Hotel O

I raise a brow. “Excuse me?” Is she for real?

“Sorry, I just …” She sighs. “I’m excited about this … opportunity.”

“Right …” I say, still not believing this whole charade.

So … she wants this, huh? Let’s see how far she thinks she’ll go then because I don’t think she has any clue whatsoever. Smirking, I sit down on my chair again and casually lean back as I say, “Okay then … strip.”

She stares at me and her brows draw together, like the words are still registering. “What?”

“Didn’t hear me?” I reply. “Strip.”

She sucks in a breath and takes a step back away from the desk. This is the point where I expect her to turn around and run. That or scream expletives at my face before throwing in the towel.

Except she doesn’t.

Her bag drops to the floor. The buttons on her shirt slowly come undone.

I watch in silence, mesmerized by her sheer courage. Either she’s really a stand-in who forgot what she came here to do, or she’s completely insane. Either way, I like where this is going.

My attention is piqued the moment she reveals her strapless black bra and drops the shirt to the floor. She never takes her eyes off me while doing it, as if she’s tempting me to come and do the rest myself.

But I’m not that easily persuaded. Especially not while at work.

This is what I do … and I like my job too much to spoil the fun.

I lick my top lip as her finger slides down her chest toward the zipper at the back of her black skirt, which she carefully peels down until that too drops to the floor. What’s left is nothing short of beauty wrapped in sin.

And fuck me … do I want to give it a lick.

But that’s not what she’s here for, and she knows that.

This is a test. And right now, she’s passing with flying colors.

Her hands move up along her back and clip off the bra.

When that too tumbles to the floor, my eyes focus on her nipples that tighten as I stare. Her face isn’t red anymore like before. She looks confident and completely at ease. Like she’s not at all afraid of what I’m going to say … as if she already knows I like what I see.

Not soon after, her panties follow, and I’m finding myself getting a hard-on just watching her stand still in the middle of my office, completely naked and ready to bend to my will.

But this girl isn’t here for me; she’s here for my clients.

At least … that’s what she wants me to think. But I’m still not convinced.

“Turn,” I say, twirling my finger in the air.

Her hips sway as she spins on her heels, her thick ass pushing all the right buttons. She’d be a great performer. Definitely.

But there is something about her. Something I can’t let go.

Defiance. It seeps through everything she does. The way she walks, how she struts, and the way she looks at me with that intent gaze as if she’s waiting for my reaction and it never comes.

Too tough to say no to … but I’m going to have to make the call based on what I know my clients need right now. And this isn’t it.

“Pass,” I say.

She stays put, the look on her face rapidly changing from confusion to annoyance. “What?”

“It’s a no from me,” I say. “Put your clothes back on.”

She parts her lips, but again, no words flow. Then she slams it shut again and silently picks up her things. No matter how many times I try to avert my eyes back to my laptop so I can continue working, I keep glancing at her as she puts her clothes back on. For some reason, I’m agitated, but I have no clue why. The whole room is oozing with an uncomfortable silence, and I don’t like it one bit.

As she walks toward the door, I get up. Something compels me to say, “Wait.”

What that something is eludes me, but I can’t allow her to leave.

She stops in her tracks, still facing away from me, as if my voice was the only thing that made her stay.

I step away from my desk and approach her, narrowing my eyes to get a good look. There’s something about her … about her body, her voice, her eyes … and I need to know …

“Put your hair up,” I command.

Her hand wraps around her brown hair and tugs it up into a ponytail.

I don’t even need to see her face to know …

It’s her.

I place a hand on her shoulder and lean in. A grin spreads across my lips as a rumbling noise leaves my throat. “I know it’s you … Kitten …”

Chapter 10

Kat

Kitten.

The moment he says that, I suck in a breath.