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  She leaned forward, and after reaching around him to release the towel covering his body, she moved into a position that placed a silken-clad thigh between his nude legs. It was obvious she felt his erection when her lips tilted into a smile. Her mouth was mere inches from touching his. He let his gaze linger on that mouth, thinking how well practiced it was in pleasing him.

  She then grinned wryly. “I need to be screwed senseless tonight, Gabe.”

  He couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips. The one thing he liked most about Debbie was her honesty, her candidness and more importantly, her hearty sexual appetite. He felt a hard throbbing that started low and deep in his groin. “That makes two of us. I need to be screwed senseless tonight myself.”

  Her smile widened. “Oh, yeah?”

  “Hell, yeah.” He lowered his head and claimed her mouth, nibbling, sucking and tasting, creating the level of intimacy they both needed and wanted. As always, her enthusiasm and hunger thrilled him and took his sexual cravings to a whole new level.

  Picking her up into his arms and taking her into his bedroom, he knew that before the night was over, they would get what they both wanted.

  The sun was setting low in the sky when Gabe and Christopher completed their final inspection of the job site, a small yet upscale shopping mall on the outskirts of Detroit. Everything was on target with plans for the opening by the first of October. After a brief discussion with their building foreman, they removed their hard hats and safety glasses and walked back toward their cars.

  “Dinner’s at six if you want to drop by,” Christopher invited before opening the door to his vehicle.

  Gabe shook his head. Even after a full year, it was hard seeing his best friend as a happily married family man when Christopher had always sworn to never marry. He had been the ultimate bachelor, a ladies’ man, and one who strongly believed in sex-only relationships. But Maxi, a woman from Christopher’s past, had reentered his life and changed all of that, which proved there were such things as miracles. Hell, Chris had even traded his Mercedes sports car in for … of all things … a minivan.

  Gabe silently grinned. A minivan. He was ashamed for Christopher since Christopher was too happy with life to be ashamed for himself. “Thanks, Chris, but I need to get prepared for that trip to Anchorage next week. Since the Landmark deal was originally your baby, I have to make sure I’m up on everything about it.”

  Christopher nodded. He knew that John Landmark intended for his exclusive ski resort to be the largest in the world, as well as the most renowned. It would be nestled among miles and miles of snow-covered mountain slopes and scenic wood trails; a project that would take a year to complete, maybe longer if the weather wasn’t cooperative. Landmark had handpicked a firm in Charlotte to handle the resort’s marketing and advertising, and a firm from California to take care of the landscape designs. With an undertaking of this magnitude it was important that all three entities work together if the end result was to be successful. “All right, but if you change your mind, you know you’re welcome.”

  Back in his car Gabe began his journey home. A part of him was eager to start work on the ski resort. Being awarded the contract had literally opened doors, and business was booming. Recently, he and Christopher had discussed hiring an additional building crew just to handle the new business they were acquiring.

  Gabe looked forward to the two weeks he would spend in Anchorage, a city that was vastly different from Detroit. He needed to get away for a while, especially because of his mother’s overzealous matchmaking schemes. She had called earlier that day, telling him about another young woman that she wanted him to meet. He had come up with an excuse why he couldn’t meet the woman any time soon and had quickly ended the conversation.

  His thoughts turned back to Anchorage and all the work he had to pack into the two weeks he would be there, including finding suitable temporary housing for his men. Because of the length of time many of them would be staying there, some had decided to take their families with them, an option he and Christopher had offered them. The last thing the company needed was any member of the work crew getting homesick or pining for companionship. And those who decided to leave their families behind could fly home at least four times, which included the major holidays.

  Gabe planned to make time to check out the city while he was there. He’d heard that Anchorage was beautiful and the perfect place to fish, which was something he enjoyed doing. And since he would eventually be spending a lot of his time there, he may as well look for temporary housing for himself as well.

  Less than twenty minutes later, Gabe had arrived home. The first thing he did was check his phone messages. He wasn’t surprised to find several from his mother, but he was surprised to find one from Keri Morton. She had called to thank him for dinner and to let him know that she and her ex-boyfriend had decided to try and work things out for the baby’s sake. Gabe shook his head as he made his way to the refrigerator for a beer. After the earful Keri had given him, he truly wished them the best.

  She had been a woman on the rebound, and he had to remember that type of woman was nothing but trouble.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Sage

  Charlotte, North Carolina

  Sage Dunbar gritted her teeth against the words her boss had just spoken. Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself that Stephen Poole was invincibly arrogant, something he seemed to take pride in. She also had to remind herself that the man was extremely smart and knew the business of marketing, something she was still learning under his wing. Her role at the Denmark Group was to assist companies in developing strategies that were right for them and would ultimately maximize their profits.

  She glanced at the clock on the wall and wondered if anyone else in the room was as anxious for the meeting to end as she was. The man had started off by praising them for their hard work, and then without missing a beat, he had begun criticizing them for failing to come up with a suitable proposal to present to a company he was eager to bring on board.

  “So what do you think, Ms. Dunbar? Is there a possibility your department can have an acceptable proposal on my desk first thing in the morning?”

