by Jackie Braun
He could come clean in one regard.
“Here’s the thing. I have plans for every penny I stand to make on the sale of Douglass, and it still looks like selling off the assets would be the most lucrative way to go.” Thinking of the years of thought and months of actual planning that had already gone into the trauma center, he added, “It’s not something I could back out of even if I wanted to. I’ve given my word to people who are counting on me. People who are counting on that money and all the good it can do.”
She keyed in on the last part. “The good? What do you mean? What do you want the money for?”
“I’m not at liberty to say right now. An announcement will be coming, hopefully before the end of the year.”
“In other words, you don’t trust me to keep it quiet.” She sighed, shook her head. “A lack of trust seems to be a recurring theme between us.”
“Kate—”
She cut him off. “You said you couldn’t back out even if you wanted to. Answer me this, Brody. Do you want to?”
“No.” Frustrated, he pushed his hand through his hair. But it wasn’t as simple as that. “The problem is that I want more than one thing.”
Chapter Eleven
Brody pushed to his feet and paced to the living room. Kate gave him a minute before getting up to follow. She found him in front of one of the built-in shelves that bracketed the hearth. When he turned, he was holding a framed photograph of Kate and her mother. In it Kate was sixteen.
“You look just like her.” He traced a finger over the image, adding, “Same eyes, same mouth.”
“But that’s where the similarities end. She committed suicide.”
The stark words hung in the air between them. Brody’s expression matched Kate’s surprise at having uttered them aloud. And perhaps because the conversation with her father was so fresh in her mind, tears threatened. The anger she’d held on to for so long was now riddled with grief that she hadn’t allowed herself to feel.
“God, Kate. I had no idea. I’m so sorry.”
“Few people do. My father managed to keep the specifics of her death out of media reports.”
Brody set the picture back on the shelf and turned to her, taking both her hands in his. “We don’t need to talk about it.”
But Kate found she actually wanted to talk about it. Especially with him. She wanted him to understand her. To understand what drove her. To know her in a way that no other man ever had. “I was the one who found her. We were supposed to have lunch. When I got to her apartment…” Kate swallowed convulsively at the memory, but continued. “She’d slit her wrists.”
Brody was still holding her hands. She pulled one away to brush a tear from her cheek. Before she could, though, he did it for her, then cradled the side of her face in his hand.
“I didn’t realize until just recently how…angry I was with her. And angry with my dad, too, because he didn’t want to talk about it then, and ever since he’s treated me as if I might do the same thing if pushed too hard.” She laughed softly, but without humor. “It turns out he was blaming himself. He felt he should have done more, tried harder to get her the help she obviously needed while they were married.”
Brody’s expression turned oddly circumspect. “Sometimes tragic things happen. In time you learn to accept what can’t be changed.”
It seemed an odd thing to say and his expression was…haunted. “Brody?”
“Your mom died when you were seventeen, right?”
“Yes.”
“Thirteen years ago,” he murmured. Then, “And he blamed himself.”
“He shouldn’t have, but, yes. My parents were divorced; for that matter, their relationship had been over a long time by then. She wouldn’t take the medication she was prescribed. She would be happy one day and then in her bed for the next week. He’d finally had enough. He didn’t leave my mom. She drove him away with her erratic behavior and unwillingness to seek treatment. I never faulted him for looking for happiness elsewhere. I like Eliza. I always have. Some people tried to paint her as a home wrecker at the time, since their relationship predated the divorce, but the sad fact is there was no home to wreck.”
“No one knows this side of you,” he said. It sounded as though he added, “Or your father.”
She shrugged. “People see what they want to see.”
“And you let them.” He frowned before leaning in and pressing his lips against hers.
The kiss was light, brief, and more intimate than anything else they’d shared. It left her feeling exposed. Brody must have, too, because afterward he straightened and took a step back.
“I should go.”
She brushed the remaining dampness from her face. “Worried if you stay you’ll wind up taking advantage of me?”
“I don’t want to hurt you, Kate.” The truth in his words was written all over his face. Her heart squeezed in her chest.
“Okay.” She nodded. “You’ve told me what you don’t want, Brody. Now tell me what you do.”
He tucked his hands in the front pockets of his jeans and rocked back on his heels. “I want you, but—”
“No buts. I think we’re past those.” At least she hoped they were.
“All right. Still—”
“That’s just another way to say but.” She smiled, enjoying his nerves. Finding them endearing.
“I didn’t come here to seduce you.”
“Nor did I invite you here to seduce you.” She was thinking of it as a happy side benefit. “I wanted to talk. Make sure we understood one another.”
She wouldn’t dwell on the fact that not everything had been settled. With her body screaming for release, it didn’t seem relevant.
“I think we need to go slow.”
Her ensuing chuckle was more the result of sexual frustration than humor. “I thought we’d been moving slow. In fact, from where I’m standing, the pace has been downright glacial.”
Brody blew out a breath. If it had been the result of exasperation, she would have backed down, but she knew that look. She knew that smile. He leaned in, kissed her. The contact didn’t last long, but it still managed to stoke her hormones into a full-blown riot.
