Mediterranean Boss, Convenient Mistress

‘Hey, not so fast.’ He put a hand on her arm as she made to turn away from him again. ‘You still haven’t given me your answer. Will you have dinner with me?’

She turned back and regarded him with a frown. ‘I told you the joke has gone far enough, Marco.’

‘I wasn’t joking about dinner,’ he said quietly.

He watched the scepticism flicking through her eyes. ‘Of course I was serious,’ he added gently. ‘I told you…you’ve intrigued me.’

She noticed how his gaze moved over her with leisurely appraisal. There was something in its warmth that touched her defences for a second. ‘And why is that?’ she asked huskily before she could stop herself.

‘Well, for one thing, it’s very rare that I meet a woman who views relationships in my level-headed terms.’

The matter-of-fact answer snapped her quickly back to reality. ‘Let me guess. You want to get inside my brain to research a woman’s take on practicality.’ She tried to sound flippant, but deep down she was aware of an irrational curl of hurt. She knew he wasn’t asking her out for her beauty, but did he have to be so blunt about it?

‘I wouldn’t have worded it quite like that,’ he contradicted her softly. For a moment his eyes drifted down over the soft curves of her body.

In fact, whom was he kidding? he thought drily. He wouldn’t put it like that at all. Perhaps the reason he had been so concerned about her internet dating last night was more complex than he’d first thought. He was a man who had a healthy sexual appetite and during the last couple of days he had been surprised to find that there was something about the way she looked at him sometimes…the way she moved…that turned him on. But, as she so rightly had pointed out a few moments ago, business and pleasure did not mix.

He had mockingly accused her of being conventional for having such sentiments, but in truth weren’t they part of the reason he had felt so at ease around Charlie these last few months? After the uncomfortable atmosphere his last PA had generated it had been great to be around someone who thought like him and wanted to keep the working environment strictly complication-free. In fact he had been so at ease with Charlie that he had enjoyed trying to draw her out from behind those reserved barriers of hers, and now somehow he had managed to become interested in her sexually. Being interested in her in that way was not the prudent and practical thing to do. But…now he was starting to revise that opinion.

The clinical part of his mind had clicked on when she had talked about finding something more realistic for her next relationship. Maybe there was an opportunity for business and pleasure to mix very well indeed here…Maybe it would be OK to pursue Charlie…maybe…in practical terms she was just what he needed right now.

‘Perhaps we should try each other out for size.’ His eyes drifted back towards her face.

The sudden change of tack took her by surprise. There was something almost hypnotic about the smoothly sensual Italian tones. ‘Now you are just being…’ Charlie struggled to find the right word. She could hardly think straight when he looked at her like that ‘…outrageous.’

‘Am I?’ He smiled. ‘You were talking earlier this morning about chemistry…There is more than a frisson of that between us…don’t you think?’

‘No!’ She cut across him abruptly. He was moving into dangerous territory now that she didn’t want to analyse.

Her eyes were drawn to his lips…they were curved in a derisive smile…but they were also sexily inviting. Was it her imagination or was he very close? She could smell the tang of his aftershave, fresh and very inviting.

She noticed that his eyes were on her lips. Unconsciously she moistened them with the tip of her tongue. A strong feeling of desire suddenly laced the air between them. It was so heavy that Charlie could feel it thundering through her, making her heart race, twisting a latent need into life with shocking force.

In that instant she wanted him to kiss her—no, more than that, she wanted him to take her into his arms and make passionate love to her…

The knowledge rang alarm bells inside her but she couldn’t stem the feelings, they were flowing through her with the most amazing force. She couldn’t remember the last time a man had turned her on so completely like this without even touching her!

‘How about I pick you up tonight about seven?’

The smooth words were more of an order than a suggestion. He really was insufferably sure of himself, Charlie thought hazily, and really she should tell him right now that she had other plans.

But for some reason the words just wouldn’t come out. She swallowed hard as he reached out a hand and touched the side of her face; although his fingers were a whisper-soft caress against her skin, she felt them with such a pleasurable, forceful intensity that involuntarily she closed her eyes.

