doing?”
“What I should have done a week ago.” He smiled at the blush stealing down her neck. “Think nice thoughts, Nicky.”
Sam led her down the steps beside the patio, stopping under the shade of an oak tree.
“This isn’t necessary,” Nicky spluttered.
“I disagree. I think it’s more than necessary. What happened between us doesn’t happen all the time. We’ve got something special and I’m not prepared to let your stubborn, mule-headedness stand in the way of a relationship between us.”
The heat from his body surged between them. Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Nicky glared at him. “There is no relationship and I’m not stubborn. What happened was a mistake, and it won’t happen again.”
“Why not?”
“You’re my boss.” Among other things. But she wasn’t going to mention the reckless urges that overrode common sense whenever he was around.
“Only for the next four weeks,” he said.
“And at the end of the four weeks I’m heading home, back to my company. There’s no point even thinking about anything happening between us.”
“Forget about sex for a minute.”
Nicky raised her eyebrows. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
A dull blush raced along his cheeks. “If you think I can forget about what happened, you’re wrong,” he growled. “What we can do is learn to live with it, and be friends. The wall you’ve built around yourself has to come down.”
Staring out across her parent’s ranch, she tilted her nose in the air. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Silence filled the warm evening with prickles of attitude, skimming under her skin until she had no choice but to look at the man invading her personal space.
Jamming his hands in his pockets, he glared at her. “I’m talking about barricading yourself in your office. You work over ten hours a day without speaking to anyone. The only time you come near me is when you need to report on your progress.”
“That’s not true. I speak with plenty of people involved in my project. If this conversation’s about me not stopping by your office to flirt with the boss then you’re wasting your breath.” Crossing her fingers, she hoped he’d get annoyed enough to drop the subject like a cold fish.
She knew exactly what he meant, but being friendly to him wasn’t going to work. Nicky was an all or nothing kind of woman. She wanted to give him everything, so she had no choice but to give him nothing.
“No, it’s not about flirting with the boss,” he growled. “It’s about taking responsibility for your actions, and treating people with respect. Have you been happy working with me?”
Plastering a fake smile on her face, she glanced across at him. “Perfectly.”
“I’m not giving up. You might be the most screwed up female I’ve ever met, but one of these days you’re going to come to your senses.” He moved in close until she could feel his breath against her face. “And I’ll be waiting.”
Nicky’s heart raced. She could feel the pulse at the base of her neck pounding against her skin. Hot brown eyes stared unblinkingly at her. Biting her lip, she tried to stem the rising panic threatening to overwhelm her. She stepped back, needing to get as much distance between their overheated bodies as she could manage.
“Do you care about anything I’ve said?” he asked.
Nicky moved around him and headed up the stone steps. “I’ll make an effort to be more pleasant.”
A groan of frustration was the only reply she got.
CHAPTER FIVE
“Why are you asking for employee files?”
Nicky looked up from her desk, frowning at the man standing in the middle of her office. “What are you talking about?”
Crossing his arms in front of his chest, Sam kept staring at her. “You know very well what I’m talking about. Three files were requested. What’s going on?”
“What’s going on is that you’ve barged into my office, looking for a fight. If you
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