Lisa ordered a salad and made a production out of moving around the lettuce leaves on her plate. Actually, Chandler was surprised at the adept way she kept dropping things off the table so Logan could get a healthy glimpse of cleavage. Not that it mattered. Chandler didn’t care about Logan’s long list of bimbos ranked by hair color. Not one bit. She was grateful her own escort wanted sparkling conversation rather than a perfect body. Chandler clung to the thought.

     “Darling, how do you manage? After working long days, you actually show up for a class that does nothing but twist up your body. What a sacrifice you make for your employees,” Lisa cooed.

     “I do my best,” Logan said.

     Chandler rolled her eyes.

     “I met a yoga teacher once.” Lisa’s eyes ran over her with a dismissing gesture. “She believed in saving the environment. Especially water. I guess that’s why she didn’t believe in bathing.”

     Chandler smiled sweetly. “Yes, I have the same philosophy. Birthdays and holidays I treat myself to a bath.”

     Her gaze met and locked with amused charcoal eyes. He raised his glass to her in silent salute, and Chandler mentally chided herself for making such a smart remark. Her actions indicated jealousy. But of course, she wasn’t.

     Moments later, she realized the lovely Lisa actually believed her comment. The woman seemed a bit nervous and adjusted her chair.

     The waiter appeared by their table. “May I get anyone an after dinner drink, coffee or dessert?”

     Richard shook his head. “Sugar and caffeine. I’ll pass.”

     Lisa agreed. “I’m so stuffed I feel like I’ll explode. I’ll pass, too.”

     Chandler winced and glanced down at her clean plate. She’d managed to devour her appetizer, salad, dinner, and all her rice. She held back a sigh and opened her mouth to decline.

     “We’ll have the brownie bomber sundae,” Logan said. One lid dropped in a naughty wink. “With two forks.”

     At that moment, she knew she liked Logan Grant a bit too much.


     “Let me walk you to the door.”

     “Thanks.” She led Richard up the staircase and paused in front of her apartment. Her high heels sunk into the cream colored carpet as she turned to face him and offered a bright smile. The corridor was quiet, and the lights had been adjusted to the late hour. Their figures cast dim shadows against the wall.

     “I had a good time tonight.” He gave a lopsided grin. “At least until the boss showed up.”

     She laughed. “So did I.”

     “I’d like to take you out again.” The grin faded and became replaced by a serious expression. He reached out and enfolded his hands within hers. “I think we have a lot in common, Chandler. It took me a long time to realize what’s important in life. For years, I thought power and money were my only options. Now I know I want a woman with the same values, who wants to grow with me on the same path. Does that make sense to you?”

     Her gut twisted. She wondered if she was scared because she finally found a man who believed in the same things. He told her everything she wanted to hear.

     Everything she wanted to hear…

     She nodded. “It makes perfect sense.”

     His lips touched hers. Tentative. Polite. A kiss from a man who respected a woman and wanted to take his time. Definitely not like—

     She broke off the thought and kissed him back. When he finally raised his head, she caught a gleam of satisfaction in chestnut eyes, before being quickly masked. “Friday night?”

     She smiled. “Sure. Friday night.”

     He squeezed her hands and walked down the hallway. She heard the echo of footsteps on the stairway, and leaned against the door. Richard Thorne was a man who held the same principles. His embrace comforted, and made her feel safe. Surely, those feelings were everything she searched for? Surely, she wasn’t shallow enough to think a quick sexual attraction meant more than building a solid friendship with a man?

     “At least you didn’t invite him in.”

     She gasped and spun on her heel. Logan Grant stood at the end of the corridor. Still dressed in his evening clothes, every powerful muscle cloaked in elegant fabric, he cut an intimidating figure. His tie had been ripped off, and the first buttons of his shirt undone. Curly dark hair peeked from beneath the pristine white cloth. A muscle worked in his jaw as his silvery gaze drilled into her. His voice was a low growl of sound. Rough. Sexy. Her stomach slid and dipped to her toes. She made sure her face showed nothing.

     “Why am I not surprised? Logan, don’t you think this could be considered stalking? We live in a modern age, remember? You can’t drag me to your cave just on a whim.”

     The corner of his mouth kicked up in a grin. “I never stalked a woman in my life.”

     “First time for everything.” Her eyes narrowed. “What do you want? Have you trained your women so well that your date is sitting in the car?”

     He moved toward her like a predator and stopped a few inches away. The scent of musk aftershave and male teased her senses. “I took her home. Did you enjoy kissing him, Chandler?”

     Her temper surged. “Did you enjoy kissing your red-head, Logan?” Immediately, she realized her mistake and almost bit her tongue with frustration. He’d watched her all through dinner with a possessive gleam in his eyes which annoyed her. The casual intimacy he treated his date with made her angry, too. Those emotions she could deal with. However, it was the way her body jumped at the mere sound of his voice, melted at his touch or look, which made her really crazy.

     The amusement was back. “Lisa? I gave her a polite kiss on the cheek and dropped her at the door. Why? Does it matter?”

     She shrugged. “No.” Then glanced around the empty corridor. “Look, it’s late. I’ve got an early class in the morning.” She turned to dismiss him, but his hand shot out to grasp her wrist. Her heart slammed in her chest. “Is there something else you wanted?”

     “If I was sleeping with Lisa would you be jealous?”

