In the Boss's Bed (Harlequin Blaze) (8 page)

11

M
AYA
WATCHED
J
AMIE
pace back and forth in the living room of his suite. He was normally so calm and cool, she wasn’t used to seeing him so nervous and out of sorts. He walked from one end of the room to the next, alternating between wringing his hands and raking them through his hair—a sure indication that he was nervous.

“Jamie, you’ll wear a hole in the carpet if you don’t stop pacing.”

He stopped and looked at her as if he didn’t even know that she was in the room. “Sorry,” he muttered before taking off his suit jacket. He seemed to reconsider and he put it back on.

Garrett Collins was scheduled to arrive for their informal meeting in about ten minutes. Even though it would only be a casual get-together, just a friendly chat over drinks really, Jamie had explained to her that someone like Garrett Collins would be a good ally to have in the industry. And the research she had done on him had taught her much about the resort hotel magnate. In fact, he would be an extraordinary ally for herself as well, so she had helped Jamie prepare.

Maya didn’t like seeing him so nervous. She admired the confident man she worked for, and even though she knew he typically carried a ton of weight on his shoulders, he never showed uneasiness like he did at the moment.

She was also nervous about the meeting. She knew that a lot was riding on the two men getting along well and the meeting being successful. But she also knew that there was no room for both of them to be a nervous wreck. So Maya had to step up. Somebody had to set Jamie Sellers straight.

“You have got to relax.” She stood and walked to him. “Garrett Collins is not going to take you seriously if you’re a nervous wreck.”

He scowled. “Maya, listen—”

“No, you listen.” She put her hands on his shoulders. “You are Jamie-goddamn-Sellers. When you talk, people listen. You are the most intelligent, confident, sure-footed man I have ever known. And Garrett Collins should be so lucky that you want to meet with him.” She pushed a palm into his chest. “So pull it together, okay? This industry is all about image. You have to make us both look good here.”

Jamie blinked, slightly taken aback, but Maya stood her ground, not cowering at the outburst she knew was coming. She had never spoken to him like that, and she was certain that nobody ever had in his life. He took in a deep breath.

She continued on, spurred by the confidence he lacked at the moment. “And if you’re still nervous, you have to ball it up and shove it.” She pointed a finger in his face, not afraid of any consequences she might face after this pep talk
.
“Fake it till you make it, am I right?”

Surprisingly, his lips actually twitched with amusement. “You’re right,” he muttered.

“Am I right, Jamie?” she asked loudly, and shook his shoulders.

“You’re right!” he shouted. “I am Jamie-goddamn-Sellers,” he yelled in her face, smiling while pounding one fist into his palm. “I can do this!”

Maya laughed and removed her hands from his broad shoulders. “I’m sorry I had to do that. Are you good now?”

He nodded, a broad smile on his face, amused by her way of psyching him up. “Maya, I’m great. Thank you for that. I needed it. You know, there’s just a lot riding on a friendly relationship with this man.” She knew that, of course, but he had not yet discussed the specifics with her. “It’s nothing I’m ready to talk about quite yet, and I’m sure you realize that. But thank you. I’m glad you were here to talk me down.”

“I figured it was part of the job description—shout some sense into your boss. It was one of my university courses, in fact,” she teased.

“Really?” he played along. “Boss Management 101? Seems like it’d be worth the price of tuition.”

Maya laughed. “It definitely was...” She trailed off, when she realized that Jamie’s smile had disappeared. He was looking at her with a strange expression—one that she could now easily identify as desire. She held her breath, her heart began to thump wildly against her chest. He reached out and touched her cheek, his palm flattening against her heated skin.

He drew closer to her, and before they touched, the phone rang. He backed up and smiled at her without humor. “Saved by the phone again, right?”

Maya laughed. Not so much a laugh as the sound of air escaping her lungs. She stepped back quickly and answered the phone. “Hello, Jamie Sellers’s room. Maya speaking.”

The familiar voice of Andre, Garrett’s assistant responded. “Hello, Maya, this is Andre, Mr. Collins’s assistant. I just wanted to say, we’re running a little late. Mr. Collins got held up in a meeting, and we’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.”

* * *

J
AMIE
AND
M
AYA
spent the next four days going about the convention rigmarole. They attended workshops, lectures, presentations, and Jamie even did a presentation of his own. Which he nailed. The meeting with Garrett Collins had gone splendidly. He was absolutely charmed by Jamie, as Maya knew he would be.

