Nate felt like a teenager with his first crush. The out-of-control feeling was humbling after so many years of having to control his emotions around Kennedy. Now he didn’t have to, but it wasn’t the freeing experience he’d thought it would be. It made him vulnerable. It had him doing things like showing up at her apartment at eleven o’clock at night because he couldn’t bear the thought of going home tonight without seeing her. He believed the technical term for it was pussy whipped.

  She’d already buzzed him in and was therefore aware he was on his way up. At his light tap, the door swung open immediately. He must have caught her getting ready for bed, because she was rubbing something on her face.

  “Now that you’ve caught me putting on my moisturizer, all the mystery is lost, so you may as well come in,” she said with an impish smile.

  Nate entered and closed the door behind him.

  “Hey, cat got your tongue?”

  That was when Nate realized he’d been staring. “Your hair. It’s straight,” he announced, stating the obvious.

  “It’s black magic,” Kennedy said with a dramatic toss of her hair as she gestured from the top of her head down her sides in a classic Vanna White move, her fingers fluttering. “What do you think?”

  Nate pulled her into his arms and crushed her mouth under his. Her lips instantly parted, and their tongues tangled, taking the kiss deeper. She smelled good, felt good, and tasted like heaven. He pulled back to say, “Black magic, huh? Well, I’m going to perform some white magic on you.” He smirked, sifting his fingers through the shiny dark strands that fell almost halfway down her back. He hadn’t realized it was that long without the curls.

  Kennedy sputtered a laugh. “White magic, huh?” She then coyly asked, “Is it the kind where you use a wand?”

  Nate’s eyes darkened with promise. “Yes, and my wand will give you as many orgasms as you can handle,” he said huskily, kissing her again, this time longer, deeper.

  When they finally came up for air, Kennedy pressed her palms against his chest and said breathily, “Ah, that white magic. I think I’m addicted to it and your—” she cast a pointed look down at his crotch “—magic wand.”

  Nate’s wand instantly hardened, ready to start producing those orgasms he’d promised.

  “Okay, now are you going to tell me what you’re doing here? I thought you were out with Jack.”

  “We did go out. But I was in the neighborhood and decided to stop by.”

  She gave a throaty laugh. “You just happened to be in the neighborhood, huh? Doing what?”

  “Looking for you. Missing you,” he said huskily as he slid his hand down her back and cupped her perfect ass. There was nothing he wanted more right now than to kiss every delicious inch of her. To feel her long, slim legs wrapped around his hips and feel her tightening around him.

  “Ah, so you came for a booty call,” she said, her voice sultry and low.

  “I haven’t come yet, but I intend to make us both come.” He was deadly sincere about that. And that was when he heard it, the strains of music coming from her bedroom.

  He peered down at her, his mouth tipped up at the corners. “Listening to music, were you? It’s almost as if you were expecting me.”

  “Or someone,” came Kennedy’s saucy response.

  “Someone like who?” Nate scoffed dismissively. He knew she was teasing, but that didn’t stop a part of him from wanting to declare her off-limits to all other men as long as he drew breath. “I’m the only man allowed in your bed.”

  “You’re the only man I’m permitting in my bed.” Although she didn’t voice it aloud, the for now hung over him like approaching storm clouds. “See the difference?”

  “Then why are we still standing here?” he asked, as he ushered her through the dimly lit apartment to her bedroom. In the last several weeks, he’d been over a few times. He usually waited in the living room while she finished dressing, but she’d given him a tour of the place during his first visit. It was small and comfortable, and distinctly feminine. The place reminded him of her.

  In her bedroom, he made quick work of ridding himself of his jeans and sports shirt. Thankfully, Kennedy was wearing just an oversized T-shirt and panties. He made quick work of that too, and within a minute, he had her on the bed and under him.

  After the frenzy of movement, he stilled and stared deep into her eyes. “I couldn’t go home without seeing you first. I’ve also discovered I don’t like to sleep without you beside me.”

