caught. Damn her and his body’s reaction to her insanity. “The old me is just fine.”

Bunny made a tsking noise with her tongue then gave several quick nods of her head. “You’re loosening up.”

Nate pressed a finger to his quaking lid. “I am not. I’m just as uptight as I ever was.”

Bunny lowered her gaze to hide her laugh.

“You know what I mean.” The woman was exasperating, and he had a sudden urge to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless. “Here.” He grabbed his car keys from his top drawer and tossed them across the blotter. “Take the damn car and go—you and those little long-haired rats.”

“Thanks.” Bunny plucked the keys from the desktop and turned for the door, Chablis and Chardonnay in tow. “Here’s another tip for you.” She stopped long enough to shoot an alluring wink over her shoulder. “It’s two days before the big show. I’d suggest you stop calling the clients ‘rats’.”

She and the fur balls were out the door before he could respond with anything more than a grunt. He sank into his chair, swearing softly as pain knifed into his back.

Meditation
. As if that would cure what ailed him.

Oh, what the hell. He lowered his face to his palms and closed his eyes, but no matter how hard he tried, the only mantra he could muster consisted of two words. Bunny Love.

The resulting chant was anything but soothing.

o0o

Martha disconnected the phone, returning her attention to her sketching. She’d stopped at a Center City art supply store on a whim and now traced the point of a fine nib along a crisp sheet of paper. A heady rush filled her at the sight of the line, entirely at the control of her own hand. She’d forgotten how complete the act of drawing made her feel.

She trained her thoughts back to the phone call from Armand. His plans were going well, he’d assured her, though he’d offered no details, saying it was best she didn’t know specifics. She made a face at the paper before her. The man had obviously been watching too many spy movies. All she’d requested had been a bit of mayhem at a dog show. How difficult to arrange could that be?

Before long, Miss Love would be a distant memory for Nate and for McNulty Events. It was unavoidable, even if the girl’s words had spurred Martha to rediscover her beloved pen and ink.

While Melanie’s behavior might have been atrocious at the dinner dance, she was the wisest choice for Nate. Safe and secure. Martha had always secretly envied the passion Nate’s parents had shared, but look where that frivolity had gotten them. She shook her head, setting her chin determinedly. She would not weaken now.

The plans in motion would secure Nate’s future. She had only to make sure nothing—and no one—got in the way.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Bunny loaded the poodles into the BMW’s backseat, contemplating her argument with Nate as she slammed the door. She leaned against the silver sedan and frowned. Their reunion hadn’t been exactly warm, but there had been several redeeming moments. Okay, not several, but a few. Well, maybe one. And that had been her epiphany.

Nate’s energy was changing, whether he realized it or not. Heck,
she
hadn’t realized it until she’d seen him today. His whole demeanor screamed alive. Bunny’s frown twisted into a grin.
Alive
. She had known he had it in him.

She leaned forward and laughed, softly at first, then deep and loud from her belly. Holy cow. Nate McNulty had displayed emotion.
Serious
emotion.

He’d screamed at her, openly dragged his hand through his hair, slammed his palm against the desktop, and hollered—good and strong—with
passion
. That hadn’t been the pain pills talking. No sir. Nate had come to life with a bang, and her positive chi had been part of the transformation.

The crucial step would be to help him channel his energy. He’d been completely bottled up at first, but now energy seeped through his voice, his hands, his eyes. Ooh, those eyes.

A shiver shimmied down Bunny’s spine. Nate’s rich, brown gaze was the most incredible she’d ever seen, and each time she saw him, his heat grew more intense. More
alive
.

A yap sounded from inside the car. Bunny jumped. Sheesh. The dogs. The leashes. She snapped herself from her thoughts, pulling open the driver’s door. Her heart pitched. Chablis lay sprawled across the passenger side, gnawing on the leather trim.

Yowza. Bunny winced. She had a sneaking suspicion she hadn’t begun to see Nate’s full emotional range.

o0o

Nate applied pressure to his twitching eyelid. The encounter with Bunny had not gone well. Definitely not his finest display of control. Damn the woman. Damn her bright eyes, her lunatic rationale and the ratty poodles she’d shuffled in with.

He squeezed his eyes shut. Perhaps if he concentrated hard enough, the previous month would be nothing more than a bad dream. The flaw in that reasoning was that there had been several intriguing episodes during the past month—all of them centered around the life force known as Bunny Love. Her chaos-loving grin played across his mind and his heart twisted.

Nate opened his eyes, turning to look at his fallen photos. He let out a frustrated sigh.
Chaos
. That’s what Bunny had brought. All his life he’d strived for control, yet now he found himself in the midst of pure chaos.

He picked up the framed photo of Melanie, scrutinizing her controlled pose. Hell, everything about her screamed control. Controlled hair. Controlled pink suit.
Controlled
. Like their relationship and their passion—or lack thereof.

