CHAPTER 10

“WANNA TAKE the stairs?” David asked, his body feeling restless and on edge.

“To the eighteenth floor?” Serena slanted him a look as the elevator doors opened onto his building’s lobby. Though she didn’t actually call him a raving lunatic, she might as well have.

“Right.” He followed her inside. “Just a thought. You know, to help burn off the desserts.”

The desserts—twenty minutes of the most excruciating torment of his life. Did she know what the tasting had been like for him? Listening to her little murmurs of delight, watching her eyelids flutter closed as she all but purred in satisfaction? The image of her running her tongue over her lips in greedy enjoyment was vivid in his mind.

The doors parted again in the AGI suites, and David and Serena almost ran smack into Larry Bell, a fellow Boston transplant who worked in finance and was walking with his head down as he read a report in a green folder.

“Oh, sorry,” Larry muttered as he glanced up and stepped to the side. “I wasn’t expecting anyone to be getting off on this floor. Most everyone else is headed home. But I guess if anyone was going to come back after hours, it would be you, boss.”

David stiffened, aware that Serena already thought he was a good candidate for workaholics anonymous. “I’m just ducking in for a few minutes, to show Serena the new offices. Larry Bell, Serena Donavan. She owns Inventive Events.”

“The company arranging the benefit? A pleasure to meet you.” The tall blond accountant closed his folder and beamed at her, his smile revealing a bit too much appreciative interest. “I can certainly see why David volunteered to put in so much extra time on this.”

David’s jaw clenched at the man’s flirting. Didn’t Larry know bean-counters were supposed to be reserved, quiet and—when at all possible—geeky introverts?

“Thanks,” Serena said. “But I think David’s just dedicated to making this auction the best it can be, as am I.”

“Well, I’ll do my part. I’m one of the bachelors,” Larry clarified for her. “Representing ancient Greece, so next time you see me, I’ll probably be in a toga and wreath, carrying an abacus.”

“A number cruncher no matter the time period, eh?” David gave his colleague a tight smile. “We should stop holding you up before the elevator goes back down without you.”

Larry nodded, a dawning understanding in his green eyes. “Sure thing. I look forward to seeing you at the auction, Ms. Donavan,” he added from behind the closing doors.

“He seemed nice,” Serena said.

“Oh, yeah. Larry’s a gem.” David took a deep breath, but it did nothing to ease the knot of possessive tension in his stomach. Maybe he should get Serena to his office before she ran into any other bachelors who made David want to gnash his teeth. “This way.”

Larry was right—most employees of the not-fully-staffed future headquarters had gone for the day. Cubicles were deserted, and lights were off in all but one or two offices. The floor was quiet, except for the murmur of a few behind-closed-doors conversations and someone running copies on the machine.

He stopped at the corner office and pulled the keys out of his jacket pocket. “This one’s mine.”

“Wow.” Serena passed him as he flipped the lights on and shut his door.

He grinned, knowing that the view from the floor-to-ceiling window was impressive and glad he’d been able to talk her into coming up to see it. “Nice, isn’t it? I’m getting so spoiled that I’ve started looking at penthouse apartments.”

She turned away from the skyline just enough to smirk at him over her shoulder. “Oh, so you aren’t planning to live in a corporate efficiency suite indefinitely?”

Her wide-eyed sarcasm made David feel a little defensive. His mother had given him a similar minilecture about his “homeless” situation when he’d called his parents last week. And Serena didn’t think she’d have anything in common with my family.

“Hey, getting this office up and running smoothly was a big task. Until Richard moves down next month, everyone comes to me with their questions, and preparing for the transfers from other offices was like a full-time job itself, on top of the new client solicitation they actually pay me for and the necessary extra schmoozing like the benefit. But you’ll be happy to know I’ve got appointments this week at a couple of buildings with new vacancies.”

“Good.” She gave a quick nod of satisfaction. “I hope you find a home soon.”

So did he. What he was paying in storage was ridiculous.

The thought gave him pause, as convenience was generally a higher priority for him than cost. Serena must be rubbing off on him. He hung his jacket on the coat tree and crossed the room, the largest office he’d ever had. Mahogany bookshelves matching his desk lined the far-side wall, and slate-blue carpet covered the floor. He just hoped that when Lou Innes arrived next week to look things over on the partners’ behalf, he’d think David was doing a good enough job to warrant the great office and increased responsibilities.

