Книга - The End of Faking It

The End of Faking It
Natalie Anderson


Everyone fakes it. Don’t they?A teenage romance-turned-nightmare has taught Penny Fairburn that faking it is the only way to go. It’s not until she meets gorgeous Carter Dodds and his bullet-proof ego that she realises how wrong she’s been! Carter can have any woman on a plate, and likes the smorgasbord approach!But after some scorching nights with Penny, ‘no-strings’ Carter has changed his tune – Penny’s not faking anything in his bed, but getting her to admit her true feelings for him out in the real world is a whole new challenge…












Praise for Natalie Anderson


‘Natalie Anderson is one of the most exciting voices in

steamy romantic fiction writing today. Sassy, witty and

emotional, her [books] are in a class of their own …

an extraordinary new talent who can blend passion,

drama, humour and emotion in one unforgettable read!’

—www.cataromance.com

‘Mistress Under Contract is a fantastic contemporary romance full of intense emotions, funny moments, blazing sexual tension and moving romance; don’t miss it!’ —Pink Heart Society on Mistress Under Contract

‘Natalie Anderson’s His Mistress by Arrangement is a charming romance of childhood friends reconnecting. It’s both fun and flirty, and conveys the wonderful feeling of finding someone you can truly be yourself with.” —RT Book Reviews on His Mistress by Arrangement




About Natalie Anderson


Possibly the only librarian who got told off herself for talking too much, NATALIE ANDERSON decided writing books might be more fun than shelving them—and, boy, is it that! Especially writing romance—it’s the realisation of a lifetime dream kick-started by many an afternoon spent devouring Grandma’s Mills & Boon


books … She lives in New Zealand, with her husband and four gorgeous-but-exhausting children.

Swing by her website any time—she’d love to hear from you: www.natalie-anderson.com




Also by Natalie Anderson


Walk on the Wild Side

Unbuttoned by Her Maverick Boss*

Caught on Camera with the CEO*

To Love, Honour and Disobey

Hot Boss, Boardroom Mistress

*Hot Under the Collar duet

Did you know these are also available as eBooks? Visit www.millsandboon.co.uk




The End of Faking It


Natalie Anderson


























www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)


For my awesome daily support structure:

Dave, Mum & Soraya.

You guys helped with the heartache of this one especially.

Am so happy to be returning the favour now, Soraya!




CHAPTER ONE


ANOTHER two minutes couldn’t possibly matter—late was late and this was too important to leave.

‘Come on, Audrey,’ Penny muttered softly. ‘Let’s keep you all healthy, huh?’ She scattered the plant food and put the pack back in the top drawer of the filing cabinet. Then she picked up the jug of water.

‘What are you doing?’

Her fingers flinched and she whirled at the sound of deep, accusing anger. She saw black clothes, big frame, even bigger frown. Striding towards her was a total stranger. A tall, dark, two hundred per cent testosterone-filled male was in her office, late at night. Not Jed the security guard, but a hard edged predator coming straight for her—fast.

She flung forward, all raw reflex.

He swore as water hit him straight in the eyes. She lunged again, hoping to knock him out with a Pyrex jug to the temple. Only halfway there her arm slammed against something hard, whiplash sent shudders down her shoulder. Painfully strong fingers held her wrist vice-tight. She immediately strained to break free, twisting skin and muscle. He sharply wrenched her wrist. She gasped. Her fingers failed and the jug tipped between them.

The shock of the ice-cold water splashing across her chest suffocated her shriek. She recoiled, but he came forward relentlessly, still death-gripping her wrist. The drawer slammed as she backed up and banged against it.

‘Who the hell are you and what are you doing in here?’ he demanded, storming further into her personal space.

Shock, pain, fear. She couldn’t move other than to blink, trying to see clearly and figure a way to escape.

But he moved closer still. ‘What are you doing with the files?’ Pure menace.

The cold metal cabinet dug into her back. But he wasn’t in the least cold. She could feel his heat even with the slight distance between them. His hand branded her. Her scream couldn’t emerge—not with her throat squeezed so tight and her heart not beating at all.

He pushed back his fringe with his free hand, also blinked several times—only his eyes were filled with the water she’d thrown at him, not tears like hers. He actually laughed—not nicely—and his grip tightened even more. ‘I didn’t think this was going to be that easy.’ He looked over her, scorn sharpening every harsh word. ‘You’re not screwing another cent out of this company.’

Penny gaped. He was insane. Totally insane. ‘The security guard will be doing his rounds any minute,’ she panted. ‘He’s armed.’

‘With what—chewing gum? The only person going to the police cells tonight is you, honey.’

Yep, totally insane. Unfortunately he was also right about Jed’s lack of ammo—the best she could hope for was a heavy torch. And it was a hopeless hope because she’d been lying anyway—Jed didn’t do rounds. He sat at his desk. And she was ten floors up, alone with a complete nut-job who was going to … going to …

Jerky breathing filled her ears—as if someone was having an asthma attack. It took long moments to realise it was her. She pressed her free hand to her stomach, but couldn’t stop the violent tremors. Her eyes watered more, her muscles quivered. Dimly she heard him swear.

‘I’m not going to hurt you,’ he said loudly right in her face.

‘You already are,’ she squeaked.

He instantly let go of her wrist, but he didn’t move away. If anything he towered closer, still blocking her exit. But she could breathe again and her brain started sending signals. Then her heart got going, pushing a plan along her veins. All she had to do was escape him somehow and race down to Jed on Reception. She could do that, right? She forced a few more deep breaths as both fight and flight instincts rose and merged, locking her body and brain into survive mode.

‘Who are you and what are you doing here?’ he asked, a little quieter that time, but still with that peremptory tone, as if he had all the authority.

Which he didn’t.

‘Answer that yourself,’ Penny snapped back.

He glanced down to where the jug lay useless on the floor and, beside her, where the plant’s tub sat. ‘You’re the cleaner?’ He looked from her toes back up to her face—slowly. ‘You don’t look like a cleaner.’

‘No, who are you and what are you doing here?’ Now she could see—and almost think—she took stock of him. Tall and dark, yes, but while the jeans and tee were black, they were well fitting—as in designer fitting. And it wasn’t as if he was wearing a balaclava. Not exactly hardcore crim kind of clothing. The intensely angry look had vanished, and his face was open and sun-burnished, as if he spent time skiing or sailing. The hard planes of his body, and the strength she felt firsthand, suggested a high degree of fitness too. On his wrist was one of those impressive watches, all masculine and metal with a million little dials and functions most people wouldn’t be able to figure out. And now that the water was gone from her eyes she could see his were an amazing blue-green. Clear and shining and vibrant and … were they checking her out?

‘I asked you first,’ he said softly, putting his hands either side of her to rest on the top of the filing cabinet. His arms made long, strong, bronzed prison bars.

‘I’m the PA,’ she answered mechanically, most of her attention focused on digesting this new element of his proximity. ‘This is my desk.’

