Shit! What had she done?
When he was her enemy, she could do whatever she wanted and not regret any move, but now he was her lover. Earlier, she’d thought that once they did it, she would get over this weird attraction, but clearly this wasn’t going to happen.
She was wrong. Totally wrong. There was no way she could push this man out of her life now. He was here to stay – and Tania didn’t know what to do about this situation.
Chapter Four
Riley sat on the conference table in a renowned hotel with the rest of his gang. The board members summoned him for an update and he was slightly nervous. Sure, he wanted to create the right impression, but, at the same time, he was a little apprehensive. They seemed to be on edge, and he wasn’t sure about the reason for it. Something about the meeting was off today. He didn’t like the fact that he was called with such urgency. Why were they in such a hurry to acquire that warehouse? Surely, there was more to this story than what they were telling him. He didn’t like surprises. What the hell were they planning?
“When do you expect to get hold of that warehouse?” asked Mark. He was the oldest member of the board and held a lot of sway over the others. If he got Riley off this assignment, he wouldn’t be able to achieve his objectives. “We were expecting to take possession this week.”
“I’m working on it. Xavier has already given the go ahead,” he said. “But the paperwork has to be completed and we’ve initiated the process. Unfortunately, there is another bidder who is very determined to acquire the same property.”
“Who is it?”
“The estate agents Brin and Co, and their agent Tania is on the case.”
“She is of no consequences. Xavier has assured that he is willing to transfer the property the minute we make the payment.”
“But you haven’t cleared the advance.” They were acting particularly cagey about the funds that the company owned. He’d expected to be given clearance to the bank account so he could close the deal, but it seemed that they were keeping their cards close to their chest. He didn’t like it. Something was up.
He couldn’t put his finger on it, but it bothered him. He wasn’t sure how Tania would react when she discovered that he went behind her back and closed the deal. He wanted her to be on board with this plan. She was a good woman, and he didn’t want her to feel that he short-charged her. Sure, he told her that the deal would go through with Xavier, but it wouldn’t be nice if he went ahead and didn’t tell her. Not that he owed her anything. Why the hell was he thinking like this?
“The money will be handed over to Xavier soon enough.”
Riley wasn’t sure about Xavier, the manager of the place. He assured them that he could talk to the owners and get the paperwork signed in their favor, but if Tania offered more, he might change his mind. “It should be done soon. Otherwise, Xavier might turn over to Tania,” he told them. “If you give me the money, I will take care of this. After they have gotten an advance, no one would be able to shake the deal.”
“Don’t worry about that aspect,” said Mark. “We’ve got it covered. You just concentrate on completing the paperwork.”
Damn it! He would have to tell Tania about it. If he didn’t, she would think that he seduced her to keep her off track and then closed the deal. “Sure, all right.”
After Riley left the hotel, he went straight for Tania’s agency. She was one of the hotshot agents, but he was aware that she needed this deal quite badly. The account she was trying to take over was one of the most lucrative clients of the company and if she lost them, her career would be on the line. When he walked into the office and gave his name to the receptionist, Riley wasn’t sure about the welcome he would get.
Before he made love to her, he’d assumed that it would be a one night thing. But the minute it was all over, he knew that there was no way he could leave this woman alone. She was perfect for him in every way. He loved her sheer guts, her courage, and her sharp intelligence. Of course, she was hot, too. If he lost her, he wouldn’t get another woman quite like her. How could he convince her that he was serious after the bad impression that he made during their first meeting?
“Please go up, sir. First room to the left,” said the receptionist after she talked to Tania on the intercom. “Ms. Mathew is expecting you.”
Riley sauntered in her office a few minutes later. Like her personality, the office was done in sharp hues and gave a rich vibe. His gaze traveled over the steel gray rug, the two picture frames that adorned her desk, and the cabinets that lined the wall. Not a paper or file was out of place. He could imagine that she used the same ruthless efficiency to organize this place that she employed during her business meetings.
The woman who stood to greet him was as gorgeous as he remembered. Seeing her clad in a sky-blue suit, he recalled the way her skin flushed under his hands. His mouth salivated at the thought of her firm, heavy breasts that fit into his hands so perfectly that it seemed as if they were made for him.
Seeing him, she raised her eyebrows. “Riley, to what do I owe this pleasure?”
“Came here to give you some information that you might consider vital,” he drawled. Walking over, he pulled out a chair and sat. “Xavier has given his nod to my people. We’re on our way to close the deal.”
“But…” she sputtered. “He told me he is still talking to the owners.”
Riley sighed. This is exactly what he was afraid of. Xavier was playing both sides very nicely, probably in order to win a better commission. “He has got a vested interest to play us both,” he said. “After all, the more desperate you are to win this, the greater his commission.”
She chewed her bottom lip and sat opposite him. “Why are you telling me?”
