Since then—pain-in-the-ass work issues aside—I’ve come to think of it in a more philosophical light. At least the poor lonely geeks that could never get any were able to obtain some sort of education on how things worked. Whether or not any of them could ever get with a girl as hot as April was another question altogether.

I sat in first class enjoying my preflight drink—mineral water. I was still in my own private prohibition hell, or self-flagellation, depending on the day. As the rest of the passengers filed onto the plane, a pretty flight attendant was making chitchat with me. She had a beautiful smile and laughed at everything I said, funny or not. I eyed her for a moment, thinking about how long it had been since I’d inducted another member into my own personal mile-high club, but my thoughts immediately flashed to visions of being tangled up with April inside a cramped lavatory.

The flight attendant flashed her wide, baby blue eyes, but I was distracted by the thought of serious, darker blue eyes that hid all kinds of deep thoughts and secrets. Eventually, April filed past on her way to her seat back in the economy section. She overtly assessed the airline employee before meeting me with her frosty gaze.

I winked at her. I couldn’t resist. Her gaze glanced off mine like a stone skipping across a glassy lake. She readjusted her hand on the strap of her carry-on bag, her middle finger poking out, as she had done that night at the martini lounge.

I laughed before taking a deep breath and looking away. I tried to suppress the feeling of guilt that had added itself to the complex soup of emotions I felt regarding this woman. So she was angry. Well, so was I. But at the same time, I also wanted her, yet I had to remind myself that I was her boss and therefore couldn’t have her.

Goddamn, it would be easier when her internship was finished and she left the company. Only a few weeks to go…

But I had to hand it to her, she’d taken everything I’d dished out to her with quiet dignity and only lost it once—yesterday. Oh, and how glorious that little meltdown had been, too. I’d known there was fire under that serene surface, and part of me, the reckless part of me, wanted to see it again. And again.

An even more foolhardy part of me wanted to take the fire I knew was there, harness it and hold it in my hands. Just the abstract thought of it—of her—was making me hard again.

Shit. I was in trouble. I either needed to find some self-control fast or stay the hell away from her before I shredded every last bit that remained.

***

In less than three short hours, we touched down at Vancouver International Airport. We made it through Customs and were sitting together in the back seat of a town car while the driver took us to our hotel, located on the city waterfront near the convention center. Upon arrival, we were checked in by the concierge.

The Owner’s Suite occupied the entire top floor of one of the towers of the hotel. The suite itself was two stories of floor-to-ceiling glass windows that gave a 360-degree view of the city, from Coal Harbour and English Bay to the North Shore Mountains, to Stanley Park, to the modern, lit glass and steel of downtown Vancouver—as pointed out to us by the concierge.

April listened to his entire spiel with interest but didn’t say much as she followed his directions. He escorted her to a small room off the hallway on the lower floor of the suite. It was set aside especially for an assistant of the occupant of the Owner’s Suite. It adjoined the penthouse but was not part of it, and appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary hotel room.

Before I could say a word, she disappeared into the clearly subpar room—when compared with mine, anyway. I spent at least five minutes arguing with myself whether or not to go talk to her and point out that there was another room in the suite. Maybe it would be best, though…the more walls and locks between us during this stay, the better.

Because I really, really had no idea how I was going to keep my hands off her. And if she stayed pissed off at me, even better. That much more of a barrier between us would be a good deterrent. But it felt wrong to let her hole up in there when I had this huge place to myself.

I sighed. Against my better judgment, I lightly rapped on her door, and after a long pause she quietly called for me to come in. I opened the door but remained standing in the doorway—she and I alone in a bedroom together would not lead to good things.

Well… good things, certainly, but not the right things.

I looked around her room and my eyes zeroed in on a suitcase on its stand. I caught a glimpse of some silk and lacy underthings peeking out, like they were winking at me, tormenting me. I met her gaze.

“Yes?” she snapped. “May I help you?”