Jennifer Rae - The Hotel Magnate's Demand

‘I’m tougher than you think, Boss.’

Luke smiled. ‘You haven’t called me that in a long time. I think I like it.’

The wrestling stopped. The air in the taxi turned a little thick. Amy stopped moving and stilled her hand where it rested, on his thigh. High on his thigh. His hands stilled too.

‘You like it when I call you Boss?’ Amy’s eyes skirted to Luke’s lips. They were slightly parted. She wanted to kiss him. She wanted to touch him. She wanted to do bad, bad things to him.

‘I like you having your hand there.’ Luke’s voice was deep and he shifted his leg a little, underneath where her hand sat.

There was no mistaking what he wanted and how he felt. And it sent a thrilling ripple through her to think that she could finally have what she’d wanted all those years ago. Time alone with Luke. Luke wanting her. It was everything she’d wanted as an eighteen-year-old and she could finally take it—if she wanted.

JENNIFER RAEwas raised on a farm in Australia by salt-of-the-earth farming parents. All she ever wanted to do was write, but she didn’t have the confidence to share her stories with the world until, working as a journalist, she interviewed a couple of romance-writers. Finally the characters who had been milling around Jennifer’s head since her long years on the farm made sense, and she realised romance was the genre for her and sat down to release her characters.

www.millsandboon.co.uk

This book is for the boys in my life.

For the boys who loved me when I wasn’t very lovable, the boys who cheered me up when I was feeling down, and the boys who took care of me when I needed it.

I’m grateful for you all.

But mostly this book is dedicated to the two boys who mean more to me than any other boy ever has or ever will.

To Archie and Max

The two boys I love the most.

Cover

Excerpt ‘I’m tougher than you think, Boss.’ Luke smiled. ‘You haven’t called me that in a long time. I think I like it.’ The wrestling stopped. The air in the taxi turned a little thick. Amy stopped moving and stilled her hand where it rested, on his thigh. High on his thigh. His hands stilled too. ‘You like it when I call you Boss?’ Amy’s eyes skirted to Luke’s lips. They were slightly parted. She wanted to kiss him. She wanted to touch him. She wanted to do bad, bad things to him. ‘I like you having your hand there.’ Luke’s voice was deep and he shifted his leg a little, underneath where her hand sat. There was no mistaking what he wanted and how he felt. And it sent a thrilling ripple through her to think that she could finally have what she’d wanted all those years ago. Time alone with Luke. Luke wanting her. It was everything she’d wanted as an eighteen-year-old and she could finally take it—if she wanted.

About the Author JENNIFER RAE was raised on a farm in Australia by salt-of-the-earth farming parents. All she ever wanted to do was write, but she didn’t have the confidence to share her stories with the world until, working as a journalist, she interviewed a couple of romance-writers. Finally the characters who had been milling around Jennifer’s head since her long years on the farm made sense, and she realised romance was the genre for her and sat down to release her characters.

Title Page The Hotel Magnate’s Demand Jennifer Rae www.millsandboon.co.uk

Dedication This book is for the boys in my life. For the boys who loved me when I wasn’t very lovable, the boys who cheered me up when I was feeling down, and the boys who took care of me when I needed it. I’m grateful for you all. But mostly this book is dedicated to the two boys who mean more to me than any other boy ever has or ever will. To Archie and Max The two boys I love the most.

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Copyright

THREE MILLION DOLLARS. The sweet, stupid lunatics at Amy McCarthy’s work were seriously trusting her with three million dollars ? No matter how many times it happened Amy was still amazed that she’d managed to convince people she knew what she was on about. Didn’t they know that she was a five-year-old dressed in a twenty-six-year-old’s clothing? If they had, perhaps they wouldn’t have opened that bottle of champagne tonight and toasted her success.

Perhaps they wouldn’t have told her how proud they were of her for landing the biggest account in the company’s history. Perhaps they would have done what they should have and handed the account to Maree, or Thomas, or another of one of the senior PR consultants. The grown-ups. The sensible, reliable, practical grown-ups who knew what the hell they were doing. Not her. Who considered it a win when she managed to find matching socks to wear to the gym.

The grin on Amy’s face was almost manic as she pushed open the heavy door to Saints, the hip bar and restaurant in Surry Hills where she was meeting the others. Seriously. She totally had no idea what she was supposed to do with these new clients. They were the biggest luxury hotel chain in the entire Asia Pacific region.

She knew nothing about hotels! She was all talk. She knew that. She’d been able to sweet-talk people into anything since she was little. She’d even considered using her sales ability as her talent when she’d entered the Miss Northern Suburbs competition in high school. But she’d gone with magic instead. Which was probably why she’d lost. Either that or the fact that she’d been the dumpiest, plumpest, most unfashionable girl in the competition.

Amy remembered the long flowing bohemian dress she’d chosen for the ‘formal wear’ part of the competition. She’d loved it. It had made her feel pretty and feminine and free. But the judges had called her a hippy, and apparently hippies didn’t win beauty contests. So she’d lost. But her mother had hugged her and told her she was cleverer than those silly judges and her father had insisted she was the most beautiful girl there.

Her parents were two more sweet, silly people in her life. Thinking she was so much brighter and cleverer and better than she actually was.

Perhaps that was why, Amy thought, she had a tendency to make bad decisions. Too many people telling her she could do anything. Maybe she needed to surround herself with some more realistic people. Grounded, sensible people, who didn’t hope for the impossible but had their feet firmly set on the ground.

People like Willa. Amy spotted her best friend as soon as she alighted from the small flight of stairs that led to the dark bar that had become her local in recent months. Willa’s bright smile caught on the light and Amy smiled. Funny, clever, crazy Willa.

Amy couldn’t wait to tell her friend about her latest mad scheme. Of course Amy would exaggerate and make it seem even more outrageous than it actually was. She knew that would make Willa laugh and she loved to make Willa laugh. Because that made Amy laugh and there was nothing Amy liked to do more than laugh. And go out. And work. And stay as busy as possible. Staying busy meant staying high. And staying high meant not thinking about things that made her sad.