▪️Ace▪️ “Your sex monster returns—” Too late he saw Emily sitting and motioning for him to be quiet, then burying her head in her hands. “Is that Ace? Ace is there with you?” His mother’s voice sounded from the phone lying on the bed. Oh, fuck. Speakerphone. He set the bowls and beer bottles on the dresser. “Hi, Mom.” “What are you doing at Emily’s at three in the morning?” Thinking fast, he opened the beer and took a quick gulp. “I couldn’t sleep and figured Emily would be up too, and I was right.” “I see. I guess that’s why there was no answer when I called your phone?” “Yeah. I was in the kitchen, making us a middle-of-the-night snack. How was the flight? Have you seen Doug?” “Yes. My poor son.” He heard her grief-stricken voice, and his hand shook. Emily took the bottle from him and set it on the night table. “What do the doctors say?” “They’re hoping to do X-rays today to see if there’s a skull fracture. He had a quiet night, and he’s stable. Other than that…

▪️ Emily ▪️ Her shoulders slumped. “That’s another thing I don’t know anymore.” As expected, Ruth's brows shot up. “What? What’re you talking about? What don’t you know? You love him, and he loves you.” “Sometimes love isn’t enough.” “That’s nonsense. What happened? Did you have a fight?” “No. Nothing like that.” Even now she yearned to go to Ace. “Some disturbing news about him came to me today.” “Disturbing? What do you mean? Spit it out already.” While she felt uncomfortable revealing something so private, Emily valued Edith’s discretion and her opinion of people. “Remember I told you Ace worked on Taylor Croft's superyacht?” “Yes. As her assistant. Like what he does for you now. Minus the benefits.” She smiled, but she couldn’t return it. “No. Including.” Breaking eye contact, Emily finished her drink. “Turns out he was sleeping with Croft when they worked together.” “And?” Her gaze shot to hers. “What do y

▪️ Emily ▪️ “Have been with girls, sure. But here today and gone tomorrow. A couple of months and we grew bored. That’s how it always was. They weren’t real relationships. Maybe…” He stopped and chewed his lip, looking sweetly vulnerable. “Maybe because I was always comparing them to you.” “Me?” she repeated. “What’re you saying?” Ace, who hadn’t removed his hands from Emily’s shoulders, now slid them around her neck. “I’ve already told you I had a crush on you. From the first time I saw you at my parents’ apartment, standing a step or two behind Liam, looking all nervous and out of place yet so damn sexy, I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” “And now here we are.” Emily framed Ace’s face with her hands. “All these years later and I’m not much smarter than I was back then.” “You didn’t need to be. I was the one who had growing up to do. And I know what I want and who. You.” “I’m right here.” “So am I. I’ve never b

▪️Ace▪️ Ace snapped out of a dirty fantasy of Emily—dressed all in black, stalking into the bedroom where he lay naked—to stare openmouthed at Simone . It took guts to admit that, and he darted a glance at Emily to gauge her reaction, but as usual the woman remained a blank canvas. “Go ahead.” “I looked at Ace as an enemy instead of someone who could help, and I listened to gossip instead of giving him a chance to prove himself. I’ve always felt a little isolated here—I haven’t made any real friends with anyone on staff, so I talked myself into disliking him on sight, instead of welcoming him.” “And now?” Emily fixed Simone with that dark, penetrating stare. “You’ve miraculously changed your mind?” “No. Not miraculously. I already knew his ideas were good and that you were impressed with him. So when Tim contacted me and I mentioned Ace had joined the firm and that he’d worked on Croft's yacht, he fed me his version of the story about Ace’s tenur

▪️ Emily▪️ Emily kissed him softly, then, as always when she touched Ace, with increasing hunger. “You don’t have to worry about that anymore. You’re not alone.” “Never.” Ace's mouth opened under his, and Emily tangled her hands in Ace's hair and pushed him down on the couch. Golden eyes glittered, and his breath came in short, hard pants. “I need you.” Emily's heart swelled. Just as she was about to pull off his tie, the buzzer rang. “Shit. Dinner.” Mason licked his lips. “I can wait. Just get it, and we’ll eat later.”Emily hit the buzzer, not even waiting for the doorman. “Send them up, Roland.” “Okay, Jude.” Smoothing her hair, Jude waited by the door. The moment the bell rang, Emily opened it, expecting the delivery man to hand her the bag, but it wasn’t their dinner. A tall woman with silvery hair and piercing gray eyes gave her a slight smile. “Emily?” The British accent sounded somewhat familiar.“Yes? Who’re you?” “I’m Taylor Croft.