There was that niggle in the back of his mind that kept shooting up warnings saying this was wrong, this shouldn’t be happening. But they’d already crossed the line and he planned on seeing them both to the finish line.

  “You’re thinking again.” Hannah tightened her knees against him and arched. “Now, Will.”

  He gripped her hips and leaned down until his mouth was a breath from hers. He grazed his lips across her jaw, over her chin, and finally landed on hers. She opened for him just as he eased into her and joined their bodies.

  A soft moan escaped her once again and it took every bit of willpower for him to remain still. He wanted to capture this moment, to relish in the feel of her sensual body beneath his and all around him.

  Hannah threaded her fingers through his hair, holding him in place as she swept her tongue through his mouth. There was nothing sexier than a woman who knew what she wanted and wasn’t afraid to go after it.

  Perhaps that was why he felt this pull toward Hannah. Of course, she was sexy as hell, but beyond that, her bold personality and determination paralleled his own.

  He’d never met a woman like Hannah...and it was becoming quite apparent she was definitely one of a kind.

  Will started moving, shifting, and tilting his hips. Immediately, Hannah joined him and they found a perfect rhythm.

  Needing more leverage, Will placed one hand beside her head and eased the other behind her knee. He pumped harder, faster, breaking away from her lips so he could watch her. He didn’t want to miss a moment of her coming undone.

  And from the sounds of her pants and moans and the way she jerked her hips, she wasn’t too far off. Which was good, because he didn’t know how much longer he would last. They’d been doing silent foreplay and building up to this moment for too damn long. He could work on finesse and longevity later.

  Oh, there most definitely would be a later.

  “Will,” she murmured as she wrapped her free leg across his waist. “Please.”

  The whispered begging did him in. Will lifted back up to his knees and gripped her hips so she stayed with him. Then he lifted her backside slightly to give her the best angle and the most pleasing sensations. He wanted to be the one to make her explode, to make her cry out his name.

  And she didn’t disappoint. Hannah’s fingertips dug in to his forearms as she came apart. With her eyes shut, her head tipped back and her body bowed, she was completely vulnerable in a way he’d never thought he’d see. There was something so magnificent about this woman, this moment, but he couldn’t focus, not when his own body was following hers.

  Will ground his teeth together as he stilled, allowing every glorious sensation to wash over him. Hannah’s body was still clenched around him, pulling out all the passion he’d been trying to keep locked away.

  Once his body ceased trembling, he glanced down to her and found her smiling up at him. The image of her luscious body, with her hair in disarray, not to mention that he’d kissed off all of her lipstick and had gotten her down to being a little more basic, a little raw, drove him out of his ever loving mind.

  Damn it. He shouldn’t be attracted to both sides of Hannah, but he was. And he certainly shouldn’t be ready to do this all over again, but he couldn’t help the need that crept up and overcame him.

  Will eased away because the alternative scared the hell out of him. He came to his feet and reached down, offering Hannah his hand.

  Once he helped her to her feet, she picked up her dress and promptly shimmied back into it. Now he’d never look at the damn thing again without remembering this moment. There was no way she could wear that for any photo shoot, or album cover, or anything else where people could see her in it. This dress was meant for his eyes only.

  “Now what?” she asked as he started to dress.

  Will buttoned his jeans and tugged his T-shirt over his head. “Do you want to talk about it?”

  Oh, please say no. There was nothing worse than fast, frantic sex and then rehashing it all in some awkward conversation that only ended in both of them feeling weird.

  “Talk about it?” she asked. “Honey, I’ll sing about it.”

  Then she laughed and refluffed her hair to fall around her shoulders. She looked like she’d just come from her lover’s bed...and his entire body tightened once again.

  How did she do that to him? On one hand, he was glad she’d laughed and made a joke, but on the other hand, he wanted to peel her back out of that dress.

  “That would be a first,” he told her.

  “What? Nobody has made a song about sex with you before?” she asked with that wide grin. “I find that difficult to believe. Maybe we should try it again later in case I forget just how amazing it was.”

  Again with that bold nature of hers.

  “You think it would be smart to do it again?” he asked.

  Hannah shrugged. “It wasn’t smart to do it the first time, but we did. We both liked it, so why should we stop? We can keep this separate from the working relationship, can’t we?”

  Hell, he didn’t know. He was a guy. He hadn’t thought that far ahead. How could this sexual connection not affect their working relationship? Wouldn’t people pick up on the chemistry between them? What if he touched her or looked at her the wrong way and someone figured out their secret?

  “I can see you need to think this over,” she added. “How about we work on the photo-shoot ideas?”

  Work. Yes. He needed to circle back to something he could control, because as ready as he thought he was for another sexual encounter with Hannah, tonight hadn’t prepared him at all.

  And now she wanted more.

  What the hell should he do with that information?

  * * *

  “How angry was Will yesterday?” Hallie asked.

  Hannah twirled the stem of her empty wineglass and sighed. “Angry? I wouldn’t say that.”

  Turned on, one of the best lovers she’d ever had, a man she couldn’t wait to jump again? That pretty much described him, but even with her twin, Hannah wasn’t ready to announce what had happened.