Stopping next to Serena, he glanced out at the buildings that reflected the golden glow of a gradually descending sun that wouldn’t truly set for another couple of hours. “You should see it at night,” he told her. “The view’s more amazing then.”

Almost immediately, he wished he hadn’t pointed out that he was here after dark, which didn’t come until eight or nine around this time of year.

“Really?” She pressed her hand lightly to the glass. “Hard to imagine it being any more spectacular.”

He glanced at her profile—her warm brown eyes, stubborn chin, lips that haunted his dreams. “It’s just buildings. There are all kinds of things I’d rather be looking at.”

Inhaling sharply, she angled her face up toward his. He leaned forward reflexively, wanting so badly to kiss her. You gave her your word. That’s right—he wasn’t going to make a move in her direction for two more weeks. And if she didn’t make one in his…Maybe he’d been an idiot to spout that ultimatum, but he was geared for problem-solving strategies that got results and that had been what he’d come up with in his frustrated-as-hell state.

Needing space between them, even if it was only a few feet, he walked toward his desk and dropped into the expensive swivel wing chair, then spun around to face her.

Lifting her arms in a quick stretch, she moved away from the glass and followed after him, apparently not understanding that he’d walked away for her own good. He was attempting to respect her “professional boundaries,” instead of making love to her in a way that proved she was off-limits to moon-eyed accountants and any other men drawn to her. Her standing in front of his chair wasn’t helping.

“Like what?” she asked with a sassy smile.

“Excuse me?” he asked, too busy with his struggle to keep his hands off her to process her out-of-the-blue question.

“You said there were other things you’d rather look at,” she prompted. “So I was asking for an example.”

He blinked. Serena might have been blissfully unaware that the entire time they’d savored dessert samples, he’d been thinking about the way she tasted or that he’d had an irrationally possessive moment when he could have smacked affable Larry Bell upside the head with this year’s tax code, but Serena wasn’t an idiot. Is she flirting with me?

The woman who’d repeatedly told him to keep his distance? Probably not. But it was worth exploring.

“Artwork’s always good,” he said slowly. “There’s a specific piece I wouldn’t mind looking at every day while I was in my office…but I doubt I’d get much work done.”

Her breathing quickened. “Did it bother you? My sitting for those pictures?”

“Those? You mean there was more than one! Hell yes, it bothered me.” Concrete evidence of her sitting naked in a room with another man was a particularly sore spot at the moment, since she was so adamantly opposed to getting naked with him.

“Forget I asked,” she said, a brief cloud of sadness passing over her face before she grinned. She sauntered toward him, adding a little extra swivel to her hips. “Why worry about a picture when you could have the real thing?”

Okay, this went way beyond flirting.

The woman was seducing him! Hot damn. He couldn’t have felt luckier—or more shocked—if he’d won the lottery.

As soon as she was close enough, he reached forward to encircle her wrist in his hand. “You’ve changed your mind?” What had finally won her over?

The playful light in her eyes flickered. “Not my mind, David, just the rules.”

Something sharp grated against his insides—dread and a rusty, unfamiliar sense of defeat replacing the bright burst of optimism. “What do you mean?”

“You gave me until the night of the auction, and that’s what I’m willing to give you. A hot, short-lived fling that ends after we’re not working side by side anymore and you won’t be driving me so crazy I can’t sleep at night.”

“Serena.” He had no idea what to say. The part of him that realized he’d just been given the green light to have sex with her wasn’t all that interested in the part of him that was surprisingly irritated. And hurt. He’d had meaningless affairs before. That wasn’t what he wanted from her.

“It wouldn’t work between us,” she said. “Not for long. But you want me and despite everything I’ve tried or told myself, I want you. Badly. This was the only way I could think of to have my cake and…well, you know. Let’s just say I’m hoping that indulging myself helps me kick the craving.”

Did she honestly believe that two and a half weeks would be enough to slake the passion between them?

She ran a palm along his cheek, her smile rueful. “You’re not used to having to compromise on your goals, I know. But this is all I can offer you and still protect myself.”

Protect herself from what—him? “I wouldn’t hurt you.”

“That’s not a guarantee anyone can make. Two people can start out with the most sincere, passionate intentions, and still…” She started to draw back. “Take it or leave it.” His hold tightened involuntarily. He wasn’t about to give her up, even if the only way he could have her right now was to agree to this ludicrous proposal. He’d negotiate the fine print later.

