She inched back and glanced into his eyes. They shared a look that touched him somewhere deep inside, bringing another burst of warmth to his darkest corners. Cat brushed her lips lightly over his. Sam's throat tightened when he watched a flurry of emotions pa.s.s over her face. His heart raced as his shaky hand reached out and stroked a tender caress over her naked flesh.

"And you know how I like to play fair, Sam."

Rattled, his brain stalled and he worked to speak, to say something coherent, something intelligent. "Yes. It's good to play fair." h.e.l.l, intelligence was overrated anyway.

Cat sank to her knees.

Oh f.u.c.k.

His c.o.c.k sprang forward and tangled in Cat's hair as she leaned into him.

His whole body shook as he watched her take a moment to stare at him. Her eyes wide with antic.i.p.ation, as though taking delight in his rock-hard erection. She touched him, gently. He groaned as his c.o.c.k pulsed and ached for more.

One long finger caressed his swollen head, barely touching as she traced a path down the length of him.

He went absolutely still, knowing that another delicate stroke would push him over the edge. "Cat, babe" His words fell off when her warm mouth closed over his girth and wrapped around his c.o.c.k in a wet ma.s.sage.

"Mmm." She moaned around his phallus, taking him impossibly deeper. Her mouth tightened around him, her teeth sc.r.a.ping lightly as her tongue swirled and lapped with hungry strokes.

She inched back. "I love the taste of you, Sam." Her soft whisper covered him like a blanket of warmth. A barrage of emotions exploded through him.

Cat pressed a kiss to his swollen head, drinking in the juice dripping from his tip. Pressure brewed deep inside him as she answered the pull in his groin.

Hands crushed in her hair, pulling it off her face so he could take pleasure in the sight of her licking his c.o.c.k. G.o.d, her mouth did the most delicious things to him.

"Cat, honey, I'm close," he said, giving her warning, not wanting to come in her mouth.

She continued to work her tongue over him, gifting him with long luxurious licks until he knew he was on the brink of an o.r.g.a.s.m. He began rocking his hips, his body seeking release.

Slipping his hand to her chin, he pulled her off and gripped his c.o.c.k, stroking it once, twice as it pulsed and throbbed with the hot flow of release.

Cat watched as he spurted his seed onto his stomach. She climbed to her feet. Her voice was low, whispery soft, and full of disappointment. "Sam, I wanted to taste you."

His stomach clenched; his heart swelled. "You don't have to do that, Cat." His voice sounded shaky.

Cat grabbed her bag from the floor and pulled out a tissue.

"But I wanted to." Her mouth curved as a gleam sparkled in her eyes. "Next time I won't let you stop me," she teased, as she cleaned him up and disposed of the tissue.

Shocked, Sam stood there, his heart racing, watching her clean up after him. The way she chatted so easily about such an intimate matter and the way she acted so cavalier as she wiped away his release, like they'd been lovers their entire lives, did strange things to his insides.

Feeling a little raw and a whole lot vulnerable, he pulled her to him, unable to get her close enough. As her arms

snaked around his neck, clinging to him in return, as though she too couldn't get him close enough, Sam realized life as he knew it would never be the same again.

After a long moment, Cat broke the silence. "Sam, do you have any idea what time it is"

He glanced at his watch and noted that the afternoon had slipped by as they'd indulged in one another. "Time for us to get out of here." He narrowed his eyes in concern. "This won't get you into trouble, will it"

Stepping back, she chuckled easily and waved her arm around. "I'm pretty sure this would get me into trouble. But if you're talking about my absence from my desk, then no. I often come and go when working on a story."

The minute she moved out of his embrace he missed her warmth and felt a little ... lonely. He tried to keep his voice light. "Good. Let's get dressed." Sam gathered her clothes off the floor and handed them to her.

As he climbed into his jeans, Cat asked in a soft tone, "Why were you looking for me anyway"

It took a moment for him to remember. Ah, the note.

"I received a threatening letter from a protestor. Probably that same nut case that forced us to hide in here."

He lowered his voice. "Of course, not that that was a bad thing."

Cat furrowed her brow. "A note"

"Yeah, my Director has called in the police, but I thought maybe you could write another article or something to help clear this mess up."

She thinned her lips, anger brewing in her eyes. "I'm really sorry, Sam. I'll talk to my editor. I'll make this right for you.

I promise. If Eugene had anything to do with this, I'll get to the bottom of it."

His heart turned over in his chest, loving the way she stood beside him, trying to do right by him after her article.

"I take it Eugene was the protestor."

She nodded as her stomach growled. Sam chuckled and pulled his cell phone from his pocket.

Cat arched one perfect brow. "And you knew that was there all along"

He grinned. "Yup. Now call someone to get us out of here so we can go back to my place to get something to eat."

"Your place"

"Yeah, I'll make us something." It occurred to him a meal was just an excuse to keep her around longer. He enjoyed being with her, enjoyed their easy comfort and intimacy.

"Come with me in my car and then I'll drive you back here tomorrow morning for work. I have to go right by here anyway."

A bemused expression crossed her face. "One question, Sam."

He shook his head in mock exasperation. "What's with you and all the questions anyway"

She grinned. "I was just wondering if this meal requires oranges" she asked. "I have a couple more on my desk."

Sam groaned. "Don't even get me started again, Cat, or we'll never get out of here."

