Brenda Jackson - Millionaire Magnates

“Thank you for the gift. It’s very pretty.”

“You’re welcome,” he said.

A horn honked outside and Lexi glanced at her watch. “That should be my cab.”

“I would’ve taken you,” Lance said.

“I didn’t want to be a bother. Thank you for inviting me to the party today. I really enjoyed the chance to see what kind of a company Brody Oil & Gas is.”

“You’re welcome. Kate said she was going to invite you to attend a meeting with the party-planning staff.”

“Sounds great. I’ll look forward to her call,” Lexi said as she left the house and walked to her cab. She kept talking brightly the entire time and Lance held the door for her as she got into the cab.

She smiled up at him as she said goodbye and he closed the door, standing there watching her be driven away.

He rubbbed the back of his neck, having a bad feeling that his marriage to Lexi was going to be a mistake. And he prided himself on not making any mistakes. He wondered if he should have ended things with her today, but he couldn’t have. There was something vulnerable about Lexi. He needed to talk to Mitch about his feelings for her, as well.

There was more between the two of them than he could guess at. But that was a worry for another day. Right now he had a party to host and several staff members to take care of and that was exactly what he was going to do.

After he found Kate.

He needed to talk to her and see her. She had always been his touchstone at Brody Oil & Gas and he realized he needed her by his side now.

Kate was glad when the sun set. Soon it would be time for the Fourth of July fireworks to go off. They had always been her favourite. She’d spent most of the afternoon and evening trying to avoid Lance.

She felt… well, stupid. She was supposed to be getting over him, not falling deeper in love with him each day.

It was silly, really, but seeing the way he’d reacted to Lexi’s being sick had affected her. For all his rough ways, she knew that Lance was the kind of guy who’d stand by his friends, no matter what.

And there had been a part of her that had realized that he treated Lexi like a friend and nothing more. Much the same way he’d been treating her for all these years until she’d quit.

What Kate needed was another job in another town, but she really couldn’t imagine living anywhere other than south Texas. Unlike some of her friends from high school, she’d never wanted to live anywhere except here.

She liked the warmth and humidity that came with Houston. She liked the cosmopolitan city aspects of the area and the wide-open spaces that were only a few hours’ drive away.

A few kids were running around with sparklers and Kate felt a lump at the back of her throat as she thought about the families.

She’d always wanted one of her own but it had never really seemed like she’d have one and now… well, now she seemed no closer to having kids and a husband than she’d been for a while.

“Hey, girl!” Becca called.

“Becca! I’m so glad you could swing by here. Thanks for coming.” Kate gave her friend a hug and they walked up the tiki-light path toward the viewing area for the fireworks.

“Wouldn’t have missed it for the world. Sorry it took so long to get here.”

“Not a problem,” Kate said. “I think Lance is going to the Texas Cattleman’s Club later for an after-party and I just wanted…”

“A friend,” Becca said. “I get it. So how was everything today?”

“Well, good, I think. I kissed Lance and it was…”

“What?”

“Everything I imagined it would be. But then Lexi had heat exhaustion and he had to go to her.”

Becca slipped her arm through Kate’s. “Was she okay?”

“Yes. But it made me realize I don’t want to have an affair with Lance. I want to be able to have a relationship with him where we can be seen as a couple. Not one where I have to hide.”

“Good for you. Being a mistress isn’t something that would suit you,” Becca said.

“Would it suit you?”

“Hell, no.”

Both women laughed.

“Is there any other man you are interested in?” Becca asked.

“Not really. I think that Marcus likes me.”

Becca laughed again, and Kate relaxed for the first time all day, feeling safe in the presence of her friend. Becca was the one person who she knew loved her no matter what. She didn’t care if Kate was fat or wore ugly clothes—Becca liked her anyway.

“That’s not surprising, you’re a very attractive woman.”

“Yeah, right. You’re my friend, you have to say that,” Kate said. “One thing that was shocking was Lance. He didn’t like me flirting with Marcus.”

“Too bad,” Becca said. “Lance Brody had his chance with you and he let it slip by.”

“Maybe I regret that, Becca.”

“Good,” Becca said. “It’s about time you realized that, Lance.”

Kate flushed with embarrassment as Lance stepped up behind them.

“Yes, it is,” Lance said.

Lance joined the women and they went to the main BBQ area. They chatted while the band played, and Becca got up to dance. Kate glanced at Lance. She felt like she wanted to dance, too, but knew they couldn’t—not while he was engaged to Lexi.

“I have something I want to show you,” Lance said, and led her away from the crowd.

“The perfect spot to watch the fireworks.”

“Where would that be?”

“In my arms.”

She stopped. “Don’t say anything you don’t mean, Lance.”

“I’m not.”

“What about Lexi? How is she, by the way?” Kate asked. What she’d seen of the Senator’s daughter had been brief, but she bore the woman no ill will.

“Fine. She went back to her hotel to get some rest.”

“That’s good,” Kate said. “I can’t do this—have an affair with a man who belongs to another woman.”

Lance cupped her face in his hands. “Today cemented for me the fact that I need you, Kate. I’m sorry I didn’t wake up earlier to the fact that you are an incredible woman.”

Kate steeled her heart against just believing his words. “What changed your mind?”

“Seeing your hot body,” he said.

“That’s not flattering,” she said.

“Yes, it is. And it’s the truth. I’m not going to lie to you and try to make you believe that I had some kind of emotional realization when you said you were going to quit. It was really when I got a look at you… I realized that you had everything I wanted.”

“Lance—”

“What? Would you prefer I made up lies and told you stories? You know I’m not that kind of guy. I’m also not the kind of man who lets something he wants slip through his fingers. And I want you, Kate.”

His raw language got to her as little else could. She’d long wanted Lance and hearing him tell her that he felt the same… it was a powerful aphrodisiac.

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. There was a lot of passion in his kiss and she stopped trying to think this through, stopped trying to make her attraction to Lance go away. The thought that maybe this was the only way to free herself entered her mind.

But she knew she was only placating herself. She wanted Lance Brody and now that he had his arms around her, she wasn’t going to walk away. Not until she had the chance to experience what it was really like to be his woman.

That was the one thing she’d wanted since her very first day at Brody Oil and Gas. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and went up on tiptoe to bring her body more fully into contact with his.

He slid his tongue over hers and she tangled her fingers in the silky hair at the back of his neck. As she ran her fingers through it, she felt everything inside of her clench.