In my head, my response is brusque, yet professional.

Me: That’s what I wanted to know. Thank you.

Even when his is not.

Reese: Of course. I’m happy to answer all your questions and take care of ALL your needs.

I debate for a moment whether I should respond, but then I do, unable to resist another opportunity to set him straight on where this is and is not going.

Me: You won’t be getting anywhere near my needs.

When I read his reply, I can almost hear the sexy dripping from his tone.

Reese: Then I suppose I’ll just have to bring your needs to me.

Ignoring the little chill that spreads down my arms, I decide the prudent thing, at this point, would be to quit while I’m ahead. Telling Reese is obviously not enough. I’ll have to trust that showing him will be.

CHAPTER ELEVEN - Reese

As I walk to the door of unit seven in the small, brick townhouse complex, I notice the curtain flutter in the window of the adjacent unit. When I glance to my right, I see an older man’s face staring back at me from one corner of the glass. I nod politely. He nods in return. He watches me until I reach the stoop in front of Kennedy’s door, a step that effectively removes me from his line of sight.

Another man bewitched by Kennedy, I think with a wry smile. She’s probably got more than her fair share of admirers. And I can’t blame a single one of them.

I knock on the door and step back to lean against one of the thick white columns that holds up her porch. I hear some bumping and thumping before the door flies open to reveal an out-of-breath Kennedy.

“I thought you were sending a car or something?” she pants, blowing a few strands of silky hair out of one eye.

I turn to look back at my sleek black car parked in one of the two spots directly in front of her unit. “Last time I checked, that’s what I arrived in.”

“But I thought…I mean, it sounded like… Oh, never mind,” she stammers, waving a hand dismissively as she reaches just inside the door for an enormous suitcase. With a grunt, she hefts it over the threshold and lets it drop like a cement block onto the stoop. “I’m almost ready. Hang on.”

With that, she disappears inside again. The door is still open, so I can see her as she darts around her living room, straightening the pillows on the olive green couch and picking up a speck of something from the red rug beneath it. She stops and looks around, likely going over some kind of mental checklist. When she’s satisfied, she tosses whatever was in her hand into the trash can, bends to scratch her cat behind his ears and tells him he’s a good boy, and that she’ll miss him.

I can’t help but notice the way her jeans show off her long, slender legs and cup her round ass to perfection. I know what that ass looks like. The glimpse I got of it the night she danced is permanently etched onto my brain.

I feel a groan build somewhere deep in my gut.

When she comes toward the door, I don’t move. I stay leaning against the column as she locks the knob and the deadbolt, jiggles the handle and then backs up to wave at her neighbor, the guy I saw peeking through the curtains.

Finally she turns back to face me. “Ready?”

Her cheeks are flushed, her eyes are bright and there’s a breathless quality to her voice that’s making it very hard for me to keep my hands off her.

“Oh, I’m very ready,” I tell her as I straighten, reaching out to remove a strand of hair that has strayed into her lip gloss. “The question is: Are you?”

She watches me intently. She knows exactly what I’m asking. I can tell by the way she finally tips up her chin and meets my eyes so boldly. She surprises me by laughing. “Trust me, you don’t need to be worrying about me.”

Her bravado is belied only by the dilation of her pupils and the slight tremor to her lips. She wants to think she has it all under control, that resisting me will be a piece of cake. But, deep down, she knows there’s something between us. And that it’s inevitable.

Making her admit it is going to be the fun part.

CHAPTER TWELVE - Kennedy

I watch Reese discreetly from the corner of my eye as he guides his powerful, expensive car back to the highway. So many things are exactly as I remember them. The shade of his eyes. The unruly wave to his hair when it gets too long. The shape of his lips and the way he purses them when he’s concentrating.

But, on the other hand, so many things have changed. He’s older, harder, more worldly. He’s a stranger to me now. But still, there’s something about him… Even I can feel it. Something that tugs at me constantly.

