She rolled her eyes. “This may be a new concept to you, but you can’t have everything you want, especially if your wants interfere with the wills of others. We agreed that one evening would allow us to explore our attraction and then we could move on with our lives.”

“Can you tell me that one night is enough for you?” His eyes pierced into her, and she felt as if he could see inside of her soul.

Averting her own gaze, she knew she couldn’t face his intense stare and answer his question in the way she had to. Yet she couldn’t seem to fix her mouth to say the words.

If she wanted to be free of him and the path of his tenacious will and seductive wants, then she had to tell him that one night was enough for her. She had to lie and make him believe that she would not spend nights in her bed with her arms wrapped tightly around her remembering his touch. She had to say that. But she could not.

All she managed was a mumbled “It doesn’t matter what’s enough for me or you. It’s the right thing to do.”

He pulled her close and brushed her forehead with his lips. “Okay, I won’t push you on this now. But please come back to bed. I can wait for you to realize how wonderful things can be between us.”

Suddenly tired and sufficiently overwhelmed by all of the evening’s events, she did exactly that.

Chapter 7

On Monday morning Latonya went to work still reeling over what had transpired that weekend. She managed to talk herself into believing that she and Carlton would be able to continue working together and soon he would give up the outrageous notion that she should move in with him or the even sillier notion that she should marry him.

While the thought of becoming his wife, having his children and waking up each morning in his arms made her want things she never realized she desired, she did not believe in fairy tales.

Her parents’ tumultuous relationship had taught her to be cautious when it came to matters of the heart. That didn’t mean that she didn’t believe in love; she just didn’t trust it to last. And she definitely wasn’t going to let some spoiled, rich businessman push her into a relationship because he wanted her body. She made up her mind to resist him; it was for the best.

For most of the day, she actually believed that the decision to have sex with Carlton hadn’t been a huge mistake. He was being cordial; he didn’t yell at her or single her out. And at the joint staff meeting, he even complimented the hard work she’d put in on the Biltmore project.

Everything went along smoothly until the end of the day, when Jeff called her into his office. On her way back from the copy machine, she got a dose of reality.

She laughed and joked with Jeff as he flirted with her. It felt good to let down her guard and laugh with a coworker again. She’d been walking on eggshells at work the past few months.

Giggling lightheartedly, she smiled at Jeff. “Now you know that if I one day decided to take you up on your advances you wouldn’t know what to do.”

“Like hell I wouldn’t. I’d call up the pastor and have him book the chapel.” He flashed a dimpled grin as he stood up from his chair and walked around his desk.

“Yeah, right. I’m sure your Mayflower–descendent mother would love that.”

“Wouldn’t matter.” Jeff winked at her in a seductive manner, as he crossed his arms and rested himself on the desk directly in front of the chair she sat in.

She was about to tell Jeff what a riot he was when she noticed his puzzled expression. He was staring over her shoulder. She turned, and there in the doorway stood one very agitated Carlton. His eyes were narrowed and Latonya swore she could see veins throbbing at his temples. He appeared ready to explode.

“In my office, Latonya. Now!” He turned and walked away as if he fully expected her to snap and run behind him.

Who does he think he is?

A concerned expression flashed across Jeff’s face. “Looks like the boss’s reprieve is over now. He’s back on your case. Wonder what he has against you?”

Even though her heartbeat sped up a tad bit, she wasn’t going to let Carlton’s theatrics get to her. And she certainly wasn’t going to show the small piece of dread that tried to rear its head in front of her coworker. Her reputation for taking the best the ogre could give was at stake. Carlton needed to learn that he didn’t own her just because she’d slept with him.

“I don’t know. But I do know that I’m not going to just jump and run to his office because he snaps his fingers. I’m taking my time.” Latonya stood and started walking toward the door. She jokingly took slow baby steps to emphasize her point. “I think I’ll go put my photocopies down in my office and check my voice mail and e-mail before I see what His Royal Highness wants. Maybe he’ll see fit to calm down a bit before I get there.”