He pulled her down toward him, meshing his fingers in her hair as he ground his lips against hers. His hungry kisses held a slight edge of anger. He thrust his tongue into her mouth, wanting to make her desperate for him, telegraphing his own arousal and willing her to share its intensity. She moaned, and he tried to drag her into his lap. The confined shape of the wing chair made it difficult for her to straddle him the way they both would have liked.

She turned her head, her breath coming in shallow pants as he traced his teeth along the curve of her neck. “The…chair won’t work.”

It could, actually, if she were to sit in his lap facing the other way, which brought to mind intriguing possibilities. But for another time.

With one arm around her, he pushed his weight up with the other so that they were both standing. As soon as he had his balance, he reached for the elastic waistband of her skirt and tugged, drawing a shaky laugh from Serena.

“What happened to savoring?” she asked as the material pooled around her high-heeled sandals.

“If I only get two and a half weeks,” he said as she slipped the buttons of his shirt free of their holes, “I’m not wasting time.”

He reached between them, sliding his hand under her sweater. The discovery of her bare breasts and their taut nipples caused his erection to flex against his fly. He yanked the top up over her arms. Serena standing in front of the skyline in a pair of heels, aqua-blue underwear and a gold belly ring—now there was a sight that rivaled anything in the Louvre.

“And you didn’t think the view could get any better,” he murmured as he lowered his head to her chest.

He drew on one peak, curling his tongue around her. Suckling, nibbling, alternating sides. Serena writhed, her hands tangled in his hair, shifting her weight from foot to foot. As much as he loved her breasts, the urge to touch her elsewhere was too great to be ignored. He went down on his knees, tracing a path with his mouth down her abdomen to her belly button, flicking his tongue over the ring there.

Clasping her hips, he sank lower in front of her, level with the smooth V of her panties, inhaling the perfume of her desire. He hooked his fingers in the string sides and peeled the underwear down, stopping midthigh, just enough to reveal her to his sight. And touch. And definitely taste.

He scraped his fingers lightly over her and parted the plump outer folds of her damp skin, so dark it was almost purple. Beneath, she was even slicker—hot and wet to his touch as he teased her inner lips with the pad of his thumb, leaning forward to run his tongue over her. Her erotic, musky flavor was far more tantalizing than anything they’d tasted earlier. Serena was shifting more restlessly now and instinctively trying to spread her legs farther apart, incapable of doing so because of the panties.

“Patience,” David teased, moving his mouth against her as he uttered the word. He found the swollen bud jutting out between the intimate creases of flesh and sucked on her. Hard. She gasped his name. Drawing back, he ran his tongue over her again, lightly, soothingly.

“Screw patience,” she said raggedly. “I want you inside me. Now.”

He half obliged her with two of his fingers, moving in and out of her as he continued to make love to her with his mouth. Her legs sagged into his chest for support, and moments later, she tightened around his hand and began quaking in a rhythm that seemed to match his pounding pulse. Her body went as limp as a rag doll’s, but he knew he could give her even more. She just had to let him.

Cupping her bottom, running his thumbs along the round, smooth underside, he bent forward again, laving her with his tongue, capturing her still-pulsing clit. She squirmed, not quite voicing her half murmur of protest. He knew all her nerves were extrasensitive right now, but that was precisely why, if she just gave him a minute…

Fighting his own body’s demands for release, he sucked on her, barely scraping his teeth against her as he slid his finger inside her, bending it so that his knuckle pressed right against that sweet spot that caused her to explode. His name erupted from her in a near-hysterical shriek as her body convulsed. She practically toppled against him. The sheer force of her orgasm almost sent him to his own climax.

Supporting her, he lurched to his feet, unzipping his pants with one hand, and spun her trembling body toward the edge of the desk. She turned her perfect round white butt up toward him as she braced herself with both hands, and he yanked the panties down the rest of the way, not caring if he ripped them in the process. It took agonizing, interminable seconds to find the square packet and roll the condom over his straining erection.

Serena was dizzy with sheer need. She’d never felt so on fire before, and though she should be beyond sated, she felt empty. She was dying for David to be inside her, to be part of her and give her the very specific satisfaction only he could. After already coming so hard, it wasn’t an orgasm her body demanded, it was him.