When they exited the last event of the convention, they realized that they still had most of their last day left to explore the city. Maya was looking forward to the opportunity to check out some of the sights of the Las Vegas Strip on their last day, but she knew Jamie was a workaholic, so she assumed that he would have something planned to keep them busy.

Maya turned to him. “So, what’s the agenda for the rest of the day?” She scrolled through the calendar on her phone and didn’t see anything that they’d scheduled.

Jamie held the door for her and they stepped outside into the blazing Nevada sun. “Wow,” he huffed. “I keep forgetting about the heat. Quite a departure from Montreal, hey?”

“Isn’t it, though. I love it. The hotter the better,” she remarked, slipping her sunglasses over her eyes. Jamie glanced at her, and he obviously did not miss the hint of unintentional innuendo in her phrasing.

“Anyway, we’re free all day. But there is something I want to show you before we go hog wild,” he told her.

“Sounds good. Let’s do it.”

Jamie called a car service and when the black Mercedes arrived, they got in. Jamie had not yet told her what he wanted to show her and she was bursting with anticipation.

“So are you going to tell me where we’re going, or what?”

Jamie smiled, looking out the window. “We’re almost there,” he chided, with a smile. “You’re so impatient.”

When the car came to a stop, it was outside a recently closed property situated a little farther back from the Las Vegas Strip. At only around ten stories high, the building was much smaller than those that surrounded it. Maya got out of the car and looked up at the building. “Jamie, what is this?”

He looked at her with the excited grin of little boy on Christmas. He took her hand and walked to the front door. He pulled out a large set of keys and used one to open the front door and then led her inside. The lobby of the hotel was dusty, but in good repair and not too dated. It was as if the place hadn’t been closed for very long, and furniture and fixtures were covered with sheets of plastic.

Maya looked around and then at Jamie, questions in her eyes.

Jamie also took in the place. But his excited, vibrant eyes saw promise. “Maya, this property will be the home of the first American Swerve Hotel and Nightclub,” he told her with great pride and anticipation.

“Jamie, are you serious?” She took a look around, and she knew that she wasn’t alone when she could envision what this old building could be, what Jamie could make of it. “Is this the big secret project you’ve been working on? Why you wanted to meet with Garrett Collins?”

“It is. I wanted to play it close to my chest. I didn’t want to let anyone know what I was thinking in case it didn’t actually happen, and you know that I can’t deal with failure.” He walked into the center of the lobby and pulled the plastic sheets from the furniture, covering his clothes in dust and dirt in the process. He didn’t seem to mind.

“Opening locations internationally is always a tricky thing. If it didn’t work out, I didn’t want anyone to know that I’d failed, and damage my fragile male pride. And the meeting with Garrett, it was just to talk about my intentions, man to man. I’m in no way looking to take him over, or to be a huge competitor of a man who owns such a huge piece of Las Vegas. But I think that it is the beginning of an easy business relationship.”

Maya stopped and turned to him. Now understanding why Jamie worked so hard, and for so long. She smiled. “It’s always nice to have friends in high places.” She looked around again, with interest, picturing what this dusty, dirty old space would become. If anyone could turn this into a beautiful, modern and profitable space, it was Jamie Sellers. “So when do you hope to start work on this?”

“Right away. I’ve got crews coming in tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?”

“Yup.” He smiled.

“And when will this location be opening?”

Jamie hesitated only briefly, and he looked at her, as if to guage her reaction.”

“November.”

Maya thought for a moment, and took a look around the lobby. “That’s just a month after the opening of the Montreal hotel.”

Jamie nodded. “I know it sounds insane—”

“It is!”

“Opening two hotel/nightclub properties within a month of one another is a crazy endeavor, especially when they’re in two different countries. It’s going to be a challenge. But I know we can handle it. It’s completely under control. It’s going to mean a lot more work and long hours in the office for both of us. Can you handle that?”

“I can handle it,” she assured him.

He carried on. “Everything has been finalized and, just like the Montreal hotel, I’ve got crews that will be working around the clock to make this place spectacular. Most of the work will just be cosmetic, anyway.”

Maya nodded. She trusted Jamie, and she was so proud to be a part of his team. “This is going to be incredible!”

“I know. It really is. It’s going to be a lot of work, but it’ll be worth it.” Breaking from his trance, he turned to Maya and clasped her wrists in his large, strong hands. “Maya, let’s go to dinner tonight, to celebrate. To decompress. I think after the last few days, we need to let loose a little tonight. This is your first trip to Vegas, after all. We can’t have you all cooped up and working all the time. Let’s explore a little. Have some fun. We’ve earned it!”

