Tempting Taylor

by Beverly Havlir

  It’s just physical, she assured herself silently. The man was sexy without trying. Even the air of brooding quality that surrounded him didn’t detract from his attractiveness.

  The elevator came to a smooth halt and the doors opened soundlessly. He waited for her to precede him. Telling herself to calm down, Taylor took a moment before she stepped off the elevator. This man had the power to fluster her, to muddle her thoughts, to make her come across as brainless. The walk down the hallway to his office was mercifully short. Cooper murmured a greeting to his secretary before he opened the double doors and motioned for her to precede him.

  She stepped into his office. Taylor had never been inside his domain, not since he moved the publishing company to Boston. It was huge, with a breathtaking view of the city through a bank of panoramic windows. She was a bit surprised to see a traditional, dark mahogany desk. She’d pegged him to be more of a contemporary type, with a glass-topped desk and chrome furniture. His office had dark paneling, with deep leather chairs and plush carpeting. It was a man’s office. No frills. Just function.

  She smiled and murmured her thanks when he indicated one of the chairs. “I think it would be a real coup for the e-zine to do a feature on you,” she said as she sat down.

  To her surprise, instead of going behind the desk he propped a hip on the corner of his desk and crossed his ankles. Way too close for her peace of mind. “I’m very private by nature.”

  She refused to be cowed by his proximity or by the curt answer, issued in a you-better-drop-this tone. To hide her nervousness, she took a moment to cross her legs. “That’s hardly a secret.”

  He flicked a glance at her leg briefly. “I don’t do interviews,” he repeated.

  “It will be tasteful. I respect your privacy. The public would love to read about you, and we won’t delve into anything too personal.”

  He remained silent.

  Taylor bit back a sigh. The man was like an immovable rock, revealing nothing of his thoughts behind the enigmatic expression. She met his gaze head on. Again she wondered what it was about him that drew her so strongly? Cooper wasn’t handsome in the conventional sense of the word. His face was all hard, rugged angles. There was nothing soft about him. But the features put together were striking, and his unapproachable air just magnified his attractiveness. She was on fire for this man. Like she’d sniffed his pheromones and had the strongest urge to mate with him and only him. He was why her dating life was a joke.

  She mustered her most persuasive grin. “Our readers would totally love it.”

  Cooper gave a slight grimace. “That most eligible bachelor crap is irritating as hell.”

  Privately Taylor thought he didn’t need any more help in the adoring women department. She’d seen enough pictures in magazines and even tabloids to know that he’d had more than his fair share of beautiful, glamorous girlfriends. None of them seemed to last long, which gave her a measure of satisfaction. He was unattached.

  Forcibly pushing her wayward thoughts to the side, she inclined her head. “All the more reason to let me do a feature. Let’s give the public a glimpse of the real you.”

  He trained those amazing gray eyes on her face. Her cheeks heated up, and she was quite sure she was turning red as a cherry. A sudden, sharp tingle of awareness shot straight to her pussy. Under her bra, her nipples tingled with delicious anticipation.

  His gaze dropped to her mouth. Her lips warmed, and she had the strongest urge to lick them. It couldn’t have been more than a couple of seconds, but it was enough to send her senses into overdrive.

  His eyes finally came up to meet hers once more. “What do you want to know about me?”

  A hot flush crept up her neck. The way he said it made it seem intimate. Like she alone wanted to get to know him. Their eyes met, and for a moment, Taylor thought she spotted desire in the gray depths. But it was gone quickly.

  “People are curious about you. Refusing to give any interviews only stokes their curiosity, you know.” It was a miracle that her voice came out even and not breathless,

  “I abhor publicity of any kind. I’ve had enough of that lately.”

  He was, of course, referring to the blockbuster legal wrangling currently in process with his father’s second wife, Bettina Hathaway, who was challenging Cooper’s takeover of Hathaway Publishing. It was brewing to be a protracted and particularly nasty fight, with Bettina all over the press while Cooper preferred to let his legal team handle the matter.

