Page 26 of One Naughty Night (Single in South Beach)

A peculiar blend of disappointment and relief settled over her as she set a tentative foot on the tan industrial carpet that covered every room except the kitchen and bathroom. Her job had never paid big bucks in the first place, but she hadn’t chosen her field because she needed fancy things. Her apartment had a great location, nice neighbors, and she felt safe here. It worked for her. So much so that she’d gladly stopped making payments on her car so she’d have enough money for the next few months’ rent.

Transportation was a luxury she could manage without. Housing was not.

Surprised to discover her legs still functioned despite the night’s enthusiastic workout, Esme stepped over to her bureau and plucked out a pair of yellow satin boxer shorts and a T-shirt from her sorority days that read Geeky and Grateful. Perfect comfort clothes after the most adventurous night of her life.

Ignoring the slight pang in her chest that Renzo had left without saying goodbye, Esme brushed her teeth and told herself his leaving had been a good thing.

No doubt, this morning would have been awkward. And worse, them waking up together somehow would have put their relationship on a more serious footing. Bad enough she couldn’t resist the man who was to be her business partner. Struggling through morning-after mind games would have been tough.

As she twisted her hair into a ponytail and stuffed it in a yellow scrunchy, she reminded herself she planned to have a new attitude in her too-sheltered life anyhow. No time like the present to revel in her new sensual liberation and boldly move on after her encounter with Renzo.

Who had given her honest-to-God orgasms.

A guttural male curse from the next room halted the flow of heated memories.

She jumped. Squealed. Dropped her hairbrush.

“Renzo?” Her voice barely squeaked out the question in her surprise.

She waited tentatively for a reply. As if an intruder would really identify himself for her.

Opening the door of her bedroom, she strode down the few steps to the living area where the voice had come from. She found Renzo juggling two remote controls, pushing buttons as he pointed both at her television.

“Did I wake you?” He shoved to his feet, never dropping the remotes. “Sorry about that. I noticed a few of your devices weren’t talking to each other .”

Her heart thrummed too fast at the sight of him. He looked bigger and badder than yesterday, a phenomenon possibly triggered by his dark, unshaven jaw. He still wore his Cesare Construction shirt and jeans, but he must have showered because his hair lay damp and even darker than normal over his forehead.

“There.” Apparently satisfied with whatever he’d accomplished with the remotes, he put down the controls and gave her his undivided attention. The undiluted gaze of his intensely brown eyes. “Morning.”

Esme’s skin prickled with awareness. With the experience of having spent a night with him, she knew he was about to kiss her. She could almost taste his mouth on hers already.

But if she let that kiss happen, she’d be well on her way to needing him. To growing addicted to those mind-drugging moments.

And she couldn’t afford that. Not with her life already whirling out of control in the wake of all she’d lost. It was one thing to enjoy the choice of a one night stand and savor some sexual autonomy. It was another thing entirely to start craving someone. That felt a little too… needy.

Spinning on her heel, she forced herself to walk away from the heady lure of Renzo’s gaze, the air that already crackled between them.

“You don’t need the remotes for the TV, by the way,” she blurted, latching on to the first thing that caught her eye for a distraction. “I run everything through my whole home app.”

Although when she reached for her phone to demonstrate, the tv options didn’t pop onto the screen as usual.

A measured beat passed. She could practically feel his curious gaze boring into her shoulder blades, willing her to give him answers she didn’t have about what last night had meant.

Finally, he cleared his throat. Stalked closer.

“Well now both ways should work.”

But they didn’t.Her old way no longer worked, as witnessed by the blank screen she was staring at.Just say thank you and move on.

“I don’t care about the remotes,” she found herself saying anyway, knowing she was destined to misplace both controls within the week. “I prefer to use my phone.”

She had a date with Cary Grant tonight, as the matter of fact. Not that she’d be able to keep it if she couldn’t operate her own television.

“Would you like me to reset your app?” Renzo asked, extending a hand. “Sometimes you just need to punch in a new code if there’s been an equipment change.”

“But there hasn’t been.” A blood vessel ticked fast in her temple, annoyance building.

He’d been in her house for all of twelve hours and already she was losing control of her domain. Hadn’t she promised herself she was going to take charge of her life in the wake of being manhandled by her boss?

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