His black brows twitched. “I did ask you nicely.”
“No you didn’t. You told me to ‘run along.’”
For a second she doubted he’d do it. Then he said, biting out the words, “Thank you for your time, Marisa. You can go now.”
“Say please.”
His eyes were the color of thunderclouds. “Please.”
It should have been a victory, but with her panties in his pocket and the taste of him still lingering in her mouth, it wasn’t.
…
Luke waited until the door had shut before he allowed himself to sit down. Then he put a finger on the intercom button. “Give me a minute, Lisa.”
“A minute?” There was shock in her voice. “But the people from Gibson are here already.”
“Like I said, one minute.”
No wonder she was shocked—he didn’t get people to wait. However, right now he’d done what he swore he wouldn’t do and now he needed a goddamned minute.
Reaching out, he adjusted the desk light that had somehow been knocked askew. Checked the rest of his desk to make sure everything was where it was supposed to be. Touched his tie, pulled at his cuffs.
It didn’t help. He couldn’t get the taste of Marisa Clair out of his mouth.
Marisa Clair and her bunny panties.
Why had he kissed her? He still couldn’t work that one out. It was against the rules, the rules he’d instituted to help keep his company running smoothly. Rules he’d gone ahead and broken. Was he quite mad?
Yet when she’d put her underwear in his hand and they weren’t at all like what he expected, the same compulsion that had gripped him at the wedding had hit. He had to taste her mouth. Just…had to.
Cursing, Luke got to his feet and rounded his desk to adjust the chair she’d been sitting in. Made sure it was perfectly positioned next to the other one.
This didn’t happen to him, it didn’t. When he took lovers, he liked to converse with them first because it was only polite. But generally he didn’t think about them outside the bedroom, let alone while he was at work. So what made her different? Was it because he hadn’t taken a lover in a while? A month of buildup could make a man crazy, and crazy definitely wasn’t what he was going for.
Luke brushed invisible lint off the unmarked black leather of the chair, more than a little unsettled. A single kiss he could write off as a momentary lapse in judgment. But twice? That started to seem like intent. Like…
You want her.
He scowled at the chair, moving it a touch more. No. He didn’t. His body did, but there were many things his body wanted that he wasn’t about to let it have. Those urges had to be carefully managed, not indulged willy-nilly. At least they had to be if he wanted to stay in control.
But he couldn’t figure out why he’d responded to her in the way he had in the first place. Women like her didn’t interest him. Blond sexpots who fluttered their lashes and flashed their underwear were more Caleb’s type than his. Even if he did have chemistry with them.
So no, he should not be thinking about her or that intensely arousing kiss. He should be kicking her out of his head and getting on with this meeting. Being late would put his whole schedule out and he hated that. It destroyed his focus, made the OCD that much harder to deal with.
He’d think about something else. Like the latest share prices for that telecommunications company he’d bought. Or the latest bond release for one of the larger portfolios he managed. Or…
Bunnies. On white cotton warm from her body…
He realized his fingers were in his pocket, curled around the pair of panties he’d confiscated from her. Why were they still there? Why had he kept them? And more to the point, what the hell was he going to with them now?
This was not good.
Twice now, he’d lost control around Marisa Clair. Which was unacceptable. It would make things difficult with Joseph and Christie, but Joseph, out of anyone, would understand. The other man had stood by him back in school. Back in the days when everyone thought he was mad.
His intercom beeped, interrupting his thoughts.
“Luke?” His PA sounded slightly puzzled. “It’s been a minute. Are you ready?”
Christ, what was he doing now? Irritation at himself burned in his gut. With an effort he forced it down, stalked back to his desk. As he passed by the window, he caught a glimpse of his dim reflection and noticed a flash of red.
Oh hell. Lipstick on his goddamned mouth.
Wiping furiously at the stain with one hand, he stuck a finger on the intercom button with the other. “Yes. Send them in.”
He would not let Marisa interrupt his day any more than she already had.
You’re not going to be able to concentrate with her knickers in your pocket.
The tightness in his groin refused to go away. If anything, it only got more intense. Dammit. He couldn’t start a meeting with a hard-on.
But it was too late. The door was opening and the Gibson Group representatives were filing in, and he was going to have to get up, shake their hands. Somehow find the laser-like focus he had a reputation for. And all with Marisa Clair’s panties burning a hole in his pocket.
Jesus.
Hoping like hell none of them happened to glance down at the region of his fly, Luke found a tight smile from somewhere and got up to meet them.
“McNamara,” Don Gibson, the CEO, said as they shook hands. “Glad you could make the time. You’ve had a chance to look over the figures?”
“Of course. And I have to say they’re—” He stopped, frowning. The other man was staring at his jacket for some reason. “Anything the matter?”
“You appear to have…” Don Gibson gestured.
Luke looked down and the breath froze in his throat. Somehow Marisa’s panties were hanging halfway out of his pocket, the white cotton and the bunnies leaping gaily all over it in perfect contrast to the dark charcoal of his jacket.
“Shit,” he said before he could stop himself, embarrassment and anger twisting in his gut.
