Nicole chuckled sadly. If only life were that easy. “We’ll talk more at lunch.”
Not watching her friend leave the office, Nicole turned her chair toward the big window and stared at the beautiful early fall landscape. Spots of rusts, orange, and yellow spotted the mountains. Within a few months, winter would be here. But she couldn’t think that far in advance. Although she loved to ski, if she didn’t have a job, she didn’t have money, which meant, she wouldn’t be able to go skiing.
A knock sounded on the opened door, followed by a man’s voice. “Excuse me, Miss Adkins, could I have a moment of your time?”
Groaning, she mentally prepared her mind to figure out some kind of excuse to get rid of her unexpected visitor. All she had time for today was to think of some way to save the company.
Straightening, she turned in the swivel chair and looked upon the man wearing a gray business suit, white shirt, and red tie. He gave her a charming smile, and she almost slid off her chair and onto the floor. Mick Remington looked more handsome in a suit than he had wearing casual clothes.
“M.. Mr. Remington,” she stuttered. “What a surprise.”
“I’m glad you think so.” He stepped in and closed the door behind him.
Her heart jumped to her throat. They were alone. Again. “What... can I help you with?” She wished her voice wasn’t so shaky.
He moved to the chair in front of her desk and sat. His bold stare moved over her black lace detailed jacket that covered a sleeveless black and brown dress that hugged her frame and ended at her knees. Thankfully, he couldn’t see all of that since she was still behind her desk. She didn’t plan on standing any time soon for fear her trembling legs would collapse underneath her.
His gaze moved over the loosely styled bun that she’d fixed in her hair, leaving a section of her bangs to fall fashionably over her brow, and down her face to rest on her lips. Immediately, cotton took up residency in her mouth and she swallowed hard.
“You look... different,” he said.
She shrugged. “This is how I always dress for work.” Which was a lie, since she’d only started wearing fashionable dresses when her grandfather made her manager of HR.
“If you had worn this that night we met, I would have thought you were all about business.”
“I...” She swallowed again wishing moisture would coat her throat. “I didn’t want to talk business that night.”
His smile slowly faded. “No, you wanted to blackmail me.”
Her stomach twisted in knots. “Yes, that was the plan.”
“Your plan failed miserably.”
She nodded. “I’m aware of that.”
He leaned forward, resting his arms on the desk. “I want those pictures.”
Confusion filled her, and she shook her head, not believing what she was hearing. “You want the pictures Mary took that night?”
“Yes.”
His mood seemed very irritable now. Nothing like when he’d first entered her office. Perhaps she did have the upper hand in their game of roulette since she had something he wanted. “They aren’t my pictures to give you. They are Mary’s.”
His gaze narrowed on her and grew darker. “Don’t play coy with me, Miss Adkins. You can get them for me.”
“Probably, but why do you want them so badly? Didn’t you tell me right before I left your hotel room that you weren’t going to let us blackmail you?”
“I’m not, which is why I’m here to get them from you.”
His expression looked anxious, and for a brief moment, she thought she might actually have control. “So, you’re saying that if I do something for you, you’ll do something for me?” She gained the strength to stand and move away from her desk. When she passed him, his gaze dropped to her legs.
He chuckled but it sounded forced.
“Did I say that?” He shook his head. “I didn’t hear those words come out of my mouth, Miss Adkins.”
His attention moved over her legs very slowly as a hint of a grin appeared on his face. He was playing a mind game with her, she just knew it. Over the years, she’d learned how to play mind games, too.
She leaned against the counter near the window, resting a portion of her bottom on the edge as she folded her arms. “Really? Because that’s what I heard.” She arched an eyebrow. “You want something from me, and I want something from you. Is that so hard to understand?”
