Anger was preferable and a damn sight more empowering than the impotence of embarrassment. She pulled away from his hand, which was still stroking her jaw. ‘You knew. You’ve known all along, haven’t you?’
‘You didn’t think I’d forget that little beauty spot?’ He reached out and skimmed the place beneath her eye with a feather-light touch.
A flush rose up her neck and spread into her face—she could feel its heat as her hand rose without thought to her left cheekbone. ‘Knowing and not telling me you knew is cheating.’ The words scraped over a dry throat but pride kept her eyes on his. He’d probably been having a good laugh behind her back—boring workaholic Kate from the office.
‘You knew who I was,’ he pointed out in a reasonable tone. He smiled, his eyes warm, sharing her secret. ‘Guess we’re both guilty.’
She didn’t want him sharing her secret. ‘Just for the record, Shakira didn’t exist until Saturday night,’ she clipped, angry with herself for that stupidly impulsive act, angry at him for catching her out. Like a fool she’d acted a part she had no experience of and with no thought for the consequences. Wrenching her eyes from his, she pushed up, turned to grab her jacket and bag.
A firm hand gripped her arm and he swung her to face him. ‘I know.’
Yep, she was that inexperienced. She was so out of her depth with a man like Damon. ‘I don’t think—’ She glimpsed the flash of challenge in his eyes before his mouth crashed down on hers, hot and urgent and demanding.
Stars burst. Worlds collided. She’d never been kissed like this—with passion, and something more. Something deeper. Her lips burned and her toes curled as the lightning sensation jagged through her body. As his hands moulded around her bottom and purposely pulled her flush against his granite-hard erection.
She fought back a moan that sprang from deep inside. She was losing control and she couldn’t afford to let him see. Not now. Not till they’d talked—later. When she was in control. Tugging at her bag, she tried to jerk away.
Immediately he lifted his head, loosened his hold on her buttocks. His eyes still gleamed with that spark of challenge. ‘Think about that, Kate.’
‘I…I have to go.’ She dragged in air. ‘Leave. Me. Alone.’
He stepped back, giving her space. ‘You need a lift.’
She tightened her fingers around the strap of her bag so he wouldn’t see how they trembled. ‘No. There’s a taxi stand outside.’
She moved to the door and pulled it open. Traffic whizzed by as a cold breeze whipped through her silk blouse, chilling her flesh. He kept pace with her, his bare feet slapping on the wet concrete as she hurried down the few steps to the pavement.
She spotted a cab—thank goodness—and ran towards it, waving a hand. The cab pulled to the kerb and the instant it stopped she pulled the door open, then turned to him. ‘Thank you for dinner.’
His hands in his pockets, his stance was casual but his eyes signalled something else entirely. ‘I want to see you again.’
For a moment her heart beat hard in her chest, but was it really Kate he wanted to see, or was it as straight forward as easy sex? Like Nick. She slid onto the seat with a mirthless laugh. ‘Oh, I’m sure you will.’ She was his employee after all, however hotly she denied it to his face.
‘Outside of office hours,’ he said as he closed the cab door.
She looked away as the cab pulled into the traffic. That kiss was something to think about all right, she thought, out of breath as she sank back onto the seat. If she wanted, there could be a lot more. After they’d talked.
But whatever happened, it was temporary, she reminded herself. She’d been hurt before when the man she’d thought she loved—the man she’d thought loved her—walked away with another woman. But this wasn’t love, this was lust. A simple attraction and she knew up front it wasn’t going anywhere with a man like Damon. Would she allow herself the pleasure of being up close with him again before he left the country and moved on to wherever the fancy took him next?
CHAPTER SIX
SIX a.m. Damon rubbed a hand over gritty eyes as he glanced at the clock in Bry’s office and rotated his shoulders to ease the stiffness. Two and a half hours before staff arrived. Too much to do, no time to go home and change. He already knew if he didn’t do something quickly to correct the downward spiral, Aussie Essential Travel was headed for bad times even sooner than he’d expected.
Kate had left him with no alternative but to go to bed alone and, after a couple of hours of restless frustration, he’d given up on sleep and driven to the agency. What he’d confirmed had consigned his hopes for a quick sale to the sewer.