Page 3 of 2 Books in One Bundle

BYONE-FIFTYINthe morning, Mia had sent Hattie and the team home in the van and returned to the kitchen.

Earlier in the evening she’d assumed that round about this time of night she’d be spending a few moments alone, communing with an empty and peaceful space and reflecting on a job well done. She’d imagined excitedly counting down the minutes until two and at that point going in search of Zander, telling him exactly what she wanted and heading off with him for a magical night of hot, steamy sex.

Now, however, while she was certainly watching the clock, she would not be tracking him down any time soon. She would not be telling him anything and the only place she’d be heading was home. Alone.

Too agitated to even think about reflecting on tonight’s event with tranquillity and satisfaction, Mia paced the room and battled the urge to bang things together. Pans. Spoons. Her head against the wall.

She’d been such a fool, she inwardly railed as she ran out of space and spun on her heel to retrace her steps. And to think that not so long ago she’d been priding herself on her lack of stupidity. She was the absolute definition of it.

How could she ever have thought that sleeping with Zander would be a good idea?

She must have been out of her tiny little mind.

Because despite his coolly delivered observation when she’d handed him his dessert, the one that had upended her evening and made her feel somehowspecial, it had become blindingly obvious in the interim that she wasn’t. Remotely. He didn’t wanther. He just wanted someone to take to bed tonight, someone to extend his birthday celebrations with, most probably. And evidently he didn’t mind who.

Mia had nearly dropped the platter of truffles she’d been passing round when she’d caught him shooting come-hither smiles at certain female guests, a metaphorical crooking of his finger to which they’d instantly responded. What was going on? she’d wondered in a fluster of shock and confusion while just about managing to keep the professional smile pinned to her face. What had happened to two a.m.? Had he changed his mind? Was he playing some kind of game with her?

Well. She still had no answers to those questions, which had rocketed around her head for a good hour before she’d finally got a grip, but that was now fine because she was done with him. She was no one’s toy. Zander could take his pick of the floozies he’d surrounded himself with, every single one of whom had spent the latter part of the evening vying for his attention, which he clearly hadn’t mindedat allbecause he’d hardly been fending them off. In fact, he could have the lot of them.

That his rejection stung was ridiculous. Hadn’t she spent the last four monthsnotwanting his attention? Yes, she’d changed her mind at the last minute, but she was clearly too late and what else had she expected? He was a man driven solely by carnality, so of course he’d move on. And now she thought about it, whywouldn’the have pursued her in the time they’d been planning this party? She was, after all, a female with a pulse. No wonder he’d kept throwing her suggestive looks and seductive smiles. His urge to flirt was instinctive. Innate. He simply couldn’t help it.

But that was over. Once her invoice was settled, she need have nothing more to do with him. She would draw a line under everything and move on too. There was zero point wishing she’d accepted his invitation to dinner and slept with him when she’d had the chance and to hell with the consequences. Regret was a phenomenal waste of time. Tomorrow, work would return to normal, her own base desires would once again be back under her control, and she wouldn’t miss any of it, not the flirting, not the attention, nothing.

The clock struck the hour, heralding the end of their contract. Filled with grim resolve, Mia stalked out of the kitchen, down a service corridor and across the deserted lobby. She pushed open the door to the cloakroom that was bigger than her entire flat and far more lavishly appointed and strode into the softly lit space, only to come to a dead stop at the sight of Zander shrugging on his jacket.

‘What are you still doing here?’ she said tetchily because he was still the sexiest man she’d ever seen and she still wanted him with every fibre of her being, and despite the extremely stern talking-to she’d just given herself, sheachedwith disappointment.

‘I’ve just seen off the last of my guests,’ he said, his deep, gravelly tones irritatingly fluttering her stomach. ‘How about you?’

‘Finishing up in the kitchen.’

‘Thank you for your services this evening.’

She flashed him a tight smile and headed for the one remaining item on the gleaming brass rails—her coat. ‘No problem.’

‘The food was excellent.’

‘I’m pleased you enjoyed it.’

Blisteringly aware of his gaze tracking her every move, which was ironic when earlier he’d been so busy with his groupies he hadn’t so much asglancedin her direction, Mia wrenched the garment off the hanger and pulled it on. She wrapped one side tight over the other and with a sharp yank tied the belt.

‘Is something the matter?’

Annoyingly, she couldn’t help snapping her gaze to him, even though she knew her cheeks were tellingly flushed and if looks could kill he’d likely be dead, which wasn’t very professional, but professional was the last thing she was feeling right now. ‘Why would anything be the matter?’

‘I don’t know,’ he said coolly, reaching inside the sleeves of his jacket for the cuffs of his shirt and tugging them down. ‘But you seem...upset.’

Upset was far too anodyne a word for the tangle of emotions that she was struggling to contain. ‘I’m fine,’ she said with another stiff smile. ‘Just tired.’

‘How are you getting home?’

At one stage this evening she’d thought she’d be going home with him. God, she was a fool. ‘I’ll catch a cab.’

‘At this time on a Saturday night in central London?’

‘I’m prepared to wait if I have to.’

‘I’ll take you.’

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