Damian jumped out of his bed in his boxer briefs and stalked out of his room. He headed down the hallway to the wet bar in his living room. He lived in a typical, stylish bachelor pad with modern décor thanks to the interior designer he’d hired to ensure it was cutting edge. The only thing atypical was that his “pad” was an ultraexpensive penthouse.
He poured himself a hefty drink of whiskey and sipped it as he sank into the leather sofa. He reached for the remote, but thought better of it. He didn’t want TV. He wanted Jada.
Damn that woman for getting under his skin. He had no intention of kissing her tonight or ever, but every day for the last two weeks she’d been steadily egging him on, challenging him. And tonight, well tonight had been the final straw.
He hadn’t realized he was jealous of Jada talking to those sportscasters until she’d run away from him. And then when they kissed, she was hot as fire. For him.
Oh yes, Jada Hart acted like she despised him, but when his lips touched hers, he’d felt fireworks and so had she. In that moment, he’d wanted to give it to her, moving her up and down his length. If they hadn’t been interrupted …
Hell, what did it matter that they had been!
He should never have mixed business with pleasure. It was a cardinal rule of Damian’s that he never went back on. Until now. The damn minx had him throwing out his rulebook. He wanted her so badly right now, he couldn’t sleep. Is she just as wound up? he wondered. Or was she peacefully sleeping while he was sporting a painful hard-on and drinking himself to sleep?
What the hell am I going to do? Now that he’d tasted from the fruit of the forbidden tree, he wanted more. Damian gulped back another chug of whiskey.
He’d crossed a line from which there was no turning back. Damian wasn’t altogether sure he wanted to anyway.
Throughout the weekend, Jada fretted. By Sunday night, she was a wreck and unable to sleep. She was out of her depth. She’d never, ever gotten involved in a workplace romance—certainly not with a man who was responsible for her future career as well as her paycheck. It was untenable.
How did I allow things to get so out of control? Yes, she thought Damian was attractive, but she’d never planned on acting on those feelings. But when he’d pulled her into that secret alcove and planted those full lips on hers, all thought of what was right and wrong had gone out the window. All Jada had been able to do was feel. Feel the soft pressure of his lips on hers as he coaxed a response from her. Feel the bristle of his goatee against her sensitized skin. Feel the hard ridge of his erection pressed against her middle as she shamelessly tried to ride him in her gown!
Oh Lord!
Jada clasped her face. She’d made a royal mess of her life. How was she supposed to go into the studio tomorrow and face Damian after what they’d done? After what she hadn’t stopped him from doing? He may have initiated the kiss, but she could have pulled away, slapped him even, but she didn’t. She’d indulged in her fantasies and made a colossal mistake that could cost her the career she’d been working so hard for.
Jada stared at her bedroom ceiling willing sleep to come. Instead, she tossed and turned until eventually sleep must have claimed her because the next thing she heard was her cell phone ringing.
She rubbed her eyes and glanced at her alarm clock. Four a.m. It was still dark. Who would be calling her at this hour? She reached for the lamp, flooding the room with light.
“Hello?” she asked blearily.
“Jada?”
“Yes.”
“It’s Andrew.”
Instantly, Jada went on alert.
“Hilary came down with a terrible case of food poisoning and, needless to say, is becoming acquainted with the porcelain god. And I’ve been unable to reach Kyler, which means we need a body in the anchor seat in two hours.”
“Alright. I’ll be there in thirty minutes.”
“How did you know I was asking?”
“C’mon, Andrew, you wouldn’t be calling me at this ungodly hour if you weren’t in a pickle. And even if I am your last choice, as you more or less said, you need a body in that chair to welcome our viewers to Good Day, San Francisco.”
“Yes, I do. So get your ass here.” The phone went dead.
Jada’s pulse raced. This was her opportunity to show Andrew Paxon and Damian McKnight that she was an asset. She threw back the covers and rushed toward the bathroom. After brushing her teeth, taking the quickest shower ever, and brushing her hair into a ponytail, Jada was out the door of her condo in fifteen minutes. She’d dressed swiftly in yoga pants and a tank top and grabbed her most appealing dress and shoes.