He was silent for a couple of seconds and his eyes held hers. Maya’s heart thundered. Was he going to kiss her? Was Jamie asking her out on a date? No, of course not. Sure, they had almost had a moment in his suite a few days ago, and in their office weeks ago, and who could forget about the hot tub, but they had barely touched since. They were in one of the hottest party locations in the world. He was offering them a chance to let off steam before they returned home the next day.

“Yeah, sure, let’s do it,” she agreed, excited to get to spend some time with Jamie when they weren’t consumed by work.

“Great!” Jamie held open the door that was opaque with the desert dust. He escorted her outside and toward the car that waited for them. “Let’s head back to the hotel, and we’ll meet back in the lobby, at say 7:00? I’ll make dinner reservations.”

“That sounds fantastic,” she responded as she got back into the car. She was excited to have some fun with Jamie. However, a part of her remained apprehensive. Would she be able to control herself around him? They had already had a couple of romantic near misses. If she let her guard down, would they end up making a terrible mistake? One from which they couldn’t recover? She took a deep breath. With resolve she held her head high.
We’re adults. We can control our hormones for one evening, can’t we?

12

B
ACK
IN
HIS
SUITE
, Jamie finished up a little paperwork on his new acquisition, and he found he had a little more free time than he realized. More free time, in fact, than he’d had in a long time. It was almost as if in the past ten years he’d forgotten how to unwind. Tonight would be a good refresher. A night for him to feel like the young man he was. With no work, phone calls or emails to distract him, he and Maya would have fun. He was sure of it.

He had pulled a few strings and was able to secure reservations at a high-end steak house run by a celebrity chef, and a friend had given him tickets to a Cirque du Soleil performance for later that night. Even though he had lived in Montreal all his life, he honestly didn’t know much about that type of show, but he was hoping Maya would enjoy it. She’d been working so hard for him, and he wanted to treat her to a spectacular night out, something special, before they returned to the mountain of new work that awaited them back home in Montreal.

But this wasn’t a date.
Not a date.
It couldn’t
be
a date, and he wouldn’t
let
it be a date. This evening would just be two colleagues enjoying dinner, a show, and checking out some of the sights. That’s it. Just a friendly night out... A night out with his beautiful, funny, intelligent assistant.

He shook his head, pulling his tie free from the collar of his shirt, and he walked toward the large bathroom of his suite. He started the shower—turning it to cold. He unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it free from his pants. He dropped it on the floor and let his gray pants drop in a pool at his feet. He stood at the mirror and regarded his reflection. In his eyes, he saw the strain of overwork and stress, and the crow’s-feet starting to form at their corners. He sighed, and ran his hand through his hair. A habit he didn’t realize he’d had until Maya pointed it out. He smiled, thinking of her, the response causing him to feel a twitch in his lower half at the memory of having her in his lap in the hot tub. He lowered his hand below his waist and took himself in hand.

Since hiring Maya, he had taken matters into his own hands, so to speak, more times and had taken more cold showers than ever in his life. He wanted her more than he could have ever imagined wanting a woman. But he had to remain...firm. He couldn’t have her. And this was how his life would be. This was his only way to keep away from Maya. He knew that if he let his guard down, or succumbed to any moment of weakness, he would cave. He turned to the shower and, bracing himself, he stepped under the freezing blast of shower spray.

* * *

I
NSTEAD
OF
USING
the afternoon to explore more of the sights in Las Vegas, Maya used it to treat herself to some of the hotel’s spa services. First was the mani/pedi, followed by a bikini wax, a hot stone massage and an appointment to have her hair and makeup professionally applied and styled. She wanted to make sure she looked absolutely perfect tonight when Jamie saw her.
It’s not like it’s a date
, she told herself. She wouldn’t get her hopes up that tonight would be anything more than just a fun night out as two colleagues, and at most two friends.
Two friends who felt each other up in a hot tub, you mean
.

Standing in front of the mirror in her hotel room, Maya took in her appearance and smiled. She wasn’t a conceited woman, but she knew she looked good. The hair and makeup stylists had cost a fortune, but she was glad she had taken advantage of the services. This was her last night in Vegas, after all. And Maya wanted to look the part of the glamorous type of woman Jamie Sellers was no doubt accustomed to being seen with.

