She frowned and spoke in her prim, no-nonsense tone. “Let’s go over the basic rules first, shall we? You must be honest with me regarding all my questions. I’m here to help you and match up the woman best suited to your needs. You waste both of our time by misleading me. There is no embarrassment or judgment. I’ve heard many requests and have never gotten flustered, no matter what my client tells me.”

“Never?”

She tapped the gold-embossed pen against her pad. “Never.”

“Interesting.”

Kate ignored his murmur and forged on. “There’s a certain level of trust and respect we need to work together. If you feel that I’m not properly listening to your wishes, we’ll discuss the matter openly. Communication is key. I may also ask you to do things outside your comfort zone. Again, we’ll talk about your reservations, but I may ask you to try something you’d normally not be comfortable with. Sometimes, people get stuck in a certain way of socializing, and pushing past those boundaries ends up being a breakthrough. This is an organic process to satisfy the different needs of your life along with your heart.”

Kate uncapped her water bottle and took a sip. So far, so good. He scratched his head in serious thought and seemed to be considering her words carefully. “Have you ever slept with one of your clients?”

The water got stuck in her throat and went down the wrong pipe. She choked on the bubble and fought for breath. He sat patiently through her coughing fit, grabbed a tissue from the box on the table, and handed it to her. She pressed it to her streaming eyes. “Why would you ask me such a question?”

His shoulders lifted. “Well, you’re digging into my life. I figured if we’re going to trust one another, I should know something about you. Makes sense. You’re a type of counselor, and tight bonds form. Just wanted to know.”

“I don’t sleep with my clients. Ever.”

“Is that a company policy or your own personal code?”

Kate stomped down on her growing annoyance. He was like a predator, circling his prey and planning out the best route to block any escape. “Both. Once I sign you as a client, there’s a layer of trust that can’t be broken. I wouldn’t be able to give you what you need if I had personal intentions. And of course, if it didn’t work between us, Kinnections could be at stake. We won’t risk it.”

“Pity.”

She shifted her weight and studied him. Oh yeah, he knew exactly what he was doing. Throwing her off. Making her uncomfortable. Bringing sex into the picture so he could neatly take the reins and guide the conversation the way he wished. A gleeful cackle rose in her chest, but she managed to squash it in time. He had no idea how good she was at her job. “I see you don’t have the same code with your own clients.”

“Pardon?”

Kate pretended surprise. “Your clients. You are a divorce lawyer, and I’m sure you’re well versed in the bonding that goes on when counseling a brokenhearted, angry woman. Do you contain it to just sleeping with her, or have you ever instituted a longer-term relationship?”

He jerked in his seat. “I’d never sleep with a client.”

“Oh. Is that a company policy or your own personal code?”

His gaze narrowed at her sweetly posed question. “Nice volley.”

“Thank you. Now, instead of trading barbs for the rest of the hour, let’s go over some of the basics of what you need.” She scanned the stack of papers, though she’d already memorized most of his answers. “Intelligence is key. A woman who can hold her own with conversation. Someone formally educated. Master’s or bachelor’s degree?”

“Master’s preferred.”

She checked off the box. “Business background, or are you open to the creative professions?”

He winced. “God, no artists or writers. Well, literary writers would be acceptable. No fiction. Especially not those romance novels.”

Another check. “Family background also seems important to you. Let’s discuss a bit more. Are you looking for a woman whose parents are still together? Or are you looking to avoid alcoholism, drug abuse, or disease within the family genes?”

He shifted his weight. The arrogant cloud misted away, and she caught the first signs of discomfort. “I’m up for partner at my law firm. I’d like a woman who has no skeletons in her closet or family members who could pose a problem. We’ll be attending formal business dinners, functions, and most of the partners are conservative.”

“Understood.” She scrawled her pen over the page. “Personality is the other aspect that’s quite important. Do you enjoy a woman who’s funny? Shy? Assertive? Colorful? Tell me a bit about your past affairs or relationships.”

“I prefer a woman who is conservative in public. Loyalty is key. I dislike flirty women who crave attention. I want her to be strong within herself, but follow my lead when I need it.”

“When do you need it?”

