Page 57 of Naughty Heart

Would it be possible to get her something that was only twenty-five dollars and still be meaningful?

“Works for me.”

“And the day of the exchange is on the 23rdfor everyone else, so we’ll stick to that date, too, right?” she pressed.

“Of course.”

Evelyn held my gaze a beat before she gave me a nod and seemed to snap back to reality. It was as though she’d allowed herself to get caught up in her feelings over the tree in her office and suddenly realized she wasn’t supposed to be letting down her defenses. “Great. It’s settled then. I should probably get to work now, though.”

As much as I might have believed I was making progress, there was no question I had my work cut out for me. Clearly, Evelyn was still struggling with some hurt and distrust.

Returning the nod, I moved to leave her office and return to mine. But just as I turned around, she called, “Malcolm?”

I looked back, noting she’d closed the distance between us, and braced myself. The scent of her, feminine and seductive, mixed with the sweet look on her face, was enough to undo me. “Yeah?”

She smiled. “Thank you for the tree.”

“You’re welcome.”

A moment later, I was back in my office. And while I did manage to get some work for Westwood’s done throughout the day, it was safe to say I spent a good chunk of my time either looking across the hall at her, planning the next thing I wanted to do for her, or trying to come up with a Secret Santa gift.

* * *

EVELYN

“Have a seat. Tell me what you think.”

Something wasn’t right.

There was a look in Malcolm’s eyes that told me I was in for a real treat, but I couldn’t begin to understand what that would be based on what was in front of me.

I didn’t want to say it was the case, but I found myself waking up each morning looking forward to what the day would bring.

With each day that had passed since he made that promise to prove how important I was to him, Malcolm hadn’t faltered.

He was slowly wearing me down.

I swallowed hard, unsure what was in store for me, and moved around my desk to sit in the brand-new office chair there. The moment I sat down, I could feel the difference. This one was far more luxurious than the standard one I had been using.

My eyes went to Malcolm. “This is really nice.”

He grinned. “Yeah? Is it comfortable?”

I nodded. “Very.”

The next thing I knew, he lifted something in his hand and asked, “Tell me what you think of it now.”

It took me a moment to figure out he was holding what looked like a remote. No sooner had I made that distinction, it happened. My new chair began massaging me.

I was in so much trouble. I didn’t think there was a single word that could accurately describe the severity of the situation.

It was taking everything inside me not to moan with pleasure.

I closed my eyes, attempting to give my body the chance to adjust to the wonderful sensations.

Malcolm wasn’t supposed to be doing this. He wasn’t supposed to be making me feel this good.

But he was.