In each of his mental movies, she’d begun with hesitation and not a little bit of fear. As the scene progressed, he’d toyed with her, teased her into a writhing frenzy of lust and desire. In the end, he imagined her cries of release.

The only way he could get himself to sleep was to vow, quite sincerely, that before he’d said goodbye to Jessica, after this charade had ended, he would have her in his bed. And he would let loose the sensual creature he saw just beyond her cool facade.

Morning had come too quickly, and with it, her departure. After she’d left, he’d gone over his notes. The questions he’d written just the day before no longer felt probing enough. He was after something ephemeral and he wasn’t certain yet what tack to take.

The frustration had mounted until he’d had to escape the suite. He’d gone to the hotel gym and worked himself into exhaustion on the treadmill and then on free weights. He followed his regular routine, except at home his run was by the Central Park Pond, and when he did his weights, he didn’t do as many reps. His muscles still ached, but pleasantly.

Back at the room, he’d showered, dressed and discovered Jessica had returned to the suite. She had been in the bedroom for an hour now, but she would have to come out soon if they were going to be on time. Jessica struck him as someone who would be appalled at tardiness. He thought about having a drink but he wanted to be on his toes to assess the situation at the party. Later, if things went smoothly, he’d indulge in some champagne, but for now, he poured himself a glass of water and settled on the couch.

He didn’t have to wait long. The bedroom door opened, and he stood before he turned. What he saw made him swallow hard. She looked like the woman from his fantasies, all of them, wrapped into one. Her sleeveless gown, a deep scarlet that matched her lips, hugged her bodice, lifting her lush, pale breasts into perfect mounds. After tapering at her waist, the material flowed past her hips to swirl around her feet. He could just see the pointed tip of one shoe, the color an exact match to the dress. Simple, elegant, she was everything beautiful and sinful about a woman. The long curve of her neck, the perfection of her shoulders…“Amazing,” he said, his voice rough and quieter than he’d intended, the word inadequate by a mile.

Her lips curled into a slow smile, and her cheeks turned a fetching pink. “Thank you. You’re pretty amazing yourself.”

He grinned. “This old thing? I wear it to pick apples.”

He was rewarded with a laugh. He liked the way her eyes crinkled when she let go like that. He liked a lot about her.

“Are you ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

He held his arm out for her. “The chariot awaits, my lady.”

“Chariot, my behind. All I want to do is get through tonight with no major disasters.”

“It’s going to be an unqualified success,” he said as she walked up to him. He hadn’t noticed before, but she held a small bag in her right hand, scarlet, to match her shoes, glittering to match the magic of her eyes. “The only problem you’re going to have is that all the other women will be green with envy.”

She touched his arm softly. “I can’t believe you don’t understand women. You’ve certainly mastered the art of flattery.”

“You think that was flattery? Wrong. Just stating the facts, like the research stud I am.”

She laughed again. “Just do me a favor. Keep Owen off my back tonight. Then I’ll call you any kind of stud you want.”

He waggled his eyebrows as he led her to the door. “I’m going to hold you to that.”

“That’s fine, hold me.” Her step faltered. “To it,” she rushed to add.

He didn’t say anything, just enjoyed that he could fluster her. Discretion being the better part of valor, he decided to rescue his maiden from further embarrassment. “Tell me more about Owen. Did he find you?”

Her stride evened as they approached the elevator. “Yes, he did. He laughed a lot, like we were sharing some colossal joke. He asked if you were that gay friend of mine.”

“What did you tell him?”

“That I should have mentioned you before, because things were getting pretty serious, but that I work hard at keeping my private life private.”

“Nice. And his response?”

“I don’t know. I was saved by the bell. Marla called, and I went outside to talk to her.”

“Better and better. But have no fear. Tonight we’ll end his doubts.”

The elevator arrived and she led him inside. A man in a rumpled suit rested against the back of the car and the way he stared at Jessica made Dan want to wash his mind out with soap. Dan positioned himself between Jessica and the lecher, putting his arm around her shoulder as the doors whispered closed.

She looked up at him sharply. “Rehearsing?”

He smiled. “You never know who’ll be on the other side of those doors.”

She didn’t seem convinced, although she didn’t move away. “Anyway, about tonight…”

“Yes?”

“What is it you’re planning? The star attraction tonight is New Dawn. We’re going to have a lot of celebrities and I don’t want any of the focus of the evening to be on me. Us.”

“My only target audience is Owen.”

Her furrowed forehead hadn’t smoothed. “Just how vivid is this demonstration going to be?”

“Don’t worry. It’s going to be great. I may not have gone to college but I do know how to behave among them hoity-toity folks.”

She smiled, and he felt her shoulders relax. “I trust you. I think.”

“You just concentrate on the work,” he said. “I’ll take care of the rest.”

WHEN THEY GOT to the Panorama, the valet opened the limo door, and Jessica stepped onto the pavement, her gaze automatically checking to make sure that the guard ropes held back the gathering paparazzi on either side of the entrance. The bouncers were impeccably dressed in tuxedos, and the klieg lights were sweeping the night sky. All seemed well, and when Dan took her hand to lead her inside, her nerves eased perceptibly. She’d been to lots of events like this-movie premieres, awards shows, restaurant openings, but she’d never been in charge of anything this large before. She took comfort in the strength of her team and the fact that she’d been obsessive in her attention to detail. However, things could still go wrong.

For whatever reason, Dan’s hand made things better. His presence radiated confidence that she was able to tap into. Rationally, she should have been more nervous, not less. God knows he sent her thoughts skidding into the danger zone, but maybe that was the key. A large chunk of her fear was siphoned off into sexual awareness. Sure. It made a world of sense. And at least for tonight, she felt grateful.

Inside, the club looked sensational. Festooned with peach and lavender balloons, custom-made to match the New Dawn colors, She’d been afraid that it would look like a sixteen-year-old’s bedroom, but the sophistication of the flowers, the artwork and the sheer drapes made it seem more like something out of a beautiful dream. The decor worked, and when the dance floor was packed and the music filled the air, the atmosphere would transform into something sensual and steamy, exactly what she was going for.

Marla waved from the bar and headed their way. She looked fantastic in her simple black gown. With her hair pinned back by a diamond clip and the small diamond studs in her ears, she seemed radiant.

“Oh, you’re so gorgeous!” Marla walked a complete circle around them. “Va-va-voom! Both of you.”

“Look who’s talking,” Dan said. “You’re going to have every man in the place begging for a scrap of attention.”

Her cheeks got hot pink and she looked at the floor. “Oh, right.”

Dan lifted her hand. “Hey,” he said very softly.

Marla lifted her gaze, but not her head.

“In a very deserted jungle, deep in Costa Rica, I watched a caterpillar turn into a monarch butterfly. The transformation took my breath away, and when I tried later to tell a friend about the beauty of the butterfly, words failed me. Now all I would have to do is point to you, and he would understand.”