“Of all the arrogant, pompous, irritating, annoying…!” Quinn grumbled out loud as she stormed into her boss’ office. “He did it again!” she exclaimed impatiently, throwing one arm up in the air with furious exasperation.
Quinn’s perpetually frazzled boss, Harry, cringed at the beautiful woman who was actually more dazzling than normal with that furious light in her lovely, lilac eyes. “Uhhh…Quinn…” he started to say, his own eyes glancing to the right of his office warily.
Unfortunately, Quinn was on a roll! “Have you seen my desk, Harry?” she demanded, shifting the cumbersome file folder to one arm, so she could gesticulate with her other toward the open area just outside of Harry’s office. “He’s mocking me! He’s taunting me! He’s ridiculing everything we do here!”
“Quinn, I’d like to…”
She shook her head, unaware of how the stray wisps of dark, silky hair gently caressed her shoulders. “I know what I’m going to do,” she grumbled ferociously. “I’m going to send it all back to his office and see how he likes having his desk covered with outrageous, insincere gifts! I’ll just find a delivery person who can carry every one of those mocking trinkets to the man’s high and mighty office and see how he likes it!”
Harry chuckled at the idea even as he shook his head. “You can’t afford…”
The woman jerked upright, an alarming, mischievous light entering her eyes, replacing the fury of a moment before. Neither boded well for the target of her mercurial machinations. “No! I’ll go to the animal shelter and find the cutest, most adorable puppy, bring it over to his office, and put it right smack in the center of his desk!” Quinn nodded her head for emphasis, looking as if she’d just miraculously solved world hunger. “And you know what that puppy is going to do?” she demanded, leaning forward slightly as her enthusiasm for her plan built up steam in her mind. “That adorable puppy is going to pee right smack on all of his mightily important papers! It will be the perfect symbolism for what I think of the man and his work and all of the tricks he’s playing now! The horrible jerk will finally understand…”
“Quinn!” Harry yelled, his eyes nervously glancing toward the corner of his office.
Quinn pulled back, tapping her finger against her pressed lips. “No, I can’t deliver a cute puppy to the disgusting man. He would hurt the puppy! He would probably just toss the puppy onto the floor or call in a torture team…I’m sure he has one of those on staff, just standing by to follow his arrogant, evil orders.”
“Quinn!!” Harry snapped again, louder this time.
She snapped her fingers as a better idea occurred to her. “A kitten! Yeah, that’s what I’ll do! I’ll send him a kitten! No one could hurt a kitten.” She stopped and tapped her pencil against her mouth, ignoring Harry’s groan as he rubbed both of his hands over his haggard features. “But a kitten isn’t as likely to pee on his papers.” She sighed. “I’ll figure something out. In the meantime…,” she started to say.
“Quinn, shut up!” Harry finally yelled.
Quinn pulled back, surprised by her boss’ outburst. Harry never yelled. Yes, he always looked frazzled, yet he was one of the coolest, most composed, and yet most passionately dedicated lawyers that worked at The Legal Aid Group, a group of lawyers that helped community members when they couldn’t afford a high priced lawyer.
Seattle might be one of the up and coming technology magnets for the country and the tech companies continuously brought in many of the excellent jobs with high paying salaries, but there was still a large population of under-served and under-represented people who needed help. The Legal Aid Group watched out for them, helped defend their rights against some very strong, very powerful people.
Yeah, most of their efforts dealt with landlord cases, divorces, help with the smaller stuff. But the case she was currently working on was helping a small group of people who wanted to stay in their homes, not wanting to sell to the giant, powerful Steele Industries, who had proposed to demolish a whole neighborhood in order to build a giant steel and glass condominium that would be so expensive, none of the current or former residents would be able to afford to even walk through the lobby.
Gentrification, she thought with disdain; it was really just a way for big companies to bully the little guy.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, gentling her tone as she realized that Harry was truly upset about something.
Harry’s eyes once again moved to the corner of his office so Quinn turned, fully expecting that he’d bought a new plant or found a different travel poster to add some color to his office. The Legal Aid Group didn’t spend a lot on décor. The group didn’t spend anything on décor! All funding was used to support their clients, however possible.
But the enormous shadow in the corner of Harry’s office was definitely not a plant. And it wasn’t a travel poster!
The enormous man in the immaculate suit, complete with an impossibly white shirt and a red silk tie that had probably cost more than her monthly rent, was standing in the corner. Well, he wasn’t really standing. And it wasn’t like he was really in the corner. No, Quinn didn’t think this man would ever put himself into a corner.
As her eyes took him in, her body jerked in reaction, the file folder, filled with papers, almost toppled to the ground, but her fumbling fingers saved them. Well, most of them. She grabbed as many as possible, clutching them to her chest as her eyes once again swiveled up to the tall, terrifyingly intimidating man who was now staring down at her as if she…like she was….
He was laughing at her!
That arrogant expression dissipated her shock and got her temper riled back up immediately.
Oh no, Quinn thought with increasing relish, she was no one’s punch line!
Squaring her shoulders, she ignored the papers still in her arms, haphazardly and tenuously held in her grasp. "Who are you?” she demanded.
The arrogance practically oozed from the man as he pushed away from the wall and came closer. Despite her desire to appear strong and competent, there was just something about this man that caused her to take a step backwards. When she realized what she was doing, she stopped, her chin jutting out stubbornly as she stood her ground, not allowing her feet to step back again.
It was hard. Especially when he continued to approach her.
Quinn told herself to stand firm, to not show any weakness. But she comforted herself with the knowledge that there was no way this man could know how much her knees were knocking together underneath her colorful maxi skirt.
“You must be the brilliant Quinn Lewis,” the man commented.
Oh my, her mind thought as her whole body trembled. That voice was too sexy for words! No one had a voice that deep! It was simply impossible! She wanted to peer around the man’s shoulders, see if he had one of those doohickey contraptions that altered one’s voice. But she was stuck, frozen in place. Nothing was moving except for her knees and her racing heart.
“Who are you?” she demanded. But she knew! She knew and, the moment the words had left her lips, she wanted to take them back, to demand that he not answer the question. It was him! It was…
“I’m the ‘arrogant, pompous, irritating, annoying’ Bryce Steele,” he told her, those sharp, green eyes revealing his amusement at her predicament. “And you are the brilliant, lovely, passionate, dedicated Quinn Lewis.” His eyes twinkled with his barely-suppressed laughter. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you.”
Bryce watched, fascinated by the exquisite lady. She was the complete opposite of every woman he’d ever met. He’d always been drawn to the elegant, refined ladies who looked, acted and smelled pleasant. The women who knew exactly what they wanted and weren’t afraid to tell him.
This woman was wearing the craziest skirt with just about every color in the rainbow somehow included in the insane design. She’d topped it off with a tank top and a denim jacket. Denim! The only reason women of his acquaintance ever wore denim was when…well, hell, they never wore denim around him! Linen, silk, refined wool…absolutely. But never denim.
And her hair! Damn, all of that lustrous, amazing pile of hair was held up by one, two…four pencils! Pencils! And not even matching pencils!
He almost laughed at the image of this woman, the woman who had been driving his legal team nuts over the past month. He hired the best and the brightest. He had an entire legal department dedicated to ensuring that his projects proceeded forward smoothly, that no legal issues impeded the progress of his construction projects.
