With those parting words, he started walking in her direction.
Joseph chuckled to himself, feeling downright giddy. Oh yes, his son was falling hard. He had picked out the perfect wife, it seemed. He moved over to Esther and nudged her in the arm so the two of them could watch the show.
“You know, Joseph Anderson, one of these days those boys of yours are going to figure out all the stunts you pull on them, and then the tables will be turned,” Esther said with a chuckle.
“Ah, Esther, how you underestimate me. I’m far too sly to get caught.”
“You may think you have everyone fooled, but you’re not as clever as you believe,” she responded, though her eyes were glued to Lucas as he marched across the room.
“We’ll just have to wait and see…”
“Amy, we have work to do,” Lucas said as he approached her and Mike. Amy noticed he didn’t even acknowledge Mike’s presence, and that fact apparently wasn’t lost on her companion, either. Mike, obviously not wanting to upset the boss, slunk away without another word. Amy lost a bit of respect for him as she turned toward Lucas.
“Yes, Mr. Anderson. I’m sorry, but everyone was out here, and I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do. I’ll get to work now,” Amy replied before turning toward her office. She didn’t understand why he sounded so irritated with her. It seemed everyone in the building was at the party and it wasn’t like she’d been the one who’d thrown it.
Lucas followed close behind her down the short hallway, then stood looming over her as she sat down. She sighed as she lifted her head, knowing he wasn’t done speaking.
“I don’t like office romances. They cause nothing but trouble, and though it isn’t a policy, it’s greatly frowned on,” he informed her in his most stately tone of voice, which caused the hairs on the back of her neck to stand up.
She had to silently count to ten before responding. “First of all, Mr. Anderson,” she said through clenched teeth, “I was simply socializing with another employee. And second of all, who I choose to have a romance with is none of your business.” Amy was surprised by the acid in her tone. It was the first time she’d ever spoken back to him, which was surprising, considering he barked at her continuously.
Suddenly, he was inches from her face. “When you work for me, you will listen to what I say. Mike’s a womanizer, and I don’t want to deal with the repercussions when he throws you out like stale bread, and believe me, he will.”
Amy leaned back, trying to put a few inches of space between them, her heart beating uncontrollably. She was sure her heart was pounding so hard, it was visible to him, even through her blouse. She forgot about her anger with Lucas as an instant urge to reach out and grab him overwhelmed her.
She wanted Lucas.
Everything about him screamed sex, and if he leaned in a couple of more inches and claimed her mouth, she’d welcome it. She knew it was irrational, and she should have her head examined, but she’d been dealing with the heat coming off him in waves for weeks, and she wondered if her imagination was doing justice to what it would feel like to kiss him.
How bad could one kiss really be? At least then, she’d figure out it was probably all just in her imagination: the sparks, desire, chemistry.
For what seemed like an eternity, she couldn’t break their eye contact. She felt liquid heat pooling inside of her. She knew she couldn’t follow through with her desire; she couldn’t lean those few inches and taste his lips.
Look away, look away, look away, she shouted at herself. Finally, she found the willpower to turn her head, having no idea how long they’d been there face to face.
Realizing how close he’d come to closing that gap and kissing her shocked Lucas into standing up straight and retreating from her office. He slipped inside, his body rock solid, a light sheen of sweat covering his brow.
Lucas leaned against the door and willed his body to return to normal. He hadn’t felt such intense desire for a woman since his college days. Even then, he knew he’d possessed more control. If she hadn’t broken their eye contact, he knew he would’ve kissed her. He also had a feeling one kiss would send him over the edge. He couldn’t get the picture from his mind of her writhing beneath him on the solid wood desk, her hair finally free from the hideous bun.
It was most definitely time to head to his gym and expend some of his pent-up energy. He gathered his bag and slipped from the office, riding down in his private elevator to avoid speaking to anyone. He wasn’t in the mood and was afraid anyone who crossed his path would end up on the wrong end of his frustration.