A Deal With Alejandro

Another hard non-smile twitched his sculpted lips. ‘I do believe you’ve just jumped again, Miss Jameson. Although in a puzzlingly overcomplicated way.’ He nodded at his door. ‘Don’t keep Margo waiting.’

Elise forced fists that had unconsciously curled to loosen. She stared at him as he resumed his seat...his throne...and carried on ruling his kingdom as if he hadn’t just swatted her away like an annoying fly.

‘Is there something about me that rubs you the wrong way, Mr Aguilar?’ she asked, suppressing the part of her that questioned her compulsive need to go head to head with him. She reassured herself it was because she didn’t want to be caught by a horribly unpleasant surprise further down the line, the way she had last year. If something swirled beneath Alejandro’s forbidding mask, she preferred to uncover it sooner rather than later.

He scrutinised her from head to toe, then back again. Slower. More intensely. Until her whole body tingled from the penetrative stare.

‘Are you about to start another argument with me?’ he enquired silkily.

She shook her head but stood her ground. ‘No. But if there happens to be something bothering you about me, I think we need to address it now, before...’ She stopped, unwilling to bring the ugly past to this discussion.

One brow lifted. ‘Before?’

She shook her head. ‘I don’t like surprises, Mr Aguilar. I like working in a fraught environment even less.’

His jaw clenched for an infinitesimal moment, then he did something unexpected. He pressed two fingers against each temple and rubbed. The sigh he emitted was filled with thick weariness.

‘This deal should’ve been done months ago. I don’t mind the challenge of a difficult deal if it’s warranted,’ he murmured, surprising her further by admitting to being anything other than omnipotent. ‘But I’m bored by the games the Ishikawas have suddenly decided they want to play.’

‘I don’t think—’

Cool green eyes met hers. ‘Yes, I know what you think. But I’m bored nevertheless. Boredom makes me...unpredictable.’

He was skimming the real issue behind his acerbic attitude. What she wasn’t sure of was whether the real reason, somehow, involved her. Just as she was certain he wouldn’t answer if she probed further.

She needed to leave this office. Go find Margo and get the HR papers signed. The earlier she got to work, the quicker her last ever commission for Jameson would be done. Then she could truly put the past behind her.

So why was she picking up a sleek bottle of mineral water from the coffee tray and holding it out to him?

Alejandro looked from the bottle to her face. A face she willed with everything inside her not to redden again.

When he didn’t take it, she set it down in front of him. ‘Try drinking some of this instead of guzzling down gallons of caffeine. It might ease that tension headache you’ve got going on.’

He ignored the bottle. ‘I don’t anticipate adding nursemaid to your list of duties. The ones I have in mind for you will be quite involved. Let’s concentrate on those, shall we?’

‘Duly noted. You can be assured that if I happen to be around when you’re struck by lightning or a murder of crows decide to use you for pecking practice, I’ll continue on my merry way.’

The smile that twitched his mouth was a shade warmer than the last one. Elise found herself wondering what a genuine smile from him would look like and abruptly stepped back.

Turn around. Go.

She headed for the door.

‘Miss Jameson.’

It wasn’t a request. It was an order couched in psuedo-reasonable, even tones.

Keep walking. She took another step.

‘Elise.’

She froze, the sound of her given name so unbelievably sensual coming from his deep, slightly accented tones, that she couldn’t suppress a gasp. She slowly turned around.

He was no longer massaging his temples. But he’d wrenched the top off the water bottle, the tip of it poised an inch from his lips.

‘One last thing. My company isn’t the place to find your next boyfriend or a husband. As long as you’re contracted to work for me, you’ll practise a zero-fraternisation policy. I find that petty lawsuits are best avoided that way.’

‘Are you speaking from personal experience?’ she asked before she could stop herself.

His face tightened into a rigid, forbidding mask. Hell, she’d struck another nerve. God, what was wrong with her?

‘That is not your concern. Just be sure to let Grandma know you’ll be disappointing her for a while longer where potential wedding bells are concerned, would you?’

Elise turned back around, too filled with roiling emotions to trust herself to speak.

Keep walking.

CHAPTER THREE

IS THERE SOMETHING about me that rubs you the wrong way?

Of all the words she could’ve chosen.

