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“Yep. Good thing she finally found me.   In addition to finding each other’s sweet spots, we had a fascinating conversation .”
    Ramon sa nk in to one of the empty chairs in the studio .  “ T his is no good. This woman, this Jhane…”
    “ Zhané ,” Devlin corrected. 
    “However you say it.  She’s got you g oing soft.  You need to get your edge back. ”
    “She said some things that made me question the advice I’ve been giving.  I’m starting to look at things from a new perspective.”
    “ No! ”  Ramon leapt up, nearly knocking the chair on its side .  “Hell no!  Yo u can’t let her do this to us. ”
    “ Us? ”
    “Uh, I mean you,” he backtracked.  
    Devlin c huckled. “ No, you didn’t .  You meant us .”
    “ Okay, us . ”  He sat back down and ran a hand through his head of thick, black hair .  “ You’re my top ranked show, Dev.  You fill a niche.  Men need you.”
    “ Zhané said I need my listeners more than they need me. ”
    “ You do n’t believe that, do you?”
    “ Ma y b e.”  The crazy thing was, the more Devlin thought about it, the more Zhané ’s a r gument had validity. The show had become an outlet for him to vent.  He couldn’t deny he saw a little of himself in each listener who called in.  Perhaps he really was telling them to do all the things he wished he’d done.  Instead of getting back on the horse and trying again, he’d been afraid to show vulnerability.  It occurred to him that maybe he was living vicariously through his listeners.  Zhané was the only one who ’d had the balls to say it to his face.
    “ Well, I need you ,” Ramon said.  “ KLUV needs you.  We ’ve got bills to pay, bro.  So, put this woman out of your mind. ”  
    Devlin rubbed the stubble on his chin.  “ You don’t know how hard I’ve tried.”
    Ramon stood.  “ Try harder ,” he ordered .  “We have a set formula.  Listeners have a certain expectation when they call into this show.  Everything is riding on you.  If you deviate, listeners will drop off, sponsors might pull their ads, and we won’t have any money.”
    Devlin nodded, letting the effects of Ramon’s words sink in. 
    “And w hile you’re at it, ” Ramon added, “ take your own advice:  Don’t Get Got!   It sounds like you’re falling hard for this chick . ”
    Devlin blew out a deep breath.  “I heard you the first time.”
    “Good.”  Ramon clapped him on the back as he prepared to leave.  “ Remember , o ur livelihood is in your hands .”

SEVEN
     
    Zhané tried to concentrate on the PowerPoint presentation displayed on her computer screen.  In less than an hour , she was scheduled to present this proposal to a panel of fifteen employees, which included her direct manager , an important client, and members of the marketing and finance departments.  Under normal circumstances, she could use her superb oratory skills to deliver a flawless presentatio n, but today didn’t qualify as normal.  In fact, no day for the past two weeks could fit into that category.  Ever since she’d found herself trapped in that elevator with Devlin Hart, she hadn’t been able to push the incredibly erotic encounter from h er mind. 
    Random thoughts of the man kept creep ing into her subconscious, pop ping up like a spring-loaded jack-in-the-box when she least expected (or welc omed them).  She had work to do .  Sh e was too busy to waste her time thinking about him.  With a roomful of her peers and managers who would be watching her every move , she needed to bring her ‘A’ game .  She closed her eyes , and willed the words on the screen to embed themselves into her cerebrum. 
    I just need fifteen minutes to think.  I can do this!
    The moment she found some semblance of focus, her secretary, Marji, p eered through Zhané’s open office door.  Her deep blue eyes matched the lapis colored blouse that was fastened at her neck to the top button .   “Sorry to