“The cars will take you home,” Tristan informs us as we walk out of Maria’s house onto the street where the two Aston Martins we came in sit parked.
“That’s not necessary for me,” I respond politely. “I’ll take the underground.”
The drivers are waiting outside the cars. Panic sets in as I lock eyes with the driver of the car I hadn’t arrived in. It’s George, Tristan’s driver who I did the drive of shame with from the Rosemont Hotel. His brow furrows as he tries to remember how I’m familiar to him. I return a strangled smile.
“I insist.” It’s not open for negotiation. “Lisa, Adi, take the first car. Elly, get in the second car. George is going southbound.”
The others shrug and get in the first black Aston Martin.
I give in, deciding it’s not worth the fight, and climb into the back seat of the second car. This is going to be a long drive.
George climbs into the driver’s seat. “Are we heading to Tooting, Elly?”
Before I can open my mouth to speak, the opposite door opens and Tristan climbs in.
“You can have this car,” I stammer, my hand latching on the door handle. “The underground is fine for me.”
“Stay,” he growls with such ferocity I freeze. He makes himself comfortable by spreading his thighs wide. His trouser covered knee brushes against my bare knee and I flinch.
“Most people would appreciate airtime with the owner of the company,” he mutters.
I bite my lip to stop what is in my head from shooting out my mouth. I need to be careful here. He’s still the boss. He could make or break my legal career.
I focus on a spot above George’s ear.
“Where do you live?” Tristan asks.
“Tooting,” I reply, trying to sound natural. “But you already knew I was travelling south.”
He leans forward. “George, we’ll drop Elly first in Tooting, then you can drop me off.”
George twists around in the seat to face his boss. “Sir, can I get a second car for Elly? That would be much more convenient for you.”
“One car is fine,” Tristan responds, his tone laced with irritation. “South London first.”
George looks confused but quickly turns in his seat and revs up the engine.
“Water?” Tristan offers me a closed glass bottle.
“Thanks.” My voice comes out breathy.
As he hands it to me, his fingers brush against mine.
I stare out the window at the roadworks trying to calculate how long the journey to Tooting will take.
“I would prefer not to have a conversation with the side of your face.”
I force my gaze from the window.
“That’s better.”
“Mr. Kane,” I start briskly, deciding to use this airtime with the CEO to my advantage. “Do you have advice for me starting out? Is there anything I should focus on in my first year? Or areas I should research? I know data protection and GDPR are boring topics, but they seem so important these days no matter what sector you’re—”
“Elly,” he cuts me off softly. “If you want mentoring, I’ll give you all the mentoring you need. That’s not what I’d like to talk to you about now.” He presses a button to his right, and a divider starts rising, separating us from George.
“What are you doing?” I ask in a shrill voice as the divider closes at the roof of the car.
“It’s soundproof.”
I shoot him a look. “And that’s not at all creepy?”
He shrugs. “It’s for confidential calls and conversations, that’s all. George is used to it.” He drapes his arm across the back seat so that his hand is dangerously close to my neck. “Do you want me to put it down again? I will if that’s what you want.”
I shake my head.
“You seem to have gotten the wrong impression of me. I want to rectify that.”
“Oh really?” I raise a brow. “So, seeing you play happy family the same day as we had sex in the morning gave me the wrong impression?” Heat floods my face at the memory of that morning. He made me come twice. I take a large sip of cold water.
His eyes fill with frustration. “Yes, actually it did.”
I fold my arms across my chest. “Why did you and Gemina split up?”
He sighs softly. “So, it’s still about my marriage.” His jaw tightens like I’ve hit a massive nerve.
He doesn’t speak for a long moment.
“She cheated on me with some rich old fuck.”
“A richer older fucker than you?”
“Ouch.” He chuckles. “Always the smartass. That hurt. I tried to search for you. I thought you’d be easy to find. Not having a second name didn’t help. They wouldn’t disclose your contact details at Swansea University because of data protection.”
“I thought you didn’t want to talk about data protection,” I say dryly. “Contacting my university could be considered romantic or stalkerish depending on your point of view. What would a court say?”
“It was a risk I was willing to take. Would you have preferred I forgot about you and moved on?”
I don’t respond.
His fingers lightly touch the base of my neck sending a shiver coursing through me. I shift in my seat. He’s only touching my neck but with the way I’m breathing you’d think he’s giving me a tantric massage.
“Elly.” His quiet voice broke the silence. “What’s stopping you from giving me a chance?”
I ignore my common sense and lean into his touch sending a trail of goose bumps down my body.
His eyes fix on mine telling me he knows exactly the effect he’s having on me.
“I’m not risking my first job on a fling,” I say, my voice shaky. “It’s not the boss that loses out in these situations. What’s going to happen to you, you get a warning? You get fired?” I let out a humourless laugh. “Me? I’ll be the office gossip until the next poor sod sleeps with the wrong person or sleeps with you.”
“I haven’t dated an employee before you,” he states simply. “We don’t know that this will just be a fling.”
I eye him sceptically.
“Am I so far off the mark?” he asks when I don’t respond. “If I recall correctly, you came on to me.” He winks. “There was even some begging involved.”
