▪️Ace▪️ At six p.m., he yawned and closed his eyes to relieve the strain from staring at his computer all afternoon. Once he’d finished with Simone, which took up the entire morning, Emily had called him in to a video conference with the candy company executives to speak about his suggestions. The rest of the afternoon he followed Emily into meeting after meeting, taking notes on what was discussed, typing them up, and putting them into the shared drive for Emily to review. “Sleeping on the job?” He startled, and his eyes flew open to see Emily smiling, arms crossed and lounging in his doorway. Ace's shirt collar lay open, and his hair was mussed as if he’d been running his hands through it. “Not on your life.” All buttoned up, Emily oozed power and prestige, with a haughty, untouchable, almost dark facade. A woman of mystery. But Ace preferred this Emily—a bit rumpled and weary, unlaced and approachable.

▪️ Emily ▪️ Ace rolled over and on top of her. “Good morning. And happy two weeks.” As always when Ace touched her, Emily's body hardened and her heart pounded. “Two weeks?” Nuzzling close, Ace wriggled down, trailing a path of wet kisses, and Ace almost stopped breathing when that luscious mouth hovered over her opening . “Two weeks together in the office and in bed, and we haven’t killed each other.” About to make a sarcastic comment, Emily choked on her words as Ace ran the flat of his tongue from the top of her pussy to the bottom and then up again . He tightened his lips to create the perfect suction and sucked hard, keeping up the wickedly perfect flutter of his tongue. “Oh, God.” Her eyes fell shut, and she lost herself to Ace's increasingly addictive lovemaking. Threads of fire tingled under her oversensitized skin, and her hands clutched at the sheets. “Now, now.” Ace, that bastard, scraped his nails over her pussy and sank a finger insi

Trey Sunday, late morning, Trey was in his office for a couple minutes while Lucy was getting something to drink, and as his girl put it, “something to nibble on.” They’d had quite the emotional day on Saturday, and he thought back on it with a smile. He realized at that moment that he’d never in his life had more fun with someone, never laughed more in a twenty-four-hour period than he had with Lucy. After he’d surprised Lucy, catapulting them both into the pool, they’d each come up sputtering. Lucy, always one to run cold, had started shivering. They’d gone out to the jacuzzi and had stayed there for an hour, making out like teenagers. Later that afternoon, after much cajoling from Lucy, they’d made love in front of the huge fireplace in the library, and again hours later in their bed. There had been no role play and no kink, they’d been Trey and Lucy, and though they both admitted later they weren’t ones to enjoy vanilla sex, it had been exactly what was needed at the time to g

▪️Ace▪️ Emily choked on her food. “Okay, well, that’s a picture.” “Don’t you see? We’re all the sum of our parts. Yours are large and easy to fit together—helping your mother, taking care of Olivia, and work. Mine are a little more fractured and messy, without clean lines, but I’m trying to piece them together. Maybe I need a little more time and some help, but this is who I am.” Without another word, he attacked his French toast, and they finished as much of their meal as they could. When the waiter had taken the remains away and they sat with nothing left between them but silence, Ace couldn’t be sure where she stood. “I think you’re right.” Emily's quiet statement cut through the fog of misery in his head, where he contemplated going home to his tiny room and staring at something stupid on television. Either that or apologizing to Emily and telling her to forget it. His gaze snapped up. “What?” Just then the waiter dropped off t

▪️ Emily ▪️Intense golden eyes met hers, and Ace's hard jaw softened. “Then tell me. I thought we connected today, more than ever before. What changed?” “Nothing. That’s the problem.” Emily waved her hand in the air. “Nothing’s changed—not me. I’m still the same person you made fun of for being overprotective of Ilana and a hard-ass at work.” “That was because I didn’t know who you were. Now I do.” “And?” She heard the uncertainty in her voice and winced. Always determined and self-assured at work, in this minefield of personal relationships, Emily was flying without a safety net and scared to death. She wasn’t sure what Ace would say. “And I want you more than ever.” Blatant need shone from Ace's face, and Emily's last wall crumbled. She took Ace by the hand and walked with her to the bedroom, where she tugged off his T-shirt and undid his shorts, letting them fall to the floor, followed by his briefs. She was har