by Inara Scott
“We both know this isn’t a good idea,” he said. “We do work together, but more than that, we’re friends. I have pretty much managed to piss off every woman I’ve ever dated. I’m sort of an asshole when it comes to this kind of thing. And I don’t want to be an asshole when it comes to you.”
“I would also prefer that you are not an asshole,” Zoe murmured.
“It doesn’t seem to be something I can control. Relationships, life outside work, social events—these things aren’t my priority. They never will be.”
“I can see how that would make dating difficult for you.”
“Exactly.” He spread his hands in a gesture of hopelessness. “That’s why this definitely can’t go any further than it already has.”
“Of course.” For some reason—she couldn’t begin to guess why, based on what he was saying—she took a step toward him anyway. “Besides that, I should probably inform you that California recently passed a rule prohibiting sexual relations between a lawyer and her client.”
He drew back in surprise. “Wait, you could get in trouble for this? I hadn’t even considered that.”
She looked down at her nails. “I actually investigated it a couple of nights ago, and there may be an exception that applies to this particular situation. Would you say that you supervise, direct, or regularly consult with me?”
He cocked his head. “Really?”
“Really. It’s actually very important.”
He considered the question. “Honestly, no. I mean, I occasionally consult with you, but not regularly. You know—Nate directs all the lawyerly stuff. I’m just the tech guy.”
She gave him a tiny smile. That had been her conclusion as well. She didn’t work closely with Connor, and the professional rules did recognize that there was a difference when the client was a business, rather than an individual. “Then I’d have to say it’s still an absolutely terrible idea, but probably unlikely that I’d get disbarred.”
This had been a big relief to realize. She’d drilled down on the rules after their first kiss in the hopes of locating an exception that might apply and had been relieved to find one. She still didn’t like the situation—clients and lawyers definitely shouldn’t get involved, especially given the close relationship her firm had with Livend. But at least she could tell herself that she wasn’t going to get written up for an ethics violation.
“Zoe, if there’s any chance that this would negatively impact your job… Seriously, I couldn’t live with myself.”
Her feet took her another step closer to him, as much as she tried to make them stay still. “People think lawyers enforce rules. But that’s not right. What we really do is manage risk. And this risk is mine to take, not yours.”
Because, of course, it could affect her job. Livend was the boss. Her firm worked for them. She couldn’t lie about that, not even to herself.
But logic didn’t seem to matter right now. Sensibility had gone out the window after that first kiss.
“It’s not like I’m such a prize, anyway,” she said. “This probably isn’t news to you, but I work too much. I can’t keep a houseplant alive, and when I’m stressed, I’m about as sweet and friendly as a pissed-off ferret. And you know right now I’ve got my hands full with this Aims thing. My first priority is my job. I hope you understand that.”
Connor inclined his head in a gesture of acceptance. The heat in the room seemed to rise a few degrees with every passing moment. “You can’t imagine how awkward it would be if Nate or Mason ever found out about this. Even worse if it affects the group. The nights we go out to the Aspen are one of the few nights I actually look forward to. It would be absurd to even consider messing that up.”
She nodded, realizing the same was true for her as well. “You’re absolutely right.” Was it her imagination, or had the distance between them almost completely disappeared? “And if you think it would be awkward with your friends, just imagine how much hell Luke would give me. I’d never hear the end of it.”
Like a cord tugging, pulling them together, they continued to move until they were only inches apart. Zoe’s breath caught in her throat. “If we’re so sure this is a rotten idea, why am I here?”
“Damned if I know.” Connor touched the side of her face. “There are a thousand reasons this can never happen.”
“And?” she asked, tipping her face toward his.
“I can’t remember a single one.”
He leaned forward and kissed her, sending that shock of electricity she now knew to expect any time he touched her. She melted against him, and he claimed her lips. They devoured each other like they had been separated for ages, the kiss spilling over with unabashed need. Rising heat seared her skin as their mouths became a proxy for what their bodies demanded, bringing them together with desire so intense it made her shudder.
Connor nibbled her lower lip and trailed kisses down her neck, leaving everything he touched burning.
Hands trailed down her sides, pulled her shirt from her pants. He slid his palm to the bare skin of her waist, and a moan escaped her. She arched against him, exposing the skin of her neck to his touch. When she felt his hand on the underside of her breast, her hips moved against him.
“Fuck, Zoe.” With a groan, he grabbed her butt and pulled her tight. She looped her arms around his neck and shifted her stance, going on her tiptoes to feel his body from chest to thigh, a hard line of muscle against her softness. With effortless strength, he picked her up, and her legs circled his waist.
She had never experienced a passion like this before, their desire so perfectly matched and so utterly overwhelming. His face buried in the curve of her neck, he sucked on the soft skin as he walked her down a short hall to his bedroom.
“Are you sure—” He spoke as he lowered her to her feet.