Alejandro snorted, inwardly grimacing at the sexual bent he’d afforded the words. But they wouldn’t fade away. Like the headache pounding his temples, each heartbeat flashed an image of Elise Jameson onto his retinas, each one more vivid than the last.

Madre de Dios.

He didn’t need to waste time on an attraction his principles wouldn’t allow him to act upon.

Now he knew the cause of the stalled merger, he could simply pay Jameson PR for services rendered, plus a generous bonus. He had no doubt that Gael had arrived at the same realisation as he had, but, since negotiations hadn’t yet been severed with SNV in favour of Toredo, it was most likely Gael hadn’t found a satisfactory way to appease the Ishikawas, either.

With that last puzzle unravelled, he didn’t need Elise Jameson.

Except she’d rooted out his problem with a single, albeit unorthodox, phone call, whereas his strategy team had spent weeks trying to unravel the mystery of the stalled negotiations.

Sending her away would save the irritating prickling of his senses whenever she was near. Or he could keep her around as the extra pair of eyes she’d advocated until this deal was in the bag.

He stemmed the need to call HR and retract the contract. He never set rules for his staff he didn’t follow himself. Regardless of how looking at Elise Jameson’s face and body made certain parts of him stir, his only focus in dealing with her would be this merger.

A pep talk. He was giving himself a pep talk. Por el amor—

He tossed the curiously empty water bottle on the tray, having no recollection of drinking it. He refused to believe his easing headache was because of his water intake. Or the unknotting of his muscles because Elise had helped him finally unravel the mystery of his failing deal.

He eyed his phone, the temptation to call Gael out on the games he was playing surging high. But no. First he would see what strategy Elise came up with. Every employee had their uses. He’d found hers. No reason not to see how she fared for a few more days.

Resolutely, he got back to work. Only to find his gaze straying with annoying frequency to the clock on his desk. An hour later, he snatched up the phone.

‘Margo, do I not recall paying for an efficient time management seminar recently?’

‘Umm...yes. Two months ago.’

‘Great. So is there any reason the HR team are taking over an hour to send Miss Jameson back up?’

‘Oh, yes, sorry. She called to say Mr Michaels was ordering lunch for the department and that he would be adding her order in so she could eat and get the papers signed at the same time. That’s super-efficient, don’t you think?’

Alejandro gritted his teeth. ‘Exceedingly.’

‘Shall I order your lunch now, sir?’ Margo asked.

‘No.’ He started to lower the phone. ‘Gracias,’ he tossed in before slamming down the handset.

He told himself he was irritated because he wanted her working ASAP. Time was of the essence.

So why was he eyeing the door, listening out for the click of high heels?

With a vicious curse, he refocused on the extensive list of products his marketing team needed his approval on before offering it through SNV in the next quarter. He was halfway down it when her laughter echoed through the door.

He knew it was her because the charge through his blood was hauntingly familiar. And thoroughly unwelcome. His PA joined in the laughter, as did a male voice.

Alejandro continued reading. More laughter filtered in.

He didn’t recall moving. Or turning the door handle.

‘So lunch was great, then?’ Margo asked.

‘Gosh, yes,’ Elise enthused. ‘The club sandwich was amazing! Thanks for recommending it, Oliver.’

Alejandro watched, unobserved, as Oliver Michaels, his head of HR, delivered a smile that made Alejandro’s hackles rise.

‘My pleasure. Although it’s wickedly sinful, it’s more than worth the extra hour at the gym.’ He patted his abs.

Elise smiled. The act was slow, measured. A revelation. As if she didn’t do it often, so was taking time to draw her companions’ attention to the extraordinary gift she was bestowing on them. Alejandro’s breath strangled in his throat. He watched Michaels and Margo stare as her smile transformed her face from visually stunning to exquisitely entrancing. ‘I call that a win, then.’

Oliver Michaels was the first to recover. ‘Uh...yeah. I like to think—’

Alejandro stepped into Margo’s office, achieving instant silence. ‘If you’ve quite finished rhapsodising about culinary delights, perhaps we can all get back to work?’

Margo’s eyes widened; no doubt she was realising what Alejandro’s chilled voice represented. With a quick nod, she refocused on her keyboard.