And yet this little woman, with her un-matching pencils and…a pen…sticking every which way out of her hair…and her soft lips, her lilac eyes and those impossibly long lashes…with no makeup to detract from the perfection of that beautiful skin…had riled his legal team, tying his efforts up, and grinding the waterfront project to a screeching halt.
He should be furious with her. He’d come over here to meet the lion lady, expecting something completely different. So he was admittedly stunned as he stood here in front of this delicate flower that…would probably bristle with fury if he called her a delicate flower…and wondered how he could get her into his bed.
His body had been primed for a fight. A challenge of minds that he would easily win. So he was shocked to find himself standing here, his body no longer primed for a fight, but equally ready to press this tiny woman up against the wall and kiss those trembling, rosebud lips until he heard her moaning with pleasure. He wanted to tangle his fingers into that amazing hair, toss all of those ridiculous pens and pencils to the floor and find out how long her silken strands were. Hell, he was even turned on by the crazy earrings that were dangling around her neck, drawing his eye to the delicate shell of her ear. Would she…
“Stop sending me flowers!” she commanded.
Bryce chuckled, having forgotten the barrage of gifts that he’d had his secretary deliver over the past few days. Flowers, candy, small gifts designed to taunt.
Now he was glad that he’d sent the flowers.
“No,” he responded, not giving in to her orders. Oh no, my sweet, he thought as he stared down at her soft skin, clenching his hands by his side to keep himself from reaching up and tapping the chandelier style earrings, just to see the overhead lights dance off of the metal pieces and reflect onto her perfect cheek.
It took every ounce of his reputedly amazing control not to laugh when her lips pressed together, revealing her anger at his reply.
“You’re sending me flowers just to annoy me!” she came right back, her body now bristling with anger. Passion. Damn, he wanted her!
“You don’t think I’m sending them to you because I admire your work? You’re brilliant,” he replied, being completely honest about her abilities. He admired a hard worker. “Come work for me. I’ll triple your salary.”
Obviously, that was the wrong thing to say. The woman had been beautiful before, but with that offer, her lilac eyes flared with fury and a soft pink stained her cheeks. This wasn’t embarrassment. This was passion! Okay, so not the kind he wanted to engender within this slender beauty, but he’d take anything. She was fascinating!
Quinn couldn’t believe the arrogance of this man! “Triple my salary?” Her shoulders swayed slightly, her mind and body preparing for battle. “Triple? Really? Is that all you got?”
The man laughed. He actually laughed!
She clenched the papers in her arms tightly, trying very hard not to dump them on Harry’s desk so she could poke this man, bring him down a notch or two. “How about if you stop pushing people out of their homes? How about you offer me a ritzy condo in the building that is going to tear apart a community? What if I asked for a corner office in that stupid, boring monstrosity that houses your headquarters? Huh? Would you give me any of those? Would you bribe me with any of those options?”
She ignored his hands sliding into his pockets, but couldn’t ignore the way he leaned forward, those green eyes sharpening with intelligence. Hoh boy! She was in trouble, she thought.
But she wasn’t backing down!
She was right and this man was wrong! He was destroying a community and he was unconcerned with how his actions might impact families!
“The area is deserted, Ms. Lewis,” he came right back. “Most of the families have already moved out, creating an environment perfect for gangs and drug users to move in.”
“Because you bought up all of the homes!”
“That isn’t a crime,” he came right back. “My company offered fair market value to every family in that area. I didn’t cheat anyone out of their home.”
She knew that he had a point there, but he wasn’t grasping the bigger issue. “You bought up people’s history! Some of those families had lived in that neighborhood for generations!”
“I never forced anyone to sell their homes to me, Ms. Lewis,” he replied with a tone of absolute calm and conviction. “We go into a community and offer to purchase. Fair market value.”
“You go in and offer more money than these people have seen in their lives!”
“Again, that isn’t a crime,” he countered. “In fact, some might even say that offering money to families who need it,” he leaned down lower, “families who WANT to move, is admirable.”
Oh, she hated that he had a good point. She wasn’t relenting though. “What about the families that don’t want to move?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “I haven’t forced anyone out,” he came back. “And if you’ll look around the neighborhood, there isn’t a community there either.”
“Because you broke it!” she almost yelled at him, her body trembling with fury for the people who had been displaced. Okay, and there MIGHT be a bit of the trembling that could be attributed to his close proximity. But only because he was trying to intimidate her. It wasn’t because he was gorgeous. Because…he wasn’t gorgeous! He was arrogant and condescending and completely ignorant of what he was doing to a community!
So what if his shoulders looked incredible in that suit? He wore a tie that was too expensive and his shoes were probably even more expensive! He thought he could buy and sell people! She wasn’t attracted to him! She was furious with him!
“I didn’t break anything, Ms. Lewis. And if you’d bothered to visit that area at all, you’d know that there was no community atmosphere. Most of the families had already moved out. Over sixty percent of the buildings had been abandoned years ago because of crime.”
She gasped, pulling back slightly and unware of how his eyes moved from her own to her lips as they formed an O of horror. “Are you implying that I don’t know that area?”
“I’m saying that you need to get your facts straight before you attack.”
Her body shifted back and forth, almost as if she were ready to physically attack him. “What ‘facts’ are you deluding yourself into thinking I have wrong?” she demanded.
“The area was a mess before I came in and bought up the buildings. Crime was skyrocketing. Drugs and gangs were moving in because so many of the buildings were empty.”
He had a point, but she wasn’t giving up the fight. “The residents that were hanging on were making changes. They had plans. They wanted to make a difference!”
“What residents?” he shot back, thoroughly enjoying the conversation. He was trying to be a gentleman and not look at the dark shadow caused by the way her tank top shifted, but it was difficult. He wanted to see her. He wanted her naked, those gorgeous, lilac eyes begging him to make love to her.
Soon, he promised himself.
“Most of the residents didn’t even make a counter offer when we presented a price to buy up their homes. That doesn’t sound like a resident eager to hang onto their memories, Ms. Lewis. It sounds like a family that is eager to move on, to find a safer place to live, better schools, and a more cohesive community.”
“In the suburbs!”
He almost laughed again. “You say that word with such derision. Are you looking down on suburban families?”
Quinn wanted to stomp her foot. He was deliberately misunderstanding. “Of course not! They are beautiful communities with a lot to offer families!”
“So what’s wrong with some people moving out of the city and into the suburbs?” he asked.
“Nothing! If they want to go!”
“They accepted the offer. I didn’t bribe them, twist their arms or abuse them in any way.”
A cough sounded, interrupting their argument. Quinn looked over, startled to see her boss standing on the other side of his desk, looking like he was about to be sick.
“Uh…Quinn, perhaps you could…,” he started to offer a suggestion, but Bryce lifted a hand to stop him.
“Let’s discuss this in a more private location,” he decided, plucking the papers from her arms, dumping the whole pile onto one of those seventies style chairs, then wrapped long, strong fingers around Quinn’s arm and pulled her out of her boss’ office.
“What do you mean ‘private location’?” she demanded, grabbing her purse as they wound their way through the mostly empty desks. All the other employees were staring at them as they walked out, their mouths literally hanging open in horrified amazement.
As soon as they stepped out of the building, a huge, black umbrella opened, protecting both of them from the rain as he guided her firmly over to a waiting limousine.
“Get in,” he commanded.
