Chapter 1
Luke
He’s fucking flirting with her!
Fury slams into my head. The guy at the immigration counter continues to look her up and down. Then the smarmy bastard lifts his eyebrow in a completely inappropriate way. My hand clenches the handle of my briefcase to stop myself from going over to him, knocking his head off, and shoving it up his—
Jesus H. Christ!
Where the hell did that come from?
Jade Emerson is not my girlfriend. She’s my damn PA! She works under me, scratch that, for me. Plus, she’s married. I never mix business with pleasure. And she is the last person to turn my head. I’m pretty certain that I’ve never met a woman who is more determined to look like someone’s grandmother. Coke bottle glasses, not a lick of makeup, severe bun, dowdy clothes. She’s got it all. The works.
Although, to be honest, her utter lack of sex appeal was one of the reasons I hired her. I make it a point not to work with attractive women. I didn’t always have that line in the sand, but I’m thirty-four now, and I’ve bedded enough women to know the score.
Basically, I’m sex on a stick.
That’s not bragging or conceit. It’s just the way things are. I see the looks I get from women when I walk by. Their eyes widen, their lips part, and they focus on me like nothing else in the world exists. Throw in the fact I’m filthy rich into the equation and suddenly, I’m irresistible. That’s fine outside of the office, but in an office environment, it’s a damn nightmare.
I want to keep things strictly professional. Partly, because I don’t need that kind of complication, but mostly, I just don’t want to be the guy who bangs his secretary. I find the whole idea sleazy and vulgar. It’s not who I am.
Hiring married, dowdy women like Jade Emerson makes it easy to stick to my rule. Even if they are the type to cheat on the side, they understand I’m not in their league. It’s great for me too; I’ll never be distracted or tempted. Sure, some men might find her sexy. Notice the reaction of the fool at the counter, but not me. My type runs to models, ‘it’ girls, or just straight up bimbos. At least, this is how it’s supposed to work in theory. And how it has worked for the last two months she’s been with me.
Peanuts for brains returns her passport and she hurries to join me. My theory has worked for the last two months and there is no reason it should not work for the foreseeable future. Deliberately, I glower at her.
“Sorry, it took so long,” she says meekly, tucking her passport into her purse.
“Try to keep up, Mrs. Emerson.” Turning on my heel, I start striding away. I can hear her sensible librarian shoes clacking on the polished floor as she jogs alongside. I know I’m being an ass, but I’m still reeling from the crazy moment in my head when I got all possessive over her.
My nostrils flare suddenly. “What’s that smell?”
She blushes. “One of the stewardesses spilled the fish surprise on me.”
Now, I can’t help staring at the color seeping up her neck and into her cheeks. I frown with irritation. I’m losing it. What’s wrong with me? Sure, I’ve been working flat out all week and I was exhausted before the nineteen-hour flight from New York, but this just isn’t me. I don’t lust after my secretaries. Especially, plain Janes like her.
I glance at her brown turtle-neck top. “We’re in Bangkok. Why are you dressed as if we are on a trip to Alaska?”
“Uh…huh, I thought it might be cold in the hotel,” she mutters, her eyes sliding away.
I shake my head and carry on walking towards baggage claim. Just forget it, Luke. She is some other man’s problem.
The airport is ultra-modern and clean, but it’s packed with travelers, clogging up the walkways in the terminal. Although, the crowd parts easily in front of me. I tower over most of the people here. They move out of my way like I’m going to knock them over if they don’t. It’s not far from the truth. I feel impatient and restless. I put it down to the fact that I’ve got a lot riding on this trip.
“Did you confirm our reservations for this evening?”
“Yes. Table for six. Nami. 8.00 p.m.”
I nod with satisfaction. “Good. If we land these Japanese clients, it’ll be our first step toward breaking into the Asian markets. An entire hemisphere of untapped potential, ripe for the taking will open up.”
“Yes, Mr. Remington.”
“What’s on tomorrow?”
She checks her phone. “You’re scheduled to be at the economic conference for the seminar on Developing New Business Markets in the morning at Conference Room Chakrii. It starts at eight, but the two speakers you were interested in listening to, start at nine and eleven respectively. You have an hour to kill in between, so I’ve scheduled for you to meet with Mr. Dimitriou who has flown in specially from Singapore for that meeting.”