Chapter 14
Jane walked into the reception and smiled at the two men standing at the reception desk. “Mr. Durand and Mr. Morel? My name is Jane. I’m Mr. Dawson’s assistant.”
The men gave her identical flirty grins. The taller of the two – he was blond with dark brown eyes, and the bulky build of a football player stepped forward. He took her hand and brought it to his mouth before pressing a kiss against her knuckles.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Jane. You must call me Pierre.”
She supposed if she wasn’t so obsessed with Luke, Pierre’s good looks and French accent would have done something for her. As it was, she didn’t feel a thing when Pierre blatantly looked her over before squeezing her hand and kissing it again.
“This is my associate, Julien.”
“Hello, Mr. Morel,” Jane said. Her other hand was taken by the dark-haired man and kissed as well.
“Julien, please,” he said. He had gorgeous green eyes and was a few inches shorter than Pierre with a leaner build.
Both wore expensive suits, and she was happy she wore a Dawson suit when Julien’s gaze drifted over her. “That suit is exquisite, Jane.”
“Thank you.”
“Is it a Dawson?”
“Of course.” She pulled both of her hands free and tucked them behind her back. “Mr. Dawson is finishing a phone call but asked me to bring you to the boardroom.”
“Lead the way, Jane. We will follow you wherever you go,” Pierre said.
She led them down the maze of hallways to the boardroom. They followed her into the room, and she smiled at them. “Mr. Dawson will be right with you. Could I get you a coffee or a glass of water?”
They shook their heads as Julien smiled at her. “But you must keep us company until your boss arrives, Jane.”
She hesitated, and Pierre pulled out a chair. “We insist. We are here for a few days and need someone to tell us where the best tourist spots are.”
She smiled and sat down in the chair. “Of course.”
* * *
Luke hurried into the boardroom.The phone call had gone longer than he thought, and he hoped to God that Amy had been on time for the meeting. He opened the boardroom door and froze in the doorway. Jane was sitting at the table, and Julien and Pierre were flanking her.
Anger burned in his belly when Pierre picked up a lock of Jane’s hair and rubbed it gently as Julien leaned in closer and let his arm brush against hers.
“Jane, you must accompany us tomorrow,” Pierre said. “We cannot do tourist things without a tour guide.”
“I’m afraid I have other plans,” Jane said. A little of Luke’s jealousy abated when she pulled her hair from Pierre’s hand and crossed her arms so that Julien wasn’t touching her. “If you’ll excuse me, I must return to my desk. I’m sure that Luke and Amy will be here shortly.”
Both men stood as Jane pushed back her chair and rose gracefully to her feet. She turned, and Luke was mollified when a warm smile crossed her face. “Mr. Dawson, hello.”
As the two men stood, Luke strode forward and stood closer than necessary to Jane before holding out his hand. “Pierre, Julien, it’s good to see you again.”
“You as well, Luke,” Pierre replied. “Thank you for meeting with us.”
“It was my pleasure,” Luke said.
“We were just trying to convince your lovely assistant to be our tour guide this weekend,” Julien said with a slight grin at Jane. “Perhaps you can convince her?”
“I’m afraid Jane has work this weekend,” Luke said.
“What a shame,” Julien said.
“Jane, will you go to Amy’s office and see what’s keeping her?” Luke asked.
“Of course,” Jane replied.
“I’m right here. I’m sorry I’m late.” Amy rushed in, the bracelets around her wrists jingling, and smiled apologetically.
Luke watched as Julien and Pierre glanced at each other before stepping around him and Jane.
“Ms. Dawson,” Julien said before taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. “It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Julien Morel, and this is my associate, Pierre Durand.”
Pierre made a short bow as Amy tugged free of Julien’s grip and held out her hand. Like Julien, he kissed her knuckles and then continued to hold her hand.
“It’s nice to meet you both,” she said.
She glanced at her hand before raising her eyebrow at Pierre. He gave her an appreciative smile before kissing her knuckles again. “Forgive me, Ms. Dawson. A woman as beautiful as you – I find it difficult to let go.”