Charlie wanted that caress to go on and on, it was as if she were falling into a very deep, spiralling trap with nowhere to go except towards the light of desire and need. She had never felt like this before, it was as if she wasn’t in control of her own senses…it was scary and yet it was wonderful at the same time.

Then Marco pulled back, leaving her shaking and breathless.

‘So I’ll see you tonight, yes?’

His voice was so arrogantly cool and calm that it brought her back to her senses as sharply as if he had slapped her. Shocked by the intensity of her disappointment because he hadn’t kissed her, she struggled to pull herself together.

‘We’ve got to work together, Marco,’ she murmured reprovingly.

‘Yes.’ He nodded and then grinned. ‘Have I ever told you that I like that prim and proper attitude of yours? It’s very refreshing.’

‘It’s not supposed to be refreshing, it’s supposed to be sensible.’

He smiled. ‘You’re talking my language again.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘And yes, I agree there are things we need to discuss…sensibly. Unfortunately there is no time now. It will have to wait until tonight.’

She shook her head…mesmerised by his determined attitude. ‘I couldn’t get someone to look after Jack tonight. It’s too short notice—’

‘OK, lunch tomorrow.’ He cut across her nonchalantly. ‘I’ll pick you up at about twelve-thirty.’

‘Marco…’ But she didn’t have time to say anything else because he had turned and opened the car door to step out into the bright afternoon sunlight.

This really was preposterous, Charlie thought as she grabbed for the door handle and stepped out after him. ‘I am not going on a date with you, Marco!’

‘Why not?’

Why not indeed? As Charlie looked across at his tall handsome physique she was asking herself the same question and weakness started to invade. With determination she raised her chin and forced herself to be level-headed. She couldn’t go out with him because he was her boss, she reminded herself sharply. Business and pleasure didn’t go together. And added to that he was only interested in her now because she had lied to him about the type of person she was. He had admitted earlier that it would help endorse his theories and his book to have a girlfriend around for a while who thought the same way he did. Well, that position definitely wouldn’t suit her! ‘Because…it wouldn’t work out,’ she told him firmly.

‘I told you earlier, Charlie, in order to find out if something will be successful you have to give it a chance.’ He shrugged. ‘However, you can relax, there are a few work-related issues I’d like to discuss with you anyway. So tomorrow would be a good chance to do that.’

‘What kind of work issues?’

‘We’ll discuss that tomorrow.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘I’ve got to get over to St Agnes Hospital now to deal with two referrals.’

He sounded very calm and assured and it was light-years away from how she was feeling. She was utterly confused. Had tomorrow’s lunch date just been relegated to a business meeting?

‘So let me get this right; you told your boss that you weren’t averse to having an intimate relationship with him based on compatibility alone and he suddenly asked you out?’ Karen was sitting at the kitchen table analysing the story.

‘I didn’t mention the word intimate,’ Charlie corrected her quickly. ‘And I wasn’t talking about having a relationship with him, I was just talking hypothetically! He took my words out of context.’

‘Hmm.’ Karen looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

‘I was just trying to convince him that I’m not a hopeless romantic.’ Charlie tried to make light of the subject.

She had phoned her friend Karen as soon as she got home from work because she had felt she needed to talk about what had happened. Karen had then come straight around to her house to go over it all again, and Charlie wished now she hadn’t mentioned it; it was all too uncomfortable.

‘Because Sarah Heart accused you of being in love with him?’

‘Well, that was part of it, the other part was that Marco can be quite condescending when it comes to people who are…emotional rather than practical.’ She put a pot of tea down on the kitchen table between them and sat down again. ‘Anyway, let’s just forget about it, shall we? It’s all rubbish. I’ve no intention of going out with Marco on a date.’

‘Why not?’ Karen leaned back in her chair. ‘Going by what I’ve seen of him on TV, he is quite a dish.’

‘Yes, he’s very good-looking.’ Charlie shrugged. ‘But he’s my boss and…well, for a start, we think differently; he doesn’t believe that love is the most important thing in a relationship and I do.’

‘So you lied…so what?’ Karen shrugged. ‘It’s a mere formality anyway.’