But it meant so much, that he’d applied brakes—for her—against the demands of his very...obvious desires. It meant even more that he confessed to a weakness. Something Rafael Moreno Salazar had never exhibited in the eight years of his meteoric rise to the top of a field he’d singlehandedly revolutionized.
The fact that that man and her man were one and the same was still too much to get her head around. She hadn’t even started to scratch the surface of the implications. No matter what he said, she knew being who he was would cause problems.
But for now she had him, in those moments of perfection when she was the world to him. As he was to her. And really, what was the point of looking ahead? She had no illusions there would be a continuation once they exited this magical interlude.
But they were still there now.
Feeling she’d be poking a dragon, yet unable to stop, she slid her hand across his shoulders, caressing her way down his back to his waist, delving beneath his open shirt and repeating the journey up, then down, then lower still. The exquisite pleasure of having this freedom, this privilege, was intoxicating.
He caught her against him, crushing her in his arms, his face set in stark lines of savage hunger. And she did another first. She brought his lips down to hers.
Initiating this kiss made it so different, enabling her to set its taste and temperature, sweet and scalding at once. He let her savor him—for about thirty seconds. Then he pushed out of her arms, exploded to his feet.
He scowled down at her. “If you don’t want to be on your back, naked and with me buried all the way inside you, you better not touch or kiss me again.”
She rubbed the heel of her hand against the itch behind her breastbone. “And you better find a shortcut in your training because now that I’ve touched and kissed you, I don’t want to do anything else.”
“You better stop saying things like that, too. They have the same effect on me.”
Her lids grew heavier as she slumped under the weight of craving. “Whatever you say.”
He took an explosive step toward her, before stopping, vibrating with control. Then he gritted, “Enchantress.”
She sighed, rubbing the itch harder. “Sorcerer.”
Suddenly his lips spread into a wide smile as he sat down, keeping a two-inch no-touching zone between them.
“I’m keeping score of your transgressions, and I’ll get satisfaction for each and every one. But first, I need the subject of business closed permanently.” Seriousness suddenly replaced his intimate teasing. “It won’t be preferential when I give your boss precedence over equally qualified candidates. Personal preference is an acceptable decisive factor when all things are equal. He might not land the partnership, but for you, I’ll give him something he’s worthy of. I bet he’s way above ‘any good.’ You wouldn’t work for someone inept.”
Giving in to wild impulse, she combed the raven satin away from his forehead, her breath catching as his eyes flared and his whole body tensed. “On what do you base such belief?” Suddenly a suspicion hit her. “You don’t think I rely on something other than my professional skills, do you?”
The darkening of pained arousal in his eyes abruptly became affront. “What? No. That’s something I’d feel at a thousand paces.” He took her by the shoulders, his face set in adamant lines. “A major part of the judgment you so laud is instinct, and that told me everything I need to know about you. And then, your effect on me transcends my judgment, not nullifies it. Now that I choose to employ it, I can see you’re acutely intelligent but burdened with unwavering integrity. You’d only rely on your personal merits no matter how many more lucrative paths were at your disposal.”
Her eyes glazed over his lips. Everything he said was so lyrical, it kept deepening his spell. And beyond that, and his hypnotic voice, there was that accent she couldn’t pinpoint. And it was the sexiest thing she’d ever heard.
And if that wasn’t enough, and he’d ignite her while reciting the ingredients of a salad dressing bottle, he’d gone and said all those incredible things about her. No one had ever held her in such high regard before. And for it to come from Rafael Moreno Salazar—a man whose analyses governments and giant multinational corporations paid millions for—that was beyond enormous.
She surged, clung to his lips in a kiss of gratitude.
By the time she swooned away and lay back, transported by his taste and testimony, he was growling like a starving lion.
“You’re treading nonexistent ice, Eliana.”
Hearing the name she’d never liked on his lips, enunciated with such elegance and command, she suddenly loved it. In fact, she couldn’t imagine him calling her anything else.
She sat up, pressed another kiss to his jaw. “You can’t say things like that and expect me not to pounce on you.”
Unlocking his gritted teeth, he shot her a warning glance. “I’d stake my history as an unerring analyst on every word’s accuracy. And if your agency warranted an invite...” He raised an eyebrow. “I assume your boss is invited?”
She giggled. “I assure you he’s not gate-crashing.”
“Then this validates my theory that he is way above the ‘any good’ level. And if he invited you, then you have a prominent position within his agency. And to have that so young, you must be superlative in your specialty.”
“I’m not that young.”
“I know you’re over eighteen. If not by much. I’m almost having dirty old man pangs here.”
“You’re only thirty-two!”
His lips twisted at her exclamation. “You’ve researched me well. But that still makes me ten or more years older than you are. You can’t be more than twenty-one.”
“I’ll be twenty-four in three months.”
His eyebrows rose, but he only said, “That’s less than three years older than my estimate.”
“Three years make a huge difference. Especially to me. I graduated high school two years early, earned my undergraduate degree almost four years ago and I’m on my second masters degree now. And because of my home environment, I’ve had hands-on experience in my current job since I was twelve.”
“See? My analysis was accurate. You follow no rules, and your prowess has nothing to do with your age.” He tugged her flush against him, spoke against her lips, singeing her with his breath and words. “And I’ve changed my mind. Forget your boss. I’ll steal you away from him. Name your terms. Whatever they are, I’ll meet them.”
That made her push him away. “Stop right there. For God’s sake, you don’t even know what my specialty is!”
His shrug was self-assurance incarnate as he stretched her back on the couch and came down full-length beside her. “Whatever it is, I always need unique minds and exceptional talents on my team. It’s how my conglomerate got so big so fast, by offering candidates everything they’d never get anywhere else in terms of freedom, resources and remuneration.”
She did know that. But never in a million years had she imagined she’d be headhunted by him under any circumstances. And for him to do that while they lay entwined like this...
She feebly pushed at him as he bent to nuzzle her neck. “I do know your methods, but...no, okay? This wouldn’t only complicate matters...it would mess them up beyond repair. People still think I got my current position because of nepotism. With you, they’d think I got it because...”
“Because you send me out of my mind with desire and it’s literally painful to keep my hands off you?” He gathered