as he shrugged out of his white lab coat. His black golf shirt—hanging the right way off his body—showed off thick, sinewy muscles in his wide back bunching with each smooth motion. Shoulders as broad as they come led to arms that were thick and defined and strong. He possessed a narrow waist and hips. Hunny could see the curve of a healthy bottom leading down to strong thighs and calves she could sense even in his loose-fitting pants. He turned toward her, sensing her presence, and she could see the power in his chest. Just a quick, unconscious contracting of the muscles there that drew her eyes and dried her throat.
Hunny swallowed. She hadn’t seen a body like that in a long, long time. She hadn’t had such a powerful physical reaction to a man in…well, never. The body was perfect, but she hesitated before looking at a face she’d only seen in pictures. However, Hunny had never been a coward. Slowly, her eyes traveled up and up until she absently pressed a hand to her chest.
Huntington didn’t know if she had ever seen someone so delicious looking and so…so… damn. His skin was dark chocolate, smooth, and shining with a young, healthy glow. He had high, proud cheekbones and a straight, firm nose. His jaw was strong and square. His chin was just as adamant. His lips were full and seemed soft and warm and ready to kiss. And his eyes—Good Lord, they had not left her since he came in—his eyes were the deepest brown, black even, and mesmerizing with their almond shape. They were warm eyes that held amusement and intelligence and just a hint of something else that was more than a little intimidating. They were talking to her, and Hunny didn’t know if she was ready for what they were saying. She took a step back. The amusement in those brown orbs kicked up a notch, and Hunny swallowed.
Hunny had to look away for a moment. Her throat was dry and her insides felt like they were all stirred up. She needed to clear her head so she took a deep breath then—pure accident—cast her gaze back his way. His arms crossed over his chest as he leaned back against the counter. He smiled a brief, appraising smile that gave Hunny a glimpse of incredibly straight, white teeth, with the barest hint of a gap between the front two. Goodness, even that was sexy. And, as if that wasn’t enough, the chemist started to speak. His voice was heavy and hot like a caress. It was familiar and… She realized what he’d said and her eyes widened. “Hello, Honeybee.”
She knew immediately why he’d chosen that silly moniker. Her butter-colored skin, sand-colored hair, and light brown eyes were frequently enough commented on. But, only her mother ever called Honeybee. Most people shortened Huntington to Hunny, not Honeybee. She didn’t like the name or the liquid warmth that had pooled inside her at the sound of it rolling off his tongue.
It was going to be pretty damn hard to get through this first meeting if he was going to keep heating her up with those scandalous gazes. And she couldn’t for the life of her figure out why. Why was this gorgeous man so obviously attracted to her? Sure she looked all right enough—she’d have to be slow not to know that—but this guy dated models. Unless it was the chase? Or perhaps he was one of the guys who was just into quantity. Huntington found herself frowning. She was not looking forward to the next couple of days working in close quarters with this coffee-complected Adonis.
For a moment, she considered running. Maybe her best bet would be to leave the laboratory, find Gina, and tell her she could present the work they’d done earlier that day. She would call Arthur and tell him…tell him… Well, she didn’t know what she would tell him. All she knew was, she couldn’t work with Kevin Carter. She had to be realistic. This man was dangerous to every part of her person. He held her career in the balance, and he was making her body go haywire while she needed all of her mental energy to land this troublesome contract.
Quickly, with as much composure as she could muster, she explained, “I’m sorry, were you expecting me?” She pushed out her hand and stepped forward. “I’m—”
“Huntington Lewis, of course.”
“Yes,” Hunny answered nearly embarrassed by the breathy sound of her own voice. “Huntington Lewis.”
“I’ve really been looking forward to meeting you,” he stated, clasping her hand. For a moment, she couldn’t look away from his face. He was so masculine and beautiful… That’s when she realized she should be shaking his hand back.
“Shall we go to my office?”
Huntington nodded. She started toward the door and turned to leave. However, when she hazarded a glance behind her, she found that Adonis—Carter—hadn’t budged. He was still standing by the counter and now he was sporting a full-on, devastating grin with one eyebrow cocked up at her. That couldn’t bode well.
Hunny frowned, and he motioned her toward another door she hadn’t noticed earlier. She changed her direction and went through the door as held it for her.
Once inside, she paused. It was the most sumptuous office she’d ever seen. She’d expected something dark, gray, or black. Something cold and uninviting. Something industrial and manly. She couldn’t have been more surprised. It was bright and cheery with beautiful hardwood flooring—Was that redwood? Wasn’t it endangered or something?—shined to perfection. There were large red, gold, and copper paintings on three walls. There were two over-large sofas, both covered in durable, crisp white canvas with bright yellow leather cushions artfully arranged on them. A polished wood inlay coffee table tied the sitting area together and coordinated with Kevin’s desk. Huge and hulking, it was situated in the corner between two windows. A large flat monitor occupied the center of the desk. Somewhere, there was probably a keyboard and mouse; however, she certainly couldn’t see them. The desk, a beautiful polished wood creation was nearly buried under an uncontested mess.
Kevin Carter went around and sat down. Huntington watched as he started to stack loose papers, pamphlet galleys, and folders together to sit them on the floor behind him. Thankfully, this encounter seemed to be moving toward a less provocative path.
“Drawers,” he said to her almost apologetically. “I wanted a desk with drawers, but this one doesn’t have any. I had to decide which I wanted more.”
Chapter 3
Hunny thought of every description of him she’d read. How many times had she seen him in magazines or in society pages or even heard from Med Sol employees that he was a total hunk? He was exactly what she should have expected. So—logically—she shouldn’t be so overwhelmed by it. Or so curious… But, the Kevin Carter she had interacted with had been so far away from that image.
Absently, she put a hand over her eyes. Kevin turned away to adjust the blinds over his right shoulder against the afternoon sun.
Kevin sheepishly tidied the desk. “Really, I’m not normally this messy. I just need drawers. The designer said he was going to do a couple of rolling file cabinets for me to fit under the desk. They’d match the wood and inlay, of course,” he told her self-consciously.
Trying to avoid staring at his the succulent lip—or the play of the muscles in his arms as he moved, or the charming and humble attempt he made to both explain and tidy his desk—Hunny focused on his hands. Big, broad, manicured hands with strong and deft fingers. Inside, she groaned in agony. Damn. Damn. Damn. She dropped her gaze to the presentation material she held. Safer that way.
“Well,” he startled her with his deep expectant voice. “Where would you like to start?”
Staring him directly in the eye, she and smiled. Then, she took a breath and presented him her work. The tension eased out of her quickly, and she became lost in her presentation. She loved what she did, and her love for it managed to prevent her from staring open-mouthed at the specimen across from her.
Kevin proved to be a very attentive listener. He inserted a question here or there, but mainly sat across from her, seemingly paying rapt attention. Not once did she sense those waves of heat pouring off him again.
“Legal has redlined the contract already,” Kevin told her. “I anticipated that I would like what I saw,” he offered as explanation. “We’ll probably get that back to your folks by tomorrow.”
“Well,