“Yes, and you can tell me all about it over dinner this evening.” Jeff walked with her and put his arm around her shoulder. “A beautiful, brilliant career woman like yourself needs someone she can bring it all home to. Someone she can vent to and blow off steam with—”

“Nice try, Jeff. I’ll tell you what. Why don’t you settle for a phone call, if I don’t get too busy?”

Jeff stopped her and briefly let his thumb stroke her cheek. “Seriously, I just want you to know I’m here for you if you ever need anything. A shoulder to lean on. An ear to complain to. A boyfriend. A future husband and father of your children.” He flashed his devilish smile.

Latonya couldn’t help laughing. “You certainly know how to crack me up. You need to take your show on the road.”

“The show wouldn’t work without you. You’re my inspiration.”

“How ever do you come up with these? You must have a pickup line for every occasion,” she said as she suppressed the urge to laugh again. “Okay, I’ll call you later.”

Latonya took a calming breath and managed to make it to Carlton’s office.

Carlton told himself to act rational. There was no reason to be jealous of Latonya sharing a joke with Jeff Weatherby. No reason except that Carlton knew that Jeff had his eye on Latonya and was trying to woo her. Still, what Carlton and Latonya shared that weekend was special, he knew that without a doubt.

But each minute that passed caused more doubt to seep into his mind. What if she really didn’t feel the same way about him at all? His own mother taught him at an early age that women and their affections were fickle. Watching his mother move from one lover to the next while his father chased after her left an indelible mark on his mind. He’d hoped that Latonya was different.

When she finally came breezing into his office he didn’t think before he bit out his angry words. “When I tell you to come to my office, Latonya, you had better make speed getting here. Next time, I would suggest you beat me here if you value this job as much as you say you do.”

Folding her arms across her chest, Latonya narrowed her gaze. “I got here as soon as I could. What do you want?” she snapped.

“I want you to stop batting your eyes and grinning in the faces of my staff! Are you tempted to jump from my bed to Jeff’s after testing your womanly wiles?”

Her eyes bulged and her mouth fell open. “I don’t believe this! How dare you!”

He pounded his hand firmly on his desk. “No, how dare you? How dare you think that I would stand idly by and let you prance from one employee to another? The laughing, giggling and flirting with Jeff and the others stops today.”

Several emotions played across her face, ranging from anger to outrage. “To hell with you and to hell with this. I quit. I refuse to work like this. Consider this my resignation.” Latonya hurried out the door and slammed it behind her.

Carlton stared at the door as he tried to process what had just happened. He ran his hand over his head. Along with all the other emotions Latonya had him experiencing, jealousy was another one. He had never been jealous of anyone in his life. And he had never felt so possessive about anyone. He knew that she probably wouldn’t forgive him for acting so irrationally or behaving so badly. He also immediately knew that he had to try to make things better. Watching her walk out the door and seeing it close taught him yet another new thing about himself; he wouldn’t be able to take it if he really didn’t stand a chance with Latonya.

Storming into her office, Latonya grabbed her purse and briefcase. Harrington Enterprise could keep everything else if it meant she never had to see Carlton again. She almost knocked Jeff and Juan down on her way to the elevator.

“Hey, what got into you? You look like you could kill someone,” Juan joked.

“She just met with Harry Tres and I’m sure he was his usual pleasant self,” Jeff offered.

Latonya took a deep breath. She knew she couldn’t talk about what just happened between her and Carlton with them. She could feel the anger welling up inside of her and she feared that it would come out in tears. She hadn’t cried—in front of other people at least—since the day of her mother’s funeral. She would be damned if she would start because of Carlton.

She thought that they’d shared an emotional connection. He’d touched something deep in her soul that made her think he could be the one. She’d even let herself imagine what it would be like to be his wife and have his children. Once they dated for a while and got to know each other, of course. If he really believed that she would turn around and have sex with another man, then maybe it was just sex for him, after all.

She rode down in the elevator with Juan and Jeff in steaming silence.

“Hey,” Jeff said when they got off on the main floor. “You want to go have a drink with us and get some stuff off your chest?”

“No, Jeff.” She sighed. “I’m fine. I just quit my job and I don’t have a clue how soon I’ll be able to get another, but I’ll survive.”

She forced a smile and walked briskly away from them.

Chapter 8