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‘I... Perhaps I need to start from the beginning.’
A single clench to his jaw. ‘Start somewhere. And fast. I’m not a patient man, Miss Preston. And I’m about to be late for an important meeting.’
My rib-banging heart rate shuddered in terror.
My life flashed before my eyes. Again.
I pushed away disturbingly bleak images of a life unfulfilled and dreams dashed. Curled my sweaty fists tighter and cleared my throat.
‘My name is Sadie Preston...’ When that only prompted a higher arch of his brow I hurried on. ‘I work...worked at the Phoenix Clinic.’
Right until I was summarily fired, three hours ago. But the problem of my unemployment would have to be addressed later. Provided I didn’t end up in jail—
My train of thought screeched to a halt as he rocked forward, slid his hands into his trouser pockets and brought muscular thighs into singeing relief. Time pulsed by in silence as the very masculine stance ramped up the heat running through me.
‘For your sake, I hope this isn’t some sort of misguided attempt to garner employment, because I can assure you—’
‘It’s not!’ My interruption was much more shrill than I’d intended. And I knew immediately that neither it nor my tone had gained me any favours. Hell, his imposing presence seemed to loom even larger in the vast office, his aura terrifying. ‘Please...if you would just hear me out?’
‘You’re the one who seems to be tongue-tied, Miss Preston. While my precious time bleeds away. So let me make this easy for you. You have one minute to state your business. I advise you to make it worthwhile, for both our sakes.’
Or what?
For a single moment I feared I’d blurted the words, the volatile mix of annoyance and trepidation having finally broken me. But he didn’t seem any more incandescent. Simply terribly hacked off at my continued delay in spilling the beans.
‘I was fired this morning because...’ pause, deep breath ‘...because I accidentally destroyed your...’ I squeezed my eyes shut. When I opened them, he was still there, breathtaking and immovable as a marble statue.
Firm, sensually curved lips flattened. ‘My what?’ he demanded tersely.
Tension vibrated through me as I forced my vocal cords to work. ‘I destroyed...your...your stored sperm sample.’
For a horribly tense minute he simply stared at me with utter confusion—as if he couldn’t quite comprehend my words—and then that face that defied description tautened into a mask of pure, cold disbelief.
‘You. Did. What?’
It wasn’t shouted. Or whispered. It was even toned. And absolutely deadly.
I shivered from head to toe, severely doubting my ability ever to speak again as I opened my mouth and words failed to emerge.
Terrifying seconds ticked away as we stood in rigid silence, gazes locked.
‘Speak,’ he commanded, again without so much as any inflexion in his voice. His lips had gone white with grim fury and he was barely breathing.
I prised my tongue from the roof of my mouth. To do what I’d come here to do. Appeal to his better nature.
Taking a hesitant step towards him, I tried a small smile. ‘Mr Xenakis—’
One hand erupted from his pocket in a halting motion. ‘Do not attempt to cajole. Do not attempt to prevaricate. I want the facts. Bare and immediate.’
This time his voice had altered. It was a primordial rumble. Like the nape-tingling premonition before a cataclysmic event.
My smile evaporated. ‘When I arrived at work this morning...’ late because of my mother and another futile attempt to get through to her ‘... I was given a list of samples to dispose of. I... It’s not part of my job description, but—’
‘What is your actual job at the Phoenix Clinic?’ The barest hint of an accent had thickened his voice, making him impossibly sexier.
‘I’m a receptionist.’
It was the only half-decent paying job I could find that would support my mother and me until I figured out a way to help her out of her dark tunnel of despair and resume the marketing degree I’d suspended so I could care for her.