Pressing her palms to his desktop, she imagined him here behind the desk tomorrow, thinking of her, of this. He gripped her hips, and she gyrated, thrusting up toward him, trying to hurry his entry. She felt him brush against her, taking his time. She whimpered and rocked back.

With a muttered oath, he surged forward in one fierce stroke that filled her completely and stole her breath. She almost collapsed under the weight of sensation, her arms bowing slightly and her chest pressing forward enough that her nipples rasped along the sharp edge of the desk. The friction only added to the sensual desperation she felt. Struggling to regain just enough coordination to meet his pace, she pushed up on the balls of her feet.

Sweat beaded on her forehead, and she bit down on her lip to keep from shouting out encouragement that would carry through the building—in case there was anyone left who hadn’t heard her the last time. Keeping one hand anchored on her hip, he reached around in front of her with the other. Starting where their bodies were joined, he moved up to her clitoris, circling it with his fingers until her womb clenched and her back arched.

Her body moved with a will of its own, bucking frantically as her world fragmented and her orgasm pulsed through her all the way to her pointed toes. A moment later, he grasped her with both hands, hauling her up against him as he shuddered in release.

It was like an astral experience. Feeling as if she’d actually floated above herself, Serena rested her head on the desk, wondering if she’d ever regain feeling in her legs but not really giving a damn. A dazed moment later, she realized David was pulling her into his arms. They sank to the floor together, her cradled against his chest, and she drifted off, cocooned in a blissful stupor. Eventually, he kissed her.

She tasted the salt of perspiration on his lips, and smiled, her body still wobbly with the aftershocks of their lovemaking. “That had to have burned off at least a few calories.”

He chuckled tiredly, leaning back with his head against the side of the desk and closing his eyes. “It’s settled. I’m signing a lease on a place this week.”

Bold, yet random. “Oh-kay.”

He opened one eye. “I want your help breaking in all those rooms.”

Limp as she was, she already looked forward to it. “I see. So you’ve just been missing the proper motivation.”

“Right.” He squeezed her butt. “Think you can provide it?”

“My pleasure.” The understatement of the year.

* * *

“ADMIT IT.” David glanced up from the box he was taping with a smirk.

How was it that even the man’s smirks were sexy?

“You didn’t think I could find a place this fast,” he said.

Serena had stopped underestimating him—and his ability to pay extra for a speedy move-in—ages ago. “Well, I didn’t realize you Fortune 500 types were so impulsive.” He’d told her the building he was visiting had immediate vacancies, she just hadn’t known immediate meant two days after first seeing the place. When he’d come to her loft for a few hours Wednesday evening, it had been to tell her all about the apartment he’d just seen and to have dinner.

They hadn’t covered many of the apartment specifics, and the pasta had been ice-cold by the time they’d remembered to eat.

“We Fortune 500 types prefer decisive.” He leveled a pointed look at her. “I know what I want when I see it. And I go after it.”

She shivered, but definitely not because she was chilly. They’d spent most of last night “going after it,” yet she was still ravenous for him. Too bad she had to leave in the next few minutes. David had taken off the whole day to meet the movers over at his new place, but she had client errands that had to be completed later today. And she still had to run by her apartment. Sleeping over at his efficiency-apartment hotel—not that much sleeping had occurred—had been unplanned, and no way was she going to work in the slacks and peasant blouse she’d worn yesterday.

Serena applauded spontaneity, she just wished she’d been better prepared for how right it would feel to wake up in David’s arms this morning. And how alarming that sense of cherished belonging would be. Right now, however, with his eyes on hers as he walked toward where she sat on the bed, the last lingering traces of alarm melted into a swirl of longing.

At the sound of a muffled ringing, he sighed, his expression one of regret, and turned away. He glanced around the efficiency apartment, basically just a room with a shoe-box-sized kitchen in the corner and an even smaller bathroom. “Any chance you’ve seen my cell phone?”

She looked around from her vantage point. Since she’d finished helping him pack up the clothes in his closet, she really should have left, but she’d been sitting on the mattress admiring the biceps revealed by his T-shirt as he worked.

“Uh, we used it to order Thai food pretty late,” she recalled. “Check around the kitchen.”

