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about her fellow employees from her.
    Tessa pressed shaking fingers to her mouth. “I know. I’m sorry,” she said weakly. “I never meant to let things…that is, you startled me when you touched…oh, damn it.”
    He looked at her sharply. She was visibly trembling, and something very like fear was in those wide eyes as she stared at him—fear like he’d seen before, during dinner, and he felt a sudden, keen curiosity. No, he had to reassure her, calm her down so she wouldn’t refuse to see him again.
    He took a deep breath to calm the ragged pace of his breathing, and to bring his voice back to normal. “It happened too fast, didn’t it?” he asked quietly.
    Tessa brought herself back under control, too. “I’mnot a tease, but I don’t sleep around either. I don’t believe in casual encounters. We just met today, after all. I didn’t mean to let this happen.”
    â€œI understand.” He managed a smile, a brief, grim smile. “Not that I think there would be anything casual about our encounter. We’d probably blow the needle off the Richter scale.”
    Tessa had thought herself long past the blushing stage, but the color that rose to her cheeks was from excitement, not embarrassment. He was looking at her in a way that almost scorched her, and the painful part of it was that she still wanted him, too, in just the way he was imagining. Her body had reacted instinctively, independent of her mind and common sense, and her flesh had recognized him immediately as a worthy partner.
    â€œTomorrow night. Dinner again.”
    She couldn’t take her eyes from him. “I can’t. Sammy Wallace is trying to teach me how to play chess.”
    Brett remembered overhearing her make the date in the elevator, and his almost photographic memory dredged up an image of Sammy Wallace: thin and blond and no match at all for this sweet little Southern Delilah.
    â€œAll right,” he allowed grimly. “The night after, then. And don’t tell me no.”
    â€œI wasn’t going to.” Never off stride for long, Tessa felt enough like herself to give him her slow-breaking smile that held him breathless as he watched the beginning curve of her lips and waited for the smile to reach full bloom. “I must have more courage than brains.”
    He didn’t feel like smiling, but the twinkle in her eyes invited him to share in the laughter at herself. He didn’t want to laugh; he wanted to take her to bed, andthe coiled tension in his body told him that he’d have to take a cold shower before he could sleep. “I’ll see you Thursday night. Six-thirty?”
    â€œYes, that’s fine.”
    He’d turned to the door, but he paused and glanced back at her, his face grim. “This Sammy Wallace, is he special to you?”
    â€œHe’s a very sweet and very shy man, and he’s also a genius. He’s teaching me chess.” Why was she explaining herself to him? But from the way he was looking at her, he didn’t think that was explanation enough.
    â€œDon’t make any more dates with him, or with anyone else except me.”
    The possessive order made her eyes widen. “Are you going Neanderthal on me?” she asked suspiciously.
    â€œIf I have to. You shouldn’t have kissed me the way you did if you didn’t want me to lay claim.” Very calmly, he caught her chin in his hand and kissed her, slow and hard. “Remember that.”
    When he was gone, Tessa creamed off her makeup and brushed her hair, then pulled on her light nightgown and tumbled into bed. She was a hard sleeper; nothing interfered with her rest, and tonight was no exception. She went immediately to sleep, but her subconscious played the night for her again and again in dreams that didn’t stop with the touch of his hand on her body.
    * * *
    E VAN’S EYES WERE tired and red-rimmed from the work he’d