Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Boss?

by Nina Harrington

  ‘Absolutely. Which is why I’m taking you somewhere very, very exclusive. Think of it as your birthday present.’

  ‘Exclusive! I like the sound of that. Even if I wasn’t expecting a present. Is it very far?’

  He smiled, and surprised her by sliding around behind her so that his arms were wrapped around her waist, holding her tight against him. She felt the pressure of his head against the side of her face as he dropped his chin on to her shoulder, lifted his left arm and pointed.

  She pretended not to notice as his fingertips gently moved against her skin to flick the imaginary ends of her hair back over the collar of her wool coat, which was being warmed by Scott’s hot body.

  ‘For one night only, Elstrom Mapping has become Elstrom Fine Dining.’

  ‘We’re eating here! Wait a minute,’ she said and tried to turn around to face him but the wall of muscle wouldn’t move an inch. ‘I asked for hot food and a tablecloth. Cutlery would be nice too.’

  He brushed his stubbly cheek next to her throat so that when he spoke the words were whispered, hot and moist, in her ear. ‘The way I want to kiss you right now might get us arrested. Especially when I have something hot and spicy waiting inside. Would you like to find out more? Was that a nod? Excellent. Let’s go, birthday girl.’

  * * *

  Ten minutes later, Toni was starting to reconsider whether this was such a good idea after all.

  ‘You didn’t mention that walking upstairs wearing a blindfold would be involved,’ she giggled. ‘I hope you don’t think that my birthday party was my usual kind of social event. Please, tell me where I’m going. If fluffy handcuffs come out I may run.’

  Or perhaps not. But she didn’t want Scott to know that!

  His reply was a truly filthy low chuckle and he took even tighter hold of her waist and pulled her closer to him.

  ‘That would spoil the surprise.’

  He kissed her quickly on the top of the head, which made her giggle even louder. ‘Get ready,’ he whispered and their steps slowed. ‘We’ve arrived.’

  She felt him stretch forward and suddenly a very cold breeze whirled around her legs. Even the warmth of Scott’s body pressed along her side couldn’t block out that icy blast.

  Toni took a tight hold of her bag but gripped Scott’s hand tighter.

  ‘Is this going to be an igloo-style dining experience? Because I have to tell you that I left my thermals back at the house.’

  ‘Glad to hear it. Stay close. You’ll be fine, trust me.’

  One final squeeze of her hand and she took a step forward and cuddled even closer to Scott. Trust him! If he was planning to make her get up close and personal he was certainly doing a good job. It was freezing!

  ‘Promise not to peek for ten more seconds,’ Scott murmured and she could feel the heat of his breath against her neck and then the gentle tug of the ribbon covering her eyes being untied at the back and lifted away.

  She carefully half opened one eye and then instantly blinked and stared in amazement, her eyes scarcely able to take in what she was looking at.

  They were standing on a rooftop terrace with panoramic views across the London skyline. All the lights of the tall buildings and the winding curve of the River Thames were laid out in front of her on this clear, cold frosty night.

  Every light twinkled and gleamed as though it had been polished diamond-bright just for her. And above her every star in the heavens was clear and sharp against the dark night sky, with only a faint glow from the city below.

  It was as though she had been transported to her own personal roof garden overlooking London.

  Scott took a step closer to an elaborate wrought iron railing and they stood side by side for a second, their breaths hot and fast and making faint clouds of mist in the cold air.

  ‘Oh, Scott,’ was all she managed to say, one hand pressed against her throat and the other still clutching on to his arm.

  ‘Happy birthday, Antonia.’ He smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulders and hugged her. ‘Happy birthday.’

  * * *

  Scott grinned down at Toni, who was standing next to him with a totally shocked look on her face, and was rewarded with a stunning smile that seemed to reach into his heart and unlock the heavy metal gates that he had constructed since Alexa.

  There wasn’t a hint of artifice or pretence in this girl’s smile and everything he had been through to make this evening possible suddenly seemed a small price to pay.

  ‘Hey, birthday girl. Let’s get you out of the cold.’

  Holding tightly on to Toni’s waist, he nudged her back towards the door and heard her gasp of delight.

  ‘What? I cannot believe it.’ She laughed up into his face and then looked back to the enclosed conservatory area of the roof garden, where he had set up his father’s simple bistro table for dinner for two.

  Electric lamps flickered on each wall, there were candles on the table and a blast of warm air welcomed them the second they stepped inside.

  ‘My dad isn’t too keen on the cold so he built this extension from his third floor flat out on to our roof garden when we were kids. We can be out of the wind here but still get the view.’

  ‘Oh, wait until I tell Amy about this place.’ Toni chuckled as Scott guided her into the half glass conservatory. ‘It is actually warm and cosy. In fact I’m thinking of moving in. I love it. Want to make a trade?’

  ‘Not quite. I have two heaters on full power just for you. And. Hot. Food.’

  Scott guided Toni to her chair and watched her eyes pop with delight at the hot tray he had plugged in before he’d set out.

  It only took a moment to pour her a glass of red wine and then one for himself.

  ‘How about a toast? To lamb tagine and rice, made by the brilliant Moroccan restaurant down the street. A decent French red from the cellar. And good company. Cheers.’

