But Cat was so d.a.m.n irresistible he couldn't keep his hands off her. Then again, there was always the possibility he was seeking some deeper form of intimacy with her.

Sam frowned in concentration.

"Is something wrong" she asked, her perfect brow arching with genuine concern. She placed her hand on his forearm and squeezed, a silent offering of support and comfort.

Tenderness stole over him. The warmth in her eyes spoke volumes. Cat Nichols, the same woman who'd written an article on him and unknowingly f.u.c.ked his future, really and truly cared about his well-being. It touched him somewhere down deep, stirring up old feelings. As bewitching green cat eyes stared up at him in worry, he felt a flash of possessiveness.

Guilt washed over him like a tsunami wave, guilt for even entertaining the idea that she'd offered herself in exchange just to get the story.

"Sam" she asked again, "Are you okay"

It took a moment for him to remember why he was there.

He searched his mind and remembered the note. Yes, the note, the reason he'd braved lunch-hour traffic and darted down the street after her like a crazed junkie looking for a fix. Not his desperate need to see her, to touch her, to kiss her, or to hold her in his arms again.

He drew a breath, centering himself, and addressed her worries. "I need to talk to you about a letter I received today,"

he answered, knowing d.a.m.n well he was skirting the truth.

She angled her body and peered around his shoulder. She closed her eyes for a brief second and drew in air. "Oh no,"

she whispered.

Reading her distress, Sam twisted around, his gaze brushed over the crowd. "What is it"

Cat dropped her orange into her tote bag and grabbed his arm, alarm in her expression. "Remember that loudmouthed protestor" Without giving him time to answer, she jerked her head to Sam's left and rushed on, "Well he's coming our way."

A surge of anger made Sam's blood boil. With both hands fisted, he made a move to turn, but Cat stopped him as though reading his intent.

Why the h.e.l.l was he such an easy read lately anyway "Not here, Sam," she warned. "Not in front of the paper.

Not unless you want to be tomorrow's headline."

Blood pounding, he ground his back teeth together until his jaw ached. "I don't."

"I didn't think so. Come with me." Cat tugged on his arm and led him into an alleyway.

With little choice in the matter, Sam complied and hightailed it down the street behind her. Like a dog on the chase, he followed Cat between two towering buildings.

"Where are we going" His voice came out gruff, hating that he had to dart from the protestor, especially if the son of a b.i.t.c.h was responsible for the threatening note. Even though he would have preferred to get to the bottom of this, here and now, gut instinct told him avoiding a direct confrontation was his best course of action. The last thing he needed was his name splashed across the morning headlines, especially when the media attention had just begun to die down.

"There's a back door to the office. We'll go in there and wait it out." Cat reached into her tote bag and pulled out her identification card. She ran it through an electronic lock and pushed the heavy metal door open. "In here."

She stepped in and Sam followed. With her fingers pressed to her lips she whispered, "I'm not supposed to be doing this, so don't make any noise."

He put his mouth close to her ear. The scent of succulent orange and fruity shampoo reached his nostrils. He inhaled.

d.a.m.n, he could just eat her up and go back for seconds. "I don't want to get you into trouble," he whispered.

She mouthed the words, "It's okay. Follow me."

Shadowing her, Sam stepped into what appeared to be a small storage room.

"The door, Sam"

Before she had a chance to finish her sentence, Sam gripped the k.n.o.b, and with a hard tug, pulled the wooden door shut behind them, blanketing them in darkness.

"Sam, no."

Confused by the distress in her tone, he turned in the direction of her voice. "What"

Cat groaned. "Tell me you didn't pull that tight."

Obviously missing something, Sam blinked, trying to focus on her, but unable to see anything in the pitch dark.

"I'm afraid I can't do that."

Cat cursed under her breath. s.e.xy little breathy cussing words that actually turned him on. Not that it took much these days. Christ, what kind of a guy got turned on by swearing Actually, it really didn't matter what Cat said.

She could scream at him in a foreign language and it would still arouse him. Just the sound of her melodic voice turned him on.

Wouldn't Doctor Phil have a field day with that one "The latch is broken," she said.

Sam felt her slide past him, enjoying the way her body brushed against his. She toyed with the door handle then blew out a resigned breath.

"Great. We're stuck."

"Stuck"

"Yeah, stuck. The latch is broken and the d.a.m.n doorframe is swollen from all the rain and high humidity we've

had recently. Maintenance was supposed to be here two days ago. They're not known for their promptness."

Sam tried the door. It didn't budge. He put his shoulder into it but to no avail; it still didn't open. Running his hand along the wall, Sam groped for a light switch. "Now I suppose you're going to tell me the light is burnt out too."

Cat flicked the switch. Sam blinked and winced. "Thanks for the warning."

She shot him an apologetic glance. "Sorry." Turning her attention to her tote bag, she rooted through it and pulled out her half-peeled orange, setting it on top of the filing cabinet.

The arousing scent a.s.sailed his senses and curled around him, bringing back heated memories of the intoxicating taste of her mouth, and the unique feminine taste between her thighs.

Sam's stomach growled. His mouth salivated as his hunger for her clawed its way to the surface. His d.i.c.k grew hard. A slow burning fire trickled through his veins.

He watched Cat, hair falling forward, intense concentration on her face. His heart did a curious little jump as her beauty stole his next breath. Her pretty pink tongue darted out and swiped at her bottom lip. G.o.d, she looked so gorgeous. Her sensual movements bombarded him with foreign emotions. His muscles tightened with l.u.s.t and need.

"What are you doing" His voice came out a little deep, a little gruff as he envisioned himself getting reacquainted with those luscious lips of hers.

