�Ladies and gentlemen, we�ll be beginning out initial decent into the Ft. Lauderdale area. Please remain in your seats with your seat belt securely fastened. The captain has indicated turbulence in the area and has the turned on the fasten seat belt light.�

����������� �Turned it on. He never turned it off,� Victoria Sullivan said through gritted teeth as she clutched the armrests on the sides of her seat. She couldn�t believe there was going to be even more turbulence. The entire flight out of Boston had been bumpy. It served as a reminder that she hated to fly. The dark cloud the plane was descending into only made her wince a little more as her heart rate picked up.

����������� To take her mind off of the arbitrary turbulence, she tried to go over papers from her Psychology of Marriage class. As she rummaged through her stack of seventy papers, she thought about how crushed her students were when she told them she was cutting the week short to go to a wedding. She�d had to cancel five classes for the trip to Florida. Sighing she searched through the stack of clipped assignments until she came to Gregg Jensen�s. After four years of undergraduate work and two years of graduate work, she�d formed her own opinions about professors who played favorites. And after years of teaching without picking one, she�d finally found a student worthy of that title. Jensen was her first student who fully grasped her ideas as a professor and Victoria enjoyed reading his thoughts the most.

����������� The problem with love in today�s day and age is it is too easily misconstrued with lies, most generally in the pursuing stages of relationships. While one party may portray interest, the other party perceives it as a come-on or a line. As a result, genuine feelings are often seen as false ones. Love is doubted more than ever in society . . . even when it�s pure.

����������� Another reason love is mistaken is because initially, love is perceived as lust. Men and women fall in lust everyday. Lust being only the brief thought of �I want to be with that person in a physical way� may only last a second or a lifetime. But romantic love cannot exist without lust.

����������� All romantic relationships begin on some level with lust. It is this initial attraction that sparks interest in being with another person physically. Love, common interests, and a connection with a person are what keep a relationship going. So while looks draw people together, they are not what keep them together. �

����������� Too often people give up at the first sign of trouble rather than realize what they are even trying to salvage. The lack of realization also leaves people with the blessing of 20-20 hindsight and the knowledge that they gave up the best thing in their life.

�����������

����������� �Amen to that,� Victoria said aloud. Gregg had definitely been paying attention to her hour-long lectures on love in the modern day.

����������� At Emerson College, her Psychology of Marriage classes were her favorite to teach, as well as a favorite among the students. Inside the walls of her class, Victoria transformed into her alter ego, Professor Sullivan, where she spouted her studies of love, connections, relationships, and marriage while using examples everywhere from ancient philosophers and textbooks to movies and her own personal experiences, and linked them to psychology. More times than not, the class found itself in deep discussions and on wildly introspective tangents.

����������� In honor of her upcoming leave of absence, over Valentine�s weekend, Victoria had spent the last week discussing love with her class. She�d made them reflect on every time they�d ever said that they�d loved someone and how many of those times that relationship had ended. Then she�d discovered by show of hands how many people had actually meant that they loved the other person when they said it. While trying not to be sexist, she�d pointed out how many twentysomething male students hadn�t meant it versus how many females.

����������� �It can�t be denied when it�s there,� she�d lectured, �yet most people refuse to recognize it as true love until it is too late to call it that anymore. Has anyone ever noticed that people always refer to �the love of their lives� in past tense.� Nodding heads and uh-huhs had followed that statement. �Most people do not marry the love of their lives. Instead they settle for what they think is pretty close to love. And several years later, they then wonder why their marriage went sour.�

����������� It was that lecture that gave the prompt for the bi-weekly writing assignment of two page papers on the student�s thoughts about what she spoke of. Usually she tried not to make her discussions to condescending or pessimistic, but somehow they often came out that way.

����������� She�d tried to tell herself that it wasn�t her fault that she�d had a negative view of the sociological aspects of dating. When her each of her parents had remarried for the fourth time, she�d decided that she didn�t want another generation to experience the new version of the American family and set out to educate future generations to be wiser in the area of love. During her time of educating students, her own dating experiences hadn�t given much positive feedback to speak of during class. Her only serious relationship never went anywhere. Anywhere was what she called when a man wanted to live with you for a few years but not get married.

