Bryce was just a tad obsessed. For the first time in his life he found himself staring at a document and unable to read it. Well, he probably could have read it, but only if his brain ceased replaying scenes from the impossibly perfect twenty-four hours he’d spent with Kat.

He squinted at the screen but after two seconds his mind wandered again. Squinting was not the answer. And, as he’d already moved his laptop from his office to his bedroom and now out to the main hall, his lack of focus couldn’t be blamed on location.

He could only blame one woman. A woman who’d left without saying goodbye and without giving him her number or even an email address. Sure, he could track her down, but would she want him to? He might not be an expert on women or on dating, in general, but he was fairly certain sneaking out the next morning was not an invitation to pursue.

But he wanted to.

Hell, he wanted her more than he could remember ever wanting anything. And he was pretty sure that wasn’t just hormones talking, although he definitely wanted a repeat of their time in bed together as well.

Thrusting his hands into his hair, he dropped his head back and stared up at the log ceiling. Damn, she’d gotten into his head in a major way. He grinned at the memory of her straddling him in bed, her head thrown back as she laughed at something he’d said.

He wished he could remember what.

All he could remember was the sound of her laugh. The way her eyes lit up when she was amused, which seemed to be most of the time. That was one of many Kat traits that went beyond appealing and into admirable, in his eyes.

She’d been a breath of fresh air. When was the last time he’d laughed like that? Certainly not with the last woman—the one who’d cheated on him. And definitely not his girlfriend before her. They’d been together for nearly a year and yet he had a difficult time remembering a single occasion when they’d made each other laugh so hard they were kissing through tears of laughter.

But Kat… Kat’s laughter was contagious, just like her energy, her joy, her lust for life. It was impossible not to be affected by it. By her.

Or maybe she just had that effect on him.

Then he remembered why she’d been there in the first place. No, it wasn’t just him. She was charismatic as hell, but also responsible and a good worker, if her bosses were to be believed. It was no wonder she excelled at her job.

Hell, maybe he should have tried to poach her.

That idea made his thoughts turn in another direction entirely, one that had him scowling at the ceiling, his laptop and the work on it totally forgotten as he replayed that last dinner. Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to have her to himself for dinner. Once her coworkers returned from the day trips their leader had organized, she’d had to attend the final obligatory dinner.

Or “an evening of miserable enforced bonding from hell” as she’d called it.

Bryce had gone too. He hadn’t been obligated, obviously, but it had made the senior executives happy and it had given him an excuse to be in her company for a little while longer.

Even if that had meant sitting down the table from her where they couldn’t speak. He could still watch her and eavesdrop on her conversations.

And what he’d heard had made him want to reach down the table and choke someone.

Not her, obviously.

Todd. And the other guy whose name he’d never remembered who’d been sitting across from Todd. And Gary, but mainly because Gary just sat there, apparently oblivious to the fact that Todd was an asshole and that he was doing everything possible to steal credit for Kat’s work.

Not to mention the fact that he’d come dangerously close to inappropriate touching.

He didn’t realize he was muttering curses aloud at the mere memory until Darren stepped into the room and cleared his throat. “Are you all right, sir?”

Bryce turned his head, which was still leaning against the back of the leather couch, until he was facing the doorway where Darren hovered. “How many times have I told you, you don’t need to call me sir.”

He thought he saw a flicker of a smile on the younger man’s face. He was only younger by a few years, in his late twenties, if Bryce recalled correctly. But despite his relatively young age, his second-in-command acted like an old man.

Not in the “let’s play checkers and wear cardigans” way but in the old-school way. Like he should have been born in the middle of the last century and not at the tail end. He supposed it was for that reason that Darren insisted on following his own protocol in the office. Even when “the office” meant Bryce’s favorite haunt, his lodge in the Rockies. Or his ski chalet in Switzerland, or his penthouse apartment in New York, or his cottage in the south of France. Bryce had a lot of homes but he never stayed in one place for long. His business was global and largely conducted via phone and email, so he could theoretically work anywhere, and he supposed that was sort of his problem.

