by Penny Jordan
She tried to walk past him. He stepped in front of her.
Defiance flashed in her eyes but behind it was something else. Something he’d seen the night before when he’d held her. Something that looked a lot like vulnerability. It gave him the cue he needed to say what he had to say.
‘I’ve got a proposition for you.’
Her eyes flared and he had to suppress a grin.
‘Not that kind of proposition.’ Well, not quite anyway. ‘It’ll be worth your while. I swear. If you’ll sit down and listen.’
She still looked mutinous.
‘Please.’ The word made him feel uncomfortable, but when she huffed and sat back on her stool he figured it had been worth it.
‘All right, I’m listening,’ she said, her chin still thrust out.
She looked stiff as a poker, perched precariously on the edge of the stool, but at least he wasn’t watching her cute rear end walking out the door.
Now, how to say what he wanted to without setting her off again?
Luckily for him, he’d spent most of the night giving the problem a whole lot of thought and he had a plan. All he had to do was stick to it.
When he’d got her up to the penthouse the night before, his first concern had been getting her out of her outfit without waking her up.
It had been an exquisite kind of torture, the flowery scent she wore making him instantly hard as he’d recalled just how hot and ready she’d been in his arms the previous evening. He’d had no trouble keeping his thoughts G-rated, though, once he’d eased off her shoes and seen the raw, reddened skin on her heels and toes.
The guilt had swamped him. He’d tried to tell himself it wasn’t his fault that she’d worked herself to exhaustion. He wasn’t the bastard who’d stranded her in a foreign city with no clothes, no money. But he hadn’t quite managed to convince himself. The feeling of responsibility and the urge to keep her safe were as strong, if not stronger, than they had been when he’d carried her out of the bar.
He’d never met a woman as independent, as self-sufficient as she was or as determined to prove it. And he’d certainly never met a woman he wanted to take care of before. That the thought was arousing as well as infuriating was just another one of the contradictions that made his reaction to this woman unique.
He’d spent the previous day sulking, telling himself she could go hang herself for all he cared. But once he’d been sitting on the edge of his bed, watching the gentle rise and fall of her breathing, he’d had to admit that whatever it was that was between them, it wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.
While he’d been sitting there in the half-light considering that startling fact, a part of the conversation they’d had during their first meeting had poked at the back of his brain. Had she told him she’d been working as Andrew Rocastle’s PA? The possibility had seemed almost too fortuitous to be true so he’d had the concierge pull out Rocastle’s registration details and then made a late-night call to Rocastle’s company offices in London where it had been already morning. He’d spoken to a very helpful personnel woman who’d pointed out that Kate Denton had indeed worked as Rocastle’s PA until an ‘unfortunate incident’ two days ago. He knew all about the ‘unfortunate incident’ and it hadn’t put him off in the least. Anyhow, he only need offer her a two-week contract. If she wasn’t up to the job he was offering her it hardly mattered. Her typing skills weren’t the main reason he wanted her at his beck and call.
Kate Denton was a fire in his blood he needed to get out. A few weeks with her working as his PA ought to cure him of his obsession once and for all—and if she did a halfway decent job, all the better.
Having decided to give the idea a shot, the only remaining obstacle was figuring out how to make Kate go for the deal. He’d stayed up half the night working out his strategy. Cooking her breakfast had been the first part of the plan. He’d stumbled, badly, by letting his frustration show a moment ago. Now he had her back on the stool and marginally willing to listen to what he had to say, he wasn’t about to make the same mistake again. Keep calm, he thought, keep cool and give the carrot the hard sell. He could get to the stick later, if he had to—he had the connections to stop her from getting any other jobs in Vegas—but for now, he figured the carrot was his best option.
‘The truth is, Kate, I’m in a fix and I need your help.’
‘What kind of a fix?’
‘My PA quit yesterday and I need someone with me in California for the next couple of weeks. How about it?’
‘You want to employ me? As your PA?’ Kate was so astonished, it was a miracle she didn’t fall off the stool.
