Authors: Jane Beckenham
"I asked you to wait because I might want to say yes.” He stepped closer then, and his tall frame cast a shadow about the room.
Tension knotted in Taylor's stomach, and her breasts felt suddenly heavy and full.
Remember to breathe. Slowly. In ... and out.
She repeated it silently, a mantra as she battled to regain a semblance of control.
"You intrigue me, Taylor Sullivan."
"And you'd have sex for such a flimsy reason?"
Wasn't she doing exactly the same?
But Taylor refused to answer her own question.
Cade's seductive gaze traveled her length, lighting a trail of heat to the tips of her toes.
"Depends. Are you going to tell me why you walked in here and offered yourself? Sex is a serious game."
Taylor searched for the right words, unsure really if there were any right ones. “In my business, I need experience."
"You plan weddings; you don't have to sleep with the grooms."
Taylor gasped, but not one single word came out and as the seconds ticked by, the color rose in her cheeks, hotter and hotter. Cade wanted an answer. Deserved one. She clutched her bag, kneading the leather. “I ... get asked questions,” she finally managed to whisper.
"What sort of questions?"
"What do you think? Damn it, Cade, do I have to spell it out?"
"Seems so,” he said with the hint of amusement glittering in his way too sexy eyes.
"You're enjoying this."
"Sure,” he said, not even denying it. He gave another of his smiles, the ones that got her all hot and bothered. She was very bothered.
"I get asked questions—about sex. S.E.X. Got it?” Taylor looked everywhere, but at Cade. This wasn't how her life was meant to be. She'd had it all planned, sorted, just like her family.
"Got it.” She thought he'd laugh, joke, something, but not this ... not gentle. Cade caught her chin in his fingers, turning her so she had to look at him. “So why not answer them?"
Oh, man. Where were those damned red shoes of Dorothy's when she needed them? Kansas looked pretty appealing right now.
"I can't answer them."
"Can't?"
The tip of her tongue washed along the edge of her teeth. “Look, I realize this is on the edge of weird."
"True,” he agreed, much to her chagrin. “It's not every day I have a beautiful lady come into my bar and ask for sex."
Didn't he? Why not? Cade was hunk material. He made her forget—everything.
"The questions are something that goes with the territory of being a wedding planner. Brides get nervous,” she said, hugging her bag to her chest. “They may be experienced, even living with their partners, but sometimes as the wedding draws near, they get skittery. They ask, um ... questions—about sex. Questions I can't answer, because..."
"Because you're a virgin?"
"That's right."
Oh, God in heaven!
Heat burned her face. Her scalp. Everywhere. She speared Cade with a direct glare.
Don't you dare laugh! Don't you make me feel any worse than I do
, she silently challenged.
But he didn't laugh. He didn't smile. What he did was worse. Much worse.
He closed the gap between them. Taylor's body erupted into high alert, nipples pebbling beneath her lacy bra. She could deal with him at a distance. But close up, everything changed. Body heat got in the way.
Taylor Sullivan certainly captured his attention. She wanted sex with him. Bemused, Cade stared down into eyes the color of a field of cornflowers beneath a wide blue sky. The kind of eyes that made him feel she could see deep into his soul, understand things he didn't want her to know. Things he hid even from himself. All this from one moment in time.
He blinked.
What the hell was wrong with him? Thank God he'd kept those thoughts to himself.
"Most women who come in here asking for sex are..."
"Hookers,” she offered.
Cade watched her bite at her bottom lip. He wanted it to be him. “I should say no. It's a wild scheme."
"Why don't you?"
Yeah, why not, Cade?
With her hair tied up and the prim and proper clothes she wore and with no hint of skin, it was as if she tried to hide the real woman. Taylor Sullivan in no way exemplified how he thought a wedding planner would look.
Then she smiled at him and all thoughts of a prim little miss vanished, and he realized, with the shock of a man used to making solid, sensible business decisions, he'd found himself actually considering Taylor's offer.
In the past, plenty of women wanted him, but he preferred to do the chasing.
"You're not really my type.”
Who's lying now, Harper?
"So what is your type? A woman in shorts and a boob tube with an empty space for a brain?"
"Meow,” he chided. “Not nice."