Another fifteen minutes later, with no traffic to beat, she arrived at the studio.
She strolled through the door looking cool and calm. Jada was ready for her opportunity. She hadn’t majored in communications to stand on the sidelines. She was ready to be on the front line.
“Good morning,” Jada said cheerily as she breezed through the newsroom to her desk.
“Thank God!” Andrew nearly wept when he saw her. “You’re a godsend. I didn’t know what I was going to do.”
“Always happy to help.” Jada placed her garment bag across her chair, but Andrew halted her. “There’s no time for that. I’ll have one of the interns take care of that. We need you in the conference room to go over today’s show, and then we need to get you dressed ASAP.”
Jada had to hide a smile and mask her true feelings. “I’m all yours.”
She followed Andrew and anchor Jay and two other producers. Several curious sets of eyes peered at her. She caught their raised brows, but Andrew shook his head as if to say don’t ask. Jada didn’t care why she was there, only that she’d been asked to anchor the broadcast and she would do her very best.
Within the hour, she was up to speed on the morning segments. She would do the morning intro discussing the latest domestic and international news as well as interview a local actress starring in a blockbuster movie, discuss shopping bargains, and then she and Jay would try their hand at a cooking segment with a vegan chef. Jada was thrilled beyond words with her luck.
She was leaving the conference room when Damian crossed her line of vision. Her stomach clenched as images of him pressing her up against the wall and kissing her senseless came to mind. She saw Andrew rush up to him and whisper something that immediately brought his gaze to Jada. She felt rooted to the spot and stood straight, pushing her breasts out. She wasn’t going to cower. She wasn’t the only one in the wrong. He’d been there too. And who cared if she wasn’t looking her best in yoga pants and a tank top? Andrew called her to bail out the station. She couldn’t be expected to arrive looking like she’d just walked off the pages of a fashion magazine. It took time to look effortless.
Jada turned on her heel and walked to the green room. She was happy that she wouldn’t have to confront Damian. It would give her time to think of a strategy and how to find her way out of this mess.
She toyed with the idea of ignoring the kiss, act like it never happened. Or she could confront Damian and hash it out, admit it was a mistake on both their parts, and agree to continue a professional relationship going forward. There was another alternative that was very attractive: They could pick up where they left off, and she could take Damian to bed. Her female intuition told her the man was good at everything he did, in or out of bed. And then where will I be?
Quickly, Jada flat ironed her hair, deftly applied her makeup, and got dressed. When she was done and admiring her handiwork, she turned around and found Damian standing in the doorway. Suddenly, her stomach lurched and flip-flopped at his perusal. He wore a charcoal suit that hugged his broad shoulders and made him look infinitely more powerful and unyielding than he had before—but equally as delicious as two nights ago when they’d kissed.
He took several steps into the room, and Jada sucked in a deep breath. She could
smell the citrus scent of his cologne teasing her nostrils, could even see that he hadn’t shaved and had a hint of sideburns. They made him look masculine and rugged. Jada’s mouth watered, and she closed her eyes to will her erratically beating pulse to calm down.
She wished she knew what he was thinking. Was he remembering Friday night? Did he regret it? Had he come to talk to her and clear the air? What did he want? And why couldn’t he stop staring at her?
He circled her for several moments before saying, “I don’t like your hair like this.”
Jada reached up to touch her straight locks. “You didn’t seem to mind on Friday night.” The image flashed of him running his fingers through it and bringing her mouth, her entire body, in close contact with his.
His eyes darkened, but he didn’t say a word as he left the room.
Damian was fuming on the inside as he departed. It wasn’t her fault that he’d woken up on the wrong side of the bed after a miserable night with barely any sleep the last few days. He’d been hoping to come to the station and get some work done. He hadn’t known Jada was scheduled for this morning’s news program, so it had come as a shock when he’d seen her in those body-hugging yoga pants and tank top showing a swell of her amazing cleavage.
