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  “It’s all about ruthless development. My family doesn’t agree with me, though. It’s no surprise, of course, because this brings in a lot of cash, but lately, I’m struggling more to accept it. It just doesn’t feel right. On top of this, my job is super-stressful, and I feel like I don’t have full control, even though I’m in charge...”

  I didn’t know what to say when he finished, not liking in the slightest that he was the same as those people who threatened to demolish Pathways’s building. He didn’t like that part of his job, I got that, but we all had choices. He could’ve left his job a long time ago if he really couldn’t stand it.

  “You’re frowning. What’s wrong?”

  “It’s just that your occupation is not my favorite.”

  “Why?”

  I looked at the bar, wondering if I should disclose what I was thinking.

  No. That probably wouldn’t be a good idea.

  “For various reasons.” I put on a smile. “But they’re not that important. So, you’ve told me about your work, now how about what you do for fun?”

  He leaned against the table again, casting me a seductive smile that made me squirm on my seat. How did he manage to have such an effect on me so easily?

  “You’re that curious about me? Now this feels like a date.” He winked at me, and heat spread through my stomach.

  “I’m just interested—as a therapist—to know if you have anything that helps you relax.”

  His smirk told me he didn’t believe me for a second. “I like to play soccer in my free time. And yes, it helps me get rid of some tension.”

  “Soccer? That’s nice.”

  “It is. I’ve been playing since high school, and I even got sports scholarship based on my skills, but in the end, I followed the footsteps of my father and enrolled in business school.”

  “Do you regret it?”

  “No. I liked studying business. And it suits me more than being a soccer player. But how about you? What do you like to do for fun?”

  “Actually, I’m pretty into yoga.”

  He scrunched up his face as if I’d said something absurd, recoiling. “Yoga? That’s so…so boring!”

  I gasped, staring at him in incredulity. “It is not boring!”

  “It is. I’d get bored in five seconds if I was there.”

  I pouted, crossing my arms over my chest. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.” He snorted, which was followed by a fit of laughter. “Why are you laughing?”

  He pressed his hand against his mouth to suppress his laughter. “You’re cute when you’re sulking like that.”

  Oh. I took a sip of my wine, trying to cover how flustered I felt. I had to remind myself that he was a jerk and that we probably wouldn’t see each other after this night was over.

  Only, I couldn’t peg him only as a jerk anymore. Yes, he had some qualities I didn’t like, but for some reason, I felt relaxed with him. We were actually communicating now, and there was no anger or bitterness lacing our conversation.

  Soon, one drink turned into two more, and I found myself enjoying my time with him more than I’d thought would be possible. I learned about his other interests and shared some of my stories involving Alison and Marissa. He was pretty normal and nice when he was relaxed, and it was becoming more and more difficult to ignore how beautiful he was when he smiled or how big and manly his hands were. I wanted those hands on me.

  No. I shouldn’t think that way...

  Or should I?

  He caught me looking at his hand that was wrapped around his glass with whiskey, and he cleared his throat. My eyes snapped up to meet his, and the air left my lungs, my mound throbbing once, twice. Lust was written all over his face as we stared at each other in a sudden silence.

  “I’m having a nice time with you,” he said, barely audible.

  The place had become more crowded as more people sauntered in, and the noise started impeding our conversation.

  “Maybe we should go someplace else?” he suggested, and by the way he looked at me, I knew exactly what he had in mind.

  I tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear, wanting nothing more than to act on impulse and do what my body was begging me to from the moment we sat here. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t let passion take over my mind and make me do something I’d regret later. It was best if we ended everything here.

  “I think I should go home,” I told him. “It’s late and I need to get up early for work.”

  He picked up the hint. “I understand. Then I’ll pay and we can go.”

  I reached for my purse. “No. You don’t need to pay for me. I—”

  He placed his hand on mine across the table, stopping my movements. “Don’t even think about it. It’s the least I can do after how I treated you before.”

  Since I’d come here with Uber, Jared said he would drive me home, refusing to accept no as an answer. On our way to my place, the tension in his Porsche was almost palpable, emphasized by the fact that none of us spoke a word during our drive. He’d put on some soft music, which was supposed to soothe my raging nerves, but that was next to impossible when all I could think about was how close he was to me.

  That large hand that was covering the gear stick next to my thigh... His sexy scent that made my pulse double... His nearness that made me imagine so many naughty things I wanted to do with him...

  He stopped at my apartment’s parking lot and shut down the engine. Still, neither of us said anything as we stared at each other. His chest was rising and falling as rapidly as mine, his eyes almost unrecognizable under the veil of desire that covered them...

  And then he was kissing me. My arms wrapped around him before I could even process what was happening, and the next moment I was on his lap, straddling him. My dress rose higher, allowing me to spread my legs wider, which he used to cover my naked thighs and slide his hands until he reached the edge of my panties.

  Our tongues were sliding against each other in increasing urgency, and heat spread like wildfire through my body. I couldn’t help but grind against him, relishing in the feel of his hard cock against my soft pussy, and it felt better than anything I’d imagined.

