The Party (6 page)

After grabbing up the two Scotch’s, he headed
back to Blake. Two of his other work buddies, Chris and Oliver, had
joined Blake. “Hey guys,” Aidan said with a beaming smile.

Blake gave Aidan a quizzical look as he took
his glass. “Did you throw back a couple more of these?”

“No why?”

“Because you have a bounce in your step that
you didn’t five minutes ago.”

Aidan chuckled. “That’s because I found the
woman I’m spending the night with.”

“Damn, you work fast. Who is she?” Chris
asked.

“She’s a fiery redhead in a green dress that
I’m going to enjoy spending hours coaxing the inner hellcat out
of.”

Oliver moaned. “Emma fucking Harrison.”

Aidan widened his eyes. “Really? You could
identify her just by that measly description I just gave you?”

Crossing his arms over his chest, Oliver
said, “Long ass legs, fabulous tits, green eyes, long red hair and
kinda shy?”

Aidan choked on his Scotch. “Yeah, that’s
her.”

Oliver shook his head. “Good luck with that
one, bro. She works on my floor, and half of the dudes there have
tried to hit that and struck out.”

Gulping down the last of his drink, Aidan
only grinned. “Oh, I do like a challenge. I usually come harder at
the end of the night.”

Chris and Blake snorted with laughter. “Only
you, man,” Blake replied.

“You gotta admit that the chase is hot,”
Aidan argued.

Chris shrugged. “Not when I’m horny as hell
like I am tonight. I’d rather them just fall over with their legs
open.”

“Whatever, man,” Aidan said, craning his neck
through the crowd. Finally, he spotted his emerald hottie. “What
did you say her name was again?”

“Emma.”

“Thanks. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going
to go work on getting Emma to pry her lovely thighs apart for
me.”

“Good luck. You’re going to need it,” Oliver
said.

Aidan only shook his head. He never needed
luck to seal the deal with a woman. He had his looks, his sex
appeal, and his personality. So what if a few inept PR guys had
struck out with Emma. He wouldn’t.

***

He was staring at her again…and smiling.
After catching the very handsome guy she had bumped into earlier
eyeing her across the crowded room, Emma had vowed not to look in
his direction again. Instead, she had tried focusing on the
conversation between Casey and the other girls from her floor. But
when she’d peeked up through her eyelashes, she’d caught him
looking. He didn’t seem embarrassed by the fact he was openly
staring at her. So she had finally gotten up the courage to give
him a shy smile back.

And that was the game they had been playing
for the last five minutes—stealing glances and smiling at each
other.

“Who are you grinning at?” Casey asked.

“No one,” Emma quickly lied.

“Ooh, I think Em’s on the prowl,” Therese
said with a grin.

“I am not,” Emma protested.

“Yes, you are,” Casey said, her gaze scanning
the room. “So who is the lucky guy?”

Emma sighed. “Fine. I literally ran into him
a few minutes ago on the way back from the bathroom. He seemed
really interested, but I was too mortified by getting my heel
caught in that stupid rug to stay and chat.”

Casey grinned. “Ooh, sounds promising. Is he
hot?”

Without glancing over, she could see the
guy’s image in front of her as plain as day—the piercing blue eyes,
the sandy blonde hair, and his tall, somewhat muscular form. “Yeah,
he was really handsome.”

Casey’s dark eyes widened. “Oh shit it is on!
Em just called a dude handsome.”

“Oh whatever.” She nibbled her lip for a
minute before finally saying, “I really would like to know who he
is. I-I’d like to talk to him again.”

“Talk to him? No baby girl, we’re
so
getting you a date at the least. I mean, I haven’t seen you this
stoked about a guy in forever,” Casey said.

“So where is he?” Therese asked.

“Well, don’t make it obvious. But he’s
leaning up against one of the marble columns.”

She didn’t dare look as the others turned
their gazes on her mystery man. Casey gasped in horror. “What’s
wrong? Who is he?” Emma asked.

“No, absolutely not. That’s Aidan
Fitzgerald.”

“So?”

Casey shook her head wildly. He’s sex on a
stick, Em, so you need to stay the hell away from him unless you
wanna get used!” she had replied.

Therese nodded. “He has the worst reputation
as a womanizer. I heard that he could only keep older secretaries
because he slept with all the others.”

Emma’s eyes widened. “Seriously?”

Her other friend, Rachel, said, “He was
caught at last year’s charity benefit with his pants around his
ankles doing some donor’s wife.”

“There’s no telling how many women he’s
banged in this building,” Casey said.

“Oh God,” Emma murmured as she fought the
waves of nausea rolling over her. How in the world had she managed
to bump into such an asshole? When she glanced up at him again, he
was still staring—or maybe it was more that he was leering at
her.

“Shit, I think he’s coming over here,” Casey
said.

When they started inching away, Emma’s mouth
gaped open. “You’re leaving me alone with the notorious
manwhore?”

Casey rolled her eyes. “You’ll be fine. Just
tell him where to get off.”

