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John raised his eyebrows and looked between the two of them. His PA raised his head to see what had caused the sudden hush. Connor Griffin straightened and was looking at her with an odd speculation she couldn't quite decipher, and the catering assistant had uncurled from her human pretzel position and was taking in everything avidly, ready to run it all back to the gossip mill, albeit with a slight frown that she was no longer the centre of attention.
And Jake, Jake did a double take, let out a gasp that sounded as load as a gunshot in the silent room and suddenly, without warning, she was in his arms, and he was laughing as he swung her round in a circle and then, almost before she had regained her balance, he crushed her against his wide chest and whooped, "Daisy, Daisy, Daisy Kidde!" as he grinned Cheshire cat wide.
Desirae ran a gamut of emotions in the space of a few seconds. Too many, almost, to acknowledge any of them on an individual basis. There was the inevitable shock, but somehow, no surprise. Her logical brain had known there would always be some percentage of chance that a Blackwood's presence might occur and her subconscious had been blaring that alert before her awareness could properly make sense of the warning. There was the splintering of unbearable pain so sharp, that after it had sliced through her very last nerve, it left her blessedly numb. And there was the beautiful, terrible ache of soul deep recognition of one lover for another that fought to soften her body in readiness for him, regardless of the battle taking place in her mind. Her head spun and it had nothing to do with Jake Blackwood swinging her round. All of it seemed to happen in time-lapse slow motion, but throughout all the commotion, her eyes remained locked with Joel's unrelenting gaze.
Chapter Six
Joel Blackwood felt his spine stiffen and his eyes narrow as he took in the oh-so-familiar features of Universal Holdings CFO, Desirae Harper. He couldn't believe it! He had spent months looking for this woman, years! And here she was, right in front of him. His Daisy.
Except this wasn't his Daisy. This woman wasn't his bubbly, fun loving Daisy with her freckles and bows and untamed curly hair. His chest constricted painfully and he fought against the urge to rub his fist against his sternum to ease the pressure he felt building.
This woman was sleek and polished and reserved, standing there with her impassive features, in her immaculately tailored suit and high heels. Her face was made up in a perfect mask and Joel felt an insane, overwhelming desire to just grab her and yank the pins from her smooth chignon and let her corkscrew curls spring free, to wipe away the makeup and expose her cheeky freckles. To strip away this severe façade that she held before her like a shield.
Joel clenched his fists by his sides to prevent himself from reaching for her and doing just that. He felt as though he had been sucker punched in the solar plexus. His mind just refused to integrate what he could see and what he had learned about the aloof Desirae Harper with the enchanting girl he'd known as Daisy Kidde, but there was no doubt they were indeed one and the same. His body recognised her and hardened in response, even while his mind struggled with the reality.
It might not have been immediately obvious to others, but Joel had known her intimately, had explored every part of her body, had her face drawn indelibly in his memory and he felt a sharp pang of remorse. What the hell had happened to her? How had she gotten here, to this life, this persona? What in Hell's name was she doing in a boardroom instead of a pottery studio or at the very least an art gallery? Desirae Harper was a renowned Chief Financial Officer, a business woman his own magnate of a father respected and desperately wanted to retain. She was polished and reserved and knowledgeable, but where was his Daisy? Where was the whimsical, bubbly, joyful Daisy Kidde?
A cold chill skittered across Joel's nerves, starting at the hackles at the back of his neck and plummeting all the way to the pit of his stomach, and in a moment of dreadful clarity, he thought he understood and the sudden guilt and realisation nearly floored him; had he done this to her?
The sound of John Williams clearing his throat behind them served to bring everyone back to their senses.
The PA resumed sorting out the paperwork. The girl with the coffee turned back to get extra cups and his cousin released Daisy—Desirae—from the exuberant bear hug he'd enveloped her in and even had the grace to look slightly chagrined by his effusive, unprofessional display.
Joel could feel the unspoken questions and speculation bubbling inside his close friend, Connor. He might not have been at University with them, but he knew all about the elusive Daisy. Knew about the submissive who had ruined Joel for all others.
"I didn't realise you knew each other." John Williams' voice contained just a touch of accusation directed towards…Desirae. He wondered if he would get used to thinking of her as Desirae.
"I didn't think it was relevant, since I didn't think either of them would be directly involved with the negotiation," she replied stiffly. "Before I changed majors, I was at University with Joel and Jake for a period of about eighteen months. That was eleven years ago, and we haven't had any contact since."
And just like that, she wrote him off.
Joel felt the absurd desire to dispute her nonchalant brush off, to reveal to the world and this room that they had been more than just casual, passing acquaintances.
He wanted to stand up and claim her, to leave no doubt in anyone's mind that she had been his. His lover, his submissive. To proclaim to all that he knew every part of her body more intimately than any other man ever had, that he had fucked her seven ways to Sunday, immorally, indelicately, and in public. That he was her Dominant and there had been nothing prim and reserved and aloof about anything they had done together. It had been down and dirty and sweaty and explosive, and his eyes pierced hers as he silently refuted her statement.
Chapter Seven
Desirae waited in trepidation for someone to contradict her declaration. She could see from the way Joel's eyes darkened and narrowed that he wanted to do just that, but apart from the expression smouldering in his penetrating gaze that silently called her a liar, he had yet to move, or touch, or even acknowledge her past his initial recognition.
And anyway, she comforted herself with a literal elucidation, she hadn't been lying. Every single word she had said was true. She had spent eighteen months at University with them, it had been eleven years ago, and they hadn't had any contact since. If the subtleties of the relationship they had shared were slightly—considerably—different than she had implied, then that was nobody else's business. It certainly had no place in this boardroom.
Jake's face held a slightly bemused expression and he cocked an eyebrow which seemed to scream, "Really?" and suddenly the recollection popped into Desirae's head that he, too, had seen her naked and…everything. Dear Lord! She had even scened with him during those times that Joel had wanted to really push her boundaries…and she so wasn't going there!
Ironically, it was that last thought which galvanised her into action.
"Jake!" she said instead, stepping forward and pressing her cheek briefly against his in a gesture that bordered on informal but wasn't quite intimate. She felt a soft warmth seeping into her soul at being in his welcoming presence. One that she wasn't entirely comfortable with and which she desperately tried to push away without complete success.
Stepping back, she steeled herself and held out a formal hand to his cousin.
"Joel." She nodded, hoping like hell that the jolt of electricity that had just zinged down her arm at his casual touch hadn't shown on her face.
She pulled away a tad too quickly and turned hurriedly to Connor Griffin, grasping his hand firmly as she released her breath. "Nice to meet you again, Mr Griffin," she said tritely, not meeting his eyes as she speculated as to whether he was recalling Friday's clash with John.
"I think, under the circumstances, you should call me Connor." Desirae's shoulders stiffened and she wondered if she had just imagined the innuendo in his voice. Glancing sharply at him, her breath hitched as she caught the sensory awareness betrayed in his eyes, and in that second, she knew. Knew that Connor Griffin had personal knowledge of her. Of Daisy Kidde. Intimate knowledge that he could only have heard from Joel.
Her eyes widened fractionally before she could temper her reaction and then narrowed. Jeez! Could this situation get any worse?
What a clusterfuck! Desirae used years of long practice to haul an air of aloof professionalism around her and erected what she hoped was the equivalent of a metaphorical barbed wire fence abound herself.