Opening the small hotel room closet, she sighed when she looked over the business suits and convention-appropriate clothing that she had brought. It had been an oversight on her part to not pack something more fitting for a night out on the town with Jamie. She obviously needed to buy something better. Checking her watch, she decided that she had just enough time to head to the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace. With so many luxury shops at her disposal, Maya would no doubt find what she was looking for there. And she needed an outfit that was fitting for a night out with a gorgeous man...

“I mean, my boss,” she corrected herself before leaving her hotel room.

* * *

“M
AYA
, I’
M
REALLY
glad I hired you.” Jamie leaned away from the table and sat back in his chair. The restaurant was perfect. The food, the wine and the atmosphere were all quite spectacular, and the favor he had called in to get the reservations was well worth it. But they might as well have been eating at a McDonald’s because everything that surrounded them paled in comparison to his date,
ahem
, companion, for the evening. He raised his wineglass in her direction. “You’ve been an amazing assistant. I don’t know how I would get anything done without you.”

Maya smiled and he watched her. A blush crept across her face and chest. “I’m just doing my job. Thank you for the amazing opportunity. I’m having a great time working for you. I’m learning so much.”

“I’m glad. I know I can’t keep you forever, but I hope I can at least help you move on to bigger and better things. Oh!” Jamie sat straighter. “I almost forgot. A friend of mine got me a couple of tickets for Cirque du Soleil tonight. I hope you enjoy that sort of thing.”

Her mouth dropped. “I love Cirque du Soleil. Which show?”

Jamie put a hand inside his jacket and fished out the two tickets. “I’m not sure. I don’t really know much about it.” He passed the tickets over to her.

Her eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. “This is so exciting. I didn’t think we’d get a chance to see a show.” She accepted the tickets and then looked down at them. “Oh.” She pursed her lips when she saw the name of the show.

“What? What is it?” Jamie leaned forward.

“The show. It’s
Zumanity
.”

“Okay...?” He shook his head. The name didn’t ring any bells.

“It’s the
adults only
show. ‘The sensual side of Cirque.’ It’s supposed to be pretty erotic.”

“Oh.” Jamie sat back. Outwardly, he was playing it cool. But inside, he was freaking out.
What is the matter with me? Why didn’t I check out the name of the show? Idiot!
he scolded himself. How could he take the woman he’d wanted more than any other to a sexy acrobatic show? How would he control the basic urges he’d been denying this whole time? He would surely need a bucket of ice water to throw over his head during intermission.

“I’m sorry about that. We don’t have to go if you don’t want to. I swear. It wasn’t my intention to embarrass you.”

“Who’s embarrassed?” Maya scoffed. “We’re both adults, we can surely sit in a theater and take in a show, can’t we?”

Jamie laughed uneasily, picking up the dessert menu. “Of course we can. How do you feel about dessert? I hear they have a great crème brûlée here.”

* * *

M
AYA
AND
J
AMIE
were silent as they exited the
Zumanity
theater. Maya thought about the show. It was a fantastic display of the feats of the human body, but there was no denying the sexual and downright erotic nature of the show.

She wasn’t uncomfortable during the show, but several times she felt Jamie squirm in his seat beside her.
Is ladies’ man Jamie Sellers afraid of a little sex?
She smiled secretly at the thought and quickly dismissed it. There was no way that Jamie was anything less than all man. He would be completely confident in bed and as skillful and resourceful in the bedroom as he was in the boardroom. She could tell, from their kiss, their hot tub excursion and the way he moved and spoke and briefly touched her that he would not be uncomfortable at all with the idea of sex. That he would, no doubt, take the passion that he normally devoted to his work and apply it to lovemaking and pleasing a woman. She heated at the thought.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and saw him walking rigidly next to her. “So what now?” she asked brightly, attempting to break the tension. “This is my first trip. Show me how Party Animal Jamie Sellers does Vegas.”

* * *

“P
ARTY
A
NIMAL
?”
J
AMIE
LAUGHED
to himself. His trips to Vegas as of late had involved real estate meetings, conference calls and meeting with lawyers. He hadn’t made time to socialize, or drink and gamble. “I figured we could hit a few nightclubs. See what’s trending here, bring it back home.”

“Jamie, do you think of anything but work?” she asked him with a laugh.

