Maid for a Magnate(18)

Crossing the room, Catalina sank down onto the old, sheet-covered chair. "I'm good right here. Will you be able to handle it?"

His aqua eyes raked over her, heating her skin just as effectively as  if he'd touched her with his bare hands. "Oh, baby, I can handle it."

Maybe running back to the yacht was the better option after all. How  long would she be stranded in an old shack with Will while waiting out  this storm?

Catalina wasn't naïve. She knew full well there were only so many  things they could talk about and nearly every topic between them circled  back to the sexual tension that had seemed to envelop them and bind  them together for the past several weeks.

Her body trembled as she kept her gaze locked onto his.

There was only one way this day would end.





      Ten

Will stared out the window at the sheets of rain coming down. He didn't  need to look, though; the pounding on the roof told him how intense  this storm was.

So much for that flawless forecast.

Still, staying across the room from Cat was best for now. He didn't  need another invisible push in her direction. He glanced over his  shoulder toward the woman he ached for. She sat as casual as you please  with her legs crossed, one foot bouncing to a silent beat as her  flip-flop dangled off her toes. Those bare legs mocked him. The strings  of her bikini top peeking out of her dress mocked him as well. Every  damn thing about this entire situation mocked him.                       
       
           



       

What had he been thinking, inviting her for a day out? Why purposely  resurrect all of those old, unresolved feelings? They'd gone four years  without bringing up their past, but Will had reached his breaking point.  He needed to know if they had a chance at...what? What exactly did he  want from her?

He had no clue, but he did know the need for Cat had never lessened. If  anything, the emptiness had grown without her in his life. He'd let her  go once to save her, but he should've fought for them, fought for what  he wanted and found another way to keep her safe. He'd been a coward. As  humiliating as that was to admit, there was no sugarcoating the truth  of the boy he used to be.

"You might as well have a seat," she told him, meeting his gaze. "The  way you're standing across the room is only making the tension worse.  You're making me twitchy."

Will laughed. Leave it to Cat to call him on his actions, though he didn't think the tension could get worse.

He crossed the room and took a seat on the floor in front of the chair.

"This reminds me of that time James, you and I were playing  hide-and-seek when it started raining," she said. "You guys were home  from school on break and I had come in to work with my mum."

Will smiled as the memory flooded his mind. "We were around eight or nine, weren't we?"

Cat nodded. "James kept trying to hold my hand when we both ran into the garage to hide and get dry."

Will sat up straighter. "You never told me that."

"Seriously?" she asked, quirking a brow. "You're going to get grouchy over the actions of a nine-year-old?"

"I'm not grouchy. Surprised, but not grouchy."

"James was only doing it because he knew I had a thing for you."

The corner of Will's mouth kicked up. "You had a thing for me when you were that young?"

Cat shrugged, toying with the edge of her dress. "You were an older man. Practically worldly in all of your knowledge."

"It was the Spanish, wasn't it?" he asked with a grin.

Cat rolled her eyes and laughed. "James was fluent in Spanish as well. You two both had the same hoity-toity schooling."

Will lifted his knee and rested his arm on it as he returned her smile.  "Nah. I was better. We would sometimes swap out in class because the  teacher couldn't tell us apart. She just knew a quiet blond boy sat in  the back. As long as one of us showed up, she didn't pay much attention  to the fact there were really supposed to be two."

"Sneaky boys. But, I bet if I asked James about the Spanish speaking skills he'd say he was better," she countered.

"He'd be wrong."

Cat tipped her head, shifting in her seat, which only brought her bare  legs within touching distance. "You tricked your teachers and got away  with it. Makes me wonder how many times you two swapped out when it came  to women."

Will shook his head. "I'm not answering that."

"Well, I know that watch nearly cost James the love of his life," Cat said, nodding toward the gold timepiece on his wrist.

"It was unfortunate Bella saw you and me kissing. I truly thought we  were secluded." Will sighed and shifted on the wood floor. "She had  every right to think James was kissing someone else because she had no  clue about the bet."

The rain beat against the window as the wind kicked up. Cat tensed and her eyes widened.

"Hope this old place holds up," she said. "Maybe running back to the yacht would have been a better idea."

"Too late now." Will reached over, laying his hand on her knee. "We're  fine. It's just a pop-up storm. You know these things pass fast."

With a subtle nod, she settled deeper into the seat and rested her head  on the back cushion. Guilt rolled through Will. He'd planned a day for  her, and had been hopeful that seduction would be the outcome. Yet here  they sat in some abandoned old shack waiting out some freak storm. Even  Mother Nature was mocking him.

But there was a reason they were here right now, during this storm, and  Will wasn't going to turn this chance away. He planned on taking full  advantage and letting Cat know just how much he wanted her.

Shifting closer to her chair, Will took Cat's foot and slid her shoe  off. He picked up her other foot and did the same, all while knowing she  had those dark, intoxicating eyes focused on his actions. It was her  exotic eyes that hypnotized him.

Taking one of her delicate feet between his hands, Will started to massage, stroking his thumb up her arch.

"I'll give you ten minutes to stop that," she told him with a smile.                       
       
           



       

The radiant smile on her face was something he hadn't realized he'd  missed so much. Right now, all relaxed and calm, even with the storm  raging outside, Cat looked like the girl he once knew...the girl he'd  wanted something more with.

But they were different people now. They had different goals. Well, he  did; her goals were still unclear to him. He suddenly found himself  wanting to know about those dreams of hers, and the fact that she'd  hinted to James that she wouldn't stay in Alma forever.

But all of those questions could come later. Right now, Cat's comfort  and happiness were all that mattered. Tomorrow's worries, issues and  questions could be dealt with later. He planned on enjoying Cat for as  long as she would allow.

Damn. When had this petite woman taken control over him? When had he  allowed it? There wasn't one moment he could pinpoint, but there were  several tiny instances where he could see in hindsight the stealthy  buildup of her power over him.

Cat laughed as she slid down a bit further in the chair and gazed down  at him beneath heavy lids. "If your father could see you on the floor  rubbing his maid's feet, you'd lose your prestigious position at Rowling  Energy."

Will froze, holding her gaze. It may have been a lighthearted joke, but  there was so much truth to her statement about how angry this would  make his father. But Will had already set in motion his plan to freeze  his father out of the company.

Besides, right now, Will didn't care about Patrick or Rowling Energy.  What he did care about was the woman who was literally turning to putty  in his hands. Finally, he was going to show her exactly what they could  be together and anticipation had his heart beating faster than ever.

"Does this feel good?" he asked.

Her reply was a throaty moan, sexy enough to have his body responding.

"Then all of the other stuff outside of this cabin doesn't matter."

Blinking down at him, Cat replied, "Not to me, but I bet if your father made you choose, you'd be singing a different tune."

Just like last time.

The unspoken words were so deafening, they actually drowned out the beating of the rain and the wind against the small shelter.

Will's best option was to keep any answer to himself. He could deny the  fact, but he'd be lying. He'd worked too hard to get where he was to  just throw it all away because of hormones.

At the same time, he planned on working equally as hard to win over Cat. There was no reason he had to give up anything.

His hand glided up to her ankle, then her calf. She said nothing as her  eyes continued to hold his. He purposely watched her face, waiting for a  sign of retreat, but all that was staring back at him was desire.