Dangerous (The Complete Erotic Romance Novel) (4 page)

He took another peek at the picture of her, a pretty woman looking out into the night from her bedroom. She probably didn’t realize that the light from behind had shone through her nightgown and shown her curves perfectly. Her expression was cautious, almost as if she’d sensed his presence. Maybe that was why she’d taken a second look.

Maybe that was why she’d given him such a view.

Maybe it was kismet.

The apartment building was his favorite kind. It was old, filled with period charm and short of security measures. He went into the foyer and pretended to examine the list of occupants on the panel with the buzzer. In reality, he was noting how careful people were with the locked door that led to the building.

They weren’t.

There was no camera in the foyer, either.

He loved a safe neighborhood. It made his missions so much easier.

A couple came out of the lobby and left for the evening, laughing together as they walked toward the busier main street. They barely spared him a glance. He shook his head as if he had the wrong address, and left as well. He walked around the block slowly, then took his time approaching the building entrance. When a taxi pulled up and a young man got out, his face alight with the triumph of his evening, the man timed his arrival with care.

He stepped into the outer lobby just as the buzzer sounded. The younger man grabbed the inner door, then held it for the new arrival.

“Thank you,” he said and meant it. The young man went to the elevator but the stranger took the stairs.

On the fourth floor, he counted off the doors, then paused in front of the one he knew must be hers. He had a huge hard-on, just thinking of her being on the other side of this door, maybe naked, and this flimsy lock being the only barrier between them. He could pick it in a heartbeat, enter her home and claim her before Reid had a chance.

But it wasn’t time. His victory would be sweeter if he played out the whole game.

He went back downstairs, checked the board for the names at that apartment.

K. Jones and J. Fitzgerald.

Roommates. His beauty was one or the other, but he’d soon know for sure.

* * *

Chapter Two

Kendra knew she should have expected the car.

It was silver, low, sleek and new. It was also already parked right outside the front door of the building when she arrived at seven-thirty. The new boss defined early to be earlier even than she did.

Was he a workaholic? Kendra wouldn’t have been surprised.

She parked at the back and went in the factory door, as usual, put her lunch in the fridge of the employee lunch room, said hello to the ladies who were already threading up their sewing machines. They were mostly older women and started early. As usual, there was a lot of chatter first thing, a mix of Portuguese and Mandarin, as they exchanged news before settling in to sew. Mrs. Marco had made some sweet cookies and Mrs. Chang had brought some dumplings, both of them insisting that Kendra try them.

“Maybe Kendra has a date tonight?” Mrs. Marco teased, indicating her shoes, and they all laughed in unison.

“No, I don’t.”

“You should. A nice girl like you needs a good man.”

“We’ll find one for her,” another of the women joked and they all laughed together. Working at this shop was like having twenty grandmothers and Kendra loved it. She entered the front office smiling, with icing sugar on her lips and a sweet in her hand, only to find her new boss standing in the doorway to his office.

He looked both different and the same. He wore a perfectly tailored dark grey suit, a white shirt with French cuffs and a burgundy tie. Everything about him said money, and Kendra was sure his gleaming shoes cost more than she earned in a month. Despite the change in his clothing, though, he still looked sexy, dangerous and demanding.

And that was when the penny dropped.

Stirling. Vinny had called him Mr. Stirling. He had to be Reid Stirling, the hotshot business savior who turned companies around more often than normal people changed their sheets and made millions doing it. In the darkness, Kendra hadn’t recognized him, but this morning, in his suit and full daylight, he looked exactly like his official picture on the website for his parent corporation.

She’d done a case study of one of his more brilliant turnarounds for a class assignment, back when she’d actually believed she’d get to finish her MBA, and had been halfway in love with him ever since.

Maybe three-quarters.

And now she’d kissed him.

Never mind that, she’d felt him up.

Kendra felt her cheeks heat and her hands shake. She tried to catch her breath before he noticed her, but no luck. He looked up from the report he was reading as if he could smell her discomfiture. He surveyed her swiftly, his expression impassive, and then his gaze locked on her mouth.

Kendra froze in front of her desk, wishing a hole would open in the floor to swallow her up. She grabbed a tissue from her desk and wiped off the icing sugar, putting down the sweet on her desk.

He watched her coolly, as if they’d never met before.

“You must be Miss Jones,” he said, his tone so formal that Kendra glanced around the office. No one else was in yet.

So, he was going to pretend the night before hadn’t happened. She was disappointed, but not really surprised.

“I am,” she said, matching his tone as she hung up her coat. She went to her desk and put her purse in the bottom drawer, glancing up in time to find his gaze fixed on her shoes. Her heart skipped.

He met her gaze and she could have sworn there was a twinkle in his eyes. They were blue, striking with his dark hair. Kendra swallowed because she hadn’t noticed that the night before.

Although she’d known it.

He touched his chin and Kendra realized the icing sugar was there, too. She wiped it off as he watched with an interest that made her think of that kiss the night before.

Again.

“You seem to have eaten your lipstick,” he said quietly.

“I liked it better when you did,” Kendra replied just as quietly, then wondered if she’d lost her mind.

His smile flashed, reckless and unexpected, then he was serious again. “Naughty angel,” he said inexplicably.

Ginger sailed in the front door in that moment, complaining as usual and keeping Kendra from asking him what he meant. “The traffic is incredible this morning,” Ginger said, throwing her purse in the general direction of her desk. She clearly hadn’t noticed Mr. Stirling. “Can you believe the construction on the freeway?”

