Angus paused on the way to the door. “Have fun, lad. It’ll do you good.”


    I snorted. “Call me if you find anything.”


    “Of course.” He departed, too, leaving me alone to finish up the workweek.


    I noted the time on my phone before I speed-dialed my wife.


    “Hi, ace,” she answered, her voice light and bright. “Can’t stop thinking about me, can you?”


    “Tell me you were thinking about me.”


    “Always.”


    I remembered her as she’d been last night, lying prone on the bed with her heels kicked up behind her. She had watched me pack with her chin propped on her hands, commenting occasionally on my choices. She’d noted that I didn’t pack either the graphite gray slacks she fantasized about or a black V-neck T-shirt. The deliberate omission was the one thing that made her smile. Otherwise, she had been mostly quiet and moody.


    “You and I are going to ride to the airport together,” I told her. “Alone.”


    “Oh.” She let that sink in. “That’ll be nice.”


    “I’m shooting for more than nice.”


    “Ohhh … ” Her voice lowered, took on the soft huskiness that told me her thoughts had turned to sex. “Got a little transportation fetish yourself ?”


    Warm amusement slid through me, helping to ease the stress brought on by thinking of the days ahead. Eva would let me have her anywhere, but she frequently seduced me while we were en route to somewhere. Having previously been restricted to having sex only in the hotel, she’d rocked my world by inciting me to make love to her in cars and planes, as well as my home and various places of business.


    I would never say no to her. I wasn’t capable of it. When she wanted me, I was ready and more than willing.


    “I have an Eva fetish,” I murmured, turning around something she’d once said to me.


    “Good.” She took a breath. “Is the weekend over yet?”


    I heard Cary say something I couldn’t quite make out. “Soon, angel. I’ll let you go.”


    “Don’t ever let me go, Gideon.” There was a fervency to her words that moved me, betraying how unsettled she was by the weekend ahead. After the separation she’d enforced, it was good to know she wasn’t looking forward to another, even under much happier circumstances.


    “I’ll let you get back to it,” I corrected. “So you can be ready when Raúl comes for you.”


    “Never mind him. I’ll be ready to come for you,” she purred back, leaving me hard and aching as I ended the call.


    Arash entered my office shortly after four, sauntering in with his hands in his pockets and humming a tune. He grinned as he sank into one of the chairs in front of my desk. “You ready for the weekend?”


    “As ready as I’m going to be.” I sat back and drummed my fingers on the armrests of my chair.


    “You’ll be happy to hear that Anne Lucas’s assault complaint is going away.”


    I’d expected as much, but it was still good to have confirmation. “As it should.”


    “I haven’t heard if she’ll be charged with falsely reporting an incident. In the meantime, if she attempts contact with you, Eva, or Cary in any way, I need to know immediately.”


    I nodded absently. “Of course.”


    He studied me. “Where’s your head at right now?”


    My mouth twisted wryly. “I just got off the phone with one of the Vidal Records board members. Christopher is continuing to work on acquiring the capital for a buyout.”


    Arash’s brows shot up. “If he pulls it together, would you consider getting out?”


    “If I only had him to worry about, I would.” Whether Ireland chose to join the family business in the future was still to be seen, but regardless, she had a stake in the success of the company, and Christopher made poor decisions. All of my offers to support him and offer guidance had been rejected. He often refused to listen to Chris as well, apparently assuming his father’s wisdom came in some part from me.


    “What does the board think?”


    “It’s viewed as a family feud and they want me to find a quick, painless resolution.”


    “Is that possible? You’ve never gotten along with your brother.”


    I shook my head. “It’s a nonstarter.”


    I knew Arash couldn’t understand. He had a brother and sister of his own, and his family was extremely tight-knit.


    He sighed. “Sorry, man. That’s tough.”


    In an ideal world, Christopher would be attending my bachelor party weekend. We’d be close. He would be the best man at my wedding …