frowned. ‘You need a break. You’re not a machine. I’m not taking no for an answer.’
Surprise flitted across his expression. She folded her arms, staring at him with a look that said it wasn’t up for discussion—a look her father used on her like it was going out of fashion.
Ric’s mood shifted. His jaw relaxed and something dark and feral heated his gaze. Alexa’s skin prickled with awareness and she felt less and less sure about her decision to walk into his office and demand he take a break. She wished she’d just chewed him out and left.
Her heart beat so fast she could feel every one of her pulse points pounding. Her breathing sped when his gaze dipped down to her chest, covered by the navy jacket. He knew she was naked under her blouse and the thought ignited an inferno in her stomach that fired through her body. Suddenly, the temperature felt like it shot up to over one hundred degrees and the cool, creased linen suit felt like an electric blanket wrapped around her skin.
In a move too quick for her lust clogged brain to register, Ric was out of his chair and towering above her. He bent down and Alexa leaned back on her hands. Resting his palms on the desk at either side of her, he had her at his mercy.
Ric’s gaze slipped to her white blouse, which was now exposed as the jacket gaped open. She knew he’d see the outline of her nipples. Knew he’d see how hard they were. But that knowledge only made the excitement in her belly grow. Double damn .
‘Perhaps I do need a break.’ The rasp of his voice sent shivers through her body. ‘But it’s not lunch I want.’
When he looked at her again, she saw the hunger in his expression. It was raw and scary and sexy as hell.
She moistened her lips and focused her attention on his. So firm, so sure, she wondered if they could be soft or if they would be as hard and demanding as the rest of him. Her body flamed with need.
‘Alexa…’
The sound of the phone screeching brought her back to the there and then. Ric stepped back, giving her the air she so desperately needed. She straightened and he looked down at her with a scowl etching the hard lines of his face—like what had just happened was her bloody fault!
She stood and pushed away from the desk, thankful for the interruption. Another glance at the papers covering the mahogany showed exactly how much like her father Ric was, his days of having fun clearly forgotten. Robert Green ruined her mother, quashed her spirits and turned the last few years of her life into a prison sentence. There was no way Alexa would go down the same road.
Ric picked up the phone and muttered a sharp greeting. He pressed a button on the receiver then turned to her. ‘Stay out of my business, Alexa. You work with me, nothing more.’
She folded her arms across her chest. ‘Oh, don’t worry. I won’t be in your business at all from now on. And just because I’m helping you out doesn’t mean I’m your slave.’ She turned on her heel and stomped to the door, grinding her teeth against the dozens of insults waiting to burst free.
‘Tomorrow we will have words about this,’ he called.
She pulled the door shut behind her. He could say as many words as he liked, Alexa had a few choice ones of her own in mind.
Chapter Four
Ric exhaled in a sigh as he pushed through the swing doors of the hotel a little after midnight. His feet felt heavier than cement blocks. It had been a loathsome day. What started off tiresome had morphed into hell.
He glanced at his watch again. Definitely more than a little. While he stalked across the marble floor toward reception he inwardly cursed his party planner for leaving him and the builders for their lack of co-operation. If Lydia had stayed, he wouldn’t be strung tight with the undeniable sexual tension that close proximity to Alexa caused. If the builders did what Maria and Antonio paid them to do, they would have arranged for the water and waste company to inspect the
Surprise flitted across his expression. She folded her arms, staring at him with a look that said it wasn’t up for discussion—a look her father used on her like it was going out of fashion.
Ric’s mood shifted. His jaw relaxed and something dark and feral heated his gaze. Alexa’s skin prickled with awareness and she felt less and less sure about her decision to walk into his office and demand he take a break. She wished she’d just chewed him out and left.
Her heart beat so fast she could feel every one of her pulse points pounding. Her breathing sped when his gaze dipped down to her chest, covered by the navy jacket. He knew she was naked under her blouse and the thought ignited an inferno in her stomach that fired through her body. Suddenly, the temperature felt like it shot up to over one hundred degrees and the cool, creased linen suit felt like an electric blanket wrapped around her skin.
In a move too quick for her lust clogged brain to register, Ric was out of his chair and towering above her. He bent down and Alexa leaned back on her hands. Resting his palms on the desk at either side of her, he had her at his mercy.
Ric’s gaze slipped to her white blouse, which was now exposed as the jacket gaped open. She knew he’d see the outline of her nipples. Knew he’d see how hard they were. But that knowledge only made the excitement in her belly grow. Double damn .
‘Perhaps I do need a break.’ The rasp of his voice sent shivers through her body. ‘But it’s not lunch I want.’
When he looked at her again, she saw the hunger in his expression. It was raw and scary and sexy as hell.
She moistened her lips and focused her attention on his. So firm, so sure, she wondered if they could be soft or if they would be as hard and demanding as the rest of him. Her body flamed with need.
‘Alexa…’
The sound of the phone screeching brought her back to the there and then. Ric stepped back, giving her the air she so desperately needed. She straightened and he looked down at her with a scowl etching the hard lines of his face—like what had just happened was her bloody fault!
She stood and pushed away from the desk, thankful for the interruption. Another glance at the papers covering the mahogany showed exactly how much like her father Ric was, his days of having fun clearly forgotten. Robert Green ruined her mother, quashed her spirits and turned the last few years of her life into a prison sentence. There was no way Alexa would go down the same road.
Ric picked up the phone and muttered a sharp greeting. He pressed a button on the receiver then turned to her. ‘Stay out of my business, Alexa. You work with me, nothing more.’
She folded her arms across her chest. ‘Oh, don’t worry. I won’t be in your business at all from now on. And just because I’m helping you out doesn’t mean I’m your slave.’ She turned on her heel and stomped to the door, grinding her teeth against the dozens of insults waiting to burst free.
‘Tomorrow we will have words about this,’ he called.
She pulled the door shut behind her. He could say as many words as he liked, Alexa had a few choice ones of her own in mind.
Chapter Four
Ric exhaled in a sigh as he pushed through the swing doors of the hotel a little after midnight. His feet felt heavier than cement blocks. It had been a loathsome day. What started off tiresome had morphed into hell.
He glanced at his watch again. Definitely more than a little. While he stalked across the marble floor toward reception he inwardly cursed his party planner for leaving him and the builders for their lack of co-operation. If Lydia had stayed, he wouldn’t be strung tight with the undeniable sexual tension that close proximity to Alexa caused. If the builders did what Maria and Antonio paid them to do, they would have arranged for the water and waste company to inspect the
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