Was it really possible to hate a man one minute and then want him like crazy the next?
Damn, she needed to get a life and very quickly or she was going to be in a hell lot of trouble because her nanny contract didn’t expire for three years.
Going back into her bedroom, Leila stopped by the edge of her bed and started to untie her robe so she could get dressed. A knock at her bedroom door stopped her. She quickly fixed her robe back on her shoulders and retied it back around her waist.
Who in the world could that be? Leila thought as she headed towards the door.
She knew it couldn’t be Samantha because the knock was too hard to be hers and besides Samantha always yelled her name through the door first and knocked second. It was a little game they made up the second week she was here.
Leila opened the door and took a step back when Clayton came through the door and closed it behind him. “What are you doing here?” she asked taking another step back. No, Clayton couldn’t be in her room like this when she had no self control when it came to him.
“I’ve been waiting for you downstairs and you hadn’t shown up yet. I thought you might be up here hiding out and I can see that I was right.” He glanced down at the robe then back at her face. “You should’ve been dressed by now.”
“What business is it of yours how long I take?” Leila inquired placing her hands on her hips. She was clueless that she had just opened her robe and given Clayton a good view of her breasts.
“Everything that goes on at Blue Horn is my business.” Clayton took another step closer to her but Leila didn’t move this time. She wasn’t about to show him how his presence made her body turn into a roller coaster ride.
“Do you know how good you look in that blue robe, Leila?” he asked as his eyes left her face and dropped down the satiny fabric covering her slightly damp body.
“No.”
“The rich color of the fabric brings out the beauty of your skin and makes a man think about doing things he shouldn’t.” Reaching out, Clayton ran the side of his hand down the opening in the robe exposing more skin. “You are just so damn beautiful.”
Leila moved her hand to close up the gap, but Clayton’s darkly tanned hand shot out and stopped her. “Please... I only want to look at you. Can you let me do that?” Dark blue eyes watched and waited for her answer.
She could do nothing but nod her head as an answer before slowly dropping her hand. Clayton slowly opened the robe and slid it down her shoulders until it pooled around her waist.
Leila wasn’t sure if it was the air conditioning in the room or Clayton’s intense stare that made her nipples rock hard, and at the moment she didn’t care. Her heart skipped at beat as his eyes zoomed in on her body like it was the most stunning sight he had ever seen in his adult life.
His thick arm wrapped around her waist, inching her closer as his head bent towards her breasts. She wouldn’t be able to handle it if Clayton touched her. She was barely holding on as it was.
“Clayton, you promised,” Leila whispered as Clayton’s mouth was mere inches from her nipple.
“Baby, I know but a man can only take so much temptation,” he said and then lowered his head the rest of the way. If he hadn’t been for him holding her up, Leila would have fallen to her knees. A moan broke from her mouth as she tossed her head back and that seemed to be Clayton’s undoing.
Picking her up, he carried her the short distance to the bed behind them and laid her down. His mouth moved from her left breast and fastened on the right one; he ravenously lapped attention to the swollen peak as his passion spiraled completely out of control.
She held him to her by digging her fingers into his strong shoulders to keep him pressed against her. Clayton eased his hand between them and traced his finger down the front of her body.
Raising his head, he stared at her naked body while Leila tried to regain her senses. “You’re so perfect. I can’t stop looking at you for anything in the world. I could make a meal out of you for the rest of the day. Do you want me to do that, sweetheart?”
She needed to stop this. Clayton was her boss. Things shouldn’t have gotten this far between them. However, Leila shivered when he lowered his head and licked at the skin above her navel then continued his way down her body. The moans came like second nature now as her mind whirled with ways Clayton could stop the ache he had placed in her body.
“I...” Leila’s breath hitched in her throat when she felt the touch of Clayton’s tongue against her wet entrance. She bucked against him almost knocking him off the bed. But strong hands held her down as Clayton’s tongue stroked her until she was pulling him closer instead of pushing him away.
The pleasure she was getting was unlike anything she had ever felt before in her twenty-five years on this earth. She didn’t want it to stop for anything the world...but all of a sudden Clayton was jumping away from her body like he had been burned..
“What’s going on?” Leila asked, confused by Clayton’s actions.
“Sam’s knocking at the door,” Clayton told her as he moved away from the bed over to the window. “You need to answer it before she comes in here looking for you.”
Leila was still back on how it felt to have Clayton’s tongue licking at her. She didn’t know if she was coherent enough to have a conversation with an eight-year-old, but she got off the bed and hurried over to the door.
She opened the door halfway and found Samantha standing there in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. “Samantha, what are you doing here?”
“Ms. Leila, I’ve been outside waiting for you. What’s keeping you? I thought you wanted to see my homework?”
Damn! She had forgotten all about that because of Clayton. That wasn’t a good thing at all. She couldn’t disappoint Samantha like that again.
“Samantha, I’m sorry. I got caught up with something in my room. How about you draw me that picture we talked about and I’ll be down in twenty minutes to check over your work,” she suggested.
Samantha grinned at her. “Do you care what I draw for you?”
