Page 6 of Come Away With Me (The Andrades 1)
Down, libido. There are reasons why this man is off limits.
Good reasons.
I can’t think of any right this minute, but they will come to me.
The room around them disappeared. Everything beyond him faded into the background—insignificant when compared to how he made her feel. Is this the zing people speak of?
“Did you make your date last night, Miss Bennett?” he asked.
Julia swallowed nervously. “It wasn’t a date. Well, it shouldn’t have been a date. It was supposed to be a business opportunity, but . . .” She let her words trail off as she realized she was rambling. She cleared her throat. “Yes, I made it there on time.”
“I’m relieved to hear it. I’d hate to think that your job here impeded your social time.”
“It doesn’t,” she said quickly before she realized he was being sarcastic. Since she’d only worked for her parents, Julia wasn’t used to having a boss. She didn’t hide her irritation with him. “I was scheduled to leave early.”
He studied her for a moment, then said, “You didn’t recognize the CEO of the company you work security for. And then you attacked me.” He touched his bruised temple. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t fire you.”
His brusque tone increased Julia’s nervousness. She reminded herself what his secretary had said: He’s all growl and no bite. I wonder if he’s the same in bed, because that would be a shame. A nip from him might be nice. She bit her lip and chastised herself. Stop that. This is serious. In desperation, she said the first repeatable thing that came into her head. “Because I’ve proven that I’m serious about defending your office?”
He frowned. “Do you find this situation amusing, Miss Bennett?”
No, just my reaction to you. Julia lowered her eyes and remembered how he’d looked in his workout clothes. She’d thought he looked sexy in those, but he also looked amazing in a suit. I bet he’s one of those lucky few people who also look good naked. Not everyone can pull that off, but I bet he does. “No, Mr. Andrade.”
“Do you believe that you’re suited for your job?”
Julia look up and met his eyes. “It’s not hard. It’s just watching the monitors. Nothing happens at night so it gives me plenty of time to read.”
He cocked his head to one side and narrowed his eyes. “While you’re working?”
She played her comment back in her head and groaned. “That didn’t come out right. Of course I don’t read in the surveillance room. If I did, I wouldn’t be watching the monitors, would I? And I watch them. Very closely. All night.” She rounded her eyes innocently for emphasis.
He leaned in and looked as if he was about to say something, then changed his mind. “That’s all, Miss Bennett.”
Unsure of what that meant, Julia didn’t move. “I’m sorry?”
“You can go now.”
She turned to leave, then turned back and asked, “Do I still work here?”
He covered his eyes with one hand and rubbed them as if her question caused him pain. “Yes.”
Not giving him time to change his mind, Julia fled from his office. As she rushed by Rena’s desk, the secretary asked, “So, how did it go?”
“Hard to say,” Julia said and kept walking. As long as he can’t read minds I’m in the clear.
Chapter Four
Gio fought and won against the desire to call her back in. I shouldn’t have brought her up here in the first place. I should have called the head of security and let him deal with it.
But I had to see her again.
He’d wanted to reassure his cock that she was nothing special. See, just another woman. Unfortunately, for reasons he couldn’t explain, she was more than that. When she spoke he had a difficult time concentrating on anything beyond how she would cry out in that sweet voice, begging him to go deeper, while he pounded into her.
Around her, he felt dangerously impulsive, and that was completely uncharacteristic of him. In his family, he was the reliable one. He had taken over Cogent Solutions after his father’s death because he’d been the natural choice, not because it was something he wanted. No one had debated the decision or asked how he felt about it. He hadn’t even asked himself.
Family was about duty—sustaining and protecting it.
Decisively.
Orderly.
The women he dated understood that he didn’t want more than a casual, sexual relationship. They didn’t ask questions, they didn’t sleep over, and when it was over they moved on to another wealthy man. No hard feelings. No complications. Jealousy was for men who couldn’t find another woman, and that had never been a problem for Gio.
He was generous with the women he dated. He gave them enough jewelry to make even the most jaded of them smile. He took them to the posh places wealthy people went when they wanted to be seen. The society pages in almost any city he visited ran photos of him with whomever he was dating. To many of these women, their representation in the media was more important than what happened behind closed doors. It was a reality of his world and something he accepted.
The papers called him one of Manhattan’s most eligible bachelors. His friends called him lucky. He didn’t feel one way or another about either title.
In private affairs as well as in business, the one with the clear head won. Emotions were a distraction. They led to chaos and poor decisions.
Speaking of chaos.
He touched the small mark on his temple and smiled.
What is wrong with me? Instead of firing her, I just stood there imagining what it would be like to bend her over the back of that couch and claim her as mine. His half-cocked erection was an uncomfortable reminder of the intensity of his attraction to her.
She’s off limits.
She works for me, for God’s sake.
Forget her.
Gio walked back to his desk and tossed Julia Bennett’s folder on top of the others. He threw himself into work for the next several hours, only checking his watch when he noticed the sun had gone down. Nine o’clock. He stood and stretched.
Rena would be long gone. Thank God. He didn’t want to discuss anything from the night before with her.
He called downstairs to have his car brought around to the front. He often left the building through the lower garage, but tonight he decided to leave through the front foyer. He paused in front of the security station. The two temporary security guards looked fresh from military training. They stood as soon as they saw him exit the elevator.
He nodded to them and couldn’t help scanning the area behind them. One of the doors behind them led to the surveillance room, but he wasn’t sure which one. Julia Bennett was back there somewhere.
Reading, probably.
He shook his head ruefully.
He should be irritated by that knowledge, but instead he wondered what topics held her interest. He forced himself to walk away, even though, he admitted, he really wanted to find her and ask her.
Ridiculous.
Julia sighed audibly as she watched Gio Andrade leave the building on one of the monitors. He probably always walked through the foyer, but she let herself imagine he’d done it because he’d wanted to see her again.
There is nothing wrong with a healthy fantasy life, as long as you don’t act upon it. Julia chuckled. She felt like she was back in high school, suffering from her first big crush. The difference was, no crush had ever made her feel quite so much like ripping her clothing off.
Maybe my menstrual cycle is going haywire. She’d read a study done on women during different times of the month. During ovulation, they were attracted to strong, aggressive men. The narrator had claimed this was due to an instinct to mate with the hardiest of the breed. Later in the month, women would find nicer, softer men attractive. No, I’m pretty sure I’d think he’s hot every day of the month.
Her usual motivational reading material was put aside for the night. Instead, she used her phone to do an Internet search on the man she couldn’t get out of
her head. Interestingly enough, there were very few articles of substance on him. Almost every article had featured him with a new woman on his arm. Gio taking an heiress to the ballet. Gio and a movie star at a fund-raiser. The cameras loved him. No matter how hard she searched, she’d yet to come up with an embarrassing photo, or anything that mentioned how he’d made his money.
