Mr. Big
Chapter1
The misty clouds of a spring shower hovered around the windows of the skyscraper, seeming to press against the glass as if they wanted to move inside or at least look in closely to see what was going on in the dry, warm interior of the meeting room where two people sat. A contemporary steel and glass table was fixed at the center of the room, surrounded by cushioned chairs. At the head of the table, in one of the chairs, sat a woman who was in her element in such a room. As a financial advisor on Wall Street in Manhattan, Mia James was well accustomed to the environment she was in and the kind of client who was sitting near her.
She felt his eyes traveling from the tip of her high heel up past her slender ankle and her strong calf to the hem of her pinstriped skirt, which rested just a few inches above her knee. His wandering gaze stopped there a long moment, before taking in her rounded hips, her narrow waist, and the swell of her breasts, pressing against her blouse; not enough to offer much of a view, but just enough to hint at one. The black curls of her hair, which reached the back of her shoulder blades when it was worn down, were pinned up into a French twist at the back of her head, exposing her sleek neckline. She had a squared jaw line and high arced cheek bones beneath her big dark brown eyes. Her thick, dark eyelashes were lowered as she examined the paperwork in the file before her.
Mia’s skin was toned and dark, like honeyed chocolate, and if Will Carter’s hungry gaze was any indication, it was just as inviting as that confection. He hadn’t bothered to hide his ravenous stare, and she hadn’t looked directly at him, but she hadn’t missed his overt attention at all.
“Mr. Carter,” she said in a calm voice, looking through the papers, and he interrupted her.
“Oh… Please call me Will.” His eyes feasted on her full red lips and his mouth opened slightly.
She raised her eyes to meet his and it took him a moment to lift his gaze from her lips to her eyes. He closed him mouth and smiled at her as she watched him.
“Fine. Will, then, it looks like you haven’t made the recommendations that I sent over to you from the preliminary review of this file. Do you know when you’ll be able to get those changes made?” she asked him, giving him a serious look as she locked her eyes on his, reminding him subtly they were in a business meeting.
He shrugged. “I should be able to get them done soon.” He nodded, grinning at her.
Mia breathed in through her nose, reminding herself that she needed to be patient. “It’s costing you nine thousand dollars a day every single day you wait to make those changes.”
He tipped his head as he leaned forward and reached his hand toward her chair, resting his fingers on the arm of it. “That’s not a big deal. I have plenty of money. I’ll get it done soon.” The tips of his fingers closed around the arm of her chair and he pulled it toward him, drawing her nearer to him.
“Besides… it keeps you coming back in here to see me. I like that. In fact, I’d like to see you outside of this office very soon.” He winked at her and nodded his head slightly.
She didn’t even blink. “Mr. Carter, you’ve delayed these changes long enough that you’re over three hundred thousand dollars short on the interest you could have made. That’s over a quarter of a million dollars, and that’s nothing but wasteful.” She leveled her gaze at him.
Most of the wealthy men she worked with were smart and careful investors. Some of them were much more careless and were often unconcerned with what their money was doing for them or not doing for them. They were concerned with immediate pleasures, with showing off, with pretending that money was no object in order to impress others or to impress her, and she was never impressed by wasteful stupidity.
Will Carter was a handsome man. He had a strong face and deep-set brown eyes. His skin was darker than hers was, but not by much. He wore his hair short and his business suits sharp and a little on the contemporary side, much like his office décor; everything about him was cool and polished. She knew about most of his finances, and she knew he had money to burn, but not so much that he could reasonably justify burning off more than a quarter of a million dollars in less than six weeks.
She had given him sound financial advice and he hadn’t followed it. He was too busy checking her out and flirting with her constantly to focus too intently on all the valuable advice she gave him. It disgusted her deep inside, though she never showed it, and he never would have guessed it.
“Well, wasteful or not, we’ll make it back, won’t we?” he asked smoothly, leaning in close to her, giving her his most charming smile. “You and I… we can make… all kinds of things happen, can’t we?” he looked at her lips again, suggestively.
