He barely took in the full bottle of wine and the glass, the empty mug of something. He came close, but didn’t want to break the spell. Had she dressed like this on purpose for him? He shrugged off his jacket and undid his tie, barely aware of what he was doing. He felt constricted, and his body was so hard and so hot that time seemed to stand still.

She was temptation incarnate. Her lips were soft, inviting him to just bend down and press a kiss. It would be so easy to do that—to kneel ...