Emily stared at the square ceiling tiles. So ugly. Why did they always use those in office buildings? Club Tahoe was top-quality mountain lodge elegance, but even in the executive offices they’d used the same old ugly tiles as in every other office building. She supposed most people never looked up—you know, because they weren’t lying flat on their backs.

A long, wet tongue lapped the side of Emily’s cheek before she could block it. “Ugh, Grace!” She swiped at the wet spot. “I’ve seen where you put that thing, and I don’t appreciate you laving my face with it.”

Grace dropped her head on Emily’s chest and stared at her. When Emily didn’t move, Grace nudged Emily’s chin with her long nose.

Emily groaned. “Really? More rubbing? The hair behind your ears is going to fall off. You’ll have giant bald spots if we keep this up. And my arms have cramps. See?” She held up her hands stiffly. “I can barely move. You’re not light, either. You know, if we move to my chair, I could reach the itchy spots better.”

Grace drove another nose nudge to Emily’s chin, leaving behind a dampness Emily chose to not think about.

“Okay, okay.” Emily rubbed the back of Grace’s ears, breathing through thirty pounds of dog on top of her and the pain in her wrists. If she could only reach her phone. Which was on top of her desk, where she’d left it. A good four feet away.

“Help!” Emily tried to gently shove Grace off her, but the dog had amazing dead weight and managed to elongate her body. And Emily wasn’t about to hurt Grace to get her off.

The dog barked, and at this point, Emily wasn’t concerned about keeping her quiet for the other employees.

“Help!” she called again.

Why of all days did everyone decide today to leave the office by five? There were always a few stragglers. Okay, typically only Emily and Levi, but still. And it was a Friday night.

“You were so good all day. I stole bacon from the restaurant for you, remember that? We’re friends. Why, Grace? Why are you doing this to me?”

Levi was going to get an earful from her once she got her hands on him, or once he found her.

Oh God. She wouldn’t be left here all night, would she? She sank her head back and closed her eyes. No—Levi would eventually come for his dog.

And she was going to kill him when he did.

* * *

Emily was ignoring him. That was the only explanation for why she hadn’t returned his calls. He didn’t want to do it, but he needed to have a talk with her. She must assume that the kiss last night meant more than it had and that she could take advantage of her new status. Not the first time a woman had tried to use him or one of his brothers; he was simply surprised Emily would try.

Levi rubbed his forehead and stood, straightening his back, furious to find himself forced to go to her. She should come to him. He didn’t like going to her office. It smelled like her and she smelled too damn good, but that was beside the point. He was the boss, not Emily.

Walking down the hall at a fast clip, Levi didn’t bother to knock. He shoved open the door to her office. “Emily—”

She wasn’t at her desk. His eyes darted to the ground, where his dog was sitting—really, sprawled would be more accurate—on top of the woman in question. Who looked rather small with Gracie Girl on top of her. “Grace!”

Grace climbed off Emily and ran over to his side.

A moan came from Emily, but she didn’t move.

“What’s going on in here? Why are you on the floor?”

Emily’s head popped up. “I have a bone to pick with you.”

She was mad at him? “Look, Emily. We need to talk.”

“Damn straight we do!” She sat up, her arms lying stiffly in her lap. “You can’t just leave me with your dog. I’m not a dog watcher. I’m a top executive assistant with an MBA from Harvard, and, and…” She swallowed. “I’m so mad at you, Levi Cade!” And then she growled.

Levi flinched. She was using his full name. That couldn’t be good. Maybe he should take a step back. Probably wasn’t the most courteous thing to leave Gracie with Emily while he ran meetings. She had her own busy workload.

Okay, he’d been an ass. He also might have wanted any excuse to see her. Leaving his dog with her had been the first thing that had come to mind.

Shit. He was thwarting his own plan to stay away from her.

Levi walked over and held out a hand. “How did you end up on the ground?”

Emily plucked a Grace-colored hair from her white blouse. “She was chewing her stitches. I tried a bunch of stuff to get her to stop, but this was the only thing that worked.” She took his hand, and he pulled her up in one smooth move.

