“I-I…okay, I shouldn’t have accepted the presents. It was inappropriate, but at that moment, I don’t know, I just felt like I was deserving because I gave up my weekend with Fin to come here.”
Some relief came to him. “Why don’t we just get to the core of this issue. This has nothing to do with either of the Langleys, or our jobs, and it’s all about you and me.”
“What are you talking about?” She’d lost some of the anger to her tone.
“There’s still chemistry between us, baby, and it rages like a forest fire. The more we deny it, the more we pretend it’s not there, the hotter the desire gets.” He wished he could go back and do their marriage all again, fix the issues before they became irreconcilable craters. He’d been stubborn and stuck in his own bubble. He should have worried more about Novah’s feelings and less about his own. Now it was too late so what could he do with all the tension he carried in his body? “I fucked up. I know I did.”
“Unfortunately, there are no take backs on shitty decisions.”
“Yeah, I’m glad you see your terrible decisions too.”
Her lip curled but he saw the flash of humor in her eyes. “What did I do?”
“Do you ever listen?”
“I listen just fine when I need to,” she said softly.
Her voice lifted the hairs on his neck. He’d never allowed anyone inside until he met her, and she’d found her way through all the rock, granite, and iron of his exterior walls straight into his heart. Instead of feeling weakened by her invasion he’d felt like a giant of a man. Then Finley was born, and the second the doctor placed his tiny human in his arms he’d been willing to soften up—and had softened up under love’s hypnotic spell. He was a different man now. Egan had grown emotionally by leaps and bounds. Being a husband and father had made him who he was today. He tried scooping out his desire to protect Novah, but after all, she was the mother of his child and he’d always want her to be happy and safe. “How does it feel to always be right?”
She stood rigid and strong, her bottom lip was no longer quivering, and her eyes turned aloof. She took a step around him, brushing his arm as she passed to investigate the water. “I wonder how long it’d take to swim back to the resort.”
“Being that you’re not a strong swimmer you’d probably drown first.”
“I guess then you’d have one less problem, right?” she snapped.
He rubbed the ache taking up residence in his temples. “Stop talking shit, Novah. You know I’ve never wanted anything bad to happen to you, ever.” He practically ripped his tie from his collar and tossed it aside. The temperature had risen outside and inside his body.
“What has become of us? Arguing like we’re married again.”
The wind could have knocked him over. His chest was on fire and he could barely breathe. “My God, are you really this silly? Sure, maybe I wouldn’t have won a best husband award, or father for that matter, but I would have crawled across the Sahara then laid on a bed of hot coals for my family. You chose to be single and I gave you that, but I won’t give you the last thread of hope that I have. I don’t think I can ever really let you completely go.”
“Let’s not repeat this.” There was a quiver in her tone.
“Yeah, how about we don’t. What good would it do?” he grumbled, stomped to the steering wheel and started the engine for a second time. He pulled down on the throttle and the boat jerked as it moved forward. The quicker he got away from her the better. “After I check out the perimeter, I’ll get you back to land.”
The only sound he heard was the whistling of the wind.
Glancing around, she was nowhere to be found.
He crossed the space and then he saw her. She was in the water, splashing frantically. At first, he thought she called his bluff and started swimming ashore…but her death glare warned him that she’d fallen off.
CHAPTER TEN
SHE’D NEVER wanted to be angrier at Egan, but as she sat in the boat, shivering, after he’d fished her out of the water, she couldn’t seem to form any harsh words to say.
“Here, take this.” He dragged off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders.
Instant warmth consumed her. “Thank you.”
“Please tell me you didn’t jump.”
She squinted. “No. I fell over the edge. Please tell me you didn’t move the boat in a way to deliberately toss me over.” When he didn’t answer right away, she searched his expression.
He burst into laughter. “It had crossed my mind, but even I wouldn’t sink so low. Are you still cold?” The concern she read in his gaze trickled heat through her veins.
“I’m okay. I think. Being wet will be difficult to explain if anyone sees me.” Then it struck her that she’d lost track of everything when she got on the boat with him. “I’m sorry.”
“For which part?” His eyes dazzled in the sunlight.
“I could have put our secret in jeopardy. Someone might have seen us.”
He gave a half-shrug. “Nah. We’re okay. Langley had a meeting and the team is in the mansion with him.” He stood from where he’d been bent in front of her. “I think I remember seeing some clothes in the cabin. Let’s look.” He motioned for her to come along.
With some hesitancy, she waited a good three heartbeats before she finally followed. The downstairs was a small room with cabinets that lined one wall and a bed on the other. Egan rummaged through the contents of a trunk and pulled out a couple of items “This should fit you.”
She wrinkled her nose at the ripped T-shirt. “I can’t wear anything from in there.”
“This is better.” He tossed her another shirt and she caught it against her chest.
Shaking the wrinkles out, she was relieved that it wasn’t too bad. “They’re not my clothes.”
“They’re probably leftovers. However, if you like wearing wet panties then I can’t argue.” He chuckled.
“Leave it to you to turn this into something sexual.” She refused to show any humor at his remark. “Okay. I’ll try the shirt. By chance, are there any bottoms in there too?”
