Chapter One

Oh man, not the strawberry…not the strawberry…aw, shit.

Erik Monteague clenched his jaw and steeled his defenses against the impending carnal assault. The laughing guests, jazz band, overflowing food tables—everything at the Sinclair Marketing Group open house—faded into the woodwork as his field of vision narrowed down to ruby lips. And the damn lucky strawberry about to be devoured.

Her pink tongue flicked across full, luscious lips, then scooped a bead of chocolate from the bottom of the large, ripe fruit. She opened her mouth, slowly slid the berry inside and wrapped her lips around it.

God Almighty. “I can’t believe I’m jealous of a piece of fruit,” Erik muttered, as he shifted his stance and stifled a moan.

A familiar chuckle pushed through the haze, and his view once again widened to include the other guests milling about, as well as his best friend, Steve, who seemed to be enjoying himself at Erik’s expense.

“What the hell are you mumbling about?”

Erik flicked a glance in Steve’s direction, noticed his friend had come armed with an extra beer and grinned. The smirk on Steve’s face indicated he knew exactly what Erik found so intriguing and what he’d been mumbling about. Instead of answering the rhetorical question, he asked one of his own. “You drinking both of those, or did you plan to share?”

Steve handed one of the bottles over to Erik. “You looked like you might be overheating.” He tipped his bottle in the direction of Erik’s temptress. “I’ve never seen her before. Who is she?”

Erik stared at Steve for a moment, perplexed. He knew Steve wasn’t asking if she, like them, was a client of SMG’s. Or as was more likely to be the case, if she worked at SMG. Steve wanted to know the personal connection. It was a simple question that shouldn’t have required much thought. But for some reason, Erik didn’t want to answer.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to ward off the explosive memories of her and their night together.

Her mouth—warm and slick—wrapped tightly around him…

Her beneath him, bottom lip caught between her teeth in an effort to hold back her screams…her mouth dropping open to gasp for air as she cried out her release…

Him waking, reaching for her and finding himself alone…

He swallowed hard and scrubbed his hand down his face. “I don’t know who she is.” Erik was known for his honest, straightforward manner, but in this case, he decided knowing someone intimately didn’t mean you really knew them.

Steve quirked a pierced eyebrow. “Bullshit.”

At times, having a friend who was closer than a brother was a true blessing. This wasn’t one of them, and Erik cursed the fact that Steve knew him better than anyone. “Sometimes you’re a real pain in the ass.”

Steve’s lopsided grin grew to obnoxious proportions. “Yep.” He took a sip of beer and waited. When Erik didn’t elaborate, he pressed the issue further. “What’s the deal?”

Erik took a long drink of beer, studied the floor and fought the urge to shuffle his feet like a teenager being grilled by a pissed-off parent. He and Steve had been friends since kindergarten, and in their twenty-seven year friendship he hadn’t ever kept anything from Steve.

Until now.

No way would he analyze why he wanted to keep her identity private. Rather than wade into the troubled waters implied by that revelation, he gave Steve a sly grin and said, “My friend, we have shared many things. But whatever I might know about her, I’m keepin’ to myself.”

“Damn.” All traces of amusement dropped from Steve’s face, and he whistled low. “That sounds serious.”

Erik stiffened and bit back a snarl. Instead of letting it out, he nailed his smile in place and said, “It is.” He took a moment to enjoy surfing the shock waves rolling off his friend, then said, “Serious lust. You know—the kind that results in sex that’s mind-altering. Not life-altering.”

As soon as the last words left his mouth, he mentally winced. He’d left an opening big enough to drive a truck through, and, as expected, Steve barreled in. “Dammit, Erik, it’s been ten years. When are you gonna let it go and move on with your life?”

Erik rolled his head in a circle, attempting to loosen the muscles in his neck and shoulders that’d suddenly snapped into tight bands. They’d had this conversation too many times, and he didn’t want to have it again. Not tonight. Not ever. Instead of delving into the past—a past he couldn’t change or forget—he decided to ignore Steve and shifted his attention to something more appealing.

Kat. He chuckled as he considered for the first time the possibility she might have given him a false name. That would certainly explain why, on all of his subsequent trips to Charlotte and multiple attempts to find her, he’d hit nothing but roadblocks.

Funny, but the name fit her so well he found himself hoping she hadn’t lied. Tall and lithe, her movements were fluid and graceful, like those of a cat. And when stroked just right, she damn near purred. He scowled. She’d also crawled under his skin and become a constant source of irritation—kind of like Cat Scratch Fever.

He crossed his arms over his chest, leaned against the wall and studied her. She looked different than she had the night they’d met, and, at first, he’d thought his mind was playing tricks on him. But the more he watched her move through the crowd, mixing and mingling and interacting, the more obvious it became. Even her conservative business suit couldn’t hide her tempting curves or disguise the way her body moved with a natural sensuality.

She still screamed “sex,” and his body still wanted her to the point he ached.