Lauren (Silicon Valley Billionaires 1)

“It is pretty nice,” I admitted.

“Nice is good, remember? Your sister said you should keep practicing on me.”

“Ha-ha. I know I’m not very good at it.”

“Practice makes perfect. You’re smiling and you’re having wine. That’s a good place to start, especially after a rough week.”

“It has been a rough week…I think that’s why the wine seems like such a good idea. It’s been a lot to deal with.”

“It’s definitely been a lot. For the record, I think you’ve handled it well. You’re very brave.”

My nerves were getting the better of me again. “Well, I came out here to your bachelor lair, so I guess I am.” I took another sip of wine. He was driving me to drink after all.

He put out a tray with olives, cheese, and bread. It looked delicious, but my appetite for food had disappeared. Gabe came around the island and stood in front of me. My heart started hammering in my chest. I looked at him, searching his eyes for a sign of what he wanted…to see if he wanted what I wanted.

But I didn’t actually know what I wanted, or I couldn’t articulate it. There was just a wild desire, coupled with a fear of the unknown, coursing through me.

He leaned over me, his fingertips trailing down my cheek, his brown eyes not leaving mine. I took one last shaky breath before he kissed me, slowly, on the lips. Shockwaves rippled through me when his lips touched mine. It was different from last night, underscored by a sensation I’d never felt before—tender, needy, with a dangerous undercurrent lurking beneath the surface. I was going to get swept away by this inevitable force of nature I’d stumbled across, this man who had somehow flipped the switch and finally ignited my hormones.

He parted my lips with his, his tongue entering my mouth carefully. I didn’t even know what the hell I was doing, but I kissed him back. I stood up and wrapped my arms around him, breathing hard, unsure how I was breathing at all with his mouth on me like that. Our tongues connected, and I pressed my body against his, relishing the feel of him…strong, powerful, and utterly male.

With him aroused and pressed hard against me, I felt as if I’d won something.

His chest heaved as he deepened the kiss, pulling me against him and making my world go fuzzy around the edges. He fisted the back of my hair then groaned, pulling away.

I looked up at him, lips parted, breathing hard.

His eyes were glassy. “We need to stop.”

“Why?” I asked, a little wildly, and he started to laugh.

“So I don’t try to take you right here, right now, on the table. I want to do this right. I had plans.” He caressed my face again, and I felt worried. Had I been going too fast? Had I done something unscripted that was technically wrong?

He must have been able to read the look on my face because he immediately wrapped his arms around me. “I am such a lucky bastard to have you here. You’re perfect, Lauren. Jesus. You are perfect and brilliant and beautiful and sexy. And I want you. Do not doubt it. Not ever.” He leaned down and kissed me again, pulling me closer.

We came up for air, and I looked up at him, something akin to a conscience stirring inside me amidst all the heat. Dynamica was Paragon’s first-ever partner, and here I was, making out with its CEO. “Are we making a mistake by doing this? Are we screwing this up?”

He kissed me lightly. “I don’t think something that feels this good—this inevitable—could be wrong. But I only know what I feel. And that’s that I wanted to have you from the moment I laid eyes on you. I’ve wanted to have you, and I’ve wanted to protect you.”

He stopped and laughed for a second. “I think it’s some sort of biological urge kicking in, I swear. I wanted to crack Clive Warren’s skull in that night I saw you with him. Like I was some sort of caveman.”

“You should have done it.”

He smiled at me. “I’m still going to do it.”

I smiled back, but since we’d stopped kissing, I felt restless. Should I go? Should I kiss him again?

This was another example of the downside of being myopic about your career. I had no idea what happened next.

Gabe poured us both more wine. “Why don’t I show you my room?”

I laughed a little, reddening, all thoughts about leaving going up in a cloud of smoke. “Is that a line?”

He held out his arm to me. “It’s most certainly a line. Is it working?”

I accepted his arm and walked with him. “So far, so good.”

We wandered down a hall to another part of the house, separated by a sliding barn door. He opened it to reveal the master bedroom, which had an enormous four-poster bed, Oriental rug, and a roaring fire.