Page 7 of Boss With Benefits

‘Of course I do.’

‘I thought you’d forgotten who I was.’

His gaze ran over her and she nearly went up in flames. ‘On what planet would that be possible?’

‘For all I know, you pick up women in bars on a regular basis.’

‘I don’t. That night was a one-off. And who picked who up is debatable. I may have made the first move, but you made the last.’

That was true. Wasn’t it? She couldn’t quite remember. Or think straight. Her restored ego might be cheering with relief,but she’d forgotten how mesmerising his eyes were, how easy it was to fall into them and how good he smelled. Despite the disastrous nature of this situation, tiny flashes of electricity were zinging through her. Heat was pooling between her legs. If she took a step in his direction, she would be within kissing distance. She could lift herself up, wind her arms around his neck and press her mouth to his. She hadn’t dared do that the night they’d met. Suspecting she might well weaken and wind up agreeing to the martini and further madness, she’d limited herself to a brush of her lips against his cheek before disappearing. That now felt remiss.

‘However, I was intending to forget all about it,’ he said, jolting her out of her trance and bringing her back down to earth with a bump.

What?For a second, she just stared at him, her brow furrowing in confusion, the ferocious heat momentarily doused as if a bucket of iced water had been thrown at her. Surely he couldn’t have said what she thought he just said.

‘You can’t mean that,’ she said, as baffled as she was astonished.

‘Why not?’ he replied with cool self-assurance.

‘It would be highly unethical.’ Why wasn’t he concerned? He should have frog-marched her out of this building five minutes ago. She would have if she were him. ‘I could get fired. I’d never work again. And the risks would be substantial for you too. The integrity of the audit would be compromised. Your reputation might take a hit.’

That silenced him for a second. Something flared in the depths of his eyes, but it was gone before she could identify it. ‘Are you good at your job?’

‘Exceptionally.’ Which made the situation all the more painful.

‘Would what we did have any impact on your work?’

Was he questioning her commitment? Her professionalism? Or was he concerned that, once again unable to control herself in his presence, she might demand he ravish her over the photocopier? ‘Absolutely not,’ she said, determined to reassure him on all those fronts. ‘Nothing gets in the way of that.’

‘Do youwantto stand down?’

The prospect of it cleaved her in two and drove a stake through her chest. ‘I can’t think of anything I want to do less.’

‘Then don’t.’

Oh, if only she weren’t so principled. If only she’d chosen a different bar in which to drown her sorrows that night. But it was far too late for regrets. ‘It’s not that simple.’

‘Have you told anyone about what we did?’

‘No,’ she said as a shudder ran through her. Why would she want anyone knowing how weak and impulsive she’d been when she’d told all her friends after the Drew affair that she was steering clear of men for the foreseeable future? ‘I can barely believe it happened in the first place. It was so out of character.’

‘Good. I haven’t either.’ His jaw lost some of its rigidity, and his expression relaxed a fraction. ‘The way I see it is this. We hardly know each other. We’re not going to have sex again. We don’t even need toreferto it again. The conflict of interest is negligible. So negligible, in fact, that I don’t believe there even is one. So why should you be made to suffer for something that is ultimately irrelevant, when no one knows about it but us?’

Well, when he put it like that, he made a good case, she thought, nibbling her lip as she considered the arguments he’d used to bulldoze her objections.

Theydidn’tknow each other and ofcoursethey weren’t having sex again. She’d only ever intended it to be a one-time event. The reason she’d rejected his offer of a drink that night was because even though she’d instantly craved another hit of him, she’d sensed he was lethal. She’d suspected that if she everfound herself in an actual bed with him, she might never get out of it, and what impact wouldthathave had on her career? So the disappointment that was surging through her could take a hike. It wasn’t happening. Even if he hadn’t made it clear he had no further designs on her, at which she should be feeling relieved and not insulted, she had absolutely no desire for history to repeat itself by her mixing business with pleasure again and potentially sacrificing another promotion.

And itwasn’tfair that twenty minutes of madness a month ago should destroy all the progress she’d made and threaten her future. Especially since, this time, what had happened wasn’t even her fault. What they’d done togetherwasirrelevant. Itwouldn’thave any effect on her conduct or the outcome of the audit. Her impartiality and objectivity wouldneverbe at risk.

But what about her principles if she did decide to follow his lead and forget all about what they’d done? How could she treat them with such disrespect when they’d helped her to get where she was? When they’d been her guiding light for over a decade? It didn’t bear thinking about. Although, she wouldn’t be sacrificing them forever, observed the devil’s advocate in her head. She’d merely be temporarily setting them aside for the duration of this one crucial audit, upon which the future of her career depended. She could reclaim them the minute she finished here.

The only fly in the ointment would be the chemistry that unfortunately hadn’t diminished one little bit. Her every nerve ending was quivering in response to his proximity. Her temperature was sky high. She’d never considered a white shirt particularly sexy before, but right now she wanted to rip his open and get her hands on his skin.

However, it wasn’t as if they’d be having any further contact. This unfortunate meeting was just a courtesy, and once she and her team were set up in the basement or at the end of some darkdingy corridor, liaising directly with the finance department as per usual, she need never lay eyes on him again.

She deserved the opportunity to correct the mistake she’d made a year ago, and ceding control of her career to external forces again wasn’t the way to do that. Besides, if she didn’t stick with it, there’d be repercussions. She’d have to explain her decision to her colleagues. Her boss. She’d have to confess that, once again, she’d messed up again because of a man. She’d lose the respect she’d been fighting so hard to restore, and this time her career wouldn’t just be damaged, it would be over, because she wouldn’t be given another chance. She’d be out in the cold for good, and after everything she’d worked for, she simply could not contemplate it. No, she had to see this job through to the end. And shewouldsee this job through to the end.

‘All right then,’ she said, ruthlessly crushing the protest of her principles and channelling cool, clear-headed professionalism instead. ‘Just tell me where to go and we’ll get started.’

---