How could he go on with the meeting now? Not only was his concentration shot to hell, but with the underwear hanging out of his pocket, his professionalism would surely be called into question. And all because of wretched Marisa Clair.
She had officially ruined his morning. Possibly his entire day.
“I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to postpone this meeting,” Luke said stiffly, with as much dignity as he could muster while stuffing women’s underwear back into his pocket. “I have…urgent business to attend to. Lisa will help you reschedule.”
And without waiting for a response, he turned on his heel and strode out of the office.
…
“You’re late,” Ben observed from his office doorway as Marisa flung herself back down at her desk.
Yeah, she was. But chilling out in the ladies’ room for ten minutes before she got to the magazine had been a necessity. Especially since her mouth was still burning from Luke’s kiss and she was hot and restless and unable to settle. Not to mention thoroughly pissed off with herself and with Luke.
In no mood to be told off, Marisa only just stopped from flipping Ben the one-fingered salute. Not exactly the thing to do to her immediate boss.
Like sending naughty e-mails to the über-boss wasn’t.
Marisa ignored the snide voice in her head and gave Ben an apologetic smile. “Yes, sorry about that. I…couldn’t find my other shoe.”
Ben leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms. “Like that’s not the lamest excuse I’ve ever heard.” He gave her a gimlet stare from over the top of his glasses. “Something’s up, isn’t it, Marisa?”
Bugger it. How come Ben always seemed to know whenever she’d done something wrong? She couldn’t flirt with him to distract him and that left her with nothing to hide behind. A nuisance when her typing speed sucked, her ability to schedule was useless, and she didn’t take direction well. Really, she wasn’t the best PA in the world, and she had n
o idea why Ben kept her on.
Clearly, telling him she’d been called up to the big boss’s office wasn’t going to be the highlight of her day. Still, she kind of had to. Better to come from her than Luke himself, right?
She sighed. “I had to go and see Luke McNamara this morning.”
Ben’s bushy eyebrows rose. “Why?”
“Because I had something I wanted to talk to her about.” A deep, masculine voice came unexpectedly from the magazine’s doorway.
A weird, electric thrill coursed down Marisa’s spine. Whipping her head around so fast her neck nearly snapped, she stared as Luke’s tall figure made its way through the office to her desk.
People were staring and she had a sudden flashback to the day Joseph had come into the office, declaring his love for Christie in front of the entire staff of the magazine.
She’d never admitted it to anyone since love sucked balls, but her knees had melted under her desk. And strangely, there was something about the intense way Luke was looking at her now that had precisely the same effect.
Trying to pull herself together, she couldn’t help licking her lips to moisten them, noticing—rather to her disappointment—that he’d wiped off the lipstick she’d left on his mouth.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, her voice coming out a tad breathy, conscious of Ben also staring at the man like a lunatic. A visit from the CEO wasn’t exactly usual for the Total Tech staff.
Luke halted by her desk. She’d have thought that since it was her desk and he was on the other side of it, she’d feel a little more powerful. But she didn’t. He was so tall, the way he was staring at her so intense. It made her self-conscious, especially considering he’d just kissed the life out of her upstairs.
“I need to talk to you,” Luke said. “In private.”
In private? What on earth did he want now? “Uh, sorry, I have a lot of work—”
“I have something of yours I need to return.”
Oh hell. He wanted to give her back her wretched undies.
“Are you stealing my PA, Mr. McNamara?” Ben said. His tone was friendly, but the look he gave her and Luke was calculating.
Marisa opened her mouth to tell him what was going on, but before she could get the words out, Luke said coolly, “It’s a personal matter.”
Ben’s gaze narrowed. “Really?”
“Yes.” Luke stared back at him. “Really.”
The other man shifted uncomfortably on his feet. “Oh. Well. Fine. As you were, then. Right, well, must get back to doing…” He stopped muttering and disappeared back into his office.
Marisa blinked. Why had Luke lied? Why hadn’t he told Ben about the real reason she was in his office? She glanced up at him, another electric shock arrowing down her spine as their eyes met.
Oh boy, this is not good. Sooo not good!
“Why didn’t you tell him about the e-mails?” she asked in a low voice, conscious of the covert stares of the rest of the magazine staff.
“Come with me.”
“Uh, that’s not what I asked. I asked—”
“I said private, Marisa.” Luke’s focused gaze burned into hers, making her forget what the hell she’d been meaning to say. “There’s no need to mention the e-mails. I’ll return this item to you and then as far as I’m concerned the matter is closed.”
Closed. Yeah, she could do with this matter being closed. Extremely closed.
“Fine.” She got up from her desk. “This way.”
She headed out into the Total Tech reception then down the short corridor that led to the stationery supply room and the office bathrooms. Stopping around the corner from the reception area so they were out of view, she turned.
“My underwear, I presume?” she inquired.
Luke said nothing, merely put out his hand and uncurled his fingers. And sure enough, there were her panties sitting dead center of his palm.
“What a gentleman.” Reaching out, she grabbed the material from him, and though she tried to prevent it, her fingers brushed his palm. More sparks, a fiery wash of them up her arm, a sensual heat that had her pulling her hand back as though he was a fire she’d accidentally burned herself on.
