LITMIR.BIZ

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and after a couple of hours of this self-inflicted torture Drake was more than ready for them to return to his off ice.

      By the time they reached the executive floor he noted that it was nearing six in the evening and one or two people were packing up for the day, ready to go home. Monica looked decidedly disgruntled as he and Layla arrived back in the outer office, giving him the instant vibe that she wasn’t too impressed with his impromptu tour.

      ‘I’ve rescheduled Sir Edwin Dodd for Monday afternoon at two, but the other appointments you so unfortunately missed all ask if you could call them personally to establish when you’ll definitely be available. Other than that … All Quiet on the Western Front, as they say—and unless there’s anything urgent I’m going home.’

      ‘Thank you, Monica,’ he replied, smiling. ‘I appreciate your hard work today. I know it can’t have been easy cancelling my appointments at the last minute. Are those the phone numbers of the clients that I missed?’ He gestured towards the piece of paper she was holding out to him.

      ‘Yes.’ She perfunctorily handed it over, then impatiently hovered as he scanned down the printed list.

      ‘That’s fine. Thanks again,’ he murmured.

      ‘I’ll say goodnight, then.’

      Without further ado she slipped on her raincoat, arranged the strap of her bag securely over her shoulder, then exited the office without so much as a backward glance at either him or Layla.

      Striding back into his private office, Drake dropped the paper onto his desk and then called out to his guest to come and join him.

      ‘I get the feeling that your secretary’s going to view me as enemy number one should I ever dare visit you here again … especially without an appointment.’ Stepping into the room and then quietly closing the door behind her, Layla shaped her mouth into a lopsided and rueful smile.

      ‘She runs a tight ship.’ Drake grinned. ‘She doesn’t like it when her captain goes AWOL.’

      ‘I can’t say I blame her. You probably missed several important appointments today.’

      ‘Do you really think I care about that right now?’

      Planting himself directly in front of her, Drake could no longer resist the impulse to be closer. Watching her talking and smiling with his colleagues had been excruciating torment because he hadn’t been free to touch and hold her as he yearned to do. He hadn’t even dared catch her eye in case he revealed his longing in front of the people he was ultra-careful to keep his private life a firmly closed book to. At any rate, he fully intended to make up for that self-denial now.

      He started by cupping Layla’s small, delicately made jaw, and straight away saw her eyes darken and grow even more lustrous beneath the long ebony lashes that swept down over them. His pulse quickened. The sensual silken texture of her skin beneath his fingers made him long to explore all of her without restraint, to drown in her beauty and get drunk on it without the fear of consequences to either his heart or his conscience.

      ‘You mesmerised them out there,’ he told her. ‘You’re going to be the talk of the place for weeks to come.’

      ‘I hardly think so.’

      ‘Then you clearly don’t know a lot about the male of the species.’

      ‘That’s probably true.’

      Her dark eyes were troubled for a moment, and Drake could have kicked himself for reminding her of her dishonest ex-boss.

      ‘Returning to the present, I hope you haven’t made any plans for the weekend?’ he commented, lowering his voice, holding her gaze with invisible ties that hungrily bound it to his.

      ‘Why’s that?’

      ‘Because I’d like you to spend it with me.’

      ‘All of it?’

      The wonderment in her voice made Drake chuckle. ‘Yes, all of it. And I’ll make sure you get home early enough on Sunday that you can get to bed at your usual time.’

      ‘So you’re expecting me to stay the night with you? I mean … not just one night but two?’

      ‘Think you could bear it?’ He hated the doubt that suddenly surfaced in his mind. He wished he could shoot it dead. ‘My house has several guest rooms. If you’d rather we didn’t share a room until you get to know me better, then I want you to know I’ll respect that.’

      ‘Thanks.’

      The gratefully innocent smile she gave him told Drake that he’d said the right thing. He was immensely relieved. He didn’t want any more of their days or their evenings together to end in quarrels or disappointment. He’d rather suffer the torment of frustration than that.

      ‘Do I get a kiss for being so thoughtful and considerate?’ he teased, smiling.

      In answer, Layla reached up on tiptoe and pressed her lips softly against his. Even though his first impulse was to ravish and plunder now that she’d agreed to his request, he summoned some stoic restraint from God only knew where and deliberately kept the kiss on the right side of slow and tender. But even so his hands moved up and down her back, and now and then ventured over the enticing curve of her delectable derrière.

      ‘Time’s getting on,’ she murmured. ‘Shouldn’t we go and get something to eat?’

      Reluctantly freeing her lips from the sensuous, erotic glide of Drake’s gentle and surprisingly tender response to her kiss, Layla found herself staring up at him, noting the tiny bead of sweat glistening in the indentation above his carved top lip and the beginnings of five o’clock shadow already darkening his firm lower jaw. But most of all she registered the carnal hunger his mercurial grey eyes radiated back at her, and wondered how he’d managed to keep it at bay and kiss her with such tender restraint. If the tenor of that lovely kiss had been transformed at any point into a conflagration such as they’d ignited at the building site yesterday, she didn’t doubt that her suggestion of getting something to eat wouldn’t have been the very first suggestion she made …

      Although genuinely relieved when Drake had stipulated he didn’t expect them to share a room and that she might like to get to know him a bit better before they became more intimate, she was still breathless at his invitation to stay the night. Not just one night, but two. Funny how things worked out, she mused. When she’d been readying herself to travel up to London to pay him a spontaneous visit she’d somehow found herself packing a toothbrush and a spare pair of undies into her tote … just in case. She hadn’t been behaving presumptuously, she told herself, just being sensibly prepared for an eventuality such as this. It was surely the practical thing to do when all Layla had to do was glance at the man for her to crave the most lascivious attentions imaginable.

      Already it seemed that her vow to be cautious and utilise her common sense around him was seriously coming under fire.

      ‘That sounds like a good idea. How about we go back to my place and I’ll cook us something?’

      ‘You can cook?’

      His eyes flashed with humour. ‘Don’t get your hopes up. I’m a million light years away from Cordon Bleu, but I can do basic stuff like a stir fry and spaghetti bolognaise. And if you’ve got a sweet tooth I have some artisan vanilla ice cream in the fridge.’

      ‘Then lead the way, Chef. My palate is all yours!’

      Giving him a teasing grin, Layla moved across to the chair where Drake had left her black leather tote. But before she lifted it, Drake stepped up behind her and reached for her coat.

      ‘Let me help you put this on.’

      ‘Thanks.’ She breathed in the heat from his body, along with his arresting cologne, and briefly shut her eyes tight to savour the moment.

      ‘Let’s go.’ Catching her by her shoulders to spin her round, he dropped a light kiss onto her forehead and smiled.

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