     Chandler gasped. “Of course not. It’s none of my business who you sleep with and I have no desire to know. I wouldn’t tell you who I was involved with.”

     “Are you?”

     “Am I what?”

     “Are you sleeping with somebody?” he demanded.

     “How dare you ask me a question like that? You have no right to ask me anything about my personal life.”

     Deliberately, Logan leaned in. “It became my right the moment your mouth opened under mine,” he shot back. “When you cried my name and your nails dug into my skin with passion I reserved the right to be your only lover. I’m a greedy, selfish man and I don’t share with anyone. Especially with Richard Thorne.” Logan took in the high color of her cheeks and her trembling mouth. His voice gentled. “The other night we almost became lovers and today you want to pretend it never happened.”

     She pulled her wrist away and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I don’t see any need to bring that night up. It was a mistake.”

     “It was the first honest response you’ve allowed yourself in a long time.” He stepped back and plowed his fingers through his hair. “Right or wrong, good for you or not, you wanted me in your bed and now you’re too damn scared to admit it. I didn’t see you kiss Thorne like that. I didn’t hear you invite him in. Why? Because something was missing?”

     She shook her head stubbornly. “The night you kissed me I was taken by surprise. You wanted to prove a point. Why can’t we let the episode go?”

     Logan gazed at her for a long moment. Her chin tilted upward in the air, as if to stand her ground before Goliath. He acknowledged this very well may be the most stubborn, headstrong woman he’d ever met. He noticed the rapid beat of her pulse at the base of her neck and controlled a satisfied smile. No matter how much she denied the attraction, her body betrayed her. If he coaxed her body to step out from her cage, maybe her mind would follow. He needed to try.

     Chandler watched the male predator before her and waited for his temper to explode. Instead, she heard him speak in an easy tone. “In your little speech the other night, you insisted you were taken by surprise by my, er, forward actions.”

     “Yes.”

     “So, if I had calmly announced my intentions to kiss you, I wouldn’t have gotten the same response.”

     “Yes.”

     “You would have pulled away.”

     She nodded. “Yes.”

     Chandler watched in fascination as he closed the distance between them. Warm breath struck her lips as his mouth stopped inches from her own. The slow descent held her spellbound. Heat and intense sensual energy radiated from his body. “If I told you I intend to kiss you, you’d refuse to respond, right?”

     Her stomach lurched in fear at his obvious intent. She licked her lips nervously and stiffened her body to prepare for battle. “Yes.” The word came out slightly strangled.

     His eyes focused on her trembling mouth. “Great. Then as two logical people ready to settle an argument, we’ll conduct an experiment to prove who’s telling the truth.” He paused. “Just in case you don’t know what’s about to happen, I intend on kissing you, Chandler. I’m also giving you plenty of notice so you can’t call foul play after I prove your body was made to belong to me.”

     Then his lips closed over hers.

     Chandler prepared for a sensual, teasing game like the night before. What she hadn’t expected was the powerful, drugging need that touched fire to her body when his tongue penetrated the seam of her lips to thrust into her mouth, hungrily plundering the dark, silken depths over and over again. Like a flower opening to the sun, she allowed him free access. A deep need burned through her; the need to respond to his masculine invasion; the need to feel her body crushed under his; the need to let her soul soar. She could have fought her response if he’d used cold expertise, or a calculated game of thrust and parry. What she couldn’t fight was this honest, driven kiss. It had been too long since she’d felt a man need her response so badly, and he seemed to want her with a passion beyond the clinical, ruthless mind of a businessman going in for the kill.

     Chandler kissed him back. She learned the texture of his lips, the line of smooth white teeth, the heat of his mouth. She reveled in the hard body pressed against hers. She breathed in the scent of him. As the kiss went on, stoking the fires of desire, she wanted more and more and more…

     He slowly dragged his mouth from hers. She took deep, ragged breaths. Her skin tingled from the slight roughness of his five o’clock shadow. She let her tongue glide along her bottom lip and caught his taste. Logan groaned. The pad of his thumb pressed over her mouth and traced its outline, following up to the line of her jaw. He smoothed back the stray tendrils of hair escaping from her twist.

     Chandler almost closed her eyes in defeat. No more lies. Clearly, he knew the extent of her physical attraction, and would use the knowledge to his advantage. He announced his intentions and she’d been unable to prove she had no feelings. In fact, the opposite was true.

     She definitely had feelings for Logan Grant—and that was dangerous.

     Desire within her grew to throw caution to the winds and get involved with this powerful, attractive enigma. Yet, fear regarding businessmen and their priorities still lingered. If their relationship didn’t work out, the contract ended along with their affair. And what about Richard? Would she be giving up an opportunity to have a real relationship to settle for a short affair?

     Her mind took control, disciplined throughout the years to take charge of her lesser emotions. Chandler took a step back and tilted her head to gaze at him more fully.

     “I can’t cry foul play.” She smiled tentatively. He smiled back. “But this doesn’t change anything. I can’t get involved with you.”

     “What are you fighting so hard to protect?” he asked. “Who hurt you so badly?”

     Her face closed off. Her eyes grew distant. “My past has nothing to do with my decision. I admit we have an attraction, but we don’t have to act on it. Can’t you see this is wrong?” she pleaded. “We’re too different. We belong in two different worlds. I can’t go back to yours, and you’d never be comfortable in mine. We would hurt one another and I can’t sacrifice the Yoga and Arts Center to find out.”