Elise met his gaze, her smile now non-existent, tension in her body as her nostrils flared slightly. Alejandro’s gaze dropped to her lips. She’d lost some of her scarlet lipstick since she’d left his office. The result was a softer look that made him imagine what she’d look like after being thoroughly kissed. Those lips would be much plumper than they were now, of course. And she would have more natural colour in her cheeks—

Suficiente!

He redirected his attention to Michaels, who was holding out a folder. ‘I brought Elise’s contract down for you to countersign—’

‘Leave it with Margo.’ He glanced pointedly at Elise.

She took a few steps forward, then paused. Looking over her shoulder, she let loose a smaller smile. ‘Thanks, Oliver. See you around.’

Michaels jerked out a nervous nod.

Alejandro waited until she stepped into his office, and slammed the door. ‘See you around?’ he repeated.

She stiffened. ‘What?’

‘I didn’t stammer.’

‘No, you didn’t.’ She sighed. ‘You’re clearly having a bad day. I get that. But do you really need to drag everyone down just because you’re in a mood?’

‘Excuse me?’ Alejandro bristled.

‘On second thought, don’t answer that. I’m here. I’m ready to work.’ She walked away from him, taking the subtle scent of her perfume with her. After retrieving her briefcase, she stopped in the middle of the room. ‘Margo said you haven’t assigned a desk for me to use yet?’

‘No,’ he answered shortly, his mind still fixed on the fact that she hadn’t answered his question to his satisfaction.

‘Is there one I can use?’ she pressed.

He inhaled deeply, dismissing the smile, the exchange. Everything that had happened in the last few hours.

Going to his desk, he grabbed the substantial file that was always within reach. ‘Come with me.’

He led her to a side door across the room from where she’d done her work that morning. Throwing it open, he walked to the desk directly opposite from the door. Unlike his office, it was sparsely furnished, the only thing besides the desk and chair was a floor lamp set against the single glass wall. He set the file down.

‘You’ll work in here. I use this office when I don’t want to be disturbed. Margo is excellent at keeping physical intrusions away when I need it, but even I can’t resist checking my emails when I’m in the middle of a deal.’

Her smile was tight and false. Alejandro willed himself not to wish for the genuine one he’d caught a brief glimpse of. ‘It’ll do great, thanks.’ She pulled the file towards her. ‘Anything in particular you want me to watch out for?’

Alejandro shrugged. ‘Read up on the merger. I have a conference call with the Ishikawa brothers tomorrow. You’ll sit in on it with me. You wanted to be my extra pair of eyes. My Japanese is adequate but not expert. You can be my eyes and ears.’

‘Okay.’

She dropped her case on the desk and removed her jacket. The second button of her blouse had come undone. Alejandro shoved his hands into his pockets, irritatingly caught between the need to point it out or ogle the creamy silkiness of her skin.

Several seconds passed.

Elise sat down, opened the file and glanced up. ‘Was there something else, Mr Aguilar?’

‘Leave the door open. There’s no phone or intercom in here. It’ll save you having to get up and come to me if you have any questions.’

Her gaze flicked past him to his office. Her eyes widened a touch.

‘Yes, I can see you from my desk,’ he confirmed.

A whisper of a smile touched her lips. ‘I’ll resist the urge to chew on my nails or burp loudly, then.’

‘That would be very considerate of you, gracias.’

Her eyes widened further and Alejandro suppressed a rare smile. He’d lived so long in the States that most people forgot he was of Spanish origin. And more than one past conquest had been enthralled by his occasional lapses into his mother tongue.

‘I...I didn’t actually mean that, Mr Aguilar. That was just a—’

‘Joke? It may not seem that way to you, but I do know what those are. I’ve occasionally been known to make one or two of them myself.’

One shapely eyebrow lifted. ‘But not recently?’

The reminder of why this deal was going sour darkened his mood. ‘No, Elise. Not recently.’

‘Okay. How’s the headache?’ she asked, then her forehead twitched, as if she hadn’t meant to blurt out the question. Alejandro felt an odd sense of kinship as his own unnerving need for something that had no place in this office threatened to return.

‘No longer an issue. Perhaps we can work towards keeping it that way by getting this merger back on track?’ he said brusquely.

