“So what did you think?” Brecken asked as he relayed the information from the last two days of meetings.

Tina stared back at him through the computer screen and pushed her glasses up farther on the bridge of her nose. “I’m not sure this is something I should weigh in on. This is your company. Your name and reputation is the one associated with it.”

“Okay, well, pretend you’re a friend giving me advice then. What should I do?”

She hesitated long enough that he thought she was going to refuse to play ball. “Frankly, I don’t know why you’re considering it. The other companies have something to gain. They need this. You don’t. Blackstone Software is doing well. We’re thriving. We’ve already signed our third client this year.”

“Yeah, but this could open new opportunities for us.”

“We don’t need the people in that room for that.”

He cocked an eyebrow at her, but she continued without letting him respond.

“When I met you five years ago, you would have told anyone coming at you with a deal like this to go fuck themselves.”

She was right about that.

“So, if I were speaking as your friend, that’s what I would say. Tell them to go fuck themselves, or better yet, why don’t you look at buying the resources you need to expand.”

Expand Blackstone Software? Could he buy the pieces and do it himself? It hadn’t occurred to him, and he wanted to kick himself. “I think I like having you as my friend.” He chuckled, and her shoulders relaxed. It was only then that he realized they had been tense, as if she had been worried how he would react to her honesty.

He stood and put on the suit jacket he’d tossed on the chair.

“What are you doing?” Tina asked.

“I’m telling them to go fuck themselves. Then I’m catching the next flight out of here. Let’s meet in the office tomorrow morning at nine and brainstorm ideas for the future of the company. I think you might be onto something.”

* * *

It was well past midnight when he pulled up outside the bar. Michael’s Place was lit up in neon letters, casting off a fun and happy ray of light on the otherwise dark street. According to January’s latest text, they were still cleaning up for the night, so he knew she was still there.

Turning the car off, his fingers floated over the phone, willing his tired brain to come up with something witty to let her know he was outside.

He held the phone in his lap and stared into the building through the window facing the street. There wasn’t much to see inside until her tall and slender form walked past the window, sending the hormones in his overgrown teenage boy body skyrocketing. She stopped in front of the window and pulled her phone from the back pocket of her jeans. Her face was turned to the side so he couldn’t read her expression as she held the phone in front of her, presumably reading his text.

Tapping his thumb restlessly on his cell, he waited for her to respond. Instead, she turned to the window with a huge grin on her face and their eyes locked. Brecken was out of the car and at the door as fast as his legs could carry him.

“What are you doing back?” Her expression hid none of her excitement, and it made his heart beat wildly in his chest.

“Does it matter?” he asked, not wanting to waste two seconds talking about anything other than her joining him in bed.

She closed the distance between them, and he wrapped his arms around her waist and brought his mouth down hard against her soft lips. The heat from her body radiated onto him, and he soaked it up, pulling her tighter against his chest.

“Tell me you’re done working and I can take you to bed. Immediately.”

“I need to grab my purse and tell Michael I’m leaving.”

“One minute.”

“One minute?” Her forehead creased as she raised her brows and gave him a look that said she didn’t like being bossed around.

“Yes.” He walked around to the driver’s side of the car. “You have one minute before I go all caveman and drag you off to have my way with you.”

She stayed rooted firmly in place. “Seriously?”

“You seriously want to waste time objecting when every minute you delay is another minute until I can eat your tight pussy?”

That got her attention, and he could see her breathing hitch and her cheeks flush. “Be right back,” she rasped out and disappeared back inside while he let a smug smile pull on his lips.