Emma’s moan of satisfaction immediately made him hard. Even though the source of her pleasure at the moment was chocolate hazelnut mousse, he could easily recall hearing that same sound when they’d shared his bed. Taking a sip of Dom Pérignon, he watched from below the rim of his flute. The more time he spent with her, the more he wanted from her. He wanted more than her sexual acquiescence; he wanted her affection, her trust, her loyalty. The strength of his desire surprised him.
“Hated the dessert, did you?” he asked, in a mock-serious tone.
She tossed him an accusing look. “How could I possibly turn down a meal from Allister’s? With that mousse.” She sighed. “I heard all kinds of terrifying things about your reputation, but nothing about how—” She broke off, frowning.
“About how?” he prompted.
“About how seductive you could be.”
“That’s because this is my first time at seduction. I don’t have a lot of practice,” he said, but she knew better.
“Right,” she said in disbelief. “You clearly have no experience.”
“Well,” he said, pouring the last of the champagne into her glass. “The truth is I’ve never seduced a coworker. Too messy. But something about you…”
Her heart turned over. “You flatter me.”
“No,” he said and clicked his flute of champagne against hers. “I’m just telling the truth. So are you going to put me out of my misery and come over here and kiss me?”
Emma felt a rush of heat. “You don’t look at all miserable.”
“But I am,” he said. “And you can save me from it.”
It was such a ridiculous notion that she could save such a powerful man as Damien from anything. But his tie was askew and his gaze said I want you. He always invited, and she found his invitations completely irresistible.
Rising from her chair, she went to him and bent over, pressing her mouth against his. He pulled her into his lap and she couldn’t muster a protest.
His arms felt wonderful. His mouth made her forget the rest of the world. She could almost believe that she meant something special to him. Almost…
He took his time kissing her, exploring her mouth, making her feel taken and powerful at the same time. How could that be?
Her temperature rose and she wanted more. She tugged at the buttons of his shirt and pulled at his tie. He made her blouse dissolve and soon enough her breasts were bare. He pulled her over his hard masculinity and thrust inside her.
Emma gasped. He groaned in pleasure and began to coach her to rise and fall in a rhythm that made her sweat with need. Straddling him, she felt her nether regions clench around him.
Sliding his fingers through her hair, he brought her lips to his as he thrust inside her. Her climax began in fits and starts. She didn’t think she could stand the sensations, but he kept on thrusting and she flew over the top. Seconds later, he followed, clenching her bottom, taking her mouth at the same time he took the rest of her, mind, body and, heaven help her, soul.
Breaths, minutes, centuries later, he held her against his chest, his heart beating against hers. “You leave first,” he whispered. “I don’t want people to gossip about you. If we leave together, they will. I’ll follow you back to your apartment to make sure you arrive safely.”
Still caught in the otherworld of their passion, Emma struggled to absorb his words. “Leave?” she echoed, lifting her head to meet his gaze.
He rubbed his finger over her lips and swore. “I want you again.”
What Emma wanted was to stay in his arms all night. Longer if possible. She took a deep breath to gather her wits. “Leave,” she said again.
“You first,” he said. “I’ll follow.”
Reluctantly, she stood, separating herself from him. Her knees dipped in protest, but he caught her. “Okay?” he asked.
“Getting there,” she said, but her mind was still muddy from passion. She grabbed her clothes and pulled them on. He did the same.
He looked into her eyes. “Do you need me to drive you home?”
She shook her head. “I’ll be okay.”
He paused a long moment. “I would rather you come back to my condo,” he said.
She shook her head again. “Not a good idea.”
He pulled her to him and took her mouth in a long, possessive kiss that rocked her world. Pulling away, he rubbed his thumb over her bottom lip. “You look like you’ve been thoroughly kissed.”
She licked her lips, her tongue glancing his finger.
He swore under his breath.
“I have been thoroughly kissed,” she whispered. “I should go.”
He swore again.
“G’night.”