Quinn was just about to follow his order when she realized what she was doing. Instead, she spun around, yanking her arm out of his grip and glared up at him. “No! I’m not getting into that pretentious vehicle. Nor will I allow you manhandle me any longer. And I’m definitely not going to some place private with you!” she told him firmly, gritting her teeth to keep herself from…slapping him?
Kissing him?
Woah! Where in the world had that thought come from?
He leaned down lower, his body so large and intimidating, she couldn’t help but lean backwards. “Get in the car, Ms. Lewis,” he said, his voice threatening and scary.
She wasn’t backing down. “Or what? Are you going to try and buy me again?”
Bryce looked down at her, the temptation of her lips, those lilac eyes glaring up at him…It was too much!
“Or I’m going to kiss you right here, out on the street!” he replied with a wicked smile that told her he would do exactly that.
Quinn froze and…God help her, she actually contemplated standing here and calling his bluff. Would he…? What if he did? What if…what if she liked it?!
Her eyes moved to his mouth. Those hard lips curled into a semblance of a smile. But she saw that look as more of a…promise.
“You wouldn’t,” she whispered, her lilac eyes moving back to his.
One of his arms reached out to brace himself against the side of the limousine. “I never bluff, Quinn,” he promised her.
Her first name. He used her first name. Somehow, she knew that was significant.
And darn it, he was so close! He smelled…incredible!
When she realized what she was doing, that she wanted him to kiss her…she gasped and ducked into the dark interior of the warm limousine. A moment later, she had to quickly scoot further away because his enormous body was inside the limousine, taking up so much of the space, it was shocking!
She started to move to the seat on the opposite side, the seat where she wouldn’t have to be so close, but as soon as she lifted her body up, he pulled her right back down. When he was sitting, the entire side of his body was pressed against hers, the heat from his muscles seeping into her body, making her painfully, fully aware of him as a man.
Right! She mentally scoffed. As if she’d been unaware of that before.
She tried to shift away from him, but he put a hand on her knee, freezing her in place.
Glaring up at him, she twisted so that his hand fell away. Quinn wanted to believe that she’d accomplished her mission, but she suspected that the man had simply acquiesced. This time. She wasn’t so sure she’d win the next skirmish.
“Do you always get your way?” she demanded, shifting so that there were at least a few inches between their bodies.
“No.”
She snorted. “Tell me one time you didn’t do exactly as you pleased,” she challenged him, crossing her arms across her body defensively.
Leaning closer to her, his green eyes captured her lilac ones. “If I had my way, Quinn, you would be on my lap, naked and moaning as I made love to you.”
His words were so far beyond what she had been expecting, she wasn’t sure how to respond. Or even if she could!
They’d just met! The idea that they could…that he would want…that SHE would want anything like that was insane!
“That’s…” she shook her head, words unable to form in her mind. The image of them…like that…together….
Taking a deep breath and shaking her head slightly, she tried to banish the idea. But it stuck and she pressed her lips together, trying to ignore the man. His soft, sexy chuckle, so close to her ear, made her shiver. With anticipation?
Impossible!
“You can feel it too, can’t you, Quinn?”
“I have no idea what you’re taking about, Mr. Steele,” she retorted, shifting uncomfortably in the seat. “You’re just an obnoxious, too-wealthy man, who thinks he has the keys to the kingdom.” She turned to glare up at him but was startled when she realized he was so close. Hadn’t she moved away from him? Looking down, she realized that they were once again pressed side to side.
When his face came closer, his firm lips impossibly close, she tried to shift away, but she was held entranced. Captivated. “What are you doing?” she demanded, but the words came out as a whisper.
“I’m having a conversation with you,” he replied as if that was completely obvious.
She stared at him, then her eyes dropped to his mouth. Wondering.
“This is more than a conversation,” she asserted, but again, her voice sounded too breathy.
“I agree.”
Her tongue darted out, licking her suddenly dry lips. “What are you doing?”
Those firm lips that shouldn’t be sexy but were sexy, definitely too sexy, she thought…they quirked up slightly. Almost as if he were contemplating how to devour her.
“I’m trying to figure out how to shut you up so that I can kiss you,” he finally replied.
Kiss? The idea was too tempting! And too wrong! Only fifteen minutes ago, she’d been ranting about the man’s outrageous tactics and now…!
Goodness, Quinn’s mind spiraled out of control, thoughts flashing through her mind of him kissing her and…so much more!
“We can’t,” she told him, trying to be firm.
“Why can’t we?”
Why? Why couldn’t they kiss? Her mind tried to think, tried to remember all the reasons why. But her mind was blank. Blank, except for the possibility of him kissing her. The promised kiss was enticing. Alluring.
Then her mind snapped to attention and she pulled back. “Because…because we’re enemies!” she gasped. She looked around, realized that they were in his limousine and she was…well, she’d been about to kiss the man! She’d been about to kiss the man she was battling! Good grief, what had she been thinking?!
“We’re here,” he announced.
Quinn looked around, not sure what he meant. “Here?” she asked, startled and trying to interpret his words. “Where’s here?” she demanded, grabbing her purse, fully prepared to jump on the next bus that would take her far, far away from this man and his too-tempting lips.
Had she really just thought that? Her fingers touched her temple, her mind trying to get her body back under control. Unfortunately, it was her mind that kept thinking about kissing him. Kissing and…well, a whole lot more!
“I have to go,” she told him. “This was a mistake.”
He stepped out of the limousine, extending his hand to help her out. Quinn ignored his offered hand, stepping out on her own and almost tripping. Darn it! She tripped and stumbled, falling right into his strong arms. Looking up at him, she was once against startled by the heat in his eyes, by the power of his touch against her too-sensitive skin.
“Lunch,” he said. “It’s just lunch, Quinn.” He paused, their eyes clashing, her mind trying to wrap around that one word. “Are you afraid to have lunch with me?”
Quinn’s chin jutted upwards. “I’m not afraid of you,” she assured him.
“Good,” he replied, tucking her hand onto his arm. “Then we’ll have lunch. We’ll discuss the project and you can tell me when you will have dinner with me.”
They were walking into a massive building with Steele Industries on the side. She knew that this was his headquarters, but none of her clients lived or worked down in this exclusive section of the city. They couldn’t afford the rent, in the first place, and very few of them even had the education needed to get them a job down here. This was the domain of the super educated, the wealthy, and privileged. Walking into this building beside him, she felt painfully out of place. Her colorful maxi skirt and denim jacket didn’t fit in with the tailored suits and high-heeled shoes the other women were wearing.
Inching her chin up a notch, she refused to be embarrassed by her attire. She dressed comfortably, and in a way that helped her clients feel comfortable when talking to her. She was a darn good lawyer!
He led her into an elevator and she shifted, trying to put as much distance between them as possible. But too many other people were moving into the elevator. She inched away, but as more and more people stuffed in, the odious man wrapped his strong arm around her waist, pulling her to the back corner of the elevator. She held her breath, afraid of moving even an inch. It had been one thing to feel the side of him against her in the limousine, but this was completely different! She could feel him…really feel him! Her bottom was pressed against his hard thighs and…was he…was that…?
The elevator made painfully slow progress to the various floors, letting out one or two people on each floor. Unfortunately, even when the last few people exited, he wouldn’t release her, his arm maintaining his hold around her waist.