He could go anywhere, which meant he had a lot of options. Too many options. He found himself roving the planet like a nomad in search of a home. A true home, one where he felt he truly belonged.

The lodge was as close as he’d come to finding that feeling and since Darren had family nearby, it seemed to work well for both of them that the lodge was something of a de facto headquarters when he wasn’t needed elsewhere.

But now, alone in the woods with only Darren for company, he was restless to move on to the next stop. Maybe New York…it couldn’t hurt to stop by the company’s official headquarters. Check in. Shake some hands.

Track down the one who got a way….

His attention was brought back to the present when Darren shifted in the doorway.

“Did you need something, Darren?”

Darren looked uncomfortable. “No, sir, I actually just heard you making what appeared to be a growling noise so I thought I’d check to make sure you were all right in here.”

Huh. Well, that was embarrassing. “Growling?”

“Yes, sir.”

He gave Darren an impatient look at his continued use of the word “sir” but let it go. That was a battle for another day. “I’m fine, but thanks for asking.”

Darren gave a short nod and started to turn to walk away.

“Darren, hang on one second.”

Bryce stared at the empty fireplace as a new idea took hold. A way he could help Kat.

Not that she’d asked for his help. Hell, she didn’t even need his help. She’d held her own during that dinner, walking that fine line between assertive and aggressive while keeping her asshole boss in his place.

She’d done it with style and panache, better than any diplomat or politician he’d ever met. He got sidetracked for a moment wondering if she’d ever considered getting into politics before Darren politely clearing his throat brought him back to the present and the thought at hand.

“Darren, could you bring me your findings for the CRBO buyout?”

“Are you thinking of buying it?” he asked with all the emotion one would expect from a robot.

Was he? His heart picked up speed and his pulse started to race in a way he knew and loved. It was similar to the feeling of falling in love, really. It was a force stronger than will and reason. It was a power greater than logic and much more persuasive.

His gut was back in action, baby.

And his gut was telling him that he should buy.

“Yes, Darren. I think I might.”

Darren didn’t so much as blink. Bryce supposed his number two man had been with him too long if he could no longer shock him by sudden fits of billion-dollar fancy. Where was the fun in this relationship if he could make his straight man flinch in the face of his rash business decisions?

“I’ll be right back with the file,” Darren said.

Bryce watched him leave. Well, at least he hadn’t called him sir.

* * *

It’s possible he should have just called. Bryce straightened his tie as he got into the elevator. God, he hated ties. This was why he preferred to work from home. Ties made him want to act out like he was still a kid at boarding school.

Darren rode beside him quietly. They had one last meeting at CRBO headquarters and then he’d find Kat. He’d already found out what floor she was on and that was his next stop.

“Are you all right, sir?” Darren asked.

“I swear to God, Darren, I’m going to kick your ass one of these days.”

“Very good, sir.”

“You’re a little dipshit, you know that, right?”

He heard a slight choking noise but refused to look. If Darren was laughing at him—and he most definitely was—he might just lose his shit.

And he never lost his shit. Ever. That was what made him the businessman he was today. He followed his gut and he never lost his shit.

But right now for the first time in his adult life, he started to doubt his gut. Oh, not the financial end of this decision but…everything else. While he and Darren had pored through every detail of this buyout and ensured that it was a wise decision for Darren’s brain as well as Bryce’s intestines, he hadn’t allowed himself to think beyond that.

Until now.

Now that he was about to see Kat, a woman he’d really only known for less than two days. A woman who’d been haunting his dreams and stealing away every spare brain cell, but who was nearly a stranger.

A stranger he might love.

Oh Jesus, he needed to get a grip before he saw her. The fact that he was even thinking this might be love spoke volumes about his sanity where this woman was concerned. And now, it brought into question his sanity in buying this company. Her company.

Well, the company she worked for.

How exactly was he going to explain this? And how would she react to him being back in her life...as the new owner of the company she worked for?

He tugged at his tie. The clock was ticking. In only a matter of hours he would not only see her again, but would have to explain the fact that in what most would call an eccentric move, he’d decided to buy her company.

For her.

Well, not just for her.

