Kitabı oku: «The Dare Collection August 2019», sayfa 3

CHAPTER TWO
Blair

REID FAULKNER’S DECADENT lips thin, but he manages to keep his expression free of the irritation I’m certain he feels. He’s not a man to be side-swiped, his reputation for dominating every aspect of the Faulkner Group well known. But I too have learned a few ruthless skills this past year, although none that can help me with my most pressing question—why does he have to still be so thigh-clenchingly hot?

Within thirty seconds of meeting him again, while I’d drooled at the way he fills his immaculate suit, I’d recalled his permanent air of supreme confidence, every stupid, misplaced and sometimes downright filthy fantasy I’d ever had about him roaring back to pulse-pounding life. Of course, back when I first noticed the eldest Faulkner brother was a bona fide fully grown sex god, he seemed permanently out of reach, and I finally abandoned my long-held crush when he married. But now...? With the way he’s sliding that sexy stare over me, I have the urge to resurrect those fantasies. Funny how eighteen and twenty-eight seemed an insurmountable and naive dream, but twenty-five and thirty-five has...delicious possibilities.

I sit a little straighter, ignoring the way that, despite trying to wriggle free of our deal, he makes me feel a little more invincible. After all, this is business. My first priority. I wait for him to process my bombshell, while my own eyes burn with the pressure of maintaining his searing eye contact.

‘A contract?’ His expression hardens even as his stare lingers on my mouth so I almost feel the brush of his lashes. The cut of his voice—commanding, confident, seductive almost—makes my breath catch and leaves me wondering if I can’t have the best of both worlds. Flex my professional muscles on this deal with an adversary as worthy as Reid Faulkner and explore what I’m pretty certain is a mutual attraction.

And why shouldn’t I?

I’m no longer a besotted eighteen-year-old. Our chemistry, if kept separate from business, needn’t be an obstacle. In fact, the opposite. Now I’m close to nursing Cameron Interiors back to full health, perhaps Reid Faulkner is the perfect reward I deserve...

I swallow and brace my entire body to combat the swirls of excitement twitching my muscles in response to our showdown. My pulse ricochets between my nipples and my pelvis, reminding me of my long year of celibacy, until I mentally slap myself and focus on pumping blood to my brain—the only part of me required for this particular encounter.

I open my tablet and, after a few swipes, offer him the screen for proof, but he bats me away with one large hand, which is big enough to leave me wondering how much of my waist it would circle and if it would swallow my entire breast...

Ignoring my soaring temperature, I clench my jaw with determination. I won’t be dismissed, for all his years of business experience, and he wouldn’t be the first person to underestimate me. As the youngest sibling in a large family, I’m used to fighting to be seen and taken seriously. Even my university professor cautioned me against trying to run before I could walk, to pay my dues at a big, well-established design firm, but I’ve always known I’d rather put in the hours and work hard for my own company, not someone else’s. And if Reid Faulkner thinks I’m walking away from my first major deal since Josh and I parted ways, he can think again.

‘Is there a problem?’ I try not to allow the lurch of my stomach to register on my face—it’s like a roller coaster in there. I secured this contract alone, fair and square, despite the competition. I won’t be side-swiped for a second time.

‘Nothing that can’t be rectified.’ His stare narrows as if dissecting me. ‘But you should know we decided to shelve the Faulkner renovations until some time in the future.’

Panic flutters in my throat but I swallow it down. ‘I wasn’t party to that information.’ I breathe, choose my words carefully, willing to fight but happy to remind him of his professional obligations, despite our family’s connections. ‘And I’ve already committed considerable hours to the Faulkner project. I’ve delayed other work to give it my full attention, as it deserves.’

I don’t add that I’ve funnelled all my energy into secretly rebuilding my decimated business this past year—I won’t be sidetracked by another man, not even a sexy suit who happens to make me feel eighteen again.

‘The way I see it, Reid, we need each other.’ I hold my breath. Even simply saying his name aloud leaves me achy and distracted, and the reminder we’re more than business acquaintances flashes sparks in his eyes. But the bite of his tone puts him firmly back in charge.

‘In what way?’

