7 | have we met?
For a moment, all I saw was his naked body, both on top of and within me, while he pleasured me into the celestial.
I could scarcely believe my eyes.
This was why I had thought he looked so familiar back then. He was Jason’s elder brother!
I recoiled a step, struck by the overwhelming power of his gaze.
Ever since the morning in his flat, I had tried to consign my adventure with him to the depths of my memory, but every night, it had come back to haunt me. I had wondered so many times if I would ever see him again, but I had always assumed it was up to me to decide whether I would. Not even in my wildest dreams had I imagined it would happen like this.
Yet there he was, in the flesh, regarding me with total disbelief. The odds of this happening were astronomical, and it made me question my own convictions. Did coincidences truly exist, or was everything written in the stars? If so, what tales did they hold of my future? And why on earth had they included him ?
‘Will, this is Cara Jane Darby, the new trainee,’ John said. ‘She’s also Jason’s flatmate, as you know.’
Paralysed, William kept staring at me. I didn’t blame him for struggling so hard to compose himself. Not only had I arrived like lightning from a clear blue sky, but I was also being introduced under an entirely different name.
‘Yes, I know she’s stunning, but it isn’t polite to stare, William,’ John said, obviously trying to make humour out of his son’s puzzling behaviour.
William charged up from his seat. ‘I’m so sorry. For a moment I thought I recognised you,’ he apologised to me, but I could tell from the gleam in his eyes that he did in fact recognise me.
Hearing his voice, I realised how much I had missed it. Deep, authoritative and oddly soothing, it whispered of sensual pleasures. How strange it was, to find myself having missed a person I had only encountered once before.
Marvelling at the beauteous view of him, I stopped breathing as he made his graceful approach. Only he could hypnotise me like this. I simply couldn’t look away.
‘It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Darby. I’m William, but you can call me Will like everyone else. I’m looking forward to working with you. I hear your marks are impeccable. I’ll personally ensure that you’ll get to put theory into practice during your time with us.’
He extended his hand. I directed my gaze to it, feeling the blush mount in my cheeks. I remembered how it had dominated me. A particular memory, of when he had used his grip on my arms to balance the weight of his forceful thrusts, flashed through my mind.
This was outrageous. What was I supposed to do? I couldn’t work here, under the leadership of a man who had fucked me into oblivion. How was I supposed to look him in the eye without being reminded of that? How were we supposed to take each other seriously, as professionals, when our current acquaintanceship was composed of carnal indulgence? Would we be able to overlook it? Start anew?
I wanted to cry. This was the worst possible thing that could have happened. I had worked so hard to prove myself eligible for this placement, and now I had quite literally fucked my chance at it. Not only that, but William was also the only man I had ever seriously considered dating, and now he was turning out to be my future boss and my best friend’s brother.
‘Murphy’s law,’ Dad whispered in my mind. ‘Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. In other words, whatever can happen, will happen.’ Well, I was currently witnessing evidence of that theory. Lesson learned, Dad, albeit too late.
‘Y-yeah.’ I broke contact with William’s eyes and grabbed his familiar hand. His grip was firm around my own, as if he was worried I would disappear if he ever let go.
‘Well, I’ll leave you to it,’ John said and glanced at his watch. ‘I’ve got a meeting in less than two minutes. If there’s anything I can help you with, Cara, let me know, but I expect William will take good care of you.’
‘Of course,’ William said, and there was a faint smile on his mouth when he finally released my hand.
John gave my shoulder a supportive squeeze before he went to the door. I stiffened at the sound of it drawing shut behind him.
‘Well, then, Cara ,’ William said, emphasising my real name, and walked back to take a seat on his black desk. He folded his hands above the crotch of his light-grey trousers and studied me with the same crooked smile I had tried so hard to forget.
‘Have we met?’ he asked, and it knocked the air out of my lungs. The bastard was using my own words against me. How dare he toss that line at me right now?
‘I’m quite sure we have,’ he said, his eyes narrowing. ‘I could have sworn I’ve seen you before. Have you been on telly? In newspapers?’ Not a hint of sympathy was present in features. Choking with emotion, I couldn’t dodge even an ounce of his wrath. All I could do was stare at him.
He looked briefly away, nodding. ‘Right, it’s coming back to me now. I know where I’ve seen you. It was in my bed, wasn’t it? While I fucked you senseless? Yes, I believe so. Now that I think about it, how could I forget? Must be your lies that have got me all confused.’
I took a sharp breath and averted my gaze. Stringing together a single coherent thought proved impossible. I had never been so shocked.
‘Please, have a seat.’ He gestured to one of the two black chairs in front of his desk. As I fixed my gaze on them, I noticed that his office was rather big. Against the wall on my right stood a white leather sofa, along with a coffee table made of transparent glass.
Incapable of ministering any muscle of my body, I remained in the same place. Seemingly impatient, William leaned back and fetched a document from his desk.
‘I gather you’re here to sign this contract.’
My gaze dashed to his and I swallowed a huge lump in my throat. It might well have been my heart. Though, since it was currently thundering like a furious storm within my chest, perhaps not.
