Total pages in book: 18
Estimated words: 16362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 82(@200wpm)___ 65(@250wpm)___ 55(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 16362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 82(@200wpm)___ 65(@250wpm)___ 55(@300wpm)
And of course.
The dress clinging on to every curve and dip. It’s hard to keep my head when she looks like this. Katherine is so close I can smell a whiff of her favorite perfume.
I’m so busy staring at her like an idiot that I almost don’t catch her as she leans to her side. “Katherine, are you all right?”
She whirls to me, eyes blazing. “Who are you and how do you know my name?”
It doesn’t escape me that this is our first conversation. “I work at Astor’s. It’s my job to know everyone in the building.”
Fucking lie. The only one who matters to me is her. The other employees can burn for all I care.
“Why are you here alone, Katherine? Where are your friends?” I’m pretty sure I saw a couple of girls with her when she arrived.
She snorts. “I have no friends. They left me when they realized I wasn’t footing the bill.”
“Let me take you home.”
“I don’t even know who you are.”
I take out my ID and hand it to her, my fingers accidentally brushing hers. She sucks in a sharp breath and pulls her hand back like she’s just been electrocuted. Her eyes are wide when she fully takes me in, but she shakes her head as if to clear her thoughts.
“It’s my company ID. You can call HR or the head of security to confirm my identity. You can even send a photo of this ID to anyone.”
She tentatively takes the ID and reads it. “Your name’s Kieran Knight?”
“Yes.”
“Sounds like a made-up name.”
My cheeks hurt from stifling a grin, but my humor dissolves when she gives me back my ID and shrugs. She doesn’t even call anyone or double-check if I’m lying through my teeth.
Jesus Christ. This is why looking after her is a full-time job. Fine. Stalking. I’m stalking and not just ‘looking after her.’ Semantics. Semantics. Anyway, she’s always a bit careless about her safety, and that keeps me on my toes.
Katherine massages her temples and sighs. “Fine. I’ll let you take me home, only because I can’t find an Uber. Where’s your car?”
I lead her to my parked 1971 Plymouth Hemi Cuda in raven black. It’s my pride and joy and the first thing I bought with my biggest paycheck. It’s not exactly subtle, and it’s always guaranteed to make car guys and girls salivate, but it’s always been my dream car.
And it’s in convertible form, so basically, there are fewer than a dozen others like it in the world.
I open the door to the backseat for her, and when she’s comfortably seated, I jog to the driver’s side and slide in. I’ve just slid the key in when she whistles and runs her fingers along the black leather seat.
“The company must pay you well, Mr. Knight.”
“Please call me Kieran, and I’m fairly good with finances.”
“‘Kay. What’s your position in Astor’s again?”
“You didn’t see my ID?”
“I can see two of you, mister, and I forgot when you mentioned it. Tell me.”
“Security guard. I’m usually in the security room where all the cameras are.”
“My name’s Katherine.”
“I know.”
“Right. Office security and stuff. Why were you at the club?”
“Saw some friends.” I keep my eyes on the road, but my entire being is hyper-aware of her nearness, especially when she leans forward and rests a palm on my headrest. My heart gives an erratic beat, and I’m one second away from turning to her to see how she’ll react.
“No offense, but you look too old to be hanging out at clubs.”
I can almost feel myself crumble into dust, feeling ancient. How old does she think I am? “I’m 34. I’m not that old.”
“Fair point, but you don’t strike me as the type who enjoys partying.”
I meet her gaze in the rearview mirror and raise a brow. “No offense, but you said you could see two of me. It’s safe to assume your judgment is a little off.”
My heart squeezes when her laughter fills the space. “You’re right. God, I walked in on that one, didn’t I?”
She’s drunker than I thought because when we get to her apartment, she doesn’t even question the fact that I know where to park, where the entrance to her unit is, and what floor she’s on.
With her hand pressed against the wall to steady herself, she trips on the stairs and almost falls flat on her face before my arms automatically extend and wrap around her waist. I pull her to me and the closeness has me reeling, my blood rushing to my groin, my head dizzy with desire.
But no. I may have stalked her and explored her private space, even touched and stole her things, but I draw the line at taking advantage of her when she’s barely aware of what’s going on. If something’s going to happen to us, Katherine will know and enjoy every single minute of it.