High-Powered, Hot-Blooded

Nine

Duncan had never really enjoyed his board of director meetings, but this was worse than usual. Not because they were complaining-that he could handle. It was the way they were all smiling at him. Beaming, really, as if with pride. What the hell was up with that?

“The last two articles on you have been excellent,” his uncle said. “Very positive.”

“Just doing what we agreed.”

“This reporter…” One of the board members adjusted his glasses and frowned at the business journal. “Charles Patterson seems to think you’ve had an awakening. Who’s this Annie person?”

“Annie McCoy,” Lawrence said, before Duncan could answer. “The woman Duncan’s seeing.”

The other board members looked at him.

“You told me to find someone nice,” he reminded them. “She’s a kindergarten teacher. Very pretty. Charles has a crush on her.”

“Well done,” the oldest board member said. “You should bring her around here so we can all meet her.”

“There’s no need for that,” Duncan said, thinking the last thing Annie needed was a bunch of old guys trying to flirt with her.

“Annie’s special,” Lawrence announced. “Good for Duncan, too.”

Duncan narrowed his gaze. “I’m seeing her through the holidays. It’s a business arrangement, nothing more. You told me to find someone nice and clean up my act. I did. Don’t make it more than it is.”

“It didn’t look like a business arrangement to me,” Lawrence said.

“Looks can be deceiving.”

There was no way he was telling his uncle or anyone on the board that he also thought Annie was special. They didn’t need to know how she’d wormed her way into his life. The kicker was he didn’t think she’d even been trying. But regardless of his feelings for her, when the holidays were over, so was their relationship.

The board moved on to other business. When they were finished, Lawrence lingered in the conference room until the other men had left.

“Are you serious about ending things with Annie?” his uncle asked. “I saw you two together, Duncan. You like her. You should marry her.”

Duncan shook his head. “I’ve been married.”

“To the wrong woman. I don’t know what Valentina wanted, but it wasn’t you or a real marriage. Annie’s different. She’s the kind of girl you spend forever with.”

This from a man who’d been married five times? “You know this how?”

“I’ve lived a lot longer than you. I’ve seen things, made bad choices. There are few regrets more painful than knowing you let the woman of your dreams get away. You’ve always been smarter than me about most things. Don’t be an idiot now.”

“Thanks for the advice,” Duncan said, standing up to leave.

“But you’re not going to take it.”

“I did what the board asked. That’s all you’re getting from me.”

Lawrence stared at him for a long time. “Not everyone leaves.”

Duncan didn’t react to the statement, even though he knew the old man was wrong. Nearly everyone who mattered left. He’d learned that a long time ago. It was better not to care. Safer.

“Annie doesn’t leave,” his uncle added softly. “Look at her life.”

“What do you know about it?”

“What you told me. She has her cousins and their friend living with her. She’s helping to pay for their college educations. She agreed to date you to help her brother, after he tried to throw her under the bus. She’s not a person who gives up easily.”

True, Duncan thought uneasily. Annie took responsibility, hanging on with both hands. “That’s different,” he said.

“It’s not and you know it. Annie scares the hell out of you because with her, everything is possible. Don’t let what happened before ruin this for you. Don’t live with regrets about letting her go. They’ll eat you alive.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“You can keep telling yourself that, but it won’t be true. You’ve never been afraid of anything but risking your heart. Annie’s the closest to a sure thing you’re ever going to find.”

Duncan found himself wanting to listen, which would only lead to trouble. “Annie got into this to save her brother. It has nothing to do with caring about me.”

“Maybe it didn’t, but it does now. Just pay attention. All the signs are there. She’s falling for you. Maybe she’s already in love with you. Chances like this don’t come along very often. Trust me, you don’t want to blow this one.”

Lawrence walked out of the conference room. Duncan stood there, alone, wondering if the old man was telling the truth. Would he regret letting Annie go? In time he would find out. His uncle was also right about Annie scaring the crap out of him. There were possibilities with her. Great ones.

But he’d already given his heart to someone. He’d already believed in forever, and he’d learned a hard lesson. Love was an illusion, a word women used to sucker punch men. Maybe Annie was different, but he didn’t know if he was willing to take the chance.

