A Diamond Deal With the Greek

And detesting himself for it.

Whoever this woman was, she had no right to be here.

About to step forward and end this nonsense, he halted mid-step as she dropped one leg to the floor behind her. The sexy agility in her body arrested him, drying out every flaying word he’d meant to deliver as he stared.

Thee mou.

Anyone would think he hadn’t seen a female body before. He’d dated sportswomen at the peak of their careers and slept with more than his share of them. And yet something about this woman drew him as no other had done in a very long time.

That thought sent another bolt of anger through him. Rousing himself, he stepped forward, just as she lowered her other leg and straightened.

She wasn’t very tall, only coming up to his chest. But her deep blue eyes sparked with a fire and attitude that made her appear six feet tall. Her chin, pointed and determined, and her mouth, still curved in that sultry, albeit slightly wary smile, made him think thoughts that had no room in this space.

‘Now, where were we?’ she asked, her voice reminding him of smoky rooms in gentlemen’s clubs.

Draco dragged his mind from images of unwanted decadence to a far more appropriate ire. ‘We were addressing your unsolicited presence in my building.’

‘Ah, yes, you wanted to know who I was?’

‘I see you’ve skilfully avoided my trespass charge.’

‘That’s because I’m not trespassing. I have a right to be here.’

‘I seriously doubt that. Sanctioning half-naked women to perform acrobatics for my employees as part of their busy workday isn’t part of my business model.’

‘We’re talking about my supposed floor show, right?’

She glanced behind her. Catching sight of the group of men staring avidly through the glass from a few offices away, she smiled and waved.

A glowering look from Draco sent his employees dispersing, although a brave buck, Stan Macallister, dared to wave back.

Deciding it was time to bring this farce to an end, Draco strode to the desk of his AWOL CFO and snatched up the phone.

‘This is Mr Angelis. Send Security up to Daniels’ office. I have an unwanted guest who needs to be removed from the premises. And inform my head of security that I want a report on my desk as to why this breach has happened before the day is out.’

He slammed down the phone with more force than was needed.

‘Wow, was that really necessary?’

He turned to find her standing in the same position before the window, her hand on her curvy hips and her head tilted to one side. The loose knot of her silky black hair fell lopsided as she stared at him with one eyebrow raised mockingly.

‘I have a client meeting in less than half an hour. I’d throw you out myself but I don’t have time to take a shower before then.’

Her expression slipped at the thinly veiled insult. Draco felt childish satisfaction at scoring a direct hit. Absurdly, he’d been off balance since he’d seen her from his office next door. His need for transparency in all things had transmitted to his office layout, and with the open-plan setting and see-through glass windows across the floor he could keep an eye on most of his employees. Although he liked to believe it was unnecessary where his employees were concerned as he’d earned their loyalty, he’d learned the hard way that loyalty came at a cost.

The alternative career he’d had to choose was a cutthroat one at best. He’d made a few hard bargains along the way to get him where he was.

What he hadn’t bargained for today was seeing a decadently curvy woman on display on his CFO’s floor. He’d stopped an important call mid-conversation, a move he’d never made before. Now he had an irate, egocentric client waiting for him to call back. And a snarky stranger openly mocking him.

‘I hope you don’t feel too silly when you find out who I am,’ she said in that voice that snagged his senses, made him strain to hear her every word.

‘I’m not interested in who you are. My security will furnish me with that information if I need it. What I am interested in is you being escorted off the premises—’

‘Okay, this is getting ridiculous. My name is Rebel Daniels, Nathan Daniels’ daughter. I’m here to have lunch with my father. I forgot to sign in downstairs so Stan let me in. My dad wasn’t here. I assumed he was in a meeting or something, so I thought I’d wait for him. The yoga thing was just to relieve a little bit of stress.’

Several questions stormed through Draco’s mind. Was his security so lax that someone could just forget to make themselves known downstairs and still make it up here? She was Daniels’ daughter? Why was she stressed?

‘Your parents named you Rebel?’ Mildly disconcerted at the least relevant question that had chosen to fall from his lips, he watched a smile twitch at the corners of her mouth.