‘You’re Penny?’ His brows skyrocketed up and he blatantly checked over her outfit again. ‘You definitely don’t look like any PA Mason would have.’

How did he know her name? And Mason? Her eyes narrowed as the gleam in his grew. Heat radiated out from him, warming her blood and making her skin super-sensitive. No way. She wasn’t going to let him look at her like that. She sucked up some sarcasm. ‘Actually Mason really likes my skirt.’

He angled his head and studied it yet again. ‘Is that what that is? I thought it was a belt.’ He smiled. Not a scary psycho-killer smile, more one that would make a million hearts flutter and two million legs start to slide apart—like hers suddenly threatened to.

It was that powerful she had to consciously order her lips not to smile right back at him like some besotted bimbo. ‘It’s vintage Levi’s.’

‘Oh, that explains it. You didn’t realise moths had been at the hem?’ His face lit up even more. ‘Not that I’m complaining.’

Okay, the denim mini was teensy weensy, the heels of her shoes super-high and her curve-clinging champagne-coloured blouse off the shoulder. Of course she didn’t wear this to work. She was all dressed up for dance-party pleasure. Yes, she’d dressed in case there was that other sort of pleasure to be had as well—just because she hadn’t found a playmate in a while, didn’t mean she’d given up all hope. Only now the pretty silk was sopping, plastered to her chest, revealing far more than she’d ever intended. And she was not, not, feeling any kind of primal response to a random stranger who’d all but assaulted her. ‘Before I scream, who are you?’ Not that there was any need to scream now and she knew it.

‘I work here,’ he said smoothly.

‘I know everyone who works in this building and you don’t.’

He reached into his pocket and then dangled a security card in her face. She quickly read the name—Carter Dodds. It didn’t enlighten her in the least; she’d never heard of him. Then she looked at the photo. In it he was wearing the black tee shirt that he had on now.

Amazingly her brain managed the simple computation. ‘You started today.’

‘Officially tomorrow.’ He nodded.

‘Then why are you here now?’ And how? Jed might be slack on the rounds but he was scrupulous about knowing who was still in the building after hours. And surely Mason wouldn’t have let a new recruit have open access to everything with no one around to supervise?

‘I wanted to see what the place was like when it was quiet.’

‘Why?’ Her suspicions grew more. What did he want to see? There wasn’t any money kept on site, but there were files, transactions, account numbers—loads of sensitive investor information worth millions. She glanced past him to Mason’s open office door, but could hear no gentle hum of the computer.

‘Why are you watering the plants at nine-thirty at night?’ he countered.

‘I forgot to do it earlier.’

‘So you came back specially?’ Utter disbelief.

Actually she’d been downstairs swimming in the pool—breaking all the rules because it was after the gym’s closing hour. But she wasn’t going to drop Jed in it. ‘New recruits don’t get to grill me.’

‘No?’

His smile sharpened, but before he could get another question out she got in one of hers. ‘How come you’re here alone?’

‘Mason wanted to get an early night before we get started tomorrow.’

‘He didn’t tell me you were starting.’

‘Does he tell you everything?’

‘Usually.’ She lifted her chin in defiance of the calculated look that crossed his face, but he missed it—his focus had dropped to her body again.

‘Mason buried his heart with his wife,’ he said bluntly. ‘You won’t get any gold out of him no matter how short your skirt.’

Her mouth fell open. ‘What?’

‘You wouldn’t be the first pretty girl to bat her eyelashes at a rich old man.’

What was he suggesting? ‘Mason’s eighty.’

His shrug didn’t hide his anger. ‘For some women that would make him all the more attractive.’

‘Yeah, well, not me. He’s like my grandfather.’ She screwed up her face.

‘You’re the one who said he likes your skirt.’

‘Only because you couldn’t drag your eyes from it.’

‘But isn’t that why you wear it?’

She paused. He wasn’t afraid to challenge direct, was he? Well, nor was she—when she could think. Right now her brain had gone all lame. ‘I don’t believe you’re supposed to be here now.’

‘Really? Go ahead and ask your boss. Use my phone.’ He pulled it out of his pocket, pressed buttons and handed it to her.

It rang only a couple of times.

‘Carter, have you already found something?’

Penny gripped the phone tighter as she absorbed the anxiety in Mason’s quick-fire query. ‘No, sorry, Mason, it’s Penny. Not Carter.’ She stuttered when she saw Carter’s sudden grin—disarming and devilish. ‘Look, I’ve just bumped into someone in the office.’

‘Carter,’ Mason said.

‘Yes.’ Penny winced at the obvious. Had the sinking feeling she was about to wince even more. ‘He’s given me his phone to call you.’

‘Penny, I’m sorry, I should have told you but Carter thought it should wait until he got there.’

Thought what should wait? Why was Carter the one calling shots? What was going on?

‘Carter heads up Dodds WD in Melbourne. I asked him to come to Sydney for a couple of weeks. I need his help.’

‘What for?’

Carter knew he was still standing too close but too bad. In fact he put both hands back on either side of her. That way she couldn’t readily escape. He was certain she would, so he made sure she couldn’t—by holding a position hat was only a few inches away from intimate.

He was having a time shutting up the temptation whispering that he should lose those few inches. He pushed his hands hard on the cool metal and watched as she pressed the phone closer to her ear and turned her head away from him.

The colour ran under her skin like an incoming tide and Carter couldn’t contain his amusement. Mason was his grandfather’s best friend. He’d seen him every few months all his life and he was on the old boy’s speed-dial to prove it. This was the first time Mason had asked him for help—and help he would. But just this moment?

Distraction. Capital D.

‘Of course.’ Penny had turned her head even further away, clearly hoping he wouldn’t hear whatever it was that Mason was saying.

Carter didn’t give a damn what the old guy said right now. He was too lost in looking at her. She had the biggest, darkest eyes he’d ever seen. They drew him in and sucked him under—like sparkling pools that turned out to be dangerously deep, the kind of eyes that you could stare into endlessly—and he was. Peripherally, bits of his body were absorbing the detail of hers and the back of his brain drew rapid conclusions.

A skirt that short, a shirt that sexy, a body that honed, lips that slicked …

This woman knew how attractive she was, and she emphasised all her best assets. Everything about her was polished to pure, sensual perfection. She was no shy, shrinking secretary. She was a siren. And every basic cell in Carter’s body wanted to answer her summons. So, so badly.

‘Hello?’

She was holding the phone out to him and he’d been too busy gawping to notice. He grabbed it and started talking.

‘Hi, Mason, sorry to bother you so late.’

‘It doesn’t matter. It’s great you’re onto it so quickly. I can’t thank you enough.’

‘So Penny’s your temp PA?’ Carter kept looking at her, still struggling to believe that conservative, eighty-year-old Mason had ever hired such a blatant sex bomb. ‘She’s working late.’

‘She always works late.’ Mason sounded pleased. ‘She’s an angel. I get in every morning and everything is so organised, she makes it a breeze.’

