The taste of her breath made his body prickle with sexual arousal. He couldn’t remember wanting a woman as much as he wanted this one. Kissing the soft underside of her jaw, he grazed his lips along the graceful column of her neck.
She tilted back her head and let out a soft whimper.
The sexy sound launched his libido into the stratosphere. Capitalizing on the discovery Jaye liked having her neck kissed, he pressed his hot mouth on the arch of her throat while he burrowed his hands under the fleece sweatshirt. Underneath, she was wearing one of her running shirts. The slick fabric fit tight against the sexy plane of her abdomen. He memorized every perfect curve and wondered how far she’d let him go.
In a rare spurt of optimism, he mentally sifted through the contents of his nightstand drawer for the remote chance he might have a condom. If he managed to find one under the books and papers, the latex would be dry and brittle with age. Making love would have to wait until he stopped by the drug store tomorrow.
Jaye pushed his shoulders. “We can’t do this.” She scooted off the couch and stood, wide-eyed, her hand pressed against her lips. “We work together. We live together. And soon, we won’t see each other again.”
Searing pain shot down his neck into his chest, throbbing close to his heart. Dazed, he launched off the couch. “Never see each other again? What do you mean?”
“I start a new job in two weeks. Please, Mitch. We can’t be more than friends.”
“Why not?” He grasped her upper arms so she couldn’t bolt. “Where will you be working?”
“Far from here. I won’t have time for anything, or anyone.” She spread one hand on the center of his chest.
His heart threatened to pound out of his ribcage to fall into the small well of her palm. “This new job you’re starting—who hired you?”
“My father. He finally asked me to join the family business” She stepped out of Mitch’s hold. “Eventually, Dad will ask me to run the show. I’ve got a lot to learn before then. You, better than anyone, know the sacrifices a family business requires.”
For the past few years, he’d sacrificed more than he gained. The thought of Jaye going through such upheaval made his insides splinter. “Running a business can tear apart a family. I hope your father treats you with the respect you deserve.”
“Me, too.”
Mitch caught a flicker of grief in the depths of her extraordinary eyes and covered her hand with his, pressing her palm against the jagged rhythm of his heart.
“I’m sorry.” She drew away. “Goodnight.”
Speech left him, muffled by a heavy layer of heartache. He balled his hands and watched Jaye walk toward the hallway leading to her bedroom, her head bowed and her shoulders slumped. She looked as lonely as he felt.
Up until now, his goals were simple—expand the business and chase every consultant out of Blake Glassware so they couldn’t ruin his professional life.
He never expected a consultant to blast his personal life to smithereens.
Chapter Thirteen
For the first time since she moved in with Mitch, Jaye walked into the kitchen wearing nothing but a black satin slip. She was counting on the morning air to invigorate her after she’d spent most of the night staring at her bedroom ceiling.
Not convinced she could eat, she reached into a cabinet for a bowl. The hem of her slip tickled the top of her thighs.
“Good morning, Jaye.”
She whirled toward the sound of Mitch’s voice.
He stood near the pantry, dressed in a pair of jeans and a red Blake Glassware T-shirt.
“You’re supposed to be at work now.” She glanced at his feet and realized he was wearing socks. No wonder she hadn’t heard him.
“I wanted to talk to you before I left.” His eyes dipped to the neckline of her slip. A faint smile tilted his mouth. “Doubt I’ll make much sense while you’re wearing that nightgown.”
Jaye’s fingers tightened around the cereal bowl. “I’ll get dressed.”
“Don’t bother. This won’t take long. We need to set up some ground rules.” He crossed both arms over his chest. “I’ll keep my hands off you at work. When we’re at home, I’ll back off whenever you go into your bedroom. Everywhere else is fair game, because I intend to spend the next two weeks convincing you to get as close to me as possible.”
The cereal bowl slipped out of her hands and clattered to the floor, spinning like a lopsided top on the linoleum. “No. Dating isn’t a good idea.”
He raised one brow. “Tell me why.”
“Because I’m moving to Syracuse.”
“That’s only three hours away.” The muscles bunched along his jaw loosened. “When you said we wouldn’t see each other again, I thought you were about to relocate overseas.”
“Not yet, anyway. I’ll spend my first few months chained to a desk.” Once she was imprisoned in her father’s high tech cell, she’d feel light years away from this place, this man.
The prospect of not looking into Mitch’s solemn blue eyes sent a stab of panic into her sleep-fogged mind. She tried to memorize every nuance in his gaze.
“Jaye, do you expect me to ignore what’s going on when you look at me like that? I can see the heat in your eyes, and all I want is to come over there to kiss you.” He took a step toward her. “Let me.”
“The last time I dated someone I worked with, everything went wrong.” Her heart still hadn’t healed from that bruising.
He kept coming toward her. “Your contract ends in two weeks. After that, work won’t be an issue.”
“But distance will.”
“The drive to Syracuse is a piece of cake. Hell, I’m willing to drive twenty-four hours just to see you for one.”
Hope played ping pong with her pulse. “You will?”
“Yeah.”