Reese is still the handsomest man I’ve ever seen. Dark, slightly wavy hair, piercing aqua eyes, long lashes. His skin is smooth and tan, his nose straight, his cheekbones high. His mouth is a perfectly-sculpted bow in the center of his square jaw. God, he’s beautiful. Wealthy. Powerful. Charming. He was irresistible as a young adult, but now…women don’t stand a chance. The only reason I do is because we have history. Bad history. My scars keep my focus where it needs to be.

Mostly.

His big hands rest on the steering wheel with confident ease. I look away from them because they remind me of things I’d rather not think about. Things that make my stomach feel tight and achy.

When he reaches cruising speed on the highway, he glances over at me, grinning slightly when he finds me watching him.

“Penny for your thoughts,” he says softly.

“I was just thinking how much you’ve changed.”

“In fourteen years?” he laughs. “Yeah, I’ve changed. But so have you.”

To this, I just nod, turning to look out my window.

When I don’t move to continue the conversation, Reese does. “How have you been, Kennedy? Fill me in on your life for the last decade and a half.”

There is so much to say, yet nothing at all. He missed it. Every bit of it. When he left. Therefore he has no right to it. Not even to my memories of it.

“Not much to tell. I became a dancer. At one of your clubs.”

He is unflappable. “How did you know you wanted to dance?”

“I’ve always wanted to dance.”

“You never told me.”

“There were a lot of things I never told you, Reese.”

“So tell me now.”

“Why? What’s the point?” I turn to look at him. My voice is angry, which frustrates me. I don’t want him to know he got a rise out of me. “I mean, we don’t need to do this. I’ll be working for you. Everything you need to know about me is in an employee file somewhere.”

“Nothing that I want to know about you is in an employee file.”

“Then maybe you need to keep better records.”

Much to my dismay, Reese laughs, sending a little shiver of recognition down my spine. That sound…I always loved that rich, deep sound.

“That’s great advice. I think I’ll start now. So, how did you end up at my club?”

I sigh. Obviously this is not something he’s going to let go of easily. “I met a girl who dances there. She told me what it was like, that no one takes their clothes off. At least not many of them, and that we can be creative with our routines as long as they’re sexy. I liked the idea of being able to dance the way I want to, to wear what I feel comfortable in. So, she put in a good word with the manager, he let me audition and hired me on the spot. End of story.”

“I knew I liked that guy,” Reese mumbles, sending me a wink that curls my toes. Silently, I curse each tiny digit for not being stronger. “What are you thinking when you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Pucker your lips and frown like that. I noticed you doing it yesterday at Malcolm’s.”

His question takes me by surprise, giving way to me answering more honestly than I should. “I don’t know about yesterday, but I was just cursing my toes.”

“For what?”

I don’t answer, but I feel my cheeks sting in embarrassment.

You walked right into that one, dumb ass!

“So is this how it’s going to be for three months?”

I turn to give him my full attention and my most serious expression. “Yes. It is.”

“You know it doesn’t have to be.”

“Oh, yes it does.”

“Why?”

“I told you I’m not interested in anything but you getting me an audition with Altman. I’ll hold up my end of the bargain, but that doesn’t include answering your questions.”

“Why are you being like this?”

This irritates me, so I slap my hands down on my thighs. “Because we had our shot, Reese, and it didn’t work out. End of story. This…this…arrangement is only temporary. It’s serving a purpose for both of us. Nothing more.”

He doesn’t say anything for a few minutes. His face is set in a pensive expression. He’s not angry or offended, just thoughtful.

“I’ll change your mind, Kennedy. One way or the other.”

My stomach twists into a knot. I can only imagine how persuasive Reese can be. But still, I don’t give in. I can’t. “You might as well save your energy. It won’t work.”

After a long pause, he speaks again. “You were right,” he says enigmatically.

“About what?”

Reese gives me his brightest smile. “I have changed.”

When he doesn’t continue, I ask, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

There’s still a sexy, devastating curve to his lips. “You’ll see.”

