A light dawned on his face. “You. You did all this? You made all the decisions?”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “That’s what I said.” I sighed. “I told you. This is my fifth house.”

“Whoa. You flip houses?” His eyes widened. “Holy shit.”

“Yeah. And I made some serious profit on them.” I smiled proudly. “I’m really good at design and decorating. It’s my passion, but I have to treat it like a hobby because of expectations.” I sighed. “The hotel is supposed to be my day job. Of course, it’s more like a six day a week job. I barely have time for this.” I gestured around my house. “I’m thinking about putting this on the market soon. I’ve finished it and I could move on to a new project.”

“How long have you been doing this?” Ty frowned. Obviously, he hadn’t finished processing it yet.

“Well, I keep each place for roughly two years. You know, capital gains. I buy, I fix it up, I sell it, I move on.” I shrugged. “It’s not so hard.”

“So, if you can do this, why does the hotel look like that?” His brow arched.

I took a deep breath. This had long been an area of contention. Mostly, it boiled down to my father being blissfully unaware of my abilities. He treated me like he had every other woman in his life. I was competent. I was intelligent, but he never really saw my potential. “Suffice to say Mr. Nash isn’t exactly open to new ideas. This is one of the reasons why you might as well forget about buying the place.” I motioned for him to follow me into my home office. Once inside, I passed him the other four binders.

“Holy crap, Kate. You’re amazing!” He absolutely gushed as he flipped through the pages of one place after another. “Even if he won’t sell to me, you need to show him what you’re capable of. Then you can bring the place up to date and start making some real money on it.”

I don’t know why he had me blushing so much. I can only assume it’s because my father never exactly prepared me for a life with compliments. This was surreal and so wonderful, even if I felt wildly uncomfortable. “Would you like a tour?” I blurted out.

His smiled widened. “I’d love one.”

We exited the office and I began to take him room by room in the house that had become my masterpiece. “Because of my early successes, I had more money to really make this estate special,” I explained as we rounded a corner. “I’d always wanted a tasting room and a wine cellar.” I sighed happily as we entered the stocked space. “It holds ten thousand bottles, but I’ve only filled it about halfway. I’m not sure if I drink too much or if I simply haven’t found the right vintages to fill it with.”

Ty stood in the doorway for a moment taking it all in. “This is incredible. Why did I never think to have one of these in my house?” Then he chuckled. “Oh, because my friends drink too much and I’d never even come close to stocking it.” He shook his head. “I believe you met the lushes in question.” Suddenly, our conversation was interrupted by a buzzing sound. He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Ah, there they are now. Excuse me one moment.” Ty sighed as he answered. “What’s up, Drew?”

I could hear a voice, but I couldn’t understand what was being said. Instead, I moved deeper into the wine cellar where the wine fridges were located. Yes, plural. Soon, he came up behind me.

“Wow. Multiple wine fridges? Brilliant.” He let out a low whistle. “You thought of everything.”

“Wait until you see the master bath.” I grinned, then I reached in and pulled out a bottle. Do you like sparkling white?”

He nodded. “Yes. Of course. Sadly, I like most everything in moderation.”

“Oh, do you have to go?” I held the bottle in my hand, but I wouldn’t open it if he was leaving.

“Nope. They are on their way to the airport. I’m here until you kick me out.” He winked and awakened some long dormant feelings within me.

In fact, I began to hesitate when I considered opening the wine. “I see,” I murmured.

“Here. I’ll open it.” Ty reached for the bottle, then pulled one of the drawers. He found the one with the wine tools on the first try.

Next thing I knew, we’d drunk the entire bottle while talking and laughing. It went down so smoothly, we even opened a second. “We should slow down,” I suggested.

“Oh, and why’s that?” He leaned over and pushed a few stray hairs from my face. Then he moved even closer and sniffed my hair. “You smell so nice, Kate.”

“I like the way you say my name.” Then I bit my lip because I really didn’t mean to say that out loud. Stupid alcohol.

“Ah ha!” He laughed as he closed the remaining distance with his lips at the ready. “Kiss me, Kate,” Ty whispered, almost as if he were afraid to break the silence.

“I think that’s a terrible idea,” I responded quietly. “I’m already hot.”

“You are hot. So hot.” His hand knotted in my hair as he pulled me towards him.

“No!” I moved back and hopped up from my seat. “I’m boiling. My skin is on fire.”

He laughed. “It’s the alcohol, gorgeous.” Then he stood and moved closer to me. “Know what’ll help?”

I shook my head, my eyes wide. “No idea.”

“Water.” Ty grinned.

I sighed. “You’re right. Why didn’t I think of that?” I mumbled to myself and I rushed out of the room, to the back hall. Without hesitation, I opened the door to the patio. Night had fallen. My neighbors were mostly sixty-five or older. And I had privacy hedges. I untied the sarong and let it flutter down to the cement patio. Then I stood beside the deep end. “I’m dying,” I moaned as I yanked my swimsuit off my shoulders. Then I pulled it off my body and kicked it to the edge of the pool. Finally, I jumped in, relishing the cool water as it washed over me, soothing every inch of flesh. Slowly, I kicked my way to the surface and gasped for air.

“Kate?” Ty squatted beside the pool, a glass in hand.

I propped my elbows up on the edge of the concrete. “What’s that?” I pointed to the tumbler he was holding.

He smirked. “This would be the ice water I thought you needed because you’re hot. Of course, this works too.” He set the cup on the cement, stood and kicked off his shoes, then pulled his shirt over his head.

Dear god, the man looked like an angel, but he had a sinfully delicious looking body. What the hell was he doing here with me? It was as if the chlorine had this sobering effect. I pressed myself into a corner and tried to hide my body as best I could. I was going to be such a disappointment compared to the women he was used to. The humiliation was almost too much. So, I sank beneath the surface. Seconds later he dove in and swam over to me.

“Hi. What’re you doing?” He eyed me curiously.

“Hiding,” I mumbled.

“Well, you’re doing a piss poor job of it.” He chuckled. “Oh, and did I mention I opened my eyes while I was under there.”

I groaned. “That can’t be true.”

“Why not?” He frowned.

“Because you’re still here. If you’d really seen me naked, you’d be long gone.” Then I ducked under the water, pushed off the wall, and swam away. I didn’t make it far before Ty caught up to me.

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled us into the shallow end. “For the record, you’re beautiful, Kate. You have an incredible body. And I hope you braced yourself because I’m going to kiss you now.” Ty bent his head and matched his lips to mine.

I can’t remember the last time I was kissed. Apparently, it’s one of those things that just comes back to a person as needed, since with Ty, this all felt natural in the most abnormal way. He made me feel mushy inside. I couldn’t think. Nothing mattered except for his lips on mine, his tongue dancing with mine, his groin pressed against mine. I wrapped my legs around his waist without thinking, without ever considering the implications. Honestly, I didn’t care. For the first time in a long time, I wasn’t running through a cause and effect list, I wasn’t thinking in terms of gains and losses. Hell, I didn’t even consider the consequences. I simply wanted to know what one night of passion with this man would be like. Would we fit as perfectly as I hoped? Would he be able to make me orgasm? Would one night be enough?