Page 23 of Masters of the Game: Colton
An idea took root in her mind, one that wouldn’t take much work on her part. If he truly meant what he said, about how hard it had been to leave the hotel room that night, then she wanted to push his resolve to the limit, see just how much sexual pressure he could tolerate. And when she was satisfied that she had him just where she wanted him… She would be the one to walk out, leaving him hot, bothered, and unfulfilled. The same way he had left her.
It was time he knew what rejection felt like.
**
Colton suspected something was up when he walked into Jimmy’s well before noon, only to find Kelly already there. And she was smiling. Why? The last time he’d seen her, he’d had to get out of her office before she put a bullet in him. One that was not aimed at his heart, but at his private parts. Could he assume by her congenial mood that she’d forgotten all about their misunderstanding? Hell, he certainly hoped so. Especially now, when that smile was too beautiful to be ruined by a frown.
“You look happy. What’s up?” he asked, sliding into the seat across from her. Not only did she look happy, but she looked damned good! And why did she have to smell so darn arousing?
“Two reasons. First of all, I heard from Mom yesterday.”
He nodded. “And?”
Her smile widened, displaying those deep dimples he adored. “And I am officially the daughter of the bride-to-be.”
He returned her smile. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks. I made her promise that she wouldn’t do anything rash like return home married. I want to plan the wedding for her. I promised it would be small with only family and close friends.”
“And what’s the other reason?”
“The other reason?” she asked with arched eyebrows raised.
“Yes. You mentioned you were smiling for two reasons,” he said.
She chuckled. “I did, didn’t I? Well, the other reason should be obvious to anyone who knows me.”
Obviously, he didn’t know her. At least not as well as he would like. However, he planned to remedy that soon. “I guess I don’t know you that well since I don’t have a clue.”
“Look around, Colton. We’re in New York, one of my favorite places. I’m often here on New Year’s Eve to watch the ball drop, though I haven’t done so for a couple of years. There was a time I even thought of moving here but figured I couldn’t afford it.”
“I see.”
“Oh darn,” she muttered. “I shouldn’t have told you that. Now you’re going to think I’ll be biased with my recommendations.”
“I’m not going to think that, Kelly. I trust your ethics enough to know you’ll give us a fair evaluation of both locations.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
At that moment, the waitress walked over to drop off menus. “I hope you don’t mind me selecting this place,” Colton said.
“Not at all. In fact, this is one of my favorite places to eat. You can’t do wrong in Times Square.”
“Now isn’t that a coincidence?” he said. “It’s one of my favorite places as well, thanks to Cobra. We come here for lunch whenever I visit him here. I figured you would like their strawberry cheesecake.”
When he mentioned her favorite dessert, her tongue swept across her lips. Just seeing the action reminded him of the one and only time they had kissed, and how he had taken that tongue and sucked on it hard. It had been delicious.
“You figured right. Unfortunately, strawberry cheesecake is my weakness,” she replied, opening her menu. Upon noticing hewasn’t opening his, she commented, “I guess you probably know what you want.”
Kelly was not wrong with that assumption. Yes, he knew what he wanted, and it wasn’t on the menu. Nor was it all sexual. Although he wanted to make love with her, he also wanted to get to know her, too. That was all part of his plan.
“Tell me something about Kelly Perkins that I don’t know.”
She looked up from her menu. “There’s a lot about me that you don’t know. Besides, I thought this was a business luncheon to plan our strategy with the economic development agency.”
“What made you think that?” he asked.