����������� When she hit the milestone of being thirty and not married, she�d felt prepared for it. In fact, she�d even thought she was fine with it. And when she�d invited her best friend up from Florida to keep her company with her Boston friends on her birthday, she�d been shocked to find Alison Porter with a beau at her side. Several weeks after they�d left, she�d been discussing how often it was people settled for less than what they wanted in a life partner. And when she�d gotten home from that discussion, she�d received a perfect wedding invitation, with large calligraphy in lavender and gold.

����������� Victoria had smiled at thinking how Alison wasn�t settling.

����������� They�d been best friends since they before they were in grade school. They�d grown up down the street from each other and had considered themselves more like sisters than friends, making them feel less alone as only children. They�d been present for every relationship they�d ever had. And between the two of them, there had been a lot.

����������� At least Alison had a lot. She�d been the ever-loving, wild and crazy, single girl. Always knowing where the good bars and clubs were, always juggling several men at the same time, never settling down. Yet somehow she had been swept off her feet and was soon to become Mrs. Kevin Gold. She�d had her pick of men over the years, and she never wanted any of them. As Victoria had lived with a man for almost two years to have him marry someone else, Alison had called her several times a week to ask advice about the current flavor of the week. And now she was getting married.

����������� Victoria had always looked for serious relationships. She�d wanted to be with someone she could just lie with and enjoy silences and small intimate moments. She�d wanted quiet evenings and romance that would ultimately lead to a white wedding. Alison was a different story.

����������� Another air pocket shook the plane and Victoria realized there would be no shoulder for her to cry on during the ceremony and no one to dance with her during the reception.

����������� She pushed those thoughts away as she pushed the stack of papers back into her satchel bag. She leaned her back into her seat and turned her thoughts to the joy of seeing Alison when the plane docked. More than likely they would create one of those scenes showed in movies where girlfriends shriek at the top of their lungs in there excitement to see each other. The last time Alison had come to visit there had been such a scene. And then she�d been introduced to Kevin.

�����������

����������� She�d liked Kevin when Alison brought him for her birthday last summer. She�d thought him handsome and intelligent and charismatic. He�d brought her a present--which she�d emphatically told him wasn�t necessary--and he�d made her laugh all night. More than anything, she liked the way he treated Alison. One look at him and a person could tell he was utterly devoted and in love with her. His heart seemed to beat for a glance from her.

����������� And together they acted like two life-long friends. Amazing, she�d thought, as she�d read the invitation. Alison spends her whole life wanting to be single and I spend life wanting to get married, and look who�s walking down the aisle. And with the handsome Kevin Gold.

����������� That�s what Victoria had wanted. The type of happiness that you could get just from being with a person. Being able to sit back and let loose and laugh about immature things. Someone she could just be herself with and with look at her with love burning in his eyes. Unfortunately that seemed to be a tall order for her last boyfriend.

����������� After living with Nick Stanford for over a year, she�d thought that he would want to move forward, to progress, to propose. But nothing had come from it. He worked hard at a law firm in Boston and she never saw him, much less did fun things with him. Nick didn�t have an ounce of humor in his Ivy League body. An ultimatum and a half-empty apartment later, word of mouth had told her that Nick was engaged to a young thing that had just graduated college.

����������� Rather than sulk about it Victoria went to the podium of her class and spoke of modern dating rituals. While she encouraged her students to live together first, she told her students to make their intentions known at that point. After all, announcing the desire to get married when sharing a key to the front door was a little different then sharing eyesight on a first date.

����������� After that she had practically given up on dating all together. Silently she had come to the conclusion that men and women wanted different things, or more so that she wanted different things. Her internal epiphany was that she didn't want the short-term things that men did. Men who did even wanted relationships wanted them with a shelf life. She was more interested in the long haul, eternal love, and commitment.

