Auctioned to the Bad Boy CEO

“And an admirable job she has done tonight. She’s also now off the clock, which means I expect you to step in. This will not be a problem, I take it?”

One dark eyebrow rose in an elegant arch, when Monique seemed on the verge to disagree with him, before she snapped her mouth shut and shook her head. The look she angled Hannah’s way from under her fake eyelashes sent a shiver of unease down her spine, however. Hannah nudged her chin up and stared the other woman down.

Bring it on, bitch.

She sensed rather than saw Logan tense beside her. Naturally, he’d picked up on the undertones. That man never seemed to miss anything work related, and even though they weren’t in the office, he was still paying attention.

“Good. Also, report to HR first thing Monday morning, will you, Monique? They will have something to give you.”

Monique pulled in a sharp breath, and the champagne flute slipped out of her fingers. The fine crystal bounced at her feet, and the expensive bubbles floated on the top of the luxurious carpet for a few seconds before they were absorbed.

“Careless, I suggest you’ll be more careful in future.” Logan’s voice was almost a snarl as he continued. “Actions always have consequences, my dear, as you’ll find out. Don’t for one second believe I don’t know what’s been going on.”

Monique made a rough sound at the back of her throat at this unmistakable threat, and Hannah almost felt sorry for her. Almost. Before she could say or do anything, however, Logan had propelled them through the thinning crowd, and out of the double doors. The Master of Ceremonies announced another victim on the stage, and when they were safely out of sight Hannah wrenched her elbow out of his grasp.

“Will you stop manhandling me, and what was that back in there?” Hannah inwardly flinched at the breathy porn star impression of her usual voice.

Jeez, focus!

She might as well hang a big sign around her neck saying, “Fuck me”. While that idea definitely had merit, and the mere thought of a tangle in the sheets with her boss meant her knickers were in serious danger of giving up any pretense of disguising her arousal, she hated being this obvious.

And, hello, he’s your boss. This will not end well. Get a grip.

Logan stopped his forward movement, and she swallowed hard when his full attention settled on her. Even with her high heels on he still towered over her by a good head, and she had to crane her neck to meet his gaze when he stepped right into her personal space like some sort of avenging dark angel. The very air seemed to leave the room, and the world narrowed to just the two of them under his focus.

“I’d have thought that was obvious, little dove.” Lordy, the way he dropped his voice on those last two words and his gaze grew more intense … self-combustion seemed a real possibility right now.

From somewhere she found her backbone and her voice.

“If it was I wouldn’t be asking, would I, and I have a name. You might want to try using it, Logan.”

She hadn’t really meant to put quite such a flippant intonation on saying his name. His jaw tensed, and his eyes flashed in something akin to silent fury, which really shouldn’t make her heart beat faster, but did so nonetheless. Considering she knew firsthand the damage a man’s temper could do, she ought to be already running away from him. Instead she found herself unconsciously leaning toward him, seeking his presence and his protection, which should have been an oxymoron. She was an independent, successful woman, for goodness’ sakes, so why then did she have that insane urge to submit to him in all ways?

The horrifying thought that she might be more like her mother after all didn’t sit well with her, but she couldn’t think about that now.

Besides, if she chose to indulge in the horizontal shimmy with this man, it would be her choice. A world of difference from the fucked-up relationships her mother had indulged in at the expense of her children. Hannah only had herself to answer to, and she could and would do as she pleased. With that in mind she inhaled deeply and barely suppressed a groan. It should be illegal for any man to smell so damn good.

Logan held her pinned in place with his sheer presence for what felt like ages, but could have only been seconds, before he gave a short laugh. The action broke the tension between them, and softened the harsh angles of his jaw, which was already beginning to sport the first evidence of stubble. How much stubble would he have come morning, and how would it feel on the tender flesh of her inner thighs?

Hannah fought and lost the battle of holding back the immediate heat invading her face, and a dimple appeared in his cheek as a genuine smile transformed the man in front of her. He looked altogether more approachable and if possible even sexier.

“Now, I do wonder what you were just thinking to cause such a pretty blush, little dove. And for the record I call you that because you remind me of one.”

It was Hannah’s turn to laugh. Okay, that strange honk she managed to produce made her sound like a constipated goose, but really. He was so full of shite. She chose to ignore the way her heart stepped up into country dance and her hormones were shouting “yee-haa” to boot. This man was a player, she knew that, and this was no doubt one of the lines he spun women all the time. A darn good one, but a line nonetheless.

That eyebrow of his came up again—how did he do that to such devastating effect—and what’s more who knew so much could be said by that one move?

“Nothing, I was thinking nothing, other than spare me the lines. Besides, I’d have thought I’d be more of a round pigeon than a delicate little dove. Either way, those birds have sharp beaks, and I’d hate for you to have anything important pecked off.”

Logan froze, and she knew she was in trouble when he stepped back and let his black-eyed gaze slowly roam over her body. He stayed the longest at the girls, of course. Naturally, her nipples took that as an invitation to come out to play. Good grief almighty, they might as well get out little white flags, signaling their surrender. As for the rest of her erogenous zones … she was discovering a few she didn’t even know she had under his silent assessment.

When she couldn’t stand the silence anymore, she blurted out the next words.

“Cat got your tongue now? And stop staring at me as though you’ve never seen a woman before. It’s…”

Whatever she was going to say fled her mind because Logan brought his arm around her waist and pulled her flush into his body. On any other man that move would have earned him a dressing down. With him, however, pressed as close to every one of his hard muscles as it was possible to be while still fully clothed … well, what was she doing again?

“Enough, little girl. Know this, if you were mine you’d have just earned yourself one hell of a sore ass for talking to me like that.” He pulled back slightly and grinned at her far too telling gasp. “Bear that in mind when you come to see me later.”