Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69096 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 345(@200wpm)___ 276(@250wpm)___ 230(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69096 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 345(@200wpm)___ 276(@250wpm)___ 230(@300wpm)
“I’ll get the elevator for you,” he offers. “How has your night been so far?”
“Good,” I say honestly. “I had dinner with a friend at a bistro. It’s called Lise. Have you been?”
“I can’t say that I have.” He smiles as he jabs a finger into the elevator call button. “What do you recommend?”
“The sea bass.” I smile. “It’s so good.”
“I’ll stop in this week, and then we can compare notes.” He mimes writing something on his hand with an invisible pen. “I think I missed my calling. I could have been a food critic.”
“It’s never too late to change professions.” I glance up when the elevator dings.
As the doors slide open, I get ready to step inside, but I stop just short of the threshold because sin in a sexy suit is staring at me.
“Abigail.” Declan’s gaze skims over my blue blouse and faded jeans. “How are you?”
“I’m fine.” I manage to keep my tone even as I step aside to let him pass. “I’m here to pick up something.”
He nods but stands stoically in place. “I’ll ride up with you.”
That takes me by surprise, but I don’t show it. “There’s no need.”
“Need. Want.” He smirks. “I forgot something, so allow me the pleasure of keeping you company on the ride up.”
Desmond keeps his finger on the call button to hold the doors ajar. I feel stuck between good and the best kind of evil imaginable, but I take a step forward and then another until I’m standing next to Declan.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Abby
I try not to look at Declan as the elevator crawls toward my floor. Since I wasn’t prepared to see him, and I did indulge in half a bottle of wine with dinner, I don’t trust myself to make the wisest decisions at the moment.
“You look amazing,” he says in a low tone. “Were you on a date?”
That lures my gaze to his face. “What?”
For some twisted reason, I’m enjoying that he’s curious about where I was. I can’t imagine a scenario where my personal life matters to him, but I want to push this a bit.
“Were you on a date, Abigail?”
“In what realm is that your business?”
He lets out a hearty laugh. “In the realm where I want you in my bed tonight.”
“Not happening.” I shake my head.
His gaze drops to the front of my blouse and beyond until he snakes it back up to my face. “If you were fucked tonight, he did a piss poor job.”
My eyes widen. “What?”
The question turns him so he’s facing me. I shift my focus to the elevator doors in front of me.
I hold in a sigh when I feel his fingers brush against my hand. “If you went to bed with a man, he didn’t get you off.”
I look toward the panel on the wall to see that we’re almost at my floor. “You have no clue what you’re talking about.”
Before I realize what he’s doing, his palm is stretched out and pressed against the red emergency button. The elevator grinds to a sudden halt.
It’s so unexpected that I stumble forward, but I’m in his arms almost instantly.
I take a deep breath to calm my body down.
“When you’re fucked well, you have a glow about you.” His breath skims my cheek. “There’s no glow at the moment.”
I finally raise my gaze to meet his, and what I find stops my heart for a beat. The intensity in his eyes is a lure. There’s nothing I want more at this moment than to tear off his clothes and fuck this man until we both can’t move.
I swallow hard to try and regain my composure because I can’t let myself go to bed with him when I’m still feeling the high from the wine.
His eyes search mine for something. “What’s going on in that head of yours?”
I slick my tongue over my bottom lip. “What did you forget?”
His brow knits. “What?”
“You told Desmond you forgot something,” I remind him. “What is it?”
As the elevator sounds its alarm and the phone on the panel rings, he parts his lips. “This.”
I tilt my chin up ever so slightly to welcome his touch, and then he steals my breath in a kiss I’ll never forget.
I take two steps away from Declan as the elevator arrives at my floor. As soon as the doors slide open, I spot a crowd of three gathered. Naturally, the man in the middle would have to be my boss.
Rook looks at me before he shoots his gaze toward Declan. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” Declan responds.
“I wasn’t asking you,” Rook snaps. “I was asking Abby. She’s had a rough week. First, a twisted ankle, and now she was stuck in an elevator with you.”
I hold in a laugh. “I’m fine, sir.”
“Good.” He moves aside to let me pass.
After my afternoon at home nursing my ‘injury,’ I gave up the fake limp, so I exit the elevator with my head held high and not a limp in sight.