To think of how thrilling it had felt to be held in his arms, innocuously in a dance and yet, with a far from innocent burst of lust burning between them...She'd looked into his eyes and had known; he had but to say the word, and she would do his every erotic bidding. Those notions had been so unlike her, totally different from the woman Miranda really was. But in the few moments that the fog of attraction had swirled around her, as briefly as it had lasted, she had known true, animal desire.
It was a good thing then that she had been flung back down to earth on time. Her father - her brother too, would have had respective fits if they heard that not only had she been dancing with the hated Jude Stone, she had also been willing to bed him. Very willing. And he hadn’t even had to do a thing.
At that moment, she was staring down at a recent cover of Time magazine, and the bold image displayed there. Ever since last night she'd been doing some serious digging. Prior to the incident of the night before, she'd never had much interest in finding out much about the man who'd hurt her family. It was enough that she knew his name. It had been far too painful to trouble herself with the details. All she could remember was that she had been at University, about to finish up her finals when her father called to tell her that he'd lost the company.
That was more than a year ago. And now, for the past several months, she'd been home, trying to be there for her father and yes, her brother too. Wasn't that why she'd agreed to go to that high-flying fundraiser that night? In a show of solidarity, she'd accompanied her brother, had even allowed him to foist her on that creepy man, the financial consultant whiz who was meant to have been a potential backer.
All that had been pushed to the sight the moment she'd set eyes on the handsome, blonde-haired stranger. Only to discover he was the very snake in the grass.
She stared down at the magazine cover, seeing those same aquamarine eyes, those sculpted lips, that finely structured nose. The rich and powerful Bust-up Billionaire, Jude Stone. He lived true to his name: crushed rivals and peers with the same ruthless hardness. He was as implacable as granite, and as immovable as a rock. How could she for one second believed herself attracted to him
Once again, she shuddered, thanking her stars that Jeffery had not been present at the time to see her in the arms of the man he hated so much. Just the mention of Jude Stone’s name was enough to make Jeffery see red. And only that morning, he’d vented his terrible temper on her
“Why did you do it?” he’d asked in a calm, yet angry voice.
Miranda had turned to face him, her face burning with guilt. Had he found out? She’d wondered frantically. Had he somehow got to know about her almost-lapse with the hateful Jude Stone? But his next words calmed her – somewhat
“All you had to do was be nice to him,” he’d growled, referring to Kirk. “He’s a good guy, one of the few who were willing to find a way to get us out of this mess. And you just had to offend him.”
“Jeff, it wasn’t like I meant to,” she’d said with a sigh. “Someone else asked me to dance, that was it. Besides, Kirk was a terrible dancer.” She’d smiled playfully, hoping Jeffery’s mood would change.
“You selfish brat,” he’d said coldly, eyes narrowing down at her. “All you think about is what’s best for you. You never cared about what happened, it never bothered you that dad lost control of the company he’d spent almost all his life to build. When mother died years ago, the company became his life. All I asked was for you to do one simple thing, be nice to a prospective financier, and you blew it.” His expression was furious.
“Kirk is not even picking up my calls now. He’s not interested in hearing any of my proposals. Way to go, sis. You’ve been a great help, as always.”
“But what had you expected of me? Why do I have to be offered up like a…a vestal sacrifice just so you could get what you want?”#p#分页标题#e#
“Not what I want,” Jeffery bit out, his eyes hardening, “But what’s best for the family. If we can get back on track, then dad can come home, piece his life back together. The takeover of the company broke him, Miranda. You know that. And it’s the only thing that can bring him back.”
With that, he’d shaken his head exasperatedly at her, and then swiveled around to leave the room.
“I’m sorry, Jeff,” she said quietly, and he turned around with a look of that cut through her heart.
“That’s just not good enough,” was his soft reply, and then he was gone.
Now, back in the present, Miranda couldn’t help staring at the face on the cover page. He was the sexiest – and most dangerous – man she’d ever met. And they’d danced, flirted…his eyes had blazed with a dark heat she’d been powerless to ignore. No man had ever looked at her like that. It had thrilled yet frightened her – scared her to know that she had felt the very same; she’d been open to any of his overtures or propositions.