“I’m just supposed to walk in there and spill it?” Jordan knew that would be the scariest walk of her life.
“The man made his big play. Now it’s your turn.”
“You know I’m terrified.” He could turn her away. He could be a jerk. Anything could happen. The interview went well, but Jordan knew how quickly the wind could change.
“The only worthwhile risks are the big ones.” Elle hugged Jordan. “But you know that.”
Jordan held on. “Really?”
“You are a woman who created a business and is building something on your own. You get risks.”
Her friend always knew the right thing to say. “I love you, you know.”
“Then listen to me and go after your man.”
* * *
THREE HOURS LATER Forest sat in his office and tried to ignore Wen. The man wasn’t making that task easy, since he kept hovering and even now leaned in the doorway with one leg crossed over each other.
“That interview was impressive,” he said.
Not exactly what Forest was going for, but he appreciated the support. “Yeah, you’re not the one I was trying to win over.”
“I’m hoping I was.” Jordan’s voice cut through the room.
Forest’s head popped up and he jumped from his chair, nearly knocking it over behind him. “Jordan?”
Wen smiled down at her as she brushed past him wearing one of those dresses that held together with a tie in the front. He looked her up and down, then winked. “About time you showed up.”
She stopped long enough to place a hand on Wen’s crossed arms. “I’m slow, but I make up for that with staying power.”
As far as Forest was concerned there was one too many people in the room. “Wen, disappear.”
“Yes, sir.” Wen didn’t even try to hide his grin as he shuffled out and closed the door behind him.
Forest wanted to rush to her, but he forced his body to stay still. She needed to make all the moves this time. He’d laid it all out there, gave as much of a public plea for her as he could without causing more trouble for her business. “You heard the interview.”
“Yes, but I didn’t need to, to know I owed you an apology.”
Shit. “That’s not what I want from you.”
“You’re getting it anyway.” She pointed to his chair. “Sit.”
Now, this was the Jordan who haunted his dreams all week. Feisty and in charge, knowing what she wanted and how to get it.
So, he obeyed. Hell, right now he’d do just about anything to get them back on track. “Fair enough.”
“As you’ve probably guessed, I’ve spent my life trying not to be my mom.”
“You are not her.” He had no idea how she could think that. The differences were so obvious. He didn’t have to spend even a second to come up with the list. “You might have her charm, but your drive and will are your own.”
“I love her and would fight to protect her, but growing up with her affected me.” Jordan came around to his side of the desk and leaned against it, right at the side of his leg. “I saw what was happening and let it taint how I dealt with relationships. I rushed to do the opposite of what she did, to not look to men for security.”
“You pushed me away.”
“I did and I’m sorry.” She stood there. “I was just so sure the answer was to limit the uses in my life for men.”
“We do have some skills.” He was working on listening and accepting. “Sometimes, if you let us, we can be a partner.”
“Definitely.” She slid in closer.
He held her face in his hands. “And, for the record, you are independent and fierce. You are not someone who wants other people to pay for her.”
She smiled. “You get me.”
“I have been proud of you, impressed by you, since day one of meeting you.” Forest hated to walk into a bad topic, but the words needed to be said. “And if Ryan somehow still outs you, you’ll handle it because that is who you are.”
“You’ll stand by me.”
“Always.”
He thought she’d wiggle her way to stand between his legs, but she did something even better. She pushed him back into his chair and dropped into his lap. One hand went to the back of his neck and the other pressed against his chest.
He shifted to get more comfortable. “I like this position.”
“Shh.” She put a finger over his lips. “My turn for admitting things isn’t over yet.”
He nodded, afraid to say the wrong thing and scare her away. He went for draping his arm across her legs and pulling her in tighter instead.
“When you came along, I got it in my head that wanting you so much, so fast, meant I was turning into her. I was ready to put aside all my personal vows about keeping the website quiet and mine and private. I wanted to share with you.”
The last bit of tension twisted in his gut broke free. A feeling he could describe only as hope spiraled through him. “Why didn’t you?”
“Because I wanted it to stay mine.”
“And now?” He’d pull every word out of her if he had to. With her history, he knew this level of intimacy was hard for her. Having lost so much of his family, he craved it. Being burned by family, she revolted.
“I wanted to keep you at a distance.” She spread her fingers against his shirt and the coolness of her skin seeped into him. “But not anymore.”
“Sweet hell, I hope not.” His free hand traveled up her back, soothing even as he dragged her closer.
