by Sabrina York
Aw, hell.
He swore he’d never let himself fall again. And here he was, mooning over a woman who was so certain their affair would end—and badly—she refused to tell anyone, even her best friend, that he was the internet lover she’d been crowing about for months.
Somehow he had to convince her what they had wasn’t just your garden-variety lust. It was something much, much more. Somehow he had to convince her he was the one and only man for her, that their relationship was perfect just the way it was and everyone in the office—everyone!—should know about it. Like, right now. Today.
Deep in thought, making plans and practicing speeches in his head, Adam left Tristan’s office and headed for his own, totally oblivious that his brother was still talking.
“You’re passionate tonight,” Kat murmured, petting Adam’s dark chest hair.
He stared down at her, reveling in her sated expression, reveling in the knowledge that he’d put it there.
She had no idea what had happened in the lab, no idea why his passion had been so inflamed. The thought of Jack and Kenny and Billy and all the rest of them thinking of Kat in a sexual way made him want to rip someone’s arms out of their sockets.
Oddly enough, this was nothing like the feelings he’d had for Betsy, even when he’d caught her in bed with his so-called best friend. He had no doubt Kat had a faithful heart. Trust was not an issue with them. He just didn’t want any other man—on the planet—looking at her in a sexual way. He didn’t want anyone thinking about her like that. He wanted her all to himself. He realized his feelings were a little illogical but he couldn’t help it. It was simply the way he felt.
He was going to have to talk to her soon about their relationship and he knew it. But he dreaded it. They’d agreed they would continue their affair as long as no one in the office except Tristan knew about it. His fear was that if he demanded they tell everyone, she would insist on ending it and that would devastate him.
But he couldn’t live this way any longer. He couldn’t go to the office and watch other men ogle her. He couldn’t abide the idea that those men were thinking she might be available. He certainly couldn’t allow the assumption to persist that they—any fucking one of them—had the right to take a shot.
The only way to convince them of that was to make his position as her lover known. He needed to mark his territory. He needed every man to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Kat was taken. Kat was his.
All he had to do was convince her.
“I’ve been thinking.” He ran his hand down her creamy flank, reveling in the shivers he induced in her.
“Really?” She propped her arm on his chest and leaned forward to lick a nipple.
He hissed in a breath. “Oh. Yeah. That’s nice.”
“What have you been thinking about?”
He chuckled. “I’m not sure I can remember when you do that.”
“Do you want me to stop?”
“Never.” He brought her mouth back to his nipple with a gentle pressure to the back of her head.
“Then,” she said between soft nips, “tell me what you’ve been thinking about.”
“Us.” He flinched as she nipped, perhaps, a little too hard.
She stopped nibbling altogether and lifted her head to glance at him, uncertainty replacing the satisfaction on her face. A shaft of regret danced through him with the realization that she was probably done nibbling for a while. Especially if they had this conversation now.
But they needed to have this conversation now. They really needed to.
“What have you been thinking about us?” Her gaze locked with his.
He rolled her onto her back, covering her with his body. He molded her cheeks with his palms and held her still as he consumed her sweet mouth for a long, leisurely moment before pulling back to gaze into her eyes. “I’ve been thinking how much I enjoy being with you.”
“Umm.” Her wary pose relaxed as she accepted his words. “I enjoy being with you too.”
“But I hate keeping it a secret.”
There. It was out.
He waited for her to ice up, to reject his idea. But she stretched languorously beneath him. “Umm. Me too.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s a pain pretending we’re just coworkers when all I want to do is rip off your clothes and ravage you.” She gave a small laugh.
Thank God. “Then you agree. We should let the cat out of the bag.” Wonderful. Extremely relieved, he dipped his head for a kiss and missed. In fact, he hit the pillow. For Kat had eased out from beneath him.
“What?” She sat up, her expression a dance of anger and confusion. “What are you talking about? We can’t tell anyone about us. We agreed.”
“Tristan thinks it’s a good idea too.” This, he added in a helpful tone.
“Oh dear.” Kat rolled out of bed and hunted for her bra and panties. Her clothing was strewn all over his bedroom.
“What are you doing?”
“We agreed we wouldn’t tell anyone about us. We agreed it would be a disaster.”
No, Adam thought, propping up on his elbow to watch her skitter around the room. It would avert disaster. For one thing, it would keep him from killing Jack. A frown formed on his brow. “It won’t be a disaster.” It would be frickin’ great.
She paused halfway into her blouse. “Adam. You don’t understand what it’s like for a woman when something like this gets out. It’s awful. The whispers. The rumors. The way people stare at you. The way they treat you. I hated it, Adam, and I don’t want that to happen here. I love Trillo–Maris.”
He leapt from the bed and hovered at her side. “Trillo–Maris loves you.” It was as close as he could come to saying those words but she waved the heartfelt comment away.
“What am I going to do if this costs me my job?” She buried her face in her hands. “Two times in a row? I’ll be un-hirable.”