“You’re just a big bully. I’m not intimidated by bullies.” Her chin notched up once again and he was starting to understand that the movement signaled her nervousness.
His arm tightened slightly, almost as if he might be hugging her. “Then you’ll have to get to know me. That way, you’ll understand that I’m not a bully. I’m actually a pretty nice guy.” Even Bryce had to laugh at that possibility. Nice? Hell, he wasn’t nice! He was a bastard of the highest order. Just the thoughts moving through his mind about all of the things he wanted to do to this woman was evidence of how not-nice he was!
But he pulled back even more. “We’ll have lunch,” he announced, just as the doors to the elevator opened up.
“I would prefer a restaurant,” she told him, pulling back despite the gentle pressure of his hand at the small of her back.
“Tough,” he came right back, not letting her linger. Too many eyes, he thought. He wanted this beauty all to himself. “You’re safe enough here.”
Quinn didn’t believe him for a moment! There were a whole lot of adjectives that she might apply to Bryce Steele, but “safe” definitely wasn’t one of them. “What’s wrong with a restaurant? Too cheap to pay? I’ll spring for lunch,” she told him, still trying to slow their progress and ignoring the shocked look on his assistant’s face as they walked into his office.
“Call up Brian’s Grille and have two seafood pasta dishes sent up immediately,” he told the woman who had somehow balanced her glasses at the end of her nose ala an angry librarian from the 1950s.
Quinn knew about Brian’s Grille. Everyone in Seattle knew about Brian’s Grille! Even the water on the menu was expensive. She couldn’t even contemplate how much a seafood meal might be! “I’ll just have a salad,” she told the woman a moment before she was tugged through a set of heavy, double doors. She didn’t see the look Bryce gave to his assistant, nor the nod of acceptance, since Quinn was almost shoved into the office and the door closed behind them.
“Now,” he started to say…
“Now you just open that door up and we can meet in a conference room somewhere,” she told him firmly, crossing her arms over her stomach, unaware of how the movement made her tank top gape once again. She was painfully aware of his eyes moving over every inch of her, and the way her stomach tightened in reaction.
She tried to fight that reaction, but his eyes…goodness, his eyes were like a caress! Oh my, the heat in his eyes…yeah that heat conveyed his intentions. This man didn’t mess around.
“Mr. Steele,” she started to say, holding up her hand to stop his forward momentum. But nothing seemed to stop him.
“Quinn, we were about to kiss in my limousine and, if I’d brought you to my home, we would be in bed already. So I think it is past time for you to use my first name, don’t you think?”
At the first mention of kissing, she was already shaking her head. But with his suggestion that she use his first name, she gasped in horror. “Absolutely not! No, I think that referring to you as Mr. Steele, with both of us remaining on formal terms, is better. We should be able to negotiate through these issues more efficiently if we keep our relationship on a professional level.”
He laughed softly as he reached up and pulled out a pencil from her hair. Nothing happened and he thought of the pencils and her locks of silky hair as a sort of Jenga game. How many pencils did he have to take out before the mass came tumbling down around her shoulders?
He was going to find out.
“What are you doing?” she demanded, grabbing the pencil from his hand.
He didn’t answer, just reached up and removed another. Some wispy strands came down, but he wasn’t satisfied. A part of him knew that he wouldn’t be fully satisfied until this woman was writhing underneath him, their bodies moving in that age-old rhythm.
Damn, he couldn’t wait to have her underneath him! Or above him. Or…
A knock on the door stopped his thoughts from venturing down that enticing pathway.
“Come in!” he commanded, turning his head away for a moment. But he didn’t miss the lovely Quinn’s quick movement to the other side of the conference room table. He almost laughed, thinking she was cute in her attempt to put some space between them. It wasn’t going to work, but she was still cute!
The door opened and his assistant walked in, carrying a tray with two large plates filled with food and some other items, all of which forced Quinn to blink.
The woman silently set the tray down on the conference room table, then just as quickly left. The older woman obviously could feel the tension inside the room, but didn’t comment on it.
“What is that?” Quinn demanded, staring at the boxes that were tied up with a ribbon.
“That’s our lunch,” Bryce announced, walking over to the table and pulling the cork out of the bottle of white wine, pouring some into the crystal wine glasses.
“That’s impossible,” she announced, still trying to figure things out.
“What is impossible?” he asked, lifting both glasses and offering one to her. He refrained from laughing when she stared at the glass, then up into his eyes. Yes, my lovely rabbit. You’re going to have to come over to the other side, he thought silently.
Her glance recognized the challenge and that cute chin jutted out again. With stiff, angry shoulders, she walked around the polished table, taking the glass from him but ensuring that she didn’t touch his hand in any way.
Soon, my beauty, he thought as he released the glass to her, noting that her fingers were trembling and her eyes fully understood his unspoken promise.
When she took a sip of the wine, he almost laughed out loud at the surprised appreciation in her pretty, lilac eyes.
“So you went to Stanford for law school,” he said, changing the subject to something less volatile. “Why are you working at The Legal Aid Group?” he asked, motioning over to the sitting area in the opposite corner of his office.
When she started to sit down on one of the comfy-looking, “safe” chairs, he deftly moved her over to the more intimate sofa, so she was forced to sit next to him instead of opposite.
“What’s wrong with The Legal Aid Group?” she asked with a bit of exasperation. So many people asked her the same question. It was almost as if obtaining an expensive education automatically steered someone toward a six figure starting salary. Which, in a way, wasn’t wrong. It took a lot of money to pay off one’s student loans. Thankfully, her parents had been able to pay for the majority of her education and she was paying off the rest in monthly increments.
“Nothing,” he said and handed her one of the elaborate boxes along with a crisp, starched linen napkin and a sterling silver fork. “Nothing at all. Why not come work for me?”
She opened the box and was startled to find the most heavenly smelling seafood and pasta covered in a rich, creamy cheese sauce. “Everything,” she said, but the effect of her one word was diminished since she was more focused on breathing in the delectable scent of the decadent cheese and seafood meal. Goodness, she loved cheese! Any kind of cheese and on anything at all. Well, other than broccoli and cauliflower. Yuck! Nothing could make those vegetables palatable.
She flicked a broccoli floret off to the side of the china plate and stabbed a succulent piece of shrimp. “Because you are the enemy,” she replied as if that answer should be obvious.
He laughed and took her broccoli, eating it as he winked at her. “I can be a good guy.”
She rolled her eyes and flicked another broccoli floret toward him. She didn’t question why she suddenly felt comfortable talking with him. Well, comfortable wasn’t exactly the right word. No, she definitely wasn’t comfortable. But how could she describe the sensation of sitting here next to him…companionable? No, that wasn’t quite right either.
He took the offered broccoli and then one of her tomatoes. “Why am I the enemy?”
“Because you’re trying to tear down history and build something ugly.”
“Ah, but those buildings that are currently standing, they replaced something that was there decades before. I’m not the first to tear something down and build it back, but bigger and better. It’s called progress.”
She shook her head. “No, progress is finding a cure to cancer. What you’re doing is tearing down beautiful, old buildings with character, in order to replace it with ugly steel and glass buildings.”
“How do you know the new building won’t be made of other materials? And what we have planned might look different from the other surrounding buildings, adding character to the overall neighborhood. Why are you assuming the worst?”