I hide my frustration behind my neutral facial expression—he’s being deliberately obtuse. ‘You have a hotel in need of renovation, and I have an interior-design business and a contract for those renovations. Plus, my commission is highly competitive—great news for the Faulkner Group. Surely there’s only one outcome here that satisfies both of us.’

I feel the weight of his assessment to the tips of my toes. I can’t work out if his mind lingers on business, where mine should firmly reside, or pleasure, a place I’m lured to every time he looks at me? The shiver of goose pimples along my bare arms tells me I’m struggling to ascertain which I want more, that I’d welcome the change of tack, once we’ve cleared up this misunderstanding.

Chemistry can be indulged or ignored. And the chemistry between us seems to have matured over the years like a fine vintage wine.

At his continued silence, my defensiveness kicks in. ‘Is it an...experience concern? I assure you I’m more than capable of this contract. I’d be happy to provide you with references.’ I should have known he’d underestimate me, see me as someone to be easily ignored and dismissed, just like many others have in my past. But I’m done being naive. No way will I ever put my business in the hands of anyone else. Especially not a man who, physically at least, does it for my poor, neglected body.

Reid narrows his steely eyes. ‘It’s not a question of experience.’

I ignore the way I feel naked under his scrutiny and how much I like it. ‘Good, because interiors are personal—it’s crucial you and I have a close working relationship.’

‘Oh, we will,’ he says on a husky promise that leaves me floundering to guess if we’re still talking about interior design.

He brushes a speck of lint from his trousers, completely at ease. ‘Nothing happens at a Faulkner hotel without my seal of approval. But, as you’ve brought up the size of your company, don’t you think C&L Interiors is reaching a little far with a hotel of the Faulkner’s calibre?’

‘Cameron Interiors. I dropped the L.’

I ignore the jibe I’ve heard before. Yes, I’m young, my company small, but I work hard, even harder this past year. Ambition isn’t a crime. I sit up taller—faking it. I can’t confess, but his reticence is justified—Cameron Interiors isn’t making waves, and, thanks to my hateful ex, who stole all our big clients despite promising we could still work together even though we were no longer a couple, hasn’t grown in proportion to the amount of work I’ve personally invested. All the more reason I intend to walk out of Reid’s sumptuous office with a start date agreed.

‘What happened to the “L”?’ His eyes spark.

Of course, he would ask the one question designed to throw icy doubt on my assertions I’m capable of running the business I’ve taken a year to rebuild single-handed.

I cross my legs, force my facial muscles to relax, showing him I’m here to stay. ‘Mr Lyle left the company. Now it’s just me—better and stronger alone, and, as I’ve already pointed out, competitively priced. So why don’t you let me worry about the details? I assure you that you’ll be happy with the final outcome.’ I ensure my posture matches my words in oozing confidence, when the reminder of my commitments if Reid insists on delaying the contracted work would crush me into a snivelling ball.

His stare turns flinty as he pushes his hand through his hair, which is dark with salt and pepper at the temples. My eyes follow the passage of his fingers, marvelling at how, even frustrated, he’s in control, still sexy and still throwing up roadblocks to my most lucrative and prestigious contract since Josh pulled the rug from under my feet.

‘Mmm...’ he murmurs, a sexy sound which reverberates through my entire body. ‘What are we going to do with each other?’

My heart leaps, every thrum a thrill of excitement. Does that mean what I hope it means? Does Reid Faulkner finally see me? Can I have everything I want here? My contract honoured and my ego massaged through a little...fantasy fulfilment with Reid, of all men? Of course, the two will need to be completely separate—I learned my lesson from mixing business and pleasure with Josh.

The buzz of warning shudders through me—head to toe. I fully intend to win the battle for my contract, but can I walk away from the promise behind Reid’s dark, searching eyes? A promise I once longed to see?

The promise of sex.

Good sex.

Great sex, even.

My libido’s been dormant since Josh and I split, but Reid’s interest swoops along every nerve ending, jerking me back to life. While I’ve toiled over my business, rebranded and reinvented while scraping my dignity back together, I’ve been oblivious to members of the opposite sex. How can this man change all that? Make me recall every second of my teenage infatuation? Make me want to indulge a sorely neglected area of my life?