That proved good advice, and a moment later he was frowning into the receiver. “That’s ridiculous. We had a verbal agreement with them. Okay, I’ll come in. Just give me…” He glanced at his watch and swore, then cupped the receiver with his hand. “Serena, you know I’m supposed to meet these movers. Is there any—”

“No.” She might not wear a suit or have stockholders, but she did run a company and had real commitments.

“Right, sorry.” He flashed her such a charmingly repentant grin that her annoyance was short-lived. Back into the phone, he said, “Just give me time to unlock my place for them and give some general directions on where to drop the furniture. I’ll get to the office as soon as they’ve cleared out. In the meantime, see if Jasmine can set me up a lunch with Digi-Dial’s CEO.”

He looked so vexed when he hung up the phone that sympathy tugged at Serena. “I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess that wasn’t good news?”

“We’ve been hammering out the so-called final details of a deal with Digi-Dial, a cell phone company. A big deal. We were going to sign a contract for their using our technology in all their products, and it’s something I personally put in a lot of hours to secure for AGI. But the rumor is they signed with a competitor of ours this morning.” He ran a hand through his already tousled dark hair. “Damn, this is bad timing. Lou’s coming down next week to monitor my progress. I want this fixed by then. Or to have something even bigger and better in the works.”

She slid off the mattress and crossed the room to give him a quick hug. It was probably the first touch they’d shared in three days that didn’t pulse with a sexual undercurrent. “Hey, piece of cake for a Fortune-five guy like yourself.”

“Thanks.” He flashed her a quick grin, then paced away. “Change of plans, though. I don’t think your coming by the new place this evening makes much sense. I’ll be working late.”

Disappointment seared her, along with the panicky thought that they were losing precious time. “But…there’s not much you’ll really be able to do in the middle of the night, is there?”

“There are all kinds of things I should be doing,” he corrected her. “Researching prospective partner companies to replace Digi-Dial, putting together a report for Lou on the progress we’re making in our new sales areas, and making a few phone calls to other time zones. But don’t worry, tomorrow, I’m all yours.”

“Tomorrow, I have that parachute wedding, remember? Here comes the bride…from four thousand feet.”

“I can’t believe that’s how you’re spending your day.” He scowled. “What a ridiculous way to get married.”

“I’ll have you know, I busted my butt to make this ceremony and reception fabulous.” If you could call something that took place on the tarmac a reception. “I even arranged for binoculars for each of the guests waiting below.”

“I’m sure you did a great job. But come on, is that really what you picture when you think of your own wedding?”

She blinked. Her wedding? Ha, that was a good one! “Who said I want to get married? And frankly, I think it’s commendable that they thought outside the box and did something a little different than the white veil and rice on the church steps. But obviously you—”

“Whoa.” He held up his hands. “We took a wrong turn somewhere. Just because AGI is having a crap day is no reason we should. I wasn’t trying to be critical, I’m just upset about blowing this deal.”

“I know. And I didn’t mean to get snippy.” She sighed. “Guess that makes me a bad…friend.”

“Let’s make it up to each other.” He pulled her against him and pressed his lips to hers in a kiss so brief it was no more than a tantalizing tease. “Will you have time tomorrow night, after the sky-diving service?”

“I’ll make time,” she promised. They kissed again, with considerably more thoroughness, but Serena decided if she didn’t pull away now, neither of them was going to get done the things that required their attention. “Tomorrow. Your place. Call me with directions?” She recognized the upscale area of town from the address he’d mentioned, but she needed a specific route.

“Definitely. I don’t want to lose my one and only volunteer for naked unpacking.”

She laughed. “I didn’t realize the two were concurrent when I made my offer.”

“We’ll negotiate tomorrow.” He winked at her as he walked her to the door. “You won’t be able to miss the place. Shiny new building, big fountain outside.”

Naturally. Because David would never move into a funky renovated complex with faulty air-conditioning located in a loud neighborhood. Making her way across the parking lot, she told herself that it was a good thing he would be living on the other side of town. This way, she ran little risk of running into him after they said goodbye.

We’ll still be friends, though, she reminded herself. Just from a safe distance.

Lots of people maintained relationships from a distance. How often did she see her own mother? For that matter, how often had she seen Patrick when they’d been dating? And it wasn’t as if she’d had a particularly serious or successful romance even before Patrick. I’m not good at relationships. Which was why David would thank her in the long run for not having one with him.