  “He was a little irked when he thought I was you and that we had played him,” Hallie went on.

  Hallie and Hannah had gone over to their gram’s house for an afternoon lunch and some girl time. Eleanor had stepped inside to grab the dessert and Hannah had been waiting for her sister to bring up the encounter with Will.

  “Since we all have to work together for the good of your career, I really don’t want to piss him off,” Hallie stated. “But he was kind of cute when he was ticked.”

  “Oh, he’s cute,” Hannah agreed.

  And sexy and delicious.

  “His brothers aren’t bad, either,” Hallie added. “How can they not be attractive with all that power and sexiness between them? Will, the mega record producer, Luke, the mysterious bar owner, Cash, the hottest bad boy to hit the music scene in a long time, and Gavin, the quiet powerhouse attorney. And let’s not forget that one interview they all did together a few months ago. Remember how hot they looked?”

  “Who looked hot?”

  Eleanor stepped onto the patio with a tray of strawberry tarts and placed it on the table beneath the umbrella.

  “I love hot men,” she stated as she took a seat next to Hannah.

  “We were talking about the Sutherland brothers,” Hallie explained.

  “Oh, yes.” Eleanor reached for a tart. “If I was younger, you can bet I’d be going after one of those hunks.”

  Hannah couldn’t help but laugh. Her grandmother had been happily married for decades, but the woman wasn’t dead or blind. She was, however, honest and blunt. That must be where Hannah and Hallie had gotten that personality trait.

  “Well, I’m not looking for romance,” Hannah amended. “I’m looking to take my career to the next level.”

  Her gram laughed. “Honey, don’t lie. You can admit you’re attracted to your producer.”

  “Gram, I don’t have time for such nonsense,” Hannah insisted with a laugh she hoped sounded convincing. “I’m pushing forward with new material and I want my fans to love it.”

  “Hallie tells me your first single will be one of Cash’s songs,” Gram stated as she bit into her tart. “I can’t wait to hear it. You two are going to sell out every venue once you start your tour. How many interviews have you scheduled?”

  “I’m leaving that to Hallie,” Hannah said. “I’m not ready for the press quite yet. Cash and I just had our first session together, but we definitely have chemistry.”

  “Oh, chemistry.” Gram seemed to forget the tart as she set it back on the tray and turned to focus on Hannah. “That sounds fun.”

  “You know better,” Hannah told her. “We have music chemistry, nothing more.”

  Cash might be sexy and have swagger and twang and a cocky grin, but none of that turned her on the way Will’s power and strength did.

  And that was before she’d slept with him. Now she couldn’t even zero in on how she felt or what she needed. All she knew was she wanted to be with him again and she wanted more time to explore that lean, hard body of his.

  He’d not gotten back to her on that, though. She’d told him to think about it and he’d hesitated. Probably a wise reaction on his part, but it didn’t keep her from wanting to strip him down and remind him exactly what they’d started...because they weren’t done.

  “Do you like the song Cash wrote?”

  Gram’s question pulled Hannah back to the present. She focused on her beautiful grandmother, who still looked like a superstar even though she wasn’t wearing a stitch of makeup and she’d pulled her dyed blond hair up on top of her head with just a few pins. The woman was stunning and the world loved her. Hannah only hoped to be in her grandmother’s league one day.

  “I love the song,” Hannah said. “I don’t necessarily want it as my first single for my first record with Elite, but we’ve butted heads a little over that and I’m going to have to concede.”

  “That’s what the contracts are for,” Hallie reminded her.

  “Yes, yes, I know.” Hannah waved her hand to dismiss the obvious. “I might have just suggested something else when we met the other day.”

  “You can’t change things this late in the game,” Gram laughed. “Darling, you know that. Your record is due to come out in just a few months.”

  Yeah, that’s what had her stressed. She hadn’t recorded one song and she was crunched for time between working on the tour, getting her new look ready for the photo shoot, and preparing for an awards ceremony coming up...not to mention that her emotions were spiraling out of control...

  Really, the list felt endless and once she ticked off all those boxes, she was sure she’d have something else to stress over.

  All she could do at this point was smile and wave. She knew no other life and she wouldn’t trade hers for anything. Hannah was blessed to be in this position. She hadn’t gotten here only by being Eleanor Banks’s granddaughter. She’d gotten here because she was a damn good singer and worked her ass off just like every other performer who chased the dream.

  “What are you wearing for the awards show?” Hannah asked her gram, trying to dodge the topic of Will and his brothers.

  “I had Dominic design a short green dress with one sleeve and the other shoulder bare. It’s got all the bling and he’s getting some killer shoes and jewelry to make me stand out.”

  As if Eleanor wouldn’t stand out on the stage, anyway.

  “What about Mags’s fundraiser?” Hannah asked. “Are you going?”

  Eleanor rolled her eyes and laughed. “Of course I’m going. The media expects it and you know she’ll have every tabloid there to get plenty of pictures of her and her good deed.”