  A couple of seconds—or minutes—later, we separated from each other, both breathing heavily. I fixed my dress as I sat back down on my seat and clenched my thighs together to ease the pulsating sensation in my core.

  “You feel amazing, Claire.” I met his gaze. “I know we started off on the wrong foot, but I enjoyed talking to you a lot. Now I’m really glad Jay couldn’t make it.”

  Now that he mentioned it. “How do you know him?”

  “His father is my father’s best friend. We’ve practically grown up together.”

  “I see.”

  “You’re not mad he showed me your picture, right?”

  I made a sigh and ran my fingers over my still-tingling lips. “Not anymore. I also had a good time with you, Jared.”

  “Then how about you give me your number? I’d like to see you again.”

  I didn’t know if the kiss had made me react on impulse or something else, but I didn’t doubt even for a second the decision to give him my number. And not only that. I actually couldn’t wait for him to call me.

  This night had definitely taken an unexpected turn.

  4

  “Remember, it’s important to identify the events that trigger you. You need to know the cause. Also, pay attention to your negative thought patterns,” I said to my client, Mr. Wade, but then I frowned when I lost my train of thought.

  I was in the midst of a therapy session, but I had trouble focusing because I kept thinking about Jared. My lips still tingled whenever I thought about the searing kiss he’d given me three days ago in his car, or should I call it making out?

  Either way, it affected me more than I’d thought, and now I wasn’t able to stop thinking to myself how sexy he was. We’d been texting each other these past few days, getting to know each other better, which culminated in a phone
call last night when he admitted he missed me and wanted to see me again.

  “It’s so hard,” Mr. Wade responded, rubbing his temple. “I’m reminding myself to follow your advice about mindfulness all the time, but I often catch myself a little too late. My wife is threatening me with a divorce.”

  “My offer for couples therapy is still on. You’ll have more chance of overcoming this crisis if you two work on this together.”

  He pressed his fingertips against his temples and began massaging them in circles. “She doesn’t want that. I’ve been trying to convince her, but she’s stubborn.”

  I shot a discreet glance at the clock on the wall. Only a couple more minutes left. A legion of butterflies filled my stomach with the thought that I would get to see Jared soon. I had a hard time keeping a huge smile in check, but luckily I was an expert at controlling my facial expressions. It was funny how only several days ago I thought the worst of him, but now I really liked him and wanted to see where our mutual attraction could lead us to.

  Okay. I should focus on Mr. Wade already. Stop thinking about Jared, silly. “If you’re able to bring her here at least once, maybe I’ll be able to convince her to give couples therapy a shot.”

  His wife’s support was important for his improvement, but it wasn’t rare to see unsupportive spouses. If she didn’t want to cooperate, it could prove to be detrimental to Mr. Wade’s case because he wasn’t a strong-willed individual. He needed to be reassured all the time and have someone by his side.

  “I’ll try once more,” he muttered.

  “In the meantime, redirect your anger and focus on positive thoughts. There are a plenty of healthy ways of letting that anger out. Like sports.”

  “I’ve tried running.”

  “And?”

  He shrugged his shoulders, his smile sheepish. “Overall, it helps, but I hate running.”

  I returned his smile. “I understand, but if it helps, it’ll be good for you to continue running, and you know it. Or kickboxing. You mentioned once you love kickboxing.”

  “Yeah. But my wife hates when I do kickboxing.”

  Years of experience taught me not to show my real reaction to clients, which helped me look as if nothing surprised me or perturbed me. So, I didn’t show him my sneer, which begged to come to the surface. The more I heard about his wife, the less I liked her.

  “Then try to find some compromise.” Casting another glance toward the clock, I threw on an encouraging smile. “You’re doing well so far, and you’ve shown a lot of progress. Keep up the good work.”

  As soon as he left my office, nervousness came knocking on my door, and I grabbed my compact mirror to see how I looked. My makeup was understated and fresh, and my hair was falling in perfect blonde waves. I looked good, especially because I was wearing a black suit that accentuated my curvy figure.

  I checked my phone for any messages from Jared, who was about to arrive in a few minutes, when the phone started ringing and Marissa’s ID appeared on the screen.

  “Hey,” I greeted her, checking my red polished nails. “How’s it going?”

  “Do you want the good news or the bad news?”

  “Didn’t I tell you there is no bad news at all? Each bad thing has a grain of something positive, which can lead to much better things.”

  “Yeah, yeah, I know. But I don’t know how this can be at all positive.” Her grim, impatient tone of voice told me she wasn’t in the mood for my motivational talk.

  “Okay. Give me the good news first.”

  “I managed to talk with the developer’s CEO.”

  “Nice. And?”

  “And it was a let-down. I went above and beyond, trying my best to convince him to change his plans, but it was pointless. He mentioned it’s not only up to him but up to his board too. It seems that this project is pretty lucrative, which is why they don’t want to give up on it.”

  I squeezed my hands together, exhaling a heavy sigh. There had to be some way out of this. We couldn’t just close our doors and do nothing.