He searched inside again and came up with a pair of oversized sweats. “They’re kind of big, but I think they’ll work.”
She dragged off his jacket and realized he was still watching. “Egan?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you mind?”
“Not at all.” His smile grew.
“Turn around,” she demanded.
“I’ve seen it all before.” When she narrowed her gaze he sighed. “Fine. I’ll go up on deck.” He grabbed his jacket off the bed and made his way up the steps.
The sweats were too big, so she tossed them back into the chest and wore the shirt that came to mid-thigh on her. She laid her wet clothing out on deck to dry and met Egan under the shade of a canopy. He swept his thirsty gaze up and down her. He didn’t say a word, but she saw the tightening of his jaw.
“You always liked boating, didn’t you?” she said as she looked out over the water. “Its nice out here. I bet you snuck out here while you had a chance.”
“I volunteered to take lake duty,” he admitted with a grin.
“Mr. Langley will be in the meeting for a while.”
“Good, then you don’t have to be in any hurry. Why aren’t you in the meeting too?”
She shrugged. “I’m only included on certain information.”
“An assistant that doesn’t have clearance. Interesting.”
“I’m taking that as a low blow.”
“Think about it. The man has how many assistants? Are they in the meeting?”
Her throat tightened. “Yes. Don’t do that, Egan.”
“What? Make you think?”
“Turn me against Langley.”
His chuckle was raw. “Whatever you say.”
In fact, she was glad she didn’t have to be in the meeting. She liked being on the boat and the relaxing feeling it gave her. Most of all, she liked being close to Egan. “Do yo
u remember when we used to joke about buying a boat and traveling the ocean?”
He gave her a sideways glance. “I wasn’t joking. It’s still something I’d like to do one day.”
“Pre-Finley days were something.” She leaned over the rail and looked out along the shoreline. “It’s so quiet out here.”
“My kind of place.”
Leaving the rail, she sat down on the seat. “Why did you take this job, Egan?”
“It’s pretty obvious why.”
“Oh, I don’t know. It seems like things are too calm around here. No adrenaline rushes.” She tucked a wayward, damp strand of her hair behind her ear. “I also get the distinct feeling that you don’t really like Mr. Langley much.”
“What’s there not to like?” he sneered.
“Wow. That was laced with sarcasm.” She tucked her legs up under her. “He can be charming.”
“Even the devil has charm.” He kept his gaze glued ahead.
“Maybe it’s best we don’t discuss him.”
“Probably best.”
“So how did her lipstick and perfume get on your shirt?”
“I’m not hearing the biting tone of wanting to hack off my balls any longer. So you’ve finally come to your senses?”
“Don’t push your luck, mister.” She hid her smile.
“I went into the library and she was in there. She just fixed my tie and brushed against me.”
“Why do I have a feeling ‘just’ in that sentence has a deeper meaning?” Looking back she realized how ridiculous she’d been coming to the dock when she was angry. “She’s quite beautiful. And sexy. I can appreciate that and I’m sure most men can too.”
“And don’t forget screwing one of the security staff.”
“She is?” Although Novah didn’t respect infidelity in a relationship, she had her suspicions that Mr. Langley had done his fair share of misdeeds too. “Do you know with who?”
“Rest assured, it’s not me.” He shot her an amused glance.
“Do you think it’s possible that you and I can ever be friends?” The question must have caught him off guard because she saw his hands tighten on the wheel.
“No.”
“Why not?” She played with a loose thread on the hem of the shirt.
“I don’t want to be your friend, Jed.” He chuckled.
Confused, she looked down at the borrowed shirt and frowned. The name ‘Jed’ was embroidered near the shoulder. “There’s no chance to put the past away and be friendly parents for Fin’s sake?”
He pressed the button that turned the engine off and took the space between them in determined steps. He looked down upon her, his gaze searching her, drinking her in. “No, sweetheart. You and I cannot ever be friends.”
“Egan…”
His mouth covered hers, swallowing any words that would have followed. Internal bells sounded, warning her to push him away, take a stance against her desires, but why? He made her feel wanted…beautiful. Alive. No man had ever caused such mayhem in her body as he did. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders as he slipped his thick arms around her back, lifting her to her tiptoes, crushing her in sweet contact. He slipped his mouth to her neck, kissing and suckling, and she melted under him. There could be nothing harmful about the feelings racing through her—nothing harmful at all.
His fingers slipped up her thigh and underneath the shirt, cupping one bare breast. He slid his thumb over her budding nipple causing her to squirm. He continued to knead the soft flesh and she longed to have his mouth on her so when he kissed his way to the hollow point at the base of her neck, then lower to the deep V neckline of the shirt that exposed the aching mounds, she arched her back in invitation. He sucked and cradled the mounds until she dropped her head back and reveled in the waves of pleasure that pulsated through her.
The hem of the shirt came up and his palm splayed across her quivering stomach, she was barely aware through the fog that he had moved downward to her most sensitive part that had become wet with need. She first felt the brush of his breath on her trembling inner thighs followed by the tip of his finger teasing its way through the slit. He found her clit and tapped his finger against the bud.
