His expression flickered with what looked like hurt, if I thought it possible. Leaning forward, absorbed, he said, "You pursued me, remember? At the park. There was nothing predatory about accepting your invite. You were so beautiful, so...daring. I couldn't resist you then, just as I can't resist you now."

He seemed sincere, his proclamation missing his usual conceit, but I didn't see how this was anything other than a game to him. He had left me alone in the woods. Men like that were dangerous. Hot. Irresistible. But dangerous. "I'm not sleeping with you again. Not after you abandoned me."

Relaxing back into his seat, he folded his hands, distant once more. "I thought it would save us both the awkwardness."

I refused to let him know how hurt I'd been, especially seeing him sit there so blase. I'd wanted a night of passion under the stars. That had been the fantasy. Only one night, but one that was full of enamored whisperings and limitless lovemaking from a man with experience. Not a quick fuck.

"You got to leave without the awkwardness," I refuted. "I barely left with my life." It was an exaggeration, but I felt it suitable.

He seemed confused. And concerned.

A little too late for that, I thought.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You blindfolded me. I didn't know my way back. I was lost."

A look of horror crossed his face. "I thought you knew the woods well."

"Not in the dark!"

"Madison..." He went silent, looking out the window, his face unreadable. "I'm sorry."

"And so am I. This wasn't how I was supposed to start my new life as a professional woman. The only reason I approached you the way I did was because I wanted one last night of youthful recklessness before beginning my career. I worked so hard throughout college to graduate early. What a mistake. My career was tainted before I even stepped through the doors on my first day." If I wasn't so indignant, I would have cried in frustration.

"Your job isn't at risk," he assured me.

He sounded convincing, but I didn't believe him. There was no way Mr. Jackman had the same respect for me that he would have had if I never asked him-a perfect stranger-to fuck me in the woods. In the silence that followed, I sipped my drink-another white chocolate mocha that Adam had given me as soon as we reached altitude.

"Ask me something...anything," Mr. Jackman prompted, setting a hand on my knee. It was an innocent gesture, meant to comfort me, but it caused a heat to rise through me, enough that I felt my panties soak slightly. "Let me earn your trust back."

"Mr. Jackman..." I began, my voice hoarse.

He interrupted me. "Rawn, please. When we're outside the office, I prefer you call me Rawn."

"Doesn't the jet count as the office?" I asked, unable to take my eyes off his hand. The pressure of it against my white dress pants reminded me of the way he'd touched me before, edging my legs further apart before he drove his cock into me. Having had the blindfold on, his touch was the only memory I had of the night. That and the authority in his voice.

"No," he said. "Not tonight. Not in Italy. Ask me anything you'd like to know."

Why didn't you stay?

Such a question would be impossible for me to ask. I didn't want to know the answer. If there was something about fucking me that made him go, I wouldn't recover.

"How did you become President of Product Development? You're so young. Well, youngish."

"Nepotism."

It sounded dirty. "What the hell is that?"

"My father was a technician at Cepheus Scientific. When I was a boy, I used to come to the lab and visit him. It was fascinating for me, all the beakers and robots, much better than the arcades my friends would go to after school. Entering my teens, I began pointing out flaws in the blueprints my father was working from, enough that he had me meet with the engineers to tell them my observations, which led to a meeting with the CEO. I was labelled a boy genius, and the company signed me after I graduated high school. I got the job because my father worked for the company."

"You were the President of Product Development when you were only eighteen?"

"Seventeen, yes."

"Did you want to be?" I asked. It was a lot of responsibility for someone almost still a child, and he didn't seem particularly proud or happy speaking about his past.

My question took him aback. "No," he said truthfully, "but I've never admitted that to anyone before. Not even myself."

"Why now?"

"Because I want to earn your trust. And because you're simply too mesmerizing to deceive."

I was touched, but I wouldn't tell him so. I still wasn't sure what his intentions were-if I was merely a moment of insanity to him, one where he wanted to speak the truth, or if he was using honesty layered with poetry to get me back in bed...a conquest. Something to take away the dissatisfaction of his job.

"Does your father still work at the company?"

He suddenly looked tired. "No. He retired a few years ago. It's only me."

"You miss him." It wasn't a question.

Mr. Jackman...Rawn yawned. "I do. He made work survivable, less tedious and more colorful. I don't think there was a day he didn't have a story for me. He never made it out of the lab, but that's where he was happiest. And so was I. So it suited."

