Wanted by the Boss: Sleeping with the Boss / Cowboy Boss / Billionaire Boss. Maureen Child

in the candlelight. And while the storm raged beyond the windows, two souls found something neither of them had been looking for.

      Dawn arrived sooner than they would have wanted.

      ‘‘Storm’s over,’’ Eileen said, knowing Rick was lying beside her, wide-awake.

      ‘‘Yeah, looks like.’’

      Rain dripped from the eaves, sounding like a clock, ticking away the last seconds of an incredible night. The first brush of daylight softened the room, obliterating the light from what was left of the candles. Most of them had guttered out in their own wax hours ago. The last few were unnecessary now.

      Eileen winced and shifted position, tugging the edge of the quilt up over her breasts. Though why she was bothering with modesty at this late date was beyond her. There wasn’t one square inch of her body that Rick hadn’t seen, tasted or explored.

      She slapped one hand across her eyes and tried not to think too much about everything they’d done together in the dark.

      ‘‘Regrets?’’ he asked, his voice a low rumble close to her ear.

      She thought about that for a long minute. Did she regret any of it? Could she? He’d made her feel things she’d merely read about. He’d made her body sing. No. She didn’t regret it. She was only sorry their agreement had been for one night only. Though it was probably safest that way. She wasn’t going to get involved here and she knew darn well that if she kept sleeping with him, her heart would make the leap whether she wanted it to or not. So in the spirit of self-preservation, she’d stick to the bargain despite the clamoring of her hormones. ‘‘No. No regrets.’’

      ‘‘You had to think about it, though,’’ he teased her.

      Turning her head on the pillow, she looked at him. In the early morning light, he looked just as good as he did in candlelight. ‘‘What about you?’’

      He slid one hand up her body, across her rib cage to cup one of her breasts.

      She sucked in a gulp of air.

      ‘‘No regrets,’’ he said, and leaned in close enough to kiss her. Then he pulled away, rolling onto his back to stare up at the ceiling.

      ‘‘So,’’ Eileen said, feeling the loss of his hand on her body, ‘‘now we get up, get showered and move on.’’

      ‘‘Right,’’ he said.

      Boy, that had sounded like a good idea the night before. Now though…she sat up and swung her legs off the edge of the bed, before she could do something really dumb like suggest that they pretend it wasn’t morning yet. ‘‘Night’s over, so we’re finished.’’

      ‘‘Exactly. Back to business.’’

      ‘‘Right,’’ she said. She was achy all over. Muscles she hadn’t used in ages were shrieking at her. And still, it was all Eileen could do to keep from turning back around and jumping on to him. She stood up and walked across the room toward the door, snatching up the complimentary plush white robe on the bench at the end of the bed. Slipping into its warmth, she belted it at the waist and paused in the doorway to look back at him. ‘‘I’ll go over to my room, hop in the shower and then meet you in the living room for breakfast in an hour or so?’’

      He went up on one elbow, his dark brown hair falling across his forehead to give him a rakish air he wouldn’t have once he was back in one of his blasted suits. Her palms itched to smooth across his chest again. To feel his heart beating beneath her touch. She curled her fingers into fists and shoved her hands into the robe’s pockets.

      ‘‘An hour,’’ he said tightly, and watched her go.

      * * *

      Standing under the pulsating jets of hot water, Eileen struggled to clear her mind. To push the night’s memories into a dark corner, where they couldn’t sneak out to taunt her. But it was no use.

      Hot, needlelike punches of water beat on her body in staccato bursts from the shower massage and reminded her of his hands on her. Of his mouth. Of his touch. Of the fires he could stoke with a look.

      And she ached for him.

      At the slide of the curtain rings on the metal pole, she turned in time to see him step naked into the shower behind her. ‘‘Rick—’’

      He grabbed her and pulled her close, sliding her water-slick body along his. ‘‘Sun’s not all the way up yet. Night’s not over.’’

      She stared up at his taut features, swallowed hard and said, ‘‘Works for me.’’

      Turning her around, Rick pressed her back up against the shower wall and lifted her off her feet. Steam from the shower rose up like a soft fog, enveloping them in a small, private world. Water pounded on his back like a heartbeat. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he entered her with one quick lunge that stole his breath. He’d tried to stay away. But hearing the water, knowing she was naked and wet and warm, was simply too much of a temptation to ignore.

      Now he moved within her, racing toward the ecstasy that had become familiar during the long night. Burying his face in the curve of her throat, he gave himself to her and took all she had to give.

      * * *

      An hour later, they were in her bed, having breakfast. Wrapped in the thick terry robes, they shared strawberries, Belgian waffles and hot coffee.

      ‘‘When does your first client get here?’’ Eileen asked, biting into a fresh ripe strawberry direct from the inn’s greenhouse.

      Rick checked the bedside clock. ‘‘About an hour.’’

      She nodded. ‘‘Probably a good thing, huh?’’

      He looked at her and all he could think was that he wanted to taste her strawberry-stained mouth. His body stirred and even he was amazed. He should be exhausted, yet he felt more awake, more alive than he ever had before. She was like a jolt of pure electricity. She kept his body humming and his blood pumping and he hadn’t had nearly enough of her yet. ‘‘Yeah,’’ he murmured. ‘‘A good thing.’’ Pouring more coffee into both their mugs, he said, ‘‘There are three meetings today and one tomorrow morning.’’

      ‘‘Okay.’’

      ‘‘If you want to, later we can go out. There’s an Indian casino near here. We can catch a show.’’

      ‘‘Sounds good.’’

      Rick winced at the stiffness in her voice. Hell, in his voice. ‘‘Look, we don’t have to be this polite and formal with each other,’’ he said, hating the distance springing up between them, even though he knew it was for the best. No point in dragging this on, right? Not when he knew damn well he’d be saying goodbye to her in another week. And he would say goodbye.

      That’s what he did.

      He didn’t stick around and give women the chance to leave him. Not again. Not ever again. ‘‘We had a good time,’’ he said. ‘‘Now it’s over.’’

      ‘‘Right,’’ she said, and relaxed back against the headboard. ‘‘We’re adults—neither one of us is committed to someone else. No reason we can’t walk away. We can do this.’’

      He smiled at her. ‘‘Just as well we’re not going to be having another night like last one.’’

      ‘‘Why?’’ She cradled her coffee cup between her palms.

      Rick grinned and took a sip of the hot, rich brew. ‘‘When Mrs. Hammond brought the breakfast tray up here, she asked me if I’d heard anything unusual during the night.’’

      Eileen’s eyes went wide. ‘‘Unusual?’’

      ‘‘Uh-huh. Seems that just before the rain started, she heard a loud yelp.’’

      She