I look him up and down. He’s clean-shaven and dressed in neatly pressed slacks and his usual white button-down shirt. His jacket is laid across the foot of the bed, and I can even smell the soapy fresh scent of him. “Looks like you managed just fine without me,” I say.

“Never.” The word is heavy with meaning. “And for you I’m willing to get doubly clean.”

“Tempting,” I admit as I push the tray away and slide out of bed. The air is cool, but it feels good against my still Damien-sensitive skin. “But don’t you have work to do? Things to merge? Cutting-edge technology to acquire? Perhaps a galaxy to purchase?”

He holds a robe open for me to slip on. It’s not the red one that I soaked in the pool, and I wonder how many robes he has stocked in that closet. “I did that last week. Apparently there’s nothing left to buy.”

“Poor you.” I twist in his arms and plant a gentle kiss on his chin as he tightens the sash around my waist. “Just like Alexander. No worlds left to conquer.”

He slides his hand up my silk-covered arm and I shiver from the touch. “I assure you that I am very content with my conquests.” The heated look in his eyes shifts to something more calculating. “Although you are right. I have a day full of meetings in Palm Springs starting at eight.”

I gape at him. “And you were offering me a shower? What would you have done if I’d taken you up on that?”

“I would have enjoyed myself very much, I assure you.”

“And been late for the meeting.”

“I’m rather confident they can’t start without me. That is not, however, an excuse to be late.”

As if on cue, a loud rush fills my ears and the house seems to vibrate. “What is—”

“My ride,” Damien says as a helicopter appears below the roofline and continues its descent below the balcony.

I hurry outside and watch as the helicopter lands on a flat, grassy area of the yard.

I turn and look at Damien. “What?” I say. “You couldn’t afford a proper helipad?”

“On the contrary, you’re looking at a state-of-the-art, eco-friendly, reinforced turf landing platform.”

I blink at him. “Seriously?”

“It’s quite revolutionary, I assure you. The ground is prepped with a high-tensile-strength mesh system that creates an anchored root system providing a surface area with remarkable load-bearing capacity. And because the Malibu hills are prone to mudslides, I’ve taken additional precautions and strengthened the area with a buried grid system into which that root area blends. The result is pretty damned impressive.”

“If you do say so yourself.”

He smirks. “I’m afraid this isn’t one of my projects. Not yet, anyway. I’ve begun talks with the company that holds the patent on the mesh technology.”

“To acquire the company?”

“Perhaps. Or maybe I’ll simply be a silent partner.” He fixes me with a steady look. “Not all of my business ventures involve my fingers in the pie.”

I ignore the unstated message. I want the million that I earned posing for the portrait in order to seed my business—a business I intend to kick into gear once I feel like I’m ready. Damien wants to help me—and he thinks I’m ready now. It’s not a discussion that I’m diving back into now, but he presses on.

“You’re ready, Nikki. You can do this.”

“Surprisingly, I think I’m a better judge of my ability than you are,” I say, more sharply than I intend.

“Willingness, yes. Ability, no. That’s a much more objective criterion, and I see more clearly than you do. You’re too close to the subject in question. Let’s examine the evidence, shall we?”

I cross my arms over my chest and scowl at him, but he presses on.

“You already have two reasonably profitable smartphone apps on the market, fully designed, marketed, and supported by you and you alone. You accomplished that entrepreneurial feat when you were still in college, so that in and of itself indicates the kind of self-sufficiency a successful business owner needs. Your degrees in electrical engineering and computer science are only icing on the cake, but your invitation into PhD programs at both MIT and CalTech demonstrate that I’m not the only one who sees your worth.”

“But I turned down the programs.”

“So that you could work in the real world and gain experience.”

I can see that I’m not going to win this argument, so I do the only thing I can do—I ignore it and kiss him gently on the cheek. “Your car pool’s here, Mr. Stark. You don’t want to be late for homeroom.” I turn to head inside, but he grabs my hand and pulls me back. His kiss is long and deep and makes my knees go weak, but Damien considerately holds me up so that I don’t collapse in a puddle on the flagstone tiles.

“What was that for?” I breathe when he releases me.

“A reminder that I believe in you,” he says.

“Oh.” His voice is filled with so much pride and confidence that I wish I could soak it up like a drug.

“And a promise of things to come,” he adds with a sexy curve to his lips. “I’ll call you when I get back. I’m not sure how late I’ll be.”

“The helicopter’s not as speedy as it looks?” I tease.

“More like my colleagues don’t conduct business as expediently as I’d like.”

“No prob. I should have dinner with Jamie tonight, anyway. I’ve been a best friend in absentia lately.” I start to pull away, but his fingers tighten around mine. “What?”

“I don’t want to go.” His grin is boyish, and I laugh with delight. Damien is so many things, and I am falling hard for all of them.

“But if you don’t, then how can I spend the day looking forward to having you back?”

“You’re a very wise woman,” he says, then presses a fresh kiss to my lips. “Until tonight.”

7

Edward greets me outside by the door of a gracious silver and burgundy car that looks like it belongs on Masterpiece Theatre. “New car?”

“No, ma’am,” Edward says. “Mr. Stark rebuilt her about three years ago.”

“Really?” I look the car over, wondering when on earth Damien found the time. I try to imagine him under the chassis, his hands dirty and a spot of grease on his nose. Surprisingly, it’s an easier picture to conjure than I would have imagined. As I’ve seen time and again, Damien can do pretty much anything. And look damn good doing it, too.