Jada Hart had a body made for sin. And she knew it. Probably knew the effect she had on him too. Jada was a spoiled, distractingly beautiful woman. He doubted she knew the meaning of hard work or having to worry about where her next meal might come from. But it was impossible to deny that when he had stood in the doorway, she was simply exquisite, from her thick-mascara-coated eyelashes to her cute little nose and down to the natural pout of her sensuous lips that held a sheen of rosy gloss. And the simple asymmetric dress she wore curved over her bottom, stopping midway at her long legs. It had given him an amazing view of them; they seemed to go on forever in those four-inch heels.
Damian’s mouth had gone dry at Jada’s beguiling gaze. Was she some sort of mermaid sent to lure men to their deaths? Now that he was no longer in her presence, he looked for Andrew in the newsroom. “A word, please,” he said after he spotted him and walked up to him.
“Of course, Mr. McKnight.”
“Please call me Damian.”
Andrew smiled. “Damian it is. What can I do for you?”
“Why is Jada Hart anchoring this morning’s program?”
“Quite frankly, she was the only one available. Hilary came down with a case of food poisoning and Kyler, our backup, didn’t pick up her phone even though we called nearly a dozen times.” He glanced at Damian’s annoyed eyes. “But if you like I can try again.” He glanced down at his watch. “There isn’t much time. Plus Jada is already prepped.”
Damian shook his head. It wasn’t Andrew’s fault that he was out of sorts. “No, no. Leave it as is. I’m sure she’ll do fine.”
Two hours later, Jada had proven she was a natural. Damian had seen her on camera before during her entertainment segments, but he’d never seen her show such command and depth as she had this morning. She was poised and confident. There was no other way to say it: She’d brought her A game, and Damian was impressed.
“Well?” Andrew asked with a raised brow. “What did you think of today’s show? Of Jada?”
Damian offered a half smile. “She did well. No, she did damn good. Was this her first time sitting in the anchor seat?”
Andrew nodded. “It was. Though I have to tell you, she’d been lobbying for quite some time for a crack at it, but they all love Hilary.”
Damian glanced over at Jada. She was laughing and talking with the cameramen as she took off her mike. “They should have given her a chance. Perhaps a change of scenery would do the show some good. I would like Jada moved to the number-two position during Hilary’s absences.” He started to move away, but then paused. “No, scratch that. I have an even better idea. I want to try her out on Fridays. It’s the least heavy-hitting news day of the week. I’d like to see how she fares in the anchor chair.”
“Of course. I’ll get right on it.”
“Thank you, Andrew. And good call today.” He palm slapped the man’s back as he walked away. He needed to focus on other deals and areas of his business. As it was, he was already spending too much time at the station. Deep down, he knew why, though he’d never say it aloud.
Jada.
He glanced in her direction, unable to resist one last look. And when he did, their eyes connected from across the newsroom, and she rewarded him with one of her signature charming smiles.
Beguiling witch! Damian thought.
He frowned and immediately rushed out of the building.
What is his problem? Jada wondered when Damian scurried out the door. Several times during the broadcast, she’d found him watching her, but his eyes were shuttered and she couldn’t read him. She should be feeling on top of the world. She’d finally managed to get into the elusive anchor’s chair. So, why wasn’t she happy? Had she been looking for Damian’s approval? Had she been waiting for him to give her an attaboy?
Maybe.
She thought she’d done great. She hadn’t flubbed any of her segments. In fact, if she did say so herself, she was warm and engaging with her interviews and knowledgeable on the subject matters. All in all, Jada was very proud of the effort she’d put forth despite Damian’s lackluster response.
“Jada, you were fantastic!” Kyler gushed. She rushed toward her as Jada made her way from the studio into the newsroom.
“Thanks, girl.” Jada gave her good friend’s hand a gentle squeeze.
“Were you nervous?”