An angel? Carter’s suspicions sharpened again. Penny wouldn’t be the first attractive young woman to turn an older man’s head. Carter knew exactly how easy it was for an avaricious, ambitious female to use her beauty to dazzle a fool old enough to know better. He’d watched not one, but two do that to his dad. Despite her outraged reaction, who was to say that wasn’t what was happening here? ‘How long has she been with you?’ He couldn’t not ask.

There was a silence. ‘Since after the problem started.’ Mason’s voice turned arctic. ‘I thought I’d made this clear already.’

Yeah. Mason had mentioned his fabulous PA more than once—but not her hotter-than-Venus factor. Not mentioning that didn’t seem natural.

‘You tell her what’s going on,’ Mason said sharply. ‘I should have already. Carter, she’s not who you’re looking for.’

Carter stared at the temptation personified before him. Her mouth was as glossy and red ripe as a Morello cherry—and he wanted a taste. That was the real problem. Hell, he was off on a tangent before he’d even started. He owed Mason better than this. ‘You’re right,’ he said brusquely. ‘She’s not.’

Penny watched him pocket the phone. He didn’t seem to be any happier about the situation—offered no laughter or light apology. If anything he looked as angry as he had when he’d first interrogated her. What was he here to do exactly? Mason hadn’t elaborated, just told her to help him if he asked her to. They hadn’t advertised a new job—she was the one who placed the ads so she’d know. So this was cronyism, some old boys’ school network thing. But he was hardly a fresh-faced graduate getting his first contract courtesy of his father. ‘You know Mason personally,’ she said baldly, annoyed by the fact—annoyed by him—and his attractiveness.

‘Have done for years.’ He nodded.

Yeah, that was why the job, whatever it was, hadn’t been advertised. Mason had probably made something up for him to do. Still smarting from his gold-digger slur, she let her inner bitch out to taunt. ‘You don’t look like you have to pull favours to get a job.’

‘Don’t I?’ he answered too softly. ‘How would you know? Is that what you do?’ He leaned closer and whispered low, as if they were intimate. ‘What kind of favours do you pull to score a job, Penny?’

Okay, she’d crossed the line a little, but he’d just leapt it. ‘What sort of favours do you think I pull?’ she fired back before thinking.

His eyes flashed, the pupils expanding so fast the piercing colours became the thinnest of circles around the burgeoning black. Riveted, she watched the myriad greens and blues narrow out. He really did have it—perfect symmetry, angular jawbones and hair that just begged to be ruffled and then gripped tight.

The palms of her hands tingled, heated. Only it wasn’t just his hair she imagined pulling close, no, now she was pulling on hot, silky hard skin, stroking it faster and faster and—OMG where had that come from?

She gulped back the insanity. She couldn’t be thinking that. She looked down and clamped her mouth shut, swallowing both literally and mentally, overly aware her breathing had quickened to audible—basically to panting. Again.

Oh, please don’t let him know what she’d been thinking. She glanced back up at him. All the blue had gone from his irises leaving nothing but thin rings of green fire around those huge, black pupils. Dusky red tinged his cheekbones. She could relate. Blood was firing all round her body, pinking up all sorts of parts—her face included. But at least he wasn’t panting like some dog in heat, which she, unfortunately, was.

He said nothing, she said nothing. But she could see it shimmering in the air between them—razor-sharp attraction. Urges at their most basic. Urges almost uncontrollable.

‘There’s a problem in the accounts—some-one in the company is skimming,’ he suddenly said roughly, jerking his head up.

‘What?’

‘I’m here to check through all the files and find out who and how.’

Someone was stealing? And Carter was here to catch him? Mason had said he headed up some company in Melbourne, so was he some kind of CEO/forensic accountant or something?

Actually that didn’t seem to fit. Not when he wore jeans and tousled hair so well. He looked as if he had too much street cred to be a number cruncher.

‘The only people who’ll know the real reason I’m here are you, Mason and me,’ he continued. ‘We’ll spread it ’round the company that I’m a friend of Mason’s who’s borrowing an office for a couple of weeks. Which I am.’

The fiery green in his eyes dampened to cold blue serious. The sensual curve of his mouth flattened to a straight, hard line. Penny stared, watching him ice over, as she absorbed that info and the implications.

Then she realised. ‘You thought it was me?’ She basically shrieked, her temperature steaming back up to boiling point. She might be many things, but a thief wasn’t one of them. ‘I’m the best damn temp in this town. I’m hardworking and honest. How dare you storm in here and throw round your gutter accusations?’

‘I know.’ His expression went very intense. ‘I’m sorry. Mason already told me it couldn’t be you.’

He sucked the wind right out of her sails and disarmed her completely with a sudden flash of that smile. It cracked his icy cover and let the heat ripple once more. But she refused to let her anger slide into attraction. ‘You still thought it,’ she accused.

‘Well, you have to admit it looked … it looked …’ His attention wandered—down. ‘It looked …’

Her body—despite the freezing wet shirt—was burning. Okay, that attraction was impossible to stop—simplest thing now would be to escape. ‘Well, now that you’ve done your looking,’ she said sarcastically, her eyes locked on his, ‘are you going to step back and let me past?’

‘Not yet,’ he said wryly. ‘I’m still looking.’

Penny’s nerves tightened to one notch the other side of screaming. His lashes lowered and his smile faded. She looked down too. Now her silk shirt was wet it was both skin colour and skin tight and she might as well not be wearing anything. Even worse, she was aching … and horrified to realise it was completely obvious.

‘You’re cold,’ he said softly.

Yeah, completely obvious.

‘The water in the jug was from the cooler.’

‘So that’s the reason …’

All she could do was brazen this out. She tossed her head and met his eyes direct. ‘What other reason could there be?’

His lips curved. In his tanned face, his teeth were white and straight and perfect. Actually everything in his face was perfect. And in the dark tee shirt and dark trousers he looked pretty-boy pirate, especially with the slightly too-long hair. The intensity of his scrutiny was devastating and now he’d fixed on one thing—her mouth.

She saw his intention. She felt it in her lips already—the yearning for touch. But even for her that would be insane. She didn’t like the way her pulse was zigzagging all over the place. She didn’t like the way her body was so willingly bracing for impact.

‘Don’t add another insult to the list,’ she said, trying to regain control over both of them. But the words didn’t come out as forcefully as she’d intended. Instead they whispered on barely a breath—because she could barely move enough to breathe.

‘How can appreciating beauty be an insult?’

Penny’s pulse thundered. She was used to confident men. They were the kind she liked—pretty much bullet proof. But this was more than just superficial brashness; this was innate, absolute arrogance. He stood even closer, filling all her senses. Her blood rushed to all her secret places and left her brain starving of its ability to operate.

His smile suddenly flashed brighter—like how the flame flared on a gas hob when you accidentally twisted the knob the wrong way. His hand lifted and he brushed her lips with a finger. She shivered.

Shock. She was in shock. That was the problem. That was why she wasn’t resisting….