“You’re not losing your job.” His frustration rose as he watched her dress, knowing he was losing her, at least for the night. She was slipping through his fingers like a handful of sand and all he wanted to do was grasp tighter. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“Home.”
“Home? I thought we were going to the banquet tonight.”
She fixed him with an incredulous glare. “Together?”
Perhaps his intention to do just that shone in his eyes because she growled and continued hunting for her shoes. “Men,” she muttered under her breath.
“Kat.” He followed her around the room as she hunted. “Wait. We need to talk about this.”
“Why? So you can get what you want and I can get screwed? In more ways than one?”
“It’s not like that, damn it.”
“Really?” She glared up at him. “What exactly is it like?”
“I just want them to know you’re mine.”
Katherine stilled as her hovering heart completed its fall.
Adam knew how strongly she felt. He knew what it would mean to her, the humiliation she would suffer if everyone in the office found out about their affair. Yet still, he was pressing to tell them. To tell them all. To have his own way. She glanced down at the hands gripping her shoes. Her knuckles were white.
She forced a stoic expression though panic roiled beneath. She didn’t want it to end. She wasn’t ready for it to end. But that’s what Adam was doing. Ending it.
“I see.” She swallowed against the thick knot in her throat. “We agreed not to tell anyone,” she said softly. “We agreed our affair would last as long as no one in the office knew about it. I explained why it was important to me and you agreed. Now you’ve changed your mind.”
“I haven’t changed my mind. I never wanted to keep this a secret. I thought it was a stupid idea then and it’s a stupid idea now.”
The blood drained from her face. “What?”
Realizing his gaffe, Adam quickly backpedaled. “I didn’t mean it that way. It’s just that, well, people nee
d to know.”
“People do not need to know. This is a private matter. Between the two of us.”
Adam’s brow darkened. “Things have changed. You don’t understand.”
“Oh, I understand.” She did and it broke her heart. Adam knew the quickest way to end their relationship was to broadcast it throughout the office. She’d made herself more than clear. She had no intention of losing her job this way. Not again.
But he was insisting on doing just that, which meant he either didn’t value her concerns or he didn’t value their relationship. Neither was acceptable to her. She grabbed her bag. “I think we’re through here.”
His nostrils flared. “What do you mean?”
She met his eyes with a hint of a tear in her own. “I think you know what I mean.”
Adam frowned. “We’re not through.”
“Yes. We are. I have to go.” She scrabbled for the only excuse she could think of—one that had always done the trick in the past. “I have work to do.”
“Forget your work. We need to talk.”
“My work,” she said, “is my life. Obviously you don’t understand that, Mr. Trillo.”
“Don’t call me Mr. Trillo!” He stalked toward her and took her arms, forcing her to face him. “Kat, listen to me, would you?”
She turned away. “I think you’ve said all there is to say. Now if you don’t mind, I have to go.”
Wrenching herself from his grip, she stormed from his house, leaving him standing there, naked, confused and more than a little bereft.
By the time she arrived at her condo, Katherine had calmed down enough to think through her dilemma with some element of logic but that didn’t make her inner turmoil any easier to stomach.
Despite her adamant insistence that they keep their relationship a secret, she had to admit the arrangement was starting to wear on her. At first it had seemed a logical solution to their problem. They could continue to see each other, continue to enjoy long, languorous lovemaking sessions—as long as no one at the office knew.
But the past few days had proven that solution to be awkward and difficult. For one thing, she didn’t like the leers some of the other women in the office gave Adam when they thought no one was watching. For another, she had to constantly stop herself from reaching out to fondle him should he wander too close. It was difficult to censor every thought, every word.
And how annoying was it that they could never attend an event, such as this banquet, as a couple? Instead, they would have to arrive alone, pretending to be stag.
How lame was it to date from across the room?
But if they hadn’t agreed to keep their relationship a secret from the others in the office, they would never have embarked on a relationship in the first place.
And oh, she was glad they had.
As hard as she’d tried to protect herself and avoid getting hurt, as blasé and sophisticated as she pretended to be about it, she’d fallen for him. And hard. He’d gone from a silly workplace crush to the man of her dreams in the space of a week.
She loved him. Like she’d never loved anyone before.
And he wanted her. He might not love her, might not feel a fraction of the raging emotion she felt for him, but she had that at least. He wanted her.
The bottom line was, she had two choices. She could leave Adam—a thought that chilled her to the bone—or she could leave Trillo–Maris.
Yes, she loved her job but it was just a job. She’d turned down three other positions when she’d accepted the offer from Tristan. She could always find another job. If she had to choose between them, she chose Adam.
Her path was clear.
Tomorrow she would troll through her Rolodex and polish her resume.
As for tonight…
She sucked in a breath and threw back her shoulders. A tiny smile teased her lips.
Tonight she would go to the banquet and seduce Adam.
In front of everyone.
And to hell with the consequences.
