by Leanne Banks
“Damn, you’re good,” he said, admiration and something dangerous flickering in his gaze. Mallory supposed she was imagining both.
She smiled. “Excuse me. Good night.”
He caught her before she left. “See me before you leave.”
His intensity put her off balance. “I’ll try,” she conceded because she suspected he wouldn’t let her leave until she promised that much. She walked out of his arms in the direction of sanity. She’d manufactured an excuse to get away from him. The hostess probably didn’t need help, but Mallory sure did.
Mallory did end up helping the hostess with an assortment of last minute minicrises. Just as she was walking down one of the long halls toward the ballroom from one of her errands, she saw Alex approaching her.
“I had to track you down again,” he said. “Why are you so determined to avoid me?”
She swallowed over a nervous lump in her throat. “I’m not—avoid—” She stopped when he lifted an eyebrow in disbelief.
“Oh, Mallory,” a woman from the lobby called. “Is that you Mallory? My nephew…”
“Oh, no, it’s Mrs. Trussel about her nephew. She’s been calling me every other day.”
“Come with me,” he said, taking her hand and urging her down the hallway.
“Oh, Mallory.” The voice grew fainter.
“I should at least respond,” Mallory said as Alex tugged her around a corner.
“Did you avoid her, too?” he asked, opening a door and pulling her inside a linen closet.
“No. I called and made my excuses. Besides, you’re partly to blame.”
“Me? How?”
She pointed her finger at his hard chest. “You’re the one who told me he was a total bore.”
“I should have let you waste your time with him instead?”
“Well, no, but…” She bit her lip and looked around the small, nearly dark room. “Why are we in this closet?”
“Because this appears to be the only way I can get your undivided attention,” he said. “You didn’t answer my question. Why are you avoiding me?”
She sighed. “I told you. You’re a huge flirt.”
“Try again,” he said.
She closed her eyes even though it was so dark it wasn’t necessary. “Because you have this effect on women. You make women make fools of themselves. I don’t want to make a fool of myself again,” she whispered.
A heartbeat of silence followed. “Again? When did you make a fool of yourself?”
She bit her lip. “I know you remember that night I fainted,” she said. “In the bar.”
“You’d just drank your cocktails too quickly. It can happen to anyone,” he said.
She took a deep breath. May as well get it all over with, she thought. “When I first met you, I was like everyone else. I thought you were gorgeous, irresistible, breathtaking. I—” She gulped. “I had a crush on you. That evening I was trying to—” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Seduce you.”
Silence followed. “Damn. I wish I’d known that. I would have handled the situation much differently.”
“As if it would have mattered,” she said. “Stop teasing. You know I’m not your type.”
Suddenly she felt his hand on her waist. “I’m getting tired of your assumptions.”
Mallory felt as if the room turned sideways.
“I can’t tell if you’re underestimating me or yourself. Damn, if you haven’t made me curious,” he said and lowered his mouth to hers.
If the room had been turning sideways before, for Mallory, it was now spinning. His hard chest felt delicious against her breasts, his hands masterful at her waist while his lips plundered hers.
Her heartbeat racing, she couldn’t find it in herself to resist this one taste, this one time, this one kiss. With an abandonment she hadn’t known she possessed, she stretched on tiptoe and slid her fingers through his wavy hair and kissed him back.
She wanted to take in every sensation, his scent, the surprised sound of his breath, the way his hands dipped lower at the back of her waist and urged her closer, his tongue seducing hers.
His kiss was everything and more she’d ever dreamed all those months ago. Hotter, more seductive, more everything…She drew his tongue into her mouth, sucking it the same way…
He abruptly pulled his head back and swore, inhaling heavy breaths. After a second, he swore again. “Where did that come from? I didn’t know you—”
Thankful for the darkness in the closet, she bit her still-buzzing lips. “You didn’t know what?” she whispered.
“I didn’t know you would kiss like that. Hot enough to singe a man, but keep him coming back for more.”
Mallory couldn’t help but feel a twinge of gratification. After all, Alex was the master seducer.
He lowered his mouth and rubbed it over hers, making her shiver with want. “You could make a man do some crazy things. Who would have known little Mallory—” He broke off and took her mouth in another mind-blowing openmouth kiss. One of his hands slid upward just beneath her breast.
He nibbled and ate at her lips. “Can’t help wondering what else is cooking underneath that sweet-girl surface.”
A dozen wicked thoughts raced through Mallory’s mind. Wouldn’t she like to show him what was underneath? Wouldn’t she like to feel his bare skin against hers? Wouldn’t she like to get as close as she possibly could to him right now?
In a linen closet, some distant corner of her mind reminded her.
And afterward she would have to face the people outside.
She reluctantly pulled back. “I don’t think that finding out what’s underneath my sweet-girl surface is in the immediate future.”
A moment of silence followed. “Why is that?”
“Because I would never want to have a public affair with you.”
“This closet is hidden,” he said, so seductively he tempted her to leave her objections behind.
“There will be people outside with questions and speculations. I should leave and then you can follow later.”
“Later,” he echoed.
