“See? My analysis was accurate. You follow no rules, and your prowess has nothing to do with your age.” He tugged her flush against him, spoke against her lips, singeing her with his breath and words. “And I’ve changed my mind. Forget your boss. I’ll steal you away from him. Name your terms. Whatever they are, I’ll meet them.”
That made her push him away. “Stop right there. For God’s sake, you don’t even know what my specialty is!”
His shrug was self-assurance incarnate as he stretched her back on the couch and came down full-length beside her. “Whatever it is, I always need unique minds and exceptional talents on my team. It’s how my conglomerate got so big so fast, by offering candidates everything they’d never get anywhere else in terms of freedom, resources and remuneration.”
She did know that. But never in a million years had she imagined she’d be headhunted by him under any circumstances. And for him to do that while they lay entwined like this...
She feebly pushed at him as he bent to nuzzle her neck. “I do know your methods, but...no, okay? This wouldn’t only complicate matters...it would mess them up beyond repair. People still think I got my current position because of nepotism. With you, they’d think I got it because...”
“Because you send me out of my mind with desire and it’s literally painful to keep my hands off you?” He gathered her tighter against him. “I can’t describe how profoundly indifferent I am to what people think. You’re exactly the kind of rare talent I aggressively pursue.”
“Rare...? Come on!”
“You said I got where I am by reading people perfectly. I read you better than I’ve ever read anyone. So you either don’t know how rare you are or are too modest or too held back by other’s opinions. I’m the one to free you from all that, the one to give you everything you need to fulfill your potential. You are exactly what I need. On all fronts.”
She stared into his eyes, head spinning. He had no reason to sweet-talk her. She’d already promised him the night. And as many nights as he’d want her. He meant all that.
A smile broke his intensity. “But as I’ll take it slow in courting you in pleasure, I will do the same as I court you in business.”
“Don’t. Please, Rafael...”
/> He shuddered against her, his fingers digging into her buttocks, grinding her into his hardness. “Yes, say my name. Say it, minha beleza.”
“Rafael.” That came out a long moan of protest. “Please...stop talking about business in any form. I want to keep things purely like this—between us, man to woman. This is all that matters to me.”
He eased his hold on her, rose on his elbow, brooding down at her. Then he exhaled. “As you wish. For now.”
Then in one impossible move, he was on his feet with her swept up in his powerful embrace. She wrapped her arms around his neck, not to secure herself or to help him, but because she loved it.
He smiled down at her. “You must be starving. Let’s dine while we wait the ball out, and then...”
She jackknifed, making him spill her to her feet.
“I have to get back to the ball!”
He detained her as she whirled away. “You certainly do not. You didn’t want to be there in the first place.”
As her gaze darted around, searching for her purse, his words sank in. “How do you know I didn’t want to come?”
His smile was all knowing, as she was really beginning to think he was. “I told you I can read you.”
Something hot and sweet expanded inside her. He did interpret her so accurately it was scary. Wonderfully so.
She caressed his hard cheek and he caught her hand, buried his lips in her palm. “I’ll never stop being thankful that I dragged myself here. But I do have to go find my...boss. He must think I’ve driven off a cliff by now.”
After a moment’s contemplation, he let go of her hand and walked away. He located the purse that had fallen from her what felt like days ago by the door.
He brought it back to her. “Call your boss. Give him some excuse for not attending the ball.”
Ellie blinked up at him. “Now that you mention calling, I can’t imagine how he hasn’t called me a million times.” She pounced on her purse...and groaned when she didn’t find her phone. “I must have left my phone in the car, or even back in the apartment. I was half-asleep at the time. Oh, God, he must be going out of his mind thinking something happened to me.”
Rafael frowned, but silently bent to reach for his jacket. Producing his phone, he handed it to her.
She shook her head. “I’d have to explain why I’m calling from someone else’s phone, whose it is—and I assume you don’t want me to tell him it’s yours?”
“I don’t mind.”
She rolled her eyes. “I do. You have no idea the interrogation your name would instigate. And I don’t want to invent a story. I’ll just go reassure him in person.”