Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
Jeez, that man was hot as hell. He was standing there in all black. Black jeans, black T-shirt, black hair that looked like he’d recently come out of a shower. His eyes seemed to have gone black.
She frowned his way. “He’s my friend. Like he said, I’m a hugger. I’ve never slept with him, macked down on him, or played with him. I’m a physical person, Joshua.”
“I don’t like to share my toys.”
See, this was where she knew she should play the part. She should let her eyes go submissively down and agree that she shouldn’t upset the man who would be her Master, her Dom. That was the right play, the play Jiang Kun would have made.
“Excellent, because I don’t like being referred to as a toy.” Shit. She’d been Kayla Summers for too long. Maybe she didn’t know how to spy anymore.
He considered her for a moment. “I thought you’d never worked with them.”
“That doesn’t mean I don’t know them,” she replied. “We’re a small community and we tend to keep up with one another. We also tend to back each other up. If that’s going to be a problem, maybe you need a private detective, someone who isn’t used to working with a team.”
“Challenging me so soon?” One side of his mouth lifted in a wistful smile.
“I have some boundaries, Mr. Hunt. I understand that I’m an employee, but you have to treat me like a human being, too.” It was true. She’d totally thought she could go into this job and that she would fall into her old persona.
She couldn’t. She’d been out in the real world for too long. She’d been surrounded by people who valued her for who she was, not what she could provide them with. It had changed her yet again.
“All right, then. Let’s start over.” He held out his hand. “I’m happy you’re here, Kayla.”
Her heart skipped a beat and she realized how dangerous he could be. She could handle his charm, but there was something underneath it, something that wanted. That was the part of Joshua Hunt that threatened her peace of mind. Still, she placed her hand in his hand and enjoyed the warmth that flowed from his body to hers. “I’m happy to be here, too. Will you show me the house?”
“It would be my pleasure,” he assured her. “If you’ll come this way, I’ll introduce you to my housekeeper. This particular house was built in the late nineties.”
She followed him and tried to remember that this was a job and she wasn’t here for fun.
* * * *
Josh sat back, a little surprised at how much such a tiny female could put away. She’d eaten her salad, Chilean sea bass with lemon and roasted vegetables, and two helpings of the rice pilaf Josh loved but couldn’t have more than a few bites of. He hated wasting it, but Mrs. Glendower insisted on cooking it after she’d found out it was one of his comfort foods.
He didn’t have to worry about wasting it tonight. Kay polished that sucker off.
He found he liked having her sitting across from him at the small outdoor dining table on his balcony. He’d chosen to eat al fresco because he’d thought to stun her with his view. The sun was starting to go down, and in the distance the cliffs were lit up with the brilliant pink and red and orange sunset. It was low tide and the beach was marked with people, but they were mostly locals this time of year. A couple passed, holding hands while they walked barefoot in the sand.
It felt good to be here with her.
She stopped, as though sensing he was watching her with amusement. “Sorry. I have a fast metabolism. Always have. It will probably catch up with me one of these days. Did I eat your portion, too?”
He had to laugh. It had been a long time since he’d had dinner with a woman who wasn’t counting every single calorie, who actually enjoyed her food. “No. I had my portion.”
She frowned, a line appearing on her brow. Yeah, it had been a long time since he’d been around a woman whose forehead moved, too. It was simply accepted in his business that Botox was a must. “That was a single spoonful. That was nothing.”
He could see he might have to talk to Mrs. Glendower about changing the menu up a bit. He didn’t want this woman to be hangry. It could go poorly for him. “That was a taste and that, my dear, is all the carbs my abs can take.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh. Sorry. That sucks. You look healthy. I wouldn’t think you have to diet.”
“I am healthy right now,” he explained. “When I’m not actively shooting a film that requires me to be shirtless, I put on about five to ten pounds. You’re catching me at the end of lazy time. I’ll shed it in the next few weeks before I have to shoot. That way I’ll look perfect on film, but a doctor would likely tell me I’m underweight at that point. Why do you think actresses have to stay so damn thin? The camera really does add pounds. It’s not a forgiving thing.”