He smiled. ‘It’s just unfortunate that I have a crystal-clear conscience about last night.’
Something about that smile and that teasing light in his dark eyes made her feel that he was right and it was very unfortunate that last night hadn’t gone further.
Hurriedly she looked away from him and told herself to snap out of this. ‘It would have been a mistake!’ She hadn’t meant to say the words aloud; they escaped impulsively and quite vehemently before she realized it.
‘Maybe…. Maybe not.’
Cat made the error of looking over at him. He really was far too attractive for any woman’s peace of mind. ‘Well, we will never know now,’ she said softly.
‘Won’t we?’
He countered the question in a tone almost as provocative as the glint in his eyes. That raw sexuality made her want to lean closer, beg him to take her here and now.
He was toying with her, she told herself sensibly, teasing her to gauge her reaction and see how far he could go with her. In reality he wasn’t interested in her. And certainly if she had slept with him last night he would be checking his watch and running through his business plans now as if she didn’t exist.
Yet, for all those sensible thoughts she ached for him to come closer.
For a moment Nicholas considered reaching out to halt the lift. He could see heat in her eyes and, as his gaze moved over the curves of her figure he found himself imagining how easily her breasts could be freed, her skirt hitched.
The only thing that stopped him was the undercurrent of tension. He sensed that, beneath those sultry smouldering eyes, Cat’s defences were still on high alert. The time wasn’t right for her surrender to him … but it soon would be.
His lips curved in a mocking smile. ‘Maybe we’ll test that out some other time when I haven’t got such a busy schedule.’
He really was arrogant! The words caused her head to snap up and her eyes to blaze. ‘I don’t think so.’
He laughed at that.
The lift doors opened into the lobby and she marched out ahead of him.
The normality of the reception area seemed almost unreal after her tumultuous thoughts. He really was the worst kind of man—full of his own importance and far too confident. And he had the worst kind of effect on her. She hated herself for the weakness that invaded her as soon as he was too close.
There was a doorman on duty this morning and he swung the heavy glass doors open for them so they could step out into the brightness of the morning.
The air was buzzing with the sound of the London traffic and there were a few people strolling past, but it was the white Rolls Royce waiting by the kerb that drew Cat’s attention. As they walked down the red-carpeted steps, a uniformed chauffeur sprang from the driver’s seat and came around to open the back passenger door for them.
‘Actually, Nicholas, I won’t take a lift with you.’ Cat stopped a few paces from the vehicle, the thought of being in a confined space with him for even a few moments longer making her very nervous. ‘I’ve just remembered I have to stop off somewhere.’
‘I see.’ There was a gleam in his dark eyes as he looked over at her.
Did he see? Did he know that she was running scared? She hated the fact that he might, just as she hated the swirling conflicting emotions he could create inside her.
‘There are plenty of taxis at the rank across the road, so I may as well take one.’
‘As you wish.’
He sounded vaguely amused now. She tipped her chin a little higher. ‘Anyway, thank you for all your help and if you need to discuss those business ideas we talked about earlier, do give me a ring—’
She forced herself to hold her ground a moment longer and opened her purse to take out her business card.
His hand brushed against hers as he took it and she immediately felt a flare of arousal. She found it incomprehensible how just the smallest touch could have that kind of effect on her. Business was the only thing that mattered, she told herself firmly. ‘My office number and my mobile number are on there. I’m in from about eight-thirty until six most weekdays.’
Nicholas smiled. ‘I’ll give that some thought.’
She watched as he coolly tucked the card into his jacket pocket.
She would probably never see him again. The thought was disappointing—but only because it would be a business opportunity lost, she told herself quickly.
‘See you some time, then.’ With a cool smile, she turned away.