Despite three late nights at the office, getting by on minimal sleep and a workout schedule that would exhaust an elephant, Duncan still couldn’t get his uncle’s words out of his mind. He couldn’t stop thinking about Annie.

Taking a chance violated everything he knew to be true and yet…he was tempted. It was the only possible explanation for his being in a mall less than a week before Christmas, fighting the crowds and looking for presents for her cousins and Kami.

He should have had his assistant buy something online, he told himself, as yet another shopper stepped in front of him without looking. What did he know about the wants and needs of college-age girls? He was about to leave the department store when he saw a sign that proclaimed every woman loved cashmere.

There was a display of sweaters in an array of colors. A well-dressed salesperson came up and smiled. “Are you buying something for your wife or girlfriend?”

“Her cousins,” he said. “And a friend. They’re in college. Does cashmere work?”

“Always. You don’t happen to know sizes, do you?”

He shrugged, then pointed to a young mother walking by. “About like that?”

“Got it. Do you want to pick the colors?”

“No.”

“Should I gift wrap?”

“That would be great.”

“Give me fifteen minutes and it will all be done. There’s a coffee bar over by shoes, if you want to get away from the crowd.”

He nodded and wandered in the direction of coffee, only to be stopped by a display of Christmas trees. They were small, maybe two feet, covered with twinkling white lights and miniature ornaments. The one that caught his eye was done in white and gold and decorated with dozens of angels.

They were all blonde and innocent, with big eyes. For some reason, they reminded him of Annie. He picked up the tree and carried it to the register.

Annie glanced anxiously at the box of fudge next to her. Despite her sudden stop at the unexpected light change, the box stayed firmly on the passenger seat of her car. Normally she was a careful driver who anticipated stops, but tonight she couldn’t seem to get herself together. Probably because Duncan had completely rattled her with his invitation to “drop by.”

They were in a lull-a four-day stretch with no parties-right before the last-minute craziness started. On Thursday, there was a party every night through Christmas Eve. When she’d first seen the party schedule, she’d been excited about the break, but now she found herself missing being around him. The four days, and nights, had seemed endless.

And then he’d called, inviting her over.

Why? She wanted it to be because he was missing her, too, but she couldn’t be sure. There was no reason to think anything about their relationship had changed-at least not from his end. She was in serious danger of falling desperately in love with him, which, if she’d thought things through at the beginning, shouldn’t be a surprise. Handsome, smart, funny, caring man suddenly in her life. What was there not to like?

If only, she thought, before shaking her said. No. She was going to be sensible. Falling in love might be inevitable, but she wasn’t going to let herself be swept away by her feelings. When this was over, pride might be the only thing she had left. She needed to remember that.

She parked in the guest spot, then took the elevator to his penthouse condo. Duncan opened the door right away.

“Thanks for coming,” he said, his gray eyes dark with a smoldering need that made her thighs tremble.

“Thanks for asking me.” She held out the box of fudge. “I made this. I don’t know if you like chocolate. If not, you could take it into the office or…”

Instead of taking the candy, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside. The second the door closed behind her, she was in his arms, his mouth on hers.

She hung on as the world began to spin. There was only the heat and the man and how she felt pressed up against his strength. He was already aroused, his hardness flexing against her belly. She managed to shove the fudge onto a table by the door and drop her purse, before hanging on to him with both hands.

She parted her lips and he deepened the kiss. Their tongues danced, touching, tracing, playing an erotic game. He bent her over slightly, then straightened, pulling her up off the floor.

Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around his hips. Despite being up in the air, she felt safe. Duncan would never drop her. He carried her into the bedroom, then slowly lowered her to the carpet. When her feet touched solid ground, he drew back, put his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face the room.

On the dresser there was a tiny Christmas tree. White lights twinkled, the only source of light in the huge room. She could see little angel ornaments on every branch.

Her throat got a little tight. “I thought you didn’t want a tree,” she whispered.

“I saw it and thought of you.”

The words, whispered in her ear, made her eyes burn. Telling herself he wouldn’t appreciate a girly show of emotion, she did her best to blink them away. He hugged her, pulling her close. She turned in his embrace and stared into his gray eyes.

Emotions raced through her. Not just desire, but love. There was no escaping the truth. She loved Duncan with all her heart. Whatever might happen, however it might end, she loved him.