“I own the website. It’s all mine.” She smiled as she said the words. The pride bubbled up and out of her and flowed all over both of them. “It’s not part of some revenge scheme as people are saying. It’s about filling a need. Building something.”
A concept he understood well. “I know.”
“Yeah, you do, don’t you?” She leaned in and kissed him, but pulled back before he could stop her.
“Can I talk now?” He trapped her hand against his chest. “Because if I can, I want to say you’re quite the entrepreneur. It’s pretty amazing what you’ve accomplished. You have most of D.C. watching.”
“I could use some advice about expanding and when to reveal my identity, if at all.”
This is what he wanted. The give and take. “Ask anything. We’ll talk it through. Just the two of us.”
“And Elle.”
He chuckled. “I figured she was in on this.”
“I do need you to know I trust you.”
Tension eased out of him. “I know that from the way you’re talking now. From the fact you came to the office.”
She brought their joined hands to her mouth and kissed the back of his. “It scares me to need you and I’ll probably mess up and get plowed under by all my insecurities, but with you I want to try. All I’m asking for is time and understanding.”
“The fact you’re sitting here, telling me all of this, proves you trust me.” He couldn’t hold back another second. He leaned in and kissed her. Not deep, but firm to let her know he wanted more but could wait. “That’s all I wanted.”
“All?”
“Well, there’s some naked stuff and the part where I am dying to pull the end of this knot, but for now I’m good with trust.” He toyed with the material belt around her waist, wondering the whole time if she wore anything underneath. He sure as hell hoped not. “You see, we need that if we’re going to go forward, and I am desperate to move forward with you. We’ve built businesses. Now I want something deeper, just for us.”
Her smile almost sparkled now. “You’re comparing my site to your multimillion dollar business?”
One more insecurity he needed to help her conquer. “We all start somewhere. I’m betting you work as hard, if not harder, than I do.”
“I want you to know I believe, deep to my soul, you’re different.”
He didn’t know how desperate he was for the words until he heard them. Something deep and dark inside him burst open. All those years of looking in and m
issing what he’d lost, no matter how dysfunctional it was. With the comfort of family gone, he leaned on Wen. Now he wanted to lean with her.
“Any chance that’s a sign you’re falling for me.” It actually hurt to force the words out. They were new and his feelings grew and shifted as the days went by, but he knew the truth. She was the one. It would take time and some healing, but she was it.
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m definitely falling.”
The last of his worries washed away. He could handle scandal and Ryan and anything else their relationship brought down on them. “Good, because I didn’t want to jump alone.”
Her hand brushed over his hair. “So, we’re dating.”
“Only each other.”
“Then I have one more thing to give you.” She dipped her hand into her bra.
“Does it have something to do with the tie to the dress, because I’m having a hard time concentrating on anything else at the moment.” She shifted her position and his erection fit into the space between her thighs. “Oh, that works.”
“Here.” She held something between her fingers.
He tried to focus, but the combination of her body and her smell had his brain misfiring. He blinked a few times. “A key?”
“To my condo. My life is there—business and personal—and I want you to have it. No locked doors. No restrictions on what you can see or where you go.”
The gesture was about so much more than easy entrance to her place. It was a vow of sorts. “I’ll have one made for my place for you tomorrow.”
She laughed. “I haven’t even seen your house yet.”
“We’ll go there. Later.” He glanced at the closed door. “First, I want to show you what I can do in this chair.”
She reached for his hand and put it on the end of the belt tie. She gave it a gentle tug. “You’re the boss.”
Subject Request for Forest Redder: Heard rumor he’s seriously dating. Please say it’s not true! —Member 8
Need to Know staff: Confirmed. He definitely is not available.
* * * * *
Books by HelenKay Dimon
From Carina Press
The Holloway Series:
IT’S NOT CHRISTMAS WITHOUT YOU
LEAN ON ME
WE’LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
JUST WHAT HE WANTED
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1254—GUNS AND THE GIRL NEXT DOOR*
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1297—LOCKED AND LOADED*
1303—THE BIG GUNS*
1352—WHEN SHE WASN’T LOOKING
1369—COPY THAT
1387—SWITCHED
1434—FEARLESS**
1440—RUTHLESS**
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Sexy, contemporary romance stories for today’s fun, fearless female.
On sale November 12, 2013
Aftershock by New York Times bestselling author Sylvia Day
On sale November 25, 2013
Ripped by Sarah Morgan
Definitely Naughty by Jo Leigh
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Cosmo Red-Hot Reads from Harlequin
ISBN-13: 9781459245983
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Copyright © 2013 by HelenKay Dimon
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