Defying His Charm Read online

  Defying His Charm

  By Elizabeth Lennox

  Register for free stories at http://www.elizabethlennox.com/subscribe

  Follow me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/Author.Elizabeth.Lennox

  Or on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ElizabethLenno1

  Copyright 2017

  ISBN13: 9781944078409

  All rights reserved

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Any duplication of this material, either electronic or any other format, either currently in use or a future invention, is strictly prohibited unless you have the direct consent of the author.

  If you download this material in any format, either electronic or other, on a non-sanctioned site, please be warned that you and the website are in violation of copyright infringement. Financial and punitive damages may be pursued in whichever legal venue is appropriate.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Epilogue

  Excerpt from “A Difficult Man to Love”

  Here’s what’s coming up over the next year…

  Book List

  Chapter 1

  His momma had been severely remiss in her responsibilities!

  Naya shifted in the plush chair and glanced down at her notebook, refusing to look at the man who kept staring at her as if she might be his next dessert. Taking a deep breath, she forced her racing heart to stop dancing around in her chest. He was just a man. To another woman - a woman who wasn’t as strong as she was - the man might be attractive in a rugged, raw sort of way. But Naya wasn’t that kind of a woman. She wasn’t interested in a relationship and definitely not interested in a man who looked like he took arrogance to an art form. An incredibly rude man, who should know better than to stare at a woman. He was making Naya uncomfortable!

  With another deep, slow breath, she lowered her eyes, wanting the information the speaker was delivering, but unwilling to deal with the man’s rude, obnoxious, heated stare in her direction. It didn’t matter how gorgeous the man was, he still shouldn’t stare!

  She’d been pretending to write something on her notebook for several minutes, but when she had her temper back under control, she looked up from her notebook, assuming he’d stopped his ill-mannered perusal of her being.

  Darn it! He was still doing it!

  Hadn’t someone told him that it was rude to stare?

  Shifting again, she tried to look around, acting as if the other occupants of the seminar were fascinating. She had no idea what the speaker was saying. If the rude man would just stop looking her way, she might be able to concentrate. But with those sharp, green eyes looking in her direction, catching her gaze whenever she looked up, it was almost impossible.

  She should just walk out. Naya glanced down the row of chairs but…darn it! She was trapped! There were too many people sitting in this row on both sides of her, leaving her no easy escape route. At least not one that wouldn’t make her the center of attention.

  Looking up again, those sexy lips curled up into a wisp of a smile.

  He knew, darn him! He’d guessed that she was trying to figure out how to get out of here and was laughing at her!

  Arrogant man!

  She’d show him! She’d just sit here and be pleasant, listen to this stupid presentation and…well, that’s as far as her plan went at the moment. But she would think of something. In the meantime, she’d just sit here and fume!

  Yeah, like that did any good. Her fuming mind rarely came up with a good plan. Her fuming mind more often came up with a really bad plan.

  Like…well…she could….

  Okay, so the man needed to move that sharp, green gaze to someone else before she could even come up with a bad plan! Darn him! He knew exactly what he was doing to her and she hated that!

  Sighing, Naya forced her eyes to look downward again. If she just kept her head low, her eyes away from his green ones, she could survive this. The heat flooding her neck and cheeks, that was nothing. Nothing more than a stuffy room filled with stuffy people. She wasn’t blushing because she never blushed! Everyone in here was a real estate agent, just like herself. Everyone was listening to the presentation of the latest Steele Industries marketing plan.

  Why in the world were they only releasing twenty of the one hundred and fifty units that would eventually fill the space in this particular high-rise building? Why not just release all of them and let the agents presell the units?

  That’s what other building managers do. What made this building so different?

  She thought about raising her hand to ask the question, but then she remembered those green eyes and….

  Looking down at her notebook, she realized that she was drawing the man’s eyes!

  Snapping her notebook shut, she folded her hands in her lap and…realized that the speaker had stopped talking and several people were looking at her after the loud snapping of her notebook. Including Mr. Rude-Green-Eyes! Again! So were several other people all around her.

  “Sorry,” she whispered, sinking down slightly in her chair.

  Good grief, had she been that loud? Obviously she had.

  She breathed a sigh of relief when Mr. Green Eyes took over the presentation and ignored the annoyingly beautiful blonde woman in front of her who kept turning her head to smirk in Naya’s direction.

  Naya knew that the woman wanted Mr. Green Eyes. That message had been revealed very early on in the presentation, right along with her thigh as the blonde woman’s skirt “accidentally” slid higher each time the lovely lady re-crossed her legs. Go for it, she thought without a hint of jealousy. The dark-haired, green-eyed man was too tall for her taste. And way to arrogant.

  Besides, the blonde and the black-haired man would look perfect together. She pictured them walking down the sidewalk, her long legs and his long stride would make a perfect match.

  Naya had red hair and her shorter legs would definitely not be able to keep up with him. Nope, she would be a complete mismatch to the tall, handsome man.

