Just the memory sucker punched him in the gut, made him look deep for some clue whether she knew who he was, whether she remembered, too. Something about the way she sized him up convinced him that she did.
After their accidental encounter on that night long ago, he’d made every effort to find out who she was, but he hadn’t known if she’d done the same. He couldn’t predict what a woman like Mallory Hunt would do in any given situation, because she was unlike anyone he’d ever met. He hadn’t made the acquaintance of any professional thieves at the private schools he’d attended, nor anywhere in his upper-middle-class upbringing. Mallory Hunt was an enigma to him. She had been ten years ago. She was today.
Forcing himself into action, he slammed the door shut, engaged the alarm and circled his SUV, fiercely containing his reaction to this woman. He’d been down this road before and the consequences had turned his life upside down.
He probably shouldn’t have contacted her, should have realized their past history would interfere with his agenda. But contacting her had been the only logical thing to do.
His latest security system had the potential to launch his company into the big leagues. Trinity Security Services employed a staff of top-notch engineers who could only test his system from the viewpoint of top-notch engineers. But meeting Mallory Hunt had taught Jake that security systems weren’t about securing a premise, but about keeping the bad guys out, which meant he needed a bad guy to test his system.
Or a bad girl.
He stared at one right now and couldn’t help feeling as though he’d come full circle. After all, Mallory Hunt had been the reason he’d become interested in the field of security and commercial protection in the first place.
Given their history, Jake supposed he shouldn’t be surprised to find himself so curious to see her up close. She was exquisite, with features as delicate as the rest of her and a face dominated by that lush mouth and those clear eyes.
Meeting him at the corner of her driveway, she extended a hand. “Well, you’ve certainly grown up, Jake Trinity.”
He’d never heard her speak, and her voice filtered through him, richer and more sensual than his imagination could have invented, a sexy voice that fit her to a T.
What was it about her that kept bringing to mind sex?
“So have you.” There, the situation was on the table. She recognized him. He recognized her. They were on level ground.
“Are you always so punctual?”
“Yes.” He glanced at his watch as he reached for her hand. A minute to spare. “Do you always cut your appointments so close?”
“I’m always right on time.”
He supposed perfect timing would be a necessary skill in her line of work, but he didn’t comment as she slipped tapered fingers against his, and the feel of her warm skin connected.
As an electrical engineer, Jake knew about conductivity, and Mallory Hunt’s touch flowed through him like a current. They’d only touched once before and sparks had flown then, too.
He thought he saw a flicker of surprise in those thickly fringed eyes, but her expression never changed. He wanted to feel detached, professional. He didn’t. The urge to lift her hand to his lips and press a kiss to her soft skin was strong, even though such an absurdly romantic gesture had no place in a business meeting.
Especially this meeting.
If she noticed how he seemed to be drinking her in, she didn’t react, simply withdrew her hand and said, “I shouldn’t get too close. I smell like a goat.”
He laughed. Even in a sweaty T-shirt and wrinkled shorts, there was nothing goat-like about this woman. “A workout?”
“Of sorts. Come on in.”
Jingling her keys, she trod lightly up the stone steps to her front door, and try though Jake might not to focus on her gently rounded bottom and the toned muscle playing along her thighs, he found himself staring.
And wondering what she’d done to work up that sweat.
He might no longer be a testosterone-filled teen who’d gotten a hard-on from kissing a sexy thief, but his reaction to Mallory Hunt was as extreme as ever. Apparently his reaction wasn’t about being caught up in the excitement of a dangerous situation. His reaction had to do with the woman herself.
Hmm. Looked like a reassessment of his position was in order. Especially since he meant to stick very close to her while she worked to troubleshoot his system.
If she accepted the job after she heard his unusual terms.
He’d convince her to accept.
She owed him.
When she retrieved a wireless remote from her purse to disable what he imagined was a top-of-the-line homesecurity unit, she distracted him with purely professional interest. What sort of system did a security specialist with Mallory Hunt’s credentials use to protect her inner sanctum?
He presumed a woman who knew all the industry tricks would secure her place tighter than Fort Knox. Especially a home she obviously took great pride in. And one glance inside her spacious town house revealed that she lived in the same classy style she drove. Jake didn’t know much about interior design, but he did know style and upscale elegance when he saw it. It stared him full in the face right now.
Mallory Hunt struck him as the epitome of a contemporary woman, a woman who boldly managed life on her own terms. While the luxury of her home didn’t surprise him, the coziness did. With its tall windows, sunny yellow walls and sleek marble floor, Mallory Hunt’s inner sanctum possessed a charming, welcoming feel that struck him as almost…homey.
Moving past her into the foyer, he glanced at the books lying open on a coffee table in front of the sofa, more on the end table. Sheet music covered the music desk of the white baby grand piano positioned between two floor-toceiling windows in the room’s far corner. A latte mug with a red lipstick circle rested on the mantel of a hall tree, as though she’d gulped down a last swallow of coffee before running out the door.
Jake wasn’t exactly sure what he’d expected from a former thief gone legit, but homey wasn’t it.
After locking her front door, she tossed her keys down and shrugged off her purse with a move that drew his gaze to the way filmy white cotton stretched across firm breasts. Hanging her purse over the banister, she turned to him and narrowed her gaze.
“Listen, Jake Trinity. I’ve got someplace to be right after we’re through here. Do you mind if I get ready while we talk?”
He shook his head, not surprised she didn’t conduct business in any ordinary manner. In his limited dealings with Mallory Hunt, he hadn’t found anything ordinary about her. And he really didn’t care how they conducted business as long as he got what he wanted.
“Hang on a second. Let me grab your proposal….” Her voice trailed off as she headed through the living room and disappeared from sight. “I’ve written down some questions I want to ask you.”
“I think we can come up with an arrangement that will be advantageous to us both.”
“I think so, too,” she said, reappearing in the living room, carrying a glossy folder with his company’s logo.
She smiled. But this wasn’t an impersonal smile of welcome. This was a full-fledged dazzling smile that nearly blinded him.
The effect was nothing short of devastating. The muscles gathered low in his gut in a purely physical response that was absurd in its intensity. He’d come today prepared to talk business, to convince this woman that she owed him so she’d agree to the unconventional terms of his job.
He hadn’t come prepared for a full-scale sensual assault.
Unfortunately,