His expression heated up all the more. ‘You okay?’

‘Mmm.’

His traversing finger muffled the words she couldn’t speak anyway. She was too busy pressing her lips firmly together to stop herself from opening up and inviting him in. But somehow he got that invite anyway because he lifted his finger and swiftly replaced it with his mouth.

Oh.

It was light. A warm, gentle, coaxing kiss that promised so much more than it gave. But what it did give was good. He moved closer, not threatening, but with a hint of masculine spice and just enough pressure to make her accept him. To make her want more. Surprised that it wasn’t a full-throttle brazen burst of passion, she relaxed. Her eyes automatically closed as her body focused on the exquisite sweetness trickling into her. It had been a long time since she’d felt anything so nice—a subtle magic that melted her resistance, and saw her start to strain for what she knew he was holding at bay.

Her lips parted—she couldn’t deny herself. His response came immediate, and powerful. She heard his sound of satisfaction and his hands moved from the steel behind to her soft body. She trembled top to toe as he swiftly shaped her curves, pulling her against him. She had to grab hold of his shoulders or she was going to tumble backwards. The kiss deepened again as she felt the wide, flat planes and hard strength of him. Her neck arched back as he stroked into her mouth. She lifted her hand, sliding her fingers into his thick hair. He showed no mercy then, bending her back all the more as he sought full access, kissing her jaw and neck and back up again to claim her mouth—this time with confident, carnal authority.

She shuddered at the impact, felt him press closer still. Sandwiched between him and the cabinet, she was trapped between forces as unyielding and demanding as each other. Yet she had no desire to escape, not now.

The arrogance of him was breathtaking. But not anywhere as breathtaking as the way he kissed. It was as if he was determined to maximise pleasure for them both and the control she usually held so tight started to slide as her own desire mounted.

He was silk-wrapped steel and she wanted to feel all of him against her, slicing into her. She wanted him. Wanted as she hadn’t wanted anyone in a long, long time. Okay, ever. Hungry for his strength and passion, she kissed him back—melting against his body, delving into his mouth with her tongue, so keen to explore more.

And he knew. He lifted his hand from her waist to her breast and, oh, so lightly stroked his fingers across her violently taut nipple.

She felt the touch as if her skin were bare. And it burned too hot.

She jerked back, ripping her mouth free from his. Their eyes met, faces inches apart. A flare of something dangerous kindled in his—different from the earlier fury but just as frightening for Penny. She pushed as far back against the cool metal cabinet as she could, breathing hard. She shook her head, the only method of communication she could manage. While he stood, rock hard, and stared right back at her.

A million half-thoughts murmured in her head—desperate thoughts, forgotten thoughts, frightening thoughts.

Carter Dodds wasn’t the kind of man to let a woman stay on top—Penny’s only acceptable position, metaphorically anyway. He’d just demonstrated he’d always ultimately be the one in charge—his almost pretty-boy packaging disguised a total he-man with all masculine, all dominant virility. He’d made his move that way—lulling her into a sense of sweet security before unleashing his true potency and damn near swamping her reason. She liked sex—enjoyed the chase, the fun of touch, the fleeting closeness. But she never, ever lost control. She had to be in charge—needed to be the one who was wanted—even if only for that little while. She was very careful with whom she shared her body because she would always walk away. She ensured that a lover understood that. Commitment wasn’t something she could ever give. Nor was complete submission. So the sensations now threatening to submerge all her capacity for rational thought were very new. And very unwelcome.

But there was a logical explanation. Less than five minutes ago she’d thought she was being attacked. Her heart hadn’t had a chance since to stop its manic stuttering and it was still sending ‘escape now’ blasts through her blood.

‘Well, that was one way to burn off the adrenalin overload.’ She totally had to act cool.

‘Is that what you were doing?’

‘Sure. You know, I was still wired from the fright of you assaulting me in my own office.’

He stepped back, taking his heat with him. But his scrutiny seemed even more intense than ever. ‘Oh. So what was it for me?’

She hazarded a simple guess. ‘Normal?’

His mouth quirked. ‘Not.’

Cool just wasn’t happening but she had to scrape her melting body back together. She wasn’t afraid of taking fun where it could be found, but there wasn’t fun to be had here. Anything that hot eventually had to hurt. And any emotion that intense scared her. In ten minutes with Carter she’d already run the gamut of terror, fury and lust—way too much of the latter. So she turned away from the challenge in his eyes.

‘I need to get going. I’m late as it is.’ The sooner she got to the bar, the better—she had to burn up the energy zinging round her body like a demented fly trapped in a jar. Fast and free on the dance floor for the next eight hours might do it.

‘Hot date?’

‘Very.’ She lied, happy to slam the brakes on anything between them by invoking her imaginary man friend. She opened up her gym bag; she’d straighten up her appearance and then her insides. But those insides shrieked—she breathed choppily, her heart jack-hammered—so the hairdryer’s cacophony was completely wonderful. It muted her clamouring nerves.

Carter took a couple of strides to get himself out of physical range so he could get a grip on the urge to haul her back against him. He didn’t know what had got into him. He’d just kissed a complete stranger. A stranger who he’d initially thought was Mason’s cheating thief.

He should probably apologise. But how could he be sorry for something so good? Except for a second there she’d looked at him as if he’d struck her, not snogged her. She’d looked shocked and almost hurt, almost vulnerable.

And then she’d blamed that chemistry on adrenalin? Who did she think she was kidding? And now she was apparently late for her date and she had her hairdryer blasting. But it wasn’t her hair getting the treatment. It was her shirt. She held it out from her body, blowing the warm air over the silk. Then she lifted the nozzle and aimed it down her neckline—what, so she could dry her soft, wet skin? Not helping his raging erection subside any. Nope, that just yanked it even tighter.

A light flickered on her desk. Her mobile. He glanced back up; she was still focused on her shirt. He picked up the mobile to hand it to her, his thumb hit the keypad and, oh, shame, that message from Mel just flicked up on the screen.

Where r u? Kat & Bridge already on d-floor & lookg tragic. Need yr expertise.

Her hot date was with Mel, Kat and Bridge? A bunch of women out on a mission—on a Monday night. That shouldn’t amuse him quite as much as it did. He walked up, took the dryer from her hand and pointed it at his wet hair. Immediately he jerked back from the blast of air. ‘It’s freezing!’

The pink in her cheeks deepened.

‘Yeah,’ he teased, the sparks arcing between them again. ‘I thought you were feeling hot.’

‘It’s malfunctioning,’ she said sulkily.

Carter fiddled with the switch and then aimed the dryer at her like a gun. ‘Or maybe it’s because you had it turned on cold.’

Boom—even more red blotches peppered her creamy skin. She snatched the appliance back off him and switched it off.

‘Here’s your phone.’ He bit the bullet and handed it over.

She looked at the screen and frowned. ‘You read my text?’

‘It flashed when I picked it up.’ He shrugged almost innocently.