She looked up at him and swallowed the delicious pasta before replying. “Let me guess,” she began, taking another bite of the amazingly delicious pasta as her eyes narrowed. After swallowing, she put her fork down and set the plate on the coffee table in front of her. “Fifteen stories high, not including the three story garage.” She watched him carefully and, by the blank expression in his eyes, knew she was right on target. “Six to eight apartments on each floor with two on the top level.”
He laughed softly and gestured to her plate, indicating she should continue eating her meal. “Seventeen stories, three buildings. All of them condominiums. Yes, parking will be available, but so will a pool, exercise room, party areas, and office space to lease. Some of the buildings will even have boutique, retail spaces. As for the residential floors, there will be eight units on the even floors, six units on the odd floors. The top floors on each building will be a penthouse dwelling. Four units on the fourteenth through sixteenth floors.”
Quinn shrugged one shoulder as if both accepting that she’d been wrong, but proving that she was right at the same time. “Okay, so you are spicing it up a bit with the different floors. Why not renovate the buildings that are already in place? They have character, history and won’t destroy people’s lives. Let the people who are living there now stay in their residences.”
He sighed and shook his head. “As much as I enjoy your blasé bias and innocent naiveté about building matters, the buildings you are so blithely asking me to renovate are beaten up, poorly constructed, rat-infested – not to mention squatter filled edifices. And if that’s not bad enough, they don’t meet current building standards regarding electrical wiring, many of which were built during the depression era time period and inferior materials were used. That’s not even including the problem that almost every single one of the buildings wouldn’t be able to stand up to an earthquake.”
“Yes but…”
“I’m not finished,” he interrupted, leaning forward so that his impossibly broad shoulder was close to her own. “Steele Industries builds superior homes that, so far, have stood the test of the past decade. The quality ratings from residents are not just above average, they are the best in the industry. We don’t scrimp on materials. We hire only the best workers, which is why I want you to come work for me, and,” he didn’t give her a chance to stop him as he said, “the residents bring in money to help fund community centers, bring in additional jobs, and we encourage community action programs and resident committees. So, the residents who move into a Steele Industries building form a strong, cohesive community that fight for the rights of each other, bring in strong businesses and, because of the retail aspect of each building, which gives priority to small business owners, encourage industriousness and innovation.”
With that, he sat back and watched her lovely features, fascinated by the play of emotions rushing across her face. He’d witnessed disbelief, suspicion, shock and, by the end of his speech, admiration, which she quickly tried to hide by bowing her head. In response, he plucked another pencil out of her hair and was rewarded by the whole mass tumbling down. Her fingers tried to stop the tumble, but they weren’t up to the task so the silky strands fell down, draping over her shoulders like a dark, silken wave.
“Why did you do that?” she gasped, trying to get the pencil back from him even while her other hand tried to grab for the two remaining pencils still in her hair. But because of the way her hair had been put up, the last two pencils were tangled in the waves, not easily extracted.
“Because your hair is beautiful down around your shoulders like that. And I wanted to see how long it was.”
He lifted his plate back up and started eating again, wondering what her next move would be. He didn’t think he’d won the argument. In fact, he hoped he hadn’t. He accepted that he truly enjoyed arguing with the lovely, idealistic woman with the most amazing eyes. It wasn’t just the color, which was a startling lilac that he’d never seen on another woman outside of Elizabeth Taylor, but the expressions on her features. There was no guile to her, no artifice. Everything she was feeling was right there, ready for him to see and almost experience.
The woman’s entire demeanor was foreign to him. She was wearing the most hideous outfit, and yet, it worked on her. Every luscious curve, every animated expression, was a reflection of herself. Even her clothes, which were honest, authentic, and colorful.
Not that all of those clothes wouldn’t look better on the floor of his bedroom!
Oh yes, he knew exactly where this relationship was headed, even if the lovely Quinn was trying to pretend otherwise.
“I’ll acknowledge that some of the buildings might be problematic in an earthquake,” she started off, only to be interrupted by his firm voice.
“All of them, Quinn. They were built before anyone even knew that there could be an earthquake in Seattle. Most of them were built quickly after the fire of 1890, a time period in which the city grew rapidly and lax building standards were incorporated. The gold rush came in and made things worse. So taking down these buildings which, yes, might have more character than what we will build, are actually creating more affordable housing for the residents moving in. The people that are moving to Seattle now don’t want to live in run-down, dangerous buildings. They want a place where they know their families will be safe, that they can afford without taking out a mortgage that could kill their budgets in the long term.”
Those beautiful lilac eyes narrowed as he finished and he couldn’t stop his eyes from glancing down at those lips that would look perfect if she…
Don’t go there, he told himself. Shifting, he nodded once again to her lunch. “Eat,” he encouraged. “You can’t beat me on an empty stomach.”
She huffed a bit but lifted her plate and stabbed a plump scallop. “Oh, you’d be surprised at how easily I can argue on an empty stomach.”
He laughed softly as he shook his head. “I don’t think anything you do would surprise me, Quinn.”
She stared at him as he took another bite, thinking that his statement sounded suspiciously like a compliment. But surely…?
“Eat!” he commanded, then winked to soften the order. “After lunch, we’ll head down to the area and you can show me what you’re talking about, and I can show you my side of the story.”
Quinn stared at the man, wondering what he was up to. It seemed like an ideal way to argue her point. She could introduce him to the people who were still living in the area, demonstrate how they were trying to get things back to some semblance of a community and maybe he could understand their stories, realize how important that area was for the city. Yes, there might be a few buildings he could point out that lacked a solid foundation and might need some rebuilding in order to make them safer, but she could also show him the architecture that would be lost if he tore down entire city blocks of historic buildings. She could introduce him to some of the wonderful residents who had come to her, asking her to stop the teardown of the area.
With that mental plan in place, she nodded her head and stabbed another shrimp. “Fine. You show me your side of the argument and I’ll listen. But…” she stopped when those flashing green eyes looked into her own. “But…” she started again, “you have to listen to the current residents. You have to let me show you around. Deal?”
He nodded his head. “Only if you eat the rest of that pasta,” he agreed.
Quinn looked down at the amazing meal and smiled. “You’ve got yourself a deal,” she replied back and took another delicious bite. “But I’m paying for this meal.”
He leaned back against the soft leather of the sofa. “I think it’s cute that you think so.”
She laughed, delighted with him despite the sexual tension that seemed to be weaving between the two of them.
They ate and argued about architecture, building materials, community values, and different aspects of how a neighborhood develops over time. She couldn’t finish the enormous meal, but she was able to eat more than half of it as long as one didn’t count the fact that she pushed most of the vegetables off to the side. It still looked like she ate more since he snatched most of her vegetables.
So when he took her hand and pulled her up from the leather sofa, she was shocked at how close they were.
He stopped, looking down into her expressive eyes, not allowing her to pull her hand out of his. “You know where this is going, right Quinn?” he asked softly, wanting to reach out and touch her incredible looking skin. But he restrained himself, not wanting her to be afraid of him.
“We’re heading over to Sandy Rock Point,” she told him. “We’re going to look at the buildings. I’m going to introduce you to…”
She couldn’t finish that sentence since he reached up and touched her cheek, distracting her from whatever it was she’d been about to say to him.
“You keep on telling yourself that,” he argued right back. When he bent lower, the touch of his lips against hers was soft, encouraging. Completely different from the kiss she’d been expecting from this man. Different, but just as devastating.