  “So there is no way to convince the CEO to change his mind?” I asked, still trying to find at least something hopeful.

  “Nope.”

  Bastard. “Okay. Thanks for trying, though. So what can we do next?”

  “I’ll talk with Bobby again and see if the purchase is definite. Maybe there are still some other buyers in play, and if so, I can try contacting them too.”

  “Okay. Keep me posted.”

  “Sure. We didn’t have time to talk about your date a few days ago. How did it go?”

  One more glance at the clock told me Jared was about to come any moment. I didn’t have time to go into details with Marissa, so this conversation would have to wait for some other day.

  “It was fine, and I had fun. It went above my expectations.”

  “Oh?” I could practically imagine her eyes growing wider. “So you two hooked up or what?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Uh-oh. That doesn’t sound good.”

  “Not in that way complicated. It’s just that his friend came instead of him.”

  There was a short silence on her end before she squealed. “Really?!”

  “Yep.”

  “I can’t believe it. And how did it go?”

  Heat spread through me as I remembered the intensity of our kiss. “A bit bumpy, but in the end, we managed to find a mutual language.” I grinned at the memory of his hands on me...

  The knocks on my door interrupted my reverie, telling me to wrap this conversation up. “I have to go now. I’ll tell you more about it later.”

  “Definitely. I’m dying to know now.”

  “Sure. Love you. Bye!” I ended the call. “Come in.”

  My pulse accelerated when Jared opened the door and strolled into my office. He was dressed casually—jeans and a leather jacket, which made him look yummy—and he was carrying a bouquet of roses. I hadn’t even realized how much I’d missed him, overjoyed to see him again.

  “Jared. You didn’t have to,” I said breathlessly, approaching him. The roses were beautiful, covered with silver glitter, and the fresh smell caressed my nostrils.

  His smile was captivating. “Anything for you.”

  Just as I stopped in front of him, he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me in for a kiss. It was unexpected, but my body reacted immediately, my hands grasping his shoulders as I steadied myself in his embrace. His tongue delved into my mouth, creating more heat in me, and my body came closer to him on its own accord.

  I could sense his erection against my mound—hard against soft—and the contrast was arousing.

  When he finally pulled away, we were both hot and breathing unevenly. His dark eyes skimmed over my face as if he was drinking in my every pore and line, and I basked in his attention.

  I looked at him through my lashes. “What was that for?”

  “I just really, really missed you, Claire. You’re so beautiful.”

  “Thank you. And I missed you too, Jared.”

  His grin brought dimples to his cheeks, which were plain adorable. There was no physical part of Jared I didn’t like, which was new to me because I always managed to find some physical flaw in guys I dated. I was smitten by him, literally swooning at each of his smiles or gazes, and I had yet to see if that was a good or a foolish thing. I’d never felt this strongly about someone whom I’d just met.

  “Here. Take these,” he told me, handing me the roses.

  “Thanks. They are perfect.”

  “Just like you.”

  I actually blushed. Like a teenage girl on her first date. What was he doing to me?

  “You’re flattering me.”

  “I’m just telling the truth.” His fingers trailed my face, his gaze holding me captive. “So how about a dinner at my place? I’ll make something delicious for you.”

  My brow arched. “Oh, so he cooks?”

  “That’s one of my hobbies. I love experimenting with food an
d creating different dishes.”

  “Wow. I’m impressed.”

  His cocky smirk was adorable. “Wait until you try it.”

  He lowered his head and pressed another kiss on my lips, and it was all I needed to completely forget about the problems with Pathways. At least for tonight. Tonight I’d push my worries aside for a moment and let myself enjoy this time with him.

  “So is that a yes?”

  “Absolutely.”

  5

  I was gazing at the skyscrapers below and around, enjoying the evening breeze and the starry sky as I waited on Jared’s balcony while he cooked us dinner. His penthouse had an amazing view of the nearby bay. The waxing moon was shining on the surface of the water, creating a glimmering ocean that looked magically serene.

  One of the things I enjoyed doing when I needed to slow down and de-stress was to go into nature and spend time hiking, camping, or star-gazing. It was something I would always recommend to clients who led extremely stressful lives and couldn’t free themselves from the shackles of work commitments.

  Since I wasn’t always able to take enough time to leave the city, I had to find a good place to relax in this concrete jungle, and the bay was one of those spots. There was just something about the water that brought me inner peace, especially during summer nights like tonight, when the stars gathered in an awe-inducing canvas with no trace of clouds.

  “What are you thinking about?” Jared asked me from behind, placing his hands on my shoulders.

  I shivered when his warm hands connected with my skin, his breath caressing my temple. I only had to turn a few inches and our lips would merge, which was exactly what I did. A bolt of pleasure rushed through me when our tongues slid against each other, starting a slow dance that set my body on fire.

  I almost swayed when he pulled away, left breathless. “I’m thinking about this view. It’s amazing. If I were you, I would run your company right from this balcony.”

  He chuckled, wrapping his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him. His erection nestled against my ass, and I reacted impulsively, grinding myself against him.