[Cole]
To say that I wasn't more taken with Brianna Chase than any other woman on the island would have been a lie.
She hadn't shown herself since last night. Absence certainly made the heart grow fonder, even if it was only of the notion of taking a woman to bed.
"Have we heard back from her agency yet?" I asked absentmindedly, taking in the view from the balcony of my study.
Out here was where I did my best strategizing for Hunter Industries. That was until I met Brianna.
Now all my thinking was about her. Naked. In my arms. In my bed. On the beach. In my office chair. On this very balcony… She ruined my favorite thinking spot without even being present.
"Not yet, Mr. Hunter," Harmon replied, fighting the urge to sigh.
"Well, make fire under their asses and get me a response by the end of the day," I replied with too much enthusiasm.
"You know, if you want to talk to her so badly, all you have to do is knock on her door," an exasperated Harmon snapped.
Clearly, my newfound obsession was driving Harmon as much up the walls as it was me. Wealth made me many things, patient not being one of them, much as I protested otherwise.
"I don't know what you mean," I insisted, clinging to what little pride I had left. "Just, do your job," I said with a hiss, shooing him away when I heard a knock on the door.
"I do my job, quite brilliantly I might add, which is why I can say things like this. Allow me to say it in terms you might understand. Grow a pair," said Harmon, turning his back on me as he crossed the room to go and answer the door.
Deciding that I had had enough of the balcony for the present, I followed. Harmon opened the door to a distressed Arthur, my resort manager. He had on his heels a certain fired up redhead.
"This is outrageous," she yelled, hands now on her hips as she faced poor Arthur head on. "Hand my property over to me this instant."
The anger in her voice coupled with the vigor in her stance and the deep, determined frown on her face seeped straight into my chest, then dropped down to my groin. Well, there went the last of my pride. There she stood, in all her glory, proof that lust was dangerous.
"Mr. Hunter please," Arthur pleaded for my help.
Brianna turned her wrath on me. "I need that phone, Cole," she demanded.
My gaze went to the package under Arthur's arm. He clung to it for dear life. Harmon stepped in and took the box from the fifty-something year old.
"Thank you, Arthur. That will be all," said Harmon, dismissing the manager.
Brianna turned to go after the manager, then thinking better of it, turned on her heel and returned to me.
Seeming to have regained her wits, she said in a more controlled manner, "Mr. Hunter–"
"I quite liked Cole, but whatever floats your boat," I said, gesturing for her to enter the study.
The anger seemed to drain right out of her, along with the confidence. They were replaced with the return of the deep-seated frown and something that looked a lot like desperation. It was only my second time seeing this woman, and yet my interest in her had only grown.
Happy and flirty one second, grumpy and irritable the next. Angry and fierce one moment, hopeless and in despair the next. She was all over the place. Like someone not quite comfortable in her own skin. Nothing at all like her runway persona, like the reputation that preceded her.
What kind of demons are you battling, fair maiden, and how may I be of assistance?
"This way, Ms. Chase. We won't be a moment," I insisted.
Hesitating a while longer, she looked to Harmon, then me, before resigning herself to her fate. "Fine. Let's just get this over with," she said, stepping into the study.
Harmon took the package and shoved it into my hands. "Here. A pair of balls," he said, before turning on his heel and making his exit.
Now alone in my study with a distressed woman, I squared my shoulders and prepared to be her knight in shining armor before following her into the study.
"Apologies, Ms. Chase, but Arthur was merely doing his job. It's a security issue, you see," I said, giving her my most empathetic look as I fought every male instinct in my body to make a pass at her.
Already seated in the armchair before my desk, she folded her arms and crossed her legs. Her dress rose up to her mid thigh and, like some schoolboy, I stared a second too long.
"I just want my phone, Mr. Hunter," she said, with puppy dog eyes, looking for all the world like she was on the brink of tears.
I almost caved then and there and handed her the package, but protocol was protocol. The privacy of my guests was my primary responsibility and objective.
"As you are aware, Ms. Chase, for the safety and privacy of all our guests, no cellphones are allowed on the island," I reminded her with a shrug.
"What? That's absurd. Coming here is like making a deal with the devil. My whole life is on the line here," she raged, like this information was news to her.
And queue the return of the temper. Her turn of phrase got me thinking. No doubt I wouldn't get a chance like this again. She was practically begging me to use the situation to my advantage. Time to shoot my shot.
"You're in luck, Ms. Chase. I'm going to the mainland tomorrow for a business meeting. Would you like to accompany me to settle your affairs there?"
She glares daggers at me, suddenly on guard. Rightfully so. If she were tipsy like the night I met her, I would have had her right where she sat. What a fool I was to walk away that night. Was the universe giving me a second chance?
"What's in it for you?" she asked, catching me stealing a glimpse at her thighs again. Her legs uncrossed and she rose, as calmly as she could muster. "I don't know what you think happened when we met, but I'm not interested."
She smoothed out the skirt of her dress, held her head high and left the study. Little did she know that was as good as tossing down a gauntlet. My dick stirred. I wasn't letting her go without a fuck for shit after that performance.