The clock ticked. Slowly, she regained her composure, and watched him from under heavily lidded eyes. She realized she’d unwillingly issued a challenge, and he’d do whatever necessary to make her surrender. The sudden flash of vulnerability in his eyes couldn’t be real. And she already knew she wasn’t enough of a woman to save Logan Grant.
She stared at him. He wanted to play business games, but he didn’t understand she played for higher stakes. Running would only make him pursue. She’d have to fight back with all the skill she learned from her father. Keep your opponent off balance at all times. Never underestimate your challenger. Always be one step ahead.
Logan was about to find out she’d be no easy conquest. She had too much to lose.
She took a step forward and reached for his hand. Slowly, she lifted his fingers to her lips, nibbling on the pad of his thumb, letting her tongue glide along the base. His muscles clenched. She heard the breath hiss through his teeth. With satisfaction, she dropped his hand from her mouth and stepped back once again. The surprise in his eyes made her lips curve in a smile. “Be warned, sweetheart. I was taught to play games by the best. I was also taught to win.” Chandler paused. “Ante up.”
Then she twisted the knob and stepped inside, firmly shutting the door behind her.
Logan Grant leaned back in his leather chair and signaled for his secretary to leave. Tapping his pen absently against the edge of the desk, he studied the papers in front of him and searched for a rational solution to his problem.
It had been one week since their confrontation. Five full days. Four long nights. And he wasn’t any closer to scaling her walls.
He let out a frustrated breath. Besides tying him up in knots, she caused more trouble than any other woman he’d ever known. The logical side to his nature entreated him to walk away, and therefore, solve his problem. But he didn’t.
It already seemed too late to walk away from Chandler Santell.
Logan flipped through the pages of the dossier, feeling like a Peeping Tom as he skimmed through the events of her life. Ever since Alexander Santell approached him with a deal to make his company skyrocket to the top, he’d been suspicious. Ordering Chandler’s life story seemed the reasonable thing to do given the circumstances. He needed to be cautious. The rapid growth of his company made it vulnerable to predators looking for a piece of the action. She could be a corporate spy hand delivered by her father. Logan didn’t believe in coincidence, and his instincts told him something wasn’t right when the deal of a lifetime presented itself a few weeks after hiring Chandler.
He was a businessman who needed to look out for his company. He refused to apologize for doing his job.
Then why did he feel like he was making one of the biggest mistakes of his life?
Disgusted with his rioting emotions, he swiveled around to gaze out from his office window. The sun began to sink, turning the river skyline a dark silhouette against fiery red, orange, and yellow. Towering buildings thrust toward the sky, competing for attention with nature’s radiance. The man made structures fought for dominance, and once again, failed compared to the river and sunset. It was a scene of New York meant for a painting.
God, he was tired. A slight throbbing behind his eyes told him a migraine was on the way. Normally, the view from his office made a rush of pride and energy course through him, refreshing his drive for ambition and his desire to have the city of New York recognize his name. But today, he only felt more alone. He questioned what he really wanted for himself. More money? More power? After that, would he crave more, always driven to fill an empty space inside?
Whenever Chandler walked into his office something stirred deep inside him. She made him feel things he thought long buried. Normally, when he got involved in a deal it consumed him, leaving no time or thought for anything else. Since he’d met her, business didn’t seem as important. Suddenly, it wasn’t urgent to be the first one in the office or the last to leave at night. He always wondered what she was doing, or who she was with, until the need to see her overpowered everything else.
You’re getting soft.
The inner voice taunted him. Letting a woman break his concentration was dangerous. Especially when the future of his company could hinge on this contract.
Logan rubbed his forehead. Why did Chandler run from him, if Alexander Santell hired her as a spy? Wouldn’t she drop into his bed in order to learn his secrets? Why had she left her father’s company years ago? There was no record of a disagreement between them. Unless the ex-fiancee caused her to walk away from such a powerful position. Had he done something to betray her trust? Had she loved him so much she had to run from him?
Tension coiled tightly in his stomach at the thought. He picked up the dossier and stared at the leather binder. Within the pages lay all the answers to his questions. All he had to do was open the cover.
With one decisive motion, Logan swiveled back around in his chair and tossed the report in his wastebasket. The hell with it. His instincts told him to believe in her honesty and integrity. For the first time, he’d go on trust, and assume she knew nothing about her father’s offer.
The full impact of his action hit him like a freight train. Trust. A word that meant danger in the business world. Pain in personal relationships. And, of course, betrayal. One thought flashed before his eyes, almost like a neon sign, and stopped him from retrieving her dossier again.
She was the woman who could save his soul.
“Hey, boss, got a minute?”
He looked up. Richard stood in the doorway with a pile of papers in his hand. Logan admitted the man exuded an air of confidence as he waited for a response. He wondered if the lawyer practiced his motions in the mirror each morning. Dressed the part in a navy blue suit, silk tie, and custom made cuff links, Logan wondered what image he presented to Chandler when they were alone. Thoughtfully, he tapped his pen on the edge of the polished wood and motioned him in.
“Sure. Are we ready for our meeting with Tommy?”
Richard nodded and took a seat. His brown eyes took in the room with one sweep, as if memorizing something for future use. Logan casually kicked the wastebasket out of the man’s view. “Contracts are ready to go, and I think we’ll go ahead with the final negotiations. It’s a killer deal, boss.”
Logan nodded and watched Richard adjust his gold cuff links. “I know. I’ve been working on it almost a year now. Most other investors gave up, thinking he’d never sell the company.” Logan’s eyes narrowed. “Tommy plays the waiting game. Watch the weak ones crumble. He likes a man with patience, so I just gave him what he wanted.”
Richard lifted a brow. “Patience, huh?”
The pen tapped in a steady beat. “The Japanese respect the art of patience. It’s Americans who want immediate satisfaction.”
“Nothing wrong with going after your goals.”
“Move too fast and you’ll lose every time.” He paused. “When I go after something, I always win. Because I wait for my opening.”
Richard shifted in his chair. Silence filled the room as they both watched each other. Then he gave a short laugh. “Trying to tell me something, boss?”
Primitive male energy hummed through the air. “Stay away from Chandler.”
Richard blinked, then recovered quickly enough to screen his features to attain an element of blandness. “That a direct order?”