‘You didn’t need to pick it up.’

‘But I like picking up pretty little things.’ Even less innocent.

Blacker than black eyes narrowed. ‘I’m sure you’ve had plenty of practice.’

‘Well, that does make for perfect performance.’ Yep, wickedly sinful now.

‘Is that what you think you offer? Perfection?’

He grinned at her tone. She made provocation so irresistible. ‘You don’t think?’

Her eyes raked him hard and, heaven help him, he loved it. ‘I think you could do with some more practice.’

‘You’re offering?’

She turned away from him, retrieved the jug from the floor and marched to the water cooler to refill it. What, she was literally going to douse the flames again? But, no, she poured the water around the base of the monstrosity that was supposedly an office plant.

‘What is it, some kind of triffid?’ He reached up to the branches overhanging the cabinet. ‘If it grows any more, there won’t be room for anyone to work in here.’

‘She belongs to Carol and she’ll be here when she gets back. All healthy.’

‘You think that’s really going to happen?’ Carter knew Mason’s long-time assistant had a cancer battle on her hands. She’d been off for months and Mason was paying her full salary out of his own pocket. Which was why finding the person stealing from him was a priority. He was paying for two PAs. He was a hardworking, generous employer who deserved better than some skunk skimming and putting the entire company in jeopardy.

‘Of course she’s coming back.’ Penny banged the jug back on top of the filing cabinet and finally looked at him directly again. The flames were still there. ‘Is someone really stealing from him?’

Carter nodded. ‘I think so.’

‘But Mason’s one of the good guys. He gives so much to charity. He doesn’t deserve that.’

‘That’s why I’m here.’

Her appraisal went rapier sharp. ‘Well, you’d better lift your game.’

‘Hmm.’ He nodded agreeably. ‘I was thinking that too.’ But the game he meant was the one with her. And he didn’t miss the warring desire and antagonism in her expression.

He walked alongside her down the corridor, rode the lift in silent torture. The space between them was too small but he wanted it even smaller—to nothing but skin on skin. Like a tiger, he was ready to pounce. At least his body was; his brain was frantically trying to issue warnings—like he didn’t have time for this, like he needed to focus.

The security guard leapt up from his desk to get the door. ‘Goodnight, Penny.’ His smile widened as he watched her walk across the foyer towards him. That smile faded when he glanced behind her and registered Carter’s frown. ‘Goodnight, sir.’ Suddenly all respectful.

Carter made himself nod and smile.

‘Hope Maddie’s better when you get home,’ Penny said lightly.

‘Me too.’ The guard’s smile spread again. ‘See you tomorrow. Not too early, you understand?’

She just laughed as she went through the door.

‘Have fun, Penny,’ Carter drawled softly as they hit the pavement.

She turned and fluttered him a look one eyelash short of do-me-now. ‘Oh, I plan to.’

So she couldn’t resist striking the sparks either. And he knew the kind of fun girls like her liked—the eat-men-for-breakfast kind. He smiled, happy to play if she wanted, because experience had made him too tough to chew. She could learn that if she dared.

She walked away, her legs ridiculously long in that sexy strip of a skirt, her balance perfect on the high, narrow heels. Her glossy brown hair cascaded down to her almost too-trim waist. He bet she worked out in the pursuit of perfection. Not that she needed to bother. She nailed it on attitude alone.

Testosterone—and other things—surged again. So did his latent combative nature. That vulnerability he’d seen upstairs when he’d startled her, and again after he’d kissed her? A mirage—she’d been buying time while assessing her position. For Penny the PA knew how to play men—the slayer look she’d just shot him proved it. Mason thought the world of her. The security guy was falling over himself to help her. She’d want to bring Carter to heel like every other man she knew. Yeah, he’d seen her vixen desire for dominance. She thought she could toy with him as some feline would a mouse.

She was so wrong.

But he could hardly wait for her to bring it on.




CHAPTER TWO


PENNY winked at Jed as she walked back into the building just over nine hours later—three of which had been spent dancing and six sort-of sleeping.

‘Too early, Penny.’ The security guard covered his yawn, clearly barely hanging out the last half-hour before clocking off.

‘Too much to do.’

First in for the day, she wanted to get ahead and be fully functioning by the time Mason showed. Definitely by the time Carter Dodds rolled in. The super-size black coffee in her hand would help. But she’d barely got seated when there was movement in her doorway.

‘Thought I’d bring this up before I left.’

Jed walked in—well, from the voice she knew it was him. His body was completely obscured by the floral bouquet that was almost too wide to fit through the door.

‘They just arrived,’ he puffed.

‘Not more?’ Penny shrivelled deeper into her seat. She knew who they were from. Aaron—a spoilt-for-choice playboy type with several options on the go—the kind of guy Penny always looked for when she needed some company for a while. Only the spark was missing. Last week she’d told him no and goodbye—thought she’d made it clear—but the flowers continued to prove otherwise.

‘Thanks, Jed,’ she said as he offloaded the oversize blooms onto her desk. ‘Have a good sleep.’

‘Not me who needs it.’

Penny held back her sigh. She’d take the bunch back down to Reception again but she’d wait ’til Jed had gone for the day—he was exhausted after the night shift and had to go home to a sick preschooler. He didn’t need to be hauling flowers back and forth for her.

She picked up her phone and hit one of the pre-programmed buttons.

‘SpeedFreaks.’

‘Hi, Kate,’ Penny said. ‘I’ve got a floral delivery please.’

‘Penny? Another one?’

‘Yeah.’ She tried not to sound too negative about it. It was pretty pathetic to be upset by having masses of flowers delivered; most women would be thrilled. But cut flowers didn’t make her think of romance and sweethearts, they made her think hospitals and funerals and lives cut way too short. ‘Can you pick them up as soon as possible?’

She heard a movement behind her and turned, smiling in anticipation of Mason. But she forgot all about Mason, or smiling, even the flowers. Only one thing filled her feeble mind.

Tall, broad shoulders, dark hair dangerously leaning towards shaggy—she shouldn’t be thinking shag anything. But she was. Because his eyes were leaning towards dangerous to match. She half waved with her phone hand to let him know she was occupied. But he didn’t go away and she really needed him to because her head wasn’t working well with him watching her like that. She pointedly looked past him to the corridor—didn’t he know to come back in a few minutes?

No. He just thudded a heavy shoulder against the doorframe, becoming a human door—blocking her exit and anyone else’s entry to the room.

And he smiled. Not just dangerous—positively killer.

She tried to look away, honest she did. But that ability had been stolen from her the moment her eyes had met his.

‘Can you get them picked up asap?’ she asked on auto, her brain fried by Carter’s perfectly symmetrical features. Other parts of her body had gone on quick burn too. Thank heavens she still had her jacket on, because her boobs were like twin beacons screaming her interest through her white blouse. Memories of that gentle stroke last night tormented her. ‘They’ll be at Reception.’

