Carly Phillips - Hot Stuff

She laughed and leaned her forehead against his.

He savored the intimate moment, which was quickly ruined when Q-Tip squatted and peed on Vaughn's favorite pair of Nike's. Nothing could have killed the moment faster. Nothing could have been more welcome.

"Boris. Bad!" Annabelle said sternly. "I'm sorry."

The lodge was his whole world right now-it gave him a sense of purpose and he needed it so he could help the kids.

He'd had everything to lose and nothing to gain by kissing her.

Annabelle groaned. "Boris might not think your home is his territory, but he's obviously decided to make his mark on you."

Most importantly, Vaughn was out of the doghouse with Yank, and another bonehead move like this would put him right back in.

"You aren't laughing," Annabelle continued rambling and cringed. "You're ticked. I guess I'd be ticked, too."

He slid his tongue over his lips and swallowed a groan when he tasted Annabelle and the tidal wave of desire washed over him once more.

"And you aren't listening to a word I've said," Annabelle said, reinforcing her words with a kick of her foot against his with an admirable amount of force he couldn't ignore.

"I heard you," he muttered.

"Then what'd I say?" She slipped away and began to straighten her shirt and smooth her disheveled hair.

He'd tangled that hair, he thought and his fingertips tingled all over again. Damn, this woman was one potent package. She distracted him and caused way too much havoc with his mind and body.

"I asked you to repeat what I said." She swung her foot back and perched her toe against the grass. "Did you hear me? Or do I need to kick you again?"

He scowled. "You said you were sorry and you'd have the dog put down if he peed on my feet again."

She glanced at him, horrified, "t said nothing of the sort. I-"

"You said that Q-Tip here's decided to mark me as his territory." Just as Annabelle had obviously marked him. Vaughn shook his head, frustrated with himself and her ability to make his every thought turn to her.

"Something like that." She touched her lips with her fingers.

Whether idly or on purpose, she had him thinking about kissing her again. And for the reasons he'd just listed in his head and would permanently emblazon on his brain, that couldn't happen again. Ever.

OH YEAH, BABY. Those were the only words floating through Annabelle's mind as she sat in her room, jotting down notes on the people she'd met today. Those somehow related to Vaughn by either work or friendship.

She started a diagram but couldn't concentrate, so she moved on to the press release. She needed Vaughn to make a public statement about the lodge and send a letter to those who already had bookings. Unfortunately she couldn't concentrate on anything but that kiss.

A kiss like the one they'd shared could make her reevaluate her decision to remain celibate. Judging by her swift reaction to Vaughn, it'd been too long since she'd been in any kind of relationship and she obviously needed the physical contact.

Desperately.

And only one man would do.

She and Vaughn were alone in this big house, nothing between them except the memory of that kiss. How could she not reevaluate her perspective and give herself permission to act on her desires?

True, she'd challenged herself this same way before and lost, but she'd learned her lesson and this time, she wouldn't be hurt. This was a situation of limited duration with a man she knew up front wasn't interested in anything serious. She'd only be in this small town and large house for a short time. Too short to invest her heart in Brandon Vaughn. But her body was another story.

Besides, if she didn't give herself permission to seduce Vaughn, she'd never get any work done. Taking his wary reaction into consideration, she needed to start slow. But she'd absolutely decided to go for it with Vaughn.

Her stomach growled, interrupting her thoughts, but not her work, which just wasn't flowing. Time to prepare a meal and feed the mind and the soul. She could cook for both herself and her missing housemate, who'd dropped her off and disappeared for parts unknown. Probably looking for more of that precious space he always seemed to need. She could just leave a plate warming in the oven for him later.

She decided to make use of his state-of-the-art kitchen and rummaged through the cabinets and fridge, coming up with steaks in the freezer, baking potatoes and some salvageable green stuff for a salad.

An hour later, she had both steaks defrosted, marinated and sizzling on the downdraft cook-top grill. She'd found a bottle of Merlot, and was flipping the steaks and pleasantly buzzed when Vaughn finally returned.

"Annabelle, are you here?" he called out loudly.

At the sound of his deep voice, her stomach churned with excitement. As she waited for him to stride into the kitchen, she tried to force a nonchalance she didn't feel.

He entered just as she decided the steaks were finished. She placed them on the table along with the rest of the meal before glancing up. Looking at him was a feast for the senses. Vaughn wasn't an athlete who'd let his body go to hell after retirement. On the contrary, his T-shirt, cut off at the abdomen and the sleeves, showcased well-toned muscles and tanned skin. No man should look so good.

"Of course I'm here. Where else would I be?" she asked, forcing herself to focus and answer his question. "You insisted I not bring my car, then you took off, not to be seen again for hours."

He had the good manners to look embarrassed. "Sorry. I needed-"

"Space," she finished for him.

"Right." He shot her a sexy grin. "So, something's cooking." He shoved his hands into his back pockets and peered over her shoulder at the meal on the table.

"More like someone's been cooking."

"For two."

Caught, her face heated with embarrassment. "I thought if I was going to be using your food, I should at least include you in the meal. Just in case you were hungry."

Vaughn stared, surprised at the dinner on his table. He'd been a real bastard to her and she'd thought about including him anyway.