  ‘Good company,’ Toni breathed as they touched wine glasses and then she took a sip and closed her eyes in pleasure as she savoured the wine. ‘That’s wonderful. In fact—’ she gazed around the conservatory, taking in the tiny sofa for one and the bookcases and plants ‘—this is all wonderful. When you do exclusive, you do it in style, Mr Elstrom. I approve.’

  ‘Then my work is done,’ he said, smiling. ‘I’m pleased you like it. The roof garden used to be one of my favourite places, even before this conservatory was built. There were fewer skyscraper buildings then and the stars seemed brighter somehow.’

  He knew that his voice must have trailed away because Toni had stopped gazing out to the balcony and her entire focus was on his face. Her soft brown eyes flickered with amber and gold to match the colours in her hair and the connection between them pulled them tighter and tighter until her sweet gentle voice broke the silence.

  ‘I would rather look at you,’ Toni whispered as she got to her feet, slipped off her coat and crossed the few steps between them.

  Her soft lips pressed against his and he tasted sweet red wine and all of the heat and warmth that he’d thought would never be offered to him again.

  ‘I’ve been thinking about your offer,’ she breathed, her gaze scanning his face as her fingertips traced gentle circles at the back of his head. ‘And do you know what? I’ve changed my mind. In fact, I like the idea of a fling. Very...’ she kissed his forehead ‘...very...’ then his temple ‘...much.’ And nipped the corner of his top lip with her teeth. Then her mouth lifted into the sweetest, cheekiest grin that he had ever seen. ‘If the offer is still open?’

  Her fingers cupped the back of his head as she angled her face and stepped closer so that her kiss could deepen and deepen, overwhelming and passionate.

  Clutching hold of her soft sweater, Scott rode the wave of sensation until the tip of her tongue found his. And the rules went out of the window. />
  In an instant her lush body was crushed against his and his hands were exploring every inch of that frame as his mouth took over, nibbling her upper lip, then moving down on to her throat and then lower until his cheek found a home next to her breast.

  Breathing became a second priority for a few minutes but he didn’t mind in the slightest. He was perfectly content to hold Toni in his arms and use his mouth to give her pleasure, knowing that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

  It was time to find out just where this journey would take them.

  * * *

  ‘Scott... The lights have gone out.’ Toni’s words were murmured in between gentle nibbles on his ears and in the hollow of his neck.

  ‘Probably a power cut,’ he whispered and wrapped his arms tighter around her body, drawing it closer to him and trying to find a comfier position on the narrow wicker sofa. The moon was higher and lighting the room but the candles had burnt out an hour ago.

  She nodded and then lifted her head. ‘I can smell something burning. Is it our dinner?’

  He chuckled for a full second before the smile dropped from his lips and with a deep groan of regret he took hold of Toni’s hands.

  ‘Nope. Not the dinner. That’s the smell of electric cable burning. Sorry, Toni. I need to find out where the problem is.’

  ‘Not without me,’ Toni said and they pulled on their clothes and Scott dashed out of the conservatory and into his father’s apartment, the moonlight at their backs guiding their steps.

  Scott was right. The burning smell grew stronger the closer they got to the main staircase and when they opened the door to the apartment there was smoke in the hallway.

  ‘I left a torch in the store room,’ Toni called out as the lights started to flicker. ‘Just inside the door to the right.’

  ‘On it,’ Scott called back and took the stairs two at a time and Toni saw the torchlight beam out only seconds before all the lights went out and she was left in the smoke and darkness.

  ‘Scott! Are you okay?’ she called out and blinked as the torchlight blinded her.

  ‘It’s in the fuse box,’ a dark shape called out through the smoke which was so thick that she could hardly make out his face. ‘No time to grab your coat. We’re leaving and we’re leaving right now. Before this whole building goes up in flames.’

  TEN

  Toni shrugged her arms into an old cardigan belonging to Scott’s father that she had found hanging on the back of a chair. But it was no good. She still stank of smoke. All of her clothes and certainly her hair and skin were dirty with soot and grime and no amount of rinsing her face could clear her eyes of that horrible gritty feeling.

  She peeked around the corner of the main office and watched Scott direct the electricians to the totally burnt-out junction box which was the source of all of the smoke. No actual flames, thank goodness. That would have been truly terrifying.

  Scott was even filthier than she was!

  Hardly surprising. He had been amazing. Once he had known that she was safe outside on the pavement, he had dashed back into the service room with only a small fire extinguisher and the torch held between this teeth.

  That was a sight that she was not going to forget in a hurry!

  Her heart had been in her throat for the whole ten minutes until he had emerged, coughing and smoky. Through the smoke, it was obvious that the ancient electrical system had finally given up and had been totally burnt out and would need to be replaced.

  The emergency electrician who arrived to make the building safe gave them the bad news in the middle of the night. The whole building would have to be rewired to bring it up to modern safety standards. In fact he was astonished that this had not happened earlier. He had never seen anything this old still in operation. Anywhere!

