Page 29 of One Night in My Rival's Bed

I turned up at Grayson’s office the following evening, but his secretary informed me he was still with a client.

‘He’s running over time, but he shouldn’t be too much longer. Would you like a drink while you wait?’ she asked.

‘I’m fine, thank you.’ I sat in the waiting area on a butter-soft leather sofa and picked up one of the glossy magazines, leafing through the pages without much concentration. I was trying to be cool and calm about seeing Grayson in a work capacity, but it was hard to get the memory of his intimate touch out of my head. I put the magazine down and glanced around my surroundings instead. Fresh flowers were on the glass and marble coffee table next to the stack of magazines. Plush cream carpet covered the floor, and the furniture was modern and stylish and luxuriously comfortable. In fact, so comfortable, I had sunk so far down into the caramel-coloured leather sofa I was wondering how I was going to get out of it.

Soft carpet notwithstanding, I heard Grayson’s slightly uneven footsteps coming towards me. I looked up and gave him a formal smile. ‘How’s your day been?’

‘Busy. Yours?’

‘So-so.’ I tried to rise from the sofa without success.

‘Here, let me help you.’ He offered me his hand and, with only a moment’s hesitation, I placed my hand in his warm strong one. A shiver cascaded down my spine and a flashpoint of heat shot to my core. His fingers were firm around mine—they had to be in order to get me out of the sofa—as he pulled me to my feet. I was standing almost toe to toe with him, and I forgot how to breathe. His aftershave teased my nostrils and I ached to lean closer to feel his arms go around me as they had the other night.

‘Thank you,’ I said. ‘Erm...you can let go of my hand now. I promise I won’t fall over.’ I’m not sure I could promise that—my legs weren’t feeling too steady. Just being in his presence was enough to undo me, ligament by ligament.

‘Oh, sorry.’ He pulled his hand away as if he had forgotten he had been holding it. ‘Come this way.’ On the way past his secretary’s desk, he said, ‘You can go now, Caroline. Thanks for staying back.’

‘No problem,’ Caroline said with a smile that encompassed me as well.

I walked with Grayson down the wide corridor to his office. He pushed open the door and indicated for me to go in first and I stepped past him and swept my gaze over the layout. Floor to ceiling windows overlooking the River Thames took up one side of his office, and on another side was floor to ceiling bookshelves. A couple of pieces of artwork hung on one wall and his qualifications hung on the other, but somehow I suspected they were there to reassure his clients that he had the necessary qualifications, rather than from any personal pride in his achievements. I scanned every surface but couldn’t see any of the architectural awards he had won.

‘Would you like a drink before we get started?’

‘Erm, what were you thinking of having?’ I asked.

His eyes drifted to my mouth and my stomach somersaulted. ‘If I told you that, we might not get any work done.’ There was a gleam in his grey-blue gaze that sent another shiver rolling down my spine.

I moistened my suddenly dry lips, my heart picking up its pace. ‘I thought we weren’t going to mention what happened the other night.’ My voice came out a little husky and breathless.

Grayson came to stand right in front of me. He was so close I could smell the sharp citrus notes of his aftershave and the clean laundered fragrance of his shirt. He picked up a loose strand of my hair and tucked it gently behind my ear and my legs almost folded beneath me at his touch. ‘We can tweak the rules a bit.’

‘We can?’

‘If you want to.’

‘Do you want to?’ My voice was still too breathless, too husky, too desperate.

His eyes moved back and forth between each of mine before dipping once more to my mouth. ‘I want to.’ His hands came down to settle on my hips and he tugged me closer until I was against the firm wall of his body. ‘God, how I want to.’ And then his mouth covered mine.

It was a kiss that sent rivers of fire through my blood and flames of need through my body. His tongue flirted with mine in an erotic dance that stirred my senses into overdrive. I was addicted to the taste of him, the hint of mint and good quality coffee that was my new passion.

He groaned as he deepened the kiss, and I made some breathless sounds as his tongue mated with mine. He finally lifted his mouth away, his hands still holding me by the hips. ‘I told myself this wasn’t going to happen.’ His voice was deep and rusty, his breathing almost as ragged as mine. ‘I told myself it mustn’t happen.’

‘We’re both consenting adults, right?’

His eyes held mine in an intimate lock. ‘I don’t do relationships. This can only be a fling.’

‘I don’t do relationships either.’

He studied me for a beat. ‘I couldn’t get you out of my mind.’

‘Nice to know I left a lasting impression.’

He gave a crooked smile and tugged me even closer. I could feel the delicious ridge of his erection and my body secretly prepared itself. ‘I want you.’

‘I want you too.’ I moved against him and added with a sultry smile, ‘I’m just better at hiding it.’

He growled against my mouth, and I opened to him again. His kiss was even more passionate, and I was with him all the way. One of his hands slid up my ribcage to settle just below my breast. It was the most exquisite torture to have his hand so close to my tingling flesh. But I liked that about him, that he didn’t rush things. He took his time unravelling me, as if it gave him pleasure to pleasure me. Somehow, we managed to get our clothes off, and I was shocked again at how comfortable I was with him seeing me naked. I couldn’t hide anything from him, and nor did I want to.

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