  Yeah, if we spend the night here, we can. Instead of giving him those thoughts, she simply smiled and said, “Yes, that won’t be a problem.”

  She watched him smile. He was well aware that he had handed her a challenge, and like always, come hell or high water, she would come through with flying colors. “Good. I knew I could depend on you.”

  She smiled back to avoid gritting her teeth again. All she could think about at the moment was him in bed tonight making out with his latest conquest, while she and her staff slaved away at the proposal he wanted on his desk first thing in the morning.

  It was no secret that the majority of the women in the office thought that at fifty-five Stephen Poole was drop-dead gorgeous. It was rumored that he’d been involved in a number of office affairs since his divorce eight months ago.

  Ten minutes later back in her office, Sage called her staff together for a meeting. One look at their faces after she’d made the announcement and she could tell they weren’t happy that come five o’clock, they wouldn’t be going home.

  “Doesn’t Mr. Poole think any of us have a life outside of work?” Nora Skinner pouted. Apparently she had a date tonight, and then again, it could be that she was still pretty pissed at Stephen Poole. It was rumored that Nora’s bed had been the first he had found his way into after his divorce, before moving on to other viable conquests.

  “Yes, Nora, I’m sure he’s aware that all of us have other interests besides the Denmark Group. However, he wants us to fine-tune the proposal we gave him last week. He feels there are things it lacks. I’m sure if the four of us put our heads together, we’ll be able to come up with just what those things are without spending the entire night here.”

  Sage glanced around the room at the others. “Do I have everyone’s cooperation? I’m aware this is short not
ice, but we need to start work on this right away.”

  When everyone nodded, she couldn’t help but smile. She had to admit that she worked with a swell group. She knew Rita was a single mother, which meant she would have to make arrangements for someone else to pick up her daughter from day care. Jim was a newlywed and was probably anxious to get home to his bride, and Erica, who was married with a teenage son, would probably miss his soccer game tonight.

  “Good, and I appreciate all of your hard work and dedication. And to make sure that we don’t spend the night here, let’s meet in Conference Room A in thirty minutes to begin work.”

  It was a little past nine when Sage entered the apartment she shared with her fiancé, Erol Carlson. Unerringly, after closing the door behind her, her gaze was drawn to the floor-to-ceiling windows that dominated one wall in the living room and provided a panoramic view of downtown Charlotte. One of the main reasons she and Erol had selected this particular apartment over the others in the building had been for its beautiful polished hardwood floors and the view it provided of the city from twelve floors up.

  After dropping her briefcase off on the desk in her office, she made her way into the kitchen to make soup and a sandwich for her dinner. This was Erol’s night to play basketball with a few of his fraternity brothers, and usually he didn’t get in until late since the guys made a habit of going out for drinks afterward. She had called him from the office earlier to let him know she would be working later than usual. He had understood. As a landscape architect who owned his own company, he knew the importance of hard work and doing what had to be done to complete any job, and for that she appreciated him immensely. There had never been any arguments between them regarding the long hours she often spent at the office. Their only disagreement had been with her reluctance to make a decision about their future together.

  From the time they had met and started dating in college, Erol had made it known that he wanted them to marry as soon as they finished school. But something had held her back, although she felt they shared a pretty solid relationship. So they had moved in together and had landed jobs in their chosen professions.

  After three years of living together, Erol had begun complaining. So had their respective parents, who could not understand why they would not marry. As far as everyone was concerned, they were a perfect couple. Both of them had good jobs. They had been together five years—lived together in harmony for three—and had deep respect and love for each other. Erol’s parents had been married over thirty years, just as long as hers, and most of her friends’ parents’ marriages had lasted just as long; so she didn’t have any hang-ups about the institution of marriage.

  Finding no reason to hold back any longer, she’d finally given in and consented to be Erol’s wife. The wedding was planned for June of next year, nine months from now. Everyone was happy—Erol, both sets of parents, their friends—and now, she admitted, so was she.

  At times she wondered what had made her wait so long to agree to marry him. He was everything a woman could possibly want in a man—good-looking, trustworthy, just as neat and tidy as she was—and, she thought with a smile, he was good in bed.

  Sage had taken her shower, gotten into bed and was halfway asleep when she heard the apartment door open. She stretched to a more comfortable position when she heard Erol cross the room and go into the bathroom for a shower.

  Moments later when he eased into bed beside her and pulled her into his arms, she went willingly. Her heartbeat quickened, and her body automatically responded when he reached between her legs and began stroking her.

  “I need you, baby,” he whispered, just moments before joining their mouths in a scorching kiss.

  She closed her eyes, thinking that making love to him was the best stress reliever there was. A few moments later after removing their clothes, he almost had her purring.

  By the time he entered her, he’d been able to successfully block a number of things from her mind—Mr. Poole’s arrogance, the long hours she had spent at the office that day and Nora’s less than desirable attitude while they had worked trying to come up with a better proposal. Instead of dwelling on any of those things, she let Erol take control of her mind and body as he pleasured her in ways only he could do.

  “I love you,” he whispered, as he instinctively locked her legs with his and cupped her behind in his hand. He lifted her up to meet his hard, solid thrusts.

