Chapter Twenty-Six

“Do you think anyone will notice I have on a different dress?” Scottie looked down at the first couture dress she’d ever owned.

“Not a chance.” Konrad winked at her from the driver’s seat of his sports Mercedes.

“I’ll return it tonight.” She couldn’t imagine keeping the almost thousand-dollar dress. For that reason, she’d not removed the tag.

“Don’t be absurd. It’s a gift.” He turned the wheel to get on Main Street. “After all, I completely ripped your other one. I owed you.”

“You didn’t owe me.” She looked at her unmanicured fingers. “I would have taken the loss.”

“You don’t have to take a loss with me, Schatzi.” The words fell from his lips as if they were easy to say.

Was it really that easy now? Though she felt more at ease with him, like she had on Sunday, she still felt sensitive. This was real. It was all becoming more real with each moment with him. She’d always thought her worst fear was she’d fall in love and be completely crushed and abandoned. She’d felt that early on in life. The feeling kept her in a box. Konrad made her want out of that box. But it meant falling, and she was on her way.

“What kind of loss would you take?” What an odd question for her to ask, but she really wanted to know how far he’d go.

He stalled, pensive as he came to a stoplight. “I’m not sure I can answer that.”

She stared at the sleek lines of the inside of his car. She knew how much he loved it. It was his identity. “Would you give up this car?”

He laughed. “Not a chance. This is my baby.”

“Not even for happiness?”

“This car brings me happiness.” He turned to her. “This car and I have been through a lot.”

A lot of women. Scottie had to force the thought out of her mind. She’d have to stop it. Or walk away, and walking away was not an option.

“I could give up everything for happiness,” she said, sitting back in the plush leather bucket seat. “Happiness is all there is.”

He stepped on the gas again when the light turned green. “We should all be so lucky.”

She turned to him, taking in his profile. “Well, I feel happy right now. With you. In this car.”

He smiled, eyes still on the road. “Good. So do I.”

She smiled, turning her gaze forward again. Yes, this was happiness. It had to be. And she felt safe. That might be all she ever wanted.

****

After the meeting with Ortho-Sync, Scottie and Konrad stayed behind in the conference room. Konrad was beaming. It was a done deal. Scottie, however, couldn’t forget the Bayou Sling team. True, they were offering five percent below asking price, while the medical device company offered two percent over asking price, but didn’t the Bayou Sling deserve a chance? EaDo was perfect for the brewery. They could gain customers quickly and offer tours in the facilities. Plus, Scottie liked their give-back program. They hired veterans and freed convicts who were trying to rehabilitate. And they were a green company, advocates for recycling and minimizing their carbon footprint.

Scottie thought Konrad had made a mistake by only looking at the bottom line. Bayou Sling could offer more for the community than the medical device plant could.

He closed his laptop. “That rooftop patio condo community is as good as mine.”

“Another condo community?”

“Of course. Why not?”

She looked down at her hands. “I think Bayou Sling deserves the location.”

He frowned. “That’s not feasible. I already explained the bottom line to you.”

“Bottom line is they will have a more meaningful impact in the long run. This medical device company manufactures artificial hip parts, which is important, but they can put that manufacturing plant anywhere. Bayou Sling can’t be just anywhere.”

Konrad thought a moment. Then his lips curled. “That’s so romantic, Scottie, but I’m a businessman. I make money, and I will make plenty of money with this sale.”

She shrugged, knowing it was a lost cause. “I just think .”

He stood, slipping his laptop under his arm. “Oh, I intend to. With you.”

Just like that, her mind was off Bayou Sling. She smiled at him, memories of their morning coming back, sending ripples through her body. “What do you have in mind?”

“Taking you home with me. Feeding you Chinese take away. Then giving you the most intense pleasure you’ve ever known.”

The apex of her thighs throbbed. “Why wait?”

His eyebrows lifted. “Come again?”

“Indeed.” She stood, thinking she wanted to taste him. She wanted to give him pleasure as he’d given her. “The copy room is empty.” And there was a proper wall and door for privacy.

“You’re quite naughty, aren’t you?” He grinned.

“Yes.” She walked to the glass conference room door and pulled the door handle. “I’ll be waiting for you.”

Five minutes later, Scottie heard the door of the copy room open. Konrad filled the doorway. God, this man was so beautiful. He closed the door, holding her stare as he locked it.

“You can’t make any noise. Not everyone’s left for the day yet.”

“My noise won’t be the problem.” She gave him a wicked grin.

His eyebrows lifted. “Oh?”

She walked over to him, dropping to her knees in front of him.

“Scottie,” he groaned.

“Let me do this. I haven’t yet.” She unbuckled his belt. “I want to so much.”

She’d never necessarily wanted to do that with a man. It had never occurred to her that she could give pleasure. She’d never felt protected enough to want to. But, with Konrad, she’d stay on her knees until they ached to show him how protected she felt.

She unzipped his trousers, pushing down until they pooled at his feet. He gasped at his freed erection as she stroked him. She was in control. No question there. And it was exhilarating to see this big, hard man succumb to her.

Though she’d never done this with a man, she knew by instinct alone what to do. She put him in her mouth, tasting him. Going further, she took him fully in her mouth, her grip tight on his base. He thrust his hands into her ponytail.

“My God, Scottie. Your mouth … it’s…” He groaned. “Heaven.”

She continued. Feeling him. Knowing what he wanted her to do. The satisfaction she’d received from this act made her feel free. She’d even forgotten where she was. She just kept pleasuring him until he grew steel hard in her mouth and yanked her ponytail.

“I’m coming,” he choked out, and attempted to remove himself from her mouth.

But she remained and took every bit of him, swallowing it down until he stopped, and she became aware of her aching knees.

Scottie sat back on her heels, staring up at him anew. Everything was new in her eyes. “Did you like it?”

He dropped to his knees, pulling her into him. “Fuck yes.”

His mouth came down on hers in a savage kiss. She was floating, and she knew this was what people talked about. This feeling. This was true ecstasy. True connection.

She’d given him her trust, and she couldn’t feel more vulnerable. Or secure.