She wasn’t aware of her hands reaching up to clench at the lapels of his jacket, or the way her feet moved her closer, her softness pressing against the hardness of his body, the muscles making her feel more feminine somehow. Had she moved closer? Or had his hands wrapped around her waist, pulling her into him? She wasn’t sure, nor did she care. All she knew was that this man was holding her gently, but firmly. She knew she couldn’t pull away, and she didn’t want to. Her world was in chaos simply because of his kiss and the crazy sensations zinging through her.
He was cheating, she thought, when he finally lifted his head to look down at her. His strong fingers were splayed out against her back, holding her close, making her tremble. Or was the trembling from his kiss? From the promise in that caress?
She didn’t know. Nor did she care. And no way was she going to examine the possibilities.
“We need to go,” she whispered, then cleared her throat, wanting to sound more confident.
“Do we?” he asked, his voice huskier, even deeper than before.
She stared up at his green eyes for longer than she should have. When she realized what she was doing, she nodded her head. “Yes,” she replied, then forced her fingers to unclench from his jacket. She noticed that the material was messed up, but she wasn’t going to point that out to him. No way!
Turning around, she started to lift the plates from the coffee table.
“Leave that. My assistant will clean up.”
Quinn ignored him and lifted both plates up with her hands, carrying them back over to the boxes that were still on the conference room table. “That’s exactly the kind of attitude that I deplore,” she told him, her shoulders stiff with anger. She was angry because she’d forgotten that this man took people for granted, his company was a business that looked for the almighty profit no matter what the cost to the humans around it might be.
“You deplore someone doing their job?” he teased, fully understanding what she meant but enjoying watching her walk away. He’d been so focused on her eyes, her beautiful skin and hair, well, and her breasts, that he hadn’t taken the time to fully appreciate the back view. It was exceptional! The long skirt flowed over her round bottom and he wanted to tear that awful denim jacket off her shoulders so that he could enjoy her tiny waist as well. Damn, she was beautiful! All over beautiful!
“I deplore arrogant men asking someone to clean up after them. You have two good hands. Clean up your own messes.”
She was walking out of his office by that point and he was impressed with how easily she could balance the two plates and two empty wine glasses in her hands. As a former bartender himself, he recognized the skill in her. He’d waited tables, tended bar and worked construction on the weekends to put himself through school. So he wasn’t ashamed now when he hired staff to clean up. He worked twenty hour days and expected superior work from all of his employees.
Just as expected, his assistant jumped up from her desk when she saw Quinn with her hands full. “Goodness, I’ll get that!” she gushed, taking the plates and glasses out of Quinn’s hands.
He only chuckled when the delightful woman turned around and glared as his assistant disappeared into the executive kitchen where she would put the plates and silverware into the dishwasher that was for this exact purpose. Many of his meals were eaten during meetings since he refused to waste time. Efficiency was mandatory, even for himself.
When she continued to stare at his retreating assistant’s back, he laughed and took her hand, leading her out of his office. “Come on, beautiful. Let’s go argue about something.”
Quinn glared up at him, but she followed, hurrying along since he had about ten inches on her, so his stride was much longer than hers. “Slow down,” she finally grumbled when they reached the elevator.
He turned and faced her, pinning her against the wall. “Oh, we’re not slowing down, Quinn. I don’t think we could slow down even if we wanted to.” His eyes flicked over hers slowly. “But you don’t want to.”
She opened her mouth to argue with him, but he pushed away from the wall only moments before the elevator pinged and the doors opened up on the busy lobby floor. “Come on. Save your arguments for when I’ll believe them.”
She almost laughed at his expression but, thankfully, was able to control herself as he put that strong hand to the small of her back, guiding her through the glass doors. Several people quickly stepped out of their way and Quinn wasn’t sure if it was because he was the big, bad, mean boss or because he was just an intimidating figure.
Probably both, she considered as she walked over to the limousine. She hesitated to step inside, looking up at him and relieved that the rain had stopped. Still no sunshine, but a cessation in the rain was good.
“We can’t drive over to this area in your limousine,” she told him, tilting her head back so she could see him. He was so darn tall!
And handsome. And hot.
Uh! He was the enemy! She had to keep telling herself that because her body was sending her brain other messages! Quinn absolutely could not consort with the enemy!
“Why can’t we? The vehicle has wheels and is fully capable of maneuvering around the streets of Seattle, I have an intelligent driver named Darryl who knows the way. I don’t see the problem.”
Quinn glared up at him, trying hard not to laugh at his charm. Enemy, she reminded herself, even as she peered around the obnoxious man’s broad shoulders to peek at the driver who was still holding the door open. She couldn’t stifle the giggle when the driver winked at her before resuming his serious expression.
Looking back up at the man in question, she started to shake her head. “That’s not what I mean and you know it.”
“Get in the car, Quinn,” he replied, leaning down closer to her.
“No. Let’s take the bus over to the neighborhood.”
The man stared at her for a long moment, a stunned look in his eyes. After that pregnant pause, he threw back his head and laughed. Actually laughed!
When he had himself back under control, he looked down at her, laughter still shining in those devilish green eyes as he shook his head. “I’ve spent enough time on public transportation, Quinn. I’m not doing it now. Get in the limousine or I’m going to spank your adorable butt.”
Immediately, her hands whipped around to cover her bottom, her mouth falling open in horror. “You can’t…surely you weren’t so… ungentlemanly as to be looking at my bottom!” she hissed, leaning closer so that the driver couldn’t hear.
Bryce chuckled again. “Quinn, I’ve kissed you and later, I will have you naked and on my bed while I do much worse things than simply look. So yeah, trust me, I noticed your butt. And your legs and your br…”
Quinn covered his mouth before he could finish that declaration. “A gentleman wouldn’t look!” she whispered, looking at the others strolling along on the sidewalk, many of them glancing her way as she tried to stifle the man’s provocative talk.
Bryce simply pulled her hand away but kept control of her wrist as he commented, “I’m not a gentleman. Never assume. Now get in the car before I do something to make you get in.”
His body tightened with anticipation when her head tilted slightly to the side, almost as if she were waiting, considering the possibilities. But in the end, she ducked into the back of the vehicle.
Yes, he watched, admiring her butt as she moved into the dark interior. And yes, he knew exactly what he wanted from her. Planning, he thought. He was extremely good at planning and strategizing. That’s how he’d built up his company from a simple construction business to a powerhouse in the industry.
So one little female wasn’t going to get away from him. Especially not one as enticing and challenging as this one!
He ducked in after her, almost laughing when he saw her sitting on the opposite side of the limousine from him. Smart woman, he thought silently.
Daryl had the limousine moving quickly, smoothly pulling away from the curb and they headed into the Seattle traffic toward the waterfront building site.
“Tell me about the other cases you’re handling,” he said, settling back against the leather seats. He didn’t really care about the other cases. He wanted to know more about her, about what interested her. Information, he told himself. It was the best way to build up his strategy.
She shrugged a delicate shoulder and glared back at him. “What do you want to know?”
“How many cases are you handling now?”
“About forty, at the moment.”
She heard his whistle and shrugged again. “It isn’t so bad. I get to meet a lot of really great people.”
He nodded, asking her other questions about the cases she might handle in her group. Apparently, there was a wide range of cases that were brought to The Legal Aid Group and he was impressed with her depth of knowledge. She handled everything from divorces to civil suits, representing her clients even in labor disputes.