“No sweetie. Why don’t you let it be a surprise?” Leila suggested as she pulled her robe tighter around her body.
“Okay.” Samantha took off down the hallway and Leila closed the door resting her back against it. She wasn’t surprised to see that Clayton hadn’t moved away from the window. “We can’t do this again. It was a huge mistake that we wouldn’t have been able to come back from.”
Moving away from the window, Clayton sauntered across the room until he was standing in her personal space. He pulled her fingers away from the death grip they had on her robe and placed them against the massive erection in his jeans.
“Darling, do you feel how hard you’ve made me?” he asked as he rubbed her hand up and down his hard on. “I’m still fighting down the urge to strip you naked and bury my aching cock between those silky brown thighs of yours. I don’t know how this attraction happened so fast between us and truthfully, I don’t care.
”So, this is far from over between us. It’s only the beginning.” Clayton placed a hard kiss against her lips and then moved her away from the door. He took one last glance at her before he opened it and walked out.
Chapter Eighteen
After a trip to his bedroom to deal with the problem he had left over from visiting Leila, Clayton finally made his way downstairs. Did Leila think he really wasn’t going to find a way to be with her? She was the first woman that he had made a move on since his wife’s death. No, he was determined to get her to see that they could have a passionate relationship. He had never had a woman respond to him like that before...not even his wife.
Leila came apart in his arms and he was a step or two away from making her feel the ultimate pleasure but they had gotten interrupted by a little visitor.
He was so thrilled with the way Sam had changed since Leila was brought into their lives. His daughter was no longer acting like she was an adult instead of eight years old. She was having fun,
laughing and smiling like a little girl should. He hoped things would only get better for her. He was sure that things were going to get better between him and Leila.
Leila might be a little unwilling to move things to the next level, but he wasn’t at all. Hell, he didn’t even care he was breaking his own golden rule... no romantic involvement with the help. Leila was worth breaking that rule for...besides he considered her more than his employee.
Turning the corner that led to his study, Clayton stopped in his tracks and felt a rush of anger take over his body. He barely fought the urge to drag the unwelcome visitor out by her fucking arm.
“Annie, what in the hell are you doing here?” Clayton demanded as he rushed over to her. “I thought I told you to keep your ass away from here. You aren’t welcomed on my property.”
“Clay...Sweetheart, I know you don’t mean that. We had a tiny fight like most couples do. We can work through it,” Annie purred as her hand reached out and tried to touch him, but he knocked it away.
“No, I’m not going to work anything out with you. We aren’t even a couple. We only hooked up a couple of times because you kept throwing yourself at me. I’m not interested in you and never will be. So you better get your butt off my property before I find Tony. You already know how he feels about your skinny ass. What is it going to be?”
Clayton planted his hands on his hips and waited. He still couldn’t believe that Annie had enough nerve to show up and demand they work things out. She was completely out of her mind.
Annie flipped her newly high-lighted hair over her shoulder then glared at him. “I don’t believe you’re serious about tossing me out. I can hear it in your voice that you still care about me. A man doesn’t make love to a woman the way you did me if he wasn’t in love with her.”
A loud yelp came from Annie’s mouth as he wrapped his arm around her thin upper arm and dragged her from the hallway out the front door. Once Clayton was outside he spotted Tony coming out of the barn.
“Tony, can you come over here!” he hollered. Tony was standing in front of him in the matter of seconds.
“How in the hell did she get back on the property?” Tony asked glaring at Annie who was struggling against the hard grip Clayton had on her arm.
“I’ve no fucking idea, but I want her gone before Sam sees her. She is pure evil. I don’t want her anywhere near my daughter. Can you please help Annie find her way permanently off Blue Horn’s property?” Clayton let go of Annie’s arm and then wiped his palm down the front of his jeans like he had touched something rotten.
“Don’t you dare touch me, you bastard.” Annie sidestepped Tony’s touch and then brushed past him heading for her vintage black Mustang.
“I hope you know what you’re doing Clayton Moore. You aren’t going to find any other woman better than me. You’ll regret letting me go,” she swore as she got into her car and drove off in a cloud of dust.
“You should’ve listened to me when I told you to stay away from that she-devil,” Tony complained as he crossed his arms over his chest. “I knew she was trouble from the first day she showed up here at the ranch.”
Clayton shook his dark head in agreement. “I know, but after a while a man has needs and she was there to fill them. I never told Annie I wanted more from her. It was all in her head.”
Aren’t crazy people usually like that, he thought?
Tony turned and looked at him. “Do you think you’ve truly seen the last of her?”
Clayton wished that he could believe that he had, but he knew deep down in his gut that Annie would be back to stake a claim on him again. “Hell no and that is what worries me. I’ve got a bad feeling she will do anything and everything to get back into my life.”
“Well, if she does show back up here let me know and I’ll be sure to help her find her way back to the gate.” Tony uncrossed his arms. “I need to get back to work. Don’t let her ruin the rest of your day. For the moment, she’s gone so enjoy that.” His best friend patted him on the arm and then walked from him.