What was it Jeremy had said about their parents? They may have been careless, but they had been happy. He was right. Their relationship had been anything but controlled. What it had been was full of love, and life. Even Nate had been old enough to understand that.

His father had been born into a family of Philadelphia bankers. He and Uncle Arthur had been raised to become society leaders, but then his father had met his mother. Their explosive chemistry had been legendary. She’d been as free-spirited as his father had been controlled. Where she challenged rules, Nate’s father had worked to keep life orderly.

Nate shoved a hand through his hair.
My God
. He was his father and Bunny was his mother. No wonder he couldn’t keep his mind off of the woman.

The thought of Bunny’s brilliant, blue eyes sent heat zinging from his chest to his groin. Damn. Was he willing to risk all he’d worked for? For Bunny? For smiling turquoise eyes? For chaos?

His stomach tightened. He couldn’t. He
wouldn’t
. The most important thing in his life was saving his father’s firm. To do that, he had to control Bunny’s chaos. He had to maintain a sense of order. Nate slapped away the vision of Bunny and the raw need surging through his body.

A knock sounded, and Owen Carruthers stood in the doorway, holding a ream of paper in the crook of his arm. “Brought you the revised budget figures you asked for.”

Nate patted the top of his desk, welcoming the interruption. “Bring ‘em on, Owen.”

The man dropped the printouts in the center of the desk, pausing for a beat. “How’s the back?”

Nate straightened. “Coming along. Thanks. And thanks for these.”

Owen nodded, heading for the door.

“Owen?”

The burly man stopped, twisting to meet Nate’s gaze.

“How were things while I was out?” Nate narrowed his eyes, curiosity simmering in his belly. “How about the new hire? Miss Love? She fitting in well?”

Owen visibly swallowed, almost appearing nervous. “Why?”

Nate shook his head, wondering. “No reason.” He had surprised the man with the question. That was evident. Owen would have had no reason to encounter Bunny, but Nate’s intuition had snapped to attention.

Intuition
. Hell. Four weeks ago the word hadn’t been part of his vocabulary. Now Bunny had him thinking about intuition.
His
intuition. “Thanks again,” he called out as Owen stepped into the outer office.

That’s when his eye caught the flash of pink. The flash of pink furry ears.
Fuzzy bunny slippers
. On his chief financial officer’s feet.

“Whoa!” Nate bolted around his desk and out of his office.

Carruthers looked like Thumper in a hunter’s scope, his brown eyes huge in his pale face.

Nate pointed to the man’s feet. “What...in the hell...are those?”

“Slippers.”

“No shit.” Nate’s blood boiled. “
She
did this, didn’t she?”

Carruthers shook his head, clasping his hands together. “It’s not her fault. She asked me to be discreet and, well, the things are so comfortable, I forgot I had them on.”

Nate spun to Miss Peabody. “Ring my car. Get Miss Love on the phone.”

“Yes, sir.” The woman’s features tightened. She discreetly slid a ceramic dish of greenery behind her computer monitor.

“What is
that
?” The words hissed from Nate’s lips.

“Lucky bamboo, sir.” Unlike Carruthers, Miss Peabody straightened, holding her chin high. “And I like it.”

“Well,
I
don’t.” He rapped his fist on her desk. “Miss Love. Now.” He turned back, fully intending to rip the rodent slippers from Carruthers’ feet, but the coward had vanished.

“She’s not answering, sir.”

“Well, keep trying. I’ll be in Bert’s office.”

o0o

Would this darn phone never stop ringing? Bunny swerved as Chablis attacked the handset for the second time. “It’s a phone, you furry idiot.”

Bunny scowled at the ancient contraption mounted between the seats. Couldn’t the man carry a cell phone like a normal person? She refused to answer his personal line.
No way
. With her luck it would be Melanie. Bunny had no intention of adding to that woman’s identity crisis.

Over the past few weeks, Melanie had paid more visits to Bunny’s cubicle to garner information on color therapy and feng shui than employees had ordered bunny slippers. The poor woman desperately searched for her life’s direction. Bunny only hoped she’d find it before she and Nate made the mistake of marrying each other. Their energy fields were completely wrong for each other.

Guilt flickered through her. Who was she kidding? Her thoughts were probably motivated solely by her attraction for Nate. She clucked her tongue. Shame on herself.

The phone began a third round of ringing. Chablis catapulted herself from the backseat to the front, frantically biting and snapping at the handset. Bunny groaned. “For gosh sakes, don’t leave teeth marks.”

Chardonnay took up a rousing chorus of yapping from the well behind Bunny’s seat. Bunny gritted her teeth. She pressed down on the gas pedal, focusing on reaching the warehouse quickly. The gears protested noisily, the car bucking, jerking her neck.

You know, for an uptight guy, Nate really should take better care of his car—especially if he was going to let other people drive it.

o0o

Nate burst into Bert’s office without knocking. His vice president scrambled to right himself from a lounging position, sending a stack of folders sliding onto the carpet.