I can’t believe how hot it was.

And I can’t believe I let it happen. Weeks of Dominic acting like the definition of a horrible boss, and then the man gives me one of the most incredible orgasms of my life. Even thinking about it, my body flashes to his office and the feel of his mouth on me again. The body memory is so intense, I have to cross my legs.

Though my chest is also still burning from the, ah, decidedly unsexy exit I had to make when the cleaning crew came in. Thankfully, Dominic was still dressed and could close the inner door, while I yanked on my clothes and slid out the side door of his office. It was even funny in the moment, and saved us both an awkward goodnight.

But, oh god, what am I supposed to do next week?

“Earth to Lucy.”

I don’t even hear my friend, Jeanine, speak until she starts waving a cocktail napkin in my face.

“Ack, sorry. What were you saying?”

She rolls her eyes at me—this is the second time she’s had to work to get my attention tonight.

We’re perched at the end of a restaurant bar. I’ve already forgotten the name, but it’s the kind of upscale and trendy scene that Jeanie loves. She’s a publicist and always has an ear to the ground for the latest, hot place. It’s a large space and tonight there’s a bit of a crowd, but it’s still quiet and intimate enough to chat. I was grateful she suggested a low-key drink instead of clubbing on a Saturday night, especially after the week I had. But I can barely follow the conversation.

“No, really, Jeanie, I do feel bad. I’m just all over the place right now.”

“No, no, it’s fine.” She sighs dramatically, then motions to the bartender for another martini. “This is only the first chance we’ve had for a drink since you started that job.” When the bartender gets closer, she orders and sticks her thumb out at me. “She’s buying.”

Dutifully, I smile at the bartender. “Put her on my tab, please.”

“How do you do that?” Jeanie asks.

“Do what?”

She rolls her eyes again. “Guys everywhere love you. The bartender just smiled at you like he wants to eat you. You don’t even notice.”

It’s true I didn’t notice, though not only because I’m distracted tonight. I’m not much of a flirt. Jeanie, on the other hand, always notices men. And they notice her: she’s a tall curly redhead with a cross-fit body—very much a standout in the crowd. She never finds herself lonely for long.

The bartender brings the second round, and Jeanie pointedly smiles and checks out his butt as he turns to leave. He’s got the young, handsome actor-slash-waiter-in-the-big-city look about him, but I am not paying attention to eye candy—or anything else—tonight. I’m way too worked up over what happened last night and not doing a very good job hiding it.

Jeanie settles in with her glass, and then looks at me. “OK, spill. What the heck is up with you tonight?”

“I’m just… getting used to things. This job is—“

“What did your asshole boss do now?”

“Don’t call him that! He’s not an asshole. He’s very demanding, but he’s not that bad.”

She coughs. “Excuse me? ‘Not that bad’? We’ve spent hours on the phone with you venting just how much of a hard case this guy has been.”

“I never called him an asshole.”

“You most definitely did call him an asshole.”

“Oh.” I wave that off. “I’ve spent a little more time with him.”

When Jeanie gets a little spark in her eye and takes a coy sip, I realize this was most definitely the wrong thing to say. I love Jeanie, and we are such good friends precisely because she’s keenly intelligent. And because we know each other very, very well.

“Well now,” she says, with a mischievous little smile. “Quite the change of heart. Has he stopped pouting about losing the ‘famous Mrs. Talbot’?” She’s draws out the words in a little singsong tone

“From what I hear around the office, he can be very nice,” I offer lamely. This is actually true. A few people have taken pity on me the last few weeks and tried to reassure me that Dominic is not the asshole he appears to be. I didn’t have much of a reason to believe them until now.

Jeanie’s having none of it. With a knowing look, she squares off and leans in. “OK, you got that out of your system. Now what happened?”

I can feel the blood rush to my face. I look around the bar and calculate the distance from my stool to the door. Tonight, it’s packed with people, due to some rumor that a famous actress, Shawna Davis, is in town. Everyone is here to see and be seen. My chances of escape are slim.

I try a different tack and shrug my shoulders. “I was working late and he complimented my work.” I take a sip from my own drink and smile inside at the memory.

“Ha. That’s it?”

“Mmmhm.” Another sip.

Jeanie just smiles and sits back, waiting out my cosmopolitan. At this rate, I’m going to be out of booze and out of excuses in about two seconds.

Who am I kidding? I’m dying to tell someone, and Jeanie is the only person I have to talk to, certainly girl talk like this. Not exactly the kind of story I would tell my mother. And certainly not my nosy-yet-well-meaning Aunt Cece. She was so thrilled when I agreed to take the new job, disappointing her would crush us both.

I wince, sip and motion for the handsome bartender, pointing at my own glass this time. He winks at me. When he turns to make my drink, I nod to Jeanie.