  He was tan, the kind of complexion that a person gets when they like to be outside, doing things in the sunshine. Naya was as pale as any other redhead and had the irritating tendency to freckle whenever she went out into the sunshine without a thick layer of sunscreen. He had the rugged jawline and the sharp, green eyes that could slice a person to the bone. She had been described as a cupcake in the past. Sweet and fluffy.

  She almost growled at that memory. She wasn’t sweet and she definitely wasn’t fluffy. Okay, so she had a couple of extra pounds on her. Hmmm…well, maybe a good ten extra pounds. But hey, being a real estate agent was a stressful job! Ice cream and potato chips were friendly foods that helped her through the anxiety stages.

  It was probably time for some broccoli, she thought with a sigh, as she shifted in her chair again. Yeah, her skirt had been a bit tight this morning. Salads for a week, she promised herself. Salads and the gym.

  Blech! She hated the gym. She’d much rather go for a walk and enjoy the sunshine – after slathering on sunscreen, smile at others who were out on the sidewalk, maybe stop and chat a bit…

  But the gym was a better idea. She rarely worked up a sweat on her walks. Maybe it was because she was too busy talking with her neighbors, petting the dogs, and waving to her friends. Hard to get
all hot and sweaty when one was stopping every few minutes to chat with someone.

  Nope. Gym. Broccoli. Salads. She could do this! She could be strong.

  Her eyes glanced over at the leggy blonde. That smug woman probably ate lots of salads. The woman most likely survived on roughage and tough workouts.

  Naya shifted again. She could be tough, she told herself. She could be tough and mean and…

  Sighing, her shoulders drooped. She wasn’t tough, but she wasn’t a cupcake either.

  Eh, who was she fooling? She was a cupcake. With extra frosting. She was too sweet and way too fluffy.

  “Thanks everyone! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact anyone on my sales team,” the irritatingly handsome man was saying.

  Everyone was smiling, standing up and…ho boy, she jumped out of her seat, wanting to leave the area as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, she was in the middle of the row with the other guests not in any hurry to exit the conference room. People were slowing her down! She had to get out of here!

  The crowd shifted and…yep, he was still staring at her, his hands on his belt, pulling back his charcoal suit jacket, which looked absolutely magnificent on him.

  She smoothed her black, wool skirt down, reminding herself that she was doing the broccoli and salad thing. Maybe not the gym. She wasn’t quite that desperate…yet.

  The blonde sashayed over to the tall man and Naya gritted her teeth. Okay, so maybe a couple of gym workouts, she promised herself. It certainly would be nice to sashay. Naya never sashayed. She bustled. She hurried from one place to the next.

  Naya watched the irritating blonde, saw the irritating man’s green eyes smile down to her and…wow! The blonde was tall, but the black-haired sex-god was taller! Yikes!

  She hurried towards the doorway, wanting to make a beeline for her car. She had absolutely no idea about the merits of the condominiums in this building, but she would look the information up online. She had to…

  “Ms. Jefferson!” a deep voice called out.

  Her shoulders tightened. A part of her wanted to pretend like she hadn’t heard the man. She could just melt in with the departing crowd but…unfortunately, no one was leaving! They were all milling around, taking another round at the well-stocked buffet filled with pastries and cookies.

  Naya thought she could use a few cookies right about now. Emotional stress eating had a lot of good points, she thought as she reluctantly turned around.

  Sure enough, Sex-God was approaching at her two-o’clock.

  Her eyes glanced to the left and right, then back over at him. Green Eyes dared her to leave, dared her to stay. Sexy lips quirked upwards.

  “Ms. Jefferson, right?” he asked, extending his hand.

  Naya looked down at the hand and shivered. She wasn’t going to shake his hand, she promised herself. No way could she touch this man’s skin. It would be extremely dangerous!

  But would the man listen to her telepathic command? Nope!

  He reached out and took her hand, enveloping her cold fingers in his warm grip, his hand holding not only her hand, but her entire body in shocked silence.

  Looking up into his green eyes, she wasn’t sure what was going on. People were walking around, talking and laughing, drinking coffee and scarfing down cookies. But she wasn’t aware of them. It was just this man holding her hand. It was just his eyes making her tremble and his warmth seeping into her body.

  Someone bumped her slightly and she suddenly found herself surrounded by the man’s tall frame. The top of her head came to his shoulder, but there was so much more. One moment, the other real estate agents in the room surrounded her, the next, she found herself in the hallway. Alone. Still surrounded by this man and his strength.

  “That’s better,” she heard him say.

  “Better?”

  He shifted slightly and Naya found her shoulders against the wall, this man towering over her. She felt vulnerable and feminine. She felt…heat.

  “I was wondering if you had any other questions for me.”

  Naya stared up at him as millions of questions swirled through her mind. The sensible reply would be No. She should definitely not ask this man anything. Unfortunately, her mouth spoke before her mind could stop it. “How tall are you?”

