Mark waved his hand. “Don’t worry about it. I’m sure he’d be happy to move up his schedule. Ah, look, here he comes now.” He shifted slightly as he turned and Katherine looked past him to see Dave walking into the lobby, briefcase in hand. She saw his pale eyes flash briefly before he fixed a polite smile on his face as Mark waved him over.
“What can I help you with, Mr. Donaldson?”
“I’d like you to take over for Ms. Hewitt for an hour,” he said, and Katherine had the pleasure of watching Dave’s face turn pale with shock once again. “I’m taking her out to lunch so we can discuss a few things.”
“Now?” His eyes flashed to Katherine and then back, and she watched with interest as his color turned blotchy. “But sir… I…” he trailed off as Mark’s eyes turned steely. “Of course. Of course I will.”#p#分页标题#e#
“Good man.” He turned toward Katherine with a smile, who was staring at both of them. “Are you ready?”
“What?” she snapped out of it. “Yes, yes, of course.” She reached down beneath her desk to grab her purse, then stood up and nearly collided with Dave’s chest, who had come around the desk to take her place.
“Have a great lunch,” he told her with a sour smile, and the look in his eyes told her that she would pay for this if he ever got the chance.
“Thank you.” Something stirred in her at the look he gave her that demanded she do something else than just slink off like a wounded animal. “Is there anything you’d like me to bring back for you? I’m sure they have doggie bags at the restaurant for leftovers.”
Dave’s eyes flashed, and Katherine had to bite the inside of her cheek to hold back her grin. “No thank you.”
She followed Mark outside to the Mercedes parked out front, and allowed him to help her into the passenger’s side. He chuckled, a rich deep sound that had her looking over in surprise as he started the engine and headed down Central.
“What’s so funny?” she couldn’t help but ask.
He shook his head. “It has been a long time since I’ve ever seen anyone other than myself put Dave in his place. You should do it more often.”
Katherine shook her head with a small smile. “That would be suicide. I like my job.”
“That doesn’t mean you have to let him push you around like that,” Mark pointed out. “Dave can be a little overbearing. He’s a good assistant, but he often takes himself too seriously and will walk all over anyone who lets him. And you’re far too pretty to have someone do that to you.”
Katherine blushed, her fingers flying to her lips—pouty lips, he noted. Made for long, slow kisses. “It’s really not a big deal most of the time,” she insisted. “I’m really just grateful to be able to work for you.”
“And I’m grateful to have you.” They parked outside the bistro he usually came to for lunch. “In more ways than one.” His lips curved in that wicked smile again, and her imagination immediately went into overdrive. Did he really mean what she thought he meant? Or was she just being ridiculous? She probably was, and really didn’t need to get her hopes up. He probably just wanted to talk business.
He led her inside, where the maître de greeted them warmly—Mark was a regular here. They were taken upstairs to the terrace where they had a wonderful view of the city, and given a seat right next to the metal railing with boxes off impatiens and other flowers trailing down over the wall, providing a lovely fragrance.
Their server appeared almost instantly to hand them menus. “Good afternoon. It’s so nice to see you again, Mr. Donaldson. Can I start you off with anything to drink?”
“Do you drink wine?” Mark asked her.
Katherine hesitated. “I do… but I really shouldn’t…”
He waved her protests away. “One glass of wine over lunch won’t affect your job performance. A bottle of Chardonnay, please.”
“Wow.” Katherine let out a slow breath as the waiter returned with their bottle and poured them both a glass. He left them to decide on their entrees, and Katherine took a sip. It was like drinking gold. “I don’t think I’ve ever had a Chardonnay like this before.”
“This place has an excellent selection,” Mark agreed. They chose their entrees, and then he sat back as they waited for their meal to arrive and studied her.
Uncomfortable under the intensity of his gaze, Katherine cleared her throat. “So, what is it you wanted to speak to me about, sir?” In truth she was a little nervous that all he’d done was made small talk so far… and look at her with those bedroom eyes that made her stomach flip-flop.