Big Shot(16)
He inwardly winced, hating the harsh way that sounded, when his reasons for saying no to employing her at the firm were more complicated than that. Since her comment was merely a statement and didn’t require a response from him, he let it go, since it was obviously a bone of contention between them.
“By the way, keep your Friday evening open,” he told her, bringing up his next request for her services. “I’m going to need you for the night.”
A feisty, defiant spark lit her gaze. “What if I already have plans?”
“With Richard?” he automatically asked, his tone more obnoxious than he’d intended.
The corner of her mouth twitched with a mirth he didn’t understand, which she contradicted with a noncommittal shrug that made him a little crazy. “Maybe.”
Wes’s gut churned with acid. He was not a jealous man. He’d never cared if the women he’d casually dated were seeing other guys, so why did the thought of Natalie going out with Richard make him want to stake a claim on a woman who wasn’t even his?
“Cancel them,” he said, unable to deny that he liked that the bet gave him the power to have Natalie all to himself. “Poker night this month is being held at my place, and I need a hostess to make some appetizers, get us our beers, and clean up after we’re done.”
She wrinkled her cute little nose in distaste. “Now that sounds like a fun evening,” she said, her tone droll.
He chuckled. “It will be. For us guys, anyway. And I’ll need you Sunday afternoon for a few hours, too.”
“Dare I ask why?” she asked skeptically.
“I have a surprise birthday party to go to for a friend, and you’re going to be my plus one.” Whether Richard liked it or not.
*
“Crap!”
Forty minutes after shutting off her alarm the following morning, Natalie woke up with a start, realizing that she’d dozed off again and had overslept. With a rush of adrenaline surging through her veins, she jumped out of bed and stumbled toward the bathroom to make up for lost time.
After her restless night of tossing and turning and her lack of REM sleep, she was bleary-eyed, her head felt as though it had been stuffed with cotton, and she was undeniably grumpy.
And it was all Wes Sinclair’s fault. Not because she’d lost the bet to him yesterday and not because he’d coerced her onto the Centennial Wheel. Both of those things she could have dealt with, and in the moment, she had. No, it was that unexpected, toe-curling kiss that he’d planted on her that kept replaying in her mind in lifelike detail whenever she’d closed her eyes that was responsible for her sleep deficiency.
Not to mention the pulsing ache between her thighs that he’d instigated with that kiss. God, she hadn’t been so hot and bothered since way before she and Mitch had broken up, and after a few hours of trying to ignore that persistent arousal thrumming through her body, she’d finally reached into her nightstand drawer and let her battery-operated boyfriend—fondly named Liam, for her fantasy freebie, Liam Hemsworth—get her off. He never disappointed.
But as she’d slid the vibrator through her wet slit and closed her eyes to summon Liam’s face, it was Wes’s gorgeous features that she’d seen dipping between her spread legs and his hands gripping her inner thighs as he kept them pushed wide apart so he could slide his wicked mouth across her needy *. With his dark, hot eyes looking up at her, he’d flicked his tongue along her clit until she’d come on a long, hard, shuddering orgasm.
As a fantasy, Wes was quickly replacing Liam as her go-to guy. He was sex personified, with a body built for sin and a mouth made for pleasure, and good God, she wanted more of him, even knowing what a huge mistake it would be to give in to the lust burning between them . . . which was why she’d told him not to kiss her again. It had been pure self-preservation on her part, because she wasn’t sure she’d be able to resist him, or where another kiss like that might lead.
Then again, the shameless part of her that was attracted to Wes was very curious to discover what might happen between them if she allowed his lips on hers again. The possibilities were endless . . .
Since she’d overslept, she didn’t have time to wash, blow-dry, and style her hair, so she clipped it onto the top of her head and took a quick shower. Once she was done, she pulled her hair into a sleek ponytail, applied her makeup, and put on a navy blue dress with white trim. Twenty minutes later, she was out the door.
Since she’d spent her extra time that morning catching up on her sleep, she skipped her morning ritual at the Espresso Shot and requested her latte and a banana nut muffin to go, then headed to the office. Just as she sat down in her cubicle and placed her breakfast on her small desk, Richard showed up, looking very handsome in a gray suit with a light pink tie and a curious gleam in his eyes.
He leaned against the partition separating her little work area from the other employees. “So, how was your date with Mr. Big Shot last night?” he asked without any other pleasantries.
She picked up her latte and swiveled her chair to face him, knowing he was dying to hear all the juicy details. “It wasn’t a date but more about him asserting his male dominance and making sure I knew who was in charge for the next two weeks.”
“Asserting his male dominance, huh?” Amusement and intrigue deepened Richard’s voice. “I like the way that sounds. What did he do? Something kinky, I hope.”