She took a deep breath and smoothed the wrinkles out of her charcoal-gray pencil skirt. Might as well get this over with.

The zoo was busier than she’d expected. For a moment Allie wondered if she should have been more specific with her instructions, but it didn’t take long to find him. In a sea of strollers and school children, it wasn’t hard to pick the billionaire CEO out of the crowd. He was standing by the seal pool, his back to her, looking every bit the powerful executive. In his navy-blue pinstripe suit, Hudson towered over the toddlers who stretched on tiptoes for a better view.

Her gaze slid over his muscular frame. She knew exactly what it felt like to have that hard body pressed against hers, and every image evoked a memory. Her fingers winding through his unruly hair. Her hands raking over his broad shoulders. Her heels digging into his firm ass.

Snap out of it, Sinclair.

Hudson turned around as she approached. Damn. The view from the front was even more devastating than the rear.

“Hey,” he said, running a hand back through his hair. “Thanks for coming.”

As if she’d had much choice. “I couldn’t risk you showing up in locker rooms all over Chicago.”

“Or just the ones north of a certain street?”

Allie stiffened. How dare he insinuate that she only frequented certain parts of town? She was about to counter his ridiculous claim when one of the gray seals splashed out of the water. Pointing his nose to the clouds, he stretched his mouth open wide and barked at the sky. The sound was deafening as it echoed off the rock formations.

Hudson glanced over his shoulder. “Christ, helluva spot you picked.” Firmly cupping Allie’s elbow, he led her away from the pool and past a vendor selling popcorn out of what appeared to be a small red fire truck. She watched as Hudson surveyed the area before dragging her under a shady tree near the lion exhibit.

“Why are we here?” she asked, stuffing her sunglasses back in her purse.

Hudson smirked as he leaned his hip against the railing and crossed his arms. “You have a fondness for exotic animals?”

She was not amused. Much. “I mean why were you so hell-bent on seeing me?”

“Because you owe me. I know how you like to cut and run, Alessandra. But not this time.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play fucking coy, acting as if nothing happened in my office the other night.” His tone turned sensual. “You were right there with me.”

Allie’s mouth opened on a small gasp. How her traitorous body had responded to his that night was irrelevant. They were in public. Someone could have heard him, for God’s sake. She glanced around nervously and was relieved to find only a squirrel within earshot. “Lower your voice, please.”

His eyes narrowed. “Right, same with all you debutantes. Taking a walk on the wild side is the perfect rebellion against mommy and daddy, just so long as no one finds out about it.” He pushed away from the rail, looming over her at full height. “Does dark and dangerous add to the thrill? Does it turn you on?”

Allie blanched but held her ground. What she’d felt for Hudson all those years ago was real, and her heart had the scars to prove it. She wasn’t about to let him reduce it to nothing more than a rebellious fling. “It was never like that and you know it.”

“Actions speak louder.”

His words were scathing but Allie saw some unknown emotion cross his face. Was it pain? Sorrow? She couldn’t say for sure because as quickly as it appeared, it vanished.

“And you sure as hell didn’t want your parents to know you’d been slumming it with me, did you? You wouldn’t even look me in the eye that last night on the boat, the same boat where you’d been half-naked under me the night before.”

His words were like a cold, hard look in the mirror. The reflection staring back at her might have only been seventeen, but it didn’t excuse the way she’d acted. Hudson was right; it was shameful the way she’d ignored him that night. It was something she had always regretted.

“Instead you latched on to some pansy-ass bastard.” Hudson let out a harsh laugh. “Way to shrivel a guy’s balls right up.”

Latched on? Allie had no idea what he meant.

High-pitched squeals surrounded them as a field trip of preschoolers was suddenly everywhere. The children pushed and shoved each other out of the way as they vied for a better view of the lions, leaning over the railing and roaring at the top of their lungs.

“Fuck, are we the only people here over three-feet tall?” Hudson stalked away from the exhibit.

“Who are you talking about?” she asked, struggling to catch up to him in her three-inch heels.

Eyes forward, he never broke stride. “The prep in the summer whites. Hell, the guy looked like he was afraid he’d wrinkle. Your parents must have been so proud.”

Allie reached for him. “Hudson, stop.” His gaze darted to where she’d grabbed his arm and she withdrew her hand. “I wasn’t with that boy. He was the son of my dad’s friend, not my date.” She swallowed, shoring up the courage to offer an apology that was ten years too late. “But yes, I was horrible to you that night. I panicked, and I’m sorry.”

He threw it right back in her face. “And in my office, more panicking?”

“No.”

Hudson stared at her. Allie knew he was waiting for her to continue, to offer some sort of explanation, but she had no idea what had come over her in his office that night. How the hell was she supposed to explain it to him? Silence stretched between them until Hudson offered up a theory of his own.

“I see. So you make a habit of sliding underneath donors? Sharing is caring and all that. Hell of a motto, Alessandra. No wonder the project is ahead of schedule.”

Tears stung her eyes and she bit down on the inside of her cheek.

Don’t you dare let him see you cry.

“You’re right. A lot has changed in ten years. You’ve turned into a bitter asshole. Good-bye, Hudson.”

She made it all the way to the cab before the first tear fell.

Chapter Eight

Allie watched as Harper poked at her bowl of field greens. Rosebud had some of the best salads in the Loop, but the sight and smell of the gnocchi, ravioli, and cavatelli being served to the other tables always put Harper in a foul mood. Not to mention the fresh bread. When the man next to them dredged a slice through olive oil and cheese, Allie half expected her to reach over and grab it out of his hand.

“I don’t understand,” Harper said, turning away from the Italian feast one table over. “I eat rabbit food five days a week and barely lose a pound. Then one margarita and Bam! My thighs grow three inches.”

Allie fought back a laugh. “It might have more to do with the chips and salsa.”

“Mmm, I would kill for a basket of chips with a side of guac right now.” She was practically salivating. “Want to hit Blue Agave tonight?”

As much as Allie would have loved a night out at their favorite Mexican restaurant, the list of things she needed to get done was as long as her arm. Her mom was all over her about wedding plans and her projects at work were piling up faster than she could get to them. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t seem to concentrate on much of anything. For the past few weeks she’d been in a fog, speaking and nodding at appropriate times, but never fully there. Harper had even caught her staring out the window, daydreaming. Twice!

It was all his fault. She’d been completely distracted ever since the night Hudson Chase strolled out of her past and into her life, turning the world as she knew it upside down. Until that night everything had been so clear, so black and white. She knew exactly who she was: Alessandra Sinclair, heir to the Ingram Media empire, director of fund-raising at Better Start, and fiancée of Julian Laurent, the man poised to take the reins of her family’s company.