Both sets.

Sam had the distinct impression that if he touched her again, kissed her, and sank his engorged c.o.c.k into her slick heat, it would ultimately get the little wildcat deeper into his system, not out, like he'd originally antic.i.p.ated.

He should pull back, he really should. Before they crossed some imaginary intimacy line and she touched him on another level.

She sounded fl.u.s.tered. "I'm looking for my cell phone. I have to call someone to get us out." She shivered. "I'm claustrophobic."

Sam reached into his jeans, his fingers curling around his cell phone. He pressed a b.u.t.ton, turning it off.

"Where the h.e.l.l is my phone" Cat grumbled under her breath as pens and notepads spilled to the floor.

It occurred to Sam that calling for help was not his first priority. He swallowed and stepped closer, crowding her. So much for his plan to pull back. Around Cat he became blindsided by need and his control crumbled like burnt toast.

Antic.i.p.ation coursed through him as his gaze flitted across her body. He felt a rush of s.e.xual energy, similar to the one he'd gotten in Jessica Johnson's little kissing closet

back in junior high. It felt as naughtily delicious now as it did back then. Only this time, kissing wouldn't even begin to sate his hunger.

Taking pause, Sam considered their predicament a moment longer. Two hours ago he'd never expected to be locked in a storage closet with Cat, sporting the mother of all b.o.n.e.rs. He had to admit, his day was taking a turn for the better.

"Are you telling me no one can get in or out That we could be stuck in here for hours" His mind raced and filled with all the deliciously wicked things he could do to that lush body in those few hours.

She snorted and gave him a look suggesting he was two pages behind. "Haven't you been listening"

He grinned, enjoying this sa.s.sy side of her. "I've been listening,"

he a.s.sured her. "I just wanted to be sure of the details."

Still searching her bag, she wrinkled her nose, impatience obvious in her stance. "Details What are you talking about, Sam"

He moved into her personal s.p.a.ce and adjusted his footing, until her legs were trapped inside his. "Maybe you shouldn't call just yet." His words sounded suggestive and gained her attention.

She flicked him a glance. When her gaze met his, her movements stilled, awareness dawning on her face. "Oh."

Her eyes lit up, obviously reading the pa.s.sion brewing inside him and rising to the surface.

Gaze riveted, he smiled a slow sensual smile that told her in no uncertain terms the naughtily delicious idea he was entertaining.

Her breathing grew shallow, her green eyes clouded.

Straightening her spine, she made a move to push her hair off her face. Sam reached out and stopped her, liking the way it hung forward, the tips brushing over her nipples. Nipples that had, under his smoldering gaze, started to swell and poke against her thin silk blouse.

As he concentrated on those luscious peaks, his grin dissolved.

The air around them charged. Sam had never felt such a powerful pull before. The chemistry between them was explosive, unlike anything he'd ever experienced.

His voice dropped an octave. "I was thinking, Cat." He surfed his finger over her cheek, and lower, over her blouse, stopping around the vicinity of her first b.u.t.ton. "If we're going to be locked in here for hours, I was thinking we should use this window of opportunity to test your responses again."

He got quiet for a moment, letting her digest the information and warm to the idea. Then, as an afterthought, he added, "Since we blew it last night."

"Twice," Cat added with a nervous, yet antic.i.p.atory giggle.

s.e.xual energy jetted between them and heated the room.

Sam twined his arm around her, tugged her blouse out from

her skirt, and splayed his fingers over the small of her back.

His thumb stole over her sensitive skin in a gentle brush. She shuddered as her flesh came alive from his intimate caress.

He loved the way she wanted him, the way her body beckoned his touch.

"Mmm, you're so soft, Cat." The heat from her naked flesh reached out to him and seeped under his skin as he pulled her impossibly closer, anchoring her curvy hips to his.

Cat's hands joined the play. She put them on either side of his waist and pressed against him. Her lashes fluttered as she tipped her chin to look into his eyes.

"Sam, we're in the storage closet at my work." Her voice had taken on a sultry, s.e.xy edge. "This is risky." Her protest lacked conviction, and they both knew it. "What if we get caught" Sam noted that her words said one thing, but the curiosity and excitement dancing in her eyes told an entirely different story.

"What if we don't" His rough voice gave way to soft persuasion. Fueled by need, he put his mouth close to hers.

Their breaths mingled.

Cat got quiet for a moment and then her gaze traveled to his eyes, a.s.sessing him. "So this is for work, Sam For research"

Her breathy whisper covered him like a warm summer breeze, giving him goose b.u.mps. She'd actually given him goose b.u.mps, for Christ sake. No one had ever given him goose b.u.mps before.

Sam suddenly felt as if his whole world shifted when her honest, honey-flecked eyes searched his for answers. The connection between them was tremendous and he knew his need for her was reaching an all new high.

"No," he answered, deciding she deserved the truth. "I want you, Cat," he admitted honestly. "I've wanted you for a long time now."

Her eyes dimmed with desire. She smiled up at him.

Something about the intimate, emotional way she looked at him nearly stopped his heart.

"I want you too, Sam."

He dipped his head and filled his lungs with her scent.

"Good," he whispered into her hair, pulling and pushing at her clothes, hands skimming her curves, unable to get enough. Her soft purr resonated through his body. "Then I'm all yours. You may do with me as you wish," he said, his voice full of teasing warmth. "And don't feel the need to be gentle." Sam grabbed her bag and slipped it from her shoulder, letting it fall to the floor with a clunk, forgotten.

"Because sometimes I like it rough."

"Only one problem," Cat said.