Casual Affair

Peter made a growling noise. “No wanker is getting within a hundred meters of her until she’s thirty.”

Zane laughed at his friend’s expression. “Good luck telling her that.”

“Very funny,” Peter replied. “You’ll see, though. One of these days you’ll be begging me for my valuable relationship wisdom.”

“Don’t hold your breath,” Zane said. He looked down at his watch and realized it was later than he thought. “Look, I’ve got that meeting in a few. I’ll let you know how it goes.”

He tried to rid his mind of that conversation—and his carnal fantasies—as he gathered all the materials he would need for the meeting. He was about to face Beatrice Paxton again, which meant he had to bring his A game.

Let round two begin.

Chapter Three

“I think if we stripped out this wall here,” Zane said, pointing down to the blueprints in front of him, “it would open up the showroom, providing a more inviting atmosphere for customers.”

He glanced at Beatrice and her sister, Felicity Paxton, wondering how they would react to design suggestions from a techie nerd. The sister hadn’t been available for their paintball adventure, so this was the first time he’d met her.

“I agree,” replied Felicity. “The designs we’ve come up with would actually work better with that extra space.”

The two sisters couldn’t have been more different.

Whereas Beatrice was all dark hair and long legs, Felicity had a blond bob and a petite frame. She appeared to be shy and reserved, while Beatrice had the more boisterous, outspoken personality. Felicity also seemed to be all business, but Beatrice approached everything with a more laid-back attitude.

There was no question that the shorter blonde was beautiful, but his eyes were always drawn to the brunette. Felicity was almost too sweet for him. He preferred a woman with fire in her. He wanted to see a spark in a woman’s eyes whenever she was passionate about something. Wanted to feel her emotions electrify the air around her.

Beatrice had that quality in spades.

And he was craving it like a salivating dog.

It finally happened. He’d gone mad.

Felicity looked to her sister after examining the blueprints. “Don’t you agree?”

Beatrice had a dazed look in her eyes before she gave a tiny nod of her head and replied, “Yes, I agree. The wall should be taken down.”

He couldn’t help but stare at her, silently commanding her to meet his gaze. She did, but only briefly before her eyes darted away. He hid a grin. Ms. Paxton seemed to be a little discombobulated, and he suspected it was because of him.

Good. He wanted her squirming for him in every possible way.

“Would that cause any structural issues, Carl?” Denise, Zane’s second-in-command, asked the architectural engineer ETI had hired for the project’s construction redesigns.

Carl leaned over the blueprints and shook his head. “No, that shouldn’t a problem. Just some electrical rewiring is all it would take, but that should be it.”

“Well, then,” Zane said as he leaned back in his chair, his eyes on Beatrice once again, “I think we can turn the floor over to you, ladies, if you’re ready.”

Felicity handed out presentation packets for him, Denise, and Carl while Beatrice walked over to the projection screen, smoothing out her short skirt as she went. Zane had almost swallowed his tongue when he’d seen her walk into the room wearing it. She had listened to him, granted his request. He really hadn’t thought she would. But damn, the fact that she had did something to him.

The skirt was exactly what he’d had in mind, too—tight and sexy, with a slit going up one leg that left just enough to the imagination.

And what an imagination he had.

Felicity remained seated at the table with the rest of them while Beatrice began the presentation. He got the sense that she was the public speaker of the two, which fit their personalities. He had no doubt that when Beatrice Paxton was in a room, all eyes were focused on her.

“Right,” she began. “What we’re thinking for the design is more minimal as opposed to overwhelming. ETI products speak for themselves, so the goal here is to highlight rather than overpower.” She clicked through the slides, pointing out certain areas on the blueprints for various features. “Clean, crisp lines for all tables, counters, shelves, furniture. The showroom needs to look modern and innovative, a testament to the Envision name, without appearing too futuristic, for lack of a better word.”