He let out a long exhale as he looked up at the numbers flashing by on the digital screen. Who was he trying to kid? He was a self-aware grown man, he could admit the truth to himself, at the very least. While it had been financially sound, his main incentive had been to buy it for her. For Kat.

Who may or may not be happy to see him. Who hadn’t reached out in any way, shape, or form these past two weeks. And who had shown absolutely no desire to ever see him again.

Ever.

Oh hell, what the fuck had he done?

But it was done now, no time for regrets. Telling himself that didn’t make the uneasiness abate. His ever-trusty gut churned in discomfort.

Bryce had been unusually off-kilter ever since he’d arrived in New York to finalize the deal. Two weeks had gone by and he’d only grown more obsessed with the idea of seeing Kat as each day passed.

He’d toyed with the idea of calling each and every day but dismissed it. He’d told himself he was waiting to reach out until business was finalized. He’d even managed to convince himself that he was waiting to surprise her, as though this was a birthday present or something.

But now…well, now he was starting to have his doubts about how well this news would go over. In truth, he was starting to doubt whether this decision had in fact been gut-approved or if, perhaps, he’d had ulterior motives. Like, an intense need to not only see Kat again but to have her intrinsically in his life. Or maybe it was the crazy and overwhelming desire to protect her from the Todds of the world in the only way he knew how.

Yet, she didn’t need his protection and she hadn’t shown any desire to see him again, let alone be a part of his life. So maybe his gut had been wrong, or maybe it hadn’t been his gut talking at all, and maybe this was a terrible idea and she would be horrified to discover that he was now her boss’s boss’s boss’s boss.

But there was no avoiding the fact that he’d have to tell her. His gut was definitely telling him that if Kat found out he’d bought her company from someone else, it would not end well.

There was still some red-tape to cut through but the press release would be sent out the next day. The deed was as good as done. All sides were happy, even Darren. This was a good deal. A good, sound financial deal.

So why was he trying to convince himself of that?

Because, for the first time ever he was starting to wonder if it had been his gut steering this one, or perhaps a totally different part of his anatomy.

Shit. What had he done?

He shoved his hands in the pocket of his hand-tailored, but still remarkably uncomfortable suit.

“One more meeting and then you’re free,” Darren said. They’d been working together side-by-side for six years now—he supposed it would have been odd if his colleague hadn’t been able to read his mind to some extent.

“Yeah, but then the hardest part is still to come.”

He felt Darren’s gaze on him but didn’t turn to face him. This chat with Kat would be hard enough without suffering through Darren’s quiet but pervasive judgement. Oh, Darren might know how to keep his mouth shut but Bryce just knew he’d be silently judging him for making a huge business decision based on a fling.

But he didn’t want it to be just a fling.

Yeah, that was really not a good enough excuse. Good Lord, his inner voice was starting to sound startling similar to a whiny, angsty teen. He supposed it had been a while since what he’d wanted hadn’t come easily to him, whether it be in business or relationships. And Kat had made it pretty clear that she didn’t want him.

But even if he’d decided to pursue her anyway, he could have gone about it differently. Once again he came back to his original position on the matter: he should have called.

Too late now. Taking a deep breath as the elevator slid to a stop at their floor. They were here. The last meeting of the day before he did the inevitable and broke the news as diplomatically as he could.

Ding.

The doors slid open and a familiar pretty blonde stared at him. Her mouth parted and her eyes widened. She gawked at him but no words came out.

Dammit. Fuck. Christ. Shit.

His mouth opened too but he found himself just as speechless, his brain caught in a loop of curses that were not the eloquent speech he’d had planned.

“Bryce?” Kat’s voice was higher than he remembered in a holy-crap-what-are-you-doing-here? kind of way. And not in a good way. It was definitely not excitement he saw on her face but something like…

Oh hell. She looked horrified to see him. She also looked…hot. In a fitted black blazer, with her curls piled on top of her head, she was professional and elegant. But that pencil skirt. Holy fuck, that pencil skirt. He decided then and there he would wear a tie every day for the rest of his life for the chance to see her in a pencil skirt.

She was prettier than he remembered, which was saying something, because he’d started to think his memory had been playing tricks on him. That she couldn’t possibly be that tempting. But she was…and she was still staring.

