"He met a showgirl. Cherise."
"Cherise?"
"I think they had sex in the desert. And drank a lot of tequila."
Ryan raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "Way to go, Marty." Then his eyes took on the sexy look she loved. "And you know, that sounds like something you and I should try."
She laughed. "The desert or the tequila?"
"Nothing against a good shot of tequila, but I was definitely talking about the desert."
She smiled her agreement, leaning in to lift a slow, sweet kiss to his lips. "I didn't tell Martin about us," she went on. "I still didn't know how he might feel about it. And I couldn't risk your job that way without discussing it with you first. But maybe what I did while he was away, and what you and I choose to do now, won't matter anymore. Maybe if we told him the truth, he would understand."
Ryan had the same feeling even before she had spoken, and he knew what he had to do. He supposed the answer had been dangling in front of him all along, but he'd been too afraid to reach out and grab it.
"I'll be back in a few minutes," he told Penny.
She raised her eyebrows. "You're going to do this now, tell him this very minute? I mean, shouldn't we talk about this first, plan what to say?"
"Just trust me," he said.
* * *
Five minutes later, Ryan stood before Martin's desk. He wasn't going to beat around the bush. He'd waffled on this for too long in the first place and was ready to take action. He needed to clear the air and quit keeping secrets. He needed to be the sort of man Penny deserved. "Martin, I have something to tell you."
His boss smiled, and it finally occurred to Ryan what Martin was really smiling about. Cherise in the desert. "What's that?" Martin asked.
"I don't know how else to say this, so I'll just say it. While you were away, I fell in love with Penny."
Martin quit smiling and leaned forward in his chair, as if he couldn't quite fathom what he'd just heard.
"I realize I was overstepping," Ryan went on, "but it was … bigger than the both of us. I never really knew what it meant when people said that, but now I do. I tried not to want her, but-" he shook his head "-I can't help it. I can't stop it. So … is there any chance this is okay with you or, all things considered, should I just go clean out my desk?"
Martin tilted his head. "Let me get this straight. While I was away, you fell in love with Penny."
"Yeah." Ryan nodded.
Martin leaned farther over his desk. "My Penny."
"That's the one."
"So you're saying while I was out in Vegas, you were here, romancing the woman I had just proposed to?"
To say the very least, Ryan thought. But he kept it simple. "Yep."
Ryan tensed as Martin slowly bent his head in the other direction, then flashed a smile so bold it made Ryan flinch. "Well, that's the best damn news I've heard all day! Other than her not hating me for withdrawing my proposal, that is. It killed me to hurt her like that-she's a tenderhearted woman, you know."
"I know."
"And she's … well, she's very conservative. Very innocent. Pure at heart."
Ryan held in his smile and simply nodded.
"So nothing would please me more than to see Penny with a stand-up guy like you, Ryan. I hope you'll make her very happy."
Oh yeah, Ryan thought. I'll make her happy, all right.
* * *
Penny had spent the last half hour trying to absorb all that happened this morning; heck, in the whole past two weeks. Martin didn't love her, and had likely never loved her-he'd merely been on the rebound. And Ryan really cared for her. Enough to risk the career that was so precious to him, and so important to his family. Of course, she'd also spent the time worrying about Martin's reaction and praying Ryan's career remained intact. It was difficult to start a business-she knew that from experience-and she wanted Ryan to be happy with his decision. So much remained at stake; her heart turned somersaults in her chest.
She'd just finished updating Patti when the pub's door flew open and Penny almost dropped a beer mug. Her eyes desperately searched Ryan's as he headed toward her.
Patti pivoted toward the door that led to the street, "I'll go take a walk."
Penny smiled her apology, then shifted her attention back to Ryan, biting her lip as he neared the bar. "Well?"
"He's glad," Ryan said, smiling. "He gives us his blessing. Although it wouldn't have mattered. Either way, I'd be down here right now telling you I love you."
He loved her? A happiness like none she'd ever known stormed through Penny's veins. She couldn't breathe, her emotions becoming some bizarre mixture of confusion and an elation beyond measure. "But I thought-I thought this was just a fling. I thought you couldn't fall in love that fast. Remember, you told me that once."
He took her hands and gazed into her eyes. "I was wrong. And I was a fool to think anything was more important than the way I want you." Her whole body went warm as he pulled her into his embrace. "So, tell me, do you have any other fantasies we haven't explored yet?"
Penny raised her eyebrows. "I do, in fact."
"Don't keep me in suspense."
"Well … I've always kind of wanted to do it here, on the bar."
Ryan peered at the mahogany, then glanced over her shoulder toward the street. "Kind of risky with all these plate-glass windows. Are you ready to go that far?"
Penny didn't answer, but her body flared with a familiar desire as she slid her arms around his neck and plundered his warm mouth with her tongue. Their bodies pressed together, thighs intertwining, and she'd just begun to lose herself in the sweet friction when Ryan whispered breathlessly in her ear.
"I, uh, hate to break it to you, but even I'm not that wild." He gazed past her again, first toward the street, then to the pub's office. "We should look into getting some big shades for these windows, but for now, honey, we'll have to make do in there."
At the moment, Penny hardly cared where they did it, as long as she had her way with him, now. A slow smile spread across her face as she realized she finally had what she'd always dreamed of-the kind of passion that was too urgent to wait. Grabbing Ryan's tie, she led him into the office and shut the door.