A Calculated Seduction(49)

She parked in the building’s garage with five minutes to spare. A few moments later, she was hurrying off the elevator and down the hall to her new office. She opened the door and every bit of her composure fled when she found Ethan leaning against the doorjamb to the main office.

“Good morning, Dulcy.” Deep and rich, his voice flowed over her. His hair had just been cut, the same little sexy half-smile lightened his face and he looked good enough to eat. Damn him. He hadn’t called in three weeks.

“I think there’s been some mistake.” Her steady voice amazed her.

“No, there hasn’t been a mistake. I own a security company. That was one of the reasons...”

His voice trailed off.

“One of the reasons Bill thought to hire you.”

“Yes,” he said with a sigh. “I own a company in Houston.”

“Ah.” She turned to leave.

“Dulcy.”

“Really, I don’t think we have anything to talk about, Mr. MacMillan.”

“I thought if I could get you here, see my side of it, maybe you’d understand.”

She turned around and noticed the things she’d missed in her anger. His eyes spoke of sadness, bags beneath his eyes testified to his loss of sleep. Her resolve weakened. She’d love to wrap her arms around him, pull him close and cuddle. To feel that human warmth, to feel secure. But, in reality, it wouldn’t last.

She crossed her arms beneath her breasts and straightened her spine. She wouldn’t let him wheedle his way back into her heart. “You have to understand, I didn’t know anything about you. Uncle Bill’s suggestion you were embezzling puzzled me, but I was just following up.”

“You slept with me.” Her voice was flat.

“Yes, yes I did, Miss Menendez.” The wealth of satisfaction in his voice irritated her.

“You,” she said pointing at him, “thought I,” she stuck her thumb at her chest, “was embezzling from your uncle.” Anger and pain swirled through her. “And you slept with me.”

“I’m trying to apologize.”

“You’ re doing a shitty job. ”

“Hey,” his said, his voice rose with his anger. “You’re the one who jumped me in the limo.”

Of all the nerve. Without a word, she turned on her heel and headed out the door. She couldn’t stay in the same room with the man without doing him bodily harm.

* * * *

Ethan winced when the door slammed shut. That didn’t go well. At least she had talked to him. That was more than he expected. From the anger that lit her eyes when she saw him, he was relieved to have all his body parts intact. In fact, for a second there, he was convinced she was softening toward him.

Damn, but she’ d looked good. All rosy and round, he’ d had to fight the urge to grab her and kiss her.

What the hell was he doing standing here thinking about her?

He hurried out the door and down the hall to the elevator. The door closed just as he got to it. A second later, he was running down the five flights to the lobby. He burst through the door and caught her before she could get out the front door of the building.

“Dulcy.” She turned and looked at him as if he’d grown another head. He grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the doors.

“Mr. MacMillan, really.” She tried to twist her hand free, but he refused to give up.

“I made a mistake.”

She stopped struggling.

“I’m an idiot.”

She let out a very unladylike snort in agreement and he smiled.

“I want to explain why I did what I did.”

“There is no explanation. You didn’t trust me and you slept with me.”

People had gathered, their attention caught with that topic. Embarrassment burned through him.

“It isn’t what it seems. I didn’t use you.”

“That doesn’t matter, does it? You didn’t use me, but you didn’t trust me. You took something I gave you, something precious and twisted it and ruined it.”

All eyes turned to him and the embarrassment rose. “You weren’t a virgin.”

Her eyes widened and her cheeks reddened. Too late, he remembered their audience.

She broke free of his grasp and started to back away. “What I was talking about was my love and trust, but you only look at the bottom line.”

It was all slipping away because of his damned arrogance. She was inching further away and with each step, a vise squeezed his heart.