‘Yeah. I can only offer you a two-week contract,’ he said, as if he were discussing the weather, ‘but it’ll be a lot more dough than you can get doing bar work and I’ll cover your expenses during the trip, naturally.’
‘You’re not serious?’ Surely this must be some kind of joke? He didn’t say anything, just looked at her, his eyes steady, his lips curving ever so slightly. ‘You are serious,’ she said, completely incredulous.
‘I need to close a deal I’ve been setting up for over two years. I’m selling my holdings in Vegas, buying a resort hotel in Big Sur called The Grange. Great coastal location, established clientele, with loads of potential for expansion and modernisation. I need someone to handle my planner, do the secretarial stuff as I hammer out the final details of the negotiation with the owner.’
‘Oh, I see,’ Kate murmured, her pulse scrambling into overdrive as her mind whizzed through the possibilities.
This could be the answer to all her prayers. A proper job, a challenging and exciting job that didn’t involve wielding a loo brush or toting a tray of margaritas looking like a pornographic sports groupie. She might not have liked Andrew much, but she’d adored being his PA and she’d been good at it too. Just from the lowly jobs she’d done over the last day, she knew The Phoenix franchise had a much higher profile than Andrew’s piddling Covent Garden design firm. Of course, it was only for two weeks, but in two weeks she could pay off her debts, get some invaluable experience to add to her CV and prove her…
Whoa, there, girl.
Kate’s enthusiastic ramblings slammed to a stop as they ran full tilt into a brick wall. There was one humongous problem with the sparkling career opportunity she was being offered—and it was sitting right in front of her with a sinfully tempting smile on its face.
‘So what do you say? You want to be my Girl Friday?’ the devil said.
Kate gave her head a quick shake, trying to clear out the burst of stardust that had momentarily short circuited her brain cells.
The problem was, she wouldn’t be working for Andrew. She’d be working for Zack. Gorgeous, irresistible, domineering Zack, who insisted on having everything his own way and would be entitled to demand it if he were her boss. As his PA she’d be working closely with him. Handling all those minute details that could feel so personal, so intimate. Hadn’t Andrew once joked that Kate was so efficient she was part personal assistant and part wife? Coming from Andrew it had seemed like an innocuous compliment. If she allowed herself to get into that role with Zack she’d be in considerably more danger. Maybe she ought to clarify what it was he was expecting of her. ‘Do you mind if I ask you something?’
The corners of his mouth quirked up in a knowing grin and she cursed the blush that worked its way up her neck. ‘Sure, ask whatever you want,’ he said.
She licked her parched lips. ‘What do you expect from me, exactly?’
‘What do I expect?’ He rolled the question off his tongue as if he were savouring the words. ‘Hmm, let me see.’
The blush scorched Kate’s cheeks as she waited for his answer and she clutched the silk tighter. She wondered if the penthouse’s air conditioning had suddenly gone on the fritz, because she could have sworn the temperature in the kitchen had just shot up by a good ten degrees.
‘Apart from typing, shorthand, that kind of stuff, I expect you to be available tw
enty-four-seven. I’ll be honest—I’m not always the easiest guy in the world to work for.’ His gaze flicked to her cleavage. ‘At times I can be real demanding.’ His eyes moved back to her face, the dimple winking in his cheek. ‘But then you already know that.’
Kate felt the melting sensation between her thighs and squeezed the muscles tight. How infuriating that she was unable to deny her instinctive response to him even though she knew he was being deliberately provocative.
‘Stop teasing me,’ she said firmly. ‘It’s not remotely funny.’ The very last thing she wanted to do was look this gift horse in the mouth. She wanted this job, desperately, and probably not just for the career opportunity it offered if she was being completely honest with herself. But she wasn’t about to serve herself up on a platter, job or no job.
He laughed easily, held up his hands in surrender. ‘Okay, Kate, I’m sorry. But the look on your face. It was irresistible.’
‘Answer the question. Why are you offering me this job?’
