They reminded her of a pack of hyenas ready to benefit from someone else’s kill.
They’d sold her father out without hesitation.
And they’d sold out the staff.
She was so furious with the lot of them that it took her a moment to notice the man positioned at the head of the table.
Occupying her father’s chair with arrogant assurance and no evidence of conscience, Damon Doukakis presided over the meeting like a conqueror surveying his captives. He didn’t speak or move, but somehow everything about his body language screamed masculine aggression.
Her heart pumping, Polly placed the laptop carefully on the polished surface of the boardroom table.
Those dangerous black eyes watched her and she wondered how he could convey authority when he hadn’t even opened his mouth. Somehow he dominated the room, his economy of movement and speech intensifying the aura of power that clung to him like a protective force field.
A superbly tailored suit skimmed his wide shoulders and a snowy white shirt dazzled against his bronzed throat. The knot of his tie was perfect—everything about him was sleek and impeccably groomed. He presented a startling contrast to the rest of the men around the table. Not for this man the excess weight that came with endless business entertaining. Under the expensive suit, his body was hard and strong—honed, no doubt, by exercise and the same rigid self-discipline he applied to his business practices.
Women found him irresistible, of course. He was pure alpha male, the controlling force behind one of the fastest-growing, most successful companies in Europe. In the darkening gloom of economic depression, the Doukakis Media Group was the bright star that shone the light of recovery.
It irritated Polly extremely that the man not only had a towering intellect and an astonishing gift for business, he also looked that good. There was no justice, she thought savagely as she opened up her laptop and reminded herself not to be fooled by the sleek suit or the other outward trappings of civility. As far as she was concerned, the clothes did nothing to mask what he was—a ruthless opportunist who was willing to stop at nothing to achieve his chosen goal. But she understood why the board had sold out to him. He was the King of the beasts, she thought numbly, and the men around him were just lunch, to be consumed in one snap of his jaws. They were weak, and the weak would never challenge a man like Damon Doukakis any more than a wildebeest would turn on a lion.
Look him in the eye, Polly. Look him in the eye.
Knowing that the worst thing she could do was show him she was afraid, she looked. It was only for a second, but something passed between them. The impact of that wordless exchange slammed into her and she dragged her gaze away, shaking from head to toe. She’d expected to feel intimidated. What she hadn’t expected was the flash of sexual awareness.
Shaken, Polly switched on the laptop, desperately hoping that he wasn’t aware of her reaction to him.
‘Gentlemen …’ She paused. ‘And Mr Doukakis.’
There was grim humour in the smile that played around the corners of his mouth and despite her best intentions Polly found herself staring at the sensual curve of his lips. According to rumour, sexual conquests came as easily to him as the business deals. Doukakis was as ruthless, unemotional and calculating in his relationships as he was in the other areas of his life. Maybe that was why he was so protective of his sister, she thought numbly. He knew what men were like.
But so did she. And an inconvenient flash of chemistry wasn’t going to change her opinion.
As her eyes met his again, her tongue suddenly jammed against the roof of her mouth and her lips refused to form the words that had gathered in her brain. In that single moment she saw that he knew. He knew that her heart was racing and her entire body felt as though it had been turned into an electric circuit. He knew the effect he was having on her, from the sparks to the quiver in her belly. It was the same effect he had on all women.
‘Miss Prince?’
That cold, sardonic voice shocked her out of her stupor.
If she had harboured any hope that he’d forgotten her contribution to his sister’s educational experience, then those hopes now lay smashed in tiny pieces at her feet.
‘As you know, Polly is the daughter of our chairman and chief executive.’ Apparently blind to the unspoken communication, Michael Andrews finally found the courage to speak. ‘Her father always made sure she had a job here.’
The implication was that she was some sort of loser who couldn’t get employment without help, and Polly felt her temper rise at the injustice of that introduction. The anger was just what she needed to blast away those other feelings.
Relieved to be back in control, she tapped a key on the laptop and opened a file. ‘I’ve prepared a presentation outlining our business strategy and looking at our forecasts for the future. You’ll see that we’ve won six new clients already this year and those accounts are—’
‘We don’t need to hear this, Polly.’ Michael Anderson interrupted her hastily and Polly’s fingers paused on the keyboard. Yes, they did. Without her presentation the staff didn’t stand a chance of being kept on.
‘But you have to—’
‘It’s too late, Polly.’ With a glance at his fellow board members, Michael Anderson cleared his throat. ‘I understand that this is a very awkward situation for you, but your father no longer has control of this company. He’s always been unconventional, but now he appears to have disappeared completely. Even today, with rumours of the takeover all over the news, there is no sign of him, which just confirms that the board made the right decision to sell. The Doukakis Media Group is cutting edge. These are exciting times.’ He cast a fawning glance at the man who sat still and silent at the head of the table. ‘There’s going to be a shake up. We’ll be announcing redundancies to the staff later but I wanted to tell you personally as your father isn’t here. It’s tough, I know—’ he rearranged his drooping features into a look of sympathy ‘—but this is business.’
Polly felt as though she’d stepped into a parallel universe. Her brain was fuzzy and there was a buzzing in her ears. ‘Wait a minute.’ Her voice sounded robotic and nothing like her own. ‘You’re saying you’re going to make everyone redundant just like that, with no discussion? It’s your job to protect them—to show Mr Doukakis why they’re needed.’
‘The point is, Polly, they’re not needed.’
‘I disagree.’ Her fingers were suddenly ice-cold. Panic crept into her throat and lodged itself there as if she’d suddenly inhaled all her worst fears. ‘The accounts we’ve won, we’ve won as a team. And we’re a good team.’
‘Just leave the laptop, Polly.’ Michael Anderson tapped the end of his pen on the table. ‘If one of Mr Doukakis’s people wants to look at the presentation, they can.’
That was it.
They were dismissing her.
Every eye in the room was fixed on her, waiting for her to give up and walk out.
Her father’s company would be dissolved. One hundred people would lose their jobs.
‘It isn’t over.’ The words spilled from her lips and Polly stared directly at Michael Anderson, the man who had sold her father out and was now selling out her colleagues. Desperately, she tried to appeal to his conscience. ‘You have to stand up there and give this presentation.’
‘Polly—’
‘You have a responsibility! These people work