Defying His Charm Read online

  She didn’t like him thinking that he had that kind of control over her. He did, but she wasn’t going to acknowledge to him that he had that power. Okay, so that was pointless. He had the power, and he most likely knew it, but she was still going to hide it from him anyway. “I’m not nervous. You don’t make me nervous.”

  He smiled, this time a genuine smile and not just a quirk of those lips. “Would it make you feel any better if I told you that you make me nervous?”

  Naya eyed his extremely large figure with suspicion. “I doubt that there are many things that make you nervous.”

  “I hate spiders,” he told her.

  That was so out of the blue, she couldn’t stop the burst of laughter. “I can’t fault you there.”

  “And I really hate snakes.”

  A snort this time. “I promise not to hold that against you.”

  He chuckled. “Good to know.”

  “But I doubt that I make you nervous.”

  Naya realized that he was only inches from her now. How had he done that? She’d backed up, he’d moved to the side. How had he gotten this close?

  Devil moves, she thought, glancing to the right and the left. Trapped.

  “You’re a very beautiful woman,” he told her, reaching out and touching one of her red curls. “I love your hair.” His green eyes slid over her cheeks. “And your freckles.”

  Naya gasped, her hands flying to her nose. “I do not have freckles!” she hissed. “And a gentleman wouldn’t have pointed them out!”

  He laughed, a full-bodied sound that sent heat right from her heart down to her pelvis. More than a little disconcerting!

  “You have freckles, my beauty. And they’re perfect.”

  She grumbled and shifted on her feet. “Yes, well, whatever. Freckles are cute and adorable. Kinda like a cupcake with sprinkles.” Great! The sexiest man alive thinks she’s cute. Just great.

  “Yeah. They’re cute. But they only highlight how perfect and pale the rest of your skin is,” he pointed out, the laughter gone from his voice. “Have dinner with me tonight.”

  Naya’s mind was trying to keep up, trying to figure out how to stop him from noticing her freckles, but he’d just switched subjects. “Dinner?”

  The smile was back, as was the twinkle in those green eyes. “Yes. Dinner. With me.”

  “Dinner.”

  He laughed and took her hand. “It’s the last meal of the day. Wine. Soft music. Maybe something a bit spicy,” his hand touched her curls again, “to match your hair.”

  She was mesmerized for all of five seconds, just staring up at him like a dumbstruck teenager. When she realized that her mouth was most likely hanging open, she took a deep breath, pressed her lips together, and moved out of his almost-embrace. “No. Thank you for the invitation and the private tour. But I have to go.”

  She walked over to the door, not bothering to look in to any of the other rooms. She had a vague impression of a spacious kitchen, dining room, and living area, all in one large space. Bedrooms…nope. Not investigating any of the bedrooms. Beds…bad. Good grief, private areas…bad. She had to get out of here.

  “Naya!” his deep voice called, stopping her feet from accomplishing her escape. She had her hand on the doorknob and her feet apart, almost as if she were trying to brace herself for whatever he might say.

  But he didn’t say anything for a long moment. He just came closer. And closer. Just like in the presentation down in the conference area, those green eyes held her captive.

  His hand reached out, wrapping around her neck. The warmth from his hand shouldn’t have startled her since she’d experienced that same heat the last time he’d touched her, but it did. And she was mesmerized. Unwillingly mesmerized.

  “This isn’t over,” he told her, his eyes maintaining his control over her. A moment later, his mouth covered hers.

  If Naya had thought about it, she might have braced for the kiss. Or she might have pulled back, run away, told him to stop. But she did none of those things.

  In fact, she did the exact opposite. Instead of turning her head away so that his mouth landed on her cheek, she tilted her head back. When his lips touched hers, this was no tentative kiss. This was commanding, soft at first, but then pressure building as he guided her into the kiss, pulling her in, showing her what he wanted.

  It was brutal in its gentleness, overwhelming in its command. His lips touched, moved, caressed hers, his tongue touching her lips and demanding entry. She was powerless to do anything other than follow, to accept. To participate!

  With a gasp, she felt her hands grab onto his jacket, her body pressed closer. There was a vague thump but she didn’t acknowledge the sound, too intent on the kiss, on following his lead and trying hard not to drown in the passion that seized her.

  The ping of the elevator and voices starting down the hallway finally broke through. She pulled away, still standing in his embrace. He was no longer only holding her neck. His arms were wrapped around her, pulling her against his hard body and she shivered even as she pulled away.

  With wide, frightened and confused eyes, Naya stepped out of his arms and turned on her heel. With a grace she’d never known she possessed, she moved down the hallway and into the still open elevators, ignoring the startled glances of the other sales team as they led a group of agents into the other units.

  The doors closed but not before she turned and saw Luke’s green eyes watching her. Promising more.

  She trembled the whole elevator ride down, wishing she’d ignored the desire to attend the presentation here this afternoon. So what if it had been the talk of the real estate industry for the past two months? Her sanity was much more precious than selling one of the luxurious condominiums in this building.

  With shaking fingers, she pushed the button to release the locks on her car. Diving into the driver’s seat, she sat there for several minutes, trying to catch her breath. And her sanity!