When they arrived, Daryl simply pulled up outside of the main building where there were still some residents.
“Ready?” she asked, a gamin grin spreading over her features.
Bryce chuckled. “I suspect that you think I’m going to be shocked by what I’m about to see.”
She stepped gracefully out of the vehicle and waited for him on the sidewalk. When he was once again standing over her, she smiled up at him. “I think that you’re so used to being wealthy that you don’t know what it’s like to wonder where your next meal is going to come from.”
“And you do?” he asked, fascinated.
She shook her head, that soft, silky hair glistening in the dim sunlight. “No. I’ve been one of the lucky ones. I had a warm home and caring parents. Even college was relatively easy for me, since they were able to pay for most of it. And now,” she tilted her head away as if dismissing any hardships her small salary probably created in her life. “Well now, I get to meet people and really help them. That’s worth a lot.”
“Where do you live?” he asked.
She named the street over by one of the lower income areas and he had to grit his teeth to not say something. A woman as beautiful as Quinn walking around that neighborhood at night wasn’t safe.
“Don’t you dare!” she laughed, waving her finger up at him.
“Don’t I dare what?” he demanded.
“Don’t tell me that I should move to a safer neighborhood. I love my apartment and the people that live around me are wonderful. Come on,” she said and led the way toward the playground. “There’s a family I want you to meet.”
Bryce followed at a more leisurely pace, thinking that she really was quite beautiful. He wasn’t sure if it was just because of her smile, or because of her figure. Either way, she was going to be his.
“Yo! Don’t tell me that the awesome Steele man has come back to get crushed once again!”
Bryce pulled his eyes away from Quinn but, thankfully, she was too far away to have heard the group of young men standing off to the side, basketball in hand. He looked once more at Quinn and saw that she was talking with a group of ladies.
Turning back to the men, he walked over to them, a smirk on his face. “Joey, what’s up?” he asked, shaking the younger man’s hand. “Life treating you right?”
The group of young men gathered around, talking about the construction jobs and what was happening around town. Bryce had ensured that all of the guys who wanted a job in this area got one, knowing that not a lot of people trusted the residents of this area, even though they were generally good people.
After several moments, the teasing inevitably led to basketball with most of the men asserting that Bryce had lost his edge after being “coddled” in his glass tower. Of course, that teasing couldn’t go unanswered and, after one more look toward Quinn who was now holding a small infant and looking in his direction curiously, he tossed his coat on one of the benches, his tie landing on top of it even as he rolled up the cuffs of his shirt, sliding the cuff-links into a pocket. “Okay, little boys,” he taunted, “let’s see what you’ve got.”
Immediately, the ball was tossed to him and he caught it easily, taking the ball down the court. He had a couple of inches on most of the guys, plus more experience. He easily made the first shot, twisting his body between two of the muscled men for a two point lead.
The others were duly impressed and Bryce stupidly looked over to ensure that Quinn was still safe. When he saw that she was sitting on the steps of one of the buildings, he continued with the game, but unfortunately, the guys had taken advantage of his distraction and shot through the gap, scoring again.
Back and forth, the points went up, neither team really winning definitively, but Bryce didn’t push as hard as he could, knowing that these guys needed some source of pride.
In the end, his team won, but only by one point. He laughed and rolled his sleeves down, feeling the familiar burn of his muscles after a good game. Thankfully, it wasn’t too hot outside, although he was sweaty and needed a shower.
But when he looked over to where Quinn had been at the beginning of the game, he found she’d disappeared. The ladies were there, many of them throwing out taunts to the other men on the basketball court. But no Quinn. No shining hair with laughing lilac eyes glaring at him for ignoring her.
Damn! Where had she gone?!
His heart pounded in his chest as he searched the mostly deserted streets. He might know these people since he’d come from this neighborhood, but Quinn was like a soft, fluffy kitten surrounded by kitty-eating lions. They wouldn’t hesitate to harm her, rob her or…worse!
“Where’s the woman I was with?” he demanded.
“Don’t worry about that pretty lady,” one of the guys said, but Bryce was already sprinting down the street in the most likely direction for her to have disappeared.
He’d just rounded the corner when he spotted her, surrounded by a rough group of guys that he knew to be gang members. She looked petite and vulnerable as she stared up at the rowdy men, some of whom were laughing.
He called out a warning and all six men turned around, one of them pushing Quinn back behind him. “What do you want?” the man demanded. His head tilted to the side as his eyes narrowed. “Aren’t you that snooty ass who got out of the fancy car an hour ago?” he demanded.
Bryce wasn’t going to put up with that kind of crap. He knew how their minds worked, having been there himself at one point. “Let her go,” he growled, moving forward without even slowing down.
“Dude, you’d better back away!”
“Not until you let her go!”
One of the guys was jerked forward and Bryce’s eyes lazered onto him. Sure enough, Quinn stepped out from between the men and Bryce started to reach for her, needing her to be safe.
“Bryce, I’m…”
Unfortunately, she didn’t get the words out fast enough before Bryce pulled her behind him.
Quinn was sick of the men in this neighborhood trying to protect “the pretty, little lady”. She was perfectly capable of protecting herself. “Stop!” she yelled out and all of the men instantly froze. Their belligerent stances relaxed, but only slightly. “Just stop!” she said again, this time putting her hands up, one palm pressing against Bryce’s chest and the other holding up a finger, warning the gang members to stay put.
“Is this guy bothering you, Ms. Quinn?” one of the guys with a big scar across his face and giant pants, asked.
Quinn shook her head. “Not at all. He’s the man who is…”
“Hey! I know who you are,” Anthony interrupted. “Ms. Quinn, I thought you were fighting against this guy. But looks like you’re about to be all chummy with him. What’s up?”
Quinn turned to glare at Anthony. “Don’t even try it,” she snapped. “You know perfectly well from your sister’s case that I fight hard and I’ll fight dirty if I have to.”
The men all laughed, nodding their heads. One of them elbowed another. “Yeah, she got your sister out of that mess last year. Don’t mess with Ms. Quinn.”
Then all the men turned to look at Bryce, the biggest one jutting his chin out as if pointing. “So what business do you have with our lawyer?” he demanded, anger and obstinacy oozing from him.
Bryce glanced at Quinn, then at the men, then back to her. “You mean, these guys are trying to protect you, and I’m trying to protect you from your protectors?”
Quinn once again rolled her eyes. “And I don’t need protecting from anyone!” she explained with as much patience as she could muster under the circumstances. “Although, I sincerely appreciate the gesture.” She looked at the six men behind her, sending a silent message to all of them. “I’m here to show Mr. Steele around, explain why he shouldn’t tear down all of these lovely buildings.”
The men all laughed, shaking their heads. “Shoot. He should tear them all down and build up something that’s worthwhile, Ms. Quinn. Don’t stop him!”
Quinn ignored Tommy, focusing all of her attention on Bryce. “Let’s go. Just ignore them. Come with me. I’ll take you on a tour.”
Bryce followed, interested to see what she might point out to him. As they walked, he had to be impressed with her knowledge of architecture. He’d studied it a bit in college, so he understood what she was saying, but as she pointed out the art deco styles as well as what some in Seattle called “The Box” architecture, he was amazed at not only her knowledge, but also her passion for the subject.