A soft pink flush colored her cheeks. He liked that. Showed she wasn't as hard as she made out to be. A point definitely in her favor.
"I'm sorry."
"That's okay. I figure it took a lot of guts for you to walk in here. What I can't figure out is why me? There are plenty of guys out there who'd take up your offer."
"Perhaps,” she acquiesced, wiping the tip of her tongue across her bottom lip, an action Cade found himself following in minute detail and wished he could be that tongue tasting her lips.
Damn it. He was hooked, and his arousal had made itself blatantly obvious and him uncomfortable. Embarrassed to be caught like a schoolboy on heat, he moved to sit behind his desk.
"You're renowned for the parade of women you leave behind."
His rumbling laughter filled the room. “You've done your homework,” he said.
"I'm a businesswoman. I know my business."
"And sex is your business?"
"No!"
He could see he'd shocked her. Her eyes widened like saucers, all glistening, and ... innocent. Cade's teeth scraped across his bottom lip. Such a tempting proposal.
Taylor continued. “Weddings, love and commitment are my business."
"Yet you search me out knowing commitment is definitely not my middle name."
"That's
exactly
why I chose you. You don't believe in ever lasting love or roses and the white picket fence deal."
"For others, maybe, but not me,” he agreed. “But you, Taylor, are a wedding planner; you've got to be a romantic at heart."
"I'm a businesswoman. Marriage is a good business."
"And yet, you haven't married."
Taylor shrugged, but she couldn't hide the shadow of sadness that washed across her eyes before the fall of her heavy lashes blotted it out.
"So now we get back to my commitment, or lack of it,” Cade said, drawing her from her memories.
Taylor fixed her steadfast blue eyes on him. She meant business. “Mr. Harper, I don't want commitment, either. So, we're a good match.
And
I have a deal for you."
Cade's eyebrows quirked upwards. “This gets more interesting by the minute. But maybe you should try Cade. It's less formal, since we'll be getting to know each other ... intimately."
Taylor choked back a cough.
She twisted her shaking hands behind her back and linked her fingers. Her chin lifted upwards a fraction. “I understand you're looking at expanding the chain and starting up more of a boutique line of cocktail bars."
"I'm surprised you found that out. It hasn't been advertised."
"I told you, I'm a..."
"Businesswoman. Yeah. I know. Very impressive. So, what's the deal?"
"You want to expand, to expose yourself."
A burst of laughter rumbled from Cade's chest. “Sounds provocative."
"I ... didn't mean the way it sounded,” she stammered.
"I know, just teasing. Sorry, you were offering me a sweetener to this proposal of yours.” He folded his arms across his chest, which did nothing for Taylor's equilibrium as she eyed the play of his T-shirt over taut muscles.
Taylor breathed. Deeply. And again, and again, trying to remain calm. “I know promotions,” she said formally. “I'll promote your new venture, for ... ah..."
"Services rendered,” he offered.
Her lips pursed. “Something like that."
Cade pushed himself from his desk and stood in front of her. His gaze dropped to her face. He cupped her chin, thumb circling her cheek. His touch felt so soft and so gentle, she almost purred.
"I'm definitely interested. But let's get this straight. You use your promotional skills in return for my lovemaking skills?"
Taylor's breath whooshed out in a sharp exhalation. Oh, Lord. It sounded brazen and so not her. Again, she wondered what on earth was she doing?
Getting in too deep without a lifejacket, that's what.
But Cade had agreed and now she had to close the deal. “There's just one thing,” she said, aware as her body tilted forward, anticipation zinging through her veins.
"Another request?” Cade's eyes narrowed, suspicion and an almost jaundiced expectation flickering across his face. He shrugged. “Okay, shoot."
"Well...” Taylor prevaricated, unable to focus on anything but his mouth. Fear pitted in her belly, but mostly she was excited—like a child in a candy shop. She took a deep steadying breath and spoke.
"I need you to kiss me."
"Easy request.” Cade's mouth quirked to one side, and Taylor found herself focusing on his dimples—again. “It'd be my pleasure."
Pleasure
. Lordy. The word rolled off the tip of his tongue as if simply saying it invoked what he wanted to do to her. The thought sent a shivery heat skimming across her skin.
