He frowned. “Yes, you can.”

“It’s too much.”

He came to stand behind her, resting a hand on her shoulder. Their gazes met in the mirror. “No, it’s just right.”

They stood there together for a long moment. He saw her conflicted emotions play out on her features. He wished she’d relax, let go and stop wondering if he had ulterior motives. Hadn’t he proven that by now?

“It’s a gift, sweetheart.” He kissed the top of her head. “Someone needs to spoil you. I want it to be me.”

“I don’t mean to sound ungrateful,” she added in a rush. “The necklace is stunning.” A blush crested her cheeks. “I guess I’m not used to receiving extravagant gifts.”

“Then get used to it.” He slid his hand down her arm and twined his fingers with hers. “You’re an amazing woman who deserves the best.” He couldn’t wait to see her wearing this necklace and nothing else. Later, he reminded himself and tugged her toward the door. “Let’s drive around and see what we can find to keep us entertained until dinner.”

As he headed downtown, he caught her touching the necklace several times, and the wistful smile on her lips warmed him. It stroked his pride to know he’d outdone her former lovers, though he found it hard to believe those men hadn’t set her on a pedestal and worshipped her. Hey, at least they’d made it easy for him to show how much he appreciated all the intriguing facets of this special woman.

“Want to grab a martini somewhere?” he asked.

“Actually, we could…” She stopped and shook her head. “Never mind.”

“What?”

She picked at the black sequins on her wristlet purse. “Maybe another time.”

He reached for her hand and smoothed his thumb across the points of her knuckles. “Devon, what were you going to say?”

She shrugged. “It’s silly and juvenile.”

“So?”

A smile tugged her lips. “I don’t suppose you’d want to waste an hour at the new arcade that just opened up downtown?”

He grinned. “Absolutely.”

After the stress at work over the last week, not to mention the emotional strain of the past twenty-four hours, playing a few arcade games would offer a fun distraction. He wished he’d thought of it.

When they walked into the crowded two-story space, bright lights, the smell of stale beer, digitized musical sounds, and shouts of success or loss assaulted his senses. The carnival-like atmosphere reminded him of places along the Vegas Strip.

He curved his arm around her waist. “Where do we start?”

“I’ve been dying to shoot some zombies.”

The fiendish gleam in her eyes took him by surprise, and he laughed. He swept his arm in front of her. “Lead the way, slayer.”

Trey fondly recalled weekends as a kid when his cousins came over to play marathon sessions of Mario Brothers with him and Cade on their Nintendo. But he barely remembered the last time he’d played arcade games or even a video game. He’d invested some effort in Star Craft, but lost interest when the sequel took forever to launch. Cade had immersed himself in World of Warcraft for a few years then gave it up because the quests were too intensive and time-consuming. Adam continued his obsession with Call of Duty, and Liam had become a champ at Assassin’s Creed.

The four of them needed to hang out together again, instead of leading parallel lives that only converged at the office. Meeting up with his brother and cousins at the arcade jumped to the top of his to-do list.

Even though he and Devon were way overdressed and glaringly out of place in the jeans-and-t-shirt crowd, he didn’t care and she didn’t seem to either. He was glad she’d suggested this entertaining pit stop.

They approached a promising game with bright red pistols waiting to unleash invisible bullets on zombies.

“Ready to roll?” he asked.

“You know it.” She grinned. “Try and keep up.”

Devon realized the game had been upgraded a version or two since she’d last played it in an arcade. Better graphics made the undead super creepy and gory, and her trigger finger got a workout. She jerked the gun down to reload every few seconds, before taking aim and continuing the slaughter. She led the way around the maze, but Trey held his own.

When the zombies led a sneak attack, they couldn’t keep up with the creatures. Their reincarnations were up, and the clock started counting down to the end of the game. Trey dug in his pocket for the gaming card and swiped it with two seconds to spare.

The game resumed. She explained a strategy to avoid another takedown, and they succeeded against the zombie attack this time. She grinned, laughed, and had a blast.

This is why she wanted to work for ActionNet, a company that created games people loved to play. She adored games requiring strategy, and she wanted to build her own post-apocalyptic zombie world. Video games offered hours of fun and enjoyment, but they also brought people together and united like minds in fascinating ways.

She lived for this kind of mental and visual stimulation and the chance to unleash her competitive streak. She so looked forward to her new career.

The two of them made it to level four before the game threw a stampede of zombies at them, ending their successful reign over the undead.

Depositing the plastic gun in its perch, he slid his arm around her and stole a quick kiss. “Not bad. I’d have you on my team any day.”

She grinned. “When the apocalypse hits, you’ll be the first one I call.”

“I’d better be.” He led her outside and he drove toward the restaurant where he’d made reservations.

AC/DC’s You Shook Me All Night Long played on his satellite radio. He turned it up then let his hand drift back to her thigh. His thumb traced the hem of her short dress.

Devon bit her lip. She wished his thumb would caress the ache that had been building between her thighs since the yoga class. She pictured his muscles sweat-soaked and gleaming.

Moisture saturated her black thong panties.

Uncrossing her legs, she shifted in the passenger seat. His wrist stiffened when his palm met her inner thigh.

She stole a quick glance at him. He stared straight ahead, a lock of dark hair curved over his eyebrow. His profile was chiseled perfection. Expressionless, except for the hint of tension gathering at the corner of his eye.

The pad of his thumb traced a faint circle, scattering pleasure over her sensitized skin. His palm grew hot against her thigh. She made no move to close her legs. Instead, she slumped lower in the seat, causing his hand to settle closer to her juncture.