Josie shouted with surprise. Her boyfriendyes, her /boyfriend/stood in the kitchen doorway wearing nothing but a huge smile and a barbecue apron sporting the words DINNER IS READY WHEN THE SMOKE ALARM GOES OFF.

Her hand went to her mouth. She laughed. A few seconds later, she was in tears.

Did I scare you? Rick came to her and put his bare arms around her.

Maybe you dont like this kind of surprise. I should have Oh, my God! Josie pointed to the wall over the fireplace. What is that doing there?

We can move it wherever youd like.

She clutched her chest.

I hope I didnt scare you.

Josie threw herself against him, planting a big kiss right on his beautiful mouth. He didnt scare her. He astounded her. This surprise was thoughtful, fun, and so damn romantic it made her cry.

She pulled away from his embrace. Nobody has ever done something this wonderful for me, she said, trying her best to stop blubbering. Her eyes moved from the painting to the table set with flowers, candles, and a tablecloth. She cried harder.

Ah, Josie. Rick hugged her again and kissed the top of her head. This is nothing. Its the kind of thing you should get on a regular basis.

Josie shook her head and rubbed her sloppy tears all over the front of his apron. Nobodys ever gone to this much trouble for me. She looked up at him, his gorgeous green eyes filled with concern. Nobodys ever set the table like this. Nobody has ever cooked naked for me!

I am wearing an apron.

And the paintingRick, I cant accept that! She shook her head. Its too much. Its too valuable.

Rick frowned. Do you love it?

Yes!

Then it belongs here. It belongs with you.

Josie just stared for a moment, unable to think. Rick, I dont know what to say. Thank you. Thank you for all of it. Im blown away. And I love you. She kissed him again, but only briefly. Is something burning?

Oh, hell, Rick said, racing back to the kitchen, his hard and thoroughly naked man-ass on display for her viewing pleasure.

Were good! Rick called out. The butter just got a little brown!

Josie felt her dogs stare, and she looked down at Genghis. I know, she whispered. Im in shock, too. If you had opposable thumbs Id ask you to pinch me.

Rick came back into the living room, wide-eyed. Do you realize you just said you loved me?

After a moment of panic, Josie figured there was no point in denying it.

I did. And I do. But it wasnt the first time I told you.

No?

Josie giggled. In her wildest imaginationwhich would put anyone elses wild imagination to shameshed never dreamed that this life-changing moment would take place with a naked man in an apron. Then again, shed never imagined that the most important moment of her life would feel so effortless, so normal.

She went to Rick and reached for one of his hands. I told you I loved you when we were on your motorcycle yesterday, out in the vineyards.

Rick frowned. I didnt hear you.

I whispered it into your back, she said with a shy smile.

That would explain why I didnt hear you.

I whispered it because its what I was feeling at that momentI just had to say it or I would explode. But I didnt think you were ready to hear it.

Rick tilted his head and looked down on her, wonder on his face. But I am ready, Josie.

You are?

Yeah. Can you say it again?

She laughed. I love you, Rick. Youve changed everything, instantly, and Im so glad we found each other. I really love you.

He reached up and tenderly stroked her cheek. I started to fall in love with you the second you and Genghis walked into the grooming salon.

Seriously?

Oh, yes.

And how do you feel about me now?

Rick chuckled, then leaned down and kissed the tip of her nose. I adore you, Josephine. Everything is more beautiful in your company. I marvel at how perceptive you are and how you make me laugh. I trust you completely, and thats coming from a man who hasnt trusted anyone but Teeny in a long, long time.

Josie nodded.

I cant get enough of the way your body feels in my hands and how you smell and look and taste. I love you, and it gets bigger and stronger every day we spend together.

It really does, she said.

Ricks gaze fell to her lips. He lowered his head and put his mouth on hers. She closed her eyes and let the sensation run hot through her center, amazed at how their kisses kept advancing to the next level, how with each new secret they shared or every additional layer they peeled away, their kisses grew deeper and wiser. That particular kiss was the bombhot, sweet, grateful, hungry, hopeful. The beef Stroganoff would have to be refrigerated.

There was a pounding at her door. Genghis barked.

Josie pulled away, frowning, annoyed that someone had the nerve to disrupt her blissful surrender.

Are you expecting anyone? Rick asked.

No. Were you?

Rick laughed, looking down at his attire, or lack thereof. Only you, dear.

Josie went to the door and got up on her tiptoes to look out the peephole. Oh, /shit,/ she hissed, slamming her eyes shut and doubling over in distress. After taking a second to calm herself, she looked at Rick and said, My whole freaking family is here. You should probably put on some pants.

When was the last time Gwen Anders had felt desperate?

Never.

Therefore, Gwen had not prepared in advance for the day she found herself in desperate need of male attention, for someone to recognize her intellectual complexity, her shrewd approach to finance, and her impossibly firm buttocks.

Regardless of her lack of preparation, that was where Gwen was that Monday evening, in the lobby bar of the St. Regis Hotel. Shed been telling herself that she just needed to get out, do some top-shelf people-watching, munch on a few wasabi peas, and sip on a decently prepared cocktail or two while contemplating her next move. In reality, she was just plain desperate for someone to tell her she was the most beautiful woman theyd ever seen, which made her no better than the dozen other well-dressed thirty-somethings alone or in a gaggle of girls, their perfectly made-up eyes darting around the room, the fear barely concealed in each playful flash of seduction. Their prey: the visiting millionaires returning from a day of dealmaking.

After a half hour of this unpleasantness, Gwen was ready to leave. Yes, shed recently been rejected by the man of her choice, tossed aside for a chunky obituary writer named /Josephine,/ of all things, as shed discovered while in Ricks office that morning. (The man shouldnt leave his background checks open on his desk like that.) And yes, due to that humiliation, shed been forced to resign her position. But she was still Gwen Anders. She would rise above it all.

She took a last sip of her ginger-pomegranate cosmo and prepared to leave. The desperation in that bar had a foul smell to it, clashing terribly with her Acqua di Parma perfume. She had just reached for her purse when she saw him.

Tall. Mediterranean. Black hair combed back and long at the collar.

Patrician nose. Wide mouth. No suit for this manhe was in jeans and a wrinkled linen jacket over a wrinkled cotton button-down. He moved with the grace of a man who was in full command of himself and his world, despite the fact that he looked like hed just spent a couple days on a plane, in coach.

In an instant, Gwen no longer felt desperate. She felt alive. When the man casually turned her way she knew hed already seen her, possibly even selected her before hed entered the hotel lobby. He seemed like a man who carefully calculated all of his chance encounters.

She couldnt help itthe left corner of her mouth curled and her eyelids grew heavy.

He headed right toward her. He sat down without an invitation. And with an accent thicker than a tipsy Antonio Banderas, he said, You are an exquisitely beautiful woman.