  Wow! She’d never been kissed like that. She’d dated over the years, but never had she felt that kind of surge of…passion? Desire? Lust?

  It was embarrassing. And overwhelming.

  “No,” she whispered into the dim interior of her car. “Not going there! That man is dangerous!”

  Turning on her car, she backed out of the parking space carefully and made her way back to her small cottage house. She dumped her purse and logged onto her computer. Feeling better, safer, she answered e-mails, set up appointments, and did all of the small things that normally occupied her day.

  She felt safer once she was back into her routine.

  Unfortunately, for the first time in her life, when she slipped on her walking shoes that night, she also put on a hat and sunglasses. Not analyzing why, she walked in the opposite direction of her normal route.

  Perhaps it was that her stomach was still fluttering in a wild and crazy fashion. Or maybe it was just that she needed to be alone, not talk to anyone. Either way, she walked and walked, not stopping, not smiling at anyone. She wasn’t even aware of others moving by her as she walked as if demons were on her heels.

  When she stopped and looked out at the barges passing by, she didn’t even see them, didn’t wonder what might be in all of the metal crates that were stacked up six and seven stories high.

  All she could think about was that kiss, that wonderful, amazing, crazy, and terrifying kiss.

  She never reacted to men like that! She was always the calm and sensible woman that men flirted with but they weren’t really flirting. Not seriously. She was the kind of woman that men thought of as a friend. Not as a lover.

  And she preferred it like that.

  Relationships were bad news, she reminded herself. She didn’t want to spend her life coming home to an argument because someone didn’t put the toilet seat down, someone overspent on the monthly budget, the dishwasher had to be emptied – or replaced and there was no money to replace it.

  Not that there was any relationship potential with a man like Luke St
eele, she reminded herself. The man was a player with an enormous number of options to choose from. The women flocked to him and she couldn’t blame them. He was charming and handsome, most likely crazy wealthy, so there would never be any argument over how to replace the dishwasher.

  The arguments with Luke would more than likely be about infidelity.

  Not that there would be any long-term relationships with that man.

  Goodness, she was creating a mess in her mind about something that wasn’t even an issue. She looked around, suddenly noticing the other people milling around on the wide sidewalk. She’d walked all the way down to Pike’s Place Market. She was way out of her normal walking range.

  With a sigh, she turned around and…

  “Hello, beautiful.”

  Naya reared back, startled when the man who had been occupying her mind came closer. Had she thought he was handsome in a suit? Good grief, the man was sex on legs in a pair of jeans that hugged his thighs and a sweater that perfectly displayed those broad shoulders.

  Her breath caught in her throat as she looked up at him. “What are you doing here?”

  He chuckled. “I hate cooking for just myself so I eat out most meals.” His hand lifted to take her sunglasses off. “Why are you here?”

  She pulled back, startled to see that the sunlight was fading. It was almost dusk. Unfortunately, that meant she had no need for her sunglasses other than to hide. And she desperately needed to hide. From this man.

  Why was she here? Naya looked around, trying to come up with a legitimate excuse for her presence here. “I just…I was walking and…”

  “Found yourself here,” he finished for her, obviously sensing that she was flustered.

  “Yeah, I guess so.”

  “Good. You can have dinner with me.”

  Naya shook her head, not wanting to spend any time with this man. “No. I really need to….”

  “Have dinner with me.” He took her hand and settled it into his elbow, placing his other hand over it so that she couldn’t escape him. “What are you in the mood for?”

  She shook her head again. “Mr. Steele,” she started to say.

  His laughter interrupted whatever she’d been about to say. “Naya, I kissed you earlier today and, if we hadn’t been interrupted by the other tours, the two of us would have been naked. I think it is more appropriate for you to call me Luke.”

  Naya gaped at him. “We would not have been naked!” she gasped out, causing several other people walking along the sidewalk to turn their heads.

  Naya pulled herself together, trying to control her temper as well as her outrage over this man’s audacity. “We wouldn’t have been naked!” she hissed again for emphasis. “Nothing would have happened.”

  He turned to face her. “You think so?”

  “I know so! We are not having sex!”

  A slow, sexy smile crept across his handsome features. “Ah. A challenge. I haven’t been challenged in a long time.”

  Naya’s body trembled with those words. He looked like a man who would truly enjoy a challenge. “I’m not trying to challenge you, Luke,” she told him as he pulled her into a small restaurant. “And I’m not having dinner with you. I have to get home. I have work to do tonight.”

  He’d already led her over to one of the tables by the window and was holding a chair out for her.

  Naya wasn’t completely sure what to do. First of all, she was famished, having skipped lunch and it was later than her normal dinnertime. She wasn’t one to skip meals, she loved food too much. But also, he was holding a chair out for her? What was she supposed to do? The men she dated never held her chair for her. And if they did, it was because they were planning to pull the chair out from under her when she sat down, thinking it would be hilarious to see her fall on the floor.

  “Take a seat, Naya. I promise no harm will come to you tonight,” he urged with that silky smooth, baritone voice of his that consistently sent shivers along her body.

