The blush scorched Kate’s cheeks as she waited for his answer and she clutched the silk tighter. She wondered if the penthouse’s air conditioning had suddenly gone on the fritz, because she could have sworn the temperature in the kitchen had just shot up by a good ten degrees.
‘Apart from typing, shorthand, that kind of stuff, I expect you to be available twenty-four-seven. I’ll be honest—I’m not always the easiest guy in the world to work for.’ His gaze flicked to her cleavage. ‘At times I can be real demanding.’ His eyes moved back to her face, the dimple winking in his cheek. ‘But then you already know that.’
Kate felt the melting sensation between her thighs and squeezed the muscles tight. How infuriating that she was unable to deny her instinctive response to him even though she knew he was being deliberately provocative.
‘Stop teasing me,’ she said firmly. ‘It’s not remotely funny.’ The very last thing she wanted to do was look this gift horse in the mouth. She wanted this job, desperately, and probably not just for the career opportunity it offered if she was being completely honest with herself. But she wasn’t about to serve herself up on a platter, job or no job.
He laughed easily, held up his hands in surrender. ‘Okay, Kate, I’m sorry. But the look on your face. It was irresistible.’
‘Answer the question. Why are you offering me this job?’
He skimmed his thumb across her cheekbone, his eyes bright with appreciation. ‘We were pretty spectacular together our first night out. You’re smart, you’re beautiful and you’re desirable and I had a hard time forgetting about what we got up to after you walked out on me yesterday morning. So I’ll admit, one of the reasons I want you with me in California is so we can get up to a lot more of the same.’
It was just as she had suspected. Kate sighed. He was only offering her this job so he could jump back into bed with her. The fact that she didn’t feel nearly as indignant about it as she should made her feel like a besotted fool. ‘I can’t accept the job under those circumstances and you know it.’
Zack leaned against the breakfast bar, but he didn’t look disappointed—just the opposite, in fact. ‘Hear me out here. I’d like to make love to you again. I’m not going to pretend otherwise. We were good at it. But I don’t pay for sex. While we’re in California, you’ll be working your butt off as my PA, and while you’re doing that I’ll be calling the shots, because I’m the boss. But what happens in the bedroom is private and between us. It’s not part of your job description. And I sure as hell don’t intend for it to be a chore,’ he finished, sounding exasperated.
She let out an unsteady breath. At least he’d been totally honest with her. But could she even consider such a proposal? ‘What if I said I won’t sleep with you?’
He shrugged. ‘If you wanted to say that you could and it wouldn’t affect your employment.’ A sensual smile spread across his face. ‘But I’ve gotta warn you now, I’ll do my best to change your mind.’
Fabulous, Kate thought weakly, feeling the familiar inferno flare to life in her belly. What she had here was essentially a frying-pan-or-fire situation, then. Whatever way you looked at it she was liable to get burned. Because she knew she wasn’t going to say no to what he was offering. Unfortunately, she had a bad feeling that the real temptation wasn’t just the promise of a fulfilling day job or the night-time fun and frolics that were going to be even harder to resist. The simple pleasure of spending time with him, working side by side with him, getting to know what made him tick, was by far the most tempting possibility of all. And that was the reason why she should say no. If she let her guard down, if she allowed him to insinuate his way into her heart, she could get badly hurt.
But somehow she couldn’t bring herself to do the sensible thing and say no. He was looking at her expectantly, the intensity in his face playing havoc with her pulse rate.
Surely, if she was careful, if she knew the risks going in, she could take what he offered, enjoy it and survive with her heart intact. Men did that sort of thing all the time. Why shouldn’t she? Independence was the key. She had to make sure that if she compromised anything, she didn’t compromise that. Then her heart would be safe. Never need anyone who doesn’t need you and never sacrifice anything you can’t afford to lose. Her father had taught her that lesson as a child, she had to make sure she didn’t forget it.
She breathed out, her mind made up. ‘I’ll take the job.’
His eyes widened. She’d surprised him. Truth was she’d surprised herself more.
‘Great.’ He stroked her arm. ‘That’s fantastic. I’ll get Monty to work up a contract and then we’ll discuss your salary. But I guarantee you, it’ll be enough to get you back to London next month in style with a nice chunk of change in your pocket.’
‘Okay,’ she said, the thought of going home so soon making her feel as if she were standing on the edge of a very deep precipice already.
‘So we’ve got a deal?’ he asked.
‘Yes, I suppose we have.’ All she had to do, really, was make sure that, whatever happened between them, she kept a good, firm grip on reality at all times. That had always been her mother’s mistake. It wasn’t one she was about to repeat.
She thrust out her hand. He looked down at it, but shook his head. ‘Not good enough,’ he said quietly, pinning her with a gaze that scorched her skin. ‘Not nearly good enough.’ Threading his fingers through her hair, he tilted her face up to his, slanted his lips across hers.
The kiss was so sudden and so hot, it seared her down to her toes.
When he finally lifted his head, she felt as if she’d been branded.
‘There,’ he said, framing her face in large palms. ‘Now we’ve got a deal.’
Twin tides of joy and dread swelled inside Kate as she stared at her new boss.
What had she gone and done now?
‘WE’LL TAKE THE SHORTER one with the straps,’ Zack announced to the overjoyed boutique manageress. ‘Now let’s see some of your evening wear.’
‘Yes, sir, Mr Boudreaux,’ the woman replied, snapping her fingers at the staff hovering around her. ‘I’ll get the models ready right away.’
Kate watched the woman and her minions rush off. The manageress’s eyes had glazed over ten minutes ago, clocking up the dollar signs like a human cash register.
As soon as she and Zack were alone she turned on her boss, determined to make him see sense. She’d accepted his job proposal less than an hour ago and already she was starting to panic.
After taking a quick shower in his penthouse, she’d been whisked off in a limousine to one of Vegas’s priciest and most exclusive designer boutiques. The merchandise here made the clothes she’d seen on Michelle’s rail look like bargain-basement knock-offs.
‘This is preposterous,’ she whispered furiously. ‘I don’t need all these things. You must have spent thousands of dollars already. And there’s no way that as my boss you should be responsible for buying my clothes.’
‘Relax.’
He looked relaxed enough for both of them, she thought. His arm was slung casually across the back of her chair, one leg crossed with his ankle resting on his knee. How could he be so calm when he was spending a fortune?
‘It’s my money and I am the boss,’ he continued. ‘You need to look the part when we get to California.’ His gaze drifted down her figure, taking in the T-shirt and jeans she’d bought from Michelle. ‘The tomboy outfit’s cute, but it’s not going to cut it at The Grange.’