He skimmed his thumb across her cheekbone, his eyes bright with appreciation. ‘We were pretty spectacular together our first night out. You’re smart, you’re beautiful and you’re desirable and I had a hard time forgetting about what we got up to after you walked out on me yesterday morning. So I’ll admit, one of the reasons I want you with me in California is so we can get up to a lot more of the same.’
It was just as she had suspected. Kate sighed. He was only offering her this job so he could jump back into bed with her. The fact that she didn’t feel nearly as indignant about it as she should made her feel like a besotted fool. ‘I can’t accept the job under those circumstances and you know it.’
Zack leaned against the breakfast bar, but he didn’t look disappointed—just the opposite, in fact. ‘Hear me out here. I’d like to make love to you again. I’m not going to pretend otherwise. We were good at it. But I don’t pay for sex. While we’re in California, you’ll be working your butt off as my PA, and while you’re doing that I’ll be calling the shots, because I’m the boss. But what happens in the bedroom is private and between us. It’s not part of your job description. And I sure as hell don’t intend for it to be a chore,’ he finished, sounding exasperated.
She let out an unsteady breath. At least he’d been totally honest with her. But could she even consider such a proposal? ‘What if I said I won’t sleep with you?’
He shrugged. ‘If you wanted to say that you could and it wouldn’t affect your employment.’ A sensual smile spread across his face. ‘But I’ve gotta warn you now, I’ll do my best to change your mind.’
Fabulous, Kate thought weakly, feeling the familiar inferno flare to life in her belly. What she had here was essentially a frying-pan-or-fire situation, then. Whatever way you looked at it she was liable to get burned. Because she knew she wasn’t going to say no to what he was offering. Unfortunately, she had a bad feeling that the real temptation wasn’t just the promise of a fulfilling day job or the night-time fun and frolics that were going to be even harder to resist. The simple pleasure of spending time with him, working side by side with him, getting to know what made him tick, was by far the most tempting possibility of all. And that was the reason why she should say no. If she let her guard down, if she allowed him to insinuate his way into her heart, she could get badly hurt.
But somehow she couldn’t bring herself to do the sensible thing and say no. He was looking at her expectantly, the intensity in his face playing havoc with her pulse rate.
Surely, if she was careful, if she knew the risks going in, she could take what he offered, enjoy it and survive with her heart intact. Men did that sort of thing all the time. Why shouldn’t she? Independence was the key. She had to make sure that if she compromised anything, she didn’t compromise that. Then her heart would be safe. Never need anyone who doesn’t need you and never sacrifice anything you can’t afford to lose. Her father had taught her that lesson as a child, she had to make sure she didn’t forget it.
She breathed out, her mind made up. ‘I’ll take the job.’
His eyes widened. She’d surprised him. Truth was she’d surprised herself more.
‘Great.’ He stroked her arm. ‘That’s fantastic. I’ll get Monty to work up a contract and then we’ll discuss your salary. But I guarantee you, it’ll be enough to get you back to London next month in style with a nice chunk of change in your pocket.’
‘Okay,’ she said, the thought of going home so soon making her feel as if she were standing on the edge of a very deep precipice already.
‘So we’ve got a deal?’ he asked.
‘Yes, I suppose we have.’ All she had to do, really, was make sure that, whatever happened between them, she kept a good, firm grip on reality at all times. That had always been her mother’s mistake. It wasn’t one she was about to repeat.
She thrust out her hand. He looked down at it, but shook his head. ‘Not good enough,’ he said quietly, pinning her with a gaze that scorched her skin. ‘Not nearly good enough.’ Threading his fingers through her hair, he tilted her face up to his, slanted his lips across hers.
The kiss was so sudden and so hot, it seared her down to her toes.
When he finally lifted his head, she felt as if she’d been branded.
‘There,’ he said, framing her face in large palms. ‘Now we’ve got a deal.’
Twin tides of joy and dread swelled inside Kate as she stared at her new boss.
What had she gone and done now?