“It was your idea to pull me in here.”
“You would have rather faced Mrs. Trussel?”
She shifted from one foot to the other. “It doesn’t matter. I just know I would never want to get involved with you, especially publicly.”
“Why the hell not?” he demanded, his voice and body emanating his raw power.
She fortified her defenses. “Because after it’s over, I don’t want anyone saying, ‘Poor Mallory. Alex took advantage of her.’”
He gave a chuckle that raced through her blood like fire. “What about the poor guy who gets scorched by your kiss?”
She couldn’t help feeling flattered, but she pushed it aside. “I should leave.”
“I’ll be right behind you,” he said.
“I don’t want to have to answer questions,” she said.
“Then grab a towel and say you’re cleaning up a mess.”
“And you?”
“I’m making plans for the next time you and I get together.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I’ll change your mind,” he promised, and she shivered because she knew if anyone had the ability to change a woman’s mind, even her mind, it was Alex.
The following day, Alex’s mind kept turning to thoughts of Mallory. She piqued his interest more than any other woman had in ages. Women had come easily to him. The trademark Megalos features had served as both a blessing and a curse for Alex.
With his older brothers committed to medicine for their careers like their father, Alex had always been viewed as the lightweight because he was determined to pursue gaining back influence in the family-named business.
What his father and brothers didn’t grasp was that when the tide was rolling against a man, he had to use everything to fight it off—intelligence, charm and power. Alex had used everything he had to rebuild the influence of the family name in Megalos-De Lu
ca Enterprises. He’d butted heads more than once with Max De Luca, but lately the two had become more of a team and less adversarial.
Max had even expressed dismay over the board’s decision not to support Alex’s plan for a resort in West Virginia near Washington, D.C. Since Alex had secured legal permission to develop the resort on his own, he was determined to make it a success. He would show the board he knew what he was doing, and in the future they wouldn’t fight him.
As an investor, Mallory’s father could be important to Alex’s strategy. Mallory could be the key to unlocking the door to her father.
Funny thing, though, the woman made him damned curious. He pushed the button for his assistant. “Emma, please come into my office.”
“Of course, sir.”
Seconds later, she appeared, notebook in hand. “Yes, sir.”
“I want you to send flowers to Mallory James for me.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh. She’s lovely,” Emma said. “So polite on the phone.”
“Not my usual type,” he said.
She paused a half-beat. “Much better.”
His lips twitched in amusement. Emma was extremely discreet and rarely expressed her opinion unless he asked for it. “How well do you know her?”
“Not well at all. But she’s very personable and gracious. You’d never know that her father could pay off the national debt.”
“Send her a dozen red roses,” he said.
Emma nodded slowly and made a note.
“What’s wrong with a dozen red roses?” he asked, reading her expression.
“It’s terribly clichéd,” she said. “You’re dealing with a different quality of woman with Mallory. Something personal might make more of an impression,” she said, then rushed to add, “not that you need to impress her.”
Alex thought for a moment as several ideas came to mind. “Okay send her a dozen roses in different colors with a Nike SasQuatch driver and a box of Titleist Pro V1 gold balls.”
Emma blinked at him.
“She’s learning to play golf,” he said. “In the note, tell her I’ll pick her up for a round of golf on Tuesday at 7:00 a.m.”
Three
Tuesday morning at seven-thirty, Mallory was awakened by a knock on her bedroom door. Groggy, she lifted her head and groaned. She’d been up until 4:00 a.m. finishing a paper for her class.
“Miss James,” the housekeeper said in a low voice through the door.
Mallory reluctantly rose from bed and opened her door. “Hilda?” she said to the housekeeper.
“There’s a man downstairs and he insists on seeing you. Mr. Megalos.”
Mallory groaned again. “Oh, no. Not him. I called his assistant to cancel.”
“He’s determined to talk to you. Shall I tell him you’ll be down shortly?” Hilda asked.
“Okay, okay,” Mallory said and closed the door. Thank goodness her mother and father were out of town for a business meeting in Salt Lake City, one of the few times her mother left the house. Otherwise, she would be grilled like her favorite fish.
She padded across the soft carpet to her bathroom. Her hair in a ponytail, she washed her face and brushed her teeth. She thought about applying makeup, fixing her hair and dressing up, then nixed the idea. If Alex saw her au naturel, that should really kill his curiosity.
Pulling on a bra and T-shirt and stepping into a pair of shorts, she descended the stairs where he was waiting at the bottom, looking wide-awake and gorgeous.
“Good morning, sleepyhead. Did you forget our date?”
“I called your assistant and gave her my regrets. I had a late night last night.”
“Partying?”
“Ha. Finishing my paper until 4:00 a.m.,” she corrected and yawned. “I’m sorry if you didn’t get my message, but as you can see I’m not ready for a round of golf.”
“We may as well squeeze in nine holes,” he said. “You won’t be able to go back to sleep, anyway.”
Frowning at his perceptiveness, she covered another yawn. “How do you know that?”
“I’m just betting you’re like me. Once I’m awake, I can’t go back to sleep.”