  “An information piece about you can’t hurt,” she stated. “Right now the public is only hearing one side and—”

  “I don’t need to court public opinion.” His voice was soft but underlined with steel.

  Taylor realized she’d just gotten a glimpse of the determined, ruthless side of Cooper. He’d fought long and hard to get his mother’s company back, an ugly family saga that had unfolded when his father died.

  “Of course not. I wasn’t suggesting that.”

  “I read your piece about pole dancing.”

  As change of topics went, this one rendered her speechless. She gulped. “You did?”

  His lips quirked with amusement. “It was…very interesting.”

  Her heart skipped a beat. “Emily was supposed to do that, but bowed out at the last minute and I had to take over.” Lifting her chin, she decided she had nothing to be embarrassed about. “It was a very popular article. We received a ton of positive feedback about it.”

  “I would imagine so. You wrote it very well, a balanced article.” He paused. “You actually went to a strip club?”

  Taylor detected only curiosity in his voice, not disapproval. “Yes. The experience was enlightening in more ways than one.” She’d met women who danced at the club, heard their stories and even made some friends. She was already planning a future article about them.

  “Actually danced once in front of an audience? Was that safe?”

  “Perfectly. The club had its own security, plus Emily’s brother came along too.”

  He stared at her for an endless moment, his expression unreadable. The air thickened and became heavy.

  Compelled to defend herself, she said, “There was nothing vulgar or indecent about it. I was wearing a costume and didn’t have any contact with the customers.”

  He said nothing, his eyes shuttered. Taylor had the strangest feeling that he was imagining her dancing. She swallowed. Between her legs, a heavy pulsing began. Panicked, she stood up. She needed to put distance between her and this man pronto. For her sanity.

  “So you’ll do the interview?” she asked, breathless.

  He straightened to his full height. The perfect cut of the suit accented his body, from the broad shoulders to the trim waist and the muscular legs. It was just so unfair that this man possessed more than his fair share of sexual magnetism.

  Taylor took an involuntary step back when he came too close for comfort.

  “I’ll think about it and let you know.”

  She mustered a smile. “Fair enough. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me today.” She beat a hasty retreat and hurried to the door. It was only when she was in the safety of the elevator that she released a breath. She leaned against the cold stainless steel wall and closed her eyes. Cooper Hathaway was way too dangerous. But scoring an interview with him was a coup, and she couldn’t pass up the opportunity. She was just going to have to control her desire for him. He belonged in her dreams where she could kiss him and lick him to her heart’s content. Yes. Fantasies were much safer and there he was going to stay.

  Cooper watched as Taylor hurried out the door. He admired her long legs and the curve of her ass as it swayed with every step she took in those ridiculously sexy high-heels she wore. Damn. The skirt was by no means short, nor did it expose too much, but it still hit him in the gut with a big punch because it only fired up his imagination more. The top she wore wasn’t tight but faithfully clung to the full curve of her breasts. He’d nearly swallowed his tongue when she’d
crossed her legs and swung her foot, drawing his gaze to those fuck-me shoes, stirring up images of her still wearing them while her legs were wrapped around his waist and he pumped inside her and…

  “Whoa.” He released a breath and pulled at his collar. It never failed. Every time he saw Taylor, or caught even a glimpse of her, his cock stirred—no, jumped—to instant readiness.

  And to imagine her dancing at the club, gyrating against a stripper pole, was enough to almost undo him.

  What he would have given to have been in the audience that night. To watch her swing her hips and raise her legs as she performed the dance moves she’d written about in the article. She said she’d worn a costume, but how bare did she go? Did she dance in a two-piece get-up that exposed her breasts? Or wear a costume that showed off her ass? Just the thought made his mouth water.