  “Me too,” she whispered, sifting her fingers through his hair.

  The music, which had been relegated to background noise, suddenly took center stage in his mind as it changed from something soft and dreamy to something more upbeat; the singer’s voice, a deep bass, was singularly unique.

  Distracted, he paused and listened to the words. At the end of the first chorus, a huge smile crawled across his face. “Is this for me?” he asked softly, staring into her smiling eyes.

  Kennedy chortled—the sound a mixture of amusement and desire—as she hit him playfully on the shoulder. “How could it be? I had no idea you were coming over tonight.”

  As the song continued to play, Nate lowered his head and kissed the corner of her mouth. “But you like it, don’t you? Because it’s the way you feel about me.”

  “Would you stop.” Her shoulders began to shake with laughter.

  “Admit it, everything in that song applies to me. I am your first. Your last. Your everything.” From her kiss-swollen lips, his mouth trailed down to her collarbone and to her breast, taking the nipple into his mouth.

  Admit it, you’re mine.

  * * *

  Kennedy gasped as she clutched the back of his head, keeping his mouth right there while “You’re the First, the Last, My Everything” by Barry White continued to play on the speaker on her night table.

  “Admit it,” he coaxed, batting at her nipple with his tongue.

  Kennedy moaned, finding it difficult to concentrate on his words. “Yes, you were my first. You know that.”

  Nate nipped lightly on her breast, making it clear he wasn’t satisfied with her answer. “And the rest.”

  Kennedy battled her way through a haze of desire and lust to turn the tables on him by asking, “What about you? Am I your last and your everything?”

  Nate froze. He slowly raised his head and searched her face. “Do you want to be?”

  She’d meant it as a joke—sort of—but the look in his eyes and the tone of his voice were anything but.

  Everything inside her screamed, Yes. Yes, that’s exactly what I want, but she decided to play it safe, not yet willing to expose her heart to the sometimes harsh elements of complete transparency, replying instead, “What I want is for you to make love to me.”

  Perhaps he sensed the cause of her hesitancy, because he didn’t insist she answer—he simply parted her legs and drove into her, pinning her beneath him with a single hard thrust.

  Kennedy felt him everywhere, her body welcoming and reveling in his possession. She bit her lip, trying to muffle a cry of pleasure, but the sound emerged broken from her throat.

  “Don’t hold back. I want to hear you,” he rasped, his thrusts quickening as he set a relentless pace.

  Her peak came too soon, the explosion taking her by surprise. That was what he did to her. Her orgasms now had hair-trigger tendencies. She never knew exactly what would set them off, and she had no control over them seconds before they did. Nate, on the other hand, got off on her absolute lack of control, praising her, telling her how good it felt to be inside her, and how beautiful she was.

  She hung on, her hands on his butt as he raced to his own completion. His body went stiff after the final thrust, his face contorted in bliss, his neck strained and taut.

  Looking up at him, Kennedy faced the truth head-on. He was who she wanted for good, bad, and until death did they part. As the song said, her first, her last, her everything.

  “I need you closer.” Satiation laced the deep rumble of his voice, the weight of his body still covering hers as the cool air turned them into sticky human magnets.

  Kennedy smiled drowsily. “I think we’re as close as physically possible.” She referred to the fact that he was still inside her.

  “No, I’m talking about you living in the city. Have you ever thought about it?” Peering down at her, his gaze half-mast, he didn’t appear in a rush to go anywhere.

  Kennedy huffed a laugh. “Asks the man who has billions at his disposal. I’ve also thought about rocketing into space—” a bit of hyperbole, but it appeared that was what all the tech billionaires were doing these days “—but when does one find the time for a quick trip with all my prior engagements?” she teasingly mocked.

  His gaze drifted down to her breasts. He slowly licked his bottom lip, that look back in his eyes. Then his gaze shot back up to hers. “What would you say to me buying you a place?”

