I took a long drink from the glass of ice-cold sparkling water Thad had poured out for me from one of the bottles the table was sharing. This thing between Harley and me, though. Not even with Chris did I feel the force of an attraction like this…. I feel like a nail or something being pulled inexorably by a gigantic magnet, and the harder I fought it, the more powerful the attraction became. It was chemical; it was physical; it was intellectual. And the more we spent time together, it was becoming emotional as well. It was multidimensional; it was undeniable. And when we kissed, the attraction became almost volcanic, earthshaking. As many times as I’ve wet myself since meeting her, without a doubt, these silk thongs I’m wearing are totally ruined, I chuckled to myself, resigned to chucking away the luxurious French lingerie I’d splurged on when I’d been out shopping in the Bund in Shanghai one afternoon, while in between meetings there.

This electricity – we could power Venice Beach with it! Just insanity.

“I’m doomed,” I whispered to myself.

“What was that?” Thad asked. Annie was also looking at me curiously.

I swallowed, and shook my head, “nothing. Just realized something.”

Thad offered to pour another glass of wine for me, but I shook my head. “I’m a little jet-lagged …”

It so happened that the table had fallen quiet at that moment, and, as sometimes happens in large groups, there was a lull in everybody’s conversations and they’d heard what I’d said aloud to Thad and Annie.

“Oh, where’d you fly in from, Aerin?” Jim asked from the far end of the table.

“Hong Kong,” I said. “Was there on business over the past 10 days.”

“Really? What do you do?” Rachel asked, in a friendly manner. She tossed her full head of layered, blonde hair as she turned my way. The bangs fell sexily across her brow, and her sapphire eyes flashed undeniable interest. “Fashion or something involving beauty? Wouldn’t be surprised if so.” Rachel slowly licked her lips as she looked at me.

If I hadn’t met Harley, this was exactly the kind of subtle flirting that would have likely led to something later in the evening with Rachel, if I showed any kind of interest in response to Rachel’s subtle come-on cues.