No One But You

bank as we speak.”
    “Excellent. Thank you. You are the best, Sunni.”
    “Don’t I know it.” She gave her long black hair a toss. “But before you get too excited, we have a new crisis. It’s being handled, however.”
    “You know I never like the word crisis. ” But Mariah was used to it. She reached for the thick folder Sunni had brought. “Tell me all about it. I’m braced and ready.”
    “One of the ovens in the kitchen went on the fritz, though Paullina says she can get by without it. But if the other one that is currently giving her fits dies, we’ll be in trouble.”
    “Oh, boy.” Mariah opened her drawer, pulled out a pen and started signing papers. “Tell me you have an appliance repairman scheduled?”
    “They were booked until Friday, but I sweet-talked ’em and got an appointment for tomorrow morning first thing.”
    “Excellent. Did I tell you how good you are?”
    “Yes, you did.” Sunni beamed. “The diaper drive donations were phenomenal. Your friend’s check took us way over the top.”
    “I knew you were going to bring him up. Again.” Mariah signed with a flourish and laid the letter facedown on her desk. “Be careful. I’ve instituted a ban on his name at home, and I can do it here.”
    “Touchy, are we?” Sunni laughed, bounding to her feet. “Do you think I hit a nerve?”
    “Not at all.” Her denial skills were top-notch. She could compete with the best…and win. She signed again and flipped to the next letter.
    “Then you might not be happy with me.” Sunni looked unrepentant.
    “That’s never a good sign.” Mariah had a feeling, one very bad, very uncomfortable feeling, that whatever Sunni had done involved Wyatt Royce.
    “I looked up Flagstone Properties in the Yellow Pages and gave your friend a call.”
    “He’s not my friend,” she corrected, not looking up from her work. Sign, flip, and don’t think about Wyatt.
    “Then what is he?”
    “More like my nemesis.”
    “Hilarious.” Sunni laughed. “Not from where I was standing. So, that was quite a check he wrote. I wanted to thank him, since that’s my job. You know, for our biggest donors, extend a personal touch.”
    “Sure, since that is in your job description.”
    “Yes, you see where I’m going with this. So, I’ve invited some of our newer donors—your friend, er, nemesis, being one of them—to come down to learn more about our shelter. But only one has taken me up on it so far—“
    “Don’t tell me—“
    “—and here he is.” Sunni turned, smiling brightly toward the doorway.
    Mariah could see him plainly through the walls of glass that separated her workspace from the main office. A tall man in an Armani suit stood calmly in the middle of chaos. Phones rang, printers spewed documents and the copy machine hummed, but Wyatt seemed apart from all of it. His bright blue eyes found hers, shrinking the distance between them. She clambered to her feet, dropping her pen, not prepared to see him again.
    “I don’t have time—“
    “I think you do.” Sunni looked pleased with herself as she bounded into the main office. “Mr. Royce. You came, and five minutes early.”
    “I like things punctual.” His baritone rumbled warmly. He looked even more handsome today than he had on Saturday. If that was possible.
    “So does Mariah.” Sunni’s voice dropped, so Mariah couldn’t hear what her coworker said, but little sparkles lit Wyatt’s eyes, and when he smiled, dimples framed his handsome grin.
    “I’m not surprised.” He strode toward her, his thick hair windblown from the spring breeze. His magnetic presence didn’t affect just her. The office gradually quieted and heads turned as people noticed him.
    If her heart gave a little jump, Mariah didn’t have to acknowledge it. She swiped her damp palms discreetly on her skirt and tried to pretend that seeing him like this didn’t rattle her in the slightest. She strode out of her office, forcing a smile and extending her hand. She would treat him like any other important donor. “Wyatt, welcome. I’m surprised you had time in your busy schedule to take Sunni up on her offer.”
    “I have a jam-packed day, but I’ve got to learn to delegate. This is an excellent opportunity to give it a shot.” His hand enclosed hers—larger, stronger, and male.
    She pulled her fingers back gently, ignoring the snap of awareness buzzing through her and the memory of his touch tingling her skin. She simply could not still be