Samhain Publishing Ltd, Ebooks and Books in Print

Damn.

Evan took a sip from his Styrofoam cup, vaguely aware of a burning sensation on his tongue. His whole body could have been on fire and he doubted he would notice. He’d fixed all his senses on a woman who stood near the ice cream freezer, staring out into the throngs of people who passed back and forth across the airport corridor.

Her hair was three different shades of brunette, a sleek bob that showed off graceful shoulders and a neck made for kissing. He couldn’t see her face, but her backside provided a view so magnificent a man should have been charged by the minute just to look at it. He could easily imagine lowering the zipper that traced her spine and slipping off that deliciously tight dress…

Oh, yeah. If he didn’t already have plans to visit Paula tonight, he’d put the moves on this woman. He needed a release, preferably the sexual kind. His head still throbbed from the shrieks of the child sitting behind him on the plane, a sound he had added to his long list of reasons for seeking permanent bachelorhood. Now he ached for some very grown-up attention.

A second sip of coffee nearly melted his lips. He cursed and jerked away from the cup, then put it on the table with a sigh. After two weeks away on business and almost no sleep, was a good caffeine fix so much to ask?

Thankfully, he had just one day left at this wretched consulting job. He’d spent half his life edging toward the top rung of the corporate ladder, and finally, just weeks away from his self-imposed deadline, Paula had offered him the perfect opportunity. But as usual, she was late picking him up, so he had a few more minutes to admire the delectable assets of the mystery woman.

At least, until she turned around and caught him watching her. His leisurely gaze morphed into a full-blown stare. She looked incredibly familiar. Where had he seen her before? Her features twisted in what appeared to be an effort to retrieve him from her memory as well.

She squinted, then took a step back. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped to form a horrified “O”. That face…

Barry’s.

They had met at Barry’s Lounge. A long time ago, probably several months back. It was her. It had to be. No one else had ever looked at him with an expression of such panic—and in the bedroom, no less. It hadn’t exactly boosted his ego to sleep with a woman and have her answer his efforts with a covert escape. He’d never forget stepping out of the shower and finding her gone, then peering out the window in time to see her jump into her car and speed away. He’d been confused. Hurt. Pissed off.

And his long-awaited chance to chew her out had just arrived.

He abandoned the table and the coffee, raring to confront her. He was no stranger to one-night stands, but something about the way she’d scurried out when he wasn’t looking ate at him to no end. Casual sex was one thing, but being used as an anonymous human vibrator pushed a line of disrespect he’d drawn after he had worked his way out of the slums.

He flashed her an innocent smile. “Get lost on your way to the bathroom?”

The way her eyes narrowed left no question that she knew what he meant. She folded her arms across her generous chest and examined his wrinkled clothes and unshaven face, the results of a day’s worth of traveling. “A classy guy like you hasn’t had anything else to think about for the past six months?”

“I’m sorry, was I supposed to dress up for you?”

“I wouldn’t expect that from someone who pierces his face.”

Several of the coffee shop’s patrons craned their necks to see what she was talking about. Evan fumed, but he refused to defend his appearance to her or anyone else. The small ring in his brow held a significance they could never understand.

“I hate to tell you this,” he said, “but if you wanted to intimidate me, you shouldn’t have run away like a scared kid.”

Her eyes matched the green of the ocean on a postcard he’d picked up before leaving Virginia. Abruptly, they shifted away from him.

“Back off.” Her voice had lost much of its bite. “I’m expecting someone here and it sure isn’t you.”

“Oh, darn.” He snapped his fingers, scanning the cafe for another familiar face.

Where on earth was she? He flew so much that Paula had generously offered to play chauffeur to save him outrageous parking fees. They always met in the same place, and he knew he’d faxed the itinerary to her. Flipping his mobile phone open, he pressed her speed dial button and smirked at the woman in front of him just for spite.

She glared at him and paced between the tables with her hands stuck on her hips. He didn’t remember her being quite that gorgeous—or irate—the first time they’d met. But it had been dark and he’d downed a few drinks by that point.

“I’ve been waiting for half an hour,” he greeted his sister when she answered. “What’s the hold up, Paula?”

His acquaintance froze at the sound of the name.

“Didn’t you get my voice mail? I’m busy at work and I sent one of my employees to pick you up. Isn’t she there?”

Silence.

“Evan? Hello? Bree Jamison. She’s tall, short hair, black—”

“Black dress…right. Never mind.” His hand and the phone slipped from his ear and came to a stop on his shoulder. “I found her.”

The din of the simultaneous conversations going on around him faded. That woman who had left so quickly yet stayed on his mind for months…the one who piqued his interest and his anatomy at the same time he wanted to put his hands around her slender, kissable neck for treating him like a fool. She was his ride.

She was Paula’s employee.

Interesting.