The feeling was different, more powerful than anything she’d ever experienced. Getting over him would take a whole lot of time and effort, because as much as she wanted to believe everything would work out, she tried to be a realist. Her and Duncan? On what planet?

But for now there was the night and the man and she was determined to have as much as possible of both. She leaned into him, claiming him with a kiss. She couldn’t tell him how she felt, but she could show him, she thought as she traced the powerful muscles in his arms.

She raised the hem of his sweater and ran her fingers across his broad chest. He took the hint and pulled off the sweater, then tossed it away. She pressed her lips to his breastbone, tasting his warm skin.

For a second, he was passive, accepting her caress. Then he reached for her, cupping her face and kissing her.

Even as they held on to each other, he was moving her toward the bed. When the backs of her legs bumped the mattress, he stopped. He pulled back enough to pull off her knit shirt. She stepped out of her shoes. Then they were tumbling onto the bed, him landing next to her.

They reached for each other. Even as they kissed, she reached for the hooks on her bra. She wanted to feel her bare breasts against his chest. He pushed her hands away and unfastened the bra in one easy movement. The lace-covered garment went flying.

Her jeans followed, as did his. She barely had time to notice that his briefs were also gone, before he settled his hand on her stomach.

Up or down, she thought, rolling onto her back. Either would work for her. He could move up or down. Another moment of hesitation and his fingers moved down. When he reached the barrier of her panties, he gripped the elastic and peeled them down. His large, strong hands made the return trip slowly, massaging as he went, teasing the insides of her knees before trailing up her thighs. He moved closer and closer to the promised land, but didn’t touch her most sensitive spot. She held her breath, wanting, desperate, willing to do anything to have him touch her there. While he kissed her breasts, he rubbed his fingers against her inner thigh, then up onto her belly, making her squirm in anticipation.

Finally, slowly, he shifted again and slid through her swollen flesh. He touched the tiny center of her pleasure. A shiver raced through her. Gently at first, never pressing too hard or going too fast, he began to circle. Slowly, then a little more quickly, pushing her forward. She rotated her hips in time with him. Sensations raced through her. Muscles tensed. There was nothing but the movements and how he made her feel. Closer and closer still. Until the fall was inevitable.

She hung suspended for a brief moment. Intense pleasure pulsed through her and then she was falling. She came over and over, shuddering and moaning. He continued to touch her, gently, lightly, drawing out her release.

When she opened her eyes, he was watching her. His gray eyes seemed to see down to her soul. She smiled slowly, then kissed him.

“Thank you. That was…nice.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Nice?”

She laughed. “Very nice. Extremely nice.”

“You’re crushing my ego.”

She reached between them and stroked his erection. “Your ego seems to be doing just fine. We should take advantage of that.”

“If you insist.”

“I do.”

In a matter of seconds, he put on a condom and was nudging at her thighs. She shifted to welcome him.

He filled her with one long, steady thrust. She felt herself stretching as he pushed in again and again. The sensation was delicious. Pleasure hardened his features, pulling at the muscles. His eyes were closed.

She closed hers as well, enjoying the ride-focusing on him and what he was feeling. She was so aware of his movements that at first she didn’t even notice the pressure deep inside. The sort of tingling ache, the instinct to move against him, increasing the friction. The need started slowly, then grew more frantic. She found herself clinging to him, wanting him to go faster, deeper, harder.

She opened her eyes and found Duncan watching her. She couldn’t control herself. This wasn’t quiet, almost-boring sex. This was messy, frenzied desire. She held on to his upper arms, pumping her hips with each thrust. She opened her mouth to gasp in a breath and found herself panting. Her body wasn’t her own. There was a driving force she didn’t understand and couldn’t control. There were-

Her climax caught her off guard. One second she was doing her best to catch her breath and the next she was lost in a shuddering, convulsing release that caused her to arch her back and cry out in a way she never had before. Her muscles tightened over and over again, then Duncan moaned and shuddered. They came together, a tangle of need and pleasure.

When they were done, Annie knew nothing would ever be the same again. She would never be the same. She might not be able to win Duncan, but she would never settle for anything less than loving someone with all her heart. That’s what had been missing before, she thought, blissfully exhausted. True love and passion. An explosive combination.

