Monte didn’t know if he could be this close to Tyger without wanting to be closer. He would have swept her away into a passionate kiss, but he could tell how uncomfortable she was. He didn’t want to embarrass her any further.He must keep their conversation going. When there was silence between them like this, his thoughts were all over the place, making him want her that much more. He really didn’t know how to stay calm when his heart sped so quickly with eagerness.He finished the mouthful of pancake in his mouth before speaking. “Do you want a taste of my buttermilk pancakes? They are so good.”He cut a small piece and brought it to her mouth. She hadn’t been eating her muffin, just playing with the crumbs on the table. She hesitated as she looked at the piece of food, before opening her mouth. He moved the fork inside her mouth until she bit into it. Her beautiful eyes remained on him the whole time.His heart leape

Breanna felt like she was a teenager entering a new school when she walked into the office building. As she readied herself for work this morning, her stomach was in knots. What would her co-workers think of her new look?Ashley was the first to see her. Her jaw dropped, and she jumped out of her chair so quickly it bumped against the cubicle wall.“Oh… my…” Ashley shook her head. “What happened to you?”Because of Ashley’s loud voice, the others in the room were alerted to Breanna’s presence. Within seconds, all of her co-workers swarmed around her, oohing and ahhing over her hair, new dress, and shoes. Breanna didn’t really want to tell them every little detail, so she explained that the party had convinced her to get a new look.Ashley laughed and elbowed Jackie standing next to her. “Yeah, I bet it was Monte who changed Breanna’s mind.”Heat rushed to Breanna’s chee

“Of course I wasn’t thinking of you,” she lied and turned back toward the paintings. “If you must know, this house and the paintings, reminds me of the Victorian era, and I was just imagining what it might have been like to live back during that time.”Monte moved beside her as his attention shifted to the paintings. “Believe it or not, I would have loved to live back in those days.”She stared directly at him. “Really? Why?”“Because people didn’t look down their noses at the sons of rich men. Back then, people didn’t mind if the son of a rich guy didn’t do anything during the day. In fact, having a laborious job was frowned upon by high society gents and ladies.” He folded his arms across his wide chest. “Sons of rich men were the kind of guys the old bats wanted to marry their ugly daughters to.”Breanna understood the point he was trying to make, but she st

Monte couldn’t wait to get out of the bedroom. Several times he’d wanted to kiss her passionately. But she’d broken his heart already, and he didn’t want to continue feeling that pain. Strange to think they’d only known each other a few days, and that he had allowed himself to be struck by Cupid’s arrow. That had never happened to him before.If they had remained on his bed, he would have succumbed to temptation and kissed her, and never stopped. Yet, he knew she was only here because she and Tom had argued. She confessed that she still didn’t know her feelings, and Monte couldn’t push the issue. He needed to allow her to think this matter through clearly. All he could do was pray that she’d consider him over Tom.When they reached outside, he stopped them. She looked at him with wide, questioning eyes. He grinned and pointed out toward the yard. The outdoor lights were lit brightly, making it easy for her to see th

Just as Breanna finished her project and sent it to her supervisor’s email, she leaned back in her chair and sighed. For a while, she wondered if she’d be able to complete it at all. Monte had definitely put her under a spell, and she couldn’t stop smiling and laughing. Her co-workers noticed her change, and they even commented on it. Remarkably enough, it didn’t embarrass her.Whatever Monte had done to her, he’d given her more self-confidence than she’d had in a long time. He’d made her feel good about the person she was, inside and out.The phone on her desk rang, and she quickly answered it. “Thanks for calling Upbeat. This is Breanna. How can I help you?”“Hi.”The man’s voice on the other end of the phone was not Monte’s. Disappointment crashed over her, but when she recognized who it was, her nerves jumped with anxiety. She repeated in her mind, Tom will not