Damien watched her leave, feeling a craving that went far beyond his groin, down to his bones. He couldn’t remember wanting a woman this much. He’d thought the weekend in South Beach would ease his ache, but it had only made it worse. He wanted her and was determined to have her.
As she walked out of Megalos-De Luca headquarters, Emma felt like a sexual goddess. And a tramp. This was insane, she thought as she got into her Tesla Roadster and started the engine. It couldn’t continue.
She took a deep breath and checked her rearview mirror, catching sight of her disheveled hair and swollen mouth. She had that just-got-out-of-bed look. Covering her eyes for a few seconds, she tried to gather her wits. She had gone totally over the edge with Damien.
Taking a deep breath, she pushed on the accelerator and drove out of the parking lot. Emma had kept herself in check for years. It had been a necessity with her mother’s difficulties, but something about Damien had tempted her enough to let down her guard. Now, she needed to put it back in place. After all, she was technically supposed to be spying on Damien for work, not spying on him naked.
Glancing in her rearview mirror, she saw Damien’s Ferrari. She needed to get control of this situation. Tomorrow, she told herself. Tomorrow would be the day.
The next morning, Damien arrived early, leaving a fresh bouquet of cream roses and forget-me-not flowers on Emma’s desktop. Emma was turning into a constant craving, and he needed to do something about it. He decided she should move in with him. He would hire her away from MD with a higher salary and keep her. Until he got her out of his system. When would that be?
Although he could tell she was inexperienced, he found her completely irresistible. Hearing the door open, he felt his gut knot at her presence. In a matter of seconds, he would see her, hold her, kiss her.
Her footsteps slowed outside his office door. “Damien?” she said.
“Come in,” he said, meeting her gaze.
She looked away. He noticed she wore a black dress and her face was pale with pronounced shadows under her eyes. She bit her lip.
His gut knotted again, this time in displeasure.
Taking a deep breath, she finally met his gaze. “I can’t keep doing this,” she said. “I’m just not cut out for an office affair. From now on, I have to keep our relationship strictly professional,” she said, her voice breaking. “Being involved with you personally is too overwhelming. I can’t think straight. I’m just not sophisticated enough to maintain this kind of affair.”
The pain in her eyes kept him from sinking into a vat of bitterness. She was afraid, and perhaps rightly so, of the passion that flared between them. She wanted a measure of safety, and to her, he represented a total free fall.
He couldn’t help, however, feeling disappointed. He knew she felt the same way he did. He knew he could make her take back those words right now if he wanted. Her vulnerability stopped him.
He had wanted her to choose him. He wanted her to open herself to him in every possible way. At the same time, he kept himself protected.
“I understand,” he finally said, but was determined that he would change her mind.
Twenty-four hours later, a call came in, chilling Emma to the bone. The voice mail had come through when she’d been in a meeting, taking notes for Damien.
“Sweetie,” her mother said, her voice breaking. “I’m so sorry, but I’ve gotten into trouble again.”
Within an hour, Emma learned her mother had latched on to Internet gambling and had lost a quarter of a million dollars. Emma was reeling.
The next day she went to work and tried to hide it, but her fear must have shown through her usual calm.
“What’s going on?” Damien asked.
“It’s personal,” she said, unable to meet his gaze.
He wheeled her chair around so that she was facing him and put his hands on the armrests. “You and I have gotten about as personal as a man and woman can get. Tell me what has upset you.”
Her stomach clenched and she bit her lip. She felt so ashamed and desperate. Even though she hadn’t been the one to gamble, she somehow felt responsible. “I need to sell the roadster.”
“Why?” he asked.
“Because I need the money,” she whispered.
“For what?”
She still couldn’t meet his gaze. “I just have to do it. Can you help me?”
He paused a beat. “Yes. What do you need?”
“A quarter of a million dollars,” she said, her throat constricting into a painful knot.
“What the hell would you need—” He broke off. “Your mother,” he said.