More anger flooded through Luke. It was bad enough that they were hitting on Jane, but watching them hit on Amy made his need to protect his little sister roar to life. He took Amy’s arm and pulled her away from Pierre.
“My sister is a very busy woman but agreed to attend the meeting. Let’s keep this professional. Shall we?”
Amy elbowed him discreetly as Pierre and Julien exchanged looks.
“Forgive my brother,” Amy said. “He sometimes forgets that I’m a grown woman capable of taking care of herself.”
She gave Luke a pointed look that he ignored. He didn’t care if Amy didn’t find the investors’ flirting annoying. There was no way in hell he was letting either of them grope his baby sister.
Pierre smiled at her as Julien’s gaze drifted over Amy’s body. Luke clenched his hands into fists as Amy said, “Let’s get started, all right?”
“Excellent idea,” Luke said stiffly. “Jane, would you mind bringing in some glasses and water?”
“Not at all,” Jane said.
As she left the boardroom, Luke waited until the French men were seated at the table before taking Amy’s elbow and steering her toward the table. Keeping an empty chair between her and Pierre, he pulled out the chair for her, and she rolled her eyes at him before sitting down.
* * *
“You okay?”Luke asked Amy. Two hours later, he followed Amy back to her office after walking Pierre and Julien to the elevator.
She collapsed in one of the beanbag chairs in her office. “I’m fine. I don’t need you to protect me, Luke.”
“They were blatantly hitting on you the entire meeting, Amy.”
“So? They’re good looking guys, and I’m single. What’s the harm?”
“The harm? Forgetting that they’re not good enough for you, they’re considering partnering with us. No mixing business with pleasure,” Luke said.
“Are you kidding me? You’re banging your secretary, Luke.”
“That’s different,” he said. “Jane is…different.”
“Jane is a sweetheart, and you need to lock that shit down before she figures out that she’s too good for you,” Amy said with a laugh.
“We’re not talking about me and Jane. We’re talking about you. Don’t sleep with Pierre or Julien,” Luke said.
“You don’t get to tell me what to do. Besides, a little flirting never hurt anyone. It might even help convince them to hand over their money.”
His jaw dropped. “Amy, you don’t think you have to sleep with them to get this deal, do you? The company is fine, the Board is happy with sales – we don’t need to go international.”
“Of course I know that. I don’t mind flirting with them, but I’m not going to fuck one of them just to get an account with them,” she said.
“Gross.”
She rolled her eyes. “You started this conversation. What time is dinner again?”
“We’re meeting Pierre and Julien at seven.”
She glanced at her watch. “I’m going to work from home for a bit. Text me if you need anything before dinner. Okay?”
“Sure.” He hesitated, “I’m bringing Jane to dinner tonight.”
“Sounds good.” Amy scrolled through her phone.
“For work reasons,” he said. “I’ll pay her overtime. If we do more negotiations over dinner or they want to discuss work, I might need her to take notes or something.”
“Mm, hmm.” Amy was still staring at her phone.
“We’re not dating,” he said.
Amy glanced up. “Who’s not dating?”
“Nothing, never mind. I’ll see you at seven.”
He left her office and headed back to his. Jane was sitting at her desk and smiled at him when he stopped beside it.
“How did it go?”
“Fine,” he said. “We talked a lot about our plans for the new website design and how we would incorporate a more seamless shopping experience for our customers. They still haven’t given us a final answer, but that’s probably because they were too busy flirting with Amy.”
Jane laughed and picked up a stack of file folders on her desk. “They are very handsome and charming. I was with them for nearly twenty minutes before you showed up, and they were a little relentless in the flirting. Would it be all right if I filed these in your office, or do you want me to wait until you’re out?”
“Go ahead and file them now.” Jealousy had flooded through him when she said Pierre and Julien were handsome and charming.