“Thanks a lot,” Emma grumbled.

With a definite swagger in his walk, Aidan
came striding up to her. “Hello again.”

“Hi,” she said shortly.

“I thought after our earlier meeting that we
never got the chance to be formally introduced. I’m Aidan
Fitzgerald.”

“Yes, I know.”

“You do?”

Emma smirked at him. “Yes, your reputation
precedes you.”

Aidan cocked his brows at her. “Oh, so a
pretty thing like you from Public Relations knows all about my
exploits in Marketing?”

“How did you know I—”

He grinned at her. “I have my spies,
especially those who happen to know all sexy as hell redheads named
Emma in PR.”

Emma fought the urge to roll her eyes at him.
God, he was so cocky. If there was one thing she couldn’t contend
with in a man it was ego, and she wasn’t sure she had ever met a
man who thought more of himself than Aidan did.

Lowering his voice, Aidan asked, “So what do
you say we get out of here and maybe go back to your place?
Somewhere we could get to know each other a little better.”

“Are you propositioning me, Mr. Fitzgerald?”
she asked curtly.

His eyes widened in surprise. “You can call
me Aidan, and all I want is to go somewhere a little less crowded.
We can stop by a bar first if you would prefer.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Yes,
I’m sure you would prefer getting me drunk off my ass so I would
sleep with you more willingly, right? I mean, what are the odds
that you actually want to hear my take on the economy or who is
going to win this year’s Superbowl?”

At the bewildered expression on Aidan’s face,
Emma had to bite her lip to keep from laughing.

“Excuse me?” he demanded.

“Oh, I think you heard me just fine. I would
imagine you’re not used to getting turned down. But listen very
carefully when I say that I do not appreciate being propositioned
by the company manwhore.”

Undaunted, he pursed his lips. “Is that
right?”

“Yes, it is.”

He leaned in closer to her, his fingertips
feathering along her arm. “Babe, if you’re afraid of your friends
thinking badly of you because you want to fuck me, then we don’t
have to leave together. No one has to know but you and me.”

Emma jerked her arm away. “I do
not
want to sleep with you.”

Aidan grinned. “Oh yes, you do.” He lightly
tapped her temple. “Your mind is telling you to be repulsed by me
because of my womanizing reputation, but your body thinks
otherwise.”

“I don’t think so,” Emma huffed, taking a
step back. She didn’t like the fact that it appeared her body was
reacting to him, especially the heat growing between her legs.

Leaning over, his breath scorched against her
earlobe. “Then why are your nipples suddenly hard?”

Emma gasped and shoved him back before
crossing her arms over her chest. “Maybe because it’s December and
it’s cold?” She shook her head. “Honestly, you are absolutely and
positively disgusting.”

“Angry sex can be really hot, and if I had to
wager, it’s been a while for you.” He winked as he pulled her to
him. “So you can just take it all out on me.”

His triumphant smirk drove her over the edge.
“I’m going to say this one last time. You are the
last
man
on earth I would ever sleep with. It may be shocking to you, but I
actually have principles and scruples, and they’re all saying that
you are one of the most self-absorbed assholes I have ever met.
There are worse things than being single and going without sex, Mr.
Fitzgerald. Leaving here with you and letting you touch one inch of
my body would be the most degrading thing I would ever have to go
through. So I will kindly ask that you remove yourself from my
presence. Because one way or the other, you are leaving. Either I’m
going to call security or knee you in the balls to get you to
go.”

Aidan’s mouth gaped open in shock before his
blue eyes narrowed at her. “Fine then. Your loss.” He then turned
and stalked away, leaving her breathless.

Casey and the others came hustling back over
to her. “Oh my God! You were amazing, Em!” Casey said.

“You heard?” Emma squeaked.

Casey nodded. “We tried not to eavesdrop, but
we couldn’t help it.”

Therese grinned. “You really told him.”

“Yeah, I guess I did.”

Rachel patted Emma’s back. “You should really
be proud of yourself. I don’t think he’s ever had a woman talk to
him like that.”

Emma sighed. She didn’t know how she felt.
Now that the adrenaline was no longer pumping through her, she
didn’t feel so cocky. Instead, she felt mortification at what she
had said to him. She hoped she never, ever had to face him
again.

Casey took her hand. “Come on. Let’s get you
a celebratory drink.”

Emma laughed. “Seriously?”

“Yep, we all need to toast the day you told
off Mr. Aidan Manwhore Fitzgerald!”

“Do you mind if we do it somewhere else? I
don’t want to run the risk of running into him again tonight.”

“He’s already left.”

With a gasp, Emma said, “Really?”

Therese bobbed her head. “He blew right out
the front door of the club right after you told him off.”

Casey grinned. “So we have the whole place to
ourselves to drink and unwind. Okay?”

Forcing a smile to her lips, Emma said,
“Okay.” There was nothing more that she wanted to do at the moment
than forget meeting Aidan Fitzgerald.

***