MY MOUTH FELL open, stunned by his words. “Dinner? You mean like a business dinner?”
“No.” A small smiled teased his mouth as he kept his curious gaze upon me. “No business talk.”
“A date?” Panicked, I pressed my fingers to my lips to prevent any more ridiculous presumptions from pouring out.
“That’s what I’d call it, yes. Do they call it something different in England?” He still had that sexy half-smile tempting his mouth, whilst his eyes burnt into me expectantly. Somehow, I broke free from the inexplicable hold he was having over me, and took a much-needed gulp of what I sadly discovered was only sparkling water.
“Dating the boss isn’t really my thing.” Thank God my head was talking, gratefully overruling any irrational ideas my heart was having. Because, for a split second, I actually wanted to say yes.
“You don’t work for me. Well, you’re not directly beneath me. Which is unfortunate…”
The arrogance of his smirk made my skin bristle with irritation. I tried thinking of a smug response to his blatant innuendo. “You know what I mean,” I muttered, failing miserably.
“We can do lunch if you’d prefer?” Blake stared at me with interest, like he found our conversation utterly fascinating.
I laughed and shook my head. “I don’t think so.” Drawing my eyes over fine, symmetrical features, I noticed his jaw working beneath the contours of his clean-shaven face. He rose to his feet and turned, giving a close up view of that arse. Jesus.
“It’s only a date, not a proposal,” he stressed, sauntering away. “We’d have a great time together. Wouldn’t you agree?” When he reached his desk, he turned, and locked eyes with mine.
His words were arrogant, but the suggestive way he purred them made my skin flush. I wiped my damp palm down my thigh as X-rated images replayed in my mind. I couldn’t ever recall being so turned on.
“I want to discover everything about you,” he declared. “How do I make that happen?”
“Are you always so forward?”
“I don’t play games.” He started coming towards me with more than an alluring edge of confidence. “If somebody has something I want, or need, I’m prepared to make sacrifices in order to get it.” What the hell was he sacrificing by coming after me so blatantly?
“And you think I have something? Why, exactly?” I raised a brow, challenging him to come up with something more inventive than breasts and a vagina.
Blake shrugged noncommittally, stopping just short of where I sat. “Something in your remarkable eyes tells me you could be good for me.”
I lowered my gaze, crossing my legs. The roguish glint in his eyes told me he’d be really bad for me. “Well, I’m not interested.”
“I think you are, Miss Collins.”
His overconfidence was fully justified. I had to end this somehow, but the force of his will had knocked any coherent thought from my brain. I stood, and sidestepped towards the door. It happened at precisely the same time he moved around the sofa.
Standing not two feet in front of me, one hand tucked casually into his trouser pocket, Blake asked, “What do you say?” in that muted, sexy tone.
Sexual attraction charged the air between us, the draw towards him stronger than anything I’d experienced before. I dragged all the air I could into my lungs, my heart racing in my chest. Whilst extremely tempted, I wasn’t about to back down anytime soon. This situation was a disaster waiting to happen.
“Thank you, but I don’t think it wise to mix business with pleasure.” I rushed to the door, desperate to get out.
“You’re saying no?” he scoffed behind me.
“I’m saying no.” I rattled the door handle, remembering too late that he’d locked it. “I don’t really have that big an appetite.” I cursed under my breath at how obvious my discomfort was in my voice.
The sound of his luxurious brown wingtips moving across the polished wood grew louder as he shortened the gap between us. Then, a light outdoorsy fragrance, woody and clean—not as heavy as cologne—swept over me. Blake was right behind me. Feeling his breath tickle the back of my neck, and the light touch of his left hand at my hip, told me exactly how near he was.
“Well, then,” he murmured, his lips brushing my ear, “it seems I’ll be satisfying my hunger alone this evening.” A wash of heat ran through me, but I still shivered under the weight of his magnetic presence. He reached around me, his powerful frame pressing into my back, and unlocked the doors.
I yanked one open, swallowing the unexpected knot of yearning blossoming from our far too intimate interaction, and fled to the safety of the lifts. Blake was beside me, his one stride matching my two, guiding me with one hand at the small of my back. I tried ignoring him, and the heat surging to my groin from his touch, but the shock on Ramón and the blonde’s faces as we reached reception made it impossible to keep up the pretence.
The lobby doors were both propped open. I slammed the call button, relieved when a lift arrived immediately. I rushed in and hit the ‘8’ button.
“It’s been a pleasure, Miss Collins,” he murmured in that seductive tone.
With a twinkle in his eyes and the hint of a smirk on his lips, it was clear he hadn’t accepted my brush off. Unnerved by his expression, I stepped back, not uttering a word whilst I fixated on my shoes.
As the doors began closing, I peeked up and was greeted with an utterly disarming smile. I sagged against the cool metal interior walls, all the air rushing from my lungs in one huge breath as they shut.
What the hell just happened?
SHORTLY after five, I packed up, eager to get home. My head still throbbed, my body dehydrated from the after effects of last night. Making a mental note never to drink so many tequila shots again—at least not during the week—I took my bag and went to collect Mai. She’d been unusually quiet since I’d returned from my meeting, so I was dreading the car journey home because I knew a Mai Harvey interrogation waited for me.