‘I...’ Averting my eyes, I adjusted my purse on my shoulder.
‘You? ’
‘This is . . . I’m sorry, I’m just . . .’
‘Shocked?’
I still couldn’t bring myself to look at him, so I only nodded. The mere sight of him was unbearable.
‘Cara, take a seat,’ he ordered, reminding me of his domineering attitude.
Obeying, because I didn’t know what else to do, I approached the chair that stood furthest away from him. As I went, I sensed him observing me with interest.
I was about to sit when he slid off his desk and descended into the chair beside mine. Freezing, I met his eyes and watched him recline. He smirked up at me and gestured to my chair again, triggering me to mentally curse his confidence.
After I had slowly found my seat, he turned his chair toward me and asked bitterly, ‘Is it Cara? Or do you prefer going by Sandra?’
I pursed my lips. ‘I didn’t think I’d see you again.’
‘I realise that, and yet here we are.’
Grimacing, I inwardly begged my heart to calm down. From the speed of its beats, I had to be shortening my lifespan.
‘I don’t quite think that this is a good idea,’ I said.
He was quiet for a second. ‘What? The placement?’
I nodded.
He scoffed. ‘Don’t be silly. This isn’t an opportunity you should cast aside merely because you’ve coincidentally fucked your boss, and it’s far too late to apply for a spot somewhere else. I can guarantee you won’t get it. The competition is intense.’
My breath rasped in my throat at his blunt phrasing and I blushed blood red. I had almost forgotten about his vulgar tongue.
He leaned forward, toward me, and it perturbed me. The tension between us was thick and dense in the air, and it made me feel like I was suffocating. Having him so close wreaked havoc on my emotions. Suddenly I made no sense to myself. All I knew was that I wished he would back away so that I might be able to think clearly.
His eyes focused on my blank facial expression. ‘I seem to remember you having a dreadfully sharp tongue. Have you lost your bravado?’
‘Are you at all able to be quiet for longer than a second? I need to think!’ I snapped, growing increasingly annoyed with his scrutiny. I was trapped in a clusterfuck of a situation, and he wasn’t allowing me any mental room to sort it out .
‘I honestly can’t believe you’re Jason’s flatmate. All along, you’ve been within my reach. I’m furious,’ he said.
Horribly uncomfortable, I tensed in my seat. At the very best, this was wildly inappropriate, and if he was still adamant about getting me into bed with him, things were going to end in chaos.
He sighed and tossed the contract on his desk. ‘When Theresa told me who she’d hired for the position, she mentioned a girl named Cara, studying law. Not Sandra, studying medicine, in fucking Edinburgh .’ He leaned back. ‘At least I’ve got your number now.’
‘What do you want me to say?’ I retorted defensively.
‘I’d like an apology.’
‘Well, I’m sorry, Will. It wasn’t personal.’
He nodded and clenched his teeth.
My eyebrows furrowed. ‘You have to see why this won’t work.’
He glared at me, and I nearly withered under the heat of it. ‘I don’t. You’ll only be here for three months. Had it been indefinite, we’d be having a different conversation, but it’s not. We’re also adults; we should be able to work our way round it.’
‘How do you think John would react if he knew? Or Theresa?’ I said sceptically.
He grimaced at the mere idea.
‘Exactly,’ I said and crossed my arms.
‘There won’t be any reason for concern unless we behave in a way that warrants it. If you can manage, I guarantee I will too.’ He shook his head, and I thought he looked a bit sad. ‘I’d hate to see you waste an opportunity like this, especially when knowing it would be my fault.’
My chest tingled. I hadn’t expected him to be primarily concerned about how this could affect my future.
I took a deep breath. ‘Listen, if we’re going to do this, I’d like to make one thing clear. I will not have sex with you again. Do I need to explain why, or are you on board with that?’
I couldn’t believe what I had done. Never in my life had I managed something so outrageous before. I had slept with my best friend’s brother. Not only that, but he was also going to be my boss for three months. The part of me that had wanted to meet him again had been completely obliterated in the wake of this. I could not get romantically involved with this man. He was completely off limits.
I wondered whether I ought to tell Jason, but immediately decided that I wouldn’t. Since it had only been a one-night stand, I thought he would be better off not knowing. Informing him was simply unnecessary, as it wouldn’t happen again.
Aloofness spilled from William’s eyes while his heart-shaped lips formed a straight line. Added together, his expression made it impossible to guess his thoughts.
‘With all due respect, Cara, who says I’d want to?’
My breath hitched. Right. I hadn’t thought of that. For a moment, I considered myself despicably conceited. He was the professional between us. Of course he would abandon the idea now that our circumstances had changed. On top of that, he had just discovered that I had lied to him when we met. I wouldn’t blame him if the revelation had changed his opinion of me.
‘Right. That should make things easier.’ I managed to sound stoical, but behind my pretence, I was hiding an awfully bruised ego. Being a woman that William Night desired was the most significant boost I’d had in a long time. At the same time, I had meant for it to turn out this way, so why did I feel so upset? My feelings weren’t justified.
‘Good. Anyway, we can’t really afford to spend more time on this matter,’ he said. ‘I’m a busy man, and people are counting on me to perform according to schedule. On that note, you should prepare for three intense months.’
