AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I laughed, the sound a little hollow. “If it didn’t affect me, I wouldn’t be here.” I waved around, indicating her office, the whole damn company. “I wouldn’t be standing right here over a fucking hang-up. A prematurely ended call,” I amended. “I just hate when things end prematurely, don’t you?”
Her jasmine scent mingled with the scent of her desire as she nodded, and I took a lust-filled step toward her.
Then I slowed and drew the rest of my steps out, slowly, like I was hunting her. I had her in my sights and I wanted to catch her. She looked at me like she wanted to be caught, like she’d submit. Like she wanted to be mine.
I was only inches from her when I finally stopped moving. Close enough to detect her rapid heartbeat and watch her pupils dilate, signaling her arousal even more. I could smell the sweet tang of her slick moisture, and her body begged for my tongue in her most private of places.
I wanted to do so many things to her, for her…with her.So many things, but I’d start slow.
I lowered my head, taking possession of her mouth gently. Then I stopped and stepped back, touching my forefinger to my lips and flicking my tongue over them.
They were salty.
Goddamn it. I was such an ass. She was still grieving, and here I was, business as usual…almost.
She’d clearly been crying, even though she hid it well. There was a box of Kleenex at the edge of her desk, but it didn’t even look opened.
“Jo?”
She nodded.
“I’m so sorry for the loss of your father. He had a very good reputation in Carwyn City.” And that was true. I didn’t for one moment suspect him in any of the criminal dealings in his company.
She nodded again. “Thank you. I appreciate that.” Then she turned away. “So, after you left, Parker came to speak with me. You might have met him? He’s the current regional manager. He said he thinks Gold Moon is worth a lot more and that I should definitely reject your offer. But when I spoke with Charmaine, she said the offer you presented to me was the same offer you made to my father.” She turned back. “Is that true?”
I nodded. If nothing else, I was a straight-up businessman. I didn’t believe in playing games. “The offer is a fair one,” I said. “It’s the same for you as it was for your father. Last night has no bearing on how I value Gold Moon, and I wouldn’t lowball you or inflate my offer based on our personal lives.” As I spoke, a shiver slid down my spine. I wanted to be personal with her again. “To that end, though, my offer isn’t going to budge unless you can prove the company is worth more. No matter what your regional director is trying to tell you.”
That was kind of a strange turnabout in itself, that a regional manager would try to tell the CEO what to do, but there were probably a few noses pushed out of joint by Jo suddenly appearing at the company and taking over Joseph’s position.
There might have been several other names gunning for the top job, after all.
She shrugged and sighed, an element of defeat evident before she chased away and stood straighter again. “If you won’t move on your offer, then I need time. I need to look through all the paperwork, and I need to work out the true value rather than just accept what people want to tell me or want me to believe.” She gave me a hard stare, indicating that her statement definitely included me.
Oh, well. That just made her a better business adversary. It increased my respect for her.
“No matter how badly you want my father’s company, I’m certainly not going to just hand it to Apex Asset Management — toyou, Patrick — on a silver platter. I’m not going to gift it away.”
I grinned and quirked an eyebrow. “Well, giving meanythingwould make it too easy. I like a good fight when it comes to business. I like to feel like I’ve earned it.”
Her eyes suddenly blazed, and the atmosphere in the room changed. A sudden surge in her scent stole my breath.
“And what about when it comes to sex?” There was an innocence in the way she asked the question. An innocence that didn’t really exist.
She was goading me, but I loved it. She was the perfect sparring partner. Except the next words out of my mouth weren’t simple fighting talk or more teasing. They were genuine.
“I don’t think you gave that away, Jo. I don’t think you’d be comfortable that way. In fact, I don’t even think you’d have noticed me if I wasn’t an alpha. You were probably aware of that part of me last night in the bar before anything else.”
She shrugged. “That’s true. I really didn’t notice anyone else in Clover’s. Was there anyone else there at all?” She laughed. “You were the only one who approached me.” She stopped, then added. “But you weren’t unwelcome. And something about you made me take a shot.” She lowered her voice. “It was worth it.”
Her words were like the ultimate tease. It was worth it…Iwas worth it. Same thing. How much more worth it could I be? Could I tempt her again? I could certainly find out.
“I could help you forget another long day, if you like? If you have some stress to work out? And you can make sure the shot you took was truly worth it.” I held my breath even as I flashed her my most confident smile.
But I could already see her in my pool again, feel her in my arms…feel her body encasing mine.
There was a debate going on in her head. I could see it in her eyes. I didn’t want to make that debate any more difficult, and I didn’t want to push her away by seeming too forceful. Besides, I liked the chase. And the long game was always fine with me.
I backed away, taking my alpha energy or whatever she’d felt last night out of her space. “Think about it then,” I said. I cleared my throat, changing tack. “I’ll give you six months.”
