Undressed by the Boss (Mills & Boon By Request) (26 page)

A sad little arrow pierced her heart, embedded and lodged deep. Had she travelled? Heck, where should she start?

Around the time her mum died and her father lost the love of his life so coped by running away? How once he started moving around he couldn’t stop and didn’t care how it affected her? How he dragged her from town to town, school to school so she had no friends and had to put up with nicknames like geek and freak? How his endless search for something to fill the void ultimately ended in failure and left her more lost than ever?

‘Mainly around Australia,’ she said, quashing her memories, hating how they dragged her down. ‘Travel’s overrated.’

‘Considering my livelihood depends on it, I’d have to disagree with you there.’

He smiled and the sadness around her heart lifted in a second, replaced by a weird breathless feeling that had her
reaching for her martini glass in record time only to realise she’d finished it. ‘There’s nothing like the intrigue of the Forbidden City in Beijing or the architectural uniqueness of the Uspenskij Cathedral in Helsinki or the bustle of Cathedral Square in Havana.’

His eyes glowed silver in the muted light, his excitement palpable, and she couldn’t help but lean towards him, drawn by his infectious enthusiasm.

‘What’s your favourite city?’

‘Rio de Janeiro,’ he answered without a moment’s hesitation, his lips curving in a delicious smile, the kind of smile that took her breath away. ‘It’s beautiful and filled with contrasts, from the giant Christ the Redeemer statue on Corcovado Mountain stretching its arms wide over the city to the samba parades, from the museums to the Copacabana beaches. It’s a city that draws me back time and time again.’

Beth sighed, unaware she’d been holding her breath, her chin resting on her hand as he held her mesmerised. She might be a girl who craved the stability of living in one city and always had, but he sure made a great case for living out of one.

‘Have I sold you? Think you’d like to visit one day?’

‘Maybe.’ She shrugged, her noncommittal answer drawing a curious glance.

She used to dream of travelling the world until the gloss of living out of a suitcase permanently wore off. These days, she reserved her adventurous side for creating unique designs … and exploring underlying attractions with off-limit guys—make that one guy in particular.

Eager to deflect his probing stare, she rushed on, ‘So what’s been your biggest discovery?’

‘I’d expect an expert tour guide like yourself to know all about that.’

The teasing glint in his grey eyes held her transfixed and she sucked in a breath, his spicy scent packing as powerful a punch as the slow, sexy smile curving his lips.

She couldn’t think straight when he stared at her let alone remember the question, and when he leaned forward a fraction, invading her personal space with his potent presence, and murmured, ‘Well?’ she did the stupidest, reckless, most impulsive thing she’d ever done.

She kissed him.

Warning bells clanged in Aidan’s head as Beth closed the short distance between them and her lips touched his.

A pretty pathetic description for the mind-blowing kiss to end all kisses.

The bells intensified as she placed her hands on his chest, bracing against him while angling her mouth for better access to his.

He had a split second to react, to come to his senses and stop this insanity. For that was what it was: total and utter madness submitting to a scorching kiss from a sex kitten who happened to be an employee.

However, the moment her tongue flickered out to touch his, he threw caution to the wind and went crazy, dragging her into his arms, running his hands through the silky softness of her hair, savouring the sweetness of her mouth in a French kiss that defied description.

He lost all sense of time and place as the kiss deepened to the point where she climbed onto his lap, slid her hands up his chest to anchor behind his neck and hung on for dear life.

In fact, he would’ve lost it completely if not for the wolf-whistle
from a nearby patron and he pulled away, a hint of cranberry on his lips and a handful of lush woman perched way too comfortably on his crotch. His very aroused crotch.

‘I guess I should apologise for that,’ she murmured, her gaze uncertain, her expression half dazed, half appalled as her tongue darted out to moisten her lips and he stifled a groan, desperate to pick up where they’d left off, knowing it wasn’t going to happen. He wouldn’t let it.

‘I don’t know what to say.’

He aimed for honesty rather than some lame half-assed line like, ‘That was a mistake.’

Because it wasn’t.

He might be a fool, he might be crazy, but he wasn’t a hypocrite and after he’d spent all day insisting there wasn’t a skerrick of attraction between them—and couldn’t be because of their work situation—she’d blasted his reservations along with his self-delusions to kingdom come with that scintillating kiss.

