High-Powered, Hot-Blooded (10 page)

He still wasn’t there. Which was fine, she told herself. He’d said he would
try
to get there, which was probably a polite way of saying he wasn’t interested. It wasn’t as if they were really dating. What gorgeous single guy wanted to spend Friday night with a bunch of other people’s kids?

She held in a sigh as she backed away from the drapes. Only to bump into something warm and solid.

She turned and saw Duncan standing behind her.

“What are you doing here?” she blurted.

“You asked me to come.”

She laughed, hoping she wasn’t blushing. “No, I mean backstage.”

“I wanted to say hi before the program started. One of the moms is saving me a seat.”

Annie took in the broad shoulders, the strong features and the way he filled out his suit. “I’ll just bet she is.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Thanks for coming. You didn’t have to.”

“I wanted to see if you were still pissed.”

“I was never pissed.”

Humor brightened his gray eyes. “Now you’re lying about it.”

“I’m not. I was annoyed. There’s a difference.”

“You were pissed. You were practically screaming about the tires. Talk about shrill.”

He was teasing, which she liked a lot. Back when they’d first met, she would never have imagined it possible.

“I was calm and rational,” she told him.

“You were a girl. Admit it.”

“I could hit you right now.”

“You could and no one would notice. Especially not me.” He took her arm and led her into a shadowy alcove. “Here.” He handed her a piece of paper.

She looked at it. The sheet was a printout of a memo, detailing the new policy on discounted tires.

“Now will you get your damn car fixed?”

She stared at him, knowing that while he’d been helping her, he was also helping a lot of other people. “I will,” she said, raising herself onto tiptoes and lightly kissing him. “I promise.”

He put his arms around her and pulled her close. “Good. You’re a pain in the ass. You know that, right?”

She giggled. “Yes. You’re dictatorial. And annoying.”

They hung on to each other for several seconds. Annie loved the feel of him, the strength and heat of his body. As always, being close to him made her feel safe.

“I have to get back to my class,” she said reluctantly. “They’re wearing cardboard halos that won’t really survive very long.”

“Okay. I’ll see you after the Christmas thing.”

“Winter festival.”

“Whatever. I’ll see you.”

“Yes,” she said and watched him walk away.

She knew then that despite the fact that she’d only known him a few weeks, she was well on her way to being in love with him. He was unlike anyone she’d ever met. He was better in every way possible.

He’d promised not to ask her to be friends and she trusted him to keep his word. But he’d also promised when the holiday season was over, so was their relationship. And she knew he would keep his word on that, as well. Wishing for more wouldn’t change the outcome. Duncan had told her once that, in his life, somebody always won and somebody always lost. This time, she had a bad feeling the loser would be her.

I’ve always enjoyed working for Patrick Industries. Thank you for giving me another reason to be proud of my place of employment.

Have a wonderful holiday season.

Still chewing, he crossed to the windows overlooking the six-story atrium in the center of the building. He could see people coming in to start their week. People he’d never bothered to get to know.

Ten years ago, he would have been able to name every employee. He’d worked twenty-hour days, struggling to make the company profitable, then to grow it as quickly as possible. For the past few years, he’d had contact with his senior management team, his assistant and no one else. He didn’t have time.

Who were these people who worked for him? Why had they chosen this company and not another? Did they like their jobs? Should that even matter to him?

He looked back at the note and the plate of cookies. Annie would be a disaster as a boss, giving away more than the company made. But maybe it was time for him to leave the confines of his office and remember what it was like to know his employees. To listen instead of command. To ask instead of demand. Maybe it was time to stop being the meanest CEO in the country.

“Just doing what we agreed.”

“This reporter…” One of the board members adjusted his glasses and frowned at the business journal. “Charles Patterson seems to think you’ve had an awakening. Who’s this Annie person?”

“Annie McCoy,” Lawrence said, before Duncan could answer. “The woman Duncan’s seeing.”

The other board members looked at him.

“You told me to find someone nice,” he reminded them. “She’s a kindergarten teacher. Very pretty. Charles has a crush on her.”

“Well done,” the oldest board member said. “You should bring her around here so we can all meet her.”

“There’s no need for that,” Duncan said, thinking the last thing Annie needed was a bunch of old guys trying to flirt with her.

“Annie’s special,” Lawrence announced. “Good for Duncan, too.”

Duncan narrowed his gaze. “I’m seeing her through the holidays. It’s a business arrangement, nothing more. You told me to find someone nice and clean up my act. I did. Don’t make it more than it is.”

“It didn’t look like a business arrangement to me,” Lawrence said.

“Looks can be deceiving.”

There was no way he was telling his uncle or anyone on the board that he also thought Annie was special. They didn’t need to know how she’d wormed her way into his life. The kicker was he didn’t think she’d even been trying. But regardless of his feelings for her, when the holidays were over, so was their relationship.

The board moved on to other business. When they were finished, Lawrence lingered in the conference room until the other men had left.

“Are you serious about ending things with Annie?” his uncle asked. “I saw you two together, Duncan. You like her. You should marry her.”

Duncan shook his head. “I’ve been married.”