‘Umm...sure,’ she murmured, still looking mildly puzzled.

Alejandro returned to his desk, satisfied that control had been established. Not that it’d been too far from his grasp. Granted, this morning’s revelations had unsettled him.

But he’d never shied away from a challenge. He wasn’t about to start now.

CHAPTER FOUR

ELISE RESISTED THE URGE to glance into the outer office. She’d already done that far too many times. Thankfully, not once had Alejandro looked her way. His focus on his work was absolute enough to induce envy. He’d taken a few phone calls, one of which he’d conducted at the far end of his office in front of the bank of floor-to-ceiling windows.

For one absurd second, Elise had wondered whether the low murmured conversation involved a lover. She’d jumped away from the thought as if physically scalded. It was beyond none of her business, and straying into dangerous territory she knew better than to approach.

Refocusing on her work between those times hadn’t been a hardship. The intricacies of the merger were staggering and fascinating. But more importantly, the deal Alejandro was chasing would create thousands of jobs. Granted, the merger would also elevate him to top five on the World’s Richest list, but he would be helping thousands along the way.

The other thing she’d noted was the mind-bending scale of philanthropy attached to each year’s estimated earnings. For each year Alejandro achieved the target he’d set his company, he planned to donate a share of the company’s profit to humanitarian projects.

Elise frowned as she finished the charities section. Nothing she’d read so far should make the Ishikawa Corporation want to do anything other than bite Alejandro’s hand off in their haste to secure the merger. If nothing else, they stood to become instant billionaires.

‘You’re frowning.’

She stumbled to a halt, realising she’d entered his office. He was bathed in the mid-afternoon sun, the contrast of olive skin against the rolled-up sleeves of his black shirt striking enough to command her stare. ‘Oh... I’m almost done reading the file.’

‘And?’

‘And the deal...the charity benefits... It’s all amazing.’

‘Amazing directly contradicts that frown.’

She looked away from him, anxiously noting her elevated pulse rate, and crossed over to the drinks tray. ‘Well, I expected to find a thread of dissatisfaction right from the beginning. Something that would indicate they were unhappy. There’s nothing. I’m just wondering why they chose now to throw a wrench in what was from the very start a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.’

‘My guess is another party is dangling promises they may not be able to keep.’

Elise picked up a bottle of water and traced her finger across the top. ‘You guess? Sorry, but you don’t strike me as the kind of man who guesses.’

‘And have you known many men like me?’ he drawled.

She flushed, then cursed herself for being flustered at the deliberate taunt. ‘You know what I mean, Mr Aguilar.’

Contemplative eyes probed hers for several seconds. When he held out an imperious hand for water, she picked up another bottle and passed it to him, curbing the urge to roll her eyes.

‘You’re right. I don’t guess.’

Surprise spiked through her. ‘So you know who’s trying to jinx the deal?’

‘Sí, I do,’ he murmured in a tone that sent a shiver down her spine. When he didn’t elaborate, she frowned.

‘Are you going to tell me who it is?’

‘Have you finished reading the report?’

‘Not yet.’

He uncapped the bottle and drained half of it in greedy gulps. Elise stopped herself from staring at the solid column of his throat. Or at the dark stubble that had crept over his jaw in the last few hours.

‘Go finish it. The “who” doesn’t really matter. What I need is a PR strategy on how we can resolve this problem if they remain intransigent.’

She returned to her office, fully aware there was no point pressing him for more information.

When she next raised her head, the view at her window had changed from day to evening, with lights from the adjacent skyscrapers illuminating the night sky. Her senses jumped when Alejandro filled the doorway.

‘You done?’ he asked, leaning against the jamb.

Elise nodded, wishing there was something else she could refocus her attention on besides the sleek musculature of Alejandro Aguilar’s body.

There’s the file. Her work. The reason she was here. She’d signed a contract mere hours ago that had drawn clear lines of boss and employee. While her past experience had borne witness that clients could violate contracts, she had a feeling Alejandro would stick rigidly to his.

But that didn’t mean she could drop her guard...or ogle his breathtakingly gorgeous body whenever she was in his presence.

She dragged her focus to the file. ‘My opinion hasn’t changed. They would have to have been offered something over and above what you’re offering. And that’s...’

