Page 2 of A Powerful Attraction
“And Sherry?” Alex called out to her.
Halfway across the room, Sherry turned to face him.
He rose from the chair to his imposing height, at least five or six inches taller than her. “I’ll have Gina send over the rest of the details sometime this afternoon so you can review them before we get together on Monday.”
“Oh.” Sherry glanced at her watch. “I’m leaving work in a couple of hours to get ready for a full weekend. I have…big plans and, well, you don’t want to hear about that…” Flustered at the intent way he’d started looking at her, she let the words trail off.
“Big plans? A…date?”
“Um, yes, actually.”
Alex’s eyes narrowed slightly, and an odd silence overtook the room. “New boyfriend?”
“Um, yes.” His questioning made her uncomfortable and oddly, aroused at the same time.
He picked up his glasses but didn’t put them on. He stared at them in his hands. “He’s taking you to dinner, I suppose?”
“Yes. Dinner at my favorite restaurant and then a picnic on Saturday.”
Alex put on his glasses. She couldn’t read his expression, but his jaw had firmed and his eyes—they glinted with unexpressed emotion as the tension increased between them.
This wasn’t the first time there’d been tension between them. It appeared from time to time. In Sherry’s mind, it was from an unacknowledged attraction. Alex never touched her or made inappropriate remarks, but there were times when he looked at her in a certain way that made her wonder—did he feel it too? That surge of heat and longing that tormented her in his presence. Two years ago, within minutes of meeting and going through the interview process, that tension raised its ugly head, inexplicable and very present, like a shadowy specter between them.
“It’s been what, a year since the last guy, hasn’t it?”
Sherry blinked. “Yes, it has been,” she replied, embarrassed and surprised he knew anything about the breakup from her cheating ex a little over a year ago.
How could he possibly know any detail about her love life? She didn’t know anything about his, nor did anyone else on the staff, from what she could tell. No ring, so he was unmarried, and Sherry was close with his admin, Gina. She’d never divulged details about him sending flowers or other gifts to girlfriends. If he did, he took care of those tasks himself. There wasn’t even a whisper of a woman in his life.
“Have fun,” Alex said, though he didn’t sound or look like he meant it. His face remained expressionless.
“Thank you. I will.” Sherry turned around and hurried from the room.
* * *
Alex watchedSherry from his office window as she left for the day. She glided down the cement steps in front of the building, turned left, and disappeared from view.
So, she had a new man. He was surprised it had taken so long. She was an attractive woman, with sensual brown eyes and a broad, slightly upturned nose. Her skin was a lovely shade of light brown and always glowed like she’d recently come in out of the sun.
He’d known from the beginning that she’d experienced the same tug of attraction he did, but he’d feigned indifference as best he could, transforming into a stoic statue every time she came near. Pretending that her close proximity didn’t unnerve him, or that the scent of her perfume didn’t release a primal need to grab and claim her.
The pencil in his hand snapped, and Alex looked down at the two pieces. Sighing, he tossed them into the trash can beside his desk and took a seat in his executive chair. He removed his glasses and pinched his nose.
What had he been thinking? Common sense dictated that he steer clear of her, but he was clearly a masochist, because he’d assigned her to work on this project with him. Working with her was a bad idea. He wanted her too much, and nothing should happen between them.
So what if his loins ached every time her round hips wiggled by him in one of those hip-hugging pencil skirts? So what if he’d fantasized dozens of times about all the ways he could fuck her?
Alex groaned and stroked his semi-erect penis through his pants. He’d never before been tempted to sleep with an employee, but Sherry Westbrook tested his resolve every weekday from eight in the morning to five in the evening.
“Forget her,” he muttered.
There were valid reasons why they couldn’t cross the line, the most obvious being that she worked for him. Now she was seeing someone else, and frustration at his inability to act tensed his shoulders and made him want to punch the wall.
But what could he do?
Not a damn thing.
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