Kale lowered himself into the plush chair facing the director’s desk and observed his surroundings. Folding his ankles, he leaned back and made himself comfortable as he waited for Reginald to begin the meeting.
The director planted his elbows on his desk and without preamble got right to the point. “If this experiment goes as planned, Erin will be moving into a new position and we’ll be looking to fill her old one. We could use a guy like you on our team, Kale.”
Kale opened his mouth to voice his concerns regarding his probationary status, but before he could speak, Reginald cut him off and answered his unasked question.
He opened the file before him and spread his hands. “Even though you’re currently on probation at Castech, I don’t perceive that as a problem. I’ll fight to get you on my team, Kale. You’re smart, you’re a hard worker, Jay regards you highly, and your past accomplishments speak for themselves.”
Kale took a moment to mull over the information. “So you’re telling me if I accept the transfer, I’ll be working under Erin.” The sexy visual of him working under Erin made him hard.
Reginald nodded his head. “I realize that you’ve been the lead with your own team for many years and this position is beneath what you’re used to, but it will only be temporary. If the production of Pleasure Prolonged goes as expected, and our funding comes through, next summer we’ll begin trials on Pleasure Exchange, a female libido enhancer. By that time you’ll be off probation and you and Erin will be given the lead.”
Kale scrubbed his hand over his chin, pausing to consider the offer for a moment.
“I don’t need an answer today, Kale. But please think about it, and we’ll discuss the terms when I get back from Vegas.”
Kale nodded his consent, even though he knew he had nothing to think over. He couldn’t imagine finding a better place to work than under Erin.
Still shaken up and slightly chilled over the director’s unexpected appearance during a very intimate moment between her and Kale, Erin grabbed her long white lab coat from her locker and shrugged it on. As she prepared to leave the lab to meet Sam in the research room, the shrill of the phone drew her attention.
Dropping onto the stool, she reached for it. “Hello.”
“Erin, darling, I’m so glad I caught you.”
Erin could feel her blood pressure rising, anticipating the conversation ahead. She gritted her teeth and tightened her coat around her waist. “Hello, Mother.”
Forgoing pleasantries, her mother rushed on. “You didn’t forget about your lunchtime hair appointment, did you?”
Erin’s free hand automatically curled around her ponytail. “Of course not,” she said, gripping the phone hard enough to turn her knuckles bone white. “Unfortunately, I can’t make it. I’m swamped today and I’ll have to work through my lunch hour.”
Tense silence met her words and stretched on endlessly.
Erin waited for a long moment and then finally broke the uncomfortable quiet by asking, “Are you still there?” Lord knew she really didn’t have time for this.
Her mother ignored her question and asked one of her own. “Shall I change the appointment until after work then?”
Erin pinched the bridge of her nose. “No, I have to work late tonight too.”
Even though she was deep in conversation with her mother, she knew the exact moment when Kale had entered the lab. She was so in tune with him, she felt his presence and his heat long before she set eyes on him. She angled her head and watched him saunter across the floor to his desk. Just the mere sight of him sent her heart racing and pulse thudding. God, it was shocking what this man did to her.
When he arched a brow in a silent question, Erin held up her index finger, indicating she’d need a minute.
“How late?” her mother asked, clearly annoyed.
She turned her focus back on her mother. “Late enough that it doesn’t look like I’ll be able to make your Christmas gathering.”
Silence reigned once again.
Deep down, Erin knew her mother had her best interests at heart. Anna’s generation simply couldn’t understand that the independent woman of today didn’t need a man to make her happy. Still, Erin just wished her mother would respect her and stop trying to meddle in her affairs.
“But Erin, what about Richard? What will I tell him? He’s expecting you to be here.”
Noticing the curious look in Kale’s eyes as he overheard the one-sided conversation, Erin knew this was not the time or place to be discussing her love life, or lack thereof, with her ever persistent mother. “I’ll try to make it, okay?” she said, appeasing her for the time being.
“I’ll see you at eight then, dear.” Erin cringed at the self-satisfied musical note in her mother’s voice. “You’ll thank me, Erin. Just wait and see,” Anna added.
Erin hung up the phone, glanced at Kale, and threw her arms up in the air. She blew out an exasperated breath and rolled her eyes heavenward. “Mothers.”
Kale pushed away from his mountain of papers, and with two easy steps, moved into her personal space and furrowed his brow with real concern. He brushed a wayward hair from her cheek and tucked it behind her ear. Erin gulped air. God, when he looked at her with tenderness and touched her with such gentle hands, it made her forget he was a playboy, and she was playing the role of a bad girl.
She wanted to avert her gaze, but the look in his smoldering blue eyes held her captive and did strange things to her insides.
When he dipped his head her body went all tingly. His delectable scent curled around her as her flesh tightened in response to his nearness. “Is everything okay?” His voice was low, rough, and softly seductive.
When her eyes met his
