Page 2 of Not-So Real Breakup
With that in mind, I hurried to my apartment and packed everything I’d need for the few days I’d be in Chicago. Then I hit the road for the drive to JB Capital’s Gold Coast office. With the majority of the traffic headed out of the city, it only took me about ninety minutes to get there.
I arrived a good hour before they were due to close, which was a lucky thing since getting in to see James Bardot without an appointment turned into a whole thing where the receptionist referred me to security while giving me some serious side-eye.
Handing my driver’s license to the guard who’d asked for it, I grumbled, “See, it says Samantha Heath, as in Heath Construction. My brother has been in and out of this building to see James hundreds of times.”
“Sorry, miss.” He handed the card back to me with an apologetic smile. “It’s the protocol for walk-ins.”
“Mm-hmm.” I tucked my driver’s license back into my purse and headed for the elevator, punching the button for the top floor a little harder than intended once I was inside. I was still flustered when I stepped out of the lift, and the feeling intensified for an entirely different reason when I spotted the man I’d come to see striding toward me.
With his resemblance to his brother, there was no mistaking him for anyone other than James Bardot. Except he was a heck of a lot hotter than Jeremy, who I had never seen as anything more than my brother’s friend.
He had dark brown hair, a closely cropped beard, and hazel eyes that scanned me from head to toe behind his black-rimmed glasses. He had the whole tall, dark, and handsome thing down pat. Especially since he was at least a whole half foot taller than me, with muscles that stretched the expensive material of his bespoke suit in the very best way.
Until now, I’d been uninterested in guys and dating—much to my brother’s relief—but my libido came roaring to life when I caught the masculine interest in his gaze. Then he held out his hand, and it felt as though energy crackled between us as my palm slid against his. And when he murmured, “Samantha Heath, I presume?” in his deep voice, goose bumps spread across my skin.
Thinking about how I’d teased my brother about his lack of professionalism after promising him my behavior in Chicago would be beyond reproach, I realized I’d set myself up for an even more difficult task than I had expected.
2
JAMES
Son of a bitch.
Samantha was fucking gorgeous.
My hand closed around her softer one, and my skin tingled at the contact. Along with other places…
She nodded, and pink spread across her high, elegant cheekbones. The color spread past the collar of her prim white blouse, and I had to swallow a groan as liquid fire slid through my veins and hardened my cock.
Her long, white-blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail, the gentle curls swaying as her head dropped back so she could look directly up at me. She blinked her amazing baby-blue eyes, and her tongue darted out to wet her plump lips that were painted a deep red. I briefly wondered if the color would leave a ring around my dick, but I quickly shoved those thoughts away. I was already going to have a hell of a time hiding the large bulge behind my zipper, I didn’t need to make it worse with fantasies about those perfect lips sucking me off.
My gaze slid down the rest of her body, taking a closer look now that I was right in front of her. Her slender but lean build made me guess she was a runner. But her tight little body still managed to have mouthwatering curves from her generous tits to gently rounded hips, showcased beautifully by her black pencil skirt. It came to just below her knees, but that didn’t hide how long and sexy her legs were, especially when I noticed the slit on the side that went nearly halfway up her thigh.
“James Bardot,” I mumbled gruffly, irritated at the notion that anyone besides me could see so much of her leg.
Not wanting to scare her off, I curled my mouth into a smile and forced myself to release her hand. “Welcome to JB Capital.”
“Thank you.”
Her tone was breathless, and I wanted to bang my head against a wall as thoughts of her saying my name in that sexy voice while I pleasured her bombarded me.
“Why don’t we go into my office?” I suggested. At least there, I could sit behind my desk until my dick wasn’t threatening to bust the zipper on my very expensive suit pants.
I stepped to the side and gestured toward the hallway on the left of the lobby. Samantha smiled, and as she walked in front of me, my eyes were glued to the sway of her hips and heart-shaped ass. “It’s nice to put a face to a name,” I murmured as I caught up to her and put a hand on her lower back, then steered her to the door at the end of the corridor and into my office.
Samantha gasped and hurried over to the wall of windows that looked out over the city of Chicago. The sun was just beginning to set, and it cast a colorful glow over the buildings. “This is beautiful!”
“Yes, it is,” I replied, my gaze still focused on her.
She looked back at me over her shoulder, and when our eyes met, I wasn’t able to completely shutter my growing hunger for her. A blush stole across her face again, and before she caught sight of my hard-on, I strode over to my desk and dropped onto my chair.Shit. Get a hold of yourself, Bardot.
Turning around, Samantha wandered over to one of the chairs in front of my desk and perched on the edge. “I agree that it’s nice to put a face to a name, which is why I wanted to stop by before the inspection tomorrow and introduce myself. I’m staying at a hotel nearby, so I’ll be here early to go over all of the paperwork before I meet the inspector at the site.”
I frowned. For some reason, the thought of her alone at a hotel didn’t sit well with me. She would be much too far away from me. “Where are you staying?” The question popped out before I had a chance to examine my motives.
She named a very nice hotel that wasn’t too far up the road, and I kept my expression neutral as I followed up with, “Have you checked in yet?”
“No.”