She ran her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck and tugged him closer. “Oh, hell yes.” She kissed him again, showed him just how much she wanted him with her lips and tongue. Then she pulled away and jerked her shirt over her head, pausing only to thread her cast out of the narrow armhole. He devoured her with his eyes before dragging his thumbs over her nipples through the lace of her bra. The touch made her gasp, the ruched points already erect with pleasure, now hardening even further.
“This is just sex,” she panted. “That’s all.”
“Sounds good to me.”
Deftly, he unhooked her bra and cupped her naked flesh, stroking her nipples again. Her head fell back, her joints turning loose and liquid. He repeated the gesture, replacing his fingers with his mouth, laving each peak with his tongue before closing his lips around one and giving her a gentle bite.
A soft moan escaped her lips. She pulled away long enough to slip out of her shoes and pants while he stripped off his own clothes. Then he picked her up again and spun her around, depositing her on the tall wooden bed.
“This is crazy,” he breathed against her, pausing for a moment to brush his lips across the tender skin of her stomach.
“Insane,” she agreed, running her hands along the corded muscles of his back.
He spent endless, aching moments torturing her nipples, sucking and biting as she moved underneath him, feeling his hard length at her thigh. Then he moved his face lower, his breath warm against the mound still covered by the thin silk of her panties. She bucked against him, tangling her good hand in his hair, urging him on.
He looped his fingers under the soft material and dragged it down the length of her legs, kissing and licking everything in between, his tongue leaving a hot trail on the delicate skin and a damp heat building at the apex of her thighs.
“That’s so good,” she whimpered, no longer in control of her vocal cords.
He grounded himself between her thighs, blowing a soft breath into her dark curls. She parted her legs to give him room, her free hand clenching the sheets above her head. When his tongue traced an exquisite line on her flesh, she jerked at the pleasure, moaning deep in her throat. He drove
her to the edge of madness, licking and sucking until she was ready to explode.
“I need you,” she breathed, touching his hair and coming up on her elbows. “I want to come with you inside me.”
Her words provoked a fresh groan, and he rose to deliver a hard, needy kiss. The taste of her own arousal on his lips sent a wave of sensation surging through Zoe’s body.
He broke their contact just long enough to grab a foil packet from the top drawer of his dresser before returning. She took the condom, wanting to feel his flesh under her fingers before putting it on. He paused, standing beside the bed as she held him, stroking his hard length until she felt a drop of fluid on the tip. He groaned as she licked it off, then circled the head with her tongue.
“Fuck.” His voice was tight as his fingers tangled in her hair. “That’s so damn hot.”
She teased him with her mouth, taking him in deeply, feeling her own need rise as he grew even harder. Then she opened the condom and rolled it on. After one last caress, she moved her back higher on the bed so he could roll on top of her.
“Yes,” she exhaled in a long, deep breath as he entered her. His tall body held still above her, his arms on either side of her shoulders. She arched her back to offer her breasts to his touch, and he responded with a sweet, aching tug on each nipple.
When he finally began to move, she wrapped her legs around him and held on tight. Every thrust brought her closer to her peak, and she ground against him, seeking the fiery release that her body craved.
Connor bent forward to kiss her neck, breathed into the flesh and paused. “Come for me,” he whispered. “I want to feel you, Zoe.”
She needed no further urging, sliding her body against him and tightening her core. With a cry of pure pleasure, she exploded and then felt him do the same, releasing into her with a deep, throaty groan.
Chapter Sixteen
When Zoe woke, the sun was streaming into the room. A glass of water sat beside the bed. She sat up and took a grateful drink.
Jesus.
They’d really done it.
She looked around the room that she, admittedly, hadn’t seen much of the night before. Unsurprisingly, given that this was Connor, the furniture was oversize, simple, and functional. But in the light of day, it was clear that no furniture could compete with the view from his bedroom window, which looked out over the San Francisco Bay.
“I guess money is good for something,” she murmured, rising to take in the view of the water off in the distance.
“I swear to God, you are going to kill me.”
Connor’s voice came from the doorway, deep and amused, but with a hint of a growl. Zoe turned, realized that she was naked, and blushed. “I should probably tell you I can be a bit of an exhibitionist,” she said. “As well as being a little bit loud. In bed, I mean. But you already knew that part.”
In a few seconds, she was on her back, a face rough with stubble tracing the curve of her belly. “I think that might be the greatest thing I’ve ever heard,” he murmured.
The next time she got up, the sun was considerably higher in the sky, and her muscles were loose, her every need satiated. Connor was lying prone next to her, chest rising and falling in an easy rhythm.
“What happens today?” he asked, his eyes closed.
“Today, I play bridge,” she said.
“Anything else?”
She patted his chest. “More of this?” she said hopefully.
“I like the sound of that.” He caught her hand. “But first, I have to explain something.”
She flopped onto her back next to him. “Seriously?” she said, sighing loudly. “Are we having this conversation again?”
“I just want to make sure you understand this,” he said, “I’m completely unreliable. I get engaged in a project and I forget everything. I miss dates and I don’t even have a reason why. I don’t particularly like being social. I get antsy when people expect me to show up places. I am not relationship material, and I never will be.”