His correct guess immediately made her feel as if at least half a ton had been lifted from her shoulders. She took a deep breath and exhaled.
“How in the world did she get into gambling again? Didn’t you say she’d left Vegas?”
“Online gambling,” Emma told him and finally met his gaze. He saw a mixture of confusion and concern.
“Damn,” he said, raking his fingers through his hair. “You know the problem with bailing her out is—”
“It could happen again,” she said miserably. “But there’s no way she could pay this off on her own. And I’m terrified of what those loan shark lenders would do to her. What if they hurt her? What if they—” She couldn’t bring herself to say her worst fear.
“It’s clear that your mother has an addiction,” he said.
“Yes,” she agreed.
“I think the best plan would be to pay off her debts and get her into an intense treatment.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean I think she needs to go to a specialized treatment facility and stay until she’s truly strong enough to manage her addiction on an outpatient basis.”
Emma’s head spun at the prospect. “I don’t even know if such a facility exists. She’s not addicted to drugs.”
“I’m sure it exists,” Damien said. “We just need to find the most successful one.”
“That sounds expensive,” she said.
“The alternative isn’t cheap,” he pointed out.
She nodded in agreement. “I’m just not sure I can afford it.”
“I can,” he said.
Emma stared at Damien in amazement. “Pardon me?”
“I said I have enough money.” Damien gave a wry laugh. “I have money to burn.”
“But—”
“You and I can negotiate an arrangement.”
Emma frowned, feeling an undercurrent of fear and doubt. “Arrangement?”
“Very simple,” he said. “I pay off your mother’s debts, you keep your Tesla. You remain my lover and faithful, loyal assistant.”
Emma stared at him in disbelief. “You’re suggesting that I trade my loyalty in exchange for you paying for my mother’s mistakes?”
“I’ll compensate you in other ways financially, of course. Seems a fair trade to me,” he said.
Emma fought a wave of nausea. “So, I sell myself and my integrity for the sake of my mother.”
“That’s more harsh than it needs to be. You’ve been to bed with me. You know we can take care of each other.”
Squeezing her forehead, she bit her lip as she thought of the implications. “I would have no future with MD.”
“I would take care of you.”
“Until you grew tired of me,” she said, meeting his gaze. “How long do you propose for this to last?”
Silence swelled between them.
“Until you grow tired of me,” she repeated, her stomach twisting violently.
“Actually, I would say indefinitely,” he told her, leaning toward her. “I’ve never met a woman like you. A woman with your combination of qualities. I’m not sure I ever will again.”
She saw something in his eyes, want, need, that made his offer feel just a little more palatable. Yet…“I need to think about this,” she said.
“How much time do you have?”
“Not much with the people she owes,” Emma said. “The problem with bailing her out is that it doesn’t give her an opportunity to face her illness.”
He nodded. “That’s why she may need more than bailout money. Money for treatment. Think about it and let me know.”
Emma barely slept at all that night. She tossed and turned. How could she possibly sell her loyalty? Her integrity? The possibility sickened her. She struggled to find an alternative, any alternative, but all the possibilities left her in debt for the rest of her life with the chance that her mother would fall again.
Emma knew that her mother needed to face her creditors for herself and that a bailout was not going to help her mother take responsibility for herself. She just couldn’t imagine any other solution. Her mother would never make enough money to pay off her debt. What if her so-called creditors got rough with her? What if they killed her?
Emma wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she allowed that to happen. Her mother clearly needed intensive treatment, expensive treatment.
After an endless night, morning finally arrived and Emma applied blush and extra concealer to hide her stress and the dark circles under her eyes. Wearing a cream-colored business dress, she walked into the office, wishing she were wearing sunglasses. A little extra armor would be great. Damien was already in his office. No surprise there. She tapped on his door.
“Yes?” he said.
“It’s Emma.”
“Come in,” he said.
She walked inside, but didn’t take a seat. He rose, which forced her to look up to him.
“Good morning,” he said.