He was even more handsome in the morning light. Even more now she wasn’t blinded by fear and her senses weren’t heightened by a surge of adrenalin. No, now it was some other hormone rippling through her body making her shiver.

He stared back as if he were mentally undressing her as fast as she was him. There were no black jeans and tee today, it was suit all the way. Dark, so understated it actually stood out, its uniform style showing off the fat-free frame beneath. Penny’s heart thundered.

She turned back to her desk, her voice lowering. ‘Thanks, Kate.’ She wanted off the phone.

‘Are you sure you don’t want them? Or him?’ Kate didn’t pick up on Penny’s need-to-hang-up vibe. ‘He must be loaded to keep sending you these massive bouquets. And he’s obviously dead keen.’

Penny winced. Then winced again as she realised Carter would be able to hear Kate too—the phone volume was too loud. She glanced over her shoulder and jumped. He wasn’t in the doorway any more. He was about three inches away—at the most.

‘No. I’ll spell it out in single syllables.’ But Penny tensed. She didn’t know how more obvious she could be. She’d thought Aaron would be fine with a few dates’ fun before saying goodbye. Only they hadn’t got anywhere near that far. She figured the over-the-top floral attention was just him not being used to hearing ‘no’ and now he was determined to make her change her mind for the boy sport of it. But she couldn’t be sure. And because she couldn’t be completely sure, she couldn’t be completely harsh. Not ever again.

‘Where do you want them to go?’

‘What about the hospice? But send them to the staff room. Those guys work so hard.’

‘Sure.’

Carter had his ultimate weapon loaded again—that smile was amused now, curving his full, sensual mouth. The green-blue eyes were bright and clear, but the clarity itself seemed to be shielding secrets within. Like a mirror they reflected the surface—and blocked access to the depths behind.

She replaced the receiver and turned to face her shameless eavesdropper full on. She ran her hands down the side of her skirt, pretending to smooth it but really trying to get rid of the clammy feeling.

‘You don’t want to keep them?’ He was far too close in this spacious office—why couldn’t he stay on the far side of her desk?

He inspected the behemoth bunch and looked at the card—the millions of miniature red hearts on the cover obviously showed it was a romantic gift. Somehow him knowing that annoyed her all the more. And he already knew she didn’t want them, he’d heard the courier conversation.

‘I’m allergic,’ she lied through a clamped smile. She wanted to get rid of both the flowers and him. How was she supposed to concentrate when her desk was covered with strong-smelling blooms and a man more gorgeous than the latest Calvin Klein model was making the room shrink more with every breath?

His gaze narrowed. ‘Really?’

‘Sure.’ She blinked. ‘I need to get these to Reception.’ She reached out to pick up the flowers and escape. But in her haste she scraped her finger against one of the green stems, scratching it. ‘Damn.’ She looked at her skin and watched the fine white scratch flood with red. Then she glared at the bunch. ‘I hate them.’

‘Let me see.’ He sidestepped the flowers and had her wrist in his hand before her brain could even engage.

Her pulse shot into the stratosphere. ‘It’s fine. A little plaster or a tissue will stop it,’ she babbled faster than a Japanese bullet train rode the rail. Every muscle quivered, wanting him to draw her into a closer embrace.

‘Suck on it.’ His gaze snared hers. ‘Or I will if you want.’

For half a second her jaw hung open. Oh, he was every bit as outrageous in the morning as he was at night. And she was dangerously tickled.

‘It’s fine.’ She snatched her hand back, curling her fingers into a fist. ‘I need to get these out of here.’

‘Hey.’ He frowned and reached out again, pushing her wide gold bangle further up her arm. His frown super-sized up as he stared at the skin he’d exposed. ‘Did I do that?’

‘Oh.’ She glanced down at the purple fingerprint bruises circling her wrist. ‘Don’t worry about it. I bruise easily.’

He looked back to her face, all the erotic spark in his expression stamped out by concern. ‘I’m really sorry.’

‘Don’t be.’ She shook her head quickly. ‘Like I said, it’s nothing.’ Honestly, his contrition just made it worse. She did bruise easily and his switching to all serious made him all the more gorgeous. And now he was ever so lightly touching each bruise with a single fingertip.

‘It’s not fine.’

Penny swallowed. With difficulty. Did he have to be so genuine? She needed to get out of there before she did something stupid like puddle at his feet. That gentle stroking was having some kind of weird hypnotic effect, making her want to move even closer. Instead she turned to the flowers.

‘I’ll take them.’ He picked up the massive bunch with just the one hand.

Okay, that was good because he’d be gone and she’d have a few minutes to bang her head and hormones back together. She should be polite and say something. But she didn’t think she had a ‘thank you’ in her this second. The sensations still reverberated, shaking her insides worse than any earthquake could.

‘Penny—’

‘Mason should be here any minute,’ she said quickly to stave off any more of the soft attention.

‘No Mason today,’ Carter answered. ‘He’s working from home. He’ll have sent you an email.’

She frowned. Mason never worked from home. He might be eighty but he was almost always first in the door every day. ‘I’ll take what he needs to him there.’ Truthfully she wanted to check on him.

‘That would be great.’

Their gazes collided again, only this time the underlying awareness was tempered by mutual concern.

‘I’ll find out who’s hurting him,’ Carter said, calmly determined.

Penny nodded.

He cared about the old man, that was obvious. Some thing jerked deep inside her—the first stirrings of respect and a shared goal.

‘I’ll be back in a minute.’ He swept out of the room.

Penny just sank into her chair.

Carter carried the oversize bunch of blooms down to Reception. Taking the stairs rather than the lift used a bit of the energy coiled in his body, but not enough. Like an overflowing dam he needed a runoff to ease some of the pressure.

Penny had got under his skin faster than snake venom got into a mouse’s nervous system. He’d thought about her all night instead of getting his head around the company setup. Seeing her again today had only made it worse. She looked unbelievably different. The clubbing vixen had vanished and in her place was a perfect vision of conservative and capable. An, oh-so-sensible-length skirt simply highlighted slim ankles and sweet curves, a virginal white blouse was covered by a neatly tailored navy jacket. Hell, there’d even been a strand of pearls at her neck. With her shiny black hair swept back into a plait and her even blacker eyes, she’d looked like the epitome of the nineteen-forties secretary. No matter what she wore, she was beautiful.

Ordinarily Carter wasn’t averse to mixing business and pleasure. When business took up so much time, it was sometimes the only way he could find room for pleasure. So long as the woman understood the interest was only ever a temporary thing, and that there were no benefits to the arrangement other than the physical. He didn’t generally mix it with someone directly subordinate to him, but someone in one of the offshoot companies or satellite offices.

But he shouldn’t mess with Penny—not with only a week or two to find the slime-ball ripping Mason off. But he didn’t think he was going to be able to work without coming to some kind of arrangement with her, because her challenge was enough to smash his concentration completely. Fortunately he figured she was a woman who’d understand the kind of deal he liked, and the short time frame saved them from any possible messiness. He just had to ensure she understood the benefits—and the boundaries.