She hesitated at his tone but walked into his office. He followed her and shut the doors as she opened the top drawer of his mahogany file cabinet. She had just finished stacking the folders on top when he turned her around and yanked her into his embrace. He took her mouth in a hard kiss, squeezing her ass with one big hand as he pushed his tongue past her lips. She moaned and returned his kiss. The taste of her, the feel of her ass filling the palm of his hand perfectly, made his cock harden, and he ground it against her. He pulled back and stared at her swollen mouth and flushed cheeks.
“What was that for?” she said.
“Did you like it when they flirted with you?” he asked sulkily.
“You’re jealous,” she said.
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.”
“No, I’m not.”
She didn’t reply, and he scowled at her. “Fine, I’m jealous. But in my defense, women love a man with an accent.”
She giggled. “You think I’m going to drop you for Pierre and Julien just because they have an accent?”
“Pierre and Julien?” he said.
She shrugged. “They share women and won’t have sex without each other.”
His mouth dropped open. “How the hell do you know that?”
“You can learn a lot about a person in twenty minutes, especially when two men delight in talking about themselves. Now, let me go – I need to finish this filing.”
“Jane,” he said anxiously, “are you interested in them? Do you want to sleep with two men at once?”
Now, it was her turn for her jaw to drop. “Did you just ask me if I wanted to have a threesome?”
“Do you want to sleep with Julien and Pierre?” he said.
“Of course I don’t,” she said. “Luke, what has gotten into you?”
He pulled her closer and pressed a kiss against her mouth. “Nothing. I only wanted to make sure you remembered that you have plans with me for the weekend.”
“I haven’t forgotten.”
“Good.” He nuzzled her throat. “I’ll make you forget all about those French bastards.”
He thought that would make her laugh, but she cupped his face and gave him a serious look. “I don’t want to sleep with them. I know it’s not serious between us, and we’re finished after Sunday, but I still wouldn’t sleep with another person while I’m sleeping with you.”
His stomach churned, and he was surprisingly hurt by her statement that it wasn’t serious between them. He swallowed his disappointment and said, “I wouldn’t either, Jane.”
“I know,” she said. “I need to get this filing done, or I’ll end up staying late.”
“You can’t stay late. Amy and I are meeting Pierre and Julien at seven for dinner, and you’re coming with us.”
“I can’t do that,” she said. “it’s inappropriate, and besides, I’m visiting Mama J after work.”
“I’ll drive you to see Mama J. We have plenty of time to visit her before dinner,” he said.
“It’s not appropriate, Luke,” she said. “I’m your assistant not…”
He reluctantly let her go and took a step back. “Exactly. You’re my assistant, and I might need you at this work dinner. You may have to take notes if they want to discuss work. I’ll pay you overtime.”
“It’s work related.” Her face suggested that she didn’t quite believe him.
“Yes, so bring your laptop. All right?”
“All right,” she said.
“Good.” He returned to his desk and checked his email as Jane filed. He tried to concentrate on his work, but his gaze kept flickering to Jane. God, she smelled so good, and her ass looked fucking amazing in that skirt. He glanced at the couch before checking his watch. He hadn’t fucked Jane on the sofa yet, and today was his last chance. Both Wednesday and Thursday, he’d had multiple fantasies about bending her over the back of the couch, lifting her skirt and sliding into her while she moaned his name.
His dick was as hard as a rock again, and he was about to lock the doors and coax Jane into a quickie when Mark walked into his office.
“Hey, Luke.”
He tried not to glare at his best friend as Jane slid the last folder into the cabinet and smiled at Mark as she headed for the door.
“How are you, Jane?”
“Good, how are you?”
“I’m good.” Mark sat on the couch and stretched out his long legs as Luke watched Jane cross his office. She shut the doors, and he sat back in his chair before turning to Mark.
“What’s up?” He could hear the irritation in his voice.
Mark raised his eyebrow at him. “I wanted to see how the meeting went. I’m assuming not well, or are you pissed for some other reason?”
“I’m not pissed,” Luke said.
“You sound pissed,” Mark replied.
“I was thinking of convincing Jane to have a quickie in my office until you came strolling in.”
Mark laughed. “Bad timing on my part. Sorry, man.”