“Rarely,” he admitted, without humor, looking straight ahead. He often thought about work. But at that moment, he could think of nothing but the beautiful woman next to him. He pictured the erotic acts and the sexuality demonstrated in the show, and it was all he could do to not picture himself and Maya as the acrobats. Naked bodies gyrating, rubbing against each other, stretching the limits of their flexibility. Now, on the street, he couldn’t bring himself to look directly at her, lest he take her right on the sidewalk. He was so hard, he could barely walk, and he hoped against hope that she didn’t glance down and notice his desire for her. A desire that for about a month now, he’d kept under strict control. Now he felt like a crazed man. An animal. Before tonight, he’d had the slimmest of grips on his self-control, and he could feel it slipping more and more out of his grasp with each passing second.

Just go back to your room.
Jamie willed himself.
Just go back, take care of this yourself and take yet another cold shower and get into bed.

Jamie chanced a quick glance at Maya and she was looking at him with a curious expression. He realized that she had been speaking to him, but he’d been so busy concentrating on not pushing her against a wall and wrapping himself up in her that he forgot that they were talking. It was embarrassing to admit he hadn’t heard a word that she had said.

“Sorry? I didn’t catch that.”

“We aren’t going to a club,” she told him matter-of-factly.

“We aren’t?”

“Nope. Because if we go to a club, I know that you won’t relax. You’ll be in work mode the entire time. Making comparisons, brainstorming.”

He smiled. She was right. Maybe he was too easy to read. “You’re absolutely right. So what do you suggest we do?”

“How about we hit a casino or two? See if we can win some money?”

Jamie laughed. Not that he intended to build a casino in his hotel. He had done enough research on the topic, and in all of his research of casino ownership and profit and loss margins, he knew that the probability of them winning anything was low. But he wanted Maya to have a good time, so he would do whatever it was she wanted. “Yeah, sure. Let’s do that. We can’t spend time in Vegas without giving most of our money back to the city, now can we?”

“Of course,” she continued, laughing. “I don’t know how to play any table games. Think you could teach me?”

Jamie smiled down at her. “Absolutely.”

He knew that if they were gambling, the bright lights, the sirens and the general hustle and bustle of a casino would definitely distract him from Maya’s soft hair, smooth skin, deep eyes...
Okay, stop it, Sellers!
he reprimanded himself with a shake, as he escorted her into the nearest casino with one hand at the small of her back.

Although even that casual touch was almost more than he could bear.

* * *

M
AYA
CLAPPED
HER
hands and squealed with delight as the lights and sirens of the slot machine activated and dispensed a small jackpot. Maya grabbed her payment slip and wiggled it in front of Jamie’s face. Secretly, she was a little bummed that only a small minority of slot machines dispensed actual coins these days—she had been looking forward to hearing the
plink, plink, plink
of the quarters falling from the machine. But the little piece of paper was pretty good, too.

“I told you I had a good feeling about this machine!” She laughed, leaning into him, a broad smile on her face. “Eight hundred dollars!” The ticket showed the number, which was a lot of “free money” to her. Sure, Jamie paid her well, but swinging in Jamie’s circles and being exposed to his life was quite a change of pace for her. She smiled at her winnings. But she imagined that it was most likely small potatoes to Jamie.

“That’s great!” Jamie said with a smile.

“Come on!” Suddenly hit by inspiration, Maya took Jamie’s arm and dragged him across the floor.

“Where are we going?”

“Drinks are on me.” She turned her head to him, still pulling on his arm.

“Maya, you don’t have to buy drinks. Let me—”

“No, Jamie,” she insisted. “You’re always buying lunch and dinner for us at the office. Let me do this.”

“All right,” he finally relented. “The first round is on you. Second is on me. That’s my compromise.”

* * *

J
AMIE
COULD
ONLY
laugh when he saw where Maya had led him as she held on to his arm and practically dragged him across the casino. Really, she didn’t have to pull so hard. He was sure that he would have followed her anywhere.

“So, what is this?” he asked her, smiling broadly, as they stood in front of a frozen daiquiri bar, a common stop for tourists on the Strip.

“For five days now, I’ve watched everyone walking around with these, and I want one.” She turned to the man behind the counter and held up two fingers and pointed to the ridiculously large, yard-long drinking receptacles. When they were poured, she passed one to Jamie. He had never had one before and he wasn’t looking forward to the blast of sugar he knew was coming.

He watched Maya as she took a sip. He couldn’t help but feel aroused at the way she lowered her face and closed her eyes when her lips closed over the straw. His breath caught, and he was mesmerized when her cheeks hollowed. His cock stirred, imagining how her mouth would feel wrapped around it instead of the wide straw.