“Caroline thought you might enjoy this set up. She thought you’d want to be a part of things, instead of just making decisions in your office.”
“It’s amazing,” I said.
Justin looked down at his watch. “I have to go,” he said.
“Of course.”
“I will email you the codes to lock up. Passwords for the computers. And other than that . . .” He smiled at me. “Feel free to poke around all you like.”
Justin left, and I heard the beep of the main door and figured he must have engaged the alarm, and so all alone and feeling very safe and very excited, I sat down behind my desk and got to work.
I wasn’t sure what time it was when the door beeped again. The sun was setting over the west side of the city, and I was starving. “Hello?” I said. “Justin is that—”
Into my new world; my beautiful feminine space where I was hoping to build my team and my future, walked Ronan Byrne. In a dark suit and a darker expression.
“What are you doing here?” I asked and got to my feet. No matter how our encounters ended, they started with me being scared of him, and I wasn’t sure if that was stupid, or smart. But no matter what he did to my body – my brain did not trust him.
The thing about this man, the awful terrible thing about him was what he made me feel. The sight of him in my doorway triggered my fight or flight instinct, and he also turned me on. My belly was soft for him. And I didn’t understand how he managed to do all of that, or what I was supposed to do with the push and pull of it all. It was too much.
He was too much.
“I’m just looking around.” He put his hands in his pockets, like he was some regular guy doing some regular thing. “Quite a set up.”
He stepped forward, and I stepped sideways thinking if I had to, I might be able to get to the door. Immediately he lifted his hands.
“I’m not here to touch you,” he said, his lips kicked up with that charming half-smile my body loved so much. “I swear it.”
I didn’t believe him. Not a bit.
“How’d you know I was here?”
“Caroline told me to come check on you.”
“You always do what Caroline tells you?” The words came out snappy and sharp. A red flag in front of a bull, and as soon as they were out of my mouth I regretted them.
His eyes seared me. My skin by all rights should have been blackened and smoky. I stepped back, waiting for him to come across this room, put his hand around my neck and pin me to the wall.
Just thinking it I was scared. And wet between my legs.
What is wrong with me?
“Have you eaten?” he asked. I blinked at the change of subject.
“No,” I said. “But how—”
“Let’s go get something,” he said, jerking his head to the door.
I blinked at him, shook, absolutely shook by this strange version of him. “What’s wrong with you?”
“I offered to feed you, and you think something’s wrong?”
“Yeah.”
“You’d rather I put my hand down your pants?” He nodded at my body. I’d taken off the jacket and just wore a cream shell and my black pants.
“No.” Yes.
“I could order something up,” he said. “A salad—”
“What the fuck are you doing?” I snapped.
“What the fuck are you doing?” he snapped back, his eyes alight, and the half step he took towards me lit me up like a bonfire. But then he stopped. Reined himself back in. “Justin said you’d been here since ten. It’s four now.” He looked around. “And I don’t think you’ve eaten anything.”
I wasn’t hungry. But now my stomach growled. Now I was ravenous.
With his phone out, he turned, facing the window and the four o’clock sun that came in like butter to the room. A quick call and lunch was coming.
And I saw how this might spin out. We might sit down, he might have a sandwich. I might have a salad. He’d revert to the charming man he’d been at that party. I might revert to not being terrified and turned on at the same time. All of that might happen. But what I couldn’t understand was why?
I put my hands on my hips and didn’t sit down. “What are you after, Ronan?”
“Well, Poppy.” He ran a hand through his hair. The dark strands holding themselves in place for just a second before slipping down over his eyes. “I believe I owe you an apology.”
That was not at all what I was expecting, and I actually took a step back.
“I’ve shocked you. Well, frankly, the way I’ve treated you, I’ve shocked myself. I think . . .” He glanced around. “Is there a drink in here somewhere?”