  A startled laugh broke from her throat. “You can’t say things like that to me when you’re still inside me,” she protested, as if he’d broken one of the golden rules of intimacy they’d agreed to abide by.

  His mouth quirked up at the corner. “Fair enough.” Within seconds, her warm and slightly sticky human blanket was gone. His disappearance into the bathroom was followed by the flush of the toilet and then the sound of running water. Her queen-sized bed dipped slightly upon his return to her side, where he immediately tugged her into his arms, chest to breasts, face-to-face.

  “Or you could move in with me,” he said in another stunning offer.

  “What?” Her voice rose perceptibly. The second his question sank in, her mind instinctively rejected it. Yes, she wanted a future with him and all that, but it was too soon for them to move in together. Way too soon. They hadn’t been together three months, and six was the bare minimum a couple needed to be together before broaching the subject.

  “Don’t tell me—you think it’s too soon?”

  “And you don’t?” came her instant retort.

  Nate dismissed the question with a quick shake of his head. “I knew that’s what you’d say if I asked, which is why you getting a place in the city would suit us both. You’d be closer to your office, and you wouldn’t have to rent anymore, and I’d have you closer to me. It’s a win-win situation.” He gently brushed her hair over her shoulder.

  “Honestly, Nate, I appreciate the offer, but you can’t just buy me an apartment in New York City. You have to see that, right?” This was the craziest conversation she’d ever had with a man.

  “Why not?” he asked, as if he didn’t understand the power of his billions. “I guess that’s where you and I differ, because I don’t see the problem. It would be a gift.”

  Kennedy stared at him, flummoxed. Was this how rich people operated? “Nate, you’re not talking about an expensive handbag or a nice piece of jewelry. You’re talking about real estate in one of the most expensive cities in the country. It’s one thing for you to pay when we go out, but buying me an apartment that’s so above my financial means I’d need a rocket launcher to see it...is bonkers.”

  More than anything, her pride wouldn’t allow her to accept such a—What would it be called? Because “gift” seemed wholly inadequate. She didn’t want him for his money and didn’t want him to see her as someone who couldn’t give herself the things she wanted.

  Nate stroked her cheek with the tips of his fingers. “Rocket launcher, huh? That can be arranged,” he said with a smile. “Okay, forget I offered. We’ll do it your way until you’re ready for the next step.”

  Kennedy blinked at the swiftness of the withdrawal of his offer. It was almost as if he’d been testing her and putting her on notice at the same time.

  Until you’re ready for the next step.

  Which meant he was ready and simply waiting for her.

  * * *

  Monday came too soon, and at eight-thirty in the morning, it was already slow-walking its way through the week. If only she could have remained in her and Nate’s bubble a little longer. From her place on Saturday, they moved to his on Sunday, lazing the day away having sex and watching Netflix. They had food delivered because neither had wanted to step a foot outside their cocoon of bliss. Although discussion of her moving in with him or him buying her an apartment hadn’t been broached again, she couldn’t stop thinking about it.

  Logically, Kennedy had always known Nate was rich. Like, really rich. But it had taken his offer to make her realize the enormity of his wealth and fully illuminate that chasm-wide difference between them. She was with a man who could give her the moon—or a rocket launcher, if she asked—without it putting a dent in his bank account. And he wanted to be with her. Wanted to live with her. It was mind-blowing and heady at the same time.

  Despite her telling him it was too soon for her to move in with him, she wanted to, and knew in her heart that day would come. What scared the crap out of her was navigating the power dynamics of such a move without her pride getting in the way. She’d pulled her weight in all her relationships, and she was determined that her relationship with Nate wouldn’t be any different.

  Dragging her mind back to the present, she noted that one of the emails sitting unread in her company email account had been sent on Saturday. Kennedy sighed. How many times did she have to tell Mina not to work during the weekend? Time off was important for people’s mental health.

  “Morning,” Mina announced from Kennedy’s office door. Clad in a flowy midcalf-length blue dress, she looked as if she’d happily embraced the new her.