This was a side to my midnight lover that I was enjoying. I kept the conversation going. "Where is he now?"

"California with my mother. They say the weather is better for their arthritis. I don't think either of them actually have arthritis. I think they just wanted an excuse to leave."

"But at least you have a private jet to visit them," I supposed.

He looked down. "Not enough as I'd like. This job is time-consuming. It eats away at your life."

"Then quit."

Did I really just say that? Talk about lack of team spirit. I was suggesting one of Cepheus Scientific's biggest assets walk out the door. Surely he wouldn't let me get away with such a bold comment...

He did. "This is all I know. Since I was recruited right out of high school, I never went to college. And I'm restricted by a non-compete clause in my contract. I'd have to wait five years before I could work for a company even semi-similar to what Cepheus Scientific does."

"Is that why you like to dominate?" I asked, surprising myself. "Because you can't control your situation with the company?"

He smirked, his mood lightening. "I thought you wanted to keep things professional."

"And I thought you were a self-indulged playboy, but we all get it wrong at times."

"You didn't," he said, stoic. "That's exactly what I am."

I had jumped in the river. I might as well keep swimming. "How so?"

"I can show you if you like." The hunger in his eyes was back, but this time I couldn't fault him for it.

"No," I said quickly. "My career is too important to me."

He went rigid, overfilled, his posture matching his expression. "Then, I suggest we move on to something less sinful, because I don't think I can resist you any longer."

I spoke quickly, afraid I'd lose my ability to refuse him. "You said you were a Leo. All the constellations have their story, but those stories aren't the same worldwide. For instance, in the West, there's a faint constellation known as the Sculptor, but in China and other parts of the East, it's called the Firebird, which I've always found fascinating given how indistinct it is. Leo, your sign, is no different. Its Chinese equivalent is the Vermillion Bird. However, China is the only place that comes to mind that does not recognize your particular cluster of stars as a lion. Everywhere else has, ancient and modern. From the Mesopotamians to the Indians to the Turks. Leo has always been full of strength and courage. It has always been the lion."

He stared at me in wonder. "How can you possibly believe such notions will make me covet you any less? That didn't help."

"I know," I said, feeling my own emotions rising. I wanted Rawn. I wanted him bad. But I couldn't. Never again. So I turned my head.

Understanding, he unbuckled his seatbelt and stood, unable to hide the bulge protruding from his pants. "I think I need to rest. There are a few bedrooms. Feel free to take whatever one you want. Even the one I'm in-if you change your mind."

"I won't," I said softly. "But thanks."

He walked away, but stopped before reaching a door that led who knew where. Probably to some gilded dreamland. "In Italy, there's something I'd really like to show you, if you'll allow me to. You don't have to decide now. But soon."

"What is it?" I asked.

"A secret."

Chapter Five.

Wow. Like Channing Tatum wow.

From what I had seen of it so far, Naples was stunning. We'd landed in the early hours of the morning, when the seaside city was still cast in a soft blue hue, the sun struggling to rise. I knew when it did, it'd be glorious. A Ferrari had been waiting for us when we'd existed the jet. A convertible, it was sleek and black, almost invisible in the blue dawn.

"I've never ridden in a Ferrari before," I said, taking a seat in the passenger's side as Rawn held the door open for me.

"I plan to show you many firsts," he claimed, shutting the door.

The drive to the hotel was short but worthwhile. Naples towered at an incline against the Tyrrhenian Sea, part of the Mediterranean. The sandstone buildings managed to look both ancient and modern, and mystical, as if one of Homer's sirens could walk out of one of the houses at any moment, a phone to her ear. Watching over the city with its intimidating fortitude was Vesuvius, more god than mountain. Winding around a steeper hillside towards the outskirts of the city, we parked in front of a red sandy structure-our palatial hotel.

Now, standing on the balcony of our hotel suite that overlooked the blue city, I realized just how glorious the world could be. Portland was quite pretty with its forests and waterways, but it was nothing compared to the natural charm of the Naples shoreline and the exquisite architecture of the hotel suite I still could not believe was mine.

Well, ours, I thought, looking at Rawn, who sat on the plush couch in the common area, reading through his notes, unfazed by the champagne-colored wallpaper or the beige furnishings that allowed the renderings of some of Italy's most famous paintings to steal the attention of the room. Each were cast in a gilded frame as bright as the gold drapes that cascaded down from the high windows. I did not feel that we stood in a hotel suite, more like I was waiting for an audience with the Queen of England.