“Excuse me?”

Kate looked up from her papers. “When do you need her to follow? Around your business partners? Your family? In public? Or in the bedroom?”

The air charged around her, but she ignored it. Talking about personal preferences in sex was a ticking bomb, but experience had taught her a few lessons. The more businesslike and unshocked she was, her clients ended up relaxing into the topic and usually confessed their innermost wants. “You want to know how I like my sex?”

“Yes, I do. Sex is one of the most important aspects in a relationship. If you want shy and virginal, tell me. If you like BDSM and enjoy tying your partners up, it’s a good item for me to note, because I won’t set you up with a woman who may go screaming for the door. I make no judgments or opinions. Just tell me what you want.”

Why was her heart pounding so loudly? Her throat constricted, and her muscles tightened anticipating his response. Wow, she’d been physically attracted to some of her clients but had never experienced such a primitive pull straight from her gut. She kept her gaze averted so he wouldn’t catch her female weakness and exploit it.

His laugh exploded through the room. The dark, husky tones stroked her like fingers plunging between her thighs and urging her to explode. Kate concentrated on breathing slowly and went back to the puppies in the shelter. “You want to talk about sex, huh? Okay. Let’s talk about sex.” She pretended to be busy scribbling so she wouldn’t have to look up. “I enjoy pleasure. I enjoy sex. I prefer a woman who asks me for what she wants so I can give it to her exactly the way she likes it, because one of the sweetest sounds in life is a woman screaming my name.” His voice lowered, whisper soft and wicked hot. “I’m not into BDSM, but I’ve used blindfolds, scarves, and toys in pursuit of the ultimate experience. I don’t like to be tied up but prefer to do the tying. And I don’t need a woman on her knees unless she wants to be there. Does that help answer your question?”

Kate bobbed her head up and down in a frantic nod. Her power of speech disappeared, and fire licked her veins. She reached for her water, took a large swallow, and managed to gather her composure. “Yes, thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

She pretended to look for something in her file, since her voice threatened to be wobbly. After a few moments, Kate dove back in. “Let’s talk past relationships. Have you ever been married?”

“Yes.”

She paused and ventured a glance under her lashes. His previous amusement vanished, and a wall slammed down between them. Ah, she’d hit pay dirt. “Divorced?”

“Yep.”

“What happened?”

“We broke up.”

“Care to tell me why?”

She waited him out. This was a turning point, because information on his past helped her plan his future. “I plead the Fifth.”

His wife had hurt him. Ex-wife. The knowledge softened her heart and beckoned for her to reach out and touch him. She’d avoided any skin-on-skin contact, afraid the attraction would be more difficult to fight, but his comment made her curl her fingers into tight fists to keep from closing the distance. Kate gentled her voice. “Slade, I don’t mean to pry and upset you. Our past makes up who we are and what we want. It would help if I knew what happened so that I can avoid setting you up with someone who can hurt you again. Not that there are guarantees, of course.”

He tapped his finger against his chin and studied her with brooding eyes. “How about we play truth for truth? Why aren’t you happily married? Unless you are and you like hearing other people’s horror stories to get your kicks and excitement?”

The familiar pain sprang up, but she pushed it back down with an expert ease that should have scared her. “No, I’m not married.”

“Kinnections not working for you?”

She lifted her chin. “The truth is, no man has ever wanted me enough to propose.”

The silence pulsed and hummed. She’d learned early that fair was fair. If she asked her clients to trust her with their backgrounds, she owed it to them to do the same. He cleared his throat and spoke with no emotion. “She cheated on me. But it was my fault. I was too involved in law school and ignored her for too long. Classic formula for the classic divorcee.”

Kate wanted more but knew how much the words cost him. God, how that must have affected him. He was obviously a strong man, and once trust was shattered, it took years to rebuild confidence in love. His profession was pretty deadly to any optimism regarding relationships. “Thank you. Makes sense loyalty and trust would be among your number one requirements. That will help me.” She lightened the topic, switching back to easy territory. “Give me your celebrity crush.”

“Huh?”

She smiled. “If you got to pick the celebrity female you want to sleep with, who would it be?”