“To the wrong woman. I don’t know what Valentina wanted, but it wasn’t you or a real marriage. Annie’s different. She’s the kind of girl you spend forever with.”

This from a man who’d been married five times? “You know this how?”

“I’ve lived a lot longer than you. I’ve seen things, made bad choices. There are few regrets more painful than knowing you let the woman of your dreams get away. You’ve always been smarter than me about most things. Don’t be an idiot now.”

“Thanks for the advice,” Duncan said, standing up to leave.

“But you’re not going to take it.”

“I did what the board asked. That’s all you’re getting from me.”

Lawrence stared at him for a long time. “Not everyone leaves.”

Duncan didn’t react to the statement, even though he knew the old man was wrong. Nearly everyone who mattered left. He’d learned that a long time ago. It was better not to care. Safer.

“Annie doesn’t leave,” his uncle added softly. “Look at her life.”

“What do you know about it?”

“What you told me. She has her cousins and their friend living with her. She’s helping to pay for their college educations. She agreed to date you to help her brother, after he tried to throw her under the bus. She’s not a person who gives up easily.”

True, Duncan thought uneasily. Annie took responsibility, hanging on with both hands. “That’s different,” he said.

“It’s not and you know it. Annie scares the hell out of you because with her, everything is possible. Don’t let what happened before ruin this for you. Don’t live with regrets about letting her go. They’ll eat you alive.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“You can keep telling yourself that, but it won’t be true. You’ve never been afraid of anything but risking your heart. Annie’s the closest to a sure thing you’re ever going to find.”

Duncan found himself wanting to listen, which would only lead to trouble. “Annie got into this to save her brother. It has nothing to do with caring about me.”

“Maybe it didn’t, but it does now. Just pay attention. All the signs are there. She’s falling for you. Maybe she’s already in love with you. Chances like this don’t come along very often. Trust me, you don’t want to blow this one.”

Lawrence walked out of the conference room. Duncan stood there, alone, wondering if the old man was telling the truth. Would he regret letting Annie go? In time he would find out. His uncle was also right about Annie scaring the crap out of him. There were possibilities with her. Great ones.

But he’d already given his heart to someone. He’d already believed in forever, and he’d learned a hard lesson. Love was an illusion, a word women used to sucker punch men. Maybe Annie was different, but he didn’t know if he was willing to take the chance.

Taking a chance violated everything he knew to be true and yet…he was tempted. It was the only possible explanation for his being in a mall less than a week before Christmas, fighting the crowds and looking for presents for her cousins and Kami.

He should have had his assistant buy something online, he told himself, as yet another shopper stepped in front of him without looking. What did he know about the wants and needs of college-age girls? He was about to leave the department store when he saw a sign that proclaimed every woman loved cashmere.

There was a display of sweaters in an array of colors. A well-dressed salesperson came up and smiled. “Are you buying something for your wife or girlfriend?”

“Her cousins,” he said. “And a friend. They’re in college. Does cashmere work?”

“Always. You don’t happen to know sizes, do you?”

He shrugged, then pointed to a young mother walking by. “About like that?”

“Got it. Do you want to pick the colors?”

“No.”

“Should I gift wrap?”

“That would be great.”

“Give me fifteen minutes and it will all be done. There’s a coffee bar over by shoes, if you want to get away from the crowd.”

He nodded and wandered in the direction of coffee, only to be stopped by a display of Christmas trees. They were small, maybe two feet, covered with twinkling white lights and miniature ornaments. The one that caught his eye was done in white and gold and decorated with dozens of angels.

They were all blonde and innocent, with big eyes. For some reason, they reminded him of Annie. He picked up the tree and carried it to the register.

They were in a lull—a four-day stretch with no parties—right before the last-minute craziness started. On Thursday, there was a party every night through Christmas Eve. When she’d first seen the party schedule, she’d been excited about the break, but now she found herself missing being around him. The four days, and nights, had seemed endless.

And then he’d called, inviting her over.

Why? She wanted it to be because he was missing her, too, but she couldn’t be sure. There was no reason to think anything about their relationship had changed—at least not from his end. She was in serious danger of falling desperately in love with him, which, if she’d thought things through at the beginning, shouldn’t be a surprise. Handsome, smart, funny, caring man suddenly in her life. What was there not to like?

If only, she thought, before shaking her said. No. She was going to be sensible. Falling in love might be inevitable, but she wasn’t going to let herself be swept away by her feelings. When this was over, pride might be the only thing she had left. She needed to remember that.

She parked in the guest spot, then took the elevator to his penthouse condo. Duncan opened the door right away.

“Thanks for coming,” he said, his gray eyes dark with a smoldering need that made her thighs tremble.

“Thanks for asking me.” She held out the box of fudge. “I made this. I don’t know if you like chocolate. If not, you could take it into the office or…”

Instead of taking the candy, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside. The second the door closed behind her, she was in his arms, his mouth on hers.

She hung on as the world began to spin. There was only the heat and the man and how she felt pressed up against his strength. He was already aroused, his hardness flexing against her belly. She managed to shove the fudge onto a table by the door and drop her purse, before hanging on to him with both hands.