����������� She'd made the decision that she wouldn't pursue men unless they had a serious state of mind. Unfortunately, that had meant fewer dates over the past few months. But she kept a positive mindframe, knowing that she wouldn't be settling the next time that she got involved.

����������� Since then she hadn't been seriously involved with someone. It had been so long since she'd had sex that she didn't even feel the urges anymore.

����������� "Ladies and gentlemen, we're making our final approach into Ft. Lauderdale," the captain announced. "Please put all chair backs and tables in their upright and locked position."

����������� Victoria looked out her window and saw the roads lined with palm trees as the plane neared the ground. She smiled to herself at knowing her flight would soon be over and she was coming home.

�����������

����������� Cam sat on a gray plastic chair that gave him a perfect view of the people who would exit flight 2376. He had gone down to baggage claim, gave his suitcase to the driver poised with a sign of his last name in big capitol letters, and instructed him to pull the car around the front for when he picked up Victoria.

����������� His black cell phone was held up to his head as he tried to pay attention to his advertising partner over the voices of the crowded airport. "Fred, I told you, they need to be finessed. Everything has to be perfect." He listened as Fred retorted about what they did for the last campaign. "No. They don't want a sexual campaign like that. The razor people wanted to appeal to a completely different demographic. Think attractive advertising without attractive people."

����������� As their conversation about their last second advertising strategies continued, people began to exit the plane. Cam drew his attention to those exiting first as he spoke, making note of what each person looked like. Older couples and several corporate people like him exited first. First class passengers without a doubt. �

����������� More people exited. One woman with shoulder length blonde hair in a business suit walked off. Cameron wished Victoria would be attractive when she walked by him.

����������� "Tell technical that the final commercials will have music, lights, graphics, the whole nine yards. The Internet banners and links will be different. You have to explain--"

����������� He stopped mid-sentence when a vixen walked off the plane. She carried a rolling suitcase with a jacket over the handle and a messenger satchel that appeared to have a lot of miles on them. Her chocolate colored hair was parted down the middle and fell just past her shoulders. In a tight V-neck shirt and black trouser pants, he could see the curves of her figure. From where he sat he could also see the vivid color of her gray eyes set against her dark hair and deep tan. She was dressed casual but still carried tremendous sex appeal, and Cam hoped to god that this was Victoria.

����������� Several seconds passed before he heard Fred trying to drag his attention back to their conversation about work. He was pulled back the third time Fred asked if he was still there. "Listen Fred, I have to go. I'll call you later. Email me the diagrams." Fred hung up the phone but Cam didn't move. Oddly the stress he�d felt during his flight to Florida lifted off his shoulders while he watched this woman walk.

����������� Victoria looked around the terminal with an expectant smile on her lips. She scanned the faces of the people near the gate but none of them were the bride or groom to be. She saw other people having the reunion that she had imagined having with Alison and couples kissing. Several obvious tourists stopped walking as soon as they exited to stare at the signs for directions around the airport.

����������� And there was a man who was so busy staring at her, he had apparently lost interest in his conversation with his cell phone. She assumed he was a model. In one brief glance over him, said he had that look to him. Lithe body, good dresser, perfect hair. Definitely a model. And other than his light hair, he almost resembled Kevin. She stopped, stared, shivered, then turned away.

����������� Finally dismissing him and the lack of her friends' presence, she strode off towards the supposedly much cleaner restroom and figured they were just late.

����������� After she had walked by, Cam trained his eyes back on the landing. The stewardesses soon exited, signifying no other passengers would embark. Only one woman standing around remotely resembled the woman Kevin had described, but she looked a few years older than he did. Not that he had spent half of the time looking for her. More time than necessary was spent watching that vixen that walked by that made the blood pump in his body when she looked at him. Although she didn't fit Kevin's description either. That woman was anything but plain looking.

����������� After Cameron had approached the look-alike and been told that she wasn't Victoria, he saw the vixen return to the gate out of the corner of his eye. He watched her sit and remove the satchel from her shoulder and place it on the floor by her feet. Impatiently she looked at her watch and gazed around the airport, looking for someone. Her gaze passed over him and held his for a moment, then turned it elsewhere.