The misty clouds of a spring shower hovered around the windows of the skyscraper, seeming to press against the glass as if they wanted to move inside or at least look in closely to see what was going on in the dry, warm interior of the meeting room where two people sat. A contemporary steel and glass table was fixed at the center of the room, surrounded by cushioned chairs. At the head of the table, in one of the chairs, sat a woman who was in her element in such a room. As a financial advisor on Wall Street in Manhattan, Mia James was well accustomed to the environment she was in and the kind of client who was sitting near her.
She felt his eyes traveling from the tip of her high heel up past her slender ankle and her strong calf to the hem of her pinstriped skirt, which rested just a few inches above her knee. His wandering gaze stopped there a long moment, before taking in her rounded hips, her narrow waist, and the swell of her breasts, pressing against her blouse; not enough to offer much of a view, but just enough to hint at one. The black curls of her hair, which reached the back of her shoulder blades when it was worn down, were pinned up into a French twist at the back of her head, exposing her sleek neckline. She had a squared jaw line and high arced cheek bones beneath her big dark brown eyes. Her thick, dark eyelashes were lowered as she examined the paperwork in the file before her.
Mia’s skin was toned and dark, like honeyed chocolate, and if Will Carter’s hungry gaze was any indication, it was just as inviting as that confection. He hadn’t bothered to hide his ravenous stare, and she hadn’t looked directly at him, but she hadn’t missed his overt attention at all.
“Mr. Carter,” she said in a calm voice, looking through the papers, and he interrupted her.
“Oh… Please call me Will.” His eyes feasted on her full red lips and his mouth opened slightly.
She raised her eyes to meet his and it took him a moment to lift his gaze from her lips to her eyes. He closed him mouth and smiled at her as she watched him.
“Fine. Will, then, it looks like you haven’t made the recommendations that I sent over to you from the preliminary review of this file. Do you know when you’ll be able to get those changes made?” she asked him, giving him a serious look as she locked her eyes on his, reminding him subtly they were in a business meeting.
He shrugged. “I should be able to get them done soon.” He nodded, grinning at her.
Mia breathed in through her nose, reminding herself that she needed to be patient. “It’s costing you nine thousand dollars a day every single day you wait to make those changes.”
He tipped his head as he leaned forward and reached his hand toward her chair, resting his fingers on the arm of it. “That’s not a big deal. I have plenty of money. I’ll get it done soon.” The tips of his fingers closed around the arm of her chair and he pulled it toward him, drawing her nearer to him.
“Besides… it keeps you coming back in here to see me. I like that. In fact, I’d like to see you outside of this office very soon.” He winked at her and nodded his head slightly.
She didn’t even blink. “Mr. Carter, you’ve delayed these changes long enough that you’re over three hundred thousand dollars short on the interest you could have made. That’s over a quarter of a million dollars, and that’s nothing but wasteful.” She leveled her gaze at him.
Most of the wealthy men she worked with were smart and careful investors. Some of them were much more careless and were often unconcerned with what their money was doing for them or not doing for them. They were concerned with immediate pleasures, with showing off, with pretending that money was no object in order to impress others or to impress her, and she was never impressed by wasteful stupidity.
Will Carter was a handsome man. He had a strong face and deep-set brown eyes. His skin was darker than hers was, but not by much. He wore his hair short and his business suits sharp and a little on the contemporary side, much like his office décor; everything about him was cool and polished. She knew about most of his finances, and she knew he had money to burn, but not so much that he could reasonably justify burning off more than a quarter of a million dollars in less than six weeks.
She had given him sound financial advice and he hadn’t followed it. He was too busy checking her out and flirting with her constantly to focus too intently on all the valuable advice she gave him. It disgusted her deep inside, though she never showed it, and he never would have guessed it.
“Well, wasteful or not, we’ll make it back, won’t we?” he asked smoothly, leaning in close to her, giving her his most charming smile. “You and I… we can make… all kinds of things happen, can’t we?” he looked at her lips again, suggestively.