Fighting the rush of adrenaline, she pulled on her usual cool, sexy front, forcing herself to meet his eyes. They burned silver, like a magnesium flare. “T-thank you,”’ she said, unable to prevent the tiny stutter.
Luke said nothing. Just stared at her
Sexual tension built, stoked by their earlier kiss, flickering between them.
“I can’t stop thinking about you,” he said abruptly, his voice hoarse. “I can’t stop thinking about that kiss. Or the way you felt in my arms as we danced. Or your ridiculous underwear. You’ve just ruined my meeting and now I can’t concentrate. And I have to concentrate or else nothing works. I need you gone from my head, Marisa Clair. I need you gone now.”
Marisa opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She stood there like a silly teenage girl gaping at a film star. Because all she could think about was how close the stationery supply room was and how no one hardly ever went in it. How she could grab his tie, pull him inside, deal with the craving that was driving them both insane…
Fantastic. She was thinking about doing her freaking boss in the supply room.
Could her life be any more of a cliché?
Chapter Four
“Well?” Luke demanded. “What have you got to say for yourself?”
Stupid, stupid man. Did he think he was the only one thoroughly pissed off by this attraction? Oh no, he wasn’t. “I don’t like this any more than you do, believe me.”
Luke took a step toward her and suddenly the wall was hard at her back, the Cyborg CEO inches away from her front.
Except he wasn’t much like a cyborg now. His eyes were molten and he was staring at her as if he wanted to eat her alive. Men looked at her all the time, but she could always stare down the ones she didn’t want, frightening them off.
But not Luke. He held her gaze. Met it. Matched it.
He put one hand on the wall beside her head. Then the other. Caging her in.
Her breath caught in her throat.
Holy freaking hotness, Batman.
“We need to do something about it.” His voice was rough, and man, she loved the sound. “We need to get this out of the way.”
She couldn’t stop staring at his mouth, at the full shape of his lower lip. At the way it hinted at softness in a man who was hard all over. It was biteable. Lickable. What would he do if she licked him? Would he get more starchy? God, she could still taste his kiss.
“Yeah,” she muttered thickly. “You’re not wrong about that.”
She could feel the warmth coming from him, could smell the fresh, clean scent of his aftershave. It was almost like the ocean, different from the spicy, somewhat overwhelming scents of the men she was used to. Like a splash of cold water on burning skin.
“But doing something about it would be against the rules,” he said, not moving an inch.
There was an ache between her thighs. What a time to be reminded that she wasn’t wearing any underwear.
Ah, screw the rules. Because cliché or not, there was only one option with chemistry this intense. Only one way to control it. And it did not involve obeying any freaking rules.
“Haven’t you heard that rules are made to be broken?” she said softly.
Luke kept right on staring at her. “No. Rules keep everything running smoothly and without complications.”
Oh boy. She had her work cut out for her here. “But this is a complication.”
His gaze dropped her mouth, then farther down to her throat. “Yes. A major one.”
“Which means we have to do something about it, right? If you want to keep things running smoothly, that is.”
He didn’t move, still caging her against the wall. “I’m open to suggestions.”
She shivered, loving being small and fragile next to his height and power. Next to the
sheer intensity of him. “Well, as it happens, I do have one “ Her voice was all but a whisper. “But it’s probably a little too wild for you.”
Really, it was a little too wild even for her, but they had to get this insane attraction out of the way somehow. Put it behind them. Indulging themselves might improve their working relationship in the long run, enable them to both be more professional with each other.
Yeah, have sex in order to be professional. Totally worked for her.
And then there was the issue of Christie and Joseph. She and Luke needed to be able to get along since their best friends were married to each other, and wouldn’t drawing a line under it actually help in that regard?
Hell, she’d be doing it for Christie and Joseph’s sake. She owed it to them, even.
You’re thinking way too much about this.
Yeah, okay, she was. Perhaps she should stop.
“Too wild?” His attention had dropped once more, to her throat, then down farther to where the button on her blouse had come undone. “What’s too wild?”
“This.” Marisa shot out a hand and grabbed his tie, curling her fingers around it. Then she tugged his mouth down on hers.
Desire exploded between them like a can of petrol hurled onto an open fire.
Luke didn’t pull back, didn’t hesitate. He pushed her hard against the wall and devoured her like he’d been starving for weeks and she was his first taste of food.
Every single thought in Marisa’s head instantly burned to ashes as hunger arced through her. She put her arms around his neck, pressing herself against his body, feeling his heat and power even through the muffling layers of clothing. Reveling in it.
“A kiss is too wild?” he said roughly against her mouth.
“No.” She had a better idea, a much better idea. “I’m thinking about way more than that.”
She put one hand behind her, found the door handle to the stationery supply room, and opened it. Then she pulled Luke in after her.
The room was, as she’d hoped, empty.
Luke kicked the door shut behind him and Marisa opened her mouth, about to take charge of the situation as she always did. But then his hands gripped her hips and he turned her, pushed her up against the door, his tall, powerful body pinning her there. Holding her there.
Talking Dirty With the Boss (Talking Dirty#3) Page 5