Later, when Annie lay next to him, her head on his shoulder, his arm around her, she closed her eyes. She had to remember everything about this moment, everything that had happened. So later she could relive each moment in detail.

“Going to sleep?” he asked, his voice teasing.

“No. Enjoying the aftermath. Making love with you is pretty amazing.”

“Thank you. Amazing is much better than nice.”

She smiled, opened her eyes, then shifted so her chin was on his chest and she could stare into his eyes. “That’s not what I mean. The other guys I was with-all two of them-weren’t like you. Or maybe it was me. But I never felt…” She sighed. “It wasn’t the same thrill ride.”

He frowned. “Why not? Don’t take this wrong, Annie, but you’re easy.”

She sat up, pulling the sheet with her so she stayed covered. Easy? She’d been thinking love and romance and he thought she was easy?

He sat up as well, then raised both hands. “I take it back. I should have said responsive. I’ve been with women who are difficult to get over the edge. You’re not one of them.” He smiled. “That’s a good thing. Having you do what you do is the best kind of positive reinforcement.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“It wasn’t like that with the other guys?”

“No. Sex was kind of…uninteresting.” And she hadn’t been truly in love with them. She got that now.

“No fireworks?”

“Not even a sputter. I liked it, but I never got the fuss.” Now the fuss was perfectly clear. The fuss was her favorite part.

He shifted his pillow so it was behind his back, then leaned against the headboard. “Tell me about these guys.”

“There’s not much to say. I met Ron in college. He was studying engineering. I’m not sure he’d been with anyone before. I know I hadn’t. We sort of figured it out together.”

“Or not,” Duncan said. “If you weren’t happy.”

“I was happy.” She hadn’t known there was more. Not physically or emotionally.

“Satisfied, then.”

“I didn’t know what to ask for. He was funny and smart and we had a good time. I thought everything was fine.”

She and Ron had been together nearly three years. She thought she was in love with him and had assumed he felt the same way.

“At the beginning of our senior year, he ended things,” she admitted. “He said he’d met someone else. That he didn’t mean to hurt me, but she was the one. But that he and I should still be friends.” She wrinkled her nose. “I passed on that offer.”

“Smart move. And guy number two?”

Should there have been more men? Was two a small number? Duncan probably had dozens of women before and after Valentina.

“A.J.,” she said with a sigh. “He was the assistant principal at my school. I met him my first day. We went out right away. Everything was so easy.”

Duncan realized he’d made a huge mistake in asking about Annie’s love life. While he wanted the information, he didn’t like hearing about her with other men. The fact that the relationships had ended badly didn’t change his sense of annoyance. He wanted to find both Ron and A.J. and beat the crap out of them. How dare either of them hurt Annie. Not that he wanted her with one of them now. He wanted her for himself.

Until the holidays were over, he reminded himself. Nothing more.

“He was also funny and smart. He loved kids.” Annie shook her head. “I don’t know. It was as if we were destined to be together. Everything fell into place. No complications. We were talking about getting married by our fifth date.”

Something heavy seemed to fall into his stomach. He ignored the sensation. “What happened?”

“While I was dreaming about a June wedding, he got a job offer from a school in Baltimore. He wanted me to go with him. Jenny and Julie were seniors in high school and living with me. I couldn’t just leave them. So he went without me. We agreed to date long distance, seeing each other once a month.”

“Did you miss him?”

“Sure.” She shifted so she was sitting next to him, then leaned her head against his shoulder. “I thought everything was fine. Over Memorial Day weekend, he told me while there wasn’t anyone else, he wasn’t interested in dating me anymore. Time away had shown him he wasn’t as interested in me as he’d thought. But he would very much like us to be friends.” She drew in a breath. “I never knew what went wrong.”

He had a feeling she really meant to say what she had done wrong. But how to make her understand that none of this was about her? She’d found two stupid guys. It happened.

“Better to find out before you moved in with him rather than after.”

She looked up at him, her blue eyes wide with shock. “I wouldn’t live with him before we were married.”

He held in a smile. “But you’d sleep with him.”

“That’s different. It’s private. Living arrangements usually aren’t. I’m a teacher. What would it say to my students if I lived with a guy without being married to him? What would it say to my cousins or Kami? Children don’t learn by what we say, they learn by what we do.”

