Beth Kery: Since I Saw You

Which was ridiculous. A woman like her would take offense at his pornographic thoughts.

Wouldn’t she?

“Should I explain what I have planned?” she asked in a low, melodious voice after she’d swallowed and tore off another piece of bread.

“Planned for what? The courtship of a bunch of rich stiffs who make status symbols for other rich stiffs that tell the rest of us peons loud and clear we’re not a part of their club?” he asked, his voice unintentionally harsh as he again ripped his attention off Lin. He began to eat mechanically, grunting softly in acknowledgment at the first savory bite of soup. Lin had been right. Her friend knew how to cook.

“If anything, they’ll be courting you, Kam.”

He met her stare at the sound of her saying his name.

“Will you be there?”

She blinked. “At the meetings? Of course. I thought you knew that. Ian thought I could help. Is that all right?”

He shrugged. “I don’t need any help. But seeing you again makes this whole thing interesting, at the very least.”

Her eyes widened. He’d gotten to her. He waited, curious as to how she’d respond.

“I thought you’d prefer to settle in and spend time with Ian and Lucien for the next few days. I’m out of town, anyway. So we’ll get things started on Thursday with two representatives from Gersbach,” Lin began, her manner abruptly brisk and businesslike. So, she was going to ignore his overture. “I wanted you to meet with them first, let them set the stage for what we’re dealing with here. As you probably know, Gersbach is the premier Swiss watchmaker. It’s a large company, but it’s still privately held by the Gersbach family. The family prefers doing business face-to-face. Otto Gersbach, the current chief executive officer, is carrying on the family tradition of sitting down with potential business partners, breaking bread together, really knowing one another on a personal basis.”

“If he values personal business transactions, it’s a wonder he doesn’t take offense at the idea of me meeting with his competitors.” He gave Lin a sideways glance and noticed her implacable features. “Oh, I see. He doesn’t know,” he added sardonically.

“I didn’t tell him outright, no,” she replied in an unruffled manner. She really was a cool one. He watched as she slipped the silver spoon between her lips. Her white, pearl-clad throat convulsed slightly as she swallowed. He mentally shouted at himself to look away. She was too cool to be making him so hot. The imbalance irritated him. Suddenly, the idea of him putting his rough hands all over her smooth body . . . of him sliding his big, aching cock into her sleek pussy, seemed about as likely as a balmy summer in Antarctica next year.

Still, a man could dream. When the fantasies were as hot as Lin inspired, he had no choice.

“But Otto likely suspects that he has competition for your product,” she continued. “He’s no fool.”

He paused in eating as she set down her spoon, turned to the chair next to her and retrieved her slim leather briefcase. She lifted it to her lap and extracted something from the pocket, her actions precise and graceful. He stared at the black-and-white photo of a fit-looking man in his late fifties with graying blond hair. He was sitting at a table covered with papers and his thin lips were opened as if he had been photographed speaking.

“Otto Gersbach,” Lin said. She placed another photograph on top of Otto. This one was of a good-looking, curvy blond woman in a business suit, walking through what appeared to be a large lobby. “And his daughter, Brigit. She’ll be there tomorrow night as well.”

“Where’d Ian hire you from? The CIA? These look like surveillance photos,” he said, both amused and disgusted. He liked Ian and respected his brain, but Kam valued his privacy and freedom too much to condone spying. Just one more reason to tread very carefully in the carnivorous world of high finance and business—

“Ian values preparation,” Lin said neutrally, interrupting his thoughts. “He likes to have every detail he possibly can available to him before he goes into a meeting.”

“And you help him do that,” Kam murmured, his narrowed gaze running over Lin’s stunning face. What was Ian and Lin’s relationship? He’d met Ian’s wife—Francesca—on several occasions and liked her very much. He knew Ian was crazy about her. Other women didn’t seem to exist for him with Francesca in the picture. The fact that Francesca was going to have his baby this winter cemented the idea in Kam’s head that Lin and Ian definitely were not romantically involved. But what about before Francesca had come on the scene? Surely his half brother wouldn’t have denied himself with this exquisite beauty efficiently meeting his every demand?

He let his spoon drop in the bowl with a loud plink at the thought.

“What lengths would you go to in the name of service to Ian?” he growled softly.

“What do you mean?” she asked, her smooth expression fracturing slightly. “Are you suggesting I’d do something illegal for my job?”

He tore apart a piece of bread and shot a pointed glance at the photos.

“Those photos were taken from a security feed at Noble Enterprises in public places. There’s nothing illegal about them,” she defended.

“How many photos of me did you review before you walked in here tonight?” he asked before he wolfed down several bites of soup.

“None, if you must know,” she said, and he was glad to hear the anger in her voice. Good to know there was some passion behind that perfect face and body.

“You said you’d recognize me anywhere.”

“Only because you look so much like Ian,” she blurted out heatedly. He met her stare, a little shocked by her outburst. She inhaled slowly, seeming to try and calm herself, and Kam realized she’d been shocked, too. “Trust me, I never saw any photos of you. If I had, I . . .” She paused and looked away. “Why don’t you tell me what’s really got you so prickly?”

He gave a rough bark of laughter and shoved back his bowl of soup. “You want my whole life story?”

“No, just the reason you’re so determined to dislike me,” she replied without pause.

His gaze dropped over her white throat to the exposed skin of her upper chest, above the neckline of the fitted sweater she wore. The garment was streamlined and chic, but included a ruffle around the wrists that he found sexy—a concession to her femininity. Her breasts looked like they’d fill the palm of his hand perfectly, not too large, not too small. They thrust erotically from the plane of her chest, pert, firm, soft seeming. They rose as she inhaled. He met her startled stare.

Not like her? What gave her that impression?

Maybe it’s because you know a woman like her would never give you the time of day if it weren’t for these unique circumstances. And you’re playing defense against that knowledge.

“I like you just fine,” he said honestly, ignoring the voice in his head and refusing to censor the heat in his tone.

Her lush, unadorned lips trembled slightly. He couldn’t take his eyes off them. She had to have the sexiest mouth he’d ever seen. He leaned in without conscious thought, a man who had caught the scent and was determined not to lose it.

“What do you mean by that? What if you had seen a photo of me?” he demanded quietly, their faces just inches apart.

“I would have been better prepared.”

“Too late,” he replied succinctly. He leaned closer still, her eyes drawing him in . . .

She blinked and started back. Victor had arrived with their entrees. The bartender flinched when he saw Kam’s furious scowl for having interrupted at such a crucial moment.