lingering effects like the one he’d shared with Nikki. And none had managed to haunt him like a drug even after all this time. It had been an innocent kiss, one neither of them had meant to happen, one that had caught her off guard as much as it had him.
He could clearly recall that day in her office. He had been so excited when he’d heard he’d gotten the Thompson account that he had pulled her into his arms to hug her, and the next thing he knew they were locking mouths. And it had been a kiss that had nearly knocked him off his feet. It had made him feel emotions he hadn’t known he was capable of feeling. And it had scared the shit out of him.
Jonas would be honest enough to admit he’d been attracted to her from the start and could vividly recall the day they’d met.
It had been raining all week and that particular day was the worst. She had burst into his office soaked to the skin with her blouse and jeans plastered to her in a way that should have been outlawed. He doubted he would ever forget how her jeans had hugged that tight and round bottom of hers.
He had rushed to get her a towel, but not before taking in everything about her, even the way her short curly hair had gotten plastered to her head. And he hadn’t missed how her nipples had shown through her wet blouse, or what a curvy body she had.
She had looked a total mess, but at the same time he thought she’d also looked simply gorgeous. He’d also fallen over backward when he’d gazed into her eyes. They were so dark they almost appeared navy blue. And her lips…with their seductive curve had tempted him to taste them on more than one occasion.
His attraction had been stronger than anything he’d ever encountered, and during the three weeks they had worked together it hadn’t diminished one iota. And the thought that any woman could have that kind of hold on him unsettled him immensely.
He hadn’t understood why the attraction was so intense. And at the time he definitely hadn’t wanted it and had done a good job of fighting it until that day. He doubted that she knew what he’d gone through those three weeks. Nikki Cartwright was a looker, no doubt about that. But then all the women he dated were. However, none had provoked the kind of strong reaction from him that she had with that kiss.
In all his thirty-three years, no woman had dared to invade his dreams or made him envision sexual positions he’d like trying out just with her. His taste in women often varied, but he usually was drawn to the slim and sleek. But it was just the opposite with Nikki. She had curves. The jeans she always wore showed off a perfectly proportioned body. A body that had been plastered against his while he’d drowned in the sweetness of her mouth.
The kiss had nearly knocked him to his knees, which was the reason, when he’d finally released her mouth, he had quickly left her office and intentionally put distance between them for eighteen months.
Then why was he now seeking out the very woman he had tried staying away from? The one whose single kiss had him longing for more.
Shivers ran down his spine, and for an instant, he thought about turning around and canceling the meeting. But there was no way he could do that. For this new marketing campaign he needed the best photographer in the business and as far as he was concerned, Nikki was it.
He would just have to steel his senses and hold his own against her. He had hoped with the passing of time his desire for her would lessen, but he found that wasn’t the case. When he’d seen her on Christmas day at his brother’s wedding, he had been drawn to her even more, which was why he’d left the reception early.
When Jonas reached the top step that led to the restaurant, he could feel lust beginning to stir his insides and anticipation invading his senses. It was happening again and it seemed he couldn’t do anything about it. No woman was supposed to have this sort of effect on him. Not Jonas Steele. The master of one-night stands. The man who had a revolving door in his bedroom and who was enjoying the single life and didn’t mind the reputation he and his brothers had acquired over the years.
He loved the opposite sex—all shapes, sizes and styles. Race, creed or color didn’t mean a damn thing to him, nor did religious affiliation.
He was the fourth-oldest of Drew Steele’s sons. Drew had been run out of Charlotte while in his twenties when his reputation as a womanizer had gotten the best of him. Fathers were threatening him with shotguns, and mothers were keeping their daughters locked behind closed doors. Jonas had heard the stories from family members many times over.
Luckily, Drew had finally met the woman he’d wanted, fallen in love, gotten married and had kept his wife pregnant for seven straight years, which accounted for he and his brothers being born within a year of one another.
Jonas didn’t know of a better-suited couple than his parents. Or a more loving one. But then, happily married or not, unfortunately, his father had passed his testosterone-driven genes on to his six sons.
He quickened his steps, thinking testosterone be damned, he was determined to stay in control. He was the womanizer the society tabloids pegged him to be and was making no apologies. He had a reputation and was proud of it and felt he was living a good life. And to top things off, last week he had been awarded the marketing deal of a lifetime and he didn’t intend to screw things up.
When he entered the restaurant he glanced around and saw Nikki sitting at a table across the room. She smiled when she saw him and he felt his stomach do a somersault. And as if on cue, his pulse began hammering away and air felt as if it were slowly being sucked out of his lungs. Holy hell.
He drew in a deep breath and tried purging the deep, unwanted attraction for her out of his system. He moved across the room toward her, thinking that no matter what, he was in full control. And this time he would make sure things stayed that way.
Nikki Cartwright watched the man approaching her table with a stroll that was so sexy it bordered on sinful. She tightened her grip on the glass of water while trying to downplay the sensations rolling around in her belly.
Her instinctive response to Jonas Steele was something she should have gotten out of her system by now. There was no reason why a warm rush of desire was invading her insides, almost making it difficult for her to breathe.
Then she quickly decided that yes, there was a reason. Walking toward her had to be one of the most gorgeous men she’d ever seen. Tall, powerfully built, with dark wavy hair flowing around his shoulders, he was pure masculine sex on two legs.
A quick glance around the room indicated she wasn’t the only female who thought so. There was nothing quite like a group of women taking the time to appreciate a good-looking man, and Jonas was definitely a looker. Eye candy of the most scrumptious kind.
She’d known working with him on that brochure wouldn’t be easy. After all, he and his brothers were the hottest bachelors in Phoenix. They weren’t known as the “Bad News” Steeles for nothing, and their reputations for being die-hard players were legendary. There was a joke around town that a woman hadn’t been bedded unless she’d been bedded by a Steele. From what Nikki had heard, their skills in the bedroom were off the charts.
The air seemed to shiver the closer he got with a stride that emitted the masculine power that all Steele men seemed to possess. Like his brothers, he had inherited his mother’s green eyes. Smokey Robinson eyes, she called them, as they were the same color of those of the legendary R & B soul singer. And then there were the rest of his prominent features—medium brown skin, strong chiseled jaw and one luscious looking pair of lips.
She’d heard that of all the Steele brothers, Jonas was the one everyone considered
