No Strings__ - By Janelle Denison Page 0,51

entire night in the other’s bed...and now he understood why. Because sharing this kind of intimacy was a dangerous thing and made their relationship feel real, when their affair was only supposed to be a temporary fling.

But last night he hadn’t been able to get enough of Chloe, and every time he started to go, she would lure him right back in with a seductive kiss, a whispered promise or an erotic caress...until they were both too exhausted to do anything but fall into a deep, sated sleep together.

Which brought him back around to his current predicament. He couldn’t resist Chloe, that much was clear. But his desire for her went beyond the physical. Everything about her felt good and right, in ways he never would have imagined. She exhilarated him, challenged him in ways he enjoyed, and made him want to open himself up to the possibility of more. With her. Despite her drive and ambition and need to climb the corporate ladder.

Because he was falling in love with her.

The thought terrified him, and it was that tangle of fear currently tightening his chest that had him itching to get out while the getting was still good.

He couldn’t stay. He had to leave. Not just Chloe, but the island, too. There were so many conflicting feelings battling within him, and he wasn’t ready to face Chloe until he sorted things out in his own head. And the only way he could do that was to put distance between them. He had decisions he needed to make, and none of them were easy. But he just couldn’t think straight when he was around her.

Ignoring the dull ache in his chest, he eased away from the delicious warmth of her body. She let out a soft sigh and snuggled into the warm spot he’d left behind, giving him the opportunity to move off the bed. Careful not to awaken her, he quietly got dressed, knowing he was taking the coward’s way out, but unable to change what he needed to do...for his own self-preservation.

They were supposed to leave the island today, anyways. He was just taking the very early morning flight out, instead of waiting around for the late afternoon one they’d initially booked. He had everything he needed for his campaign, so there was no reason to stay, and he’d be long gone before she realized what he’d done.

Finding the standard hotel notepad and pen on her nightstand, he wrote her a quick note letting her know he’d flown out early, and that he’d see her back in the office on Monday morning. Then, with one last longing look at her, he silently slipped out of her room and hoped like hell he wasn’t walking away from the best thing that had ever happened to him.

* * *

CHLOE WASN’T SURPRISED to wake up alone, but as she reread the vague, impersonal note that Aiden had left for her to find, a huge knot of hurt and disappointment twisted inside her stomach. He’d decided to leave the island earlier than their scheduled afternoon flight, and considering it was after eight in the morning, he was likely already gone.

She set the piece of paper back on the nightstand and dragged her fingers through her disheveled hair, reminding herself that no promises had been made between them other than to indulge in a hot affair during their time at the resort.

And today definitely marked the end, no matter how much she wished otherwise.

A foolish part of her had hoped that after last night’s discussion about his ex-wife, she and Aiden had forged an intimate bond that went deeper than just appeasing their lust for one another. And the way he’d made love to her after sharing something so painful, there had been no denying the emotion and need pouring from him.

Last night had been so different from all the other times they’d been together. When she finally fell asleep, curled up against Aiden, safe and secure in his arms, she’d truly believed that something significant had changed between them. That despite their differences and the standing no dating policy at the firm, that they could quietly continue seeing each other outside of work and find out if what they’d started here on the island translated into a real-world relationship.

But she realized it was all wishful thinking on her part. If Aiden’s actions were any indication, he had no desire to continue anything with her...and that realization hurt more than she wanted to admit.

She