Whitney nodded, telling herself that the stab of jealousy she felt was really stupid. If Piper and Cam were going to get together, they would have by now. They’d known each other, worked together, for years.

For all she knew they had gotten together. She didn’t know his history with other women because she very stubbornly refused to think about, wonder about, or ask about that.

She’d seen them flirt but Piper had this flirtatious air about her all the time. She treated all the guys like they were good friends she loved but who also drove her nuts. She took care of them. She gave them shit. She called them on their shit. She also bent over backward to help make things work and get them what they needed and wanted to make the company work.

Piper was amazing. As far as Whitney knew, there was nothing the woman couldn’t do. She was easily five years younger than Dax and Ollie, who were the youngest of the partners, but she managed them as if she were an older sister. Or a mom some of the time.

She was undeniably gorgeous too. So maybe it just made sense that Cam thought so.

“But I think about sex when I see this dress on you.”

Air rushed out of her lungs. Dammit. This was so bad. She and Cam could not talk about sex. They shouldn’t talk about a number of things. Their past. Her family. Sex. Yeah, those were probably the top three. For sure. Though not necessarily in that order.

“You can’t say things like that to an employee,” she finally told him, her fingers digging into her arms.

He shrugged. “You have my boss’s phone number.”

She did. Though he didn’t have a boss. But he had three partners and all three would care if she was feeling harassed. He also had a fourth best friend, Dax, who was a consultant for the company and who would also care how Cam was treating her.

And suddenly Whitney felt warmed by that. She had people on her side.

It was a very strange moment to realize that. It was a very strange moment to be touched by that. But it had been a long time since she’d felt like she had people who would have her back.

She’d told her father once that a business associate of his had hit on her at a big reception. He’d laughed and told her that was just how men treated beautiful young women and she should be flattered. She’d told her brother that a guy he’d gone to college with had propositioned her to secure a deal. He’d told her to stop being such a prude.

So yeah, it was really nice to know that she had people who would take Cam to task for this.

She also didn’t miss the irony that Cam was the one guy she most wanted to talk about sex with.

He’d always been so sweetly dirty. He’d said things to her, even at age eighteen, that had been graphic and gruff and came completely from a place of emotion. It was like he hadn’t been able to hold back. She’d loved it. But only because she knew that it was a sign of how much she affected him and how much he loved her.

Dirty talk as a sign of love? Yeah, well, that might sound strange to anyone who hadn’t heard Camden McCaffery’s dirty talk, but it was true. It had been one of the things missing with the other guys. Not the only thing, but clearly some of it.

No one had ever talked to her the way Cam had.

Even the first time he’d asked her out. He’d come up to her in the school hallway, said, “I can’t stop thinking about you so you have to let me take you out.”

She’d said, “I do?”

“You do. I have to either get over you. Or get you under me.” He’d leaned in with a little smile and a look in his eyes she hadn’t fully understood but that had made her feel hot and tingly.

She’d been seventeen. The rich, untouchable Lancaster princess, and the school bad boy had just said he wanted to get her under him. And she’d wanted that—him—instantly. He hadn’t been intimidated. He hadn’t been slick or flirty. He’d been straightforward.

She’d met his eyes and with her best haughty princess voice had said, “That won’t help you get over anything.”

She still, all these years later, couldn’t believe she’d said that. She’d been a virgin. She’d been on two dates and she hadn’t really thought they were worth repeating. She had nothing to back up her comment, but something about Cam’s cockiness had brought her own out.

His cockiness had been all the more impressive because he’d been a McCaffery saying those things to a Lancaster. Their families would have flipped out to know that they were talking about even going to the movies not to mention flirting about sex.

Of course, that little thrill had made her even more willing to say yes.

They’d snuck around, had a lot of teenage sex, a lot of laughs, and fallen in love over the next year.

The best year of her life.

Still.

“So I probably also shouldn’t say that I think of sex when I see you in a lot of things,” he said, moving closer again.

Her heart tripped.

“You definitely shouldn’t.”

“Which means you probably won’t tell me that you think about sex when you see me either.”

Dammit. She shook her head. “No, I won’t tell you that.”

“Out loud anyway,” he said.

“What?”

“You won’t tell me that out loud.”

“What’s that mean?” But she was pretty sure she knew.

“It means that you tell me that in lots of ways, Whit,” he said, his voice gruff. “Even if you don’t say it out loud.”

She took a deep breath. She had to be cool here. He could be bluffing. He could be trying to get a reaction. He could just be trying to get her to admit something he didn’t know for sure. She might not actually be giving away how she felt every time she saw him.

“Some things never change,” she said, lifting her chin, fighting for the detached air she wore like she wore her favorite perfume. Why was it so hard to find when Cam was around? “You’re still completely full of yourself.”

He actually gave a soft laugh. “Well, yeah.”

That was another really appealing thing about this guy—he knew himself and he owned his flaws. Oh, he owned his accomplishments and talents too, but he owned his flaws.

She just wasn’t sure he thought being full of himself was a flaw.

“You really like that dress?” he asked, his gaze tracking over her again.

She nodded. “I do. I think it’s time I try a few new things.”

She didn’t like this dress. Well, she liked the dress. But she wasn’t going to wear it. She wasn’t… ready for a dress like this. She wanted to be. She wanted to feel confident and free of worrying about her image and prepared to just go with what felt good, but she’d spent twenty-nine years having to worry about what other people thought and how she presented herself and trying to prove herself. It was going to take some time to get to the point where this dress was a good fit. Metaphorically.

“Then I know exactly where you can wear it,” Cam said.

“Oh?”

“Timothy’s.”

Timothy’s was an expensive restaurant in Dubuque. White tablecloths, multiple forks, all of that. “Yeah, I guess this would work at Timothy’s,” she agreed.

“So let’s go tomorrow night.”

She froze. Slowly she lifted her eyes to his. “Us?”