"Any particular type of kiss?"
Oh, hell.
"A peck on the cheek, or the full Monty?"
Double hell.
Cade's eyes narrowed, and the heat in her cheeks reached volcanic proportions. Her body hummed with expectation, senses firing on all cylinders. Barely inches from him, she searched his face. No mirth. Instead, scalding hot lust shone in Cade's eyes, promising everything.
Then his lips were on hers, and Taylor couldn't tell if she'd acted first or if he had. Just that he tasted warm and soft. And delicious.
He laced one hand through her hair and gently tugged at the pins holding it in place, tossing them aside. The soft ping as they hit the floor was inaudible compared to the roar of her heartbeat. As her hair cascaded around them in a silken veil, Cade cupped her face, the flat pad of one thumb teasing the curve of her jaw.
He moaned his pleasure. “This feels good."
Taylor's stomach clenched, nerve endings jump-starting. Her eyes closed, and she shifted closer to him, coming to rest against the apex of his long legs. She wanted more, needed to touch him and linked her hands around his neck, feeling the sinewy flex of his muscles. Her fingertips brushed against his hair—a thousand electric volts washing over every sensitive cell of her skin.
"You feel so good,” he murmured against her mouth. But Cade's husky drawl slipped between them and sliced her fantasy in two. She stilled. Her fingers arrested their exploratory dance and pushed him away. “We can't. Not here."
"We just did.” He paused. “Kiss, that is."
Taylor lifted her gaze and looked at him. How could he remain so calm and collected while she struggled for a semblance of propriety? She tugged at her clothes, but her hands shook and nothing seemed to work. She wished she were anywhere but here.
"There are people just through that door,” she said, looking over her shoulder. “Anyone could walk in."
"We could lock the door."
Taylor's blood sizzled. “You've caught me off-guard."
Cade stared down into her eyes, searching, as if he wanted to see every part of her. “What did you expect? You come waltzing into my bar with some concocted scheme and then ask for a kiss. Was it some sort of test?"
Taylor's mind raced with so many thoughts she couldn't make sense of anything. All she could focus on was the taste of Cade on her lips. She wanted to wipe it off—but it tasted far too good.
Cade drew a ragged breath, and his narrowed glare pinned her to the spot. “Damn it. You wanted to test the goods first,” he accused. He paced the small room, then abruptly turned and rested his large frame against the desk. He folded his arms across his chest. Big and powerful.
Sexy as sin, and sin suddenly seemed enticing.
"Well?"
"There has to be some spark, doesn't there?” Taylor challenged weakly.
"Spark?” Cade cursed. He dragged a hand through his unruly hair. “If you felt the full force of my spark, sweetheart, you'd run a mile."
"I would not,” she denied.
"Hell, you would. That spark was ... hot damn it."
"Look, I think I should go.”
See, you are running
. Taylor ignored her subconscious. “This is a bad idea,” she said and gathered up her bag—carefully this time. With as much dignity as she could muster, she turned to leave. “I'm sorry."
She sucked in a deep breath, steeling herself for the crowd outside and nodded curtly at Cade. “Goodbye.” She reached for the door.
"Where are you going?” Cade's sharp tone brought her to a halt, and she shot him a “what do you care” look over her shoulder.
"Home."
"How?"
"I'll call a cab."
But before she had a chance to stall him, Cade snatched up keys from his desk. “I'll take you."
She gripped the door, knuckles bleached of color. “I'd prefer a cab, thank you.
"I know you would, Taylor.” He dangled the keys. “No tricks. Gentleman's honor.” And he crossed his heart.
Taylor went to speak, but he silenced her with the tip of his finger resting against her parted lips.
Silence zinged between them, and Taylor had the distinct urge to wrap her tongue around the tip of his finger. To suck it. Very blatantly, and very sexually.
"Don't argue, Ms. Sullivan.” He gave her a sheepish grin that did more to her equilibrium than Taylor wanted to admit. “Mind you, we could call it our first lovers’ tiff."
"Lovers?” she exhaled and went limp against him.
The flat of his hand palmed the small of her back and with the other he switched the light out. Darkness encircled them, a sweet relief from his knowing gaze. She could feel his heat; hear the rampaging beat of her heart behind her ribs.