Also not in a good way.

Years of remaining calm, cool, and composed during intensive negotiations made it so that the adrenaline shooting through his system triggered a laid-back demeanor. Rather than tensing up, he gave her a slow grin, which most women seemed to like.

Kat scowled at him like he’d just said something offensive.

“What are you doing here?” she snapped.

Yeah, she was definitely not happy to see him.

Darren cleared his throat and gestured for Bryce to exit the elevator. Since Kat was standing in the elevator doorway clearly waiting to get on, this meant having to squeeze past her.

God, she smelled good. Just as good as she tasted.

Not helpful inner monologue. If this kept up, he’d be sporting a hard-on for his meeting. The meeting which was scheduled to start any second now.

Ah hell, this wasn’t the time or the place to be having this conversation with her, but she was watching him, clearly expecting an answer.

As if on cue, Gary and the other executives came out of a conference room. Spotting him, they headed in his direction with broad smiles and exuberant greetings.

“What are you doing here?” she asked again, her voice softer this time so only he and Darren could hear.

Stupidly, and completely irrationally, he went on the offensive. He who prided himself on his “I work best under pressure” mentality, completely caved in the face of her anger.

He couldn’t have this conversation now. Not here and not in front of this audience.

“What are you doing here?” he snapped back, his own voice taking on a peevish quality he’d never heard from himself before. He spotted hints of his childhood principal in the voice he was using, like at any moment he might start calling her “young lady” and tell her to stay behind after class.

Oh fuck. Way to go, imagination. Now all he could think about was what Kat would look like dressed up in a schoolgirl outfit.

“I work here,” she said, confusion and anger there sure, but he caught the flicker of amusement. It was at his expense, of course, but he’d take it.

God, he loved the way this woman laughed. More importantly, he loved that she loved to laugh. That she could find the humor in any situation…even this one.

The executives were almost on top of them so he leaned over and lowered his voice to a near whisper. “Look, I’ll explain everything, I promise. But later, okay? I’ll come to your office.”

Her brows drew together but she glanced over her shoulder and nodded. “Okay, fine. My office is on—”

“I know.”

She blinked at him and he realized admitting that was not the epitome of playing it cool.

Just wait until she found out that he’d bought the company…basically, for her.

He didn’t have to wait long.

“Ah, Kat, I see you’ve been keeping our old friend here company,” Gary said with a wink. Bryce’s gaze narrowed—what the hell did he mean by that? But Kat seemed to take it in stride. “Yes, I just bumped into him while getting into the elevator. Good to see you again, Mr. Dalton.”

Mr. Dalton. Oh yeah, his mind was going to decidedly dirty places over here.

Despite the overwhelming urge to pull her into his arms, he resisted, instead giving her a small nod. “Kat.”

She moved as if to walk past him, on to the still-open elevator, but Gary surprised him—and most likely her too, by the looks of it—by throwing an arm around her shoulders. Giving Bryce a grin and a knowing wink, he said, “No use keeping the cat in the bag much longer, is there, Dalton? The press release comes out tomorrow so I say we go ahead and announce the news to the employees today.”

Gary turned his grin on a confused-looking Kat.

No. No, no, no. This was not how this conversation was supposed to happen. Not at all. Not even a little—

“Mr. Dalton here is going to be our new fearless leader in the very near future,” Gary said.

Oh Gary. You blithering idiot.

He made a mental note to fire Gary and then deleted it as his morals kicked in. But dammit, if he found out that man was subpar at his job, he was out of there.

Along with Todd.

Where the hell was that dipshit, anyway?

It didn’t matter. No amount of distracting thoughts could shield him from the shock in Kat’s eyes as she stared up at him. As he watched, he saw her calculating, deducing.

Fuck, she was probably getting it all wrong. She probably thought he knew he was going to be her boss before they slept together. But he couldn’t explain anything now so he watched in horror as she forced a smile, muttered something that sounded like “congratulations” and shuffled past him.

Gary and the others didn’t seem to notice anything amiss, not even when he turned back for one last look.

All he caught was the steel doors snapping shut.