“What’s the company again?” Mark asked.
“Boxware. Maybe you’ve heard of them?”
“Um, yeah. I’m young and a musician, but I’m not stupid.”
She felt her face flush, but this time from embarrassment. “Sorry. Anyway, the founder is a guy named James Cleaver. He’s young, hip, and very into keeping his employees happy. He’s a wonderful man.”
“Is that so.”
She nodded. “So are you interested?”
“Possibly.”
“Great. Right. Talk to the band. Get back to me.” She tried not to sound overly eager.
“Actually, I think I can speak for the band and agree—”
“Wonderful!”
“Under one condition.”
“What?” she asked skeptically.
“You take off your panties.”
She gasped. “I’m not going to take off my underwear for a job!” She knew she should be outraged. He was, after all, using sex to get his way. But instead she felt a buzz of excitement shoot through her.
“Oh no?”
“No.” She hoped she sounded convincing.
He shrugged. “Up to you.”
Crossing her arms over her chest, she stared straight ahead. She needed to convince Mark to play at the Spring Fling, but was he really going to agree only if she obeyed him? And if she did obey him, what did that make her?
Instead, she focused on the coastline whizzing past the window. The two-lane road hugged a cliff, at the bottom of which the Pacific Ocean crashed against rocks and sandy beaches. The sun was just starting to set, lighting up the ocean in an orange-and-yellow blaze.
They passed a marina, and she couldn’t help it—her gaze darted among the sailboats, searching for forty-foot craft with the word Ruby painted on the bow with big, scrolling letters. But of course, there was no boat. Twenty years had passed since she’d waved good-bye to her father as he’d sailed for the South Pacific. Problem was, Hawaii hadn’t been enough. He’d kept going. And Ruby had kept waiting.
“You’re a jerk.”
Mark slanted a glance her way. “Pardon me?”
“Using sex as an advantage over me. It’s disrespectful and unfair.”
He slanted a grin at her that made her stomach do a flip. “You seem to have a strange attachment to your underwear.”
“I do not!”
“First during the show, now tonight. What do you think will happen if you go without underwear for a few hours, anyway?”
“That’s not the point!”
“Just seems like a funny thing to get all uppity over. You know damn well your panties are coming off at some point tonight. Why not now? Then we both get what we want.”
“Just because I let you you know what me one time does not make you my boss. Or my dom.”
“You weren’t complaining last weekend.”
“I thought I’d never see you again. I told you, that was—”
“An aberration. I know.”
“You are a very frustrating man.”
Reaching over, he lightly touched her thigh. She jumped at the warm contact, hating the way it sent tingles down her leg. “Come on, baby. I’ll play this show, all you have to do is take off your underwear.”
“You want me without my underwear? Fine.” She pulled the lace down her legs, over her sandals, shoved them into the glove box, and slammed the thing shut.
Glaring at him, she settled back into her seat. “There. Happy now? See you at the Spring Fling.”
“That’s a good girl. Funny thing, though.”
“What’s that?”
“Looks like you locked the glove box. And I don’t have the key.”
Mark handed the Ferrari keys to the valet at the Ritz. The luxury resort was located on a dramatic piece of coastline in Half Moon Bay. Reluctantly, Ruby took his hand as he led her to the front steps.
The girl was on edge. With her neat hairdo, prim dress, and shiny clutch, she was sensibility personified. The only thing that gave away her sexy side was the strappy heels on her dainty feet.
He wondered what happened to that girl he’d met nine days ago. Now she had a wall around her ten feet thick. So much different from that woman who’d melted in his arms on the patio.
But it was all a facade. There was a connection between them, nearly tangible, and he knew it wouldn’t take much to have her belonging to him once again.
He was known for his patience, but he’d been waiting for this all week, and their time apart felt like the longest foreplay ever. He was ready to explode.
They entered the grand lobby of the Ritz, but instead of heading for the restaurant, Mark pulled her into a side hallway.
“Mark, what are you doing?”