Sliding off his lap and smoothing her hair as if nothing had happened, she sent him another of those part-vulnerable, part-seductress smiles.

‘Then don’t say anything. Let’s just blame it on the atmosphere, the late hour, your tales of adventure and the tension of your new employee.’

Just like that, his passion-hazed mind cleared and clarity crashed in.

He’d just kissed his
employee.

When he’d always maintained a strict ‘no mixing business with pleasure’ rule his entire career.

Hell.

He had the best analytical brain in the business and, whichever way he looked at it, what had just happened was wrong.
He couldn’t get involved with her no matter how much she’d blown his mind with that kiss—or how much he’d like a repeat performance, taking it all the way.

So he was attracted to her? He could handle it. As long as he didn’t handle her!

He needed to get out of here, away from her intoxicating presence so he could think this through, because right now organising his thoughts was damn difficult if nigh on impossible considering the blood had drained from his brain and headed south courtesy of that incredible kiss.

‘Blaming the atmosphere or the time isn’t going to cut it. That kiss was way out of line.’

‘You’re right.’ Her lips curved into a coy smile, which had him focussing on exactly how great they’d felt gliding over his. ‘But it was sensational all the same.’

She leaned towards him, her warm, peachy fragrance reaching out and wrapping him in a sensual cocoon as she whispered against his ear, ‘Just for the record, you kiss real well.’

Unable to stop the goofy grin spreading across his face, and knowing he had to get out of here before he did something else he’d regret—or enjoy—he held up his hands in surrender.

‘I have to go. Early start tomorrow.’

‘Running scared, Professor?’

Her husky voice slammed into him with the same force as the teasing glint in those striking eyes the colour of dew-dampened moss, leaving him with the same floundering feeling he’d only experienced once before when a ton of sand had caved in on a site.

Now, like then, the breath squeezed from his lungs and he had no idea whether to struggle against the odds or give in to the inevitable.

For right at that moment he knew he could struggle all he liked against the fierce attraction between them and he’d be powerless to stop it, just as he’d been unable to hold back that sand avalanche.

Ignoring her soft laughter, he shrugged into his jacket. ‘Come on, I’ll give you a lift home.’

‘I’ll take a cab, but thanks for the offer.’

Her flirtatious smile would’ve tempted a saint and, considering the thoughts crowding his brain at the moment were far from heavenly, he needed to get out of here. Now.

‘Fine. I’ll wait while you call one. Let’s go.’

She laid a tentative hand on his arm and he jerked to a stop, staring at her hand as if it were a cattle prod. It had the same effect, giving him an electrical zap when he least expected it.

‘This has been a bit of a crazy day for me all round and I’m sorry for overstepping the mark back there.’

She ran her other hand through her hair and he yearned to do the same, to see if the luscious gold locks felt as silky as they looked. ‘I’m prone to doing impulsive things when I’m nervous.’

Leaning forwards until their noses almost touched, he murmured, ‘Do I make you nervous?’

Her eyes widened, she inhaled sharply, her tongue darted out to moisten that full bottom lip he’d gladly taste again and he had his answer before she spoke.

Dropping her hand, she stepped back and he stifled a sigh of disappointment.

‘This job is important to me and you’re my boss so, yeah, I guess I am a little nervous.’

There she went again, surprising him with that intriguing mix of bold bluntness combined with cautious hesitancy.

He’d noticed how she’d changed the subject earlier, deftly
switching the focus onto him, uncomfortable when he’d been delving into what made her tick, and he had the strangest feeling that her confidence was an act. Something—or someone—had put a susceptible chink in her sassy armour and he was curious.

What caused that vulnerable air that clung so delicately to her despite her bubbly façade? He’d give anything to find out … but he wasn’t going there, remember?

‘So that totally explains why I kissed you.’ She gnawed on her bottom lip and clutched her bag tight. ‘Nerves.’

‘Uh-huh,’ he said, seeing the spark of desire in her eyes and not calling her on it.

There were more than nerves at play here.

She knew it.

He knew it.

‘You’ll see. I’ll be back to my professional best tomorrow.’