����������� It's worth a shot, he said silently and made his way through the crowd to the vixen.

����������� As he moved through the crowd, she caught his gaze again. She sighed deeply and turned away. Either way, she didn't appear happy to see him.

����������� And she wasn't. It had been a terrible flight. The turbulence had been enough to distract her from grading papers that students would expect back when she returned. She'd been up since an ungodly hour and she was tired. On top of all of that, the two people she expected to be her ride were no where in sight. All in all, she didn't have a reason to be happy other than it wasn't cold anymore.

����������� Then there was this man who was coming over towards her. Silently she hoped he wasn't going to hit on her. When the crowd parted and he was smiling at her, she rolled her eyes and scowled.

����������� "Hi," he said when he was standing over her.

����������� She looked away from him in the direction she assumed Alison would come from. "Hi."

����������� All thoughts escaped his brain when he was close to her. Her eyes seemed even brighter than the pale blue they were against her dark hair and brows. Even her cranberry colored lips seemed to brighten them. As her lips parted into a pout, he said the only sentence his brain seemed capable of functioning. "I�m looking for someone."

����������� She raised a brow at him in a questioning look. "I can�t help you with that."

����������� "Excuse me?"

����������� "I'm not really in the mood." She leaned back against the seat and sighed. He was still hovering over her waiting for a better answer. "I'm waiting for someone to show up."

����������� And I�m looking for someone. "What a coincidence. Mind if I wait with you?"

����������� "It�s a free country," she muttered. He was making her uncomfortable. He was studying her, making her shift in her seat. When she caught him staring, he turned away.

����������� �Sorry, for that.�

����������� �Would you please mind leaving? I�d like to wait for my friend alone.�

����������� Cam couldn�t believe how rude she was. He was only being friendly. "Will you be this obnoxious when your friend arrives?"

����������� Her mouth fell open. "Obnoxious? You think I'm obnoxious?"

����������� Cam rose to his feet and began to look around the terminal. "Yeah. I thought you were someone else."

����������� "Listen you. I just got off a long and terrible flight. My friends didn't meet me here and I don't have a ride. If you were in my position you would act like this as well."

����������� He smiled humorously. "Somehow I doubt it.�

����������� "Well, the last thing I want to do is talk to you. So why don't you just go and leave me alone."

����������� Cam rose to his feet at that statement. Not only wasn't this Victoria, but she was rude, bitchy, and completely arrogant. He couldn't help but smile to himself at how many sparks she had. Hot-tempered, quick-witted, tenacious. Downright sassy.

����������� He had never been more attracted to someone in his life.

����������� Hands shoved in their pockets, he strolled back towards the baggage claim area to see if Ms. Sullivan was waiting for him there. She'd probably passed by him while he was caught up staring and chatting. Before he'd rounded the corner he turned back for one last look. He found his vixen looking around wishing there were something else she could bite other than her fingernails.�

����������� Several brunettes were waiting for their luggage on the rotating conveyer belts. Only two of them had blue eyes and he approached both of them. Both of them declined to be Victoria and he sulked back over to the limo driver.

����������� As instructed he'd changed the sign he held from Gold to Sullivan and to wait patiently for someone to claim him. When Cam approached, the driver told him that no one had approached him. He ran a hand through his hair, pushing back the strands that fell over his eyes and returned back towards the gate.

����������� The crowd of people had emptied out when he reached where flight 2376 had boarded. There was no one left standing around waiting for him. But there was the brunette bombshell still sitting with her chin in her hands, anxiously waiting for someone. Cam approached her carefully. He definitely didn't want to be the one to piss her off anymore. But he had to ask.

����������� Victoria looked up to see man who�d called her obnoxious coming back over to her. She rolled her eyes again and her hands went from supporting her chin to covering her eyes. She couldn't believe someone with such incredible arrogance would come back to try again. Regardless of how good-looking he was. Men that good looking could pull of stunts like that. She wasn't about to allow him to pull one with her.