“Kate, I know how I feel. And I’m pretty sure I know how you feel. But I…I’m compelled to point out that I’m your boss. I don’t want you to think you have to…”
He stopped talking when she began to laugh.
“Seriously?” she managed to say once she’d caught her breath. “You mean I don’t have to have sex with you to keep my job or pass my probationary period?”
“Smart-ass. I just wanted to be sure things were clear.”
She sobered. “Oh, they are perfectly clear. So, now that that’s settled…” She pulled his shirt free from his jeans.
Mesmerized by her beauty, Brody watched Kate’s face as she undressed him. Her gaze was on the job at hand, her lower lip caught between her teeth. He sucked in a breath as her fingers skimmed the taut muscles of his abdomen and then his chest as she worked the shirt over his head. After discarding it on the floor, she offered a sultry smile and reached for his belt buckle. He stopped her with a kiss. If he let her continue, he was afraid he’d make a rookie mistake and be done before they were both naked.
Afterward, he scraped his teeth lightly along the underside of her jaw. By the time he reached her ear, some semblance of sanity had been restored, and he whispered, “My turn.”
He lifted her sweater slowly, reminding himself that anticipation was the point of foreplay. Done right, it made good sex even better. Based on how he was feeling, his first time with Kate was going to be off the charts. When his knuckles skimmed the soft skin of her torso, her swift intake of breath was his reward. And nearly his undoing. He held it together, continued. Finally, the lacy cups of a bra the same color red as the sweater came into view. A couple inches later, so did the flesh that spilled over them. His memory from their night in his dimly lit SUV hadn’t done her justice, he thought, pulling the swea
ter over her head and tossing it aside.
He decided to speed things up as the crotch of his pants became uncomfortably tight. But getting Kate out of her jeans proved trickier than removing the sweater. First he had to relieve her of her heels. He got down on one knee in front of her, motioning for her to put her foot on his thigh, which was bent at a ninety-degree angle to the floor. The buckle on the strap was small and finicky, especially since impatience had made his fingers clumsy. If he’d had a knife, he’d have sliced through the leather and been done with it. Kate’s ragged breathing and the way her fingers curled in his hair certainly didn’t help. Finally, one shoe came off and then the other. Then he was peeling those tight jeans over her hips, pushing them down her thighs and shapely calves. He got to his feet once she was completely free of them. Then he let himself look, take her all in as she stood before him in her tiny red satin undergarments. Every inch of her was gorgeous, sexy. Perfect. And he wanted her to be his.
“See something you like?” she asked boldly, propping a hand on one hip.
“Actually,” he drawled. “I like everything I see.”
To prove the point, he stepped closer and lowered his head, letting his tongue glide over one lovely swell before he tugged down the lacy cup to take her beaded nipple in his mouth. A moan tore from her throat, and her hands came up to fist in his hair, keeping him where he was. As if he’d had any intention of going elsewhere. He was satisfied with their positions. For now.
So he laved and sucked as she strained to get closer. His fingers found the undergarment’s clasp in the back. With a flick of his thumb and index finger, he unfastened it. The bra joined the growing pile of their clothes on the floor.
The sounds Kate was making between breathless panting were as much a turn-on as the way her breasts were now before him like a buffet feast.
He straightened, breaking contact long enough to say, “Why don’t we take this to the bedroom?”
Her eyes were glazed, her hands once again reaching for the buckle on his belt. “The couch is a lot closer.”
He wasn’t sure whether to laugh or send up a prayer of thanks as he murmured, “A practical woman.”
They moved toward it in unison, fumbling with each other’s remaining clothing as they went. By the time they reached it, she had his pants around his ankles and the pair of cotton boxer briefs he wore beneath them were sliding over his hips. Just her panties remained as he kicked free of his jeans. He wedged a finger under the thin strip of elastic on each of her hips and tugged down. That was that. Every last bit of her was exposed as she stood in front of him in the gauzy glow of the setting sun that streamed through the sheer panels covering the windows.
She took a step back, turned around slowly before facing forward again, giving him a three-sixty view of a figure that was toned and lean and curved in all the right places. The half-dollar-sized yin-yang symbol on the side of her right breast wasn’t nearly as eye-catching as the rounded curve of her bottom. The mannish suits she wore to the office camouflaged one hell of a body. Even her skinny jeans had only hinted at her flawlessness. His approval was obvious.
Kate sucked in a breath, exhaled slowly as her gaze lowered to take in his rock-hard erection. The smile that curled up the corners of her mouth was confident and all the more erotic for it. She bridged the meager gap between them and, planting her palm in the center of his chest, pushed him back until he was forced to sit on the couch. Then she followed him down, straddled his lap, holding herself just a breath above him as her bold smile broadened.
“I’ve been thinking about this for a long time,” she said.
“I have, too.”
Brody didn’t need to slip his hand between her thighs to know he would find Kate wet and as eager as he was. But he did so. He wanted to focus on her pleasure. For now.