CHAPTER EIGHT
‘WE’LL TAKE THE SHORTER one with the straps,’ Zack announced to the overjoyed boutique manageress. ‘Now let’s see some of your evening wear.’
‘Yes, sir, Mr Boudreaux,’ the woman replied, snapping her fingers at the staff hovering around her. ‘I’ll get the models ready right away.’
Kate watched the woman and her minions rush off. The manageress’s eyes had glazed over ten minutes ago, clocking up the dollar signs like a human cash register.
As soon as she and Zack were alone she turned on her boss, determined to make him see sense. She’d accepted his job proposal less than an hour ago and already she was starting to panic.
After taking a quick shower in his penthouse, she’d been whisked off in a limousine to one of Vegas’s priciest and most exclusive designer boutiques. The merchandise here made the clothes she’d seen on Michelle’s rail look like bargain-basement knock-offs.
‘This is preposterous,’ she whispered furiously. ‘I don’t need all these things. You must have spent thousands of dollars already. And there’s no way that as my boss you should be responsible for buying my clothes.’
‘Relax.’
He looked relaxed enough for both of them, she thought. His arm was slung casually across the back of her chair, one leg crossed with his ankle resting on his knee. How could he be so calm when he was spending a fortune?
‘It’s my money and I am the boss,’ he continued. ‘You need to look the part when we get to California.’ His gaze drifted down her figure, taking in the T-shirt and jeans she’d bought from Michelle. ‘The tomboy outfit’s cute, but it’s not going to cut it at The Grange.’
‘But I could get the same effect for you for a lot less money. Remember how much you liked that dress I wore to dinner?’
‘Yeah.’ His voice deepened, making the single word sound like a caress. ‘I don’t think I’m ever going to forget it.’
‘I got it at a thrift store for twenty dollars,’ she said triumphantly, sealing her argument. Or so she thought.
He chuckled. ‘They say the Lord works in mysterious ways. I guess I know what they mean now.’
‘Don’t be ridiculous, you don’t have to—’ she started, only to be silenced when he placed his forefinger on her lips.
‘Quit arguing.’ His lips quirked. ‘This is all part of the deal, so you’re going to have to stick with it, sweetheart.’
‘Oh, for Pete’s sake.’ She slumped back in her chair, pouting. The man was complete
ly intractable. ‘I was only trying to save you some money.’
‘Well, don’t,’ he said. ‘That’s not your job. Anyhow, the way I see it, it’s money well spent. I’m getting a real kick out of imagining you in some of this stuff.’
‘Oh, you are, are you?’ Her own lips twitched. She was unable to resist his teasing any longer. He was behaving like a child in a sweet shop—and making her feel like a flipping walnut whip. Light and fluffy and completely nuts.
He grinned. ‘Honey, my knicker fetish and I are gonna have a ball when they bring out the underwear.’
After making her protest, and having it comprehensively shot down, Kate gave in. Who knew she’d have so much fun doing it, though? She’d always had a passion for beautiful clothes, had spent years poring over glossy women’s magazines unable to afford so much as a handkerchief. Once she’d started picking out garments, she hadn’t been able to stop.
If Zack was bound and determined to buy her a whole new wardrobe, she might as well have some input, she reasoned. After all, she was the one who was going to be wearing the clothes. And she hadn’t failed to notice Zack’s taste leaned towards the more revealing end of the spectrum. If she left all the choices up to him she’d end up looking more like his mistress than his PA, and freezing to death to boot. It might be sweltering in Vegas in May, but she doubted it would be that hot on the Californian coast. He welcomed her suggestions, encouraging her to pick out whatever she wanted and—true to his word—didn’t seem remotely bothered by how much they were spending. Consequently, Kate decided to lay the blame at his door when they got back into the limousine an hour later and she watched the boutique’s doorman load box after box of their purchases into the boot.
Why had she let him buy all those clothes for her? It felt rash and indulgent. And what did it say about her precious self-sufficiency?
‘What’s the problem?’ Zack watched Kate’s teeth tug on her bottom lip as she gazed out of the limo’s back window. She looked dazed.