����������� "Didn't I tell you to leave me alone before?" she asked as he approached.

����������� "Yes, but--"

����������� "What part of that didn't you understand? I'd like to be left alone."

����������� He sat down on the seat next to her. "I need to ask you something first."

����������� "Where's the security around here?"

����������� "What for?"

����������� "To get you away from me. That's what its going to take to get you away, isn't it."

����������� He lowered his blue gaze on her. "Are you Victoria Sullivan?"

����������� The anger fled from her eyes as soon as he said her name. They widened and were replaced with awe as they brightened with astonishment. "How did you know my name?"

����������� �He extended a large palm out for her to take. "I'm Cameron Gold." His palm was met with a confused face. "Kevin's brother? He asked me to pick you up."

����������� When she put two and two together she took his hand in her own and shook it once. He hesitated letting her hand go. Then she looked up into his face and met eyes so blue they were nearly violet in color. His sandy blonde hair fell forward in the front on the side. She found herself caught up in his mouth, the way his lower lip was so full, how soft they looked. One corner of his mouth kicked up in a crooked smile when he saw the way she looked at him, as though she could take a bite out of him. "Are you all right?"

����������� Victoria snapped out of her trance. "Fine. You and Kevin have the same eyes." She rose to her feet and gathered her satchel bag over her shoulder. She pulled the handle out of her rolling suitcase and readjusting her jacket over the holder of it.

����������� "We get that a lot. We'd probably be twins if we had the same hair color." He waited until she was on her feet before he started walking. "We have a car down stairs at baggage claim. It will be taking us to a dress shop near the hotel." Cam took a deep breath. "Apparently there are problems with our attire. They'll be meeting us there."

����������� With that, he took off without her. She made boisterous struggling noises trying to maneuver her suitcase while carrying her bag. Not only did he not turn around, but he got out his cellular phone and proceeded in dialing a phone number on it. His ignorant actions twisted an expression of dislike to form on her face. She could only stare after him feeling disgusted Alison's choice of escort.

����������� As much as she wanted to admire the way his jeans fit while he walked away, she wouldn't allow herself to give him the satisfaction of catching her staring. She could envision him taking pride in knowing that she found him attractive. Her studies proved that handsome men she�d met felt they should be able to get away with murder in the form of chauvinism and a wham-bam-don't-let-the-door-hit-you-on-the-way-out type of attitude. Despite the fact Cameron Gold resembled a Greek god, Victoria wasn't about to let him get away with anything.

����������� At least she could get a view of his ass. �����������

����������� "Aren't you going to help me with my things?"

����������� He turned around with the phone up to his ear. "You've got two hands. Use them."

����������� "If you were a gentleman you would at least offer to help."

����������� "I'll call you back," he said into the phone and flipped the bottom back into place cutting off the call. He gave her a wicked smile. "And if you were a lady, you wouldn't have been so rude to me. So why should I help you?"

����������� "Look, Cameron, I didn't know who you were. I thought that you were some random stranger hitting on me. The flight was long and I didn't want to deal with that."

����������� "Hitting on you?"

����������� She gave him a sarcastic look with one raised brow. "What would you equate that to?"

����������� "Hitting on you,� he repeated again in shock. �So you're rude and arrogant?"

����������� "Arrogant? How dare you call me that! You don't even know me."

����������� "So if you knew who I was it would have made a difference in how you acted?"

����������� She tilted her chin up to meet his gaze and keep her composure. She wasn't about to back down from a challenge. "Look, I'm sorry."

����������� He made a sniffing sound. "No you're not." He turned and began walking again.��

����������� When he was several steps in front again, she started walking. "You're right. I'm not."

����������� But Cam didn't hear her say that because he was already back on the phone with his office. The only response she heard him say was that he wanted all the plans emailed to his business extension so he could go over them.

����������� It was at that moment that Victoria concluded she didn't like Cameron Gold.

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