Page 8 of Beastly Mr. Buchanan
“About five one.Curvy.My age.Smiles a lot.”
The deep timbre of his words arrows straight to my problematic womb, scrambling my brain for an embarrassing moment.
He’s listing my attributes, although the word curvy is a little too generous for my excess weight.
I sigh and lift my eyes from my paper to meet his stare.
“Mr.Buchanan, I have already made myself clear.I am unavailable.I cannot help you if you won’t take this seriously.”
“I am serious,” he quips.
The bottom of my stomach drops.
Heisserious.Veryserious.
I set my notepad and pen in my lap before leaning forward and taking a chilled water bottle off the table.His eyes dip to my cleavage.Hunger darkens his gaze.My insides clench.
“Mr.Buchanan, even if I wasn’t in a relationship, I do not date clients.”I crack open the water and take a few sips.When I meet his eyes again, he lifts his gaze from my throat.His wicked thoughts shine from his intense grey orbs.Too afraid of drowning in his hunger, I turn to his grandmother.“I’m sorry, Ms.Murphy.I want to help you, but this isn’t—”
“I’m so sorry, Karey.May I call you Karey?”she asks.
I nod.She relaxes her shoulders and sends him a withering glance before scooting forward on her cushion and continuing.
“This must just be his new way of rebelling.I’ve tried for years to get him to date, but—”
“I’m aware of his reputation, Ms.Murphy,” I interrupt.
She grimaces and smooths her hair despite not a single strand being out of place.
“I’m certain you are, given your expertise.I apologize for his antics.Truly.Please don’t—”
“I am neither rebelling nor do I need you to apologize for me, Grandmother.I have always known what I want,” he turns and pins me in place with a challenging look.“Haven’t I, Karey?”
A band constricts my lungs.All the oxygen escapes the room.My head spins.
“Wait, do you know each other?”Eileen asks.
I peel my gaze off Declan’s and offer my friend a strained half-smile.
“We went to the same middle school,” I say.
Declan sighs and props his thick forearms on his even thicker thighs.
“We were more than that, and you know it, cupcake.”
Every cell in my body contracts.My ears ring.Teetering on the edge of a full breakdown, I ignore all sense of propriety and slam the water bottle down on the table as I stand.
Shoving my paper and pen into my purse to hide my trembling hands, I turn and address his grandmother with an apologetic smile.
Even in my distress, I can’t drop the godforsaken cheerfulness for fear of destroying my life’s work.
“I can send you recommendations and set up initial meetings, but I will not be attending them myself nor will I be available for face-to-face discussions in the future.”I take a deep breath and force myself to offer her my hand.She rises with impressive grace.
“It was wonderful to meet you,” I say in full business mode and slip my contact card into her hand before turning and sidestepping past Eileen.
I thank my friend for the introduction and promise to stay longer next time before exiting the room without a backward glance.
The day threatens to swallow me whole, so I take the hall to the side exit and step out into the wind before anyone stops me.I stomp down the sidewalk and seethe at his audacity.