She rolled her eyes. “This is not news to me. I have known you for years, Connor. You’re kind of legendary.”
He rolled onto his elbow and looked down at her. “I’m serious, Zoe. It took me a while to figure it out, but I’m just not meant to be attached to another person. Not in a way that matters.”
Zoe studied him. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because you deserve better than that.”
“And the other women you’ve dated don’t?”
He winced. “I guess if I’m going to be an asshole to someone, I’d prefer it’s not someone I care about.”
“Yeah, and I generally prefer not to be screwed over by a friend, but—”
“So obviously, this can’t happen again,” he cut in.
She shook her head. “Is there any chance you can assume that I know enough not to expect more from you? That maybe I understood how you work well before this all started? Look, we’ve obviously got some kind of fierce chemistry between us that needs to be worked out. I say we assume we’re both adults who know how to handle ourselves and go with it. Screw ourselves into submission.”
He made a strangled sound. “That’s never going to work.”
“Why not? Because you’re so irresistible?” She had to admit, he was rather overwhelming at that moment, a six-foot-four sheet of muscle and fathomless gray-blue eyes.
A chill seemed to settle on him, and he did not laugh in return. “Because people don’t change.”
“Connor, we’re just sleeping together,” she said softly. “We’re not dating. We’re not in a relationship. And we’re not going to be. Neither of us wants to screw up our friendship or our working relationship. We have too much at stake to let this go wrong.”
“Then you have to promise me something.” When she laughed at his serious tone, he scowled. “I’m not kidding.”
“Fine,” she said, assuming a sober expression. “What am I promising, exactly?”
“That you don’t ever rely on me.”
She wanted to laugh, but he was so stern she couldn’t help but feel an answering chill.
“This has got to be a short-term thing,” he continued, his gaze deep and intense. “It can’t go anywhere. And at the end, we have to be able to walk away as friends. I’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen, Zoe, even if it means never touching you again.”
She hauled herself to sitting and spun to face him on the bed. “I’m not arguing with you, Connor. I said it last night—this is just sex. That’s all. I’m not looking for anything more.”
“But you should.”
She poked his shoulder with one finger, not liking the way his statement lodged somewhere inside her chest. “And you should know that I have limited patience with men telling me what to do. I’m done with this conversation.”
He gestured toward her bare breasts. “Fine. Then you should know that I can’t think straight when I can see your nipples.”
She rolled onto her stomach. “Is this better?” she asked, looking over her shoulder at him with a grin.
“Definitely not.” He sat up and ran his hands over her bottom. “I mean, depends on how you define better.” Arranging himself behind her, he pulled her by the hips so that her backside was cradled against him. She hummed with pleasure.
“You are insatiable,” he said, covering her back with his chest and nipping at her shoulder.
She groaned and wiggled her butt against him. “I probably should have told you that, too.”
“I can see I’m going to need all my athletic training to keep up with you.” He sat back on his heels and smacked her bare cheek. “Now, how about you hold that thought for later tonight.”
“Fine.” With an exaggerated sigh she stood and wrapped the sheet around her like a toga. “Is this better? For talking, I mean.”
“That works. Except that you’ve got incredibly sexy ankles.”
She dropped the sheet and moved toward his dresser. “I can’t walk aroun
d like that anyway. Can I borrow something?”
“Top drawer.”
She riffled through his clothes, finding impeccably folded T-shirts, boxers, and socks. “You fold your socks?”
“You don’t?”
He lay in bed watching her. She turned toward him, still naked, and watched as he began to harden under her regard. “Now I’m going to be distracted.” She pulled out a T-shirt for herself and tossed a pair of boxers at him. “Here, put these on. I need some coffee.”
She threw on the T-shirt and her panties and marched into the living room, where open blinds revealed bright sunshine and another spectacular view, this time of Grace Cathedral, its twin towers and central spire rising into the blue sky. Distracted from her pursuit of coffee, she walked over to the window to stare at it.
Connor followed a minute behind her, padding into the kitchen on bare feet. “I like the Bay,” he said, “but this is my favorite view.”
“It’s beautiful,” she said.
“Have you ever walked the labyrinth?” he asked.
She shook her head. “To be honest, I’ve never been inside.”
“Really?” He looked surprised. “It’s just about my favorite place in the city.”
She crossed her arms over her chest, suddenly feeling vulnerable. There were all sorts of famous San Francisco things she hadn’t done because she felt silly doing them on her own. “Never really had the time.”
“I’ll take you there,” he said. “You’ll love it.”
He was so boyishly charming, she couldn’t help but smile. “I’d like that.”
She had to look away from him then, because the moment felt too warm. Too emotional. Too much like what people would do if they were starting a relationship. Which, of course, they had just established they were not doing.
As if he felt the same, Connor cleared his throat and turned to a cabinet. “Just a little cream with your coffee, right?”
She nodded and rubbed her arms. Forcing herself to turn away from the windows, she walked over to the kitchen island and sat on one of the stools. “I have to be at your mom’s place at one. It’s my first training session.”
