Planning to toss it too, I hesitate. “Fuck it.” I open the box, lift a vibrant icing-covered donut out of it, take a huge bite, and moan as the sweetness spills over my tongue and melts in my mouth. “Hell, that’s good,” I mumble around the large mouthful, spraying crumbs everywhere. “Shit.” I step back, examining the mess I’ve made on the carpet.
What a fucking day.
“I forgot… my purse.”
I snap my head toward Sapphire’s rich honeyed voice, her face full of amusement, and I freeze.
As if time has stopped we face each other, unmoving, in silence.
Slowly, she takes one step, then another, into my office, and without her eyes leaving mine, she bends, picks up her purse off the floor, and pushes it onto her shoulder.
“Enjoy the donuts, Eli.” Her eyes flick briefly down my body and back up, so quick that if I had blinked, I might have missed it.
And then she’s gone again, chuckling to herself as she heads for the elevator, leaving me standing in my office, half-naked and eating one of the best donuts I’ve ever tasted.
6
SAPPHIRE
Humming to myself as I rummage through the massive box of fabric scraps, I pick up the fox scarf and drop it instantly when I realize it’s real. “That’s disgusting.” I shudder. How could anyone do that to such a beautiful creature? “Animals deserve better than that.”
“I agree.” Someone’s lips nearly brush against my ear from over my shoulder, their breath close enough for me to feel.
I twist my neck to be met with the devilishly handsome face of Eli Hart.
For someone who acts like he doesn’t like me, he sure is close.
“I don’t like animal cruelty,” I whisper, my heart racing at how close he is.
“Fox farming is illegal in many countries.”
“It should be illegal ineverycountry.” I blink slowly.
“If I had the power to make it a worldwide law, it would be.”
Finally, we agree on something. “What are you doing here?” I ask, the pair of us having yet another stare-off. I can’t explain why we keep doing it.
“It’s Saturday and my day off,” he explains.
The guy is a workaholic; I’m not sure if he understands what a day off is. “You’re in a thrift store.” This isn’t the kind of place I’d expect him to be.
His orderly desk is a complete contrast to the haphazard store that smells a bit moldy.
He moves from behind me to my side, and it hits me again just how tall he is. I’m a tiny firecracker in comparison to his skyscraper height. He’s broad-shouldered, too. For an office worker, his presence screams discipline. The guy works out, there is no doubt about it.
Again, I ask, “What are you doing here?” He looks completely out of place in a perfectly pressed white T-shirt and a pair of expensive-looking designer jeans. My eyes drift over his chest, and I’m no longer imagining what I have already seen underneath because I saw every inch of his solid tan pecs, and abs so tight I could scale them, and those biceps… I swear they called to me, begging me to give them a firm squeeze to test their strength.
He threads his hands through his thick, rich brown hair that’s perfectly styled. I’m sure he’ll hate himself for messing it up, especially since there wasn’t a hair out of place. He then scratches the side of his head, the hair there shaved close, and eventually he answers, “I’m looking for something.” He’s vague.
Damn, he’s frustrating. “What exactly?”
He deflects, countering with, “You tell me what you’re here looking for first, then I will share.”
His urge to dominate every conversation and moment both infuriates and attracts me. He’s irresistibly sexy, and I crave that dominance he radiates. In my mind, I want to pinch him until it hurts, then instantly press my lips to his, and kiss him to make it right, telling him to spank me to punish me.
Jeezo. This really is getting out of hand.
The thoughts I’ve been having about him are borderline pornographic. It’s ridiculously maddening.