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the report they were discussing. Or rather the report he was looking at. She wasn’t able to think of anything except how damn close he was and every cell in her body demanded she touch him, to be touched by him.
    “ Gabrielle?”
    She tipped her head toward him and gasped when she realized a slight lift of her chin would bring them lip to lip.
    “ Huh?” she asked in a pathetic, dreamy whisper.
    His eyes twinkled and a wide smile spread to his perfect lips. “I said … we need to get the report over to Vincent as soon as possible.”
    “ Of course, Nikolai.”
    He tensed and she felt his sharp intake of breath suck past her cheek. She stiffened and cringed, wishing like hell there was a way to go back and redo the last five minutes. Where were Wayne and Garth when you needed them?
    “ I’m sorry. I—”
    His hand moved in slow caresses over her back and his lips were suddenly right at her ear.
    “ Please Gabrielle,” he purred, his accent uncharacteristically prominent, and oh, so very sexy, “call me Nikolai.”
    Those words.
    She blinked. Her mind raced along with her heart. This wasn’t the first time he’d spoken those words. But when…
    “ Wh- what?” She turned to watch him carefully, looking for answers to the how’s and why’s of that phrase from his kissable lips.
    He took a step back as if anticipating her action as she stood. The heart-stopping smile was back.
    “ What?” His innocent act only heightened her suspicions and made him utterly adorable.
    She took a step toward him, leaving nothing but air between them. “What did you just say to me?”
     
     
    There wasn’t a doubt, large or small, in Nikolai’s mind she remembered the hours she’d spent curled in his arms. Her forehead creased, her brows knitted together in confusion. A smile touched his lips as his body surged with a sense of success.
    “ I asked you to call me Nikolai. Is that a problem?”
    Her blue eyes sparkled as she searched his face, his eyes, his body language for some kind of answer to explain away what her mind was telling her.
    Nikolai fought to keep his excitement in check. He forced his face to remain emotionless and hoped she wouldn’t see it in his eyes. Anticipating her glance, he dropped his gaze and watched from under his lashes as she shifted her weight from one delicately high-heeled foot to the other.
    He finally had an ace up his sleeve and tipping his hand now wasn’t something he wanted to do. He would win her heart. With help from the beloved Goddess, he would.
    “ Please, I would like it very much if you called me by my full name.”
    “ Nikolai?”
    “ Yes.” He smiled. “My mother used to call me Niko, but—”
    “ Nikolai.” Each syllable caressed her tongue as she said his name slowly, reverently.
    “ I like that … very much.” He was barely able to speak as he processed just how very much he liked it. He’d never experienced pleasure like that one word being spoken from her perfect lips.
    “ And I—” She paused to bite her lower lip, dropping her face to look at the floor.
    He’d always kept a professional relationship at the office. That seemed to be their problem. He’d never crossed that professional line. He wasn’t going to make that mistake any longer. He slipped his finger under the soft skin of her chin and lifted it gently.
    “ Please tell me what you’re thinking, sweet Gabrielle.”
    Her eyes met his for only a heartbeat before her lids dropped, hiding the blue depths.
    “ Nobody calls me Gabrielle,” she said in a whisper.
    The words struck him like a slap. He took a step back, dropping his hand to his side, feeling like a balloon punctured by a railroad spike. Maybe opening himself up to her, crossing that imaginary line wasn’t such a good idea after all.
    “ I’m sorry.” Disappointment radiated in his voice, and he turned his back to her, fearing his face gave too much away. The sounds of her moving behind him alerted him to her pursuit.
    He’d