“I have no idea why you hide that accent,” Quinn remarks. “It’s sexy as hell and I bet you’d be reeling guys in once they hear you talk.”

“I didn’t think people would take a small town girl from Georgia seriously if I sounded like a hick. So I decided to work on making it less obvious.” Quinn takes a sip of her whiskey. “Whatever, Cass. I think you should use it to your advantage. I’m sure you can use it to find a willing man, just for a night.” I roll my eyes. “We’ve already spoken about this, like a million times! I don’t think I can do a one night stand.”

Quinn stands, fixing her dress and picking up her clutch from the bar. “All you need is a man that interests you,” she pauses. “And it doesn’t look like you’ll have to search far.”

I turn around and walk straight into Kyler.

~ Kyler ~

“Mr. Knight,” Cassey greets, the surprise on her face obvious. I almost cringe when she calls me Mr. Knight. I hate it. It sounds professional, and not nearly as satisfying hearing her say my name.

“Cassey,” I reply. “Quinn.”

“Kyler,” Quinn says. “What a pleasant surprise. I didn’t think we’d be seeing you here tonight.”

“My parents are friends of Joanne and Clive.”

“I see,” Quinn replies. “Well, it was nice to see you. Cassey and I should get back to our dates.”

Cassey still hasn’t said anything and it bothers me. More than it should. “Actually,” I say, stalling them. I look at Cassey. “I was hoping you’d honor me with a dance.”

Her brows knit slightly and she looks down for a second before looking back at me. “I don’t think that’s - ”

“That’s a great idea,” Quinn interrupts, ignoring Cassey’s glare. She bends, whispering something to Cassey that causes her features to soften. “Okay,” Cassey relents. “One dance.”

Quinn walks away and I take Cassey to the dance floor, just as ‘Home’ by Michael Buble starts playing throughout the speakers. My right arm wraps around Cassey’s waist, brushing against the exposed skin of her back, while my left hand lifts hers to my chest. We start swaying, and Cassey is looking everywhere but me. I have a feeling it has something to do with what she walked in on yesterday, and I don’t blame her for feeling uncomfortable. But what she saw wasn’t what it looked like. Not that she’s listen to me, or believe me even if she did. However, there’s one other thing I need to talk to her about first, and I suspect it’s the reason she came looking for me yesterday. “I hear the Board has accepted your proposal,” I say.

Her eyes meet mine for the first time since we started dancing. “You heard correctly. You father must’ve told you.”

“He did, but I was hoping you’d be the one to do it,” I sigh. “Is that what you wanted to tell me when you came looking for me yesterday?”

Her gaze drops, and she nibbles on her lip. I fucking love it when she does that. It’s does crazy things to my cock. My imagination always runs wild, thinking up ways I can bite her lip instead. She nods, and I slip my finger under chin to bring her beautiful eyes back to mine.

“It wasn’t what it looked like, Cass. I swear. Jessa caught me off guard and you just walked in at the wrong time. I’m sorry if you were hurt.” “Why would I have been hurt, Kyler? You have every right to whatever you want with whomever you want. I told you, I don’t need an explanation.” “You might think you’ve convinced yourself of that, but you’re not fooling me. Your emotions are written all over your face, and right now I can see that what happened yesterday upset you.”

Cassey scowls, and damn if I don’t find Pissed Off Cassey sexy as hell. “You don’t know me,” she snaps. “Just because you read some shit in my employee file, doesn’t mean you know anything about me.” She tries to step out of my grasp, but I pull her in closer. I start rubbing slow circles on her lower back and feel her shiver.

“I know you better than you think,” I retort quietly. “I know that you bite your lip when you’re nervous, or when you’re thinking something over. I know you chew your thumb nail when you’re unsure, and I know you scrunch your eyebrows when you disagree with something someone has said. I know you stick your tongue out, when you’re working really hard, and you tap your foot to whatever song is in your head when you’re lost in your own thoughts. I know you hate talking about your family, and your past, but you also get sad when you talk about it, like you miss them. Your eyes shine, like diamonds, when you’re excited, and you also happen to bounce on the balls of your tiny little feet when you think no one is watching. And when you curse, when you think no one else is around, your Southern twang comes through and fuck, it’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever heard.” I touch her cheek, brushing my thumb over the light red tinge beneath her soft flesh. “So you see Cass, I know you. I see the things you think no one else notices, and I can feel how your body responds to mine when I’m in the same room. Because I react the same way when you’re close to me.”

Chapter 5

~ Cassey ~

I stare at Kyler, totally dumbstruck. Did he just say all of that? I can see in his eyes that he not only means it, but that he believes every word. At least he was honest, so maybe I should try that too. His proximity, and the way he has me pressed up against his tall frame has every neuron in my brain misfiring, and my hormones in a tailspin. My nipples harden where the lapels of his tuxedo jacked brush against the thin material of my dress. If I had panties on, they’d be damp, and if I had to rub my thighs together I’m sure I would feel the moisture there too. I want this man, in a bad way. I want him to take to me, any way he pleases and satisfy the visceral desire that’s coursing through my veins. But he can’t, because that’s not who I am.

“You only want one thing from me, Kyler,” I say. My voice is quiet, so no one else dancing close to us can hear us, but it’s also firm.

His eyes flash, and darken. “And what would that be, exactly?”

“You want to sleep with me for one night, and then leave me. I’m nothing more than a shiny new toy you want to have your way with, and then discard.” The dip that forms between his eyebrow is unmistakable. Even with a frown, this man is dangerously sexy.

“Cassey.” He says my name softly, but his gruff voice reverberates through every molecule in my body. “I don’t want to sleep with you.”

Now I’m frowning, and I feel like an idiot. Is it possible that I’ve misread every moment, and every sign between us in the last few days? Did I imagine the pull I’ve been feeling towards Kyler?

“I want to do more than that,” he continues. His eyes fixate on me, and my breathing changes into shallow bursts of air. No, I was definitely not imagining it. For this sliver of time, nothing else around us exists. “I want to do every ungodly thing imaginable to that tight little body of yours, and leave you utterly breathless. I want to be buried so deep inside you that there is no way of knowing where my body ends and yours begins. And no, it won’t be for just one night, because once I taste you, once I’ve been between your legs, I’ll want more of you, and you’ll want more of me.”