  He kissed her again, taking her mouth in a possession that shook her to the core and made her body respond in pleasure so fierce it almost bordered on pain. Gasping, she let her body flow with the sensation he had built inside of her, and heat of the hottest kind washed over every part of her.

  She heard him moan the same time she did as a climax tore into their bodies, forcing her to cry out his name just as loud as he was crying out hers. She felt him crush her against his body as he began pumping into her with a frenzy that made her suck in a startled breath, and she felt her body, as well as his, come again.

  When finally, minutes later, she felt him slump against her, spent and just as exhausted as she was, she held him to her, wondering what had been the driving force behind their frantic lovemaking tonight. He had taken her with a force that had nearly bordered on obsession, desperation.

  “I’m sorry, Sage.”

  She lifted her brow, but before she could ask him what he was apologizing for, she heard his soft, even breathing, letting her know that just as quickly he had fallen asleep. She shifted their positions so she would not feel crushed beneath his weight and held him in her embrace.

  Her gaze dropped to his features, and she thought he looked troubled about something, even while he slept. She wondered if perhaps a business deal had gone bad. But even if that was the case, that was no reason for him to be apologizing to her, so the words he had spoken before drifting off to sleep hadn’t made much sense.

  Sage stroked his chest, deciding she would talk to him in the morning before she left for work. It wasn’t a long time after that before she, too, closed her eyes to sleep.

  “Why did you apologize to me last night, Erol?”

  In the awakening dawn that was flowing through their bedroom curtains, Sage could see the surprised look on Erol’s face. As was the norm, he was up early to go jogging.

  He lifted a brow. “I apologized?” he asked, walking back over to the bed and sitting down on the edge of it, facing her.

  “Yes,” she said, staring at him, studying his features. For some reason, even after a good night’s sleep he still looked beat. “After we made love and before you drifted off to sleep, you said you were sorry, but you didn’t say what you were sorry about.”

  Erol frowned. “Are you sure you weren’t dreaming about that, sweetheart?”

  She shook her head as she pulled herself up and drew her knees up to her chest. “No, I’m positive that I heard what you said.”

  Erol shrugged as he stood. “In that case,” he said, crossing the room to get his keys off the dresser, “it must have been because I thought I may have been a little too rough with you last night.” He turned around and looked at her. “Was I?”

  She smiled as she adjusted the bedspread around her raised knees. “No, in fact I rather enjoyed it that way. God knows I needed it. Yesterday was a bear at work.”

  He nodded. “I gathered as much when you called me. Did you and your staff get things finished last night?”

  She inhaled deeply as she ran a hand through her hair. “I hope so. Mr. Poole has been rather picky about stuff lately. But then, I guess he has every right to be since he’s worked there forever and has helped make the company into the success it is.”

  “Yeah, it’s not easy climbing the ladder of success,” Erol said, rubbing a hand over his face.

  There was something in his voice that pulled at Sage, alerting her that something was bothering him. She knew that although his business was flourishing, he had yet to reach that level of success he was pleased with. Erol’s dream was to b
e the most sought after landscape architectural firm not only in the region, but in the country as well. He’d often shared with her his dream to see his company grow nationwide. And that was one goal he planned on accomplishing.

  “Are things going okay with the company, Erol?” she asked with concern.

  He smiled wryly as he walked back over to the bed and pulled her into his arms. “Yeah, don’t worry, babe. Things are going fine.”

  She hugged him back with the same fierceness that he was hugging her. “And you would tell me if they weren’t, wouldn’t you? You would let me know if something was bothering you?”

  He slowly released her and tilted his head back to look down at her. He reached out and cupped her chin. “Yeah, babe, you would be the first to know.”

  Sage held her breath as she watched Mr. Poole thoroughly read the new proposal, hoping it was what he wanted. Moments later, she let out a sigh of relief when she saw him smile.

  “This is excellent, Ms. Dunbar. I knew you and your staff would come through. There’s no doubt in my mind that both Mr. Dell and the board will be pleased.”

  Sage couldn’t help but beam in delight. “Thanks, sir.” She then watched as he leaned back in his chair and gazed at her thoughtfully. She wondered what he was thinking.

  Nervously, she shifted in her seat and crossed one leg over the other. “Is there anything else you wanted, Mr. Poole?” After asking her question, she quickly wondered if he’d considered her words as a come-on. She definitely hoped not. Since coming to work for the company two years ago, she had been nothing but professional in her dealings with him, unlike some of her coworkers who she knew had all but stamped the words “I’m available if you’re interested” on their foreheads.

  “Yes, there is something else, Ms. Dunbar, and I believe you would be just the right person for the job.”

  She lifted a dark brow. “What job, sir?”

  “To do a presentation at a meeting in Alaska.”

  “Alaska?”

  “Yes, Anchorage, Alaska. We were awarded a contract to handle the marketing for a company that’s having an exclusive ski resort built there. The owner, John Landmark, wasn’t impressed with the ideas our first group put together and needs another proposal presented. He wants us to meet with the Regency Corporation, the company he’s hired to build the resort, and work with them to come up with some good marketing and promotion ideas.”