“It was a bad idea anyway. I need to be professional,” Luke said.
“Boring,” Mark said. “Anyway, how did the meeting go?”
“They still haven’t fully committed.”
“Then why the hell did they come to the office?” Mark said.
“Honestly, I have no idea what’s going on in their heads, and they’re easily distracted.”
“What do you mean?”
“They were flirting with Jane, and when I walked into the boardroom, both were touching her.” Luke’s face darkened with anger as Mark grinned at him.
“Beating up potential investors because they flirt with your woman is bad business practice.”
“She’s not my woman,” Luke said as his email dinged. He turned and stared at his computer screen. “Besides, the minute Amy walked in, they forgot about Jane. It was more than a little disgusting to watch them hit on her. She didn’t seem to mind all that much, but -”
“They were hitting on your sister?” Mark said.
“Yeah.” Luke clicked on the email. “They were all over her. I’m surprised they even invited me to dinner tonight. Pretty certain they’d rather spend all their time with Amy.”
“They’re having dinner tonight with Amy?”
Mark’s voice sounded strange, and Luke swivelled in his chair. “What’s wrong?”
“Amy’s having dinner with them tonight,” Mark repeated.
“Well, we’re having dinner with them – I’m taking Jane in case I need her to take notes or something - but I won’t be surprised if they try and convince Amy to go back to their goddamn hotel room with them. Jane told me that they told her they share their women. That they won’t even fuck a woman unless both of them are -”
“I’m going to dinner with you,” Mark snapped.
“What?”
“What time and where?” Mark said.
“You want to have dinner with us?”
“Yes,” Mark said irritably. “If it’s a business dinner, I should be there. Don’t you think?”
“Uh, sure,” Luke said.
“Good.” Mark stood up and stalked toward the doors. “Text me the time and address.”
He left the office, and Luke shook his head in bewilderment before returning to his computer.
* * *
“Amy, you look amazing,”Jane said.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Amy stood beside the coat check. Luke took Jane’s coat as Jane stared at Amy. The blonde wore a form-fitting, dark green dress that hugged her curves and showed off a generous amount of cleavage.
“Thanks, Janie.” Amy handed her jacket to Luke before smiling at Jane. “You look lovely as well.”
Jane laughed. “I’m still wearing my work clothes, but thanks.”
As Luke took their jackets to the coat check, Amy said in a low voice, “Do you think it’s too much?”
Jane shook her head. “No, that dress is beautiful on you. Julien and Pierre won’t know what hit them.”
Amy blushed. “I didn’t wear it specifically for them.”
“Did you wear it for Mark?” Jane asked.
Amy stared at her. “Why would you say that?”
“Luke mentioned that Mark was coming to dinner tonight, and I thought…”
Jane chewed at her bottom lip. “I’m sorry. I’m being an idiot. Forget I said that.”
“Mark’s coming for dinner?” Amy’s face had paled.
“Yes. You didn’t know?”
“Luke didn’t mention it.”
“Luke didn’t mention what?” Luke joined them and rested his hand on Jane’s lower back.
“Why is Mark coming to dinner?” Amy said. “And why didn’t you tell me?”
Before Luke could answer, Julien and Pierre joined them. They stared in frank appreciation at Amy in her green dress before Pierre hurried forward and took Amy’s hand, kissing the knuckles. He smiled at her and said, “Tu es belle, Amy.”
“Thank you,” she said.
Julien crowded in on the other side of her. “Your dress is stunning, mon ange.”
“Angel is very fitting for her,” Pierre said before stroking Amy’s blonde hair.
“Oui, très approprié,” Julien murmured.
“I hate to interrupt, but we haven’t met yet.”
Amy paled at the sound of Mark’s voice. She stepped back from Pierre and Julien and gave Mark an odd look that was half defiant and half guilty. Mark’s face was dark with anger as he stepped forward and held out his hand. His nostrils flaring, he shook Pierre’s hand and then Julien’s. Jane wondered if he was deliberately avoiding looking at Amy.