She almost jerked out of her skin when he replaced his finger with his tongue. She felt much like a kite fluttering wildly in the wind. He kissed her gently, then probed his tongue along her slit, nibbling and suckling until she throbbed. He penetrated her passage with one finger, then two, thrusting in and out of her body, building a scorching crescendo.
The wind whistled through the nooks and crannies of the boat mingling with her erotic cries as she soared along the clouds. A vibration of thunder rolled in the distance and the wild beating of her heart pounded heavy in her chest. A warm, intoxicating blanket fell over her.
Then he stood. Fluttering her eyes open, her release glistened on his lips and jaw. She reached out, wanting to touch him, but his fingers caught her wrist in a cautionary clutch. Staring at him, she was confused.
“No,” he pushed out between moist lips. “Not here. Not now. When you come to me, and sweetheart you will come, you’ll understand why I can’t be your friend.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
THE POST-ORGASM LINGERED in her body. With each step she took her throbbing inner thighs rubbed her still swollen center. Surges of prickles burned through her.
Mr. Langley had asked to see her and she needed to get her head on straight before she faced him. She knocked on the closed door of his office and waited. “Come in,” she heard him say.
First taking a deep breath, she stepped inside, finding him sitting with his head bent over his desk. He looked disheveled, almost annoyed. When he lifted his chin, he offered her a frown. “Please close the door, Novah.”
As he requested, she shut it softly, feeling her heart kick up. Had someone seen her on the lake with Egan? They had been careful. He’d dropped her off away from the dock and she’d walked back to the mansion alone, but she’d expected Langley to be in the meeting longer.
Thankfully, she’d changed back into her clothes before she left the boat because just as soon as she walked into the house, Mr. Stark had approached her and told her that Mr. Langley wanted to see her. She could have easily taken Stark’s attitude as a warning, but the man had never cared much for Novah. She often wondered if he felt she was a threat when it came to her contact with Mr. Langley.
On the walk to the office she’d prepared herself for what she’d say if he asked about her relationship with Egan, but now standing here, seeing his uneasy expression, she wasn’t sure she could defend herself. “You wanted to see me, sir?”
“Thank you for coming.”
“How was the meeting?” A part of her cringed. She blamed Egan for putting doubt in her head. Every politician had a slew of assistants and people who had a specific job. Yet, as she looked back, she’d even wondered herself why she wasn’t given access to Langley’s files.
“A pain in my ass. I wanted to tell you that the report you did for me today was flawless, as always. I really liked the suggestions you made for the speech.” He pushed his chair back and stood. He wobbled a bit, caught his balance and chuckled. The decanter of scotch sitting on his desk was half full and the glass next to it was empty. Novah had never seen him drunk, or even tipsy, but there was something that made him different.
“Are you okay, Mr. Langley?”
“Peachy. Just peachy.” He rubbed his forehead.
“Sir, did you need me to sit in on the meeting today?” Maybe she could ask why he didn’t want her there.
“Oh, there was no reason for you to be there. You’re too pretty to bother with that lot.”
She swallowed hard as anger coursed through her. Ready to push her curiosity, she opened her mouth, but his next words gave her pause, “I think you’ve been keeping a secret.”
There it was. She was busted. Just tell him the truth. “Mr. Langley, I can explain—”
“You’re quite clever, aren’
t you? You said you didn’t have any prior skills in politics but your ideas on reaching single mothers has worked. I’m up three percent in polls among women voters. You’re a genius.”
Relief made her sigh. “Good. I’m glad, sir.”
“I guess I’m a bit rusty with women these days.” He snorted.
Unsure of where this was headed, she took a step toward the door. “If that’s all, Mr. Langley, I’ll leave you alone.”
“My wife is having an affair,” he blurted.
“Okay—wait, what?” She blinked. Egan had told her this already, but she didn’t expect to hear it from Langley.
“With one of the members of my security detail.” He poured another drink, spilling some of the scotch over the side. He used the sleeve of his shirt to clean it up.
Her heart plummeted to her feet. “Sir, I don’t know—”
“I know you didn’t. I need to bounce my thoughts off someone. You know how women think.”
“Well, I’m a woman, but that doesn’t mean I’m an expert in what all women are thinking.”
“I admire you, Novah. You seem like someone who has her head on straight.” He swirled the scotch around the inside of his glass. “I can’t say I’m surprised when it comes to my wife. I mean, I know Shy has had her fun outside of our marriage for a few years, but she’s not thinking like you do. She’s never been what you might call a thinker.”
Maybe he did know about Novah and Egan because this conversation was growing more awkward by the second. Feeling a little wobbly-kneed, she asked, “May I have a seat?”
“Sure, sure.” He waved a hand through the air.
Stepping over to the brown leather sofa, she sat on the corner cushion and laid her hands in her lap. Sweat beaded between her breasts and her stomach tensed.
“She understands how important this campaign is for me,” he groaned and came to sit down on the sofa next to her. His hair looked messy and the dark circles under his eyes were stark against his olive skin. He smelled like a brewery. “How much I’ve worked for this chance.”
“Sir, I’m not sure why I’m here.”
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