He’d heard these words or similar ones so often they barely registered anymore.
Until now. With McKenna.
Her melodic tone again reminded him of her singing Of the passion he’d sensed in her. Why did she work so hard to deny her nature?
Get a grip. She’s only playing pretend, and you know it.
She placed her hands on his shoulders and massaged his taut muscles. Her gaze locked with his. “Ooh, you’re so tense. Am I bothering you?”
“What do you think?”Hell, yes. In ways he never expected she could. His head knew she was putting on a show to teach him a lesson, but his body didn’t care, kicking into overdrive.
What was wrong with him? He and McKenna had nothing in common. She wouldn’t know how to have a good time if the Lord gave her directions. Worse, she was a good girl. A rule follower. Women like McKenna expected what he couldn’t give.
He stiffened and placed his hands over hers, intending to pry them off his shoulders, but froze. Instead his thumb caressed the sensitive skin on the inside of her wrist. Her sigh sent his pulse racing.
The warm glow in McKenna’s eyes drew him in. He sucked in his breath. The apparent desire on her face, in her touch was an act. Despite that, Lord help him, he wanted to make her feel that same intensity for real. For the first time in his life, what a woman thought of him mattered.
His hands slid down her back, caressing. Her sharp, hot breath fanned against his neck, burning his skin. Her lavender and mint scent drifted over him. Fresh and earthy, unlike the cloying scents many women wore. McKenna licked her lips, and common sense deserted him. All he could think about was making McKenna’s desire match his.
He leaned toward her, but she closed the distance between them. Her lips covered his, startling him before excitement, raw and powerful, surged through him. He pulled her hips toward his and deepened the kiss. Passion, strong, heady, and overwhelming, flowed from McKenna into him.
Her body molded to his, angles against slender curves. He couldn’t get close enough to her. He needed more. His tongue mated with hers as his hand drifted upward to cup her breast. Her sensual groan echoed in his ears, fueling his need.
A ping sounded. McKenna gasped and jumped away. He couldn’t meet her gaze. What the hell had they done and how could her kiss have lit him up brighter than a Christmas tree?
Needing time to cool off, Zane dug his phone out of his pocket and glanced at the screen, discovering AJ texted him to see if he’d be at the Horseshoe tonight.
When he faced McKenna, she’d tamed her wild curls back into the horrid bun. “It’s not hard to be the kind of woman you like. All it takes is telling you what you want to hear, hanging on your every word, and playing up to you to keep from bruising your enormous ego. What a great basis for a relationship.”
His hand tightened around his phone. “Yup. Superficial, temporary, and fun. That’s how I like ’em, and I tell a woman that before we get started.”
He couldn’t risk repeating his parents’ mistakes. He refused to put the pain he’d seen in his mother’s gaze in a woman’s eyes. After all, how could a serious relationship work when neither parent wanted him after their divorce? He was part of a past they wanted to forget.
When he looked back at McKenna, he swore he saw pity in her eyes. Why, when it should be the other way around? She was the one who wasn’t living. He had a full life. She was the one who strangled the joy out of everything with her endless rules.
But then she wrapped her arms around her waist and banked her emotions. Whatever he’d seen disappeared, leaving her composed and in control again. “Listen up. I’m going to tell you what I think whether you like it or not. I’m not one of those females who’ll cater to you.”
“No worries I’ll think that.” His phone buzzed again with another text from AJ.Heads up. McKenna will be there. Something about helping with the band for the reception.
What she’d said had been true? “AJ texted me saying you’ll be at the Horseshoe tonight. Something about the band for their reception. You really expect me to be there? It wasn’t an excuse?”
“That’s right. I’m meeting Grace at seven to help negotiate a contract if they like the band.”
“You don’t need me for that.”
“I know, but my guess is since I told Campbell you’d be at the Horseshoe, she’ll be there looking for you. If you’re not, she’ll want to know why. You’re going because I have no intention of dealing with her ticked off twice in one day.”
“I thought you said you didn’t need my help handling Campbell.”
“I could deal with her tonight, but I don’t want to. She’s your problem.” She walked away.
He let her go. He’d had all he could take of dealing with women today, but first chance he got he intended to give McKenna a lesson on company hierarchy, and who was on top of the org chart.
*
At six-thirty, McKennastood on Ginny’s front porch, a loaf of pumpkin bread clutched in her hands, her stomach tight, and her nerves frayed. Until Zane’s arrival, the office had been a place where she felt competent. There she could forget about her debts and focus on creating a future better than what she’d had before she was fired.
How could she have kissed Zane? Not a friendly, quick kiss, but bodies-pressed-together-hands-exploring-each-other kissed him? Worse yet, she’d enjoyed every single nanosecond of the experience. She’d never felt anything as wild and overpowering as the desire Zane aroused in her.
