For the better part of two hours, Jack patiently bided his time as the celebration droned on. He sipped on a scotch and pretended to listen to the not-half-bad looking accountant talking his ear off as he scanned the room for a far more remarkable woman. Solana had disappeared into the kitchenette adjacent to the reception area moments ago and he'd lost track of her, despite the bright yellow shirt she wore as part of her server uniform.

"Don't you agree Mr. Blackhorne?"

The accountant fluttered her dark eyes as he dropped his gaze to her. He had no idea what she was talking about. Jack smoldered in her direction and enjoyed the image of the woman's lips parting in desire. Yup, that should befuddle her for a while.

"Let's pick this up later, shall we?" He wandered away without bothering to take in her response.

His lobby brimmed with employees, eating, drinking and vying for time with the boss. There were parts of being CEO he loved and parts he loathed.

His father started a pharmaceutical company with his partner, Patrick Caldwell, and the drug industry was a golden cow that kept on giving. When his parents died, Jack was only five, so his uncle took charge until he came of age to collect his inheritance. And James Blackhorne was a brilliant bastard.

The first thing he did was eliminate the competition. Internally, he ousted Patrick, forcing him to sell all stake in the company. Then he bought or squeezed out other companies that posed any kind of threat. Jack had learned at the hands of a master how to manipulate, what weaknesses to exploit, and how. Back then, he'd been an eager and willing pupil, itching to get his chance to play with the big boys.

When his uncle had died, Jack took up the mantle of chairman of the board and got to hunting on his own. And he was good at his job. It was second nature to him, like he had been born for it.

Sitting across from an opponent at the exquisite moment when they realized they had played their last card, that they were going to lose, well that was the dragon Jack chased. It was almost as good as sex. It was a damned close second.

Those were good days. Unfortunately, they were becoming few and far in between the day to day of running Blackhorne & Caldwell.

What he didn't like took up more and more time. Dealing with people. Employees were a necessary evil of a large corporation. Someone had to work in the labs and discover the next drug, another person had to produce and package the product. Even more people had to bring the drugs to the marketplace, sell it and although Jack would have loved to have done it himself, someone had to count all the money.

All this meant he had to interact with people. Play nice. Hold employee appreciation events. Like tonight.

Yet, until this evening, he'd never looked forward to one of these events as much.

Wolf intercepted his escape. "Isn't that the woman we ran the profile on this week?" Wolf nodded in the direction of Solana, who offered a tray of frosted glasses filled with a light green liquid to a group of salesman.

"Yes." He studied her reactions of the three men as they tried to engage her in small talk. She smiled, and she said something that made them laugh. Jack wanted to know what was so funny and moved in her direction. A hand on his arm stopped him.

"Why is she here?" Wolf's pale eyes inspected him. "We're not going to have to pay off two women in one week, are we?"

He jerked his arm out of the older man's grip. The subject of money spoiled his good mood. He'd almost forgotten Solana was here out of a perceived obligation, not just to see him. This morning he'd couriered over the five thousand dollars to her ignorant best friend and Jack's hope was she'd repay the fake debt before they got to the good stuff he had planned. "I'm doing her a favour."

Wolf raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you grant people favours?"

If he only knew. But Jack used his personal funds for his extra-curricular activities. "I'm feeling generous."

"Well, don't be too generous with her." Wolf followed Solana, who'd moved on to a gaggle of girls giggling in the corner. "Not sure she can handle being burned by you."

Jack didn't correct him. One thing he was fairly confident about Solana was she could match fire with fire. He looked forward to the challenge. "Don't worry. I have it covered."

"I hope so." Wolf downed the last of his drink, placed the empty glass on a table and walked away.

"Can I get you anything, Mr. Blackhorne?"

Solana's voice was like honey and made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He turned to find her hazel eyes staring up at him. "I can think of a few things."

Her cute lips formed a thin line, and her hand went to her hip. Jack couldn't wait to hear what snappy comeback came out of her kissable mouth. "A drink, sir, anything to drink?"

Disappointment dripped into his veins. This wasn't feisty. This wasn't tempting. This was ... professional.

"No, I'm done for the night." He placed his half-empty tumbler on her tray. "My office is down the hall. Stop by before you leave. Oh, and enough with the Mr. Blackhorne crap. Call me Jack."

"Okay,"—the corners of her lips twitched—"Jack." It was such a little motion, almost innocent, but her saying his name with attitude made his stomach muscles tighten. This was more like it. Now he couldn't wait for the real fun of the evening to start.

It took too long. An hour later and Solana still hadn't shown up. He couldn't remember the last time he'd waited for a woman. At last, there were three light taps on his door.

"Enter."

Solana closed the door behind her, leaned on it, and crossed her arms. "Of course, this is your office."

He stood, walked around his desk, and tapped the glass tabletop. "What is that supposed to mean?"

She pushed off the wall and meandered over to his sitting area, dragging a finger along the couch. Excellent choice, thought Jack. Taking her on the couch would be a good start. But she kept on walking, pausing before the floor to ceiling windows, her reflection darkened by the night skyline.

"It's like you have to live up to your surname. Everything is black. Colourless."

Jack surveyed his office. The dark floors, illuminated only by the small lamp on his desk, did indeed look black. His desk, the couch and chairs were charcoal. "Albert Einstein had a closet full of colourless suits. Part of what made him a genius."

Her laugh reverberated off the window. It was short and light and the sound penetrated his skin. "You would compare yourself to a genius."

Like a moth drawn to a flame, he strolled toward her. "I am a genius." He watched her exquisite hips sway as she sauntered out of his reach. His fingers twitched at the lack of contact, and he wondered who was the cat and who was the mouse in this situation.

Solana rested her palms against the surface of his desk. "How many women have you seduced on this desk?"

Now they were getting somewhere. His long legs closed the distance between them and he admired the angle of the back of her neck as he bent down to whisper in her ear. "Why? Are you offering?"

Her head shook, her pale hair resembling the moon in the low light of the room. "Absolutely not. Not interested in joining the slut parade."

It would be so easy to press his lips against the exposed skin of her nape. But instinct told him to wait. She was baiting him and he wouldn't fall into her trap so easily. The challenge of a verbal spar with her would make a delicious appetizer to the main course of tasting her.

"Tsk, Tsk." He inhaled her scent, the faint hint of orange warmed his insides. Time for him to score a point. "Shame. It's an exclusive group. And I've heard I'm worth the ride."

His words struck home. Her head snapped back, and she spun around. Even in the little light from the lamp, he could see the trickle of lava swimming in her irises when she faced him. "You're such an asshole."

It was his turn to laugh. Her little insult skittered off his skin. He'd been called so much worse. To resist taking the lips that spat the snub, he retreated a few inches. "I beg to differ. What am I supposed to do? Not take these women up on their offers to have sex?"

Sparks flew in her eyes. His pulse quickened at the sight, and he dragged his thumb across his wanting lips.

"A man has needs. Now I've never been a big fan of my left hand, much prefer the warmth of a woman to meet my needs." He studied her face for a reaction. There was no recoil or mock disgust. "If they're willing, I don't see the harm?"

She blinked a few times, then jutted her chin up at him. "Doesn't it get... tiring?"

"If we're doing it right, yes."

That got a reaction. An eye roll. "What a jerk."

Jack suppressed a smile. "Look. If a woman craves me and I want them, I don't see what the issue is. As long as we're having fun and at least one of us has our needs met, then what is the harm?"