Reesa hadn't considered the backlash of such public accusations on her business. She lost several potential clients, who didn't express particular concern over the allegations, but she could tell by the looks on their faces when she met with them and the immediate fallout of calls canceling other meetings.

She didn’t say anything about it at first, hoping things would level off when the sensationalism died down. She didn’t need Marc coming in with some gallant offer of money to help her out or charity jobs he talked wealthy friends into just to generate income. And she certainly didn’t want Kylie to step in. her best friend would offer to share her apartment, and that would be awkward. Reesa still didn’t feel very comfortable at Marc’s swanky bachelor pad, and she couldn’t imagine getting intimate with him when she had a roommate.

But when it came time to pay rent and she had to pull from her meager savings a second month in a row to make the bills, Reesa started to worry. Luckily, not all of her clients abandoned her, and she caught a couple of extra jobs from obviously sympathetic women and even got hired to put together a Halloween party for the women’s shelter. Otherwise, she might have considered giving up. It still seemed like a pretty solid prospect. She had a degree, so she could get a job just about anywhere. This was New York, after all.

After that, Marc noticed her anxiety and wouldn’t let the matter rest until she told him what was going on. He took her to a café, bought her a mocha with a triple shot of espresso, and demanded answers. Blinking back tears, she explained the situation. “I don’t want handouts, Marc, so don’t even try. I’ll do what I have to do to make ends meet.”

“Absolutely not,” he denied. “You’ve built your business from the ground up, and you’ve put too much time and effort into it to turn away now. Why don’t you let me invest in the business, give you some capital until things get going right again?” He smiled mischievously. “Or, you could always move in with me.”

Reesa stared at him across the table, her mocha forgotten. “I told you I didn’t want charity.”

“It’s not charity, Reesa. We spend most of our free time together anyway, sleep in the same bed as often as possible. I want the extras. I want to know that, when I come home from a trip, you’re there. I want the smell of your shampoo in my bathroom.” He reached out and took her hands in his. “I don’t want to waste time going back and forth. I want to share my space with you.”

Alarms sounded in Reesa’s head. They’d been seeing each other for less than three months. The last time she’d jumped into a relationship headfirst so quickly, it had ended in disaster, and she’d nearly died. Marc wasn’t Ethan, but she still had her reservations. “Isn’t it a little soon?” she squeaked.

But Marc laughed and brought her knuckles to his lips. “I thought it was men who had the problems with commitment.” Reesa started to protest, but he shook his head. “I know that’s not it. I know you’re scared, and I know you don’t like my place. What if I gave you free reign to redecorate however you liked? I love your style, and I trust you. Besides, I’d do just about anything to get you to move in with me.”

She snorted. “You better watch it, or I’ll think you engineered this whole media frenzy around my past just so I’d be in this situation.” He looked so sincerely offended she burst out laughing. “I couldn’t believe that of you if I wanted to, Marc.” She gave him a genuine smile, despite her heart racing. The part of her she’d buried, the part that knew she was falling in love with him, was eager to accept the offer, thrilled it had been made to start with. But the part that suffered at the hands of another man had oxygen breathed back into it, and now, it cowered from Marc and his excitement.

“I know it’s a huge leap of faith,” Marc said, his voice softer now, more coaxing and gentle. “But we’re good together, Reesa. I know I’m better with you than I ever was without you. And think about being able to wake up in the morning and not have to worry about one of us rushing off and leaving the other one behind or hurrying them out the door.”

That part, at least, sounded good. Reesa hated rushing Marc out of her apartment in the mornings when she went to work and felt equally guilty about leaving him there to fend for himself. But she had to ask herself if she was really ready for this. In her mind, it was a major commitment, and she refused to enter into it lightly. Did Marc understand what he was asking? Trying to quell her nerves, Reesa took a deep breath. “If we do this, it’s like a binding contract for me. It kicks everything into high gear for me.”

Marc’s smile widened, the dimple deeper, and his eyes twinkled. “Did you not think I was dead serious about us before? I’ve been crazy about you from the start, and this has always been serious for me, Reesa.”

He was crazy about her. But he didn’t say he loved her. Could that possibly be the same thing? She shouldn’t get ahead of herself; she needed to focus on making a decision. Being able to redecorate certainly brightened the prospect. “Here’s the deal, then, Marc. I refuse to live with you for free. I’ve taken care of myself for a long time now, and I won’t become dependent on someone else.”

Spreading his hands in a gesture of surrender, he said, “I would never want to take away your independent spirit. I love you self-sufficient you are.” There it was again. She had to stop reading into things. “But when someone cares about you, it’s okay to lean on them for support. We’ll work something out. You can buy all the food and household supplies or something. But you’re not going to strain yourself, either. It’s time you let someone pamper you a little.”

He stood, reaching for her hand, and she took it, letting him help her to her feet. “Where are we going? I haven’t finished my coffee.”

“Bring it with you. I’m excited. I want to help you pack.” He looked like a little boy on the first day of school, and even if it felt like things were spinning out of control, she couldn’t help but smile and feel a little giddy, his mood contagious.

Outside, she tugged on him, stopping him in his tracks. Growing serious and perhaps a bit sentimental, she locked gazes with him, hypnotized by his deep green eyes. “Thank you, Marc.”

He combed tresses of hair behind her ear and kissed her softly. “You don’t need to thank me.” Pulling back just a little, he cupped her cheek in his palm, his expression strained and his eyes more intense than she’d ever seen them. It took her aback, and she held her breath, wondering what was on his mind. “I love you, Reesa.”

She nearly choked on the breath that released with such force it made a puffing sound. I love you. He’d said it. A voice in the back of her head reminded her that Ethan had said it, too. But she resolutely sent that voice back to the dark reaches of her psyche, refusing to let it discourage her. Marc was not Ethan. He was nothing like Ethan, and she needed to grow up and be strong. She couldn’t make Marc suffer for her ex’s mistakes forever.

“I love you, too,” she whispered, barely able to speak the words that had floated through her head for weeks now. But almost before they were out of her mouth, Marc silenced her with a hasty kiss filled with pure bliss. Her body heated, and had they not been in the middle of Midtown, Reesa probably would have stripped him down right then and there. As it was, she had a sudden carnal need to fulfill and an urgent desire to get home alone with him.

She broke the kiss, giving him a salacious grin, and he grunted. “We’re not going to pack your apartment when we get there, are we?” he asked, seeming just as heated as she felt.

Reesa shook her head. “Well, we might, but I have other needs first. And I think you do, too.”