I can tell she’s intrigued by my proposal. When I walk her to her piece of shit SUV – hopefully I can convince her to buy something safer – she stops at the driver’s door and looks up at me, expectantly.

My head dips because she’s so short, and I smile because I’ve forgotten how short she is when she stands next to me. She looks girlish and grown up all at once, between the ponytail and the business dress. I think her breasts have gotten a little bigger and her hips a little wider. If you would’ve told me when I was eighteen that Cata could get any sexier, I wouldn’t have believed it. It’s hard to concentrate around her, honestly.

I drink in her curvy body, wishing our lunch wasn’t over. Somehow, her pink lipstick still lingers on her mouth after eating, and I can’t stop staring at her lips. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about yesterday in her kitchen.

We’re standing a little too close to each other, and she’s looking at me with those Technicolor blue eyes. She’s going to be working for me. I can’t kiss her now.

Or can I?

What is it about this woman that makes me feel like an indecisive, geeky kid again?

She’s about to say something when her hand goes to her bag. “Oh, wait. One second. My phone.” She slips a hand into her purse. Then scowls when she reads the text.

“Better get that.” My stomach clenches because I wonder if it's a guy. I don’t even know if she’s got a boyfriend. Why would I assume that someone as smart and gorgeous as Cata didn’t have one? Maybe she’s got someone waiting for her back in New York.

She shakes her head and replaces the scowl with a small, mysterious smile.

“Boyfriend?” I ask.

Her brow furrows. “Um, what?”

“Was that your boyfriend on the phone?”

She shakes her head. “Hunh? No. I don’t have a boyfriend. No, that was Scott. He wants me to come in early tonight. If I take this job with you, I’m going to tell him I can’t deliver pizzas anymore.”

I nod. Good. I don’t like the idea of her going to strange houses alone, anyway.

“And you?” she tosses back.

“I don’t have a boyfriend.”

She laughs and rolls her eyes.

“Or a girlfriend.”

She still does that thing with her mouth when she’s thinking, where her lips get sexy-pouty.

“Diego?”

“Yes?”

We haven’t stopped staring at each other, and between her eyes and the scorching, midday Florida sun, I’m sweating. It’s too hot for a suit, too intense for this much lust so early in the day.

“If I say yes to your offer, you’ll be my boss.” She slips her phone back into her purse.

“Well, I guess. Sure. But we don’t need to be that formal about it. Why?”

“Because…” she steps forward, so we’re only a few inches apart. “Because if you’re my boss, it would be really inappropriate to do this.”

“Do what?”

“This.”

She rests her palms on my chest, then leans up and brushes her lips over mine. All I can feel is her warm palms on my chest, her skin burning through my cotton shirt.

And her lips, they’re soft enough to make me grunt for more. She kisses me again, with enough force that all the pent-up need ripples through my body. What I do next is second nature. I cup her face in my hands and kiss her hard. Like I want to possess her.

The little kitten noise that comes from the back of her throat inspires my tongue to collide with hers. And then I bite her bottom lip, a little. Just enough to make her gasp and press her body into mine. Her hands on my chest are replaced with her breasts, and her arms wrap around my neck.

I want her now, in the street, on her car hood. Whenever, however, wherever. Her mouth moves slowly against mine, and it’s as if I’m crackling with electricity with each nip, each movement of her lips. The growl that rumbles in my throat is from sheer instinct. Like a Cro-Magnon man or something.

Cata breaks away. Licks her lips. As I’m catching my breath, she says, “If you’re my boss, we can’t do that. So I wanted to kiss you before I formally say yes.”

I clear my throat. I’m off kilter, unsettled and discombobulated. And I want more.

She tilts her head toward my face and again flutters her lips over mine. Then she slides her mouth to my cheek and presses her face to my skin. My fingers tangle into her hair, and I close my eyes, overwhelmed with how perfect she feels in my arms.

Damn, she’s adorable.

“I also wanted to double check something."

"What?"

"When you kissed me the other day, you took me by surprise. I wanted to assess whether you kiss like you used to."

She steps back and still wearing that mysterious little smile, unlocks her car and slips inside. She rolls down her window and stares at me.

“Cata?” I ask. “Do I kiss like I used to?”

“No.” She shakes her head, and I look at her in horror.

“You kiss better.”

I laugh hard. “So do you, Kitty-with-the-blue-eyes.”

“Oh, and Diego?”

“Yeah?”

“Yes. I’ll accept your offer work for you. With you. So no more kisses.”

We grin at each other stupidly until she pipes up.

“See you tomorrow? Do you want me there at a specific time?”

“How about…” my voice trails, and I consider asking her over right that second. Screw the no-more-kisses rule. I need to show restraint, though. It’s enough to have her near me again, and once we get reacquainted, we can work on getting back together for real. It won’t be difficult after that kiss. Right?

“Let’s say nine to five, to start. Beginning tomorrow.”

Laughing, she fires up the car and drives off. I’m breathless. And happier than I’ve been in years.