As soon as he made contact, she moaned and began to buck against his hand, her body arching in a way that forced the air from his lungs. She was so responsive. So assertive. So uninhibited. And so damn beautiful that it literally took his breath away.
“I want it fast.”
“You can’t always get what you want.”
Her voice sounded strained when she asked, “Are you really going to start quoting song lyrics to me right now? I want you, Brody Flynn. Fast and hard.” Then she smiled as she clarified, “This time.”
“This time?” He liked the sound of that.
“That’s right. There will be time for finesse later. In fact, I’m going to hold you to it. Are you on board with that?”
Was she kidding? His body was singing a chorus of hallelujah.
“Hey, you’re the VP of operations. Your call.” He worked up a grin even as he wanted to groan. Her clothes had hidden a hell of a lot more than a killer body. The woman was the definition of sensual. Nothing about her was tentative or came across as vulnerable now.
“Why are you smiling?” she asked.
“Just thinking it’s always the quiet ones you have to watch out for. Still waters and all that.”
“You’re thinking right now? Really?”
She had a point. In one swift move he had her lying beneath him on the couch. She’d told him she wanted it fast and hard. Well, her wish was his command.
…
Kate let out a startled cry when Brody entered her in one quick thrust. One moment she’d been straddling his lap an inch away from what she was sure would be heaven. The next she was beneath him, his impressive length buried inside her.
“Are you—”
“Fine,” she assured him, a shiver of delight passing down her spine. “Just surprised…in a good way.”
In a very good way, she decided, as he started to move and the pressure between her hips began to build again right along with his speed. She arched her back against the cushions, rising off them as much as she could with his body on top of hers. She matched his rhythm, met his thrusts, relishing the feel of his hardness wrapped in her damp heat. Relishing the feel of his body on top of hers.
She ran her hands down his torso, over the hot skin that covered taut muscle and hard bone. Glancing over his shoulder she caught a flash of colors—brown, yellow, and pale gold—just below the divot at the top of one side of his butt. His Virgo tattoo. It was bigger than she’d expected it to be and covered some seriously prime real estate. But between his furious pumping and her partially obstructed view, she couldn’t make out the exact design.
Nor did she care when Brody shifted their positions, urging her knees higher on either side of his hips and burying himself even deeper inside her. He pushed up on his palms and offered a wicked smile before changing his rhythm. Her body reacted instantly—sensation built on sensation, sending her heart rate soaring. Her breath caught in her throat before coming out in a moan that only served to spur him on. She wrapped her legs around his waist, desperate for the release they were both hurtling toward.
“Kate.” He said her name like a prayer as the first wave of her orgasm crashed over her.
She expected that would be it, and she was hardly disappointed. On a scale of one to ten, their lovemaking was already off the charts. But the pressure built once more, pulled her back under and swamped her again. And again. All the while Brody held her tight. As the last shudder shook her, he lowered his head, his breath panting in her ear as he came.
Chapter Twelve
The only other time Kate had slept with someone she worked with, she’d been a lowly intern and the man in question had been a junior executive only a couple years her senior. Brody was no mere coworker. He was her boss. And they had gotten very little sleep when he’d spent the night on Saturday.
But it was Monday morning and she wondered—worried—that things between them might be awkward or strained now that they had their clothes on again. How should she act? She couldn’t very well kiss him…or do any of the other things she’d fantasized about during the twenty-four hours since he’d left her house.
The elevator doors opened, and she glan
ced anxiously in the direction of his office. The door was open as usual. Drawing closer, she saw that his desk was empty. She turned toward her office and stopped. He was leaning against her desk, hands braced on its top, gaze intense.
“Good morning,” she said and offered a tentative smile.
“Good morning.” He didn’t smile.
“Something you need?” she asked, coming fully into the room.
She hadn’t intended the double entendre but was relieved when he flashed a devilish smile. “As a matter of fact…”
He rose from his spot so he could close the door behind her. He clicked the lock afterward, his lips finally bowing with a smile, then he pinned her between the oak six-panel and his body. His kiss was hungry, thorough. If he was entertaining any regrets, he certainly hid them well.
“And I was worried things would be awkward,” she murmured as his mouth cruised along her jaw.
…
Facing her father three weeks later, however, proved far more difficult. Especially when the first thing he said upon her arrival at the house was, “Did you know Brody was going to fire Collin?”
It was raining outside. Pouring, in fact. Kate shook her head in shock, sending droplets of water flying in the marble-tiled foyer. “He fired Collin? When?”
“Barely an hour ago. It happened just before I called your cell. You didn’t know he was going to do that?”
“No.” And that bothered her a little. She was a senior member of his management team. Surely, given her position, she’d warranted a heads-up. But Brody hadn’t mentioned it when he’d walked her out to her car. Instead, he’d kissed her and promised to call when he got settled in his hotel. He was leaving town for a few days, sneaking in a visit with Jessie in New York tonight before hopscotching around to the Midwest hubs and other Douglass divisions tomorrow and the next day. “What reason did he give?”
