Tycoon Takes Revenge by Anna DePalo

appeared etched in cement, and sexual awareness wrapped itself around her like a blanket.
    When she was done, her eyes lingered on his. He gazed at her intensely, as if he was stopping himself from bounding onto the stage, sweeping her up and making a beeline for the door.
    The thought gave her goose bumps and she told herself to stop being ridiculous. She replaced the microphone on its holder and headed back to their table.
    Noah met her in the middle of the room as he made his way to the stage. “Impressive,” he murmured. “You should do more than sing in the shower.”
    â€œTh-thanks.”
    When she’d taken her seat again, the DJ began Noah’s selection. She recognized the song within a few notes and tensed.
    He wouldn’t.
    But he did.
    She felt hot all over as Noah began singing Billy Paul’s “Me and Mrs. Jones.” Tim and Ben turned around to toss her amused looks, but her gaze was caught and held by Noah’s.
    As Noah sang about how he and Ms. Jones had a thing going on even though they knew it was wrong, she resisted the urge to fan herself. He had changed the lyrics to “Ms.” instead of “Mrs.” and she was in danger of dissolving into a puddle under the table.
    She lowered her lashes and tried to look around the room. She hoped no one here knew either of them, because he was practically inviting headlines in tomorrow’s paper!
    Her gaze moved back to his. The look on his face matched his voice: smoky and full of sensual promise.
    Oh, God.
    Kayla wasn’t sure how she lasted through Noah’s song, but, helped by a few fortifying sips of a martini, she did.
    When the song ended, Noah grinned, breaking the spell, and then thanked the DJ. As he made his way back to their table, several of the women in the room cast him inviting looks.
    Well, she concluded glumly, Noah had proven he was good at one thing in the shower. She couldn’t prevent herself from thinking about what else he was good at.
    Â 
    Bed. That was Noah’s first thought. The second was: he had to ditch his Silicon Valley sidekicks.
    As he approached their table, he noticed Kayla appeared flushed and flustered. She seemed to look everywhere but at him.
    The air was so sexually charged between them that he was almost afraid to touch her. As it was, he gavethem two-to-one odds of winding up in an empty cloakroom, tearing each other’s clothes off.
    He’d chosen “Me and Mrs. Jones” on a whim, thinking he’d have some fun with her. But along the way, while he’d been singing about hopes being built up too high, the mood had turned from playful to hot and intense.
    He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a connection that strong and fast with a woman. The realization left him bemused.
    As he neared, Ben turned to Tim and cracked, “And he can sing, too.”
    Tim looked up and shrugged, a wry look on his face. “Okay, dude, the T-shirt, the Billy Paul imitation…I guess I’ve gotta concede.”
    Noah noticed Kayla continued to remain silent, sipping her drink. To Tim and Ben, he said easily, “If I couldn’t top you guys on my home turf, I’d have to toss in the towel.” He withdrew some bills from his wallet and threw them down on the table. “Since we’ve got a victor, let’s call it a night.”
    While Ben and Tim thanked him for picking up the tab, Noah cast a covert look at Kayla. She seemed to be getting her bearings.
    â€œYou okay?” he asked.
    For the first time, she looked directly at him. A range of emotions flickered across her face before she seemed to school it into a polite smile. “Yes, of course.”
    He moved back so she could precede him to the door. A part of him couldn’t wait to get rid of Ben and Tim. The other part warned him that being alone with Kaylaright now was not a good idea. He was supposed to be giving her a story. Instead, he was thinking about