"Thanks," he said awkwardly. He wasn't used to people doing things for him.

"You're welcome. You might as well sit. Unless you've already eaten?"

He shook his head. He'd been out in a pathetic attempt to outrun thoughts of the steamy summer kiss they'd shared.

No such luck. Seeing her again brought back hot memories of her sweet mouth and the way those luscious curves had felt pressed against him. With a groan, he settled into the chair across from her, resigned to the fact that she was with him, whether physically or emotionally, and would be until their working relationship ended.

"Wine?" she asked.

He nodded. "Why not."

She added to his glass, then leaned forward in her seat. "So you've been out running."

He ran a hand through his windblown hair. "That obvious?"

She shrugged. "Only to someone who's looking." Her heavy-lidded gaze met his and held, until he couldn't mistake her meaning.

He had to laugh. "I need to ask you something."

"If I can ask a question in return, I'm more than happy to answer."

He nodded. "Are you always this direct? Sexually I mean."

She steepled her fingers and paused in thought. "I suppose that depends. I generally say what I think. I can't see any sense in hiding my feelings. As for what's going on between us, I'm focused on two things."

"And those are?"

"One," she said, raising a finger. "I need your cooperation to fix the problems with the lodge and so far you're not giving me any, and two," she said, raising a second finger, "I believe in bringing things out into the open and our attraction is there whether either one of us likes it or not. So instead of letting it get in the way of work, I choose to acknowledge and deal with it, so we can move forward."

He blinked, staring at her in amazement. "Are you saying you got the attraction out of your system and can move on?" Because he sure as hell wasn't able to do any such thing, no matter how badly he wanted to.

"I said move forward." She emphasized her point with a shake of her head that had her ponytail falling over the shoulder of yet another of those jerseys she favored.

He stabbed his steak and let the fork remain. It was one thing to acknowledge the attraction, another to contemplate doing anything more about it. Moving on seemed smartest. Safest. He wasn't sure what she meant with her semantics, but she was directing the conversation and he decided to see where she was headed.

"So while we're eating, I thought we could deal with my first point and talk business."

She'd obviously decided to drop the more heated subject and he exhaled a hard sigh of relief. The knot in his stomach eased, as did the tension lodged inside him.

He cut into the steak and began eating. "Delicious," he said, between bites.

"I'll let the cook know." She spoke with laughter in her voice but he couldn't mistake the glow of pleasure in her cheeks or the warmth in her eyes at his compliment.

Just watching her, his skin flushed hot with wanting.

"Tell me about your reasons for building this lodge. I'm sure it has something to do with the kids you want to bring in for the summer. And I already know you volunteer at, the high school. So, what gives?" she prodded and not too subtly, either.

Her pointed questions froze everything that had been thawing inside him. He was drawn to her yes, but he didn't trust her. Not enough to divulge his deepest secret and thus expose his biggest fear-that no woman would ever love the real Brandon Vaughn. The man beneath the trophies, money and rings.

"I thought we were going to talk business." He cleared his throat before continuing. "My reasons for the lodge are personal."

"So you say." Leaning back in her seat, she drained the last of her drink. "But I answered your question and you said you'd answer mine," she reminded him.

Her eyes had glazed with the effect of the wine. Her deep vee-neck plunged a bit too low, revealing soft white skin and plump cleavage he'd give anything to taste. Her allure had never been more potent.

Too bad he was about to douse the flame. "As I recall, I said you could ask. I never agreed to answer."

Dismay flickered in her eyes but she covered it with a casual wave of her hand. "You disappoint me, Vaughn."

"I’ll have to live with that." But he suspected it wouldn't be as easy as he claimed. He didn't like coming up short with her and he wasn't sure why.

"Just don't underestimate my determination," she warned him. "In the meantime, tell me more about this house."

At least that answer he could give her.

She rose and began collecting dirty plates.

"Leave them. The cleaning lady comes in the morning." He stopped her, catching her wrist in his hand. The petite feel took him off guard. For a woman so sure of herself, she seemed fragile in his grasp.

He wondered if he'd have to be gentle with her when they made love, then discounted the notion. She was stronger than she looked and tough as nails. And he was an idiot even thinking about having sex with this woman.

He quickly released her. "I bought this place because it fit my needs," he said, answering her question.

She lowered herself back into her seat. "So you said. But it's a contradiction. You say you need space and you buy a huge house, yet you only open and live in a fraction of it."

"So? It's far enough from the residential sections of town to give me the privacy I want."

"Mmm. I guess that makes sense."

He narrowed his gaze. "You don't sound convinced."

She pursed her lips in thought. "Well when your mother was here earlier, I picked up on some of what you two were saying. And the dynamics were pretty obvious."

He clenched his jaw tight, hating any conversation that involved his mother or father. He'd long since come to terms with the man he'd become or so he thought until thoughts of how his parents viewed him resurfaced.

"What does that have to do with anything?" he asked Annabelle.

"I think you came home to show your parents how good you've done in your life."

"When did you become a psychiatrist?"

She shrugged. "A publicist has to be good at reading people and dissecting situations. And right now I sense I'm making you uncomfortable."

"You're just pushing too much. As you've seen for yourself, my parents don't think I've accomplished a damn thing with my life, so hell yes, 1 wanted to show them a thing or two."