I narrow my eyes and open my mouth then snap it closed again. Actually, I couldn’t deny that.
“You could ruin my career,” I whisper. “You have the power to.”
“I could,” he agrees. “But I’ve no intention of doing that. I keep my personal life separate from my professional life. I expect you to be able to also. If we date and it doesn’t work out or if you cheat on me, that’s not a reflection on your professional ability. Your reputation won’t be impacted.”
I stare at him, deadpan. If I cheat on him?
“Why are you on this case, Tristan?” I ask. “And more importantly, why am I on this case?”
“You’re a junior lawyer. We always have the juniors shadow cases like this. You told me in Mykonos you wanted to experience criminal law. Aren’t you an obvious fit?”
My eyes narrow. What bullshit.
“Do you want to be taken off the case? If that’s what you really want, it’s done.”
“No.”
“Good.” He smiles at me. “Do you think about me, Elly?”
I don’t answer him.
“Have you thought about our nights together?”
“No,” I whisper, turning towards the window. I won’t disclose that my vibrator is named after him.
“Your face says otherwise.”
I roll my eyes. “There are pictures of you all over the internet with different women. Don’t tell me you’ve been pining for me. Is this how you woo women?”
His lips twitch. “So, you did some research on me. Don’t believe everything you read. Stories are exaggerated. I’m often photographed at events. And it’s not a line. I think about you all the time.”
I rub my hands down my dress and stare back at him. “Oh, really? What do you think about?”
My traitorous eyes travel down his broad shoulders and wide chest ogling every muscle along the way until they land on his thighs. They are clothed in an expensive tailored suit that did nothing to stop the memories flooding back. I loved his naked thighs. They made me feel small and feminine.
He waits until I meet his gaze before he talks. “I haven’t seen you in months but I can still remember your body like it was yesterday. I think about that first night, in the water. Your underwear was soaked through, showing me every curve, every line of your beautiful body. I was so turned on, I wanted you there and then.” His lips twitch at the corners. “Should I go on?”
No, throw me out the fucking window. It’s been months since I had sex. If he were to invite himself up my dress right now, I’m not sure I would have the willpower to resist.
I keep my eyes trained on his, afraid to breathe.
“You took my goddamn breath away. Then you let me, no, invited me to touch you. You were so wet, so ready for me. Those little breathy moans you made ruined me.”
My heart slams in my throat as I hang on every word.
“In the hotel room, you came over and over again, clenching on me like you couldn’t get enough. I can picture it so vividly.”
My eyes widen. This man should be a narrator for an erotic novel. I try to steady myself. If I attempt to talk, I’m not sure what will come out.
“I’ve thought about you every night since. I need to taste you again, Elly.” It sounds like a demand more than a request.
“What?” I squawk. How can he be so comfortable while I’m the opposite? I jabber at the window switch to put the window down. I need to let out some of this sexual tension. It’s too hot in this big black car. My bare legs feel taut and sweaty against the leather upholstery. I need fresh air fast.
He doesn’t take his eyes off me. “If I had my way, I would take you back to mine and spend the entire night reminding you how good I can make you feel. But first, I would make you beg. Tease you until you can’t take it anymore. Then I would spend hours making you come so hard that everyone in London hears you screaming.”
My treacherous legs part. I can’t think past the carnal urge to act out his story.
One of his brows rise. “You want that too, Elly, don’t you?”
Fuck yeah, I want that. My body is craving, aching for him to touch me there. I put the bottle to my lips hoping he doesn’t notice my shaky hand and resist the urge to pour the cold water over my head.
“It’s just sex,” I say in a hard tone.
He looks at me as if he’s considering the statement. “No.” His mouth quirks. “My little stress ball. Let me take you to dinner. The date we had in Mykonos…I can’t forget it easily. I want that again. So do you, Elly. It’s written all over your face.”
I take a deep breath. “I can’t,” I whisper. “How many women have you had sex with since me?”
He runs his tongue over his teeth. “Why does that matter? I’m single.”
It matters to me.
“You expected me to stay celibate waiting to find you, Elly?” His voice softens. “I have needs. Look, I won’t be pursuing anyone else when I’m with you. It’s you I imagine lying on top of me every night. It’s you that I can’t get out of my head.”
I swallow hard.
“Give me one chance,” he says finally. “If you tell me you aren’t interested, then I’ll leave you alone.”
The car slows to a halt outside my house. I hadn’t even realised we were on my street.
“Where do you live?” I ask curiously.
He looks sheepish. “Holland Park.”
“Holland Park?” I stare at him as my brain misfires. “But we’ve just come from there.”
“I took the scenic route home,” he admits. “Seems I enjoy the scenery in Tooting. So, Elly?” He asks like a boss instructing a subordinate, not a man asking a woman on a date. “Shall I pick you up at eight for dinner?”
I summon every ounce of willpower I have left.
“It’s not a good idea,” I say under my breath, fumbling with the door handle. I need to get out of this car before doing something I regret. “Goodbye, Tristan.”
I yank the door open, jump out of the car, and shut the door.
