Blackmailed Into Bed by Heidi Betts Page B

money, wanted to be seen with him because of his power and prestige.
    And most of them, whether they were blatant about it or not, harbored hopes of finagling a wedding ring out of him and snagging themselves a rich husband.
    Elena, however, was in an entirely different category.
    She didn’ t seem impressed by his wealth at all. Yes, her family had money of their own, but so did the families of a lot of women he dated. That never kept them from wheedling for or accepting expensive gifts. Permission to use his credit card for the day would have had most of them squealing like a litter of hungry piglets.
    She didn’ t take forever in the bathroom or fuss obsessively over her appearance, and once she was ready, she was ready. She carried herself with confidence and seemed comfortable with whatever she was wearing instead of fidgeting with every little thing.
    It was that confidence, her silent assurance, that turned him on almost as much as her shapely body and passionate nature.
    Aside from that, he also found her simply fascinating. She never did what he expected, never reacted to things quite the way he thought she would.
    And she hadn’ t charged a single damn thing to his credit card, which he had to admit was driving him positively crazy. He wanted to know where she’ d been all day, what she’ d been up to.
    He needed to know.
    “ So,” he murmured as the elevator doors whooshed open and they stepped inside the plush compartment. “ What did you do today?”

    Five
    E lena raised the back of her hand to her mouth to stifle a yawn. It had been a long day, and she was suddenly feeling every minute of it. The two Manhattans she’ d sipped through dinner probably hadn’ t helped, either.
    “ Sleepy?” Chase asked, brushing a loose tendril of hair away from her face.
    She offered a small smile and leaned into his touch as the same elevator that had taken them down to the lobby a few hours before now took them back up to their floor.
    It was amazing how comfortable she felt with him after such a short time, and it worried her. She’ d expected their relationship to be cold, businesslike. Intimate, but functional.
    Instead, things between them had been warm and friendly. She liked it, and that bothered her most— that she liked it maybe a bit too much.
    “ I’ m a little tired,” she answered.
    His hand slid from the lobe of her ear to the nape of her neck, where he gently kneaded the taut muscles with his calloused fingertips.
    “ You must have had a busy day.”
    It wasn’ t the first time he’ d tried to find out how she’ d spent the afternoon. But so far, she’ d avoided giving him a straight answer. It wasn’ t that her activities were that much of a secret, just that she didn’ t feel like sharing.
    He’ d handed her a wad of cash and a credit card, and basically told her to keep herself occupied while he worked. Well, she had— without spending more than twenty-five or thirty dollars of his money, either. Since she hadn’ t let him foot the bill for more than a short cab ride and a salad for lunch, it was no one’ s business but her own how she’ d stayed busy.
    When it became apparent she wasn’ t going to answer, he went on.
    “ When we get back to the room, I’ ll help you slip out of these clothes, then turn down the covers and we’ ll crawl into bed.”
    “ Just to sleep?” she teased.
    “ Just to sleep,” he assured her. And then his lips curved and a devilish glint sparkled in his blue eyes. “ Unless you’ re interested in something else.”
    A slow heat began to unfurl low in her belly. That was another thing she found surprising about this situation… that making love with him didn’ t feel like a chore she had to subject herself to in order to help her father save his company. She liked being with him, and was already looking forward to spending the night in his arms. Just the thought made warmth pour through her system and put her nerve endings on red alert.
    “ What