It hadn’t been necessary to tell me that. I was strapping up for the most challenging three months I would probably ever have to endure, and it wasn’t strictly due to the tasks I would be delegated. It was also because I would be facing intensity in the flesh for the better part of ninety days.
I nodded as I guided myself into a more professional frame of mind.
William grabbed the contract and leaned toward me. Now close again, the scent of him struck me with merciless force. Immediately, I was sent down memory lane and into his bedroom, where his alluring scent was etched into the walls, and where his naked skin caressed and guided mine.
I was certain my pupils were dilated when I looked at the contract, though I could barely make sense of a single letter. I was much too distracted by my lust for the testosterone-bomb beside me.
I realised at that moment that there were two sides to this. I was divided. One part of me wanted to fuck him for eternity. The other was adamant about remaining sensible, and sensible did not favour erotic thoughts of William Night when taking our new circumstances into account .
But I wasn’t deluded. There was no point in denying that I was drawn to him like a moth to a flame. To claim anything else would be an absolute lie. My whole body tingled where I sat, aching for his sexual attention. He was the sexiest man I had ever encountered, both in mind and body, and he was my best friend’s brother, as well as my future boss. Really, he was Satan in a Sunday hat.
Fuck.
He started speaking again, and like a siren, his voice summoned me to my doom. ‘Your tasks will mainly include that of a paralegal’s. Although I’ll be your supervisor for the span of the placement, Elisabeth will be teaching you the basics the first few days. She’s a full-time paralegal, close to your age – twenty-five – and very kind and patient. I’ll make the introductions once I’ve guided you through the contract. If you have any questions, don’t be shy. Tell me to stop, and I’ll explain the implications to the best of my ability. Understood?’
He was awfully authoritative, and although I didn’t like to admit it, it had a direct line to my libido. When I had thought things couldn’t possibly get any worse, he proved me wrong. William, when focused and professional, was devastatingly attractive. As he was right then, I could watch him for a lifetime, endlessly aroused and fascinated.
When I failed to answer, he looked at me. Utterly susceptible, I looked straight back. Suddenly his eyes widened. Had he guessed my thoughts?
‘No, Cara. Do not look at me like that.’
‘Like what?’
‘Like you want me to claim you across my desk, right now.’
My mouth dried as my breath left me. Though outrageous, the idea made my knickers grow damp. I would have loved every second of it, I was sure – until he surrendered his domination of me to remorse.
‘What?’ I said feebly.
‘You heard me.’ He charged up from his seat. Walking around his desk, he reached for the black telecom and raised the handset to his ear. Then he pushed a button and said, ‘Ellie, could you come in here for a sec? I need you to do me a favour.’ He rang off. Locking eyes with me, he clenched his teeth.
I frowned in confusion, wondering what his thoughts were.
A few seconds later, Ellie, I presumed, knocked on the door.
‘Come in,’ William said and sank into the seat of his stylish, grey desk chair.
Turning my head, I watched a woman walk in. She had dark brown skin, her curly hair styled into twists that stopped just below her breasts, and she had the sort of smile that would make you turn your head after her on the street.
‘You must be Cara,’ she said, and she had a voice that would suit a lullaby. What a remarkably soothing voice. Cooing was likely a constant for her.
A little chubby in her anatomy, she came over and extended her small hand. She was quite a short woman, but her breasts were huge. They strained against her dark blue satin blouse, and I couldn’t help but catch a glimpse of her cleavage while I sized her up.
Eager to escape the heat of William’s attention, I clasped her hand and ascended from my chair. In my heels, I was at least a head taller than her.
‘That’s me, yes.’
Her smile transitioned into a full-blown grin. ‘I’m Elisabeth, but please, call me Ellie.’
‘Ellie,’ William said, ‘please see to it that Cara finds a space where she can read through her contract. I’ve got work that requires my immediate attention.’
‘Of course, Will. Whatever you need.’
‘Thanks. Did you manage to contact GreenPark for me?’
‘Yes. I’ve sent you an email about it. The appointment should already be synchronised with your schedule.’
William looked at me with a smirk. ‘Watch and learn.’ He gave Ellie a fond wink.
‘Certainly. But Mr Night’ – it felt incredibly weird to address him that way – ‘what shall I do once I’ve signed?’
He frowned at how I had addressed him, but I had done it deliberately to create as much psychological distance between us as possible. It was purely a defensive mechanism to remind me of our professional relationship.
‘I told you to call me Will, Cara.’ He extended the contract to me across his desk. ‘If you’ve any questions, take notes and bring them to me once you’ve finished reading through. If you don’t, simply sign and hand it over to me.’
Nodding, I walked over, but with each pace, the electric current between us grew more intense. Our gazes met as I grabbed the contract, and no words were required. I understood precisely what his eyes meant to convey .
He wanted to fuck me again, and he wanted to do it now.
Shocking myself, I realised that if our circumstances had been different, I would have succumbed to the desire.
I turned my back to him and said, ‘Thank you, Mr Night.’
I thought I heard him curse under his breath, but I wasn’t sure.