  The rift between Eleanor and Mags had been in the press for decades. The two cohabitated in the same lakeside community and dodged each other as much as possible. But there were always those times when public appearances called for smiles and air kisses, in which case the two would fake it for the camera.

  “I have a sexy, sparkly, black low-cut suit I was thinking of wearing,” Hannah stated. “Of course, I have that white strapless dress, too.”

  The dress that had apparently been Will’s breaking point. She wouldn’t mind giving him another dose of sexy to remind him how damn good they were together.

  “The white dress you considered for the photo shoot?” Hallie asked.

  Hannah nodded. “I’m thinking about it. I figure everyone will wear black and who knows what Mags will wear.”

  “Something to get attention, no doubt,” Hallie muttered.

  “So we’re all going?” Hannah asked, glancing to her family.

  “Looks like it,” Hallie stated. “The town does need funds raised for the rebuild and Beaumont Bay has all the people who can make a big difference.”

  “And Mags knows that’s what will get people there,” Eleanor stated. “We’d look heartless if we didn’t attend and contribute, though I don’t like how she does charity for the show of it and to fish for compliments.”

  That was another reason the public loved the Banks family. Hannah wasn’t being vain or conceited in admitting that they were well-loved because they didn’t flash around their charity as a show for the cameras. They often donated privately or under an alias. That’s what helping others should be about—just helping, not to get something in return.

  Hannah reached for the bottle of wine, poured just a bit more, and then took a drink.

  “Can we talk about those Sutherland boys again?” Eleanor asked with a twinkle in her eye. “I have a feeling they’re going to be a big influence in the Banks family.”

  Hannah nearly choked on her pinot. There was no doubt in her mind at least one of those Sutherland boys was going to be a big influence because he’d ruined her for any other sexual partner and all they’d had was a quickie on her studio floor.

  She hadn’t been entirely joking when she’d told him she would sing about their encounter—she just had to find the right words. And perhaps another session alone with Will would help inspire her.

  TEN

  “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

  Hannah stood just behind the stage at Cheshire, Luke’s rooftop bar, with Cash at her side. Hallie and Will were both in agreement that this was a smart move, but Hannah still had reservations.

  “Where better to practice that duet you two wanted to use for the tour than right here?” Will asked. “Nobody knows it yet, we can get a good feel for how it will be received, and if you mess anything up, nobody will ever know.”

  All of those were valid points, but her issue was they’d only practiced it twice. Granted they hadn’t done too badly at all, but still. Hannah preferred perfection.

  “They’re all going to love it,” Hallie assured her with a soft smile.

  Hannah rested her hand on her guitar and nodded. “I’m sure they will. It’s a great song.”

  Luke had advertised there would be a special guest and announced tickets on sale a week ago. It was last-minute, but that was the nature of the industry at times. That sense of excited urgency had tickets sold out within minutes because everyone knew if Luke had a special guest, that guest was going to be good. Hannah had actually sung here a couple years ago as a pop-in guest.

  “All right,” she conceded. “If everyone is so confident, then I am, too.”

  Will continued to stare at her with that heavy gaze and she didn’t miss the muscle ticking in his jaw. He was either turned on, irritated, or frustrated...and if he’d felt anything like she had over the last week, since they’d had sex, he was all of the above.

  When she’d gotten ready for the evening, she might have taken a little extra time in choosing the perfect outfit to hopefully grab his attention once again.

  Nothing would be as attention-grabbing as the strapless dress, but this flirty little sundress with a sweetheart neckline and a ruffle hem paired with her cowgirl boots was fun and sexy. Perfect for the vibe of the bar and to get under Will’s skin.

  “Ready for me to introduce you?” Luke asked.

  “Let’s do it,” Cash said.

  Luke glanced to Hannah and she nodded. “I’m ready.”

  Moments later, Luke stepped out onto the stage and hyped up the already rowdy crowd. Hannah loved this part of the business. There was nothing like doing small shows. They were more intimate and reminded her of her roots, when she’d first started singing around town hoping someone would notice her for her voice and style and not because of the Banks name.

  Luke kept chatting, the sound from the mic echoing behind the rooftop stage.

  “Hey.”

  Hannah turned at Will’s low tone.

  “You got this,” he assured her.

  Hannah stared at him, wondering if he always boosted the morale of his artists or if he was comforting her because of what they’d shared. They’d still not discussed that evening—or maybe having a second one—and it was driving her out of her mind.

  But right now she had a crowd to charm and her personal life would have to take a back seat.

  When Luke announced their names, the crowd went absolutely wild.

  “Go kill it,” Will told her.

  He didn’t offer a smile, but that wasn’t Will. He was serious all the time. Even during their intimacy, he’d been so damn serious.

  Hannah shook the thought from her mind and headed onto the stage with Cash. She’d sworn she wouldn’t let her need for Will interfere with her work and that was already turning out to be a lie.

  * * *

  “They’re damn good together,” Luke commented.

  Will couldn’t deny the onstage chemistry between his brother and Hannah. This was exactly what he’d wanted when he’d signed her. He’d known they would sound amazing together.