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  Her giggle started small before it spread into a soft chuckle. She sat back, brushed a hand down his cheek. The doubt and fear had fled from her expression, replaced by a softness that melted him. “I do. I don’t know why, but I do.”

  “Well...” He gave a mock sniff and smirk. “Because I’m awesome, you know.”

  Her laugh filled the room and his dreams. He loved the sound, along with the way it teased in her eyes and spread in her smile. The honesty of it blew away every false twinkle and breezy comeback that’d been her standard MO. He didn’t want to lose this.

  “I’m serious, Bailey.” Her smile faltered but didn’t go away. “This has nothing to do with the contract. This is me telling you I want more. Of you. Of us.” He laced his fingers with hers, grounding himself before he jumped. “I’d give you the world, if you let me.”

  His pulse raced in the long moment it took her to respond. She studied him with gentle intent, but he was afraid to read into it.

  “I’m not easy,” she started, rushing on before he could object. “I’m not. I know it. You saw that tonight.” She lowered her eyes, closed them for a beat before she looked to him again. “But you quiet the noise when nothing else does.”

  From Bailey, that was everything. He understood the meaning and swore he’d do everything he could to give her the peace she craved. How could he not, when she brought him the same quiet he’d been running from for so long he’d forgotten why?

  “I’m going to take you home—to my home,” he quickly amended when she tensed. “And we’re going to sleep in, then I’ll make you breakfast and—”

  “That sounds perfect.” She cut off any response with a kiss that stole his breath, lifted his heart and left him so damn happy.

  She’d stopped running, and so had he.

  Epilogue

  The sun glittered over the water and filled the breeze with a freshness that mirrored Bailey’s soul. She curled into Jacob’s hold, resting her head on his chest as she savored the closeness she’d run from in the past.

  The ocean spread out before them on a never-ending glimmer of blue unbroken by rocks or boats. They’d driven down the coast until Jacob had stopped at a random beach. They’d packed a lunch along with a couple of blankets and had simply taken off, destination unknown.

  Her heart filled with the love she’d been so afraid to let in. Now she shivered at the thought of it not being there.

  “Are you cold?” He rubbed a hand over her arm and pulled her closer, kissing the top of her head.

  “No.” Not even close.

  She shifted around to look at him, her heart catching on the love and tenderness he never withheld from her. She drew him in for a kiss, showing him what was still too fragile to speak. They’d been almost inseparable since that night in the Boardroom, and he still had her.

  He’d followed when she’d retreated, not letting her run when it’d been all she’d known. Now she was here, and he was still with her. In so many ways, he knew her better than anyone had ever bothered to try. He’d pushed her in the Boardroom scene, just like she’d hoped, even if it had been different than she’d expected.

  It’d worked. They wouldn’t be here now if he hadn’t.

  The wind kicked a fresh dose of salt and seaweed at them as she deepened the kiss. Jacob was hers now, and she planned to hold on to him for a very, very long time.

  * * * * *

  Life is about power—who has it, who doesn’t.

  Anyone who says otherwise hasn’t spent time in Kennedy Keller’s business-casual two-point-five-inch heels. A woman in a world very much run by men, Kennedy does whatever it takes to keep her power, in the office and outside of it.

  Until she lets her guard down and decides to submit to a man for just one night. He’s everything she doesn’t usually let herself have: sexy, strong...dominant.

  Read on for an excerpt from Strictly Confidential, the next full-length Boardroom novel from Lynda Aicher.

  Matt’s light touch to Kennedy’s arm shocked her still. Awareness vibrated outward from the touch point, both chilling and warming her. She didn’t attempt to hide her annoyance when she looked to him.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, honesty softening his expression and tone. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”

  She studied him, mouth dry. Desire hummed counter chords of want and warning. She should move her arm away from his touch, just like she should end the conversation and leave. Instead, she asked, “What happened?”

  His brows dipped, nostrils flaring in the long moment before he responded. “You make me want things I shouldn’t.”

  She could say the same. “Like?” She wet her lips, distinctly aware of the slow stroke of his thumb on her arm.

  A sound that edged way too close to a growl rumbled past her. She squeezed her legs to hold back the hunger that blazed to life. That had to have been her imagination. The bar noise distorting sound. Right?

  He leaned in, and she turned her head, giving him her ear. A stroke of heated air ghosted over the sensitive skin, sending a wave of goose bumps down her neck. “Like crushing you against the door of my room and finally tasting those tempting lips of yours. To start.”

  Oh...my... “And then?” she whispered, longing reaching out to caress a desire she barely acknowledged. What would it be like to give him what she never relinquished to anyone, ever?

  “And then...” He blew a gentle stream of air over the shell of her ear. “I’d uncover each secret hidden beneath that expensive suit of yours and tease them out until you gave me everything you’re afraid to ask for.”