“Mark Stanford. I’m the CFO of Dawson Clothing.”
“It is nice to meet you, Mr. Stanford,” Julien said. “We did not realize you would join us for dinner this evening.”
Mark gave him a tight smile that didn’t reach his eyes. Julien stared coolly at him, and Amy said, “Mark often joins us for client dinners and meetings. He would have been there this afternoon but had a previous meeting. Isn’t that right, Mark?”
“Yes,” Mark said.
There was an awkward silence, and Jane lightly elbowed Luke in the ribs. He was studying his sister with a faint look of confusion. She elbowed him again, and he said, “Well, now that everyone’s here, let’s ask the hostess to take us to our table.”
* * *
“Amy, these are magnificent,”Pierre said. Both he and Julien leaned closer and studied the screen of her phone. When they were shown to their table, both men had snagged the seats on either side of Amy. They were outrageous flirts, and both used their considerable charm on her. Jane had sat between Mark and Luke and spent most of the dinner wondering who would snap first and punch the French men. Her money was on Mark. Luke was angry by how the men were flirting with his sister, but Mark’s rage was palpable.
She watched with growing alarm as Julien’s gaze dipped to Amy’s cleavage and Mark’s body stiffened. His hand tightened around his wine glass, and Jane said, “So, is anyone having dessert? Something sweet might be good.”
“I do enjoy something sweet after dinner,” Julien said in a low voice. He traced one finger across Amy’s collarbone. Jane grabbed Mark’s forearm with her right hand and Luke’s thigh with her left hand and squeezed hard when they both started to stand.
Luke relaxed in his chair, but Mark jerked in anger and stared at her hand before raising his gaze to her. She gave him a pointed look, and he flushed before saying, “No dessert for me.”
Jane released his arm as Luke said, “Me neither.”
Pierre was studying Amy’s phone again. “Seriously, ma chérie, these are incredible. Have you thought about starting a line with these?”
Amy shrugged. “Our clients want business clothes. A casual line doesn’t align with their interests, and I’m not wasting company money on a line that won’t give us a return on investment.”
“I think it would,” Pierre said. “We should talk more about this casual line. Perhaps you would care to come back to our hotel room after dinner? We can have some wine and talk business.”
Jane thought Mark was going to have a stroke. His face was bright red, and he squeezed his wine glass until his fingers were white. She elbowed him discreetly, and he glared at her before clearing his throat. “If you want to talk business, then it’s Luke or myself you should direct questions to. Amy doesn’t like to be involved in the business side. Isn’t that right, Amy?”
She gave him a cool look as she tucked her phone into her purse. She sat back as Julien laid his arm across the back of her chair and played with her soft blonde hair. “I’m considering becoming more involved in the business side.”
“Since when,” Mark snorted. “You just want to make the pretty things, remember?”
She scowled at him and crossed her arms over her chest. The motion made her ample breasts push against her dress, and both Julien and Pierre stared in unabashed delight at her pale skin. Jane wondered if she was the only one who heard Mark’s low snarl.
“It’s good to try new things,” Amy said. “Life is boring if you’re doing the same old things repeatedly.”
Mark raked his hand through his hair as Pierre smiled at Amy. “Julien and I love adventurous women who are up for trying new things.”
“So, that’s a no on dessert for everyone? Because it’s getting late, and I think we should call it a night,” Luke said. Jane could hear the anger in his voice.
“Trying new things isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be,” Mark said through clenched teeth. “Sometimes it’s the biggest mistake a person can make.”
“Amy?” Luke leaned forward. “Ames, are you all right?”
Amy’s face had turned deathly pale, and for one moment, Jane thought she would burst into tears. Desperate to help her friend, she said, “I need to use the ladies’ room. Amy, how about you?”
Amy stood. “No, I need to go. Pierre and Julien, I’m afraid I can’t meet this evening, but if your earlier offer is still open, I’ll be your tour guide tomorrow, and perhaps we can talk about the new line then.”