Not ten minutes ago, she’d been screaming in his bed. Annie was nothing if not interesting. He could go his whole life and still not know everything about her.

“You’re not giving up on Mr. Right, are you?” he asked.

“No. I’ll find him.” She leaned against his shoulder again. “I want to be married and have a family. I want to grow old with my husband, to be friends and lovers. I want to take care of him and have him take care of me. Which is all too traditional for you, huh?”

“I know how you enjoy your traditions.”

“You don’t believe in them.”

“I got a tree. That’s traditional.”

“At least it’s a start.”

He sensed she needed more-needed him to make some kind of a promise. But he couldn’t. He’d tried that once-trusting a woman with his heart.

Annie couldn’t be more different than his ex. If he’d met Annie first…But he hadn’t. And being what she needed, what she deserved, was impossible. He hoped she understood that. Nothing about their deal had changed. When it was over, he would walk away-and he wouldn’t offer to be just friends.

“Why are you walking like that?” Duncan asked. “Relax.”

“I can’t,” Annie whispered, trying to look casual, but barely able to breathe.

It wasn’t the fitted evening gown that was constricting her breathing, or the four-inch heels that altered her walk. Instead it was the weight of the necklace and earrings. Not their physical weight so much as their value.

She fingered the large diamond pendant hanging several inches below her throat. She didn’t know much about fancy jewelry, but this was the biggest stone she’d ever seen. There were smaller diamonds leading to the platinum chain that held the piece securely around her throat. Matching earrings dangled in her upswept hair.

The jewelry ensemble had been delivered by a burly guard who had made Duncan sign several official-looking documents before he’d handed over the velvet cases containing the treasures.

“You’re insured, right?” she asked quietly. “If someone attacks me or a clasp breaks.”

Duncan sighed. “I arranged for the jewelry because I thought you’d enjoy the pieces. I didn’t mean for you to be nervous.”

Probably true, she thought. A sweet gesture and one she really appreciated. Or she would, just as soon as she got over the burning need to vomit.

“Tell me they’re not worth a million dollars and I’ll relax.”

He winked. “They’re not worth a million dollars.”

That was too easy. “You’re lying.”

“Me? How can you say that?”

Better not to know, she told herself as they walked into the elegant hotel ballroom. Fine. She would wear the borrowed jewelry and be excited that Duncan had wanted to make her happy. His actions were thoughtful and sweet. Once she got past the need to throw up, she would feel all quivery inside.

The party was large, with at least two hundred people milling about and talking. As a rule Annie didn’t drink at any of the cocktail parties, but she might give in and have a glass of wine. With a crowd this big, no one would be having anything close to a serious conversation and she wouldn’t be expected to do much more than smile and nod. Which meant her chances of messing up were that much less.

Besides, a little wine would make the idea of wearing all those diamonds more fun than terrifying.

As they moved through the crowd, Duncan kept her close. He held her hand in his, guiding them through the crush at the entrance. She saw an open area to her left.

“There’s dancing,” she said.

“I thought dancing with me made you nervous.”

“Not anymore.”

Their eyes locked. She didn’t know what he was thinking, but she was remembering the last time they’d made love. When he’d made her feel things she hadn’t known were possible and she accepted the fact that she was in love with him. No maybe, no almost. Just totally and completely in love with Duncan.

Fire flared in his gaze. She felt an answering heat in her belly.

“We don’t have to stay long,” he told her.

“Are you sure?” she asked, her voice teasing. “I was thinking we’d be here at least three or four hours.”

He drew her close. “Fifteen minutes, tops. Or we could get a room in the hotel. The suites have jetted tubs.”

“And you know this how?”

“Duncan?”

The person speaking his name had a low, sexy voice-the kind that belonged on radio. Annie turned and saw an incredibly tall, beautiful woman in a sexy black dress standing next to them. The woman smiled warmly, her blue eyes sparkling with delight.

“I was hoping to see you here,” she said in her throaty voice. “I’ve missed you so much.”

Duncan stiffened. Annie felt the tension fill his body as he turned toward the woman. “What the hell are you doing here?”

The smile never wavered. “I came to see you, Duncan.” The woman glanced at Annie. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?”

He hesitated, then released Annie’s hand. “Annie, this is Valentina. My ex-wife.”