“Yes. Something happened.”

“I knew it!” She snaps her fingers and leans in. “What?”

The words suddenly rush out. “I was working late. I know, par for the course, but then he came in and I wasn’t expecting him. I was wrapping up and then going to hit the gym after, but I was out of my work clothes and in a sports bra and lycra and he…” I trail off and bite my lip. “But then, I don’t know, there was this moment and he was nice to me. I think he was tired, he’s never nice to me. But he seemed kind of open and sweet for the first time, and… So.”

I stop, censoring a little of what happened next. TMI for the bar. Jeanie just smiles as I ramble.

I bite my lips, then close my eyes and blurt out. “And then we were behind the desk for some reason and—“

“Behind the desk! Hot. What about on it?” Her eyes are big and laughing as I flounder.

“No. Well, kind of.” I can’t help it. I start giggling like a high schooler.

“I can’t believe you,” she tuts in mock disapproval. “One compliment after weeks of hell and you just give it up to your boss like that.”

I still laugh but the knot in my chest that’s part exhilaration, majority worry, kicks back in. She’s right. What have I done? I was attracted to the guy the second I met him, but there was this buffer between us—namely that he was always a total jerk—to keep all naughty thoughts in check. Well, almost all. He certainly seemed to loathe me, just short of firing me. But now?

As if sensing my thoughts, Jeanie nudges my hand. “Listen, honey, I know exactly why. I googled the guy, I know he’s hot.”

And then some, I think to myself. Hot, handsome, devastating… all words for a guy like Dominic. Tall, broad-chested. Grey-blue eyes over a strong, notched chin. I remember how his hair curled under my fingers as I pressed his head and mouth to me.

Keeping that thought to myself, I blow out a breath, a little relieved to be able to share. Jeanie leans in for a few more details, but then there’s a small commotion around us.

Nothing so gauche as an announcement, but the room changes and everyone’s attention shifts to the front of the restaurant. The platinum blonde actress and her entourage have arrived, the crowd parts like the Red Sea as they walk in to the back of the room where a roped off VIP dais is waiting. Everyone in the room is trying just a little too hard not to gape and watch. Except for Jeanie, who might as well have little antenna sticking up out of her head as she scans. This time she’s the one ignoring me as she cranes to look for the movers and shakers in the room, watching to see who’s in Davis’s inner circle. Life of a publicist, I suppose.

Free to watch with her, I’m grateful to have a little distraction. I’ve done nothing but think about Dominic for the last eighteen hours. It’s so bad, I even think I see him in the crowd, following behind the blonde bombshell starlet.

“Lucy,” Jeanie elbows me. “Isn’t that him?” She points and I know she’s right. The tall man striding close behind Shawna is indeed Dominic Breson. As I watch, the starlet leans in and whispers something into his ear, then presses a hand to his chest as she throws her head back in throaty laughter.

Seeing Dominic here, and so obviously with the actress, is like a punch in the gut. I must be the stupidest woman on the planet to even imagine that a little make-out session on his desk would mean anything to a guy like him. He didn’t even call me this morning, and I’ve been mooning over him all day. I feel so dumb.

I spin back to face the bar so fast the stool almost tips. I clutch the edge of it just as the bartender arrives with my now long-forgotten drink.

“Perfect timing,” I say, grabbing for it and throwing the whole thing back.

The bartender smiles and says, “Hey, hey, easy there! I’d have brought shots if I’d know you wanted them.”

I place the cosmo glass back on the bar and steady myself. I try to smile, though my chest is burning. “You know, just one of those weeks.” I look around to try to spot Jeanie, but she’s somehow disappeared into the crowd of people surging to orbit Shawna Davis’s entourage.

Rather than move away, the bartender folds his arms on the bar in a classic move. “No, I don’t know. But it can’t be that bad.”

“You sure about that?”

“You didn’t start with tequila, so I’d say there’s still hope.” He winks at me for the second time tonight. I try to smile back. Jeanie was right: this guy is definitely looking at me like he has more than a tip in mind. If I didn’t feel so crushed, I might even enjoy the attention.

“Hope for what, Lucy?”

That’s not Jeanie. He snuck up on me like an apparition. I steel myself and turn to face Dominic.

“Nothing. Not a thing. Hi. Sir.” I say it like I was trained to say it. Head high, shoulders back, I will not back down from this man. “Fancy seeing you here.”

Jesus, he’s so good looking it hurts. He’s skipped the tie tonight, but he’s still dressed to kill in suit pants and a jacket that would make James Bond proud. Brioni, of course. I know because it’s part of my job to fetch and carry his dry cleaning.