Chapter Fourteen
The banquet was held at the fanciest restaurant in the area, perched high in the west-facing hills of the San Fernando Valley. As Katherine pulled into the drive, handing her keys to the waiting valet, she caught her breath. It was like a fairyland. A quaint pond with a charming waterfall welcomed guests to the sprawling, cross-shaped restaurant, and all the trees surrounding the building had been decked out with tiny white lights. It would be a romantic night.
If she had anything to say about it.
A thread of excitement shimmered within her at the thought of seeing Adam, dancing with him, teasing him, tantalizing him.
Despite her mood and the fight she’d had with Adam that afternoon, Katherine was bound and determined to enjoy the evening. She would laugh and joke and have fun. She would do her damnedest to seduce Adam, right here at the banquet.
And she’d made it a point to dress the part.
Her black dress had a sassy, flippy skirt that hit her mid-thigh. Her legs were bare. She wore the heels he’d given her, and beneath her dress, the thong and demi-bra. She thought of wearing the bracelets and anklets as well but only for one steamy, salacious minute. Her private moments with Adam were just that—private. She had no desire to advertise to all and sundry. Besides, just seeing those heels should be enough to tip him off as to what she wore beneath.
She’d put her hair up but only because he’d asked her not to let Jack see it down, and though it was up, it was woven into a seductive knot of curls and braids that framed her face. She looked her best and she knew it.
She took the stairs into the restaurant at a leisurely pace, partly to enjoy the view of the sparkling valley below and partly to make sure she didn’t embarrass herself in those heels. As she entered the elegant banquet hall, she waved to Sara and Shannon at the welcome table, who were blowing up balloons and chatting genially with the few people who had arrived. Soft music played in the background. The room sparkled in the candlelight.
Along with these observations, she also noticed immediately Adam wasn’t there. A frown of disappointment passed over her face. They hadn’t discussed their plans for tonight but he was co-owner of Trillo–Maris. Surely he had to make some kind of appearance at a company event.
Whether or not Adam was coming became a moot point as soon as Jack found her. She made the mistake of walking to the bar to get a drink and he spotted her immediately. They were in a knot in the corner, Jack and his interns, as they often were in social situations, watching the females, whispering things amongst themselves and giggling.
Katherine walked up to the counter and ordered a white wine. She’d seen their little huddle and had every intention of beating a fast retreat but Jack cornered her before she could make it back out into the banquet hall.
“Hey, Kat.” He sounded extra smarmy, a nod, perhaps, to the fact that this was a dress-up affair. “You’re super hot tonight.” He waggled his eyebrows, making Katherine think of the mating caterpillars she’d seen on a documentary once.
She bit back a smile. “Hey, Jack. Are you having a nice time?”
Again with the eyebrows. “I’ll be having a better time when you and I are on the dance floor.”
“What?”
“Don’t tell me you forgot? You promised me a dance.”
“I did?”
Jack frowned and leaned in closer to hiss, “You remember. When I gave you the VoIP?”
Oh yeah. Holy crap. She’d promised Jack a dance. She wrinkled her nose. This was shaping up to be a miserable evening. She forced a smile. “When would you like to dance?”
His hungry gaze raked her up and down and she winced inwardly. Why, oh why had she dressed like this? Certainly not to seduce Jack—or his interns—but judging from the drooling and whispering and giggling going on in the corner, this outfit was doing the job. She wanted to go home and change into sweats or something.
Jack moved his hips and wiggled his arms in a way that made her wonder if someone
had dropped live bees in his pants. “How about a little horizontal tango?”
Katherine glared.
He winced. “Just kidding.”
“You really need to learn how to talk to women.”
“Yeah. Right?” He tugged on his beard and ran a finger under his collar. “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to teach me?”
“No.”
“Just the dance then?”
She sighed. “If I must.”
He shot a glance back at his entourage, each man tracking the encounter with the breathless zeal usually reserved for a new Star Trek episode.
“Okay. How about the first slow dance?”
Katherine shuddered all over and not in a good way. “I didn’t promise you a slow dance.”
His face scrunched up. “Come on, Katherine. I gave you that beta without hesitation. I think I deserve at least the same courtesy.”
Katherine frowned. Ugh. He was right, in a sense. She did owe him a dance. Better to get it over with now before everyone else arrived to witness her humiliation. Oh. And while her stomach was empty. You know, in case she got urpy. The thought of dancing with him was already making her a little nauseated. She grabbed Jack by the hand and dragged him over to the dance floor.
“Ack,” he squealed. “What are you doing?”
“We’re dancing.”
“Now?”
She looked him in the eyes. “It’s now or never.”
“Oh baby.” He yanked her into his arms.
She went with a yelp, falling inelegantly against him. She couldn’t help remembering the time she’d danced with Adam and fallen against him—what a difference. Adam was hard and warm and smelled wonderful. Jack was doughy and sweaty and he smelled vaguely like old cheese. Katherine found her balance and pushed back, ignoring Jack’s cry of dissent.
“There.” She held him in a perfectly respectable embrace—an arm’s length away. “That’s better.”