All four men stood, and Pierre grinned delightedly at Amy before leaning forward and pressing a kiss against her cheek. “We would be honoured, mon ange.”
Julien leaned in and kissed her other cheek. “Tell us the time and place, and we will be there, ma chérie.”
“Let’s say ten at the art museum on Sixteenth Avenue,” Amy said. “That way, I have plenty of time to,” she paused, and her gaze flickered briefly to Mark, “play tour guide.”
“Perfect. We’ll be there, mon ange,” Pierre said.
“Good,” Amy said.
She walked away as Mark slowly sank back into his chair. His hands were in tight fists, and he stared at the top of the table as Julien said, “I believe we will call it a night as well. Are you available to meet with us on Monday, Luke?”
“Yes,” Luke said.
“Bien,” Julien said. “We will discuss our possible investment with your company. Say around three on Monday?”
“Fine,” Luke said. “Enjoy your weekend, and if you need anything, let me know.”
“Oh, I am certain Amy will be able to help us with anything we need,” Pierre said.
Mark inhaled sharply, and Jane grabbed his thigh under the table, squeezing as hard as she could when he started to stand. He glared at her, and she subtly shook her head as Luke shook first Pierre’s hand and then Julien’s with a mild look of distaste.
“Mr. Stanford, it was a pleasure,” Julien said before holding out his hand.
Mark stared at his hand before giving it a brief shake. “Pleasure,” he muttered as a muscle ticked in his jaw.
Pierre smiled at Jane. “So lovely to meet you, Jane. Perhaps you would care to join the three of us tomorrow and,” he paused and glanced at Julien, “try new things as well.”
Before she could reply, Luke said, “I need Ms. Smith to work tomorrow.”
“What a pity,” Pierre said
Julien took Jane’s hand and kissed it lightly. “Bonne nuit, Jane.”
“Good night,” she said.
The two men left, and Luke blew his breath out in a low rush. “Christ, that was awkward as hell. The way they were hitting on Amy was uncomfortable, to say the least.”
He jerked in surprise when Mark slammed his fists down on the table. The silverware rattled, and Jane’s empty wine glass tipped over.
“What the hell is going on with you tonight?” Luke said. “You insist on coming to dinner but barely say two words. What’s your problem with Julien and Pierre?”
“What’s my problem?” Mark snapped. “Those two assholes were practically humping Amy at the goddamn table, and you didn’t do a fucking thing about it. You’re her brother, for fuck’s sake.”
“I didn’t like it any more than you did, but she’s a grown woman, Mark. Besides, she obviously didn’t mind. She’s going out with them tomorrow, isn’t she?”
Mark’s face turned bright red, and he stood up abruptly. “I have to go. Good night.”
He stalked away, and Luke stared at Jane before rubbing at his jaw. “Mark is acting crazy tonight.”
“Maybe it has something to do with Amy,” Jane said delicately.
“Yeah, probably,” Luke said. “It pissed me off, not to mention grossed me out, to watch them hitting on her. Mark thinks of her as his sister, so I shouldn’t be surprised it pissed him off as well.”
“Right,” Jane said. “That must be it.”
He gave her a curious look as he signalled the waiter for the cheque. “What?”
“Nothing,” she said.
Luke smiled at her. “Have I mentioned how beautiful you look tonight?”
She grinned. “You don’t have to sweet talk me, Mr. Dawson. I’m going home with you tonight.”
He leaned in and nuzzled her neck. “Of course you are. Why wouldn’t you?”
She rolled her eyes before rubbing his thigh. “Reign in the arrogance, or I’ll withhold the sexy times.”
He burst into laughter, and she shushed him when the couple at the table beside them glanced over curiously.
“You won’t,” he whispered into her ear. “You can’t resist me, Jane Smith.”
He sucked on her earlobe, and she shuddered with pleasure. He was right – she couldn’t resist him and didn’t want to.
“I’ll take you home first to grab some clothes, and then we’re spending the rest of the weekend in my bed. Any questions, Ms. Smith?”
“No, Mr. Dawson. No questions at all,” she said sweetly.