Ocean of Love by Susan D. Taylor

knowing he’d always be just beyond her reach.
    He opened his car door, slipped inside
smiling across at her. Just the curl of his lips sent a shiver up
her spine. She absorbed his fluid movement, pressing her legs
tighter together. How would his mouth feel against her naked
skin?
    “ I unquestionably
appreciate the work required in delivering these properties. I
understand it hasn’t been a walk in the best of parks. I’ve got
sky-high expectations. So far, you’ve come through, and I’ve no
doubt you’re not one to disappoint in anything.” His balmy voice
thawed her reservations.
    “ I hope you get what you
want.” She whispered, melting under his gaze.
    She vacillated between bliss and tension,
blazing back and forth, and so unlike the glib ice veneer she’d
polished and employed with other clients.
    His phone rang. He clenched his jaw. “This
is my staff. Give me one second.” He motioned for her to wait, and
his arched brow crept into the foreground of her attention when
she’d realized she must have been staring at him.
    He smiled down at her, and his fingers
picked up a strand of her hair. This time, she wanted him to keep
ahold of her. Her nipples hardened while her breath shortened.
Dazed, she almost missed him say goodbye to his office and hang
up.
    “ The bank is ready to
finalize the construction loans based on the communications they’ve
received from the sellers. I was informed you offered to donate
part of your commission, as well as time, to a pet project of the
bank’s president. Why’d you do it?”
    “ I’ve only done my job. I
volunteer my time when I’m not working. This was mere
coincidence.”
    “ I don’t come across many
people who aggressively seek to earn less, so her client saves a
boatload of money. I’ll make certain you’ll be rewarded. I know
plenty of developers needing property. Thank you for your time
today. I’m delighted with the progress. If you reconsider, I’m only
too happy to come and pick you up.”
    “ Nonsense. You’ll already
be at the restaurant. I can’t accept. Until tonight,
Wyatt.”
    He raised his arm to the back of her seat.
Slowly, his fingers toyed with the edge of her neck. She didn’t
pull away, instead she held her breath while the insides of her
legs tightened. The feeling was maddening and left her wondering
what he’d do next.
    “ Marissa, I await your
presence.”
    “ All right. I’ve much to
get done.”
    Heat billowed over her
face. She’d essentially mumbled a goodbye trying to get away from
the temptation he represented. She watched him drive off, her pulse
thrashed, and her chest tightened. In a
couple of days, he’d be gone forever.
    She drove away from Ocean Drive empty-handed
as to how she could manage to spend the evening with Wyatt and
refrain from imploding. All she had to do was hang on. After
dinner, she’d be grounded by a return to the ocean.
    Instead of going back to Apex, she went
home. Inside the doorway of her apartment, she kicked off her shoes
and removed her jacket on the way to her laptop. In the quiet of
her living room, she began uploading the photographs. After she’d
prepared the first part of the report Wyatt had requested, she gave
in to the ache to be free. Peeling away her rough wool skirt, she
walked into her bedroom.
    She called Sinclair. “I’m home and preparing
the site review reports. Wyatt likes the second property, away from
the hubbub.”
    “ I’m surprised. Floored
actually. Based upon his past building sites, I was ready to lay
easy money on the site closer to the beach nightlife. I wonder what
changed his mind.”
    She sucked in a breath. “I’ll need to get
him the engineer’s recommendations and the City’s permits. He wants
to make certain about the restoration to the shoreline. I’ve pulled
their plans for him to review.”
    “ Well, you certainly work
quickly. I’m not surprised. When do you think he’ll make an
offer?”
    “ I’m thinking
tonight.”
    “ Sweetie,