“Lying prone on the ground with her sitting on top of you like that?”

Emily sent him a look that said she wasn’t amused. “Of course not. I went over to pet her. She seemed to need a little scratching behind her ears where the cone was covering her fur.” Emily waved her hand and winced, cradling her wrist. “As long as I rubbed her ears, she wouldn’t lick her wound—which, in some doggy Houdini move, she was able to do despite the cone. You should take that thing off. It’s completely useless and only irritates her skin.”

“I told you she was smart. Can’t leave her alone.”

“Yeah, well, at some point she inched closer, and I kneeled to get a better angle. Before I knew it, she’d crawled on my lap.” Emily shrugged. “It was cute at first. And then she got comfortable and added more of her weight. And her legs. If I stopped scratching her ears, she’d bark. At first I tried to shush her, but then I realized she weighed a ton and I couldn’t get her off me. I was crying for help and no one came!”

He wanted to smile. The scenario she painted was…sweet. And it also made him feel doubly bad for leaving Grace with her. “So you were sitting on the ground with Grace on your lap. How did you go from sitting to lying with her sprawled on top of you like a blanket?”

The side of her mouth pulled back and she glared. “It’s not funny. I might have lain back to rest for a moment. That was when Grace really got comfortable and wouldn’t budge.” She bent over and pulled off one of her heels. “I can’t feel my toes and I think I have carpal tunnel in my wrist.” She held her arm up to show him.

He gently took her hand, kneading it with his fingers and moving up her forearm. Okay, it had been an excuse to touch her, but dammit! Her scent filled the room—along with eau de dog. Emily was adorable and sexy as hell. This close, he had impulsive touching problems.

She closed her eyes, and he took the opportunity to stare at her while he rubbed her arm and wrist. Her hair was blond, but she had dark lashes that rested against smooth skin. Her small nose was perfectly shaped, and then there were those lush lips… He gazed farther still, over the swell of her small breasts that, despite their size, he had the urge to touch, on down to her flat stomach and the curve of her hip. When he looked up, Emily was staring at him.

He didn’t look away at first, caught in that stormy gray gaze that should be cold, but only made him warm. And then he realized he’d been caught checking her out and that she likely read every thought that had just passed his mind. He reluctantly released her and took a step back.

He was supposed to be setting her straight—and himself straight too. Instead he was touching her and thinking about all the ways he wanted to continue touching her and where. “How long has she been sitting on you?” he said, to distract her from anything she might read on his face.

“An hour? Maybe two? I don’t know.” She shook her head. “I lost track. I think I dozed off once or twice. She’s kind of warm and cuddly.” Emily frowned at Grace. “You knew what you were doing, didn’t you?”

Grace’s tongue lolled out in what was most definitely a dog smile.

Emily’s lips parted. “Did you see that? She’s mocking me.”

Levi didn’t hold back his grin this time. “You shouldn’t let Grace take advantage of you. She’s addicted to love. She’ll use anyone who doesn’t mind petting her for a few hours.” His smile faded. “Are you really okay?”

She hobbled over to her desk and sank into her seat. “Yes. But next time, you’re in charge of the dog.” She glanced at her phone. “Crap, I have to go. I can’t believe it’s this late.”

Emily forced her foot back into her shoe, stood, and grabbed her bag, rubbing her lower back. “You owe me a massage.” He lifted his eyebrow and her face turned bright red. “From the club spa, not… You know what I mean.”

He walked her to the door. “Agreed. Thank you for taking care of Grace. I won’t force her on you again.”

Emily glanced at Grace, who had the most innocent puppy look—for a grown dog. Grace was good. Damn good.

“I don’t mind. She’s sweet. Maybe I am a dog person after all. Just give me a heads-up next time, okay?” She checked the time again.

“Where are you off to?” He really didn’t have a right to ask her what she did after hours, but he’d never seen Emily in such a hurry to leave the office. His assistant was a workaholic.

“I have a date… A blind date. Courtesy of Lisa. Wish me luck.”

Before Levi knew it, Emily was out the door and down the hall.

His throat closed, his heart hammering in his chest. A date?