The Best Man by Adriana Kraft

being the current
beneficiary of her talents, but it niggled at him that she seemed so protective
of the rest of herself.
    Kitty Paige was turning into a
challenge in unanticipated ways. Jared studied the ceiling. Maybe that was part
of the definition of a challenging woman—she was often doing the unexpected.

 
     
    CHAPTER FOUR
     
     
    Mid-morning, Jared snapped his
laptop shut. Commodities were skyrocketing around the world—particularly
copper, gold, and platinum. He yawned, giving his suite a once over. He didn’t
expect corporate spies to emerge from the woodwork, but he’d learned the hard
way about corporate espionage.
    His computer was as secure as money
could buy. No one could be trusted, including hotel housekeeping staff. He
locked his computer in a special wall safe.
    How about lovers? He grunted an epithet.
He’d learned that lesson the hard way, too. Repeatedly. They couldn’t be
trusted. Period.
    He picked up the morning newspaper
and flipped through it. Concentrating on the words proved difficult—not that
the news was so bad. He leaned back briefly, closed his eyes and flexed his
fingers.
    Was Kitty Paige purposely trying to
get under his skin? Damn, she was a dynamo—in and out of bed. She went hot and cold
like a poorly made heating blanket. She hadn’t invited him to stay the night. He
wasn’t about to ask. He’d finally called a taxi.
    Looking perhaps a little awkward,
she’d explained she had an early closing to attend this morning. Maybe she did.
    She seemed so protective. Of what? He
didn’t think he’d ever been with a more sexually aggressive woman than Kitty. She
seemed to delight in being at least one step ahead of him. Did she really think
she could shock him? And why would she want to?
    Jared smoothed out his mustache. He
might yet come up with a thing or two to surprise her.
    She hadn’t even indicated any
surprise that he’d flown to Chicago. She had to know the horses were only a
smokescreen to get close to her.
    Close. Jared set the paper aside. He’d
never forget the vision of his woman in yellow propped against the entryway
door wiggling her lovely ass at him. He’d purposely not removed her yellow top.
He’d dreamed so much about her wearing yellow, it seemed perfect that their
first mating would take place with her in yellow.
    He wet his lips remembering how her
anus had been nearly as open to him as her pussy. She’d made it clear on the
phone she had nothing to offer him that hadn’t been used. He sighed heavily. She
hadn’t failed to excite him with the two orifices they’d already tried out. He was
sure the third would be no less intoxicating.
    And damn, that was part of what
bothered him. Kitty Paige was intoxicating. She was a walking aphrodisiac, and
he wanted more. He needed more. Damn it, he’d demand more.
    But he wanted more than her mouth,
her asshole, and her pussy. He wanted a small window into who the hell the
woman was. He wasn’t looking for anything long term—good God—but he prided
himself that with few exceptions, the women he’d loved knew they’d been loved,
for a time. Raw sex—superb sex—without some emotional bond, however fragile and
temporary, was not enough. At least not for him. How could it be enough for
Kitty?
    He checked his watch. She’d agreed
to meet him for lunch. That might mean they’d actually have a chance to talk
about something other than sex.
    Jared rose from the chair and
chuckled at the irony. It was usually he who was trying to smooth talk
his way into a woman’s panties.
     
    - o -
     
    Kitty adjusted the dark sunglasses
as she got out of her car. She smoothed out her canary yellow mid-thigh skirt
and straightened the collar on the pale blue blouse. She paused to undo one
more button, smacked her lips and then set off for the restaurant to meet Jared
for lunch. The clack of her yellow high heels announced her arrival and her
breasts bobbed freely with each lengthening stride. She grinned as men and
women