by Nicole Helm
Her body’s reaction was no different than the first time she’d seen him because, well, yum. But something new filtered in with all that lust.
Love. Connection. Belonging. She was where she belonged.
What an amazing thing to feel and know.
Nate glanced her direction and grinned. He said something to Bob, then walked toward her while the older gentleman climbed into the plane. “There you are.”
“Here I am.”
Without saying anything else, he grabbed her hand, leading her back into the office. And once they were in the building, Nate’s arms came around her waist and his mouth was on hers.
Vivvy melted into the greeting kiss, more than happy to be wrapped up in Nate after a few days away. Who cared if it was in public in broad daylight?
“I missed you,” he murmured against her lips.
Her heart shivered in response. “Missed you, too.” Still a little scary to admit, but she was getting better at it. “Wasn’t that Bob out there? You don’t want to ditch your best customer.” Not that she pushed him away. Instead, she held on.
“He was on his way out. And there are some things that are just a little more important than customers.”
“Really?”
“Mm-hmm.” He gave her a hard peck on the mouth, then released her. “Gotta show you something.”
Vivvy smoothed down her rumpled clothes. “Not the best of come-ons, dear.”
He rolled his eyes, pulled her to the conference room, then looked at her expectantly.
It took a few seconds to realize the sign on the door no longer said CONFERENCE ROOM. Instead a new sign read VIVVY MARSH PRODUCTIONS. She tried to make sense of it, but couldn’t quite do so.
“Go inside.”
“But—”
He gave her a nudge, so she stepped inside. Instead of the old table and chairs, filing cabinets, and random airport odds and ends, the room was now clean and resembled an office. Desks, computers, a phone. All shiny and new and perfect.
Vivvy had to swallow before she could speak. “You made me an office.”
“Well, gotta keep you here somehow, don’t I?” His arm wound around her waist and he squeezed. “Two desks for when you can afford to bring Ellen on. Like it?”
“Nate, it’s...perfect.” It was embarrassing to feel emotional over a few pieces of furniture shoved into a barely used room. But no one had ever given her anything like this.
“Good.” He kissed her temple, and Vivvy had to swallow again. It took a few minutes to tear her eyes off the area around her, but when she did she met Nate’s gaze.
“Thank you,” she said, letting the emotion she felt show through in her words, in her expression. Also not easy, but something she was working on.
“You’re welcome,” he replied simply, then his hand slid from her waist and entwined with her hand. “Come on. Let’s get you home.”
She leaned into him for a second, taking one last look around the office. Her office. “Yes, let’s do exactly that.”
Acknowledgements
Supreme thanks to Elley. I most assuredly would not have attempted or finished this story without your encouragement. Thank you also to Ruth for picking Nate and Vivvy out of the slush and Libby for making their story shine.
As always, I’d be lost without the support my family, especially my always ready to baby-sit in-laws.
About the Author
Nicole Helm grew up with her nose in a book and a dream of becoming a writer. Luckily, after a few failed career choices, a husband, and two kids, she gets to pursue that dream. There is nothing Nicole enjoys more than writing about strong women and the handsome men who win their hearts.
Nicole lives in Missouri with her husband and two sons, and writes her novels one baby’s nap at a time. She’s slightly (okay, totally) addicted to Twitter (@nicolethelm), loves watching the St. Louis Cardinals, and, much to her husband’s dismay, just about any reality competition show.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Epilogue
Acknowledgements
About the Author
