Blackmailed By The Boss. Kathryn Ross

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      ‘I did.’ His voice was heavy. ‘But it didn’t do me a lot of good. Sometimes loving someone isn’t enough.’

      ‘Well, she was obviously just the wrong person for you.’

      He smiled at that. ‘You’re not going to go all Pollyanna-like on me, are you?’

      ‘No.’ She felt herself blushing and he smiled.

      ‘I’ve enjoyed tonight, Charlie; thank you.’

      ‘I’ve enjoyed it too.’ She was aware that she didn’t really want the evening to end.

      Jordan took out his wallet to pay the bill and she fumbled for her handbag.

      ‘We’ll go Dutch,’ she said firmly.

      ‘Dutch?’ He stared at her as if she was speaking that language.

      ‘Yes. I like to pay my own way, thank you.’

      His lips twisted in a wry curve. ‘Well you can pay next time,’ he said dismissively, putting his credit card on the silver salver. ‘How’s that?’

      Before she could make a reply to that he had switched the subject. ‘Have you heard anything from your father recently?’

      ‘Not since Ruth rang to tell me they wouldn’t be coming home from France at the appointed time. Dad must really love it out there because it’s not like him to want to take extra time off work. You know what he’s like, a complete workaholic.’

      ‘And she didn’t say anything else?’

      ‘No. It was a very brief conversation, but then it always is with my stepmother. She’s usually in a hurry.’ Charlotte frowned. ‘Why?’

      ‘I just wondered.’ The waiter brought the counterfoil for him to sign. ‘You get on all right with Ruth, don’t you?’ he asked casually as he handed the piece of paper and the pen back.

      ‘Yes. She seems to make Dad happy.’ She paused and frowned. ‘Everything is all right with Dad, isn’t it? You have spoken to him since he’s been away?’

      ‘Of course.’ Jordan rose smoothly to his feet. ‘He is my business partner; he couldn’t be away for seven weeks without being in contact.’

      He had put his hand at her back as they had walked out of the restaurant. It had just been a light touch but Charlotte had been extremely conscious of it.

      The train jerked to a halt and her eyes flew open. It was her station; she struggled to step out, battling amongst the hordes getting in.

      The April rain was cold against her skin as she emerged again onto the streets above. But her mind was still tuned into the night before. They had walked back towards his apartment and he had invited her in for coffee. ‘You may as well wait for a taxi in the comfort of my place,’ he had said easily.

      So she had followed him up to the stylish penthouse apartment. She had never been to his home before, and it had felt different being somewhere with him that wasn’t work-related at all. It had made her suddenly self-conscious. And when he had reached to take her coat, she had felt more acutely aware of him than she had ever done.

      As he disappeared through to the kitchen to make the coffee she had wandered around the lounge, admiring the décor. ‘Who did the interior design to this apartment?’ She called out the question to him through the open door.

      ‘I don’t know. I wasn’t particularly interested in interior designers until I met you.’

      She smiled at the compliment. Then noticed a photograph of a little girl, about three years of age, with dark shiny hair and a mischievous grin.

      ‘Who is this?’ she asked as Jordan came back through to the lounge.

      ‘That’s my daughter, Natasha.’

      ‘I didn’t know you had a child! She looks adorable.’

      ‘Yes.’ He put the tray of coffee down on the table and then went over towards her. ‘She was adorable.’ He reached out a hand and took the photograph from her.

      ‘Was?’ Charlotte had a cold feeling inside as she heard the ominous tone in his voice and saw for a moment raw emotion in the darkness of his eyes.

      ‘She died almost two years ago.’

      ‘I’m so sorry, Jordan.’

      She watched as he carefully put the photograph back where it had been. And in that instant she wanted to reach out to him, soothe the shadows from his face. Jordan was always so controlled, so confident; she had never seen that rawness of expression on his face before. Instinctively she reached up and touched him, trailing her fingers in a soft caress along the side of his cheek.

      He caught her hand in his and then, as their eyes met, the unguarded emotion changed into something else, and he turned the hand to kiss the inside of her wrist. The gesture was totally unexpected and there was something extremely provocative and yet sensitive about it…something that made her insides turn over.

      ‘You look beautiful tonight,’ he murmured, and his eyes moved over her body in the softly flattering blue suit. ‘But then, you always look beautiful.’

      She raised questioning eyes to his. There had always been some kind of turbulent chemistry between them; maybe subconsciously that was why she had always kept a distance from him. Because she knew he spelt danger. But now that feeling of danger was teamed with something else, something much more powerful. She felt it spiralling inside her like a spinning top, whipping around and around in her insides. And she wondered what it would be like to kiss him.

      He had reached out and touched her face the way she had his and the touch had been like a spark to a can of petrol because the next thing she remembered she had stood on tiptoe to kiss him.

      She had made the first move.

      Remembering that made her heart stand still.

      After the initial moment of surprise he had kissed her back. And what a kiss that had been! Just thinking about it now made her insides clench with desire again. Jordan Lynch knew exactly the right way to kiss a woman. His lips had travelled over hers with a slow, seductive warmth that had been so deliriously wonderful it had made her toes curl.

      As passion exploded quickly out of control, there had been a moment when Jordan had pulled back. ‘Are you sure about this?’ he had asked seriously.

      She had smiled and reached to kiss him again.

      Remembering that now made Charlotte’s skin burn.

      Hurriedly she let herself into her flat and leaned back against the door. She was faced with her familiar, modern, perfectly designed home, but it felt different to her now. It was as if the person who had left here last night was not the same person who had returned. It was as if she didn’t know herself any more.

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