She parted her lips and he deepened the kiss. Their tongues danced, touching, tracing, playing an erotic game. He bent her over slightly, then straightened, pulling her up off the floor.

Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around his hips. Despite being up in the air, she felt safe. Duncan would never drop her. He carried her into the bedroom, then slowly lowered her to the carpet. When her feet touched solid ground, he drew back, put his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face the room.

On the dresser there was a tiny Christmas tree. White lights twinkled, the only source of light in the huge room. She could see little angel ornaments on every branch.

Her throat got a little tight. “I thought you didn’t want a tree,” she whispered.

“I saw it and thought of you.”

The words, whispered in her ear, made her eyes burn. Telling herself he wouldn’t appreciate a girly show of emotion, she did her best to blink them away. He hugged her, pulling her close. She turned in his embrace and stared into his gray eyes.

Emotions raced through her. Not just desire, but love. There was no escaping the truth. She loved Duncan with all her heart. Whatever might happen, however it might end, she loved him.

The feeling was different, more powerful than anything she’d ever experienced. Getting over him would take a whole lot of time and effort, because as much as she wanted to believe everything would work out, she tried to be a realist. Her and Duncan? On what planet?

But for now there was the night and the man and she was determined to have as much as possible of both. She leaned into him, claiming him with a kiss. She couldn’t tell him how she felt, but she could show him, she thought as she traced the powerful muscles in his arms.

She raised the hem of his sweater and ran her fingers across his broad chest. He took the hint and pulled off the sweater, then tossed it away. She pressed her lips to his breastbone, tasting his warm skin.

For a second, he was passive, accepting her caress. Then he reached for her, cupping her face and kissing her.

Even as they held on to each other, he was moving her toward the bed. When the backs of her legs bumped the mattress, he stopped. He pulled back enough to pull off her knit shirt. She stepped out of her shoes. Then they were tumbling onto the bed, him landing next to her.

They reached for each other. Even as they kissed, she reached for the hooks on her bra. She wanted to feel her bare breasts against his chest. He pushed her hands away and unfastened the bra in one easy movement. The lace-covered garment went flying.

Her jeans followed, as did his. She barely had time to notice that his briefs were also gone, before he settled his hand on her stomach.

Up or down, she thought, rolling onto her back. Either would work for her. He could move up or down. Another moment of hesitation and his fingers moved down. When he reached the barrier of her panties, he gripped the elastic and peeled them down. His large, strong hands made the return trip slowly, massaging as he went, teasing the insides of her knees before trailing up her thighs. He moved closer and closer to the promised land, but didn’t touch her most sensitive spot. She held her breath, wanting, desperate, willing to do anything to have him touch her there. While he kissed her breasts, he rubbed his fingers against her inner thigh, then up onto her belly, making her squirm in anticipation.

Finally, slowly, he shifted again and slid through her swollen flesh. He touched the tiny center of her pleasure. A shiver raced through her. Gently at first, never pressing too hard or going too fast, he began to circle. Slowly, then a little more quickly, pushing her forward. She rotated her hips in time with him. Sensations raced through her. Muscles tensed. There was nothing but the movements and how he made her feel. Closer and closer still. Until the fall was inevitable.

She hung suspended for a brief moment. Intense pleasure pulsed through her and then she was falling. She came over and over, shuddering and moaning. He continued to touch her, gently, lightly, drawing out her release.

When she opened her eyes, he was watching her. His gray eyes seemed to see down to her soul. She smiled slowly, then kissed him.

“Thank you. That was…nice.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Nice?”

She laughed. “Very nice. Extremely nice.”

“You’re crushing my ego.”

She reached between them and stroked his erection. “Your ego seems to be doing just fine. We should take advantage of that.”

“If you insist.”

“I do.”

In a matter of seconds, he put on a condom and was nudging at her thighs. She shifted to welcome him.

He filled her with one long, steady thrust. She felt herself stretching as he pushed in again and again. The sensation was delicious. Pleasure hardened his features, pulling at the muscles. His eyes were closed.

She closed hers as well, enjoying the ride—focusing on him and what he was feeling. She was so aware of his movements that at first she didn’t even notice the pressure deep inside. The sort of tingling ache, the instinct to move against him, increasing the friction. The need started slowly, then grew more frantic. She found herself clinging to him, wanting him to go faster, deeper, harder.

She opened her eyes and found Duncan watching her. She couldn’t control herself. This wasn’t quiet, almost-boring sex. This was messy, frenzied desire. She held on to his upper arms, pumping her hips with each thrust. She opened her mouth to gasp in a breath and found herself panting. Her body wasn’t her own. There was a driving force she didn’t understand and couldn’t control. There were—

Her climax caught her off guard. One second she was doing her best to catch her breath and the next she was lost in a shuddering, convulsing release that caused her to arch her back and cry out in a way she never had before. Her muscles tightened over and over again, then Duncan moaned and shuddered. They came together, a tangle of need and pleasure.

When they were done, Annie knew nothing would ever be the same again. She would never be the same.
She
might not be able to win Duncan, but she would never settle for anything less than loving someone with all her heart. That’s what had been missing before, she thought, blissfully exhausted. True love and passion. An explosive combination.