long day. Thank you for the drink, but I think I’ll just order room service.”
I see genuine surprise on Damien’s face, and as I turn to walk away, I don’t even bother to hide my grin.
Yes, I think, this is going to be fun.
Chapter 4
I don’t hurry to the elevator. Instead, I stroll past the hotel’s stores, taking in the jewelry, the dresses, the designer handbags. I never turn around, but once or twice I see the reflection of Damien walking behind me, and I add a little swing to my step. I don’t know what he has planned, but I do know it will be interesting.
When I finally reach the elevator bank, I turn into the elegantly appointed alcove, swipe my room key over the panel to call the elevator for the top floors, and then step on as soon as the car arrives. I press the button for my floor, then move back, waiting for the inevitable rise.
The doors are just about to close when Damien appears. He thrusts his arm through the gap to stop the doors, and then slides his whole body inside the car with me.
A car that suddenly seems much smaller than it is.
“Ms. Fairchild,” he says, stepping toward me so that I am forced to either move backward into the corner or give up my personal space.
Damien’s wife wouldn’t move.
Nikki Fairchild—who is still being seduced—does.
His smile is slow, and suggests that he knows exactly what I’m thinking. He leans toward me, then reaches out to press his palm against the polished metal paneling just over my shoulder. “I’m not sure you understand the kind of man I am,” he says. “I don’t like hearing no.”
I lift a brow. “In that case, I hope you’re the kind of man who can handle disappointment. Because I’m not a woman who says yes easily.” The elevator slides to a stop on the thirty-fifth floor, and I ease past him.
“I do love a challenge,” he says as I step from the car and into the hallway.
I turn back, looking at him before the doors close and block the view. He looks magnificent in a tailored gray suit and an ice-blue tie. He looks like a man in control. A man who takes what he wants. And seeing him like that makes me feel a burst of feminine power that fuels both my desire for the man—and for this game.
“I’m glad,” I say as the doors start to close. “Because you definitely have your work cut out for you.”
I’m not certain, but I think I see him smile before the doors block my view.
In the suite, I head first to Jamie’s room, but she has tied a red ribbon on the doorknob, and I have to laugh—it’s our old symbol for Man in the Room. And while I’m a little jealous that Jamie has her boyfriend in her bed tonight, I’m not jealous enough to call Damien and end this.
I’m too curious to see how it plays out.
Since I’m alone, I decide to watch a movie in bed instead of in the living room, and I’m scrolling through a selection of truly uninteresting choices when my phone rings.
I glance at it, but it’s not a number I recognize, and I’m really not in the mood to chat with a telemarketer.
I let it go to voicemail.
A moment later, a text flashes on my screen from that same number:
Answer your phone —D
I lick my lips and snuggle back against the pillows. Well, okay, then.
I wait. And then I wait a little longer.
And then—just when I’ve decided that he’s intentionally tormenting me—my phone rings again.
“Mr. Stark,” I say. “How did you get this number?”
“I have a knack for getting the things I want, Ms. Fairchild.” The words are simple, but they are spoken in such a low, sensual tone that their effect on me is anything but. Quite the contrary, actually, and I close my eyes and just let the pleasure of his voice curl through me.
“Do you?” I ask, then lick my lips. “What is it you want?”
“I think we already covered that, Ms. Fairchild. What was it you said I wanted?”
I lick my lips, surprised that I find myself a little bit shy. This is Damien, after all.
Not now, though. Not tonight.
Right. I draw in a breath. “You said you want to fuck me.”
“Very good. What else?”
“And so much more,” I say dutifully.
His low chuckle rumbles through me. “Someone was paying attention.”
“It was a very intriguing conversation,” I admit.