I let the silence stretch between us, mainly because arguing with Reese is turning out to be a lesson in futility.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - Reese

I drive onto the tarmac of the private airstrip that I use for the jet I timeshare. A guy from the service is waiting beside the extended steps of the craft. I know that he’s from the service I use because he’s dressed entirely in white. From his button-up shirt and blazer to his sharply-creased slacks and spotless shoes, everything is white.

When I pull to a stop near him, he moves to open the door for Kennedy. After she’s on her feet, he scrambles around to my side. I step out and hand him my keys along with a folded bill. He takes them with a silent nod and I reach for Kennedy. I put my hand on the small of her back and lead her to the retractable stairs. I feel her flinch at my touch, but she doesn’t move away. I suppress a smile. I know she still reacts to me. I don’t have to feel it beneath my fingertips to know it. But damn, how I want to.

As the attendant loads our bags from the trunk into the luggage compartment of the jet, Kennedy and I make our way into the main cabin area. Hemi, Sloane and Sig are already on board. I’m not surprised when Kennedy takes one of the empty chairs rather than sitting on the other empty couch. It’s the only way she can ensure that I don’t sit beside her. Close enough to touch. And that’s fine with me. The time is coming when she won’t be able to so easily avoid me. And, although I’m not a patient man, for this, I can wait. For her, I can wait. In fact, that might make the end result even sweeter.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN - Kennedy

I get situated in the plush, ivory-leather chair, setting my purse at my feet and crossing my legs before I glance around at my flight companions. From the corner of my eye, I see Reese sink into the thick cushions of a loveseat and throw one arm along the back. I make a point not to look directly at him. I’m discovering the less I can do that, the better off I am.

“Kennedy, this is Hemi, my brother, and his girlfriend, Sloane. The gentleman to the left is her brother, Sig.” I give each person he mentions a smile and I get one from each of them in return.

I finally get to meet Hemi. Although Reese talked about him some when we were kids, Hemi didn’t visit his uncle much and I never got to meet him. I would’ve remembered that because He. Is. Gorgeous. Just like his brother. There is no denying that they are related. They both have the same dark hair, the same skin tone, the same stunning smile, only Hemi’s eyes appear to be a different, darker shade of blue, like navy almost. One dark brow is pierced and I can see a tattoo of some sort peeking out from beneath the bottom edge of his t-shirt sleeve. He has bad boy written all over him, and it’s no wonder Sloane fell for him, especially when he turns his eyes back to her. They fairly glow with his adoration, something else I can easily see. Sloane is beautiful in a young, fresh way. And she obviously worships the ground Hemi walks on. I can’t help the little ribbon of jealousy that works its way through me. They have what every girl dreams of.

Until she gets her heart broken and realizes that, in the absence of that kind of true and perfect love, there is only devastation, on one end or the other. Having experienced that once is enough to deter me from ever looking for it again.

I turn my eyes and my smile to Sig. He’s extremely handsome as well, with his dark hair and chocolate eyes so much like his sister’s. Only he’s all man, hard where she is soft. Even sitting, I can see that he’s enormous. I’d guess when he stands that he’s at least six feet five inches of hard muscle and cute, sexy grin.

All in all, I feel old and ugly by comparison, which does nothing for my confidence or my mood. I can feel myself withdrawing almost immediately.

“Kennedy and I grew up together,” Reese tells the group.

“We won’t hold that against you, Kennedy,” Sig says with a flirtatious wink. He swivels his chair to face me more fully and raises one dark brow as his eyes flicker over me. “And will you be joining us on the boat?”

“I will. I’ll be working, though.”

“Doing what?”

“I guess I’ll be your…entertainment,” I explain, trying not to let that make me feel like the hired trash. Consciously, I lift my chin and keep my smile in place, reminding myself that I have nothing to be ashamed of. I dance for a living. At least I’m working toward my dream. Some of us just have to take the long, hard road. That’s all.