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I tried to look away from his gaze but couldn’t; his brown eyes held mine. “Thanks. I’ll think it over. I’m not sure if I want to go down that route.”
Finally looking away from me, he strode from the hallway, and I followed, watching the way his taut butt moved with every step. What the actual fuck was wrong with me? I’d just escaped the clutches of a lunatic and now wasn’t the time to go all gooey-eyed over someone I’d just met. Someone whose name was on my pay check.
I tried to reason with myself. I was only crushing on him so hard because he’d sort of rescued me—I didn’t need rescuing but having him chase Simon away was helpful. I was probably suffering from some type of misplaced hero worship where the rescuee falls for the rescuer.
As we entered the art gallery proper, I expected Kane to mingle with the other art lovers and make small chit-chat, but he didn’t. Instead, he positioned himself at the end of a makeshift bar and glowered at anyone who came near him. He didn’t act as if he was a patron of the art gallery.
As I watched him, I felt like I didn’t want our interaction to end just yet. Since he’d just semi-rescued me from what could have been a night from hell, I would offer to buy him a drink. After all, it was the polite thing to do.
Taking a deep, centering breath, I weaved my way through the other guests and over to the bar. “Can I buy you a drink as a thank you?”
He didn’t look at me as he nodded towards the glass of whiskey sitting in front of him. “It’s an open bar. Free drinks all night.”
I felt my shoulders drop. “Oh, okay.”
Well, that was dumb.
He made no other attempt to talk or even acknowledge me, and I was left standing there nervously smoothing my hair and thinking. He obviously didn’t realize I worked for him. How could he? He employed thousands of people worldwide, but since this was my first time meeting him, I wouldn’t allow the opportunity to go to waste. I was as ambitious as everyone else at McKenzie Technologies, and I would make sure he knew who I was. I’d be dumb to pass this opportunity up because, believe me, every other woman in the accounts department would stab me with the heels of their overpriced pumps to get one-on-one time with the big boss.
“Mind if I join you?” I didn’t wait for him to say yes or no before I slid onto the seat beside him. I gave him my best flirtatious smile, and said, “Thanks for your help, Mr. McKenzie. Before you arrived, I was seconds away from stabbing his foot with the heel of my shoe. After that I planned to knee him in the nuts. ”
“Is that so?” He gave a disbelieving laugh and signaled for the bartender to bring another glass. Once the glass was in front of me, Kane grabbed a bottle of whiskey from behind the bar and poured me a generous helping.
“I take it you didn’t read the employee manual that states no office relationships, Ms. Peterson? That means no dating in case you didn’t realize.” He raised a charcoal colored eyebrow as he looked at me.
“You know who I am?” Fuck.
My surprise caused my hand to shake and the amber liquor in my glass slopped to one side. I caught my shaking hand before I made a mess, raised the glass to my lips and took a sip.
“I’m aware of everything about everyone involved with my business. If you plan on dating men like Simon you should learn how to take care of yourself better.” Kane watched my every move intently. “Next time you might not be so lucky.”
My skin prickled, and I rolled back my shoulders. “I do and can take care of myself, thank you. I just wasn’t expecting him to be such a creep, and besides, it wasn’t a date. He wore me down until I said I’d accompany him. It was stupid… He’s my boss. Or he was until you fired him.” I didn’t add that I’d said yes because I was as horny as hell and Simon had caught me at a weak moment.
Kane gave me a sideways glance, and I wasn’t sure if I saw laughter or loathing in his eyes. “Do you always do what your superiors tell you to do? If someone orders you to do something even though you might not agree with the request, do you do it anyway?” From the deep timbre in his voice, I got the feeling he wasn’t asking about my work ethic.
My breath caught a little. “Not always, no. I’ve learned that in some situations it’s best to defer to experience.” I looked up at him, trying to read his face.
