Page 23 of Tempting Her Forbidden Boss

* * *

Alex checked his watch again. He’d been stuck behind his desk for hours—hadn’t gone down to the floor. No point. She wasn’t there.

He should be feeling great. The situation with Dani was resolved, right? Now he could concentrate on far more important matters—like figuring out what he was going to do, whether he had any real right to be the boss at the bank. But his brain was stuck on one track. If he so much as thought of her his body went rock-hard. The things he wanted to do… but he hadn’t taken her to his home to jump her bones the minute he had the chance, except the ache in his body had made him make moves and he’d loved every moment of touch and tease between them.

So had she. She couldn’t deny the heat in her gaze, the reaction of her body—and she hadn’t tried to. But she didn’t want to act on it. And that got him.

He could kind of understand it. Her life was messed up enough—and in large part because of him. So succumbing to the lust—seducing her—just wasn’t on, even though he knew it wouldn’t take much to make it happen. But while Alex liked to play, he wanted an equally enthusiastic playmate.

Until she stepped up to the plate, he was standing back.

And she was a flatmate now, right? He knew the rule as well as she did—don’t screw the crew.The one everyone learnt while flatting at university. Alex didn’t mess around at work, and he sure as hell wasn’t messing with someone in his own home.

He really shouldn’t have taken her back there.

His phone rang, he glanced at the caller ID and congratulated himself on programming Patrick’s mobile number in, because, nope, he was not answering. Alex wasn’t ready to talk to him—maybe wouldn’t ever be. What did the man expect—that he could back walk into his life, say, ‘Hey, by the way, I’m your father, let’s be friends.’ As far as Alex was concerned, Patrick could stay in Singapore, where he had his luxury pad, a zillion servants and even more women. And if his conscience had started to prick him, too bad. Alex had no intention of making it easy for him. He took in a deep breath. He was too angry and he’d really rather channel that energy elsewhere.

He toyed with his pen and wondered what she was doing. He didn’t like not being able to check on her. But Lorenzo could. Alex tossed the pen down as he realised he didn’t like that, either. Lorenzo was a good-looking guy. Lorenzo liked women. And they liked him more.

He picked up the phone. His buddy-suddenly-turned- nemesis answered after one ring.

‘How’s she doing?’ Alex skipped the preliminaries.

‘I don’t know. Fine, I’m sure.’

Alex frowned and spun his chair to look out the window—he could see the warehouse in the distance. ‘Haven’t you been to check?’

‘I’ve got work to do so, no, I haven’t. Do you want me to put you through to her phone?’

‘No.’ Silence. But Alex couldn’t let it go yet. ‘Why haven’t you been to check?’

‘What do you think I am—stupid?’ Lorenzo grumbled. ‘I’m not going anywhere near my best friend’s latest lover.’

‘She’s not my lover.’

‘Only a matter of time. Minutes. A few hours at the most.’ Lorenzo chuckled. ‘Breathe easy, brother.’

Alex sighed, then puffed out a smidge of amusement. ‘Sorry.’

They had never competed over a woman—had never had to given they went for totally different types. And until this second Alex had thought he’d walk away from any woman who threatened to come between him and Lorenzo— no hesitation. But Dani was different. The lust he felt for her made him want to fight his closest friend—the need was that sharp. But it seemed Lorenzo knew him better than he knew himself and was keeping far, far away.

So he could breathe easy? Yeah, as if that were possible when he had temptation-on-legs living in his town house and a bad case of honour afflicting him.

For the first time in ages he left the office for lunch—wandered down to the little exclusive line of shops round the block—an idea bubbling at the back of his brain. He didn’t bother going back up to the office, got the car and went to the warehouse early to pick her up instead. Lorenzo was on the phone and waved his hand towards the stairs.

He could hear her voice. Given that Cara finished up early afternoon, he knew she was on a call. He hovered outside the door so he wouldn’t interrupt her.

‘But this is my brother. Doesn’t that count for something?’

Oh, it was a personal call. Alex stilled completely. He shouldn’t listen. He’d done it before and suffered—losing the last of his childhood innocence as he’d realised his mother was having an affair. He didn’t know who the lover she’d been talking to was—hadn’t registered the extent of it, certainly hadn’t dreamed there’d be that direct implication for him. Not then. But it had been a bitter enough pill. He’d been so angry with her—disrespecting her so much that Samuel had sent him to boarding school. The blindness of the man he’d thought was his father—whom he’d loved as his father—had made Alex even angrier.

So given what he knew about listening in to other people’s conversations, he should walk down the hall and give Dani some privacy now. But his feet wouldn’t move.

‘But our mother is dead. How can she file the request when she’s dead?’

He heard her sigh.

‘But how can I find him if I can’t get the paperwork from you?’

---