In the privacy of the stairwell he opened the card still attached to the flowers.

Hoping to see you again tonight—Aaron.

Carter’s muscles tightened. Had she seen him last night? Maybe she had had a hot date after meeting up with the women. Had she gone to this Aaron with the taste of Carter still on her? Because he could still taste her—hot, fresh, hungry.

He wasn’t in the least surprised to think she’d go to another guy having just blown hot for him; he was well used to women who manipulated, playing one man off against another. His ex had done exactly that—trying to force him into making a commitment by making him jealous. It hadn’t worked. And he sure as hell wasn’t feeling jealous now. The aggro sharpening his body this minute was because of the threat to Mason. Not Penny.

He stalked out to Reception and put the flowers on the counter. ‘I think a courier company is coming to pick these up.’

The receptionist grinned as she looked at them. ‘Penny sent them down?’ She shook her head. ‘That’s the third bunch this week. She’s mad not to want them.’

The third this week? It was only Tuesday. Yeah, she would like holding the interest of multiple men. His long-held cynicism surged higher—there was no doubt Penny was as greedy and needy as every other woman he’d known.

It was almost an hour before Carter reappeared, a piece of paper in his hand and a frown creasing his brow. ‘Penny, I need you to—’

He broke off as her phone started ringing.

She shrugged an apology and answered it. ‘Nicholls Finance, Penny speaking.’

‘Did you get the flowers?’

‘Aaron,’ she whispered, inwardly groaning. She darted a look at Carter, then turned away on her chair so he wouldn’t see the flush rising in her cheeks. She already knew he was rude enough to stay and listen. Her best option was to end the call asap. ‘It really isn’t convenient to talk right now—’

‘Did you get them?’

‘Yes, I’m sorry, I should have called but it’s been a busy morning.’ And she could hardly let him down without some privacy. ‘Can I call you back?’

‘The roses reminded me of you. Stunningly beautiful but with some dangerous prickles.’

Yes, she’d encountered one of those real prickles. She shrank more into her chair. ‘Look, it was lovely of you but—’

‘Dinner tonight. No excuses.’

She breathed in and tried to stay calm. ‘That’s a nice idea but—’

‘I’ve already made the reservations. It’s my only night off this week and I want to spend it all with you.’

‘Aaron, I’m sorry but—’

The phone was taken out of her hand.

‘Look, mate, don’t bother. She has a new boyfriend and she’s allergic to flowers. She’s already sent them on to the hospice down the road.’

Penny stared as Carter leaned across her desk. She couldn’t hear what Aaron said in response—she could hardly process what Carter had just said so complacently.

‘Yeah, I know. Save your dough. It isn’t going to happen.’ Carter hung up the phone and then looked at her coolly. ‘So, I was saying I need you to track down some files for me.’

For a moment she was too shocked to fully feel the rising fury. But then it truck-slammed into her. ‘What did you just do?’

Carter met her gaze with inhuman calm. ‘Solved your problem. He won’t bother you again.’

‘How could you do that?’

‘Easily. And you should have done it sooner already. Your body language said one thing, your mouth another. You looked like you wanted to hide under your desk for fear he’d appear, but you were brushing him off too gentle. A guy like that doesn’t get subtle, Penny. You need the sledgehammer approach.’

‘I didn’t need you to be the sledgehammer.’ She shook her head. ‘That was bully behaviour.’

‘It was man talking to man,’ he argued with an eye-roll for added effect. ‘And more honest than the drivel coming out of your mouth.’

‘I was handling him,’ she said defensively.

‘You were playing with him.’ Now he didn’t sound so calm. Now he sounded that little bit nasty.

Her hands shook as she brushed her hair behind her ear. She hadn’t been playing with Aaron, she’d been trying to be nice.

‘Three bunches of flowers this week already, isn’t it, Penny? You’re not even honest enough to tell him you don’t want them, let alone that you don’t want him.’

Because she didn’t want to be rude. She never wanted to hurt anyone. Never. Horrified tears prickled her eyes as she panicked over Aaron’s reaction to Carter’s heavy-handedness.

‘Why are you so upset?’ He stepped closer, his eyes narrowing. ‘Oh, I get it. You liked to leave him hanging? Was it good for your ego? You like getting all the flowers and attention? You’re a tease.’

‘I’m not.’ She jerked up out of her chair, beyond hurt at the words he’d just used.

‘You are,’ he argued. ‘Why else wouldn’t you cut him free sooner?’

‘I tried.’ She snatched the paper off him and marched to the filing cabinet, hauling the drawer open with a loud bang.

‘That wasn’t trying.’ He followed and faced her as she rummaged through the files. ‘You’re not stupid, Penny. You could have flicked him off much sooner.’

‘Maybe I’m not as arrogant or as rude as you are.’ She slapped files on the top of the steel. ‘I don’t like trampling on people’s feelings.’

‘You don’t think it’s worse to string him along so your ego can be inflated some more?’

‘That wasn’t what I was doing.’ She crossed her arms in front of her chest.

‘Oh, don’t tell me you really liked him?’ He looked stunned. ‘Were you just making life hell for him? Playing with him so he’d do anything you ask him to?’

‘Of course not!’ She clenched her teeth. ‘I was trying to make it clear that nothing was going to happen. I thought I had already. But he didn’t deserve your kind of in-your-face humiliation.’

‘What he doesn’t deserve is you screwing him up and spitting him out only when you’re sick of chewing him over.’

Breathing hard, she glared at him as fury burned along her veins. ‘Wow, you think so highly of me, don’t you, Carter?’

His shoulders lifted in a mocking shrug. ‘If you really wanted rid of him, you needed to be cruel to be kind.’

‘Well, I’m not cruel,’ she said painfully. ‘I won’t ever be.’

He glared right back at her—for what felt like hours. Slowly she became aware of their isolation in the office, the smallness of the space between them. They were just about in exactly the position they’d been in last night.

‘How about honest, then, can you manage that?’ he asked quietly.

‘Not if it’s going to really hurt someone,’ she muttered. Utterly honest.

‘No.’ He shook his head. ‘That’s the coward’s way out.’

Well, what would he know about anything? For all his cruel-to-be-kind cliché, she’d bet her last cent he’d never hurt anyone the way she once had.

She blinked back her sudden tears, focused on his eyes instead. Close up now she saw even more colours in them—not just green and blue but shots of gold as well. All of a sudden she was trying really, really hard not to think of that kiss and how incredible she’d felt. Trying really, really hard not to notice how his mouth looked fuller today.

The atmosphere changed completely. It seemed he’d forgotten his anger too. But there was no less emotion in the air—it just transformed and intensified as it swirled around them. Somehow it made her feel even worse than when he’d been so rude on the phone. Somehow she was more afraid. She couldn’t move, couldn’t speak.

‘Do you want me to kiss you again, Penny?’ he asked. ‘Is that the real problem here?’

That brought her voice back. ‘You are so conceited.’

