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He knew she expected him to go around the front of her desk and sit in one of the chairs. Instead, he propped himself against the edge of the desk, crossing his arms over his chest. “I came to make sure you were all right after last evening. You left so abruptly after we were interrupted.”

“Yes, well,” she began. She met his gaze squarely as she slowly sat back down in her chair. “I don’t do things like that, Lucas.”

“Like what?” He kept his tone even and unthreatening when all he wanted to do was pull her into his arms and hug her.

“Like what?” She stared at him as if he were nuts. She raked her hand through her hair, dislodging a few more locks from the barrette in the back. “Like practically getting naked with a man I don’t even know.”

“Candy.” He leaned forward and hauled her chair over in front of him. With his hands locked around the arms of the chair, he effectively had her caged in. “For the record, I didn’t think it was something that you usually did.” Taking one hand off the chair, he carefully tucked a curl behind her ear. It sprang back immediately, making him grin slightly. Her hair was as unpredictable and untamed as she was. “And as long as we’re on the subject, it’s not something that I do either.”

She cleared her throat. “Okay. As long as you know that and understand that there won’t be a repeat performance.”

That made him scowl. “Why not?”

“You’re a client, Lucas.” She laid her hand on his forearm and he wished he wasn’t wearing his coat so he could feel her fingers brushing against his skin.

“You don’t work for me and I don’t work for you. There is no conflict. Besides which, that’s what I’m here to talk about.”

He could tell he’d aroused her interest, but she leaned back in her chair and eyed him coolly. “Oh?”

He’d give her credit— she didn’t jump at the bait, but waited to see what he’d offer. He admired her for that. A lot of other people would have started demanding an explanation, but she obviously had patience. “You want me to do some promotion for the book.”

“Yes. It’s the reason I’ve been trying to track you down for the past few weeks.” She tried to reach around him to snag her calendar off her desk, but gave up when she realized that he wasn’t moving. He caught a haunting whiff of vanilla-scented lotion as she shifted closer to him.

Leaning forward, he cupped her chin in his hand. “I’ll agree to do a select few promotional interviews. But,” he continued before she got too excited, “only if you agree to have dinner with me.”

“That’s blackmail.”

“The brownies were blackmail to get you to talk to me. Okay, technically they were more of a bribe than blackmail, but you ate one of them,” he pointed out.

“That’s different,” she sputtered. “I didn’t even know you had brownies. And this entire conversation is absurd.”

“That may be, but the offer stands as is. You want me to do some promotions, then you’ll have dinner with me.” He rubbed his thumb across her bottom lip. It was lush and full and moist. “Besides.” He angled closer to her, bringing his mouth nearer hers. “I’m not asking you to have sex with me. Just dinner.” Giving in to temptation, he licked her bottom lip, tasting the chocolate from the brownie she’d eaten mingled with her own sweet flavor.

“Just dinner?” she whispered as she shifted forward until their lips were barely touching.

“Hmmm,” he agreed as his lips skimmed across hers. “That doesn’t mean I won’t try to convince you to have sex with me, Candy. I want to finish what we started. We’d be so good together. You know it as well as I do.” He slid his tongue past her lips and tasted the warmth of her mouth before retreating. “I want to fuck you until you scream with pleasure. I want to lick every inch of your body until you beg me to fuck you again.” He slipped his tongue into her mouth again, mimicking the sexual act.

Both of them were breathing hard now. Candy’s hands had moved at some point and were now gripping the sides of his neck as she pulled him closer. He forced himself to retreat once again. “Have dinner with me, sugar. You won’t regret it.”

She let out a whimper as he captured her mouth again. This time there was no holding back. What was it about this particular woman that made him lose all control? At his age, he thought his days of being led around by his dick were long over. But Candy made a mockery of his self-discipline. His entire body was clenched tight with need and he was so incredibly close to shoving everything off her desk, spreading her across the hard surface, flipping up her skirt and driving himself into her waiting warmth.

And she would be wet for him. He knew she would.

Without breaking their kiss, he hauled her out of the chair. Pulling her between his spread thighs, he cupped her ass in his hands and rubbed her mound over his erection. Tugging at the fabric of her skirt with his fingers, he yanked it upward until he could slip his hand beneath it. Once again, she was wearing thigh-high stockings. He promised himself that one day he’d fuck her while she was wearing nothing but a pair of those ridiculously high-heeled shoes that she seemed to favor and these fabulous stockings.

The image made his cock throb, so he yanked open his jeans, allowing his erection to spring forward. At the same time, he pushed her skirt upward in the front and pulled her closer so that his aching flesh was pressed tight against the heat of her silk panties. He almost yelled with pleasure as she rotated her hips, grinding her pussy against him. Clasping her silk-covered behind with his hands, he silently encouraged her.

Slanting his lips over hers, he devoured her mouth, fucking it with his tongue, claiming it as his. He pushed one of his hands lower over her ass, slipping it between her thighs. She widened her stance, letting him touch her, moaning her pleasure as his fingers slid over the slick, wet fabric. Skimming the edge of the fabric, he slipped his fingers beneath.

His breath was coming so hard now that he was afraid his chest might burst. She was hot and wet, just as he’d known she would be. Damn, she was so naturally sensual and giving, she drove him wild. He had to have her.

There was a loud knock at the door.

They pulled apart and stared at each other. Lucas swore as he gingerly removed his hand from inside her panties. Candy hurriedly pushed her skirt down and stared at his groin as he carefully zipped his jeans over his erection. Even though he was clenching his teeth against the pain, he almost grinned at the look on her face. Part hungry, part appalled, it made him feel better to know that she was in this just as deep as he was. “Sugar, you’re not helping.”

Her head jerked up and she gasped, her cheeks turning pink.

The person on the other side of the door knocked again. “Candy, are you busy?” The doorknob turned and a woman walked in. Lucas managed to seat Candy back in her chair and take a step away from her before the new arrival realized that there was someone else in the office. She looked startled but recovered quickly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know Ms. Logan was busy. I’ll come back later.”

“That okay. We’re done… for now.” He left those last two words hanging in the air. It was up to Candy now. She knew his terms. The last thing he wanted to do was leave her, but he forced himself to walk across the room. It was surprisingly difficult given the tightness of his pants. He saw the other woman’s eyes widen in surprise, but thankfully she refrained from making any comment.

When he got to the door, he turned back. Candy was still sitting in her chair, looking slightly stunned. Her lips were swollen, her cheeks were rosy and her hair was a bit more mussed. But other than that, she appeared almost exactly as she had when he’d arrived. “Enjoy your brownies.”

As he turned to walk out the door, he tossed one parting challenge over his shoulder. “I’ll wait for your call.”