“Obviously because I don’t want you to think I’m a complete asshole. I want to close this deal as much as you, but I have got certain standards, and one of them is not to cheat the woman I like.”
She shifted her phone from one side of the desk to another. “Like? I thought I was the enemy.”
“I’ve changed my mind,” he said. “You’re no longer the enemy.”
“Wow! I am so touched,” she said in a sarcastic tone. “Thank you.”
Riley sighed. He wasn’t doing this right. Leaning forward, he put his hands on the desk. “Listen, Tania. We can butt heads over this, but that’s not the way to go. I like you a lot…and I wanted to see where this mutual attraction takes us.”
“Mutual attraction?”
“Come on, sweetheart. I am not a fool and neither are you. We can do something great here, together, but if you are hell bent on not accepting your feelings, there isn’t much I can do.”
She stood and walked over to the window. Tania stared out as if she were deep in thought. Riley kept quiet. He wanted her to give him another chance, but he couldn’t force her. Instead, he wanted her to accept him. This could be something great and amazing, but she needed to make it happen.
Finally, she turned around to face him. “What are you offering?”
“A normal relationship. Dinner. Cinema. Walks. Whatever you want.”
“And what about this deal?”
“As I said, it’s out of my hands. Xavier is going to make the final decision.”
She walked back over and sat. “But I am not going to let up on the deal.”
“You can keep talking to him if that’s what you want, but I would suggest we wait for him to get back.” He tapped his fingers on the desk. “The more we both pursue him, the harder he will try to play us against each other. Let’s just sit tight and wait for him to respond to one of our offers. The minute he contacts me with an offer, I will tell you and vice versa. He might come with a revised amount or he might accept an offer.”
“So we don’t contact him again…neither one of us.”
“Yeah, that’s the deal.” Riley didn’t think it was a good idea to turn this into a war. He’d made his offer. Xavier would respond in time when the owner gave his go ahead. He didn’t have any intention
of cheating Tania and going over her head. He hoped that Xavier would make this decision soon and put them out of their collective misery, but, until then, he was willing to wait.
She leaned forward and gazed into his eyes as if she wanted to judge the authenticity of his emotions. Finally, she nodded. “It’s a deal.”
With a woman, Riley was never unsure. He was always on top of things, but right now, she made him feel like a desperate school boy. “So we…are good? You and I?”
“Yes, we are.”
“How about we go out for a date then? Dinner?”
For a moment he thought she was about to shake her head, but then she smiled. “Sure, why not? Pick me up at seven from the office.”
Riley resisted the urge to pump his arm in a victorious gesture. He was surprisingly upbeat about this whole venture. Sure, there were some hiccups such as they were still at loggerhead over this warehouse deal, but, other than that, he didn’t foresee any trouble in his love life. It was so long since he dated a woman rather seriously but he was actually excited about being with Tania. With her looks and the brain that worked at the speed of lightning, he anticipated a great beginning for them up ahead. “I will do so, sweetheart.” He stood. Riley spared a glance at the photos she’d displayed on the desk. “Your kids?”
“I don’t have any. Never been married or engaged, if that’s also what you want to ask. These are my nephews, my sister’s kids. They live in Chicago.”
“Never been married or engaged? What? Do you have something against men? Just asking so that I am more prepared for our time up ahead.”
She gave him a long stare out of her sensuous eyes. Man! He could drown in their depths. He sure could take all the time in the world to just look at her and admire the many hues and colors that were reflected in them. “I just haven’t found a man who can hold my interest for that long.”
He snapped his fingers. “Well, I love challenges, so let me see if we can change that.”
The smile that flitted over her lips was spontaneous. He could see a brief swirl of admiration as she gazed at him. “You do have a very high opinion of yourself, don’t you?”
“And I assure from the bottom of my heart that it’s a well deserved opinion.”
She folded her arms over her chest. “We’ll have to see about that. You know, Riley, I’ve met many men, and I have to admit that you do intrigue me on many levels. First of all, you’re arrogant.”
“Only a little bit,” he admitted, “but that’s because I am good at what I do.”
“And you’re also a bit too smart.”
“That’s a plus point, sweetheart. A lesser man wouldn’t have been able to hold your interest for this long.”
She nodded her head as if to concede that point. “You’re most definitely great in bed.”
Amused that she could see it out loud without breaking into a smile, he snapped his finger again. “Thanks. Never got any complaints and I’ve to admit that you’re quite dynamite in bed, too.”
“We all do what we can.” She inspected her fingernails. “But there is one thing that I detest in a man, and that’s his inability to tell the truth. We’ve tabled this warehouse thing for now, but I hope you won’t double cross me over it. Let Xavier decide whom he wants to pick and we will try to outbid each other in the open. There can’t be any funny deals behind my back. That’s going to close this particular chapter that we’ve opened just now.”