And it wasn’t just her knowledge of architecture. She knew the people who lived in each of the buildings, the people who had moved out and why, where they were living now. As a tour guide, one couldn’t have had a better one than Quinn. It helped that she was vivacious and beautiful, definitely not anything like the woman he was expecting to run into today.
“So?” she asked, looking up at him with hope in her eyes.
He wanted to laugh, but she was so serious. “Do you attack everything in life with as much enthusiasm?”
Quinn was surprised by his question. She’d been expecting something else, something more cynical. But the soft expression in his eyes was startling. “Um…I suppose so.”
“How old are you?” He reached out and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. She’d tried to contain it with another pencil, but the silky strands just kept coming loose, flowing down her back.
She wasn’t sure why he was asking that question, but she felt a bit defensive. “Twenty-eight. Why is that important?” she demanded.
He laughed softly. “It isn’t. I was just wondering.”
She blinked, wishing she could read his thoughts more easily. She definitely wouldn’t play against him at poker. “So why did you ask?”
“Because I wanted to know.”
She tilted her head slightly. “How old are you?”
“Thirty-five.” His lips quirked in a slight smile. “Why is that important?”
She shrugged and his eyes were drawn to that horrible denim jacket. Damn, he wanted to rip that article of clothing off of her. Well, to be fair, he wanted to strip all of her clothes off of her. But the denim jacket could be shredded after that.
Immediately, she felt the tension increase. Stepping back, she tried to break the connection that seemed to be weaving between the two of them, but the delicate strands of sexual awareness inexorably tightened around the two of them. Trying to resist, she cleared her throat and pulled her eyes away from his. “I’m going to go home now,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
He shook his head when he realized she meant she would take the bus to her neighborhood. “I’ll take you home.”
Quinn bit her lip, looked at the middle of his chest as she contemplated that offer. When she looked up at him, he could see the wariness in her eyes. “I think it would be…better if I took the bus.”
He laughed even as his hand reached out and took her arm, then his hand slid down to her back. “Not a chance in hell, Quinn,” he told her as he led her back over to his limousine.
She pressed back against his hand, but he wasn’t relenting. “I don’t need to be driven home, Mr…” she stopped before she said, “Steele” because the look in his eyes warned her that there would be repercussions. And darn it, her mind actually considered pushing him, just to enjoy whatever punishment he might dole out.
Uh! What was she thinking?!
So instead of arguing, or even calling him by his first name, she simply ducked into the limousine and sat down across from him, her arms crossed over her chest in defiance.
“You’re not always going to get your way, you know.”
He laughed as he settled into the soft leather. “Of course not. If I’d had my way, we would have spent the afternoon in bed, making love. But here we are, not in bed.”
Quinn shivered, because there was a definite “yet” that hadn’t been articulated.
They barely spoke as the limousine wove its way through the busy Seattle streets. What used to be a bustling town had turned into a thriving metropolitan area over the past several years, with many new companies moving into the area.
She sighed with relief when the long, dark vehicle came to a smooth stop in front of her building. It suddenly occurred to her that she’d never given him her address. Her eyes narrowed on the man sitting in front of her. “How did your driver know where I lived?” she asked, feeling both invaded and secure. She focused on the invasiveness for the moment, not wanting to examine why she would feel more protected with this man knowing where she lived.
“I know a lot of things, Quinn,” he said softly, with a seductive huskiness to his voice.
She decided that caution was the better side of valor in this situation. “Gotcha.” Reaching for the door handle, she exited with as much dignity as her trembling knees would allow. Why was she so nervous? She’d had boyfriends in the past.
But as Bryce stepped out right behind her, forcing her to move quickly or be overwhelmed once more, she acknowledged that none of her previous boyfriends had been like Bryce Steele. Not even remotely like him in any way.
“I’ll walk you to your door,” he told her when they just stood there on the sidewalk for a long moment.
“Why?” she asked, confused, turned on, scared. Well, terrified, actually. Her mind instantly went back to that kiss they’d shared earlier and knew that he was more dangerous than she’d originally thought. She couldn’t allow him to do that to her again. Especially when they were close to her apartment.
No, she couldn’t allow that. Not at all!
“I’ll walk myself to the door. But thank you for listening.”
He shook his head. “No. I’ll walk you to your door, Quinn.”
She huffed a bit and shook her head. “No way.”
“Why?” He moved closer, towering over her with those green eyes conveying the intensity of what he was feeling. “Because you know I’m going to kiss you?”
She shook her head. “You’re not going to kiss me,” she said, refusing to say his name. It just seemed too intimate, somehow.
“I’m going to kiss you, Quinn. And so much more.”
She’d been worried about him kissing her at her door, but the mention of “more” just made her stomach muscles clench with anticipation. Oh my!
“No. You’re the enemy,” she told him. “I’m going to fight you on this project.”
He reached out to touch her cheek. “I will enjoy your efforts, Quinn.” And without any warning, he pulled her into his arms. She didn’t have even a moment to utter a protest, to tell him no, before his lips covered hers.
And then she was lost. That kiss, the way his tongue moved against her lips, demanding entry and, when she gave it, that tongue moved into her mouth, teasing her, showing her what his body would eventually do to hers.
She was on fire, lifting herself up onto her toes so she could move closer to him and even that wasn’t enough. Her hands moved from resting against his chest to sliding up around his neck, her fingers searching for and finding the warmth of his skin, reveling in the rough texture of his cheek and rock-hard jawline.
When he lifted his head up, she whimpered. Actually whimpered!
“Have dinner with me tomorrow night,” he said as his hands continued to hold her against his hard body.
Quinn would have thought…if she could get her brain to work properly. But with his strong hands spread out against her back and that…part…of him pressing against her stomach, she was brain-dead. Nothing was going on inside of her head except…
“No. I can’t.” Quinn mentally patted herself on the back as she pulled out of his arms, relieved when he allowed her to put some space between their bodies. She tried hard…very hard…to not look down at that part of him. She might have glanced because…well, because she was a woman and Bryce Steele was more of a man than she’d thought existed outside of a fantasy book.
“I have to go.”
“Invite me inside, Quinn.”
She was startled by the command and, for a long moment, she considered agreeing to his order.
But then sanity returned and she shook her head, taking another step backwards. “No. You’re the enemy. I have to go.”
She made it a few steps before she heard his words. “If I stopped the project, would you invite me inside?”
She was so horrified by what he was suggesting that she swung around to confront him. “You wouldn’t do that, would you?”
He laughed. “No. But I wanted to see your reaction.” He closed the distance and pulled her once again into his arms. This time, there was no gentle pressure. This was full-out passion. This was dominance and exhilaration! This was….
She stopped thinking and simply clung to him as his mouth plundered hers.
When he finally released her, she was so dizzy, she wasn’t sure if she was standing on the sidewalk or had fallen over. She shook her head, trying to gain her perspective once again. But all she saw was the tall, handsome man striding toward his dark limousine before disappearing inside and, a moment later, the vehicle pulling away from the curb.
Quinn watched with a dazed hunger until the limousine turned the corner and she could no longer see the red lights. And even then, she stood on the cracked sidewalk of her small apartment building, shaking fingers reaching up to gently touch her lips. They were still tingling and, if she were more sane, she wouldn’t be thinking that she could still taste the man.
But that was ridiculous, she admonished herself. With a sigh, she forced her feet to carry her into her building.
The man was driving her nuts, she thought.