Then my brain floods with images of my ex getting hot and heavy with his friend on my beautiful Italian leather sofa, and I close my eyes, breathing through the acidic burn in my chest. Seeing my fiancé’s deceitful mouth on another man’s had been shock enough, my sofa desecrated for ever, but it was the later betrayal, the professional one, which stole my tattered peace of mind, along with my pride and my clients, that lingers to this day, still shaping my decisions, still tainting my life.

Well, no more. Starting today as a bare minimum, I’m setting Cameron Interiors back on track to the big league. I open my eyes and look up at Reid, sucking in a breath, the contrast between the chill of my memories and the heat of his stare leaving me weirdly exposed.

‘Look, I’m sure you’re as busy as I am. So let’s put this to bed, shall we?’ I slide my palms down my skirt, fighting the heat at my chosen turn of phrase. ‘All I need is your sign-off on my designs and the name of someone you nominate to oversee the project...’ I smile up at him now things are finally going my way ‘...and I’ll be out of your hair.’

Your sexy dark hair that’s calling to my fingers...

His strong thighs spread, owning his space in the way of self-assured men, his elbow propped on one arm of the sofa while he strokes his chin as his eyes rake over me, slowly and with thorough sensuality, a move that lends him a roguish air completely at home on his angular face. ‘If we’re going to be working together, Blair...’

The way he says my name in a low, husky tone I’ve heard a thousand times in my late-night fantasies makes me wonder how he’d sound first thing the morning after—sleepy and sexy, his vibrating voice dragging my every nerve to delicious awareness... I flush warm all over, cursing my hormones.

‘...we should get to know each other a little better.’ He stretches out one arm along the back of the sofa, a move that tugs his shirt open a fraction at the neck where he’s loosened his tie, affording me a glimpse of dark chest hair. ‘Why are you no longer engaged?’

The roar of blood in my face scalds. ‘That’s a personal question.’

‘Yes, it is.’

I consider ignoring it, reluctant to confirm how my relationship ended. I know Josh’s change of heart, his confusion over his sexuality, is no reflection on me personally, but trusting him with our business even after I discovered him cheating, allowing him to steal most of our major clients—for that I’ve no one to blame but myself.

I hide my shudder behind a massive swallow of iced water while I consider that Reid already knows my sorry tale and has brought it up to throw me off my game, distract me from my contract and expose my naive lapse in business judgement, one I’m sure he’d never have made with all his years of experience at the helm of the Faulkner Group.

‘Why are you no longer married?’ I counter. Two can play at his game.

He laughs, tilting his head with a nod of respect, but stays resolutely silent—that subject is clearly out of bounds. Like mine, his one foray into matrimony seems to have cured his hunt for hearth and family.

I sigh, keen to draw a line under the personal veer of the conversation. ‘It didn’t work out—personally or professionally. Hence dropping the “L” from C&L.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that.’ Amusement leaches from his eyes, which now carry genuine dismay, telling me I might have judged him a little harshly. ‘His loss.’

I accept his compliment with a tilt of my head. ‘Yes, well, I dare say we’re both better off.’ I lean forward and deposit my glass on the sleek coffee table between us, new determination taking hold. I lift my chin, feigning confidence in my solo skills, and remind Reid of my credentials. ‘And, luckily for the Faulkner Group, you get my undivided, award-winning attention. The reason, I think, why Graham selected Cameron Interiors.’ I need to remind us both why I’m here. As far as I’m concerned, Graham’s unfortunate illness, while upsetting, shouldn’t affect the renovations. ‘Why don’t I show you some concepts I discussed with Graham—I’d love to hear your thoughts?’

With the personal stuff successfully navigated, he waves his hand for me to continue.

I stand and walk round the coffee table, settling beside him on the sofa and swiping at the screen of the iPad to bring up the images I want. Sharing the device necessitates closeness. That’s what I tell myself as I’m buffeted by more Reid Faulkner than I can handle, at least half of my energy absorbed with maintaining a slow, even breathing rate this close to him, when all I want to do is lean in for an indulgent sniff.