His lips twitched at the memory of her ‘professional best’ earlier that day.

‘Tomorrow’s a new day,’ he said, captivated by the earnest set of her mouth, the determined gleam in her eyes, and wanting more than anything to throw his business-versus-pleasure ideals out the window at that moment and haul her back into his arms.

‘Good.’

She tilted her chin up, her defiance as enchanting as the hint of timidity he glimpsed beneath. ‘Trust me, you won’t be disappointed. I’ll be the best damn tour guide you’ve ever seen.’

‘I look forward to it.’

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only thing he looked forward to—just the thought of seeing her rock into the museum tomorrow was enough to put a spring in his step—and with
a shake of his head he propelled her out the door, determined to bundle her into a cab, head home and lose himself in a mountain of boring paperwork.

Anything to take his mind off this intriguing woman and the memory of her scintillating kiss.

B
ETH
bounced into work the next day humming under her breath.

She’d lost her mind last night when she’d kissed Aidan. But, wow, what a kiss. As far as kisses went on a scale of one to ten, it scored a massive eleven.

She’d had Aidan pegged as a highly driven, career-focussed, not-much-time-for-fun type of guy.

She’d been wrong. Wa-a-a-y wrong.

There was no way he could kiss like that if he spent all his time with his nose to the grindstone. Uh-uh. Aidan had depths to him she hadn’t begun to fathom and, boy, was it going to be fun trying to explore every hidden facet.

Yeah, he was her boss and, yeah, she shouldn’t go near him with a ten-foot dinosaur bone, but that kiss last night had changed everything.

She’d learned the hard way life was too short not to make the most of every opportunity and right now Aidan Voss looked like one big, delicious opportunity wrapped up in a designer suit.

‘Hi, Beth.’

She stopped at the tentative tap on her shoulder and swivelled to face Dorothy.

‘Morning. How are you?’

‘Great.’

Dorothy tugged self-consciously at her burgundy fitted jacket flaring at the hips and sitting rather well over a matching pencil skirt. ‘Thanks for helping me choose this outfit yesterday. I feel like a new woman.’

‘You’re welcome.’

Beth smiled, trying to focus on the suit and avert her gaze from Dorothy’s staid navy pumps, whose scuff marks were poorly hidden by a shade of blue almost as hideous as the shoes themselves. ‘How about we do a bit of shoe shopping today at lunchtime?’

The young woman’s face fell. ‘I can’t. I’m filling in for one of the temps in the Science and Life Gallery.’

‘No worries, we’ll do it tomorrow.’

Dorothy’s ecstatic expression turned the girl from mousy to beautiful in a second and Beth smiled, telling herself that it was her duty to share her shoe expertise with her fellow women.

She glanced at her watch and grimaced. ‘Sorry, Dot. Love to stay and chat but the boss man might be on the warpath.’

Dorothy snapped her fingers. ‘I forgot. Mr Voss wants to see you.’

‘Oh-oh, what have I done now?’ she muttered under her breath, before thanking Dorothy and heading up to his office.

The kitten heels of her new designer butterscotch court shoes clattered along the marble corridor and she wriggled her toes, preferring open-toe sandals any day.

Funny, as she planned on slipping into a pair any moment now …

She really shouldn’t do this considering she’d been trying to convince Aidan of her professionalism at the end of last
night, but she’d seen the spark in his eyes, the devilish glint that told her their attraction was entirely mutual.

Besides, there was no harm in having a little laugh on the job. It fostered good workplace relations … it was team-building … great for employee morale and all that guff.

Smiling, she pulled up outside Aidan’s door and cast a quick glance up and down the corridor, reassured it was empty, before slipping a pair of fabulous mulberry spangly sandals out of her bag, kicking off the court shoes and reacquainting her feet with a familiar pair of old friends.

‘That’s better.’ Her grin turned positively smug as she admired the contrast of her Knockout Cherry toenails against the deep purple satin strap covering her forefoot. ‘Much better.’

Schooling her face into serious mode was hard work considering the persistent smile threatening to break through as she envisaged Aidan’s expression when he laid eyes on her shoes, but she managed it in time to knock sharply at his door and enter after his muffled, ‘Come in.’