“The jury’s still out on that,” she said. “You’ve made me an offer. I’d like to nail down the terms.”
“I thought I made it clear. I’ll pay for your mother’s treatment and her debts in exchange for your loyalty as my assistant and my lover.”
“I’d like an expiration date on that,” she said.
He lifted his eyebrows in surprise. “Really?”
“Really,” she said.
“Okay. Two years,” he said.
“One,” she countered.
He paused. “Okay, but we both may want to renegotiate.”
“I just want the ground rules,” she said. “I’ll need to take a couple days off.”
“Fine. I’ll transfer the funds to whatever account you want.”
Emma felt another ball of nausea rise to her throat, but she took a deep breath to counter the terrible sensation. This was the best way out of a bad situation. She pulled out a deposit slip from her bank account and gave it to him. “Thank you,” she said in a low voice.
“Emma,” he said and she felt too much just from the way he said her name.
Shaking her head, she tried to get her emotions in check. “I have a lot of things to do. I’ll talk to you later,” she said and left his office.
She immediately took the elevator to the executive offices. Hearing the echo of her heels clicking down the hallway, she headed for Alex’s office first. She’d always felt Alex was a little more human than Max. It would be easier to tell Alex than Max. Unfortunately, according to his assistant, Alex wouldn’t be in today.
Gathering her courage, she walked to Max’s office. He, of course, was there, and immediately welcomed her.
“Good to see you, Emma. You’re doing a great job,” he said, motioning toward a chair in his office suite. “Great warning on the South Beach site. I think we were able to head off any objections from the board.”
“I can’t do this anymore,” she said, remaining standing.
He stared at her for a moment. “Excuse me?”
“I can no longer be a spy against Damien Medici. It’s too hard for me to try to be helpful to him at the same time that I’m supposed to be working against him.” Sensing Max’s extreme disappointment and disapproval, she felt her stomach twist and turn. “I’m sorry, but I just can’t do it. I understand if you want to release me.”
Silence sat in the room like a heavy, undigested meal. “No,” he said. “What we asked you to do would be difficult for most, impossible for many. Damien won’t be here forever. You’ve been a loyal employee. You’ll always have a job at Megalos-De Luca Enterprises as long as I have a say.”
“Thank you,” she said, feeling like a traitor. “That means a lot.”
Still sick with worry over her mother, Emma left headquarters and went to her apartment. The familiarity of her surroundings provided little comfort with her personal and professional life in such upheaval. Pulling out her laptop, she began to research the success rate of facilities designed to help people with gambling addictions. Within days, her mother’s debts would be paid, but the larger problem of her mother’s illness had to be addressed.
Later that evening as she ate a sandwich and checked flights going to Missouri, a knock sounded at her door. Emma rose and checked the peephole, surprised to see Damien, still dressed in the suit he’d been wearing that morning, on her doorstep. Struggling with an odd sense of combined relief and dread, she opened the door. “Hi.”
“Hi,” he said in return. “I thought I should check on you to see what your plans are.”
“Come in,” she said. “I was just looking at flights to Missouri. I’ve been doing some research on residential treatment facilities.”
“I asked my company assistant to do some research, too,” he said and pulled an envelope from his coat pocket. “Here’s a list of three that are reputable and have high success rates.”
Surprised at his thoughtfulness, she accepted the envelope. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. There’s no need to fly commercial. You can use my company jet.”
Emma shook her head. “That’s not necessary. I wouldn’t feel right about it.”
“I said I would take care of you,” he reminded her. “You don’t need to do this alone. I can come with you.”
Emma bit her lip and fought the strange urge to lean on his strength. She had no doubt that Damien could take care of her. Heaven help her, this situation was complicated. The problem with letting him take care of her was that she dare not get used to it.
“No. It’s best if I handle this myself. You’re already contributing too much financially,” she said.
“Emma, you haven’t made a deal with the devil,” he told her. “Look at me. You can count on me.”