Jada stepped back for a minute to regard her. “No, I wasn’t. I was excited.” She had been waiting for this moment for years, and fate had finally allowed the opportunity to fall in her lap. Kyler’s misfortune had been Jada’s gain.
“I’m so tickled for you.”
“Really? I know they weren’t able to reach you earlier this morning. Are you OK? ”
“Of course,” Kyler said without a moment’s hesitation. “It’s not your fault I forgot to charge my phone. When my body clock woke me up on its own, I was stunned to find it was six a.m. I didn’t realize I had any messages until I checked my phone and realized it hadn’t charged. So, how did it go?”
Jada tried to push down her large smile and act as if she was unaffected. As much as she wanted this, she didn’t want to appear overeager. “It was great. I really enjoyed it.”
“That’s awesome, Jada.” Kyler touched her shoulder. “I’ve always known you could do it. You just needed to be given the opportunity. Now, you’ve shown McKnight exactly what you can do.”
Jada stared at the doorway Damian had just exited. She wasn’t so sure. He’d made no move to come over and tell her what he thought of the program. Instead, he’d high-tailed it out of the station as if his pants were on fire. That pissed Jada off. This opportunity meant everything to her. It had been a chance to show him she had what it took.
“Jada?” Andrew came toward them. “My office, now.”
Jada glanced furtively at Kyler. Had she done something wrong again? She prayed to God she hadn’t blown her chance.
Kyler gave her a hesitant smile as Jada followed with leaden feet behind Andrew into his all-glass office. She closed the door behind her, hating that they were in a fishbowl. If he’d called her in here to chew her out about her performance, the entire crew would see. Somehow, she would hold herself together and show no emotion. She couldn’t, wouldn’t let anyone see her sweat.
Jada smiled at Andrew as she took a seat in the mesh chair in front of his cluttered desk. He sat down opposite her and steepled his fingers as he peered at her.
“I called you in here because I want to talk about today’s show.”
“Yes?” Leave it at that, she told herself, and let him speak.
“Mr. McKnight,” Andrew began and then st
opped. “I mean Damian and I have discussed your performance.”
“And you thought I stunk?” Jada blurted. “That I tanked and I’ll never be allowed to anchor the show again?”
Andrew chuckled. “Quite the opposite. Damian was very impressed with how well you did today, and he’d like to try you out on Fridays for the immediate future.”
Jada sucked in a deep breath, and when she was finally able to release it, she said, “Excuse me?”
“You heard right, Jada. Your wish has finally come true, and Mr. McKnight, gosh, I mean, Damian sees potential in you. Undeveloped of course, but potential all the same, and he would like to switch things up a bit.”
“I thought he wasn’t going to make any sweeping changes.”
“He’s not. But he does want to try a fresh face, so we’ll see what the ratings look like in a few weeks.”
“Oh, Andrew, you don’t know how excited I am for this opportunity.”
“Excited enough to get up at three a.m. every Friday?”
“Heck yeah,” Jada said, jumping to her feet. “And I promise you, you won’t regret giving me this opportunity.” She reached across the desk and pumped his hand furiously.
Seconds later, Jada walked out of the room with her head held high. Several curious stares were volleyed her way, but she didn’t care. She was on cloud nine. Damian had ensured she’d get the chance to live her dream.
Chapter 5
Damian stared at the facts and figures on his laptop. They were nothing but a blur of numbers. On and off for the last couple of weeks, he’d found himself daydreaming and unable to focus on his work. Today was no different. He’d become enamored with WLB-TV’s new Friday anchor, Jada. Over the last few Fridays, he’d gotten caught up for two hours watching the morning news program—and not doing his work.
Jada Hart had captured his attention in more ways than one. Her outward beauty and sexy body haunted his dreams and made him think of all the things he’d like to do to her or her to him. He’d imagine that sexy, pouty mouth on his and how deliciously soft it would feel when he plundered it again, conquered it. And if that wasn’t enough, he’d been pleasantly surprised that the woman actually was as sharp as a tack.
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