“It
was
quite congested this morning,” he said and Ginger spun in shock. “Reid Stirling,” he provided, as smooth as silk. “I have bought the company from Leon and will be in charge now.” Ginger’s mouth was hanging open. “And you would be?”

She found her voice again. “Ginger Maclean, Payables and Receivables, sir.”

“Excellent. I would appreciate a summary as your earliest convenience, Miss Maclean, so I can see where we stand.” His voice rose slightly when he said miss and his gaze swept over Ginger’s left hand.

“I prefer Ms., sir, if it’s not going to be Ginger.”

“Ms. Maclean, then. Shall we say nine for the summaries?”

“I can tell you where we stand. We’re in the hole.”

“I know that, Ms. Maclean, but you will forgive me for wishing to know the depth of this particular hole.”

Ginger nodded agreement with a kind of awe and Kendra swallowed her own smile. She hadn’t known Ginger to accomplish anything before nine, ever before. She came in earlier to have her coffee in the office, read the paper and do her makeup. Leon had never cared.

Mr. Stirling clearly had other ideas. With a nod, he turned back to his office. Kendra checked him out, knowing he couldn’t see her. It was reassuring to know that if his millions unexpectedly dried up, he could model for GQ.

“I can give you a quick summary right now, sir,” Ginger said abruptly and Mr. Stirling paused. “Payroll is next Thursday and we won’t have enough cash.”

He turned slowly. “Because too many payables are outstanding?”

“Because there aren’t enough payables, sir. Leon was going to see if he could negotiate an addition to the line of credit, but I guess he won’t be doing that now.”

“It seems unlikely. Nine o’clock for details, Ms. Maclean?”

He didn’t seem overly concerned about the news, although Ginger was clearly flustered. She nodded and he nodded once. “Excellent. Thank you.” He turned as if he’d go back into his office, then changed his mind. He strode to pause before Kendra’s desk and her heart skipped a couple of beats. “Miss Jones, Leon told me a great deal about you.”

“While only your reputation precedes you, Mr. Stirling,” she dared to say.

“You’ll all learn plenty about me this morning, Miss Jones.”

Kendra felt like shivering at the warning note in his voice.

“Is there a room large enough for me to address all of the staff at once?”

“No, sir.” When he held her gaze, Kendra elaborated. “The conference room is too small to include everyone from the factory. Leon generally held full staff meetings in the loading dock.”

“Then the loading dock it shall be.” He was decisive, and Kendra admired that. Leon’s dithering had driven her crazy. She felt as if Mr. Stirling already had a plan, and she was just helping him to tweak the details. He pulled back his cuff and eyed that expensive watch. “Could you please have everyone gathered there at nine-fifteen?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then I’ll tour the facilities with the floor manager, Connor Forsythe, at nine-thirty.”

Kendra blinked. He’d done his homework. “Yes, sir.”

“And I’ll speak to the office staff in the conference room at ten.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I assume you have an internal computer network?”

“Yes, sir. We have a small LAN and one technical support person on staff. . .”

“Jim Rodriguez,” he supplied and Kendra knew she shouldn’t have been surprised. “I tried to call his extension but he wasn’t there.”

“It’s only 7:35, sir. Leon had the front staff work 9 to 5, and the factory 8 to 4.”

He lifted a brow at that, but didn’t comment. “Perhaps Mr. Rodriguez could stop by my office when he arrives and get my laptop on the network.”

“Yes, sir.” Kendra reached for her phone, hoping Jimmy arrived on time. He often was late on Friday mornings. Predictably, he wasn’t at his desk, but she left him a voice mail message.

In the meantime, Mr. Stirling had walked into the front office and she could hear him trying the drawers on the big mahogany desk that Leon had used. “I will need everything unlocked, Miss Jones, at your convenience,” he said, loud enough for her to hear and firmly enough for her to know that she’d better get there quick.

How had he gotten into the filing cabinet the night before? He must have Leon’s keys, but was making a show of this being his first visit to the office.

Kendra hurried into his office and unlocked all of the drawers, on the desk and on the filing cabinets. He stood in the corner, his arms folded across his chest, and watched her—just as he had the night before. Kendra found herself keenly aware of his scrutiny and nearly dropped the keys as she worked through them. In what seemed like an eternity, she had everything open for him and was standing before his desk.

His gaze, she realized, was locked upon her shoes again. She’d worn the high red patent leather heels, the ones that made her feel sexy and confident. She saw him take a breath, then his gaze rose slowly up her legs. Kendra could almost feel him touching her. She was flushing a little by the time his gaze met hers. Could he see the black corset? Or was he just imagining possibilities?

The pictures would have helped with that.

The heat in his gaze was unmistakable, and sent a thrill through her.

“Perhaps you might orient me quickly, Miss Jones. I’m afraid I will be quite reliant upon you in the short term.”

“Of course, sir.” Kendra pivoted. “Major accounts are in this drawer, competition in this drawer.”

“Payables and receivables?”

“All filed in the main office. Ginger maintains those files. Marianne manages payroll and human resources, and she keeps those files on the other side of the main office.”

He nodded, but she couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

“Leon preferred to keep the high level information at his fingertips. You’ll find that he did a lot of research on the competition, and many of their catalogues are included in their files. There’s also a large section of recent research at trade shows.”

“And the bottom drawer?”

“Suppliers and designers. Leon said it was better to be prepared for change than to have it thrust upon you.” She didn’t say that Leon had spent all the years she’d worked for him preparing rather than actually doing anything.

But then, Mr. Stirling probably knew that.

“My own philosophy exactly,” he mused, just as Jimmy arrived at the door. Fresh out of university, Jimmy tended to be disheveled, but he was incredible with technical issues.