The thought makes me furious. Of course. He’s my boss. He’s free to treat the secretary like a convenience or inconvenience as it suits him. What, did I think a quickie on a desk was going to mean something to an asshole like him?

“What can I get ya?” the bartender asks. His tone is courteous, but he’s staring Dominic down with a warning I-saw-her-first look on his face. I see Dominic’s jaw tighten and feel vindicated. Sure Dominic showed up tonight with a Hollywood starlet, but this poor little secretary can get some attention of her own.

Dominic smiles at the guy like a shark. All teeth. “I’m all set. But I’ll be taking care of her bill tonight. Put her tab on my table in the back. Would you like him to bring you another drink, Lucy?”

Both of them look at me for an answer. It’s absurd, but I feel as though I’ve been asked to choose between them.

After a beat, I look at Dominic and shake my head no.

Dominic turns to the bartender and, am I imagining it, or does he step closer to me, wedging himself imperceptibly between me and the bar?

“I guess she doesn’t need anything else. We’re good.”

“Sure thing, Mr. Breson.” Reluctantly, my white knight bartender disappears to attend to other customers down the bar.

“That was brave of him,” Dominic says.

“Why? Just because he knows who you are? Not everyone works for you.”

Dominic smiles. “He does. I own half this restaurant.”

I can feel the blood rushing to my cheeks. Of course he does.

His smile fades. “You work for me, too.”

“Not last night, I didn’t.” Call it liquid courage, but I throw down that little gauntlet completely without thinking. Dominic’s eyes get dark and he turns his shark smile on me.

“You’re right. Memory serves, I was doing most of the work, though not that you didn’t try.” He smirks, and I want to slap him and bite him at the same time. “Maybe next time we’ll get you back on the job, whaddya say?”

Dominic is still standing close as he talks down to me, and I feel his hand caress my left hip in the lightest of touches. Everything about him is powerful and intoxicating. The last time I was standing this near him, my panties were on the floor. But I also feel raw, and hyper aware that another woman is waiting for him just feet away.

I pull back, pretending nonchalance. “You know, on second thought, where is that bartender? I could go for another drink after all. And you probably need to get back to your date.”

For the first time, Dominic seems nonplussed. “My date? Who’s my date?”

I jerk my chin to the back of the room. “Shawna Davis. The actress. I saw you walk in together. Everyone saw you walk in together.”

“Lucy, I’m here with her, yes, but I’m not with her.” No more games, Dominic’s tone is serious. “You may have noticed, but we came in as a small group tonight. My business partner, Shel Velluto, is paying Shawna Davis to be seen here. I’m shepherding that investment, and I also actually like having dinner here.”

I listen, but I’m afraid to believe him. “Well, far be it for me to keep you away from your investment. I know what a busy guy you are. I put together your agenda every day.”

“Lucy, are you upset about what happened yesterday?”

“Why would I be upset, Dominic? I just had sex with my boss on his desk last night. Which, I might add, didn’t even merit a phone call from you the next day. And then you show up on my night off with another woman on your arm. None of those things would merit upset on my part, certainly…”

I stop talking because I realize I sound like a total basket case. I’m afraid to even look at Dominic after that tirade.

The music is pulsing around us now. I feel his hands on my shoulders, and then he nudges my face up to look at him.

“Done?” he asks.

Eye-to-eye, I can’t bring myself to say anything else. I feel completely exposed.

He takes my right hand and brings it up to his lips. It’s a tender gesture that melts my insides completely.

“I’m sorry.” He says the words against the skin on the back of my hand, and then kisses it. “I want you to know I thought about calling. But, as you just said, I’m your boss and it’s your day off. And the truth is, I didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t expecting what happened.”

And then he kisses me, right there at the bar, for everyone to see. It’s a sweet kiss, all lips and nibbling teeth. I can feel my body turning to liquid everywhere he’s touching me, but the kiss stays soft and feather light.

When we pull back, the music and the crowd rush in around us, filling the space.

“I need to get back to the table. Can we sort this out Monday?”

Right now I feel grateful for the distance and a little more time to process. This is literally only the second time I’ve seen this sweet, soft side of Dominic. I would never have guessed the cold S.O.B. who made my life hell for a month had this kind of warmth in him. I don’t know what to do.

I just nod and turn back to the bar. When I look up, he’s gone, as though I dreamt him.

“Oh my freaking god!” I jump at the sound of Jeannie’s voice next to me. She takes her bar stool back and gawks at me. “I came back and saw you two talking so I stood over to the side. That was the hottest thing I’ve ever seen! Come on, you have to tell me: does he kiss as well as he looks like he kisses?”

I take the half-empty martini glass out of her hand, and down the rest of her drink in one, and then say the only thing I can think to answer.

“Better.”