  He shook his head. What was it about her that affected him so much? He’d met women who were more classically beautiful, but all it took was for Taylor to be anywhere in the vicinity and he was ready to blow like a fucking volcano. He’d never been partial to redheads or brunettes. Taylor was somewhere in between, her hair a shade of red with gold. Damn if it wasn’t sexy. On the occasions that he’d caught sight of her, she’d always had her hair styled differently. Today it was loose and slightly tousled, giving her the appearance of just getting out of bed.

  Shit. This is bad. He adjusted himself, grimacing at the tightness of his trousers. Agreeing to the interview meant he would be thrown in close proximity to Taylor.

  How could he do it and resist temptation?

  Then again, how could he not?

  Chapter Two

  The stadium was packed to the gills and a huge banner hung in front, announcing Cooper Hathaway as the main speaker.

  Graduate students and business majors jostled each other and jockeyed for a place. Taylor couldn’t find an empty seat anywhere so she walked down the aisle near the front and stood off to the side of the podium. The size of the crowd was testimony to how eager people were to hear Cooper talk. When Taylor had found out this morning that Cooper was speaking here today she’d driven over as quickly as she could. This was a good opportunity to observe him beyond the confines of his office. Even though she’d spent the past two days cooling her heels, she was still keeping her fingers crossed that he would eventually agree to the interview.

  She’d googled him, trying to glean as much information as she could. It wasn’t hard to find articles about the divorce of his parents, how his father, Mason, had cheated on Cooper’s mother with his then secretary. Taylor had winced as she’d read the articles. It was such juicy gossip that even the society pages couldn’t resist chronicling the battle between the couple who’d built their publishing business from the ground up, with the husband eventually leaving his wife for a much younger woman. It was all so sordid. There were few pictures of a young Cooper and only a mention that his mother had won full custody.

  With a sigh, she shifted and leaned against the wall. Mason Hathaway had divorced his wife and taken their family’s publishing company. After the divorce, there weren’t as many articles about Cooper and his mother. The only thing she could find about him after that was when he started becoming successful in business, mentored by John Callas, who’d owned Aegis, Inc. Cooper had worked for him until he eventually took over the company when Callas retired.

  She’d seen more pictures of Cooper with John Callas than he had with his own father. Clearly Cooper had been very close to his mentor.

  More than his business accomplishments, an internet search showed a number of references about the nasty battle he was waging with Bettina Hathaway. The vitriolic comments that Bettina continued to make in the gossip rags were all meant to put Cooper in bad light.

  Bettina was bitter, that was for sure. Cooper’s takeover of Hathaway Publishing had left her nearly bankrupt and unable to support her lavish lifestyle. Bettina’s son from her first marriage, Rich Lange, was also prominently featured in some articles, his comments further fueling the inflammatory articles meant to discredit Cooper in the public’s eye.

  In all that, Taylor had never once read an article where Cooper retaliated. He or his lawyer never commented on anything personal and steadfastly ignored Bettina’s increasingly desperate public pronouncements. It was the right thing to do, of course. But Bettina was not one to back down. She was now in the process of suing Cooper’s company for taking over Hathaway, alleging irregularities in the way Aegis, Inc. acquired the business that she’d all but run to ground.

  Taylor sighed. Nasty stuff. It brought back memories of when her father and mother, both prominent surgeons, had waged a public battle during their divorce. They’d fought over everything, down to the last piece of china they owned. Worst of all, they’d fought over her, their only child, using her as a pawn. It had all come to a head when her mother had whisked her out of state in an attempt to take her away from her father, which had resulted in kidnapping charges that were later dropped. Their family was the topic du jour for weeks, even months. It was an awful time in her young life. One she’d rather forget.

  Her parents had since developed a fragile civility with each other, made easier by living on opposite coasts. Her father had remarried, while her mother had preferred to stay single, scarred by the events that marked the end of her marriage. As for Taylor, she’d developed a very close relationship with Emily and her family, who had embraced her like she was one of their own.

  Pushing those ugly memories aside, Taylor glanced around the auditorium. It was definitely standing room only. Taylor took out her pen and a small notebook, ready to take notes. From the snippets of conversations she heard, people were very excited to listen to Cooper speak. There were plenty of women as well, which really didn’t come as a surprise.