I found her bent over her desk drawers, rummaging around as though she’d lost something. “Ready, Mai?”
Her head bobbed up. “Just have to find my cigarettes. They’re here somewhere…”
“Again?” Mai was great at organising other people, but her own life lacked the same discipline. She had to be the most disorganised person I knew. “Meet you by the lifts.”
I slipped my sunglasses on my head, offering goodbyes as I passed my colleagues. When I reached the foyer, I called the lift.
“Got them!” Mai cried, scurrying through the glass doors, waving the packet in the air. “They were at the bottom of my bag.”
“You should give those up. Disgusting habit.”
“Yeah, yeah. One day.” She shoved me into the half-full car, wedging herself between me and another woman. “Now, tell me what the hell happened earlier. You’ve been antsy ever since you got back.”
The last thing I wanted was to discuss my encounter with Blake in front of other colleagues. “I’ll tell you in a minute,” I whispered.
Thanks to secure Basement parking, I’d left my black VW Golf overnight so I could enjoy a few drinks. “Are you going out tonight or having a romantic night in?” I asked, pulling my keys from my tote.
Mai sighed heavily. “Mitch is working. Again.” She checked the time on her phone. “I should catch him for a bit before he leaves.”
I raised my brows. “A bit of what?”
She groaned. “I should be so lucky.”
We didn’t even get as far as the parking exit gate before I was bombarded with questions. I had all the time in the world to fill her in as we crawled along in the heavy traffic heading through the canyon.
“Why the hell didn’t you say yes?” Mai cried after learning Blake had invited me to dinner.
“Be realistic, Mai. He didn’t want to eat, he wanted to get laid.”
“God, could you imagine…” Mai’s eyes misted dreamily. “I’d have him as a friend with orgasmic benefits any day of the week.”
“We certainly aren’t friends. I don’t even know him.” I swerved to avoid the bus pulling out at the crossroads just as the lights changed to red. Driving an automatic on the opposite side of the road was still something I was getting used to.
Mai snickered. “No strings sex with a rich CEO, not to mention one who’s gorgeous. Not many people get that offer every day.”
“I’m sure they do if Blake has anything to do with it. You’ve seen for yourself how flirtatious he is.”
“You’ve got balls, Kara. I bet he doesn’t get knocked back often. Not sure I could, and you know how much I love Mitch.” Mai’s voice softened at the mention of her fiancé.
“You’re probably one of few women in this world he hasn’t slept with—yet.”
“I’ve worked there three years, and never heard a single rumour about him sleeping with the staff. Flirt? Possibly. Fuck? Never.” Mai tapped the cigarette she was desperate to smoke on the packet clasped in her lap. I refused to let her fill my car with the stench of cigarette smoke. “You, girlfriend, are the first confirmed case.”
“Yeah, I’m a real trailblazer,” I scoffed, not believing a word. “He’s probably thrown money at them to keep quiet.”
When we came to another standstill, I glanced across at Mai. She was chewing the inside of her mouth, her neatly plucked brows drawn in, revealing her contemplation. Her silence forced me to continue talking. “I admit he’s extremely charismatic and could easily charm his way into any woman’s bed. But it’s more what he didn’t say that got to me.”
I jumped at the sound of honking horns and pitied the homeless man pushing his trolley full of rubbish bags sluggishly across the road, the target of everyone’s frustrations. “Most women would’ve caved,” I continued, finally moving again. “If I wanted instant gratification, I’d have probably jumped into his lap without hesitation.”
“You’re definitely not interested then?”
“Why would I be?”
“Um, lemme think.” Mai raised a hand, using the cigarette as a pointer to count her fingers as she reeled off her reasons. “Apart from the megabucks and the drop-dead face, I bet there’s an awesome body inside those fuck-me suits. Those glutes could crack nuts.” She paused for a minute, distracted by her observation. “And without doubt, he’d do you hard and dirty, leave you completely sated, yet begging for more. You’re right, Kara—can’t think of any good reason why.”
Mai was the little devil on my shoulder, voicing my own inner thoughts I was too timid to express. We arrived outside her complex in Hollywood. As usual, she swore when she couldn’t open her door; my habit of locking us in for safety drove her mad. I unlocked it and twisted to face her, leaving the engine running so the air-conditioning didn’t cut out. “You know I want more than that. I need it. Getting my life back is happening slowly but surely, so I don’t need another man screwing it all up again.”
“I get it.” Mai air-kissed me goodbye and climbed out. Before closing the door, she leant back into the car. “Consider it, though. Imagine having him as a fuck buddy.” She smiled sweetly and shut the door before I could reply, lighting up as she skipped to the front doors.
Travelling the short distance to my apartment, I became conscious of how strung up I was. Since crossing paths with Mr Blake, an ache had developed inside of me; a flame of sexual frustration, gradually on the burn. One now licking through me until I felt feverish and desperate to find some relief. My black driving flats pressed harder on the accelerator, wanting to get home faster.
I needed an orgasm.