‘That’s what?’ he encouraged.

‘That’s bordering on financial suicide, unless the other party has unlimited funds. Or are willing to go all out to steal this deal from you.’

His gaze swept downward, veiling his expression. Her senses twitched. She used to think she was a good reader of people. A horrific violation of her trust had robbed her of that last year.

Even so, she knew she’d struck somewhere in the vicinity of a nail.

Alejandro turned around without answering.

Elise rose. ‘Am I right? Mr Aguilar, is someone going to extraordinary lengths to see you fail?’

‘Alejandro,’ he murmured.

‘What?’

‘If we’re to work together, you’ll have to call me Alejandro.’

Elise wasn’t sure why the thought of repeating his name, even minus that sensual Spanish intonation she had no hope of mimicking, sent a shiver of awareness through her. ‘I... Okay.’

‘The chef has prepared dinner for us. Come. We’ll talk some more while we eat.’

She followed him out of his office to a set of smoked-glass doors, which swung open to reveal a small twelve-seater dining room. At the head of the table and directly adjacent, two places had been set, complete with silver tableware and glasses that indicated this was a multi-course meal.

They sat, and the chef walked in bearing two platters. Elise chose the chicken ravioli starter and almost groaned with pleasure as the delicate tastes melted on her tongue.

‘Okay, I take it back. Given the choice of going outside for fresh air and a sandwich or this, I’ll choose this every time.’

The chef, who was almost at the door, grinned at her compliment. Smiling in return, she turned back to her place and noticed Alejandro’s scowl.

Her smile dimmed. ‘Um, in case you missed it, I’m conceding that I was wrong before. No need to give me the evil eye.’

His eyes narrowed on the shutting door before returning to hers. ‘Do you make a habit of flirting with every man you come into contact with?’

Elise froze in the act of lifting her fork. ‘I don’t flirt,’ she bit out, her insides congealing at the accusation that struck a direct hit and dredged up haunting memories. No matter how many times she’d told herself the assault hadn’t been her fault, a part of her always wondered if she’d emitted the very vibes she’d striven to avoid her whole life.

Her parents might have chosen to use their God-given looks and charm as weapons, and Marsha Jameson might have advised Elise to exploit her sexuality to her advantage, but Elise had vowed never to follow in their footsteps.

Unfortunately, that rigid belief had proven to be an irresistible challenge for Brian Grey...

Hastily shoving aside bitter memories, she pushed the chair back and surged to her feet.

Her wrist was captured before she’d taken a single step. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’

‘I don’t like the tone of this conversation. Perhaps I was too hasty in taking back the benefits of getting my own meal. I don’t flirt,’ she reiterated, the need to reassure herself that what had happened a year ago hadn’t been her fault pumping through her blood. ‘But I have manners. And if someone does something nice for me, I thank them.’

He regarded her intensely for far too long. ‘Sit down, Elise. We’re not done.’

She shook her head. ‘I’ve lost my appetite. Besides, it’s seven in the evening. I didn’t sign up to work all hours.’

‘But you committed yourself to working reasonable work hours. Are you calling this an unreasonable hour?’

‘I’ll re-evaluate if I’m not subjected to unfounded allegations,’ she challenged. She looked pointedly at the hand manacling her wrist.

He waited a beat, then released her. ‘You were enjoying your food a few minutes ago. I’ll refrain from ruining our meal with...touchy subjects.’

Elise eyed her plate, then the door. She knew her outburst had flared brightly on Alejandro’s radar, but walking out at this stage would be counterproductive. She sat back down.

‘While you’re doing that, perhaps you’d like to remember that I haven’t flirted with you. Unless you count yourself above men?’ It was a cheap shot, regretted the moment she uttered the words.

One corner of his mouth quirked. ‘We’ll leave that debate alone, shall we?’

Her face reddened slightly, and for the rest of the first course they didn’t speak.

Once the second course of roast beef and vegetable medley had been served, he held up the bottle of expensive red. ‘Wine?’

About to refuse, she sprung for a little Dutch courage to see her through and nodded. ‘I’m not much of a wine drinker, or a drinker at all, so don’t hold it against me if I don’t appreciate the vintage.’