Chapter One
The second I entered the apartment my clothes started coming off. I kicked off my heels, dropped my skirt and peeled off my starched white blouse as I walked to the kitchen. I’d worked hard to become a CPA and I loved the work, but the uptight clothes required in our office were not what I would call comfortable. Opening the fridge I just stood there…a soft moan of pleasure slipping from between my lips as cool air finally hit bare skin.
―Ange?‖ Rick’s voice floated in from the balcony.
My pulse kicked up a notch, and I smiled softly. Just the sound of his voice was enough to make my heart turn over. Rick Craig was my perfect match, my other half. ―In the kitchen,‖ I called back.
―Bring a couple more beers when you come out here, will you?‖
―Sure, baby.‖
Eager to shake off the tension of the day I grabbed a bottle of white wine and a couple of beers from the fridge. Bottle opener and wineglass in one hand, beers in the other, I headed out to the balcony with full hands.
Three steps from the sliding doors I realized that Rick wasn’t alone outside, and hesitated. It was easy to identify the other voice as Mark Hoffman, Rick’s best friend. I glanced down at the sheer bra and panties barely covering my parts, and a deliciously naughty heat surged through me. It wasn’t like Mark had never seen me in a bikini or something.
―Here you go,‖ I said as I swept aside the curtain and stepped out onto the balcony. Stopping short I glanced from Rick to Mark, all wide-eyed innocence. ―Oh! Hi, Mark.‖
―Hey, Angie.‖ Pure male appreciation was clear in the look he gave me.
―Hey, baby, come here.‖ Rick held out his hand, a knowing smile curving his lips. Confident in my love, Rick enjoyed watching me flirt with and tease other men almost as much as I enjoyed doing it.
I leaned down and gave him a lingering kiss, fully aware of Mark’s heated gaze on my ass the whole time. Straightening up I handed out the beers before stretching out on the empty lounger in front of their chairs. The heat was killer when covered in clothes and stuck at a desk, air-conditioned office or no, but stretched out with a glass of chilled wine, it was bearable.
Almost pleasant. ―How long have you boys been out here drinking?‖
―’Bout an hour,‖ Rick answered. ―How was work?‖
―It sucked. The heat is making people crazy. Janice almost took a swing at a client because he called her sweetheart.‖
―Is she?‖
Rick snorted at Mark’s question. ―Janice is one scary muther. Think tough as Gemma from Sons of Anarchy only ugly and fifty pounds heavier.‖
―Hey,‖ I said as they laughed. ―Janice is a sweetheart. You just have to get to know her.‖
Rick smirked. ―Mark might be looking for a girlfriend, but no matter what you say, Janice is not his type.‖
Mark glanced away at that and took a deep pull from the beer in his hand. I raised an eyebrow. To say I was surprised was putting it mildly. Mark had a well-earned reputation as a player. ―You’re looking for a girlfriend? Seriously?‖
Shaggy blond hair and deep blue eyes made Mark a good looking guy—not to mention tall and ripped with muscles that made grown women drool—but it was his easy confidence and sexual swagger that always got him the girl. Well, almost always. It might’ve been Mark who’d first caught my eye the night I’d met the boys, but it was Rick who’d caught my heart.
―I don’t remember you ever having trouble finding a woman before, Mark. What’s the problem?‖
―None of them are you, babe.‖ Mark’s patented grin flashed, but his gaze held a certain intensity when he looked at me and my breath stuttered. ―You broke my heart when you chose Rick over me. And I’m not sure he’s willing to share.‖
Warmth that had nothing to do with the sun swept over me, and I swallowed a gasp. The man had just hit on my most secret fantasy, the one that had plagued me since the first night I met