Page 26 of Gossip Game

Teeth and tongues collided as Charlotte did her own plundering while anxious sighs of need escaped the back of her throat. No other woman responded to Noah’s kisses quite like she did. Her hunger was just as intense as his.

And if he had a lick of sense left in his brain, he would be running for the hills. Because this wasn’t any ordinary woman in his arms. This was Charlotte Davis. Princess Charlotte. Wealthy. Privileged. World famous. And so out of his league it was ridiculous.

A loud banging sounded on the exit door. Charlotte tore her mouth away. Noah released her immediately. They both were breathing hard. She pressed her fingers to her lips. He dragged his through his hair to keep from reaching for her again.

“My flight back to London leaves in two hours,” she whispered.

He nodded, afraid if he spoke that he’d embarrass himself by begging her to stay. Which was absurd, because she’d never choose Noah. Hell, she probably had another guy, a sophisticated playboy, waiting in Europe for her. The two would be laughing at her lapse in judgment over a bottle of ridiculously priced champagne later tonight.

She adjusted her blouse and her hair, but when her eyes met his, they were bewildered, as if she was confused about what to do. Noah knew what had to be done, though.

“Let’s get you out of here,” he said, despite it being the last thing he wanted. “You need to get back to ruling your cosmetics empire. You’ve got a CEO to hire, remember?”

He’d somehow muffed the play because her eyes were back to being glassy.

“I was trying not to think about that,” she said.

Christ. Now he’d upset her again.

“You’ll figure it out. You’re a smart woman. Trust your instincts.”

She gasped in a breath, then her lips formed a shaky grin. “You think I’m smart?”

The banging on the door grew more urgent.

“Not if you miss your flight,” he teased, trying to lighten things up.

He pushed the door open. The confusion was back in her eyes. Her bodyguards rushed her into the SUV. She gave Noah an aggravated wave just before one of her team closed the back passenger door. Noah responded with a nod. He turned to the bodyguard.

“Take good care of her,” he ground out through his tight jaw.

“Always. It’s in the job description.” The guy jumped into the passenger seat and the SUV sped off.

EIGHT

Charlotte groaned and dropped her head into her hands. “My lenders are getting twitchy.”

When the image on the computer screen remained silent, she forced her head back up to meet Bridgett’s sympathetic face.

“Can you blame them? The costs of supplies are all over the place. But, Charlie, you’ve got too many balls in the air to negotiate every deal. You can’t keep operating as a one-woman show.”

“I know.” Charlotte raked her fingers through her hair. “My fear is they won’t be satisfied with me hiring a CEO. They are going to want to install a stuffy board of directors or worse, make me take Truly public.” She shuddered.

“You don’t know that.”

“It’s a slippery slope.” Charlotte took a gulp of her afternoon tea, hoping it would calm her. “Have you been able to vet any more candidates?”

Bridgett shuffled some papers on her desk. “The headhunter came up with five more possibilities. Three of them look promising. But we could cast the net wider if you weren’t so dead set against moving shop to the US.”

Charlotte leaned back in her chair and stared up at the ceiling. She’d fled to London after the twins were born to carve out a future for herself, independent of the long shadow of her late father and the safety net of her brother and his new family. Truly You helped her do that. Owning and running a company gave her the self-worth she’d been searching for all her life.

Mostly.

Truly fed her mind and her creativity. Just not her heart. Even her libido was beginning to complain.

Damn Noah Hudson and his smoldering mouth.

She would relocate her business to Baltimore if he asked her to. Except he wasn’t ever going to ask. Because she “wasn’t his type.” No matter how well their bodies fit together.

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