Rafe rubs his hand across his jaw. He’s so freaking … sexy … it’s overwhelming me. His cinnamon skin, the stubble of his beard. I can just tell it’ll be rough and might even hurt a little. His mouth, his thick hair, his dark blue eyes rimmed with thick black lashes. The man is an absolute specimen of hot sin and alpha male energy. And let’s be clear about one thing: I’m not usually the type of girl who goes around thinking about alpha male energy or hot sin. Until now, apparently. “I do require that whoever I hire must be available immediately.”
“I’m available whenever you want me.” Oops. I realize the double entendre only after I make the comment, of course. Clearly my brain has turned to mush. My cheeks burn. “I meant, of course, that I’m available whenever you decide you’d, um, like me to start, if you want to hire me, that is.”
“It’s a demanding job. Long hours. I need someone who can basically be at my beck and call, at any hour of the day or night. We have affiliates in New York, London, Paris, Sydney, and so on, so we’re a 24-hour business. It can be hard on … significant others, if you were to be working a lot.”
“I don’t have a significant other. I have a roommate, but she’s busy most of the time, building her business.”
“Good,” he says, and his smug charisma hits me in the low pit of my stomach. God, he’s so freaking cocky. And it’s doing things to me I can’t even begin to describe. “There will be times when you’ll be required to travel with me. Frequently, in fact. Do you like to travel?”
“I haven’t really had much opportunity to travel.” I don’t tell him that I never had the money. Or, that as a graduation present to myself, I decided to get my passport issued. Or, that it had just been delivered in the mail. Last week, in fact. “But I’ve always wanted to.”
“Perfect.” Rafe tops up our glasses. Then he reaches for a pen and a small piece of paper. He scrawls some numbers onto the paper and hands it to me. “This is the starting salary. Negotiable, of course. I’ll cover all business-related expenses. You’ll have a driver, and an expense account, if you agree to take the position. In addition, my apartment is in this building, and I have an adjoining studio apartment available for your use, if you have need of it from time to time, which you will, when I require you to work late.”
I glance at the number he’s written and hold back a gasp, wondering if my eyes are deceiving me. It’s more than triple what I might have expected to earn from an assistant’s job. A salary this generous will allow me to pay off my student loan within two years, especially if I can cut down on other expenses. Which I’ll clearly be able to do, with all that he’s offering me.
“What do you say, Lexi?”
“I say … yes. This is absolutely my dream job. Thank you so much, Mr.—”
“Rafe.”
His black-satin voice seems to penetrate the air as a physical force, touching me and ruffling me. How does he do that? “Rafe.”
He smiles. “It’s settled, then.”
This is happening so fast. I can’t believe I just got hired. By Downtown. More specifically, by its drop-dead gorgeous CEO.
Rafe places his glass on the table and leans in his chair. As he moves, I catch a light whiff of his scent. He smells of soap and mint and raw masculinity. And there’s more to it. Something elusive and outrageously, crazily appealing. The light-musked spice unfurls something in me, intoxicating me along with the champagne. My nerves are gone now, replaced by … sweet, soft, brimming heat. I feel reckless and a little crazy, if you really want to know.
My eyes rove down his long, powerful body and—holy hell. It’s obvious that he’s getting as worked up as I am. His … the front of his pants … is straining … unbelievably … almost like it might … bust out …
I can’t handle this.
What would it feel like?
Lexi. Stop. Right now. Seriously. “When … w-would you like me to start?”
“How about right now?”
Our gazes meet. I’m having trouble breathing in enough air. I want to breath his air, his breath. That scent of him, that one hit, was not enough.
He leans closer. His dark eyes are burning with some unfathomable emotion.
Then, his hand lifts, brushing against an end strand of my hair.
He’s touching me.
His fingers twirl around a soft lock of my hair, forming a lightly ensnaring hold. Very gently, he pulls.
I follow his pull. My self-control has been obliterated. I want this job, but even more, I want him. Sensing my consent, he pulls me closer, and closer, until my mouth is close to his. My nipples peak into tight little buds of sensation. Concentrated lust seemed to center there, and radiates slowly through my body in shimmery, uninhibited waves.
His lower lip is close to my mouth, as plump as ripe fruit. I’m high from his effect, and so desperate for more of that scent and the taste of him, I can’t control it. This lust. This craving. It’s bigger than me.
“Lexi.” The whispered word is so dark, so deep. “I wasn’t expecting—” He stops, his breathing heavier, as though he’s conflicted.
I have no idea what’s happening to me, but whatever it is, it’s profound. I’m falling. That’s the only way to describe it. I can’t stop it. And I don’t want to.
When his mouth brushes against my lips in a feather-light kiss that promises so much more, I touch my tongue to the rounded curve of his lip. He groans, and his fingers graze my nipple through the soft fabric of my dress. He teases it between his thumb and fingers, kneading it into a ripe bud. Searing sensation surges through my body.
Oh my God. This is really happening.
I gasp as he pinches tighter, rolling my aching flesh more insistently, controlling me entirely with his touch.
“Lexi,” he says again, against my mouth. He cups my breast in his warm palm, squeezing lightly. “Fuck.”
I get what he means. The ferocious urges of my body are driving me, and I realize with a tiny shred of concern that’s swept away by an ocean of surrender that I’ll do anything he asks. Anything. His effect is flooding me with fire.
He pulls at the knot of my dress, untying it. The fabric falls open to reveal my breasts. They feel full and soft. The rosy hue of my swollen nipples looks almost—and this isn’t something I’d usually stop to consider—sultry against the pale white of my skin. I feel more beautiful than I’ve ever felt in my life. Because of him and the way he’s looking at me. Like he wants to eat me alive.
Rafe makes a soft, savage sound. He seems overcome. He’s torn, I can see, by the thought of taking advantage of me, his new, young assistant, if he’ll even hire me now. It’s a strange and sudden turn of events, and completely unexpected. But I’m too far gone to allow his internal dilemma to steal from me this stunningly needy anticipation. I don’t care. I want him.
“Lexi. Do you want this?” His voice is low and deep and so appealing it pushes me past some barrier of self-control. “Tell me to stop and I will.”
No. Don’t stop. No stopping.
Very lightly, I brush my lips against his again. As soon as I do, his tongue sinks into my mouth, hungrily, filling my entire being with want. I suck on his tongue, gently greedy, desperate to take more of any part of his body into mine.