‘So you really can’t do honesty,’ he jibed.

She bent her head and fished for the last few files, needing to find her moxie more than the damn data. He so easily tipped her balance, she needed her defensive sass back. But all she could manage now was the silent treatment.

‘So what should that guy have sent you—a big box of Belgian chocolates?’ His tone lightened.

‘I don’t eat chocolate,’ she said shortly, not looking up.

‘Maybe you should, smooth off some of those sharp edges. Isn’t chocolate better than sex?’

‘You’re obviously not doing it right if the women you know say that.’

He yelped a little laugh. ‘Throw out a challenge, why don’t you?’

She slammed the file drawer shut.

‘And now you’re backing away from it again. See, you are a tease. You just like having men want you.’

She faced him full on, to put him firmly in his place. Oh, so arrogant Carter Dodds could definitely cope with that—he wasn’t exactly crushable. ‘You wanting me is not a compliment.’

‘You don’t think?’ He grinned. ‘Well, I’m not going to chase after you with a billion flowers or calls. If you want to follow through on this, just let me know.’

‘And you’ll come running?’

He shook his head. ‘I don’t run after any woman.’

‘Because they all fall at your feet?’

‘Much like the men do at yours, darling,’ he murmured. ‘But I already know how much you want me so maybe I’ll make you beg for it.’

‘Cold day in hell, Carter.’

‘Don’t protest too much, you’ll only regret it later.’

She held a breath for a sanity-saving moment. ‘You always get everything you want?’

‘I already have everything I want. Anything extra is purely for fun.’ His lips curved so slowly and his eyes twinkled with such a teasing expression she fought hard not to let her lips move in response. They wanted to smile all of their own accord. To mirror the magic in his smile. How could she want to smile when she was mad with him?

Because the fact was, he was honest—and, yes, more honest than her. He might be teasing but he wasn’t saying anything that wasn’t a bit true.

‘Admit it, you love the fun of it.’ Both his eyes and voice invited.

‘The fun of what?’

‘Flirting.’

‘Is that what you’re doing?’

‘That’s what we’ve been doing from the moment we saw each other.’

‘Oh, please.’ This wasn’t flirting, this was a full-scale, high-impact, brazen sexual hunt. There was nothing subtle about it.

‘You can’t deny it,’ he said. ‘You like what you see. I like what I see.’

She dropped her gaze. Yes, that was all it was. A superficial animal attraction—based on instinct and what the eye found beautiful. They were each a pleasing example of the opposite sex with whom to practise procreation.

‘That doesn’t mean we should do anything about it. You need to concentrate, you’ve got a job to do here.’ And she needed him to give her some breathing space.

‘And I’ll do it well. Doesn’t mean I can’t have a few moments of light relief here and there.’

Light relief was all she ever did. But she didn’t think Carter would walk as lightly over her as she would him. ‘You don’t think this is a distraction?’

‘I think it’s more of a distraction not to give in to it.’

‘Oh, right, so really I should be saying yes for Mason’s sake.’

He chuckled. ‘You should be saying yes because you can’t keep saying no—not to this.’

He had the sledgehammer thing down pat.

She’d known many cocky guys. Had heard many lines—hell, she’d even delivered a few herself. But while Carter was confident, she could also tell he meant every word—and not in some deluded way. He really wanted her. And the truth was, she wanted him too—but to a degree too scary. This kind of extreme just couldn’t be healthy.

He leaned a little closer and, despite her caution, Penny couldn’t help mirroring his movement. She had to part her lips just that tiny fraction—to breathe, right?

He smiled wickedly and lifted his head away again, his eyes dancing with the delight of a devil. He picked up the files she’d thumped on the top of the cabinet. ‘I’ll see you at the bar later.’

‘You’re going tonight?’ She whirled away to hide the sudden rush of blood to her face. Oh, yeah, all her blood rushed at the thought of him being there.

‘Good opportunity to meet and mingle with the staff socially.’

She could hear his smile as he answered. But she frowned, forgetting her feelings about spending social time with him and thinking of Mason instead. ‘I can’t believe any of them could be stealing.’

‘Greed. You never know who has what addiction, what need that’ll push them past moral boundaries.’

‘But it’s not William.’ It was the analyst’s last day; he was heading overseas to take on the financial markets in Singapore. ‘It couldn’t be him.’

‘I’m checking everyone,’ Carter answered, suddenly cool. ‘As he’s leaving, I’m checking his deals first.’

Penny went straight to the bathroom and spent several minutes touching up her face—pressing powder over her forehead, cheeks and chin with deliberate, dispassionate dabs. She concentrated on her lipstick, not letting her mind think of her mouth as anything other than a colouring-in challenge—certainly not a hungry bundle of nerve endings yearning to feel the pressure of Carter’s mouth on hers again.

But then she stared at her surface-repaired reflection. Was he right? Had she been stringing Aaron along? She hated the way Carter had spoken to him but had she been any better? She could have made it clearer—interrupted him and spoken firmly. Only she had that memory, when she’d inflicted so much pain. It was why she was always so careful to establish the ground rules before she entered any kind of affair now. It was why her affairs were so few and far between and super-brief. She had to be careful because she couldn’t handle anything more than easy. Anything more than carefree. No pain, just frivolity and superficial pleasure. She enjoyed sex. She didn’t have it anywhere near often enough despite her many nights out dancing, preferring to keep safe in all kinds of ways. But this attraction to Carter was the most extreme thing she’d ever experienced.

He’d offered all she wanted—only the physical—no strings, no messiness. There was certainly no fledgling friendship there, not when he obviously thought she was a manipulative tease. She saw how he looked at her, as if she made him as angry as much as she turned him on. Well, she knew exactly how he felt.

But her reaction to him was too strong to be safe. When emotions were out of control, people got hurt. She wasn’t hurting anyone or being hurt ever again. That was her one hard-and-fast rule. And this attraction threatened every ounce of control she had—therefore was too dangerous to engage.

But he was absolute temptation.

She shook her head, overruling her warring instincts. He wasn’t that overwhelming. Her attraction to him was simply a case of it having been too long. Of course she swooned for tall, dark and handsome, any other red-blooded female would too. Except Carter didn’t just have those three attributes, he also had a carefree lack of cut to his hair, wicked brilliance in his eyes and the devil in his smile….

Ugh. She turned her back on the mirror and walked out. He was just incredibly overconfident. He probably wouldn’t even deliver on the promise he exuded. Because in truth, for Penny, no man delivered.




CHAPTER THREE


‘CHAMPAGNE please.’ Nine hours of work and thirty lengths of the pool later, Penny had changed into her clubbing gear, heel-tapped her way into the bar and been served ahead of eight people already queued there.

‘So you’re friends with the bartenders.’

‘And the DJs.’ She took her glass and turned to face Carter. ‘And the bouncers,’ she added with just that little bit of emphasis.

His grin flashed. ‘Really? I thought you didn’t like bullies tossing people out of your life.’





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