The suite had several bedrooms, none of which Rawn seemed interested in. While he prepared for our meeting with Dr. Giordano, I left the balcony and explored the rooms, finally settling on one not too dissimilar from the decor of the common area, except for the traces of purple in the satin quilt and furnishings. Leaving my luggage near the bed, I undressed and went into the bathroom, which was bigger than my room in Portland. A marble tub waited for me, and even though I knew we would soon leave for our meeting with Dr. Francesco Giordano, I soaked my troubles away, inhaling the luxurious scents of the bath creams the hotel supplied.

I'm in Italy!

Squealing, I sank farther into my bubbles, forgetting about the work involved, or that Rawn was outside, fully suited, and I was in here-naked, hot, and wet. This was how empresses bathed. I made a vow that this would not be the last time I bathed within marble. One day, I would own a place just as refined.

One day... One days could be problematic. Sometimes, there wasn't one day. There was only now. And then no more.

"Dr. Giordano isn't answering his phone," Rawn said, coming into the bathroom. "Technically, he doesn't know we're here yet, but I see no harm driving up to his farm and calling in early."

Frantically covering myself with bubbles, I yelled, "Rawn! I'm in the bath!"

"I know," he said simply. "You've been in here for an hour. On my time."

"Get out!" I screamed.

"What's the big deal? It's nothing I haven't seen before. And if you ask me, I find this view better than the one from the balcony."

Growing red, I threw a bottle of bath cream at him. It was the only thing within my reach. "Dr. Giordano is probably still sleeping, just like the rest of Naples. We cannot expect to win him over if we're invading his rest. People are happiest when the sun is out and after they've eaten. We should wait until after lunch before we drive up to his farm. Now. Get. Out."

Rawn considered what I said. "Where did you learn all that?"

"Business Psychology 101. Rawn! Leave!"

Chuckling, he said no more and did as I asked, shutting the bathroom door behind him. It made me suspect he never had any intention of leaving this early. He only wanted an excuse to walk in on me.

"I bet if I check his phone no actual calls were made," I grumbled, falling back into the bubbles, allowing them to rock me into a much more pleasant calm.

Unable to push the man I shared a hotel suite with from my mind completely, I thought back to what he had said to me on the jet. There was a secret he wanted to show me here in Naples, but he hadn't given any indication of what it was. I did not suspect he had any personal history in Italy, but perhaps I was wrong. Maybe there was more than one reason for him to fly all the way out here, something other than speaking with a scientific inventor.

I would find out soon enough. I'd agreed to let him show me, whatever it was. There was very little from Rawn Jackman that I could refuse.

Compared to the farmhouse of Dr. Francesco Giordano, the black Ferrari was a glare, a thing of opulence that outshone the rusted bolts and chipped paint of the small cottage, which sat amongst a pasture of old appliances, broken swings, and other junk. Though it was a farm, there were no animals about, except for a sad-looking donkey eating the tall grass that sprang between the debris.

"He lives here?" I asked as I stepped around something corroded, already feeling sorry for the man. "I thought he was once a university professor."

"I'm sure it was quite an enchanting acre of land when his wife was alive. Some men...they don't know how to take care of themselves without a woman around."

"That's a poor excuse. Not all women are domesticated creatures."

He picked up a flat piece of metal with a caterpillar crawling across the edge. "That's not what I meant. I mean they don't know how to exist without their companion-their best friend."

"Oh. Yeah, I can see that. Where is he, anyway?"

"My guess-" Rawn pointed at the barn, which was just as rundown as the cottage.

I nodded. "The consequence of genius." Remembering our conversation from the night before, of Rawn's confession regarding how he became President of Product Development, I quickly added, "No offense."

"None taken. I wasn't actually a boy genius. I was just smart. Smarter than those already at the company. Dr. Giordano-he is an honest to goodness genius. A Beautiful Mind type. If the rumor is true that he has already decided to go with the Germans, convincing him otherwise won't be easy, but I think we can do it. You can do it. I wouldn't have brought you all the way out here if not."

"I think you overestimate my power of persuasion, but I'll do my best."

Rawn set his hand against my back and gently guided me towards the barn. "If you can convince a stranger to follow you into the woods, you can convince a scientist to license his product to us."