He knew that Tony was right, but the pit of his stomach was still uneasy about totally blowing her off. He didn’t like the crazed look he noticed in Annie’s eyes right before she drove off. No, he was going to keep his eyes and ears open for anything that concerned her. She wasn’t going to go away without a fight.
Turning back around, Clayton went back towards the house and grinned when he spotted Sam coming out the door with Leila. He couldn’t help but notice how jaw-dropping good Leila looked in her outfit.
The short denim skirt cupped her perfect ass making him want to grab it with both hands. The white cowboy boots made her petite legs look even longer than they actually were. A white blouse and a sleeveless denim jacket made her breasts even higher and very eye-appealing. It was an outfit a young, single woman wore to draw attention and Leila knew that.
Clayton held his temper in check as he slowly made his way over to Leila and his little girl. He wanted to know where in the hell she was going dressed like that. If she thought she was leaving the ranch then she was out of her pretty little mind.
She may not think he had a claim on her, but he did.
“Where are the two of you going?” he asked his daughter, but his eyes were on Leila.
“Daddy, Leila is taking me into town to go shopping. Isn’t that great?” Sam asked smiling up at him. “It’s going to be a girl’s day out, so you can’t come, Daddy.”
“Are you sure that you don’t want me to come along?” Clayton asked still watching Leila for a reaction, but to her credit she didn’t give anything away. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He loved how she was testing him. But Leila should realize she shouldn’t play adult games with him unless she was willing to pay the price of losing.
“No, I think it would be better if you stayed at home, Mr. Moore,” Leila said finally answering his question. “I think it will be fun for Samantha to have her first girl’s day out with me alone instead of having her daddy tagging behind us, don’t you?”
Clayton’s deep laughter rang out through the ranch for a second or two before he stopped. He saw the shocked looks on his daughter’s and Leila’s faces and tried his best not to laugh again. “Leila, I think you’re the first woman to ever tell me my presence with them could be considered tagging along,” he chuckled again. “Okay, ladies since no boys are allowed. I’ll stay at home.”
“Thanks, Daddy,” Sam told him and then raced over to Leila’s white convertible parked in the driveway.
“We’ll be home in time for dinner.” Leila tried to walk past him, but he grabbed her by the arm.
“Don’t forget the promise I made to you upstairs,” he whispered by Leila’s ear enjoying the light scent of vanilla that he found there. It made his cock instantly hard. “By the way, you look very sexy in your outfit. Just make sure you don’t find any admirers in town or I’ll place to place a ‘Do Not Touch’ sign on you.”
“You don’t own me, Mr. Moore,” Leila shot back, defiantly. “I told you upstairs that we aren’t going to have a repeat performance and I was totally serious.”
Clayton took a quick glance around the ranch to make sure no one was looking at them. He spun her around to face him and tugged her to his body. “Leila, I don’t want to own you. I want you crazy with the need to have me buried deep inside of you. When you aren’t focused on your job, your thoughts should be on me and how good I’m going to make you feel.”
Tossing her head back, Leila’s eyes connected fully with his. “What makes you think I’m still interested in you?” Why was she challenging him?
Clayton eased a denim clad thigh between Leila’s thighs and brushed it back and forth across her underwear. He watched with masculine pride as her eyes grew a shade darker and mewling sounds eased from her mouth.
“That’s how I know,” Clayton bragged as he removed his leg and took a step back. “Have fun on your outing and don’t give Sam any candy.” He winked at a stunned Leila then
left her standing in the middle of the driveway.
Chapter Nineteen
“Is there anywhere you want to go first?” Leila asked Samantha as she walked down the sidewalk next to her. She was hoping to at least buy the little girl a couple of dresses today while they were out shopping. She had been inside Samantha’s closet a couple of times and there wasn’t one girly item in there.
Did Clayton not have any idea how to buy little girl’s clothes? There had to be a reason why Samantha was always dressed like a little boy. She wasn’t saying that Samantha couldn’t be a tomboy once or twice a week, but it was not okay for her to dress that way every day of her life.
“No ma’am,” Samantha answered shoving her hands into the pocket of her jeans.
Leila knew that there was something up because Samantha wasn’t acting like her cheerful self, so she was going to get to the bottom of it. There was no telling what she was thinking about. Sometimes it seemed like Samantha was becoming more and more like her daddy each and every day.
Taking Samantha by the hand, she walked over to a bench on the sidewalk and took a seat pulling her down next to her. “Okay, what’s wrong with you?” Leila asked, softly. “I thought you were excited about the idea of going shopping with me.”
Dropping her head, Samantha kicked at a rock on the ground in front of her. “I wished that I looked more like you.”
Whoa! That comment totally took Leila by surprise. Samantha was a beautiful child and shouldn’t want to look like anyone else but herself. Her mother told her to be proud of who she was from a very young age and to never want to look like anyone else.
“Why do you wish you looked more like me?” she asked touching Samantha on the arm trying to draw out the truth. It seemed like something she had been thinking about for a while.
“You’re just so pretty and your clothes are always so nice. I only have t-shirts and jeans in my closet. I love my daddy, but he doesn’t know how to buy girl clothes.”
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