  Sitting in a coffee shop in their stinky clothing at first light was not exactly how she had imagined her birthday dinner would end. Scott wasn’t going to get another up close and personal second viewing of her new burgundy underwear after all. Not tonight, anyhow.

  It hadn’t taken long for the shock to wear off and the real impact of the damage to sink in and they had sat in silence for a lot of the time, deep in thought.

  Neither of them was stupid. All of that work had been wasted! And what would this mean for the financial plans for the building? Rewiring a two-hundred-year-old building was no easy task. Wooden panels and flooring were not designed to be easily removed and replaced. The work could take weeks!

  Any plans to use Elstrom Mapping as a film location were officially on hold.

  The true extent of the smoke damage was only really obvious when they braved the smell and went back in to open every window to try and clear the smoke. And this time there was no way that she would stay outside and leave Scott to do the work alone.

  Her camera and the precious maps and charts had all been safely locked away in the mapping room drawers before she left the previous evening but other paperwork and some of the archive papers had been covered in smoke and smelt horrible.

  It was heartbreaking to see this fine building that she had come to care about so much looking so wrecked and damaged.

  Heartbreaking to see Scott trying to sound positive on the phone to Freya and the insurance company. Heartbreaking to sit with him and look at the damage and know how much work was needed to restore the greatness of this fine place.

  And heartbreaking to know that she only had one more week to help him. Her boss at the media company had already emailed her twice to make sure that she would be at the airport on Monday morning for a flight to Madrid and then on to Athens a few days later to shoot a three-week commercial campaign for a housewares company. Her time at Elstroms was coming to an end.

  What was she going to do? What could she do?

  It was almost a shock to hear the phone ringing on Scott’s desk and she jogged around and picked up the handset, just as Scott strolled into the room.

  ‘Elstrom Mapping.’ Toni said, trying to sound professional, but her throat was still a little hoarse to pull it off. ‘Good morning.’

  ‘Not from what I’ve just heard,’ a high-pitched male voice replied. ‘I need to speak to Scott right now. Is he there?’

  Toni beckoned Scott to her and he gave a quick nod and stretched out his hand for the phone. ‘One moment, please. Who shall I say is calling?’

  ‘Just tell him it’s Travis. He’ll take the call.’

  Scott must have seen the surprise on her face and his eyebrows creased together for a second before he put the phone to his ear, but that was nothing compared to the look of absolute rage that seemed to transform his face the second he heard the other man’s voice.

  ‘I wondered when you would call. It didn’t take long, did it?’

  Scott was on his feet, walking back and forth in front of the desk with exhaustion only too clear on his face. But, as Toni sat back in his office chair, every word that exploded from Scott’s mouth sounded like cannon fire.

  ‘Sell the building? Now, why should I do that? A bit of smoke damage only adds to the character.’

  Something Travis said must have upset Scott even more because suddenly he froze. ‘How the hell do you know what my father wants? When was the last time you even spoke to him? Oh, yes, I remember. Just after you started screwing my wife. Forget it, Travis. I’m not selling. You’re going to have to find some easy money somewhere else. Now, get off my phone. I have a business to run.’

  Toni leant back as the phone came sliding across the desk towards her and she could hear the sound of Scott’s breathing as he continued to pace with one hand pressed hard to the back of his head.

  ‘So that was Travis. He sounded intense. It’s amazing how quickly bad news travels.’

  Scott threw off the thick leather gloves and tossed them on to the desk and stomped
closer to her, but Toni stayed exactly where she was.

  Scott was furious; when he spoke, each word was like a dagger stabbing at her forehead and penetrating her skull.

  ‘Intense? Is that how you would describe Travis? Intense? You want to know about my stepbrother?’

  Scott was almost spitting out the words as he said the name.

  ‘That man hated the fact that his widowed mother married someone who he thought was totally beneath her in every way. Yes, that’s right. My dad was a boring academic type who wasn’t worthy to marry a woman with a title. How pathetic was that! And, even worse, the man had two children and expected him to play nice.’

  Scott coughed. ‘Travis broke up his mother’s marriage and then used every trick in the book to turn my family against me, starting with my father and then my wife, Alexa. And I cannot forgive him for destroying something I thought was special.’

  Toni sucked in some air. ‘You’re still in love with her. I understand. Really. You can’t just wipe away all of those years of your life that you spent together.’

  ‘Ah, Toni, believe me—I’m over Alexa. But memories have this habit of kicking you when you’re down. I haven’t forgotten what it felt like to find my stepbrother and my wife together in the boardroom. And what they were doing on that table had nothing to do with forward planning, unless it was to find a contract which would keep me as far away from London as they could come up with. Alaska fitted the bill nicely.’

  ‘Oh, Scott, surely you don’t think that they planned it?’

  ‘No, I don’t think—I’m sure of it. Travis told me to my face on the day we first met that he was determined to have everything that I had. Well, he got what he wanted.’

  Scott stopped pacing long enough to count out the list using his fingers. ‘A controlling interest in Elstrom Mapping. My father gave his new wife half of his shares as a little wedding present and Travis a few more on his twenty-first birthday. All Travis had to do was persuade his mother to put the shares in his name, for tax reasons or some other excuse, and he had the shares he needed to sit on the board.’