She studied him for a long moment. “You have me at a disadvantage. You’ve obviously had a full night of sleep.”
“So I’ll give you a few pointers,” he said.
A lesson, she thought, her interest piqued. Although she was already taking lessons, it might be interesting to get another approach.
“Nine holes,” she said.
“Until you can do the full eighteen,” he said, clearly goading her.
She shouldn’t give in to his challenge. Although she was tempted, she absolutely shouldn’t. “Give me five minutes.”
“A woman getting ready in five minutes?” he said. “That would really impress me.”
She smiled as she thought about what her finished appearance would look like. No makeup, ponytail, shorts, shirt, socks and golf shoes. “We’ll see,” she said and headed back upstairs, feeling his gaze on her.
After Mallory took a rinse and spin shower, slapped on sunscreen and got dressed, she joined Alex as he drove to the golf course. She told herself not to focus on her attraction to him. Even though the sight of his tanned, muscular legs revealed by his shorts was incredibly distracting, she tried not to think about how sexy and masculine he was. She tried not to think about how it would feel to be held in his arms, in his bed, taken by him. She tried not to think about how exciting it would be to be the woman who drove him half as crazy as he drove her. Used to drive her, she firmly told herself.
Mallory knew Alex wasn’t a forever kind of man, but she’d always thought he would be a great temporary man, amusing, passionate, sexy. If a woman decided to have an affair with him, she would need at all times to remember not to count on him for a long-term relationship. That would be a fatal, heartbreaking mistake.
Not that she was going to have an affair with him, anyway, Mallory told herself as she teed off. She watched her ball fly a respectable distance toward the hole and sighed in relief.
“Not bad,” he said. “Just remember to lead with your hips both ways,” he said and he swung his club and hit the ball.
His ball soared beyond hers. “What do you mean both ways?” she asked. “How?”
“First get balanced,” he said. “Then lead with your hips in the backswing and the downswing. Get behind me and put your hands on my hips,” he instructed.
“What?”
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to seduce you on the golf course. Unless you want me to,” he said and laughed in a voice that made her feel incredibly tempted.
Gingerly placing her hands on his hips, she felt the coil of power as he swiveled his hips and swung the club.
He turned around to face her and glanced down her body. “It’s what women have always known. The power comes from the hips.”
She felt a heat that threatened to turn her into a puddle of want, but stiffened her defenses and walked toward her next shot. “Thank you for the reminder.”
Alex wondered if Mallory was making all those moves deliberately to distract him. After he’d mentioned the tip about hips, she swung her backside before each shot. When she wiggled her shoulders to stay loose, he couldn’t help but notice the sway of her breasts.
“Visualize where you want the ball to go,” she whispered to herself, and without fail she would bite her lush lower lip, reminding him of how her lips had felt when he’d kissed her.
By the time they reached the ninth hole, he had undressed her a dozen times. He knew she would be in his bed soon, but since she was Edwin’s daughter, he figured he may have to play this one a little more carefully.
After she made her last putt, she turned to him with a smile on her face that made the sunny Nevada day seem even brighter. “Thank you for twisting my arm. This was more fun than I’d imagined.”
“If you don’t enjoy it, then why did you decide to learn to play?”
“The challenge,”
she said as they walked toward the clubhouse. “I like to learn new things.” She laughed to herself. “And my father thought it was a good way to attract a husband.”
“But that’s not part of your diabolical plan,” he said.
“No. But the golf course is where a lot of business is conducted,” she said.
“Ah. I’m impressed,” he said and he was. “The problem with you trying to do business on the golf course is that men will be distracted by your body.”
She shot him a sideways glance. “You’re not trying to flatter me again, are you?”
He moved in front of her and stopped. “Whatever is between us is more than flattery. I made that clear the other night in the closet. I can make it clear again.”
Her eyes widened and she bit her lip. He lifted his finger to her mouth. “Don’t do that to your pretty lips,” he said. “Let me take you to dinner.”
He watched a wave of indecision cross her face. She hesitated an extra beat before she shook her head. “No. I told you I’m not getting involved in a public situation with you where people could misconstrue that we’re involved.”
He lifted his hand to push back a strand of her hair that had come loose from her ponytail. “We already are involved.”
Her eyes widened again. “No, we’re not.”
“You’re not attracted to me,” he said.
She opened her mouth then shut it and sighed. “I didn’t say that. But I already told you that I don’t want to be known as one of your flavors of the month. Wherever you go, you draw attention, so there’s no way we could have dinner without people talking about it or it ending up in the paper.”
“You really don’t want to be seen with me,” he mused and shook his head. This was a first. Usually women wanted to parade him in public at every opportunity. Alex switched strategy with ease. “No problem. We’ll have dinner at my condo tonight.”
Mallory felt a shiver of forbidden anticipation as she stepped inside the elevator that would take her to Alex’s penthouse condominium. She shouldn’t have agreed, but the more time she spent with him, the more she wanted to know about him.
And who knew? Perhaps Alex could be a resource for helping her get started professionally. As much as she loved her parents, she craved her independence. She needed to succeed on her own.
