Hired: A Bride for the Boss: The Playboy Boss's Chosen Bride / The Corporate Marriage Campaign / The Boss's Urgent Proposal. SUSAN MEIER

scarlet woman,’ he murmured with relish as his hands glided over the curves of her breasts, still trapped inside the bodice of her dress.

      She smiled, loving the possessive pleasure in his voice, revelling in the desire that couldn’t wait. He drove himself in hard, his body slamming against her and she arched up, squeezing him in blissful joy. A wild savagery leapt into his eyes. He leaned over and kissed her, his tongue driving into her mouth, plunging rhythmically to assert complete ownership, hunting for sexual domination which she readily conceded, revelling in the intense physical passion, the climactic urgency of it, moving together, reaching for the same ecstatic release, a fusing frenzy of explosive excitement that peaked exultantly and floated into sweet endearments as he cuddled her close, gruffly whispering, ‘My gorgeous girl…you are unbelievable…so beautiful… awesome…’

      She ran her fingers through his hair, adoring every touch of him. ‘So are you,’ she whispered back.

      He lifted his head, brushing his lips over hers. ‘What am I going to do with you?’ It sounded as though she was a puzzle to which he had no reference points for resolving.

      ‘You said you were going to marry me,’ she reminded him.

      He laughed, his eyes twinkling at hers. ‘That’s a definite start.’

       A start.

       But would there be a finish line?

      Merlina fiercely clamped down on this negative train of thought. Jake wanted to marry her. Maybe it would work out perfectly. Not to take the chance was unthinkable.

      ‘We go now and buy the ring,’ he ran on. ‘Then since I feel on top of the world, we’ll have a celebratory lunch at Level 21 and enjoy overlooking Sydney. After which we’ll catch our two-thirty flight to Griffith…’

      ‘You’ve booked it?’

      ‘Mmm…’ He flashed his wicked grin. ‘And since we’re doomed to separate bedrooms in your family home, maybe you can take me for a walk in the vineyard your father told me about. Before we retire for the night.’

      The instant thrill at this suggestion told Merlina that sex with Jake was already highly addictive and she couldn’t possibly turn her back on it at this juncture. Whatever the future brought, she would never regret having known the best of Jake Devila.

      ‘There’s no such thing as privacy anywhere near my family, Jake,’ she warned ruefully. ‘You’ll be swamped by them this evening.’

      ‘I have you as my lifeboat.’

      ‘Uh-uh.’ She shook her head. ‘You’ll lose respect if you look to me for rescue. It’s sink or swim for you.’

      ‘I’m a natural born survivor,’ he claimed, not the slightest dint in his confidence.

      But it was a different game, Merlina thought, and the rules would be foreign to him. ‘Just take it easy,’ she advised seriously. ‘Don’t try too hard.’ She wanted her family to like him, to accept him into their fold.

      He gently stroked the worry lines from her forehead. ‘I’ve got your father onside,’ he reminded her. ‘I promise you, it won’t be a problem, Merlina. Don’t fret over it.’

      She couldn’t help it. Jake was into winning but laying a solid foundation with her family required genuine responses that struck harmonious chords. If that didn’t happen…well, she did have the choice of going it alone with him. Though even contemplating that path brought a scary sense of loss. She might have chosen to live apart from her family most of the time but she wanted them there for her. As they’d always been.

      ‘Have you packed a bag ready to go?’ he asked.

      ‘Yes. It’s in my bedroom.’

      ‘Good. Mine’s in the car.’ He sat her up on the table and kissed her again, a very fresh reminder of what they’d just experienced together, ending in a sigh of resignation over the time factor. ‘Guess we’d better move, tidy up and head into the city.’

      ‘Guess we’d better,’ she agreed, echoing his sigh.

      He smiled. ‘No argument from you this morning?’

      She cocked her head considering, giving him a look that telegraphed he was flirting with danger as she replied, ‘Not until you do something I don’t like.’

      He laughed and set her down on her feet, hugging her close for a few more moments of sweet togetherness. ‘I promise not to be a bad boy in front of your family. Okay?’

      ‘I live in hope that you can keep that promise,’ she said with dry irony, knowing that any challenge was meat and drink to Jake.

      ‘Watch me,’ he threw back at her, not the least bit intimidated by the prospect of being measured as an appropriate husband.

      Maybe their relationship would thrive if she could just keep throwing out challenges, Merlina thought, as she was scooped along with him to get tidy.

      But there was still the burning issue of parenthood.