She must be ready to burst after marching all day. Perfect. He’d let her use his private washroom, let her get cozy and then move in for the kill.
When his pulse started to race, Liam began to wonder about his motives for seeing her. He suspected it had less to do with casinos, and more to do with hunger.
His inconvenient hunger for her.
When Wade told Kate that Doyle would see her again, she tried to ignore her sense of shock and turned to her fellow protestors. “Rod, could you take over for me?”
“Sure. How long will you be gone?”
“I have no idea.” Bemused, she followed Doyle’s lackey into the casino.
So the lord of the manor wanted to see her again. She must remember to doff her hat.
“How are you today, Wade?” She tried not to swallow a cloud of smoke from some woman who was doing her best to resemble Lindsay Lohan. Wait, was that Lindsay Lohan?
“Fine.” She thought she caught him blush. “Thanks for the cookies earlier. Oatmeal’s my favorite.” He frowned. “Don’t tell Liam, okay?”
She grinned and locked up her lips with her fingers as she followed the big man to Doyle’s office.
Liam sat at his massive desk like a king. When he stood to greet her, she saw he wore yet another suit cut perfectly to fit his body. He must have a personal tailor on call. The expensive black cloth seemed to caress every part of him. Underneath, he wore a checked shirt and another navy tie, one that made his blue eyes look even more fiery. The ensemble, if traded for food, could probably feed an entire homeless shelter.
But he looked good. So good, she’d swear a squadron of butterflies just launched an assault on her belly. She chalked it up to needing to pee and shifted on her feet, conscious of Wade leaving in the elevator. “Mr. Doyle.”
He moved toward her, stopping mere inches away, and offered her a slow grin. “I’ve decided we’re ready for first names. Call me Liam.”
“How fortunate that I have you deciding these things.” She took a step back. Not that it helped the crazy fluttering inside her. “I don’t really think first names are wise. You know, with me trying to discredit you and all.”
“Oh, come on, Kate. You’ve been picketing my casino for a few days now. You’re here so much I feel as if I should put you on payroll, even if you are trying to make me lose money. Don’t you think I’ve earned the right to call you by your first name?”
Avoiding his question, she looked around and noticed some coloring books and strawberry pastries on the kitchen counter. Next to them was a Dora the Explorer DVD. “Um, wow. I wouldn’t have guessed your tastes run to the girly.”
He looked at the counter-top items. “They’re not for me. I’m having visitors shortly.”
“So why am I here?”
He gestured to the couches and sat. She remained standing, hoping it would bug him, but he merely shrugged. “It’s time we got frank, Katie.”
“Please don’t call me that. I prefer Kate.”
“Of course, you do. It’s much more sensible. So it’s settled, I can call you Kate.”
Momentarily bested, she crossed her arms over her chest, noting how his gaze followed, and how her nipples hardened in response. “What do you want, Doyle?”
“To know your price.”
“What price?”
“Really? You wanna play games with me?”
“You’re one to talk about games. Besides, I’m not playing any. I just don’t understand your question.”
“Ms. Callender, everyone has a price. Now, I’ve been very patient, but I want to know what it’s going to cost me to remove you from my casino. The sooner you tell me, the sooner we can finish this.”
Did he seriously think she could be bought? “I don’t have a price. I’m not doing this so you’ll pay me off.”
“I don’t believe you. People don’t do anything unless they think there’s a payoff somewhere down the line.”
Something in his face paled. What did he mean? Granted, with his money, he’d probably met some mercenary characters. Still, it made her a little sad to see poor little rich boy act so jaded about the world. “I’m not sure how to make it clearer, Liam, but I’m not even slightly interested in your money.”
They stared at each other, and she could tell he was analyzing her as much as she did him. Once again, his gaze dipped down to her breast line and back up again. “You just called me Liam. Careful. Next thing you know you’ll be under my sheets.”
A tingle of raw sensuality worked its way up her spine. His amazing scent filled her nostrils as her mind wandered. Dammit. She had fantasized about them together in a few moments of weakness the night before. She shifted on her feet again, suddenly desperate for a toilet. He’d turned her insides into a roiling cauldron of something very bad for her peace of mind. “It just slipped out, Mr. Doyle.”
He chuckled. “Something else is going to slip out if you don’t get to a bathroom. It seems you’ve had no breaks since you got here this morning.”
“Stalking me now, are you?”
“And if I have been watching you? What would you say to that?”
His tone had changed, the playful lilt gone. The whisper that remained spoke of seduction, of repressed carnality and greed. He may have meant to tease her with his words, but hearing them with such voracity made it hard not to react. Her throat seemed suddenly dry, and she realized something about this man. With him, there were only three options: fight, flight or submit.
She prayed she still had some fight left in her.
“Never fear, sugar,” Liam said with a shrug, his voice once again lightening with mischief. “I just wish my own team worked so hard.” He motioned to a set of doors. “Be my guest.”
Shoot. She shouldn’t have had that extra-large coffee on the way to the protest, but she’d needed the pick-me-up after her failure to do the right thing at the bank. But to use Liam Doyle’s private bathroom? “I don’t know.”
“It’s cleaned daily, Kate. I haven’t even used that one yet. No evil Liam cooties in there.” He eyed the clock on the wall. “Look, I don’t mean to rush you, but like I said, I have visitors coming and if you’re not planning on answering my question, we might as well call it a day.”
“Okay, fine.” Muttering her thanks, she shuffled to the washroom and closed the door behind her, almost slamming it with relief. She made sure to lock it as well. What if he had a hidden camera in here? What if Liam Doyle was a crazed serial killer who lured unsuspecting women into his bathroom of death? Not finding any lethal traps lying about, she adjusted her clothing and attended to business.
After washing her hands, she couldn’t help but notice all the personal items in the room. For an office bathroom, he sure kept it well-stocked. “Geez, does the dude live here?”
Next to the black marble vanity stood a storage cabinet with clear doors. Through the doors, she spied plush wash cloths, several spare sticks of deodorant, body wash and shampoo. Oh, and a bottle of the Kors cologne she loved. Unable to resist, she opened the door and pulled out the cologne bottle, bringing it to her nose.
Liam’s scent, so up-close-and-personal, made her weak in the knees. Head spinning, she shoved it back into the cabinet and closed the door.
Taking a few extra minutes to compose herself, she planned her next move. He wanted to buy her off, but when she’d joined New Horizons, it was because of a higher calling. Mere money, even piles of it, wouldn’t sway her from trying to help people like herself. She needed to convince him a payoff wasn’t possible in a way that showed him why what he was doing was wrong.
Just as she had her speech prepared in her head, she opened the bathroom door, and heard voices in the outer room.
“Oh, damn.” She’d taken too long and now she had to excuse herself in front of his visitors. He probably had the freaking Queen out there. Or her naughtiest relative anyway.