8

“Shit.” Lana scowled at her computer screen when she realized she’d spent the last five minutes inputting the wrong data into the wrong column of her Excel spreadsheet. She jerked off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose.

The events from the night before kept replaying in her head like a broken record. Not only had she admitted to Matthew that she was available but then she’d promised to go out on a date with him as soon as

he returned from New Zealand in three weeks. He wanted to take her out

sooner but she’d reminded him that if they were going to finish the account in time for his trip to New Zealand that they just didn’t have the time to spare. He’d seen the wisdom of her advice and agreed—although very reluctantly, but not before she promised to give him a rain check.

“What is wrong with you? How did you allow a twenty-nine year old to browbeat you into a date of all things?”

She shook her head at the absurdity of the situation. He was a

handsome, virile, wealthy man. There had to be an endless line of

beauties trying to break down his door. “So what the hell does he want with me?” She muttered aloud.    At forty-one she held no illusions about her shortcomings. She did her best to eat healthy, exercise and take care of herself, but she was not under any naïve impression that her full breasts were still perky and that there weren’t visible pockets of cellulite in places where she wished they weren’t. She frowned at that thought.

Matthew undoubtedly had his pick of women, so why her?

The doorbell chimed, interrupting her thoughts, and she glanced at her clock in the corner of her computer. Speak of the devil. Matthew was right on time.

On bare feet, she padded down the hall to the front door and pulled it open. He stood there looking breathtakingly handsome with his dark hair combed back off his face wearing a white polo shirt and khaki pants that fit him perfectly.

Her heart beat faster in her chest as she stood to the side to let him in, the scent of his aftershave tickling her nose when he brushed past.

“Hi. You ready to get to work?” She asked, wondering if that breathy, husky voice she’d just heard was really hers.

“Yep,” he said with a heart-stopping grin and she had to mentally shake herself to keep from drowning in the twin blue pools of his eyes.

“What?” She asked, when he stood there staring at her with a puzzled look on his face. That’s when she noticed there was a bouquet of flowers in his outstretched hand.

“Matthew—,”

“I can’t believe you want to argue with me about this. They’re a gift—for you.” He held out his hand again. “Take them,” he said softly.

Not wanting to seem childish by protesting over something as innocent as flowers, she grasped the bouquet of pink roses as she smiled. “Thank you.”

His face seemed to light up when he grinned down at her and in that moment something clicked inside her. He seemed genuine in his interest in her. She could tell by the way he looked at her that seeing her

happy, seemed to make him happy. She gave a mental shrug as she accepted that he had a simple crush on her. She could handle that. Hell, there were worse things than having the harmless attention of a handsome young man.

Her smile grew wider when he tugged her into his arms, but unlike last night she didn’t protest. “What are you doing?” She asked, although she already knew.

His eyes twinkled with mischief. “Nothing right now, but I’m getting ready to kiss you since I’ve softened you up with the flowers.”

“Ah, I see, your little Trojan Horse,” she chuckled softly, before she closed her eyes and tipped her head back to meet his warm lips. He kissed her sweetly, as he took his time exploring her mouth with his tongue. He slowly built a fire inside her and then as he deepened the kiss, he fanned the flames until she was feverish. With her free hand, she clung to him, as their lips and bodies fused together.

It was a long time before they pulled away from each other.

“Mmm, you make it hard for a man to want to concentrate on work.”

She laughed softly as she moved away from him to walk back down her hallway. “Well, you better concentrate or else you will lose the New Zealand account and that is no way to start off as CEO.”

He twisted his lips into a surly frown, and she bit her cheek to keep from laughing. At that moment, he looked like a petulant little boy, but she knew he wouldn’t appreciate her saying that.

“You certainly know how to cool a man’s ardor too,” he grumbled.

She flashed him a wicked grin. “They don’t call me the Ice Bitch for nothing,” she quipped from over her shoulder, before she turned her head around and headed into her office, where they both settled in for another grueling day of work.

*****

Lana stretched her arms above her head and yawned.

“I’m calling it a night,” she mumbled weakly past another yawn as she swiveled her chair around to face Matthew.

As soon as she saw him she couldn’t help but smile. His mouth was slightly agape, as his head rested against the back of her small couch. He was fast asleep.

She crossed the room to remove the laptop that still sat on his legs. She saved all his files and closed it up, before flipping the lights off in her office. It was close to two in the morning. No sense in waking him just so he could drive home sleepy. She turned off all the lights on the first level, except for the one in the hallway that led to the bathroom, just in case he awoke in the middle of the night. She then set the house alarm and climbed the stairs to her own bedroom.

As soon as she closed her bedroom door behind her, she quickly removed her jeans and black t-shirt to don a night gown, before collapsing across her bed in exhaustion.

In minutes she too was fast asleep.