Lovers Premiere (Kimani Romance) by Adrianne Byrd Page B

you’re forcing my hand on this.”
    She scoffed.
    â€œUnbelievable.” He shook his head. “I knew that you were a workaholic but this is ridiculous. What do I need to do? You want me to hog-tie you and stuff you in your room upstairs to make you take a break? Is that it?”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œBecause I’ll do it.” He tossed up his hands. “Hell, why not?”
    She stepped back from him. “You wouldn’t dare!”
    He leveled a stern look at her that made it impossible for her to discern whether he was joking or not. Hit with another wave of vertigo, Sofia wobbled around on her heels.
    Ram quickly reached out and steadied her. “Are you all right?”
    â€œYeah,” Sofia lied and then tried to push her way out of his arms, but the steel grip he encased her in refused to budge.
    â€œSomeone bring us some water,” Ram snapped to no one in particular.
    Everyone scrambled. The next thing Sofia knew she had her pick of at least fifteen water bottles. “Uh, thanks,” she murmured, accepting one.
    â€œDrink,” he ordered.
    For once, she did what he said. The moment the cold water slid down her throat she sighed out loud, but it was questionable whether it did anything to cool her down or cure her vertigo. In fact, she started to suspect being locked in Ram’s arms and feeling the hard ridges of his chest up close and personal were only making things worse.
    â€œHow do you feel?”
    Ram’s intense gaze bore into hers to the point that she was having a difficult time getting her breathing under control. “Fine,” she lied again, and attempted to push away again.
    Ram loosened his grip, but he didn’t let her go. “That settles it. I’ll take care of the party. You go upstairs and lie down.”
    â€œRamell—”
    â€œThat wasn’t a request. I’m telling you.” The look he gave her dared her to argue back. “I got this. Get upstairs. Take a nap. I’ll be up there in a little while and I’ll check on you.”
    â€œI’m not a child.”
    â€œThen stop behaving like one,” he snapped back.
    She wanted to argue back, but what was the point? Ramell was proving that he was willing to lock horns and go toe to toe with her. But feeling that they were the center of attention, Sofia knew that it was time to back down. “All right. Fine. I’ll go take a nap or something.”
    â€œNo ‘or something’. A nap.” He finally released her, but she remained pressed against him for a few extra seconds as if her body wasn’t really ready to leave.
    With a weak smile she stepped back. “I guess I’ll just catch up with you later.” She reached to retrieve her phone, but Ramell held it back.
    â€œNo. I think I’ll just hold on to this.”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œThe last time I checked, you don’t need a phone in order to take a nap.”
    She crossed her arms. “It’s not like there isn’t a phone in the suite.”
    â€œMaybe not, but without an address book, I’m thinking that you’ll be limited on who you can call.”
    She opened her mouth to argue again, but stopped when she watched him huff and start to roll his eyes. “Fine.”
    â€œGood. I’ll check on you later.” He tossed her a wink and then strolled off.
    Frowning, Sofia watched him go, her mind undressing him once again. “Snap out of it,” she hissed, and then rushed out of the conference room. Once she was away from Ramell her head started to clear.
    â€œMs. Wellesley,” Stewart shouted and raced down thehallway toward her. “I talked to the hotel management and they said that they will send someone to check on the air conditioner.” A big, eager smile bloomed across his face. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”
    â€œI, um…actually, just go ahead and take the afternoon off. Mr. Jordan will