Riley felt a faint fission of unease slide up his spine. He didn’t have a clue as to what the board was planning now. If they were secretly negotiating with Xavier and kept him out of the loop, he would look like a fool. But they wouldn’t do it. There was no reason for them to do something like that. He was their point man, and they trusted him. “Sure, sweetheart. That goes without saying.”
She leaned back and put her hands on the desk. “In that case, I will see you sharp at seven. Bye, Riley. I am sure you will be able to find your way back out on your own.”
He lifted a hand in salute and walked out. He looked forward to their date for the night. It was a good beginning. He quite liked Tania, and it would be nice to meet her in a friendly atmosphere and get to know the woman behind the power suit. It was definitely a promising beginning.
Chapter Five
Sharp on the dot, Riley was in front of her office again. She marched out, talking animatedly to some guy who was laughing at something she said. A hot lance of jealousy stabbed through his heart as the guy leaned forward and dropped a kiss on her cheek. Riley didn’t have any claim on her – and he knew that. They barely knew each other. One night of wonderful passion didn’t make a love story. Still, Riley took a deep breath to control his emotions as she strode forward. He was standing next to his bike.
Looking at it, she raised an eyebrow. “Are we going on that?”
He offered her a helmet. “I thought it might be a fun thing to do.”
She inspected the helmet as if it were a foreign object that she never saw before. Taking it from his hand, she held it up. “I am not too sure about this. Maybe you can park your bike here and we can take a cab. You can pick it up later.”
Ah! A novice? Ordinarily, Riley would have acquiesced to her demand, but he could sense that she was a possible convert. She would love it if someone gave her the opportunity to explore this fun side of her that she never got to see. “Why don’t we try this? Wear it. We will take a round and if you don’t like it, we will get a cab.”
She wrinkled her nose, sniffed the helmet, and blanched. “I am really not sure about it.”
Riley couldn’t help the smile that crept over his lips. She was truly dreading this. “Have you ever tried to ride a bike before?”
She shook her head. “The occasion never came up and, frankly, I think it’s for the best. I am not cut out for such adventurous stuff.”
He laughed at that ridiculous statement. “You, sweetheart, are made for adventure. Please, let’s just do this once. If you hate it, I won’t push it. Come on. Be brave.” Knowing that when he made it sound like a challenge, she would rise to the occasion, he took the helmet from her hands and put it on her head. He closed the strap, his fingers gentle. “You can do this; I am sure of it.”
She snorted, stepped towards the bike, and studied it as she would a dangerous thing that might explode at the slightest provocation. “Are you sure this is safe? Maybe you’re trying to kill me so you have a clear path to that deal.”
Putting his hand on the small of her back, he nudged her forward. “If I wanted to kill you, sweetheart, I wouldn’t have to resort to such cheap tactics. Trust me. This is as safe as riding a bicycle.” Although he was slightly amused at her fear, Riley knew that for people who rode a bike for the first time, it was quite a big deal. “Just sit on it and see how it feels.”
She put a hand on her stomach. “I feel queasy.”
“You’re fine,” he insisted. Once she was sitting on the bike, he paused to admire her leg that showed since her dress rode up a little. “If they took you in as a model for these bikes, these babies would practically fly out of the stores.”
She stuck her tongue out as him. “Stop talking. Let’s get this over with. I don’t think I can go to the restaurant like this. One round, you said.”
He took his position. “I am a man of my words. We will decide after the first round if you want to continue. Now, may I suggest that you hold my waist?”
“Why?” Suspicion lurked in her voice. “Why do I need to do that?”
“For one thing, I would quite enjoy it and, for another, it would keep you more balanced on the bike.”
“I hate this right now,” she muttered.
Once he was sure she was seated properly, he revved the engine. A squeal came out of her lips. Ignoring it, he started the bike. It felt so right: her sitting behind him and both of them enjoying the breeze as they rode through the streets. Her arms were as tight as bands around his waist as they began to take a round through the lanes. He kept the speed
at a level that would allow her to enjoy the ride, not too slow and not too fast. Within minutes, her grip relaxed. He could sense she was enjoying it a little bit. Or at least, he hoped so.
Riding a bike was important to him and he couldn’t imagine being with a woman who didn’t love it with the same passion, but, of course, he couldn’t expect that from her. She was on her first ride. Even if she enjoyed it, she wasn’t going to delve right into it so soon. He came to a stop outside her office once more.
Getting off, he took a look at her. There was a dazed, strange expression on her face. He couldn’t quite understand what it meant. Riley cleared his throat. “So, what do you think?”
She glanced at him as if seeing him for the first time. “I love it.”
If she’d punched him, he wouldn’t have been more shocked. “You do?”
This Savage Love: A Bad Boy Romance Boxed Set Page 100
