Blaire. From the way he looks at her, I know he wants her. From personal experience, I know exactly how she makes men feel. She is being dismissive of him, and he wants her even more.
I feel red-hot jealousy course through my veins. I take a few steps towards Blaire’s desk.
“Stephen? We can talk later, please,” Blaire urges him.
He glares at me with a firm look and I clench my jaw. We both understand the lay of the land. Within a few seconds of being in each other’s presence and without exchanging any direct words, we know we’re competing.
Stephen lets out a sigh and walks to the door.
“Think about what I said,” he says before he leaves.
Blaire gulps nervously when I turn to her. I want to ask her what that was about, but it’s none of my business. We have already made a pact about keeping things professional.
“So you don’t think it’s a waste of time to conduct personal meetings on Monday mornings, but you don’t show up for actual business meetings?” My voice sounds cold and ferocious. I can’t help myself. There’s too many conflicting thoughts in my head.
Blaire juts her chin out towards me. “How I conduct my business is not your concern, as long as I’m showing growth and profit and getting the job done. Frankly, Trevor, I don’t know how many times we’re going to have this conversation.”
“As many times as it takes for me to figure out why you think you’re in charge around here.”
“I am in charge! This is my floor. This is still my company. I make the rules.”
“And I make the fuckin’ losses,” I growl.
Blaire is breathing hard. She is on the other side of the desk. This is not a joke but I want to kiss her. The more tightly she purses her lips together, the more I want to taste her. This feels so wrong.
“A few weeks ago, when we first signed the contract, you asked me to trust you, and I said I would. Do you really trust me so little that you want to keep a close eye on me? On your investment?”
She is speaking in a low but threatening voice. Just because she’s not screeching at me anymore doesn’t mean she’s done being furious.
“This is not about trust. This is about being knowledgeable about my investments.”
“I’ll send you a report. Is that what you want? I’ll make sure to include every little detail and all the charts and graphs you want to look at.”
No, that is not what I want—but I’m not going to tell her. What I want is for us to be able to have a civilized conversation with each other. When I don’t reply, Blaire brushes her fingers through her sleek dark hair.
“After our last conversation, I figured it would be for the best if we stayed out of each other’s shoes.”
“You didn’t even bother canceling the meetings.”
“I’ll have my assistant look into that. She’ll speak to Erica and get it sorted.” Blaire speaks dismissively. This is the solution to her problem? Does she really think I’m down here raising an uproar because of twenty minutes of my time in a week?
Does she not realize this whole thing is about her and how she makes me feel when we’re alone together?
I grumble under my breath, and she slowly walks around the table towards me.
“If we’re going to maintain a professional relationship, Trevor, you should know I don’t appreciate you barging into my office like this. Unannounced.”
“I can do whatever the fuck I want,” I growl. She is doing this to me. Making me swear. Making me abandon my senses. I don’t believe I always act like this. I’m usually more professional, more in control of myself, but Blaire has pushed me too far, and she has to be stopped. The trouble is, there is only one way I can think of stopping her right now.
She comes closer and our gazes are frozen on each other. The closer she comes, the more intensely I feel this desire and anger.
“Yeah, maybe you’re right. You can do whatever you want. So what do you want to do, Mr. Davenport?” she asks. Her eyes have narrowed on me. Her voice is luxurious and sultry. She’s teasing me. She thinks I won’t do anything.
She doesn’t have the first idea.
Blaire parts her lips just as I grab her by her hips and pull her to me. She gasps as she falls, but her mouth is still parted. I press