Katie Pettigrew Gardiner was the antithesis of what he wanted in a promotional lackey for their upstart company. The girl needed humility in a bad way, and since he was her boss, it was up to him to dish it out.
He hated this shit. Hated it.
TP, you bastard, we are more than even after this.
“Ronin, are you even listening to me?” Katie demanded with a pout.
“How many times do I have to tell you not to call me by my first name? I am your boss. Which means you call me Mr. Black, or sir, understood?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Second, you do what I tell you. Nothing more and definitely nothing less. While I appreciate your initiative, I don’t need it. I need you to put on the ring-girl outfit.”
“But—”
He held up his hand. “No buts. Ever. Meet Sophia down in the dojo locker room. Handing out free tickets for the upcoming event is your job. A job which you are still on probation for.”
Katie pushed herself out of the chair. “I will prove to you that I’m more valuable than being a bimbo ring girl.”
Two raps sounded on the door, and Amery walked in. “Hey, Ronin. I just . . .” She froze, and her gaze flicked over Katie.
A sneaky smile curled Katie’s mouth. “Okay, boss man. Do you want me to come back up and model the outfit? I know how much it means having your approval.”
“No. Get moving. You’re already late.”
“It was hard to tear myself away from such fascinating conversation with you, even when we’ve spent most of the day together,” she practically cooed. “Until tomorrow.” She whirled around and strutted out of his office.
“Who the fuck is she?” Amery demanded. “Is she lost?”
He did not need this today on top of every fucking thing else. “No. She works for Black and Blue Promotions.”
“So she came with Blue’s crew?”
“No. I hired her.”
With the way her eyes turned into lethal arrows? He’d given the wrong answer. “Just how closely will you be working with her in this new promotion company?”
“Why are you acting like this?”
Amery seemed to take a deep breath to try to compose herself, then stalked over and slapped her hands on the desk. “A six-foot-tall Amazon with perfect tits, a perfect ass, perfect blond hair, and a predatory smile just sauntered out of your office, after making it perfectly clear to me that she planned to be around you all the damn time.”
“You’re reading too much into this. Katie is a kid.”
“You’re kidding yourself if you don’t think that kid has designs on you. And she’s not a kid. I’ll bet I’m not that much older than her.”
Ronin counted to ten. “You’ve misread the situation.”
“Then explain it to me.”
“We agreed to stay out of each other’s business. This is business, plain and simple.”
She looked ready to argue, but changed her mind and stepped back. “You’re right. I forgot my place for a moment.”
“Jesus, Amery. Stop with this.”
“You betcha. Wouldn’t wanna speak up when something bothers me. I’ll just let the big, strong man handle it and put it out of my empty little head.” She granted him a fake smile, along with two cheesy thumbs-up, and stomped off.
He would not chase her down.
Would. Not.
Right. Who the fuck was he kidding? He always chased her down.
Ronin smacked his sore knee on the side of the desk and bit back a curse when it slowed him down. When he reached the hallway, Amery was nowhere to be found.
Blue came around the corner. “Hey, do you—”
“Did you pass Amery?”
“Yeah. She was not looking too happy.”
“Where’d she go?”
“I don’t know. So do you have time—”
“Not now. I have to deal with this first.”
Blue clapped Ronin on the shoulder. “Hope you have a cup on, man.”
He heard the elevator ping, so he reversed course and opened the door to the stairwell. In Amery’s present mood, she wouldn’t head for the penthouse, so he started downstairs. She’d have to get off at the second floor since classes were in session in the dojo.
So when the elevator door opened, Ronin was leaning against the wall waiting for her. When she saw him, she frantically poked buttons, trying to close the door in his face, but he was too fast. He snagged her wrist and hauled her out.
“Hey! What the hell? Let me go.”
Ronin didn’t respond; he just towed her down the hallway.
“You are pissing me off.”
He tightened his grip on her wrist in warning.
“Don’t make me use kung fu on you.”
Jesus. The shit she said sometimes . . .
The conference room door was open. Ito, Terrel, one of Blue’s instructors, and Knox were lounging around the table. They all looked up.
Ronin bit off, “Get. Out.”
Ito and the other dude were gone lightning fast. But Knox said, “Fair warning. I hear you throwing furniture around and glass breaking again, and I will come in.”
“Lock the door,” Ronin said to Knox without taking his eyes off Amery.
Knox grumbled, but he left.
Ronin slammed his mouth down on hers as soon as the door shut. One hand holding her head in place, his other hand locked around both of her wrists as he literally pushed her into a corner.
After returning his kiss with equal voracity, Amery must’ve remembered she was mad at him and kissed him angrily. If he hadn’t moved his mouth, she would’ve sunk her teeth into his lower lip hard enough to draw blood.
“Not nice, baby,” he panted against her throat.
“I’m not feeling very nice toward you right now, baby.”
“What has gotten into you? You’re never this insanely jealous.”
“What has gotten into you? You’ve never put a porn star on the payroll.”
Do. Not. Laugh. “This is all about Katie?”
“Yes. When did you hire her? While we were broken up? Because I will be screaming banshee mad at you if you already had my replacement picked out. What did—”
“Stop talking. You’re just getting yourself in deeper.”
“Make me stop talking, hotshot. Just because—”
Ronin put his hand over her mouth. “Calm down, and listen, because I’m going to say this one time.”
She blinked.
“We are together. That means I don’t look at another woman the way I look at you. I don’t touch another woman the way I touch you. I don’t feel about any woman the way I feel about you. Got it? Don’t ever think I’d throw away what we have for a cheap, meaningless fuck. You either trust me, or you don’t. So what’s it going to be?” He moved his hand from her mouth and released her wrists.
She studied him without speaking, which was so unlike her. Then she slapped her palms on his chest. “Goddamn you. I worked up a really good mad and then you say something like that.”
“I should’ve said something like . . . Do you know how fucking hot it is that you’re jealous?” He pressed his dick into her hip.
Amery tossed her head. “Oh, that hard-on is for me? I thought maybe . . .”
“What?”
“That you were hard before I walked into your office.”
Ronin growled. “Now you’re just provoking me. The only woman who gets me this hard is you.” He put his mouth on her ear. “I’ll prove it. Right fucking now.”
“Ronin—”
“I warned you not to throw down a challenge in my dojo because it will be answered.” He used his teeth on the cord in her neck as she strained to get away from him.
“Master Black—omigod you are not doing that here.”
“What? This?” He zeroed in on the sensitive section of skin between her collarbone and shoulder that made her squirm, made her wet, made her moan.