  As soon as the words left her mouth, she blinked, trying to figure out if she’d actually said them out loud. Surely she hadn’t! Oh please, if there was any good luck in this world, she hadn’t just uttered those words! The surprised look in his eyes told her that no, there was no good luck in this world, and she really had said those words out loud.

  “I mean…!”

  His laugh was deep and sexy, powerful in ways she didn’t really understand.

  “I believe I’m a few inches over six feet,” he responded easily. “And you?”

  Naya was having trouble breathing. All she wanted to do was lean forward and smell the man, to reach her hand out and touch his chest. He looked so strong, so…male!

  “I’m shorter,” she mumbled, glancing down at her leather-covered notebook.

  “About five and a half feet?” he suggested, that dark eyebrow hovering over his amused expression.

  Naya snorted as she shook her head. “I wish.” She straightened her shoulders, trying to appear taller than her five foot, four inch frame. “Listen, I appreciate your assistance but…I ummm…” her brain tried to function, to come up with a reason why she needed to run – fast, but he was too close. And way too male for her mind to function properly.

  “Come,” he commanded, taking her hand and tucking it through his arm in a gentlemanly fashion, but Naya suspected that this man didn’t have any gentlemanly thoughts on his mind. He led her over to the elevators and pressed a button. “I’ll give you a personalized tour of the units that are available.”

  Warning bells were ringing in her head but she couldn’t seem to do anything to stop this man. Her feet were walking into the elevator as if they were his to command. “I can’t…you don’t…” she blinked and shook her head, trying to clear the fog from her brain. “This really isn’t necessary,” she finally told him. Unfortunately, it was too late. When she’d summoned up the energy to pull back, the elevator doors were already closing.

  She stood awkwardly by the doors, facing the man but unable to look up at him. “Why are you doing this?” she asked.

  Luke looked at the gorgeous woman with the most beautiful skin he’d ever seen. He wanted to reach out and touch her cheek, run his thumb over the freckles she was trying to hide, or maybe tangle his fingers in her red curls. She was sexy, adorable, and provocative, all in one alluring package.

  And her eyes! Damn, but her soft, brown eyes were pleading with him. Most likely pleading for him to leave her alone, but that was impossible. He was drawn to her in a strange way.

  “Why am I giving you a tour?”

  She nodded and her curls danced around her cheeks, tickling her chin. “Because I suspect that you were distracted during the presentation. And I know that you’re a very good agent.”

  Those brown eyes looked up into his and he sucked in a breath. Damn, she was beautiful. His mind compared this vibrant beauty to the bland woman with blonde hair who had tried to ambush him immediately after the seminar. He’d been turned off by the other woman’s washed out, colorless features. Compared to this redhead, who practically trembled with vitality and energy, the too-skinny blonde was like anemic turkey next to a voluptuous peacock.

  “You don’t know anything about me,” she came right back.

  Luke moved closer, watching her and understanding that she was nervous around him, but unable to stop his pursuit. “You’re Naya Jefferson. You work with Smithson Realty and you have been one of their top agents for the past four quarters by a wide margin. You just sold the property over on Laurelcrest Lane that had been on the market for more than a year. A pretty major coup. Congratulations.”

  Naya blushed, feeling that embarrassing heat steal up her cheeks. “Th
at was just a fluke of luck,” she told him, thinking about the very sweet, older couple she’d met at a coffee bar in line. They just happened to be looking at the house in question. It had been love at first sight for them.

  “I doubt luck had anything to do with it,” he said, that smile that wasn’t really a smile was back on those firm lips.

  She felt uncomfortable with his praise and shifted. “Yes. Well. I don’t really need a private tour.”

  “We’re here,” he said just as the elevator opened up.

  Naya looked out of the elevator doors, feeling something rush up to her. Something akin to fear but…not really fear. Anticipation?

  No. Impossible.

  “This way to the three bedroom unit,” he directed and put a hand to the small of her back.

  “I don’t…”

  He was already opening the door, no key needed.

  “The views are incredible,” he told her as he swept the door open.

  Despite the fact that she didn’t want to be alone with this tall, terrifying man, she couldn’t ignore her curiosity and she walked into the pristine condominium. She’d watched this building go up over the past two years and had wondered what the units would look like inside. Steele Industries was renowned for building architecturally interesting buildings without the normal floor plans. There was always something unique and adventurous in a Steele Industries building.

  Naya sighed when she looked through the windows. It was a clear, sunny day and Mount Rainier looked extraordinarily beautiful in the distance. “Nice,” she smiled as she walked through the room to the large window. “Very nice.”

  She wasn’t aware of the tall, scarily handsome man standing behind her, looking down at her bottom in the overly tight skirt. “I agree,” he mumbled.

  Naya looked down towards the street level. “Amazing how hilly Seattle is, isn’t it?” she mused out loud. “More hills here than in San Francisco, right?”

  He laughed. “So I’ve heard.” He moved in closer and she backed up. “I’m not trying to make you nervous,” he told her as he shifted to the right instead of coming closer now.