Aurora didn't believe in karma ,until she watched the man who'd rearranged her internal organs in the backseat of a car casually stroll into her office like he owned the damn building.
Correction: he might actually own the building.
He moved like a shark in a suit. Confident. Calm. Lethal. His tailored jacket hugged broad shoulders like it had been sewn onto his body. His expression? That smug, sinful smirk she recognized from the exact moment he'd pulled her panties aside.
Her body betrayed her instantly. Nipples tightened. Pulse quickened. Brain? Completely fried.
She was still gaping when he stopped at her desk, hands casually slipping into his pockets like he hadn't had her whimpering his name just a few hours ago.
"Morning, sunshine," he said smoothly, eyes flicking down to her blouse like he already knew what was underneath.
Aurora's voice got stuck somewhere between her throat and hell.
"You— What the—" She blinked like a glitching robot. "What are you doing here?"
"Didn't think you would see me again, did you?" he murmured, leaning in just close enough for her to smell the dark spice of his cologne. "You left your panties in my car."
Her soul left her body.
"Oh my God," she croaked.
"Nope," he said, straightening up. "Just River."
River.
Of course that was his name. Sexy and chaotic. The kind of name that belonged to a man who came with warning labels and probably a kill count.
And then came the real horror.
Her boss appeared right on cue, smiling like she hadn't just dropped a bomb.
"Aurora, this is River Damon, my stepbrother. He'll be joining the company temporarily. Some family business in the city, so he'll be working out of our office for a few months."
Aurora's jaw hit the floor. Internally, she screamed.
River Damon.
As in the River Damon.
Billionaire heir. Damon Industries' prodigal son. Rumored to have ties to the underworld. There were whispers—guns, blackmail, vanishing enemies. Mafia shit. And she'd let him spit in her mouth.
She glanced up at him, panicked.
He winked.
This cannot be happening.
Ms. Evans clapped her hands like a proud matchmaker. "Aurora, since you'll be handling the East Wing renovations and River will be observing, you two will be working closely together for the next few weeks."
Aurora nearly choked.
"I—what? No. I mean—does that make sense? There are other assistants—"
River cut in smoothly. "I asked for her personally. She… left an impression."
She turned to glare at him, cheeks blazing. "I will murder you."
He leaned down again, whispering against her ear. "Careful. Last time you said something that dirty, you ended up on my lap."
She stood up abruptly, accidentally knocking over her iced coffee. It spilled across her desk and dripped onto the floor like dramatic punctuation.
Her coworkers watched like they were at the movies.
Jessica from HR whispered, "Is this foreplay?"
Aurora wanted to die.
River? He just smiled like this was his kingdom and she was the toy he'd already broken in.
And worst of all?
She wasn't sure she wanted him to stop.