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"How long have you lived in Louisiana?" The scathing question came back and hit her.
Where was this going?
"All my life." She couldn't suppress a small shudder as tension gripped her.
"Obviously you haven't figured out we like our coffee strong. This tastes like water." He walked over to his private restroom and she watched through the open door as he poured the liquid down the sink. He left the cup there and turned around and came back to her.
He put both hands flat on her desk and leaned over toward her. His size was meant to intimidate. "I know this is going to be difficult for you, but do you think you could possibly learn how to make a decent cup of coffee?"
"Y-yes, sir. I'll t-try again." He was so close Renee could smell the hot blend of male muskiness and aggression radiating from him in tangible waves. What the hell was wrong with her that she was so attracted to him? He was an asshole. An impossibly good-looking asshole. Her eyes ran over him. Six feet, four inches of seething testosterone stood over her. He rarely wore a business suit, preferring jeans and casual short sleeve button downs. The tails of his shirt hung over the waistband of his jeans in a disheveled style. He looked and dressed exactly like the man she knew him to be. A blue-collar worker with astute intelligence and a keen sense of business who had taken risks and struck it rich. Renee knew his story. Mrs. Argenot was as proud of him as she would have been of her own son.
Her eyes continued to catalog his good looks. His hair was thick and dark, and badly in need of a trim. The thick wisps of hair falling against his forehead did nothing to detract from his masculinity. They only highlighted a face pulsing with intensity. A face that radiated power and an inherent ruthlessness. His eyes were dark, a chocolate brown with grey irises that glittered whenever they fell on her. His nose dominated his features in a blatantly male way. His mouth was generous, twin grooves bracketing his lips. She pushed her chair back an inch but continued to sit and watch him in agitation.
"What are you waiting for? Permission?" he barked at her.
Renee's body jerked from the impact as his voice lacerated her nerves. Forty-eight more days. She stood up and sidestepped away from him toward the coffee bar. He turned and followed her and stood watching, his hands fisted at his sides. Her fingers shook as she made coffee by rote. She stood with her back toward him while the machine perked.
Robert saw the steel in the slim line of her back and his fisted hands clenched involuntarily. He had to physically stop himself from reaching out and touching her. It had been like this for every hour of the forty-two godforsaken days she had worked for him.
His life until forty-two days ago had been smooth, on an even keel. He worked hard building custom homes and office buildings, and made a lot of money doing it. He lived alone, the way he liked it, and by necessity usually had a woman in the background.
Unfortunately, he had been forced to get rid of the current woman in his bed when she began making impossible demands. Which made this situation all the more volatile, because he didn't have a ready outlet for all the fucking testosterone building up inside of him.
And Renee Guillot was more potent than most women. She was fucking with him from every angle.
Renee felt his eyes on her back like a physical touch. Her hands shook as she poured coffee from the carafe into a clean cup. The betraying tremor upset her more than anything. Slowly she turned and faced him and started to hand him the cup. Her nervousness increased and the hot liquid spilled over onto her hand. She let out a small shriek of pain, and the coffee started wobbling more.
"Fuck." Robert reached out and took the cup from her and placed it on the counter. Turning her around, he reached over and turned the cold water on and picked up her hand and held it under the running water.
Renee felt assaulted on all fronts. Her hand was burning from the hot liquid, and Robert was crowding her from behind, his arms wrapped completely around her as he held her hand still under the flow of cold water.
She began shaking more violently.
"Jesus Christ, calm down. You're okay. It can't have hurt that bad." Robert snaked one arm all th
e way around her waist and pulled her back into him. It didn't help and the shaking continued.
Lust hit Robert all at once as he inhaled her scent and felt her body warm and soft against his. The picture of her spread out on his bed assailed his senses. His grip tightened on her.
He came back to awareness as he felt her pulling away.
Renee turned off the water and moved back from him. She picked up a dishcloth to steady her nerves and wiped her wet hand. She turned to face him and straightened her shoulders.
She motioned to the coffee. "Try it." She took a deep breath and crossed her arms protectively in front of herself.
He picked up the coffee, took a sip and grunted. "Better. I knew you could learn." He gave her one, all encompassing glare and walked back to his office.
Renee slowly let out the breath she had been holding.
The coffee was exactly the same as the first time she made it.
Chapter Two
Tuesday at mid-afternoon, Mrs. Argenot walked out of Robert's office with her arms full. "I'm going to the courthouse, Renee. I've got to get this application for permit filed, and pick up a copy of the plat map for La Fourche parish. After that, I'll be at the appraisal district. You're going to have to hold down the fort for the rest of the day."
"No problem. There's not much on this afternoon's itinerary except for a three o'clock with Cameron Industrial Supplies. Everything else is business as usual. Be careful out there."
Renee really liked the older woman. She was business first with a soft outer maternal coating. She was a pleasure to work with on a day to day basis.
