She pressed her lips together. "JP Jesse. A free agent wide receiver."
Dominic frowned. "Tom is setting you up to fail."
She couldn't let Dominic know that she'd thought the very same thing. "JP is undervalued."
"He's undisciplined."
"He's uncultivated," she countered.
"He's a troublemaker."
He stood up and walked to the window. "You're smart, Melissa," he said, "and I've been consistently impressed with the work you've done for the agency."
"But?"
He rubbed his smooth chin, carefully weighing his words. "You're green. There's no way you can handle a player like JP the first time out. I'm offering you my help." His eyes bored a hole into her. "Take it."
She stared at him, the way the sunlight surrounded him like a halo. As much as she wanted to deny his statements, he was right. The odds of her failing were enormous. Especially if her first—and only—client was a playboy with a tenuous future. And yet, she couldn't accept Dominic's offer. Not when he was switching agents for all the wrong reasons.
"I told you this morning and I'll tell you again— I'm not angry," she said in a soft voice. "So please don't feel guilty anymore."
He took a step toward her. "I owe you."
She shook her head. "No, Dominic. Not like this."
He moved closer and she fought the urge to back up. She couldn't think straight when he was near.
Not budging an inch, he said, "Working together is the perfect solution."
"You just said it yourself," she insisted. "I'm green. Why would you put your career in the hands of someone you think can't handle it?"
He closed the distance between them, pulling her hard against him, just as he had in the photo studio. Then his mouth was on hers and he was kissing her like he did in all her dreams, as if he were dying of thirst and she was the only water for miles. At last he pulled away.
"One more time," he murmured as she tried to catch her breath. "You're an amazing woman, Melissa. You can handle anything thrown your way. Even me."
She pressed her fingertips to her mouth. Was that why he'd just kissed her? To see how she'd handle it? The past twenty-four hours had been the most confusing of her life. She could barely think straight now that he'd kissed her again, and she knew that she shouldn't make such a big decision so quickly anyway.
She edged toward the door, picking up JP's folder. "I need some time to think about it."
She could have sworn he was about to smile, that he thought he'd already won. Instead he said, "Fair enough. I'll pick you up at seven."
"What are you talking about?"
Again he closed the distance between them. "I'm taking you to dinner tonight. And we're going to talk. About your career." His eyes fell to her lips, still buzzing from his kiss and utterly desperate lor another. His gaze returned to her eyes. "And mine."
Melissa felt dazed. Was this supposed to be a date? Or was this purely business?
Or, worst of all, was it round two of his apology for impulsively having sex with her?
It took every mind game Dominic knew to shake off the vision of Melissa in that tight purple sweater. Like one of Pavlov's dogs, he'd been salivating at the thought of tonguing her ni**les again, of sucking her sweet flesh into his mouth. Jesus. He needed to get a grip.
He'd cornered her to make amends, not to f**k her senseless in the McKnight Agency boardroom. He still couldn't believe how calm she'd been this morning. She hadn't even wanted him to apologize for his out-of-line behavior. But his gut had told him he'd screwed up, and he had to fix it. Even if she didn't want him to.
Then he'd lost control again and kissed her. Shit, he hadn't been able to think straight, hadn't been able to concentrate on anything but her luscious curves and her sweet mouth. But the too-short kiss hadn't gotten her out of his system. Instead, he wanted her more than ever, wanted to continue where that kiss had left off.
For twenty years, he'd honed his control on and off the football field. Now was no time to lose it. It was time to put his mistakes behind him and move forward, just like he'd always done.
Bypassing Angie with a kiss on her cheek, he knocked once before walking into Tom's office. As they shook hands and said hello, Dominic studied the successful businessman. He would go ballistic if he found out his daughter was sleeping with a man he trusted. Any man would.