  Gingerly, she sat down in the chair, her muscles tensed and waiting for him to pull a stunt. When he only pushed her chair in for her, she was even more confused.

  He sat down across from her and handed her one of the menus. “What are you in the mood for tonight?” he asked, perusing the menu himself.

  Naya hadn’t even picked up the menu. She sat across from him, looking at him strangely. “You don’t take no for an answer, do you?”

  He looked at her and, taking in the serious expression in her eyes, he set the menu down. “If you were to say no to sex, that would be no, Naya. But dinner? You have to eat. Besides, you look hungry, not to mention, upset about something. Why not just have a relaxing dinner and we can talk?”

  She looked down at her hands, which were just lying on the tabletop. “Because I don’t understand you. And I think you’re dangerous. To me.”

  “In what way?”

  She sighed and leaned back in her chair. “You’re not the kind of man I normally date.”

  He chuckled. “I suspect that you don’t date very much at all. But what makes me so different from the other men in your life?”

  She wasn’t sure she could really explain it. Thankfully, the waitress arrived at that moment and took their drink orders. “Water,” she requested, thinking she should keep a clear head.

  “A bottle of merlot,” he ordered. “And two glasses.”

  Naya glared across the table at him. “I think that’s a perfect example of why I don’t want to be here.”

  He shook his head. “You want to be here with me,” he argued right back. “You know there’s something between us and you’re fascinated. Scared. I can see that. But you’re interested.”

  Naya clasped her hands together and hid them under the table. “You’re too confident. Too sure of yourself,” she told him.

  “I’m confident that we will be in bed together, very soon.”

  That announcement knocked the breath out of her. It took her a moment to stop the images of this man’s naked body. She blinked rapidly, shaking her head to clear those images.

  “I don’t think so,” she argued.

  The waitress arrived with their wine and water, poured while the two of them remained silent and then departed with an awkward smile.

  “You’re making the waitress uncomfortable,” she pointed out, with a smirk.

  He laughed. “Drink your wine, Naya. And tell me how you got into the real estate business.”

  Naya picked up her glass of water and took a long sip, daring him with her brown eyes over the rim of her glass.

  They ate smoked salmon crostini for an appetizer and then he ordered the lobster baked mac-n-cheese for her, despite her objections that she’d have a simple green salad. He had the lobster rolls and it was one of the most delightful meals she’d shared in a long time. Despite her reservations, she found him to be a wonderful dinner companion, talking about any subject, making her laugh at his dry wit and astute observations. The carbs and the cheese were a perfect foil for the lobster and the red wine was delicious. She’d had two glasses without even realizing that she was drinking it.

  When a flourless amaretto and chocolate torte arrived at their table, she glared at him. “I’m not eating that,” she announced and pushed her chair back even though her mouth was watering for just a taste of the decadent dessert.

  The evil man lifted his dessert fork and tried a taste. “Damn, this is excellent,” he announced. He took another bite onto his fork. “Here. Just try one bite, Naya. You know you’ll regret it if you don’t try it.”

  Naya looked down at the fork he was holding out for her, thinking how intimate it would be to eat off of the same fork he’d just used. Her stomach tightened with awareness and she shook her head slightly.

  “Come on, Naya. You know you want it. Why are you denying yourself something that could give you immense pleasure?”

  Oh, he really was the devil! “Because there are consequences to that pleasure,” she told him, her eyes glancing dow
n at the chocolate and then back to his green eyes. She couldn’t stop her eyes from moving back to his lips. Those lips had been amazingly pleasurable earlier today. And she’d definitely suffered afterwards. Hence the reason she was miles from her house when she normally only walked about a mile both ways after work.

  “Ah, but the consequences aren’t necessarily negative.”

  “My hips would disagree.”

  “Your hips are fabulous,” he argued. “Take the bite.”

  “My hips are too big already. This meal has added five pounds to my hips.”

  He laughed softly and took the bite himself. “Your hips are perfect. I can’t wait for my hands to be on them again.” And he took another bite. “Take a taste, Naya. Stop worrying about your hips. I’ll do that for you.”

  She laughed, thinking he really was a bad man. “You’re horrible,” she told him but she couldn’t stop herself when he lifted the other fork and offered her a bite. “Oh my!” she gasped when the chocolate flavor burst on her tongue. “This is amazing.” Sighing, she leaned back and let the chocolate smooth over her palate. “Really good.”

  Luke felt his body harden as he watched her. All evening, he’d been trying to avoid looking at her breasts, which were compressed into what he suspected was a sports bra underneath a knit tank top. She was wearing a loose jacket over the stretchy top, but it had spread out, revealing her lush breasts to his view. And those nipples had been on display all evening!

  He might be furious with her teasing if he’d suspected that she was teasing him. But he didn’t think she knew what she was offering. And he damn well wasn’t going to tell her. No way! His mind was too busy wondering what those breasts would look like released from the confines of the harsh sports bra. With his hands holding them, his thumbs rubbing against her nipples….

  Oh hell!

  He needed to shift his thoughts if he was going to be able to walk out of here. His body would show the world everything he was thinking.

  “So why are you afraid of me?” he asked, taking another bite before offering her one as well.