  “Good morning, Mina. I was just reading the email you sent on Saturday,” she said, her tone chiding.

  Mina laughingly held up her arms as if warding off an attack to the face. “I forgot to send it before I left on Friday, so I wasn’t working during the weekend. I wanted to make sure you saw it as soon as you got in.”

  “I guess that’s okay, then,” Kennedy muttered, suppressing a smile. She quickly read the email, growing more and more perplexed with every word. Her gaze lifted to meet Mina’s. “Are you saying the young man Joseph Russo claimed would back up his story can’t be found or doesn’t exist?”

  “Their HR department has no record of anyone fitting his description having ever worked at the station. No one,” she replied with a shrug.

  “And no pictures of Miss Montgomery with her hair dyed any of those wei—unconventional colors?”

  Mina shook her head. “Not one. I checked her social media, professional and private. Her hair is brown in all of them. Usually straight, but in some of the most recent ones, she has her hair in braids.”

  Dammit. When it rained it really did pour. “Okay, thanks for letting me know. I’m going to have to take this up with Mr. Russo myself.” Kennedy wasn’t looking forward to the call even a little bit.

  She was still trying to make sense of things when her cell phone vibrated on her desk and Aurora’s picture lit up the screen. A call from her at this time usually meant she was either running late or had an off-site client appointment that morning and would be in later. Kennedy answered, only to have her chipper “Hey, what’s up?” be greeted with silence, and then an audible, tearful sniff.

  Her heart plunged straight down to her toes. “Ror, what’s wrong? What happened?” she asked, her voice urgent.

  The pause that followed lasted long enough for the alarm that initially beset her to turn to full-blown panic. “Ror!” she practically yelled into the phone.

  “He doesn’t want to see me anymore,” came Aurora’s hoarse, tear-laden whisper.

  Oh shit. Inhaling deeply, Kennedy bowed her head and stared sightlessly at the light wood-grained surface of her desk. She’d been afraid this would happen. Had been dreading it like a reunion of Marky Mark with his Funky Bunch.

  “Oh, honey, I’m sorry.” While she meant every word of it, she was convinced that this was for the best. Hopefully, somewhere down the road, Aurora would realize it too.

  Another tearful sniff. “I don’t know why I let myself believe I would be different. That he’d stick around for even a little while after the sex.” Then her heartbroken friend began to sob in earnest. “I really thought he cared about me, but at the first sign of trouble, he bailed.”

  And she, Kennedy Amelia Mitchell, had been that sign of trouble. It had been her catching them together that set the wheels of his breakup in motion.

  “Damn, I’m sorry, Ror. It’s all my fault. I should have never—”

  “No!” Aurora exclaimed, her voice surprisingly firm and adamant. “It’s not your fault. We were going to be discovered at some point, and better you than the tabloids or a member of the other party. No, the truth is Adam doesn’t think being involved with me will be beneficial to his political career, and that matters more to him than I do.”

  Kennedy’s heart pinched. The matter-of-factness of her friend’s tone did more to lay bare her pain than conceal it.

  “Any man who would choose a career in politics—” she spat out the word as if it were an expletive “—over you doesn’t deserve you.”

  “No, he doesn’t, but I still want him, Ken. I love him,” Aurora said, ending in a hiccupy sob.

  Kennedy hated doing this over the phone. She wished she could be there for her friend. That she could hug her tight and tell her everything was going to be all right. Unfortunately, the phone, despite all its technological marvels and conveniences, would have to do.

  “Sweetie, I know you do. But in time, things will get better. They always do. There are a million and one men out there who would give their eyetooth to be with you, and half a million who will love you and treat you the way you deserve.”

  Aurora let out a watery snort. “Maybe a dozen or two, but definitely not half a million.”

  That her friend could find even the tiniest bit of humor in it was a good sign. “Why don’t you take a few days off, and I’ll come over after work and bring dinner? Whatever you want, your wish is my command.”