Hell.

That was the last question she wanted Brett to ask. She wanted to get his signature on the contract that was burning a hole in the folder she rested her hands atop. His reaction to how he could be portrayed seemed, as he said, the total opposite of how he normally was. However, his reaction also exposed a different side to Brett than the bad boy he was known for. His caring for the kids struck a chord inside her. Her ex, Michael, had always smiled and signed autographs for his young fans, but when they were in the privacy of the car, he complained about how they pestered him for pointers. Michael would never do a show like this.

But she needed to answer Brett’s question before the silence dragged on too long.

“I-uh-I haven’t received confirmation from the casting director about who else will be involved.”

God, another white lie. She was getting pretty proficient in telling them. She hated doing it. It wasn’t how she did business, but she knew this show was going to be the best thing for him. It was crucial that she got their signatures on the contract.

“Why don’t I believe you?” he fired back. “This whole deal is starting to smell a little off to me. Dan, aren’t you the slightest bit concerned about it as well?”

Dan knew exactly who the other two participants were. He’d thought it would be good for Brett to be around Mitch and Drake.

Dan sighed and Cassandra knew he was battling with the need to tell Brett who the other participants were. “I’ll speak to the producer once the contract is signed. I’ll make sure you get fair coverage and express your concerns that filming should be concentrated on the kids and not you.”

Good luck with that. Cassandra wanted badly to say that to Dan, but she held back. At the end of the day, all she needed was Brett’s signature on the contract.

“Fine, I’ll trust you to do that, Dan,” Brett conceded, but she wasn’t convinced he was happy about it all.

Wanting to take advantage of the situation, she opened the folder and pulled out the contract. “Dan has looked this over and he’s happy with it. All it needs is your signature.” She flipped over a page and pointed to an amount listed. “This is what the network will pay you for appearing on the show.” Once he saw the amount, Cassandra was pretty sure he would no longer object to doing the show.

Without even looking at the figure, Brett reached into his pocket and pulled out a pen. When he unscrewed the lid, she saw the unmistakable Mont Blanc logo. The man had good taste in pens. She had one herself, but she didn’t bring it into meetings for fear of it being accidentally put in someone’s pocket or briefcase. With a flourish, the contract was signed and she passed it to Dan for him to countersign.

Guilt-tinged relief poured through her. The deal was done. There was no getting out of it for Brett. She hoped he wouldn’t crucify her when he found out about Mitch and Drake’s involvement.

“Now that I’ve signed on the dotted line, how about you fill me in on who I’ll be sharing this little adventure with?”

Crap, not so lucky after all.

“I have another meeting to get to,” Dan said. “I’ll leave you to it.”

The agent left in a hurry. She couldn’t help wondering if he really had a meeting or was just making his escape and leaving her to deal with trying to avoid spilling the beans.

“So now, it’s just the two of us.” Brett moved his chair a little closer to hers. His muscular leg brushed her stocking clad one, eliciting little darts of pleasure zigzagging up to settle at the juncture between her thighs. Great, if she shifted away, he would know she found his close proximity uncomfortable. If she didn’t, she could find herself falling into the same trap she had when she’d first met Michael—letting her hormones rule her sensibility. Hormones equaled bad decisions for her. Besides she was older and wiser now than to let her hormones control her.

“Yes, just the two of us.” She cleared her throat. “At this stage, I don’t have much information about who will be with you on the show, Brett. The network wants to get genuine reactions from all the participants.”

While not the whole truth, it was pretty close to it. Part of her wanted to blurt out Mitch’s and Drake’s names so as to give Brett a heads up. She would hate being blindsided if she were in his place.

“I suppose I can believe that, but I can’t help feeling there’s something you’re not telling me.”

His perception surprised her. Once again, she questioned why he seemed to actively seek out trouble. These little glimpses of maturity gave her hope that maybe he wouldn’t react badly that first day on set.

“There are aspects of the show that are still in the planning stages. I’m sure once everything has been properly finalized, I’ll have more information to pass on to you. In the meantime, I’ll write a press release. When I get the go ahead from the network, we’ll announce that you are appearing in a new television special. Of course, the producers may not want us to say anything more until shooting wraps.”

“Any idea how long it’ll take and where I’ll be? If it’s outside Colorado, I’m going to have to speak to my coach about finding a facility to train in and maybe an interim coach.”

“I’m sure the producers will be happy to accommodate your training schedule. As for the location, the production company is L.A. based, so I’m guessing they will be looking around California. Although Build a Dream has its main office in Louisiana, so they could have a say in what locations they want to improve and may well choose to remain close to their offices.”

He pushed away from the table. “I can’t do Louisiana. I’m happy to go anywhere else except there.”

“Why? I thought everyone loved that place, especially New Orleans?”

“It doesn’t matter why. It just has to be somewhere else.”

His chin jutted out, daring her to question him. He looked every inch the arrogant sports star she took him for at that moment. Any thought of arguing disappeared. They would cross the location bridge when they came to it. For the time being, he had cooperated and signed the contract.

“I’ll pass that along to the network when I forward the contract to them. I’m sure we can come up with a location that will work for everyone involved. Now, if there’s nothing else, I have to get back to work.”

Cassandra stood, collected her folder and held out her hand toward Brett. “Thanks for coming in today.”

Once again, when his hand enveloped hers, warmth stole into her bloodstream. She had to get this irrational, emotional response to him out of her system. It could only lead to disaster. He was a client. He was younger than her. He was an athlete. He checked off every item on her men to avoid in relationships list. So why did her body burn hot every time he touched her or even came within two feet of her?

A slight tug on her hand caused her to step forward, right into his hard chest. This was bad, oh so bad, but her feet refused to move and the hand not clasped in his lay flat against the soft cotton of his t-shirt.

She looked up, her throat closing at the look of sheer intensity burning in his blue eyes. Her insides trembled. Her earlier resolve to not let her hormones rule her dissolved with that one look.

Yep, she was in trouble.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“I’m not sure.”

All questions fled when he dipped his head and his lips connected with hers. A light, sweet touch. Innocent almost, but there was nothing innocent about the way he made her feel. Her hand fisted his shirt as she pressed closer to him, hoping he’d deepen the kiss. For a few seconds, she allowed herself this brief moment. A moment in time when insanity overrode sensibility. A moment when she released the tight bonds she’d held around herself since her divorce and let a long hidden desire to be wanted for who she was wind its way through her. A moment solely hers.

Then reality crashed in on her when the sound of laughter outside the room pierced her consciousness. Thank goodness the conference room didn’t have glass walls or she’d be in deep trouble. She pushed hard against Brett’s chest and he immediately released her.

“Well, that was surprising,” he muttered. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, speared her with one last glance before he walked out, leaving her standing there, mute, her trembling fingers touched her still vibrating lips.

What the hell was she thinking allowing a client to kiss her? That was the problem. She hadn’t been thinking. She’d been feeling. And feeling anything at all for Brett Hunter was bad.

Very, very, bad.