Chapter 7

Less than a half an hour later, after being rescued by maintenance and explaining in detail to Blain how she and Sam had managed to lock themselves in the storage room, Cat found herself sitting beside Sam in his Jeep. Of course, during her in-depth interrogation, she'd naturally left out the fine details of how they'd pa.s.sed the hours while trapped inside said storage room.

Cat neatly folded her hands on her lap and studied Sam's profile as he maneuvered through mid-afternoon traffic.

There was no denying that something had happened in that closet, something less physical, more emotional, and very intimate. Something that would be hard to walk away from when she moved to New York.

A riot of emotions swept through her and tugged on her heartstrings. She'd had no idea that Sam would come to

mean so much to her in such a short time. But falling for him would only end up complicating her well-laid plans.

Wouldn't it Cat turned in her seat, focusing all her attention on Sam.

She concluded the tiny lines under his eyes were probably from worrying about Rio. A pang of guilt made her stomach tighten. G.o.d, she'd really had no idea her article would cause him such grief. She needed to make this right for him. No matter what it took.

Cat vowed to get to the bottom of this. If Eugene and Hawk were in cahoots, she'd find out. It was natural that Hawk would talk to Eugene for a follow-up, but Hawk had pa.s.sed Eugene something and Cat was determined to find an explanation.

She opened her mouth, deciding Sam should know, and then changed her mind. He had enough to worry about without her adding to it, especially when she wasn't one hundred percent sure. If Sam took that information to the cops and Hawk proved innocent, it'd get her in a s.h.i.tload of trouble at work. Then who'd ever hire her Redirecting her thoughts, Cat stifled a yawn and rested her head against the seat. Exhaustion eased itself into her bones. It had been one h.e.l.l of an afternoon. And to think tomorrow night, she'd have a repeat performance while he tested her responses to the serum.

At the thought of tomorrow night her pulse rate kicked up a notch. Another repeat performance from the skilled scientist would surely be her emotional undoing. She let out a long slow breath. How could she continue to be his lab rat and remain unscathed Sam pulled into his parking spot outside their condo, turned off the ignition, and shifted to face her. His eyes narrowed, his expression serious. "Are you okay"

She nodded, feeling anything but. The way he looked at her with such tender concern made her throat tighten and heart ache. As she studied him, her chest hurt. Gut instinct told her to go home, run, lock the door, and never set eyes on Sam again. Entering into his territory, his personal s.p.a.ce, and engaging in easy, playful banter over a casual meal would test the small brace holding the pieces of her heart together.

She gazed into his Laguna blue eyes and felt herself drowning.

"How does grilled cheese sound It's my specialty."

Apparently his culinary skills were right up there with hers. Cat gave an uneasy smile.

He must have sensed her hesitation. He didn't give her a chance to voice an argument. "Let me make you something to eat and then I'll walk you home," he pressed. The s.e.xy lilt of his voice pulled at her, drawing her deeper into a dangerous place.

He smiled and that was all it took for her rational thought to pack up and take a vacation. One simple smoldering smile

from him had her giving into temptation and going completely against her best interests.

Cat stretched out her body. Her muscles hurt. In all the right places. "Okay. My fridge is empty anyway."

Sam stepped from the Jeep and circled around to meet her. Gathering her hand in his he led her to his condo.

Suddenly, Sam stopped midstride. His mouth twisted into a frown. "Jesus, Cat. Two guys At once" He slipped his arm around her waist in a possessive manner and dragged her to him.

She felt his muscles bunch with tension. Tipping her chin, she took in the flare of anger in his eyes. "What are you talking about"

He nodded toward her condo door.

Cat followed his gaze. "Oh." She waved. "Hey guys, over here."

As they came toward her, Sam widened his stance and tightened his hold on her. She heard him curse something incoherent under his breath.

"Sam, I'd like you to meet Mason and Luke."

Sam just stood there, legs wide, feet planted, staring at the two with a scowl on his face. Cat nudged him. "Don't be rude to my brothers."

Sam's head came up with a start. His face softened; his mood lightened. "Oh," he said, extending his hand. "Nice to meet you both. I didn't realize Cat had two brothers."

It occurred to her that Sam thought she was engaging in G.o.d knows what with two guys. At once! Like she was the one who was the local amus.e.m.e.nt ride.

"And we didn't realize she had a boyfriend," Mason said, a.s.sessing Sam.

Cat squared her shoulders. "That's because my private life is none of your business." She turned to Sam. "Sorry, Sam. Growing up the youngest girl with six older brothers hasn't been easy."

Sam smiled. "Six brothers"

"Yeah, six brothers who come and go at all hours to check up on me." She turned to Mason and Luke, giving them a look that made them both take a measured step back. She loved her brothers with everything in her, but she just wished they'd give her a bit of breathing s.p.a.ce. "Was there something you both wanted"

Mason kicked at an imaginary stone. "Not really. I called a few times last night and you weren't home and Luke stopped by your paper today and you weren't there so we just thought we'd come by and see if everything was okay."

Exasperated, Cat shook her head and grinned. "I'm fine."

She waved her hand at them. "Go home to your wives."

Sam clapped Mason on the back. "She's fine. Trust me.

She's in good hands. I promise."

Cat shivered, remembering exactly how good those hands were. Leaning in, Cat gave her brothers a kiss on their cheeks

and shooed them away. As they turned to leave, she grabbed Mason's elbow and said, "Give little Matt a hug for me and let him know I still have my rock. Tell Sarah I'll try to get by on the weekend."

As they moved away, Sam turned to her. "I like them,"