  The crowd fell silent when a man strode to the podium and made the introductions. Thunderous applause broke the silence as Cooper made his way to the center of the stage.

  “Thank you,” Cooper spoke into the microphone and motioned for everybody to sit down. As he launched into his speech, Taylor stared at him unabashedly, secure in the knowledge that he couldn’t possibly make her out in the sea of faces before him. Today he was without a tie, the dress shirt unbuttoned at the throat. He looked casual and approachable, and infinitely sexier. The lights glinted off his dark hair, and his smile disarmed the audience.

  He rattled off a couple of funny anecdotes, and the receptive crowd laughed. Taylor couldn’t help but smile as well. This was a different side of Cooper, certainly one she hadn’t seen. He was charming and captivating, and plainly intelligent. She wrote on her little notebook, scribbled “gorgeous” next to his name and found herself underlining the word over and over. She made notes on the way he interacted with the audience, noted his facial expressions, and how he had a small dimple on his right cheek when he grinned. The talk was financial, which really should have been a snoozer, but he spoke plainly, much of his speech in layman’s terms so that even she could understand what prevailing markets were, and what stimulating the economy and ways to grow the job market meant.

  At the end of his speech, he announced that he would take some questions. There were some predictable ones, like what would he do to kick-start the slumbering economy and some such thing, but when a buxom young woman took the microphone and asked if he was single and available, Taylor had to roll her eyes. The blonde tossed her hair and thrust her chest out, drawing attention to her rather large breasts. With a sigh, Taylor straightened and slipped her notebook into her purse. When she looked up, she froze as she found Cooper’s gaze locked on her. Really? He couldn’t be looking at her. How could he pick her out in the midst of the standing room only crowd?

  “I’m afraid that’s all the time we have today,” Cooper said and after thanking the audience, left the stage without answering the woman’s question.

  There was an audible “oh” of disappointment that rippled through the crowd, especially the females. Taylor made h
er way out, exiting through one of the main doors just ahead of the pack.

  She slipped on her sunglasses as she emerged into the sunshine. It was refreshing to see another side of Cooper. It really wasn’t such a surprise to see him effortlessly charm the crowd. He wouldn’t have been so successful if he didn’t have the smarts and charisma. It just wasn’t fair, really. Those qualities only made him more attractive and infinitely more appealing. Damn near irresistible.

  His gray eyes were like lasers that honed in on her as she stood in a crowd. As soon as their eyes had met, a delicious ripple of awareness had surged through her body. Her nipples had actually tightened. Her belly dipped and an electric zing pulsed in her pussy. Wow. No man had ever elicited that kind of instantaneous reaction from her. Cooper was dangerous to her equilibrium. Very dangerous.

  Her heels clicked on the cobblestone as she walked to the parking structure where she’d been lucky to find an empty spot. She picked up the pace, wanting to get away as soon as possible. He’d seen her. He knew she was there. The need to escape was foremost.

  “Off so soon?”

  Taylor froze in her tracks. Her pulse jumped at the sound of his voice. She pulled in a breath before turning around.

  “Hello.” Jeez, was that her voice? Why did she sound so husky? She cleared her throat. “Great speech back there.” How lame.

  “Thanks. What’s the rush?”

  She gripped the handle of her purse a little more tightly. “I, ah, I have to go back to the office.” Tugging self-consciously at the jacket of her pantsuit, she made an effort to stay still.

  She jumped when he casually reached out and pulled off her sunglasses. He raised an eyebrow. “I make you nervous.”

  “Not at all.”

  “I don’t bite,” he said with a grin.

  She blinked. Ohmygod Cooper Hathaway was flirting with her. Heat suffused her, nearly blowing her fragile control to hell. “I certainly hope not.”

  He stepped closer, crowding her in. She fought the urge to move. Her gaze dropped to his mouth, firm and full at the bottom, with a sensual curve that was hard to miss.