  Her swallow hitched on the knot that’d formed in her throat. The image he’d just planted in her head uncurled and spread in a tantalizing shift of power. One she’d only entertained in her most secret fantasies but never dared to explore. Not within her circle of influence. Not with someone who could exploit submission as a weakness.

  He eased back, hunger brazenly displayed. Her nipples tightened in a cry of yes. She wanted every drop of the carnal energy radiating off him. Never, not once in her life, had a man affected her like this.

  And she was far from innocent.

  “Why shouldn’t you want that?” she managed to ask when she was certain her voice wouldn’t waver.

  He studied her for a long moment before releasing a slow breath. “I put that part of my life behind me long ago.” He drew his hand away and motioned to the bartender for their tabs.

  She missed his touch almost immediately. Would it burn over her skin, sink into her bones to turn her legs to jelly? Would he release that predatory growl if she ran her hand over his chest?

  “What part?” she asked after she’d yanked her thoughts back to what he’d said. “The sex part?”

  His chuckle held little humor or sound. She saw it more than heard it. He scrubbed a hand over his stubbled jaw, amusement wiping away the darkness that lurked around him. “Yes and no.”

  That intrigued her even more, but she didn’t need his life story to have sex with him.

  “Maybe it’s time to add it back into your life.” She raised a brow. “I hear it’s a really good way to relax.” She made a bad attempt to hold back her smile, failing almost before she tried.

  He shook his head in a slow swivel that countered the smirk growing in stunning increments. It erased the cool reserve and transformed him from dangerous to...gorgeous. The thought of his sexual frustration being unleashed on her turned her interest to instant want.

  “It is, is it?” He paused to sign the tab, sliding hers into his folder before she could object. He flipped the folder closed, the pen tucked inside, and grabbed his tablet before he stood. His hand grazed over her shoulder in a touch that could’ve been accidental but wasn’t.

  She stared up at him, caught in his game despite her attempt to play her own. Her pulse skittered even as she maintained
her calm. She wouldn’t chase, and she was pretty certain he wouldn’t either.

  “Would you care to join me?” he asked.

  “For?” she asked with a smirk of her own, already sliding out of her chair, her briefcase and phone in her hand.

  He turned away without answering, but her grin spread as she followed him from the bar.

  Don’t miss Strictly Confidential by Lynda Aicher.

  Available wherever Carina Press books are sold.

  www.CarinaPress.com

  Copyright © 2018 by Lynda Aicher

  About the Author

  Lynda Aicher is an RWA RITA® Award finalist, RT Reviewers’ Choice Award winner and two-time Golden Flogger Award winner who loves to write emotionally charged romances. Prior to becoming an author, she spent years traveling weekly as a consultant implementing software into global companies until she opted to end her nomadic lifestyle to raise her two children. Now, her imagination is the only limitation on where she can go, and her writing lets her escape from the daily duties of being a mom, wife, chauffeur, scheduler, cook, teacher, cleaner and mediator. You can find her online.

  LyndaAicher.com

  Facebook.com/lyndaaicherauthor

  Twitter.com/lyndaaicher

  Instagram.com/lynda.aicher

  BookBub.com/authors/lynda-aicher

  Also available from Lynda Aicher and Carina Press

  The Boardroom series

  Done Deal (Memo #1)

  After Hours

  Blind Trust

  Signed Over (Memo #2)

  Strictly Confidential

  Free Trade (Memo #3)

  The Wicked Play series

  Bonds of Trust

  Bonds of Need

  Bonds of Desire

  Bonds of Hope

  Bonds of Denial

  Bonds of Courage

  Shattered Bonds

  The Power Play series

  Game Play

  Back in Play

  Penalty Play

  Also available by Lynda Aicher

  The Harder He Falls

  The Deeper He Hurts

  The Farther He Runs

  Introducing the Carina Press Romance Promise!

  The Carina Press team all have one thing in common: we are romance readers with a longtime love of the genre. And we know what readers are looking for in a romance: a guarantee of a happily-ever-after (HEA) or happy-for-now (HFN). With that in mind, we’re initiating the Carina Press Romance Promise. When you see a book tagged with these words in our cover copy/book description, we’re making you, the reader, a very important promise:

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  Want more short and sweet Boardroom Memo’s from Lynda Aicher?

  Check out:

  DONE DEAL (The Boardroom Memo, novella one)

  And don’t miss The Boardroom, a full-length erotic office romance series from Lynda Aicher:

  AFTER HOURS (The Boardroom, book one)

  BLIND TRUST (The Boardroom, book two)

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  ISBN-13: 9781488097102

  Signed Over

  Copyright © 2018 by Lynda Aicher

  All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this ebook on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 22 Adelaide St. West, 40th Floor, Toronto, Ontario M5H 4E3, Canada.

  All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

  This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

  ® and ™ are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and in other countries.

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