No Strings__ - By Janelle Denison Page 0,46
matters.”
His reply was logical and rational, and she couldn’t argue his point. “You’re right.”
He stood up and began gathering the files and papers he’d spread out on his side of the conference table and tucked them into his leather attaché case. “There’s a few things I need to follow up on before we leave the resort tomorrow, but we’re still on for tonight, yes?”
More than anything, she wanted this last night with Aiden before their affair ended and they returned to real life. And she was feeling selfish enough not to want to share him with anyone, or anything. “Instead of attending the farewell gala, how about you come up to my room? We can order room service and have our own private party, just the two of us?”
His gaze heated, matching the slow, wicked smile on his lips as he added his laptop to his bag. “I like that idea. A lot. I’ll come by around seven.”
She honestly couldn’t wait, and she planned to make the most of their final night together. She watched him walk out of the conference room, already planning in her mind how the evening would go.
It wasn’t until she was finished working on her own campaign an hour later that she realized she still had his flash drive with his PowerPoint presentation. She tucked the small device into her briefcase to give to him later, and with the rest of her afternoon free, she decided to take advantage of the complimentary spa package the resort had extended to her when she’d first arrived.
* * *
AIDEN ARRIVED AT Chloe’s room a few minutes before seven. As he stood in front of her closed door, he was struck with the somber realization that tonight was the end of their time together. Tomorrow was Sunday, and after nearly a week at the St. Raphael Resort, they were heading back to Boston and to real life...as colleagues, not lovers.
His gut twisted with a twinge of disappointment, because he knew that reverting back to being just friends and coworkers was going to be incredibly difficult to do—and it wasn’t all about giving up their sexual encounters, though he was definitely going to miss that, too.
No, it had more to do with their comfortable conversations and how quickly and easily he could laugh with her. She made him feel lighter inside than he had in years...and she also made him realize all the things he wanted in his life. Marriage. A family. A wife who shared his same life goals. He wished Chloe could be that woman, but there was no possible way.
As much as he and Chloe clicked, intellectually and physically, they had no future together. Their goals were on the opposite end of the spectrum. She was career-focused and competitive, and while he admired her drive and determination, all that ambition was a sharp reminder of just how far his ex-wife had gone to achieve her own personal success. Though he no longer believed Chloe would betray him like his ex had, their future desires were incompatible and out of sync.
He exhaled a deep breath and knocked on the door. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t keep his past out of the equation when looking at his future. So, he’d made sure his heart and emotions were kept out of this affair. It didn’t matter that the resident matchmaker had deemed them soul mates, or that a silly flower had backed up Hattie’s claim, because he was pragmatic and realistic enough to know that compatibility went much deeper than just sexual chemistry.
Those thoughts quickly fled his mind as the door swung open and Chloe filled the frame, happy to see him, a soft pink flush on her cheeks and the green glow in her hazel eyes outshining the gold and brown. Her peach-colored halter-style dress exposed a lot of smooth, sun-kissed skin that tempted him to touch and caress. She’d left her hair down, falling around her shoulders in those soft, careless waves that told him she’d let her hair dry naturally, instead of blow-drying the silky strands straight. She wore minimal makeup, just a sweep of black on her lashes and a glossy shine on her lips, and he loved this “au natural” look on her.
“I hope you’re hungry,” she said with a welcoming smile.
Her comment, rife with unintentional innuendo, fed into the need for her that seemed to suddenly consume Aiden. “I’m famished,” he murmured as he stepped into her room and kicked the