Sam’s mouth firmed at what she had been sure was a deliberate and blatant display of his masculinity, followed by what sounded like a proposition. ‘I’m not offering anything in exchange for what I consider to be a reasonable and polite request.’
‘That’s one answer, I suppose.’
‘It’s the only answer you’re going to get from me,’ Sam assured him stiffly. ‘At the risk of receiving yet another one of your less than subtle replies—do you need anything else from me tonight?’
Xander couldn’t help but grin as he saw the challenge sparkling in the boldness of Samantha’s gaze, and realised that he was starting to like her. Not just in a sexual way—after his physical response to her earlier, that was a given!—but he definitely approved of her spirited conversation, and her sense of humour too.
Possibly a first for him where a woman was concerned.
Over the years Xander had fallen into the habit of dating models and actresses, visually beautiful and physically desirable women. But he hadn’t necessarily got to know them well enough to discover their personalities too. Mainly, because he hadn’t been particularly interested in knowing them that well, as long as they were beautiful to look at and satisfied him in bed. Which really wasn’t as selfishly one-sided as it sounded, because the same was true in reverse; as long as those women could be seen out and about and be photographed on the arm of the billionaire Xander Sterne, they seemed more than happy with the arrangement.
A little—a lot!—shallow of them, and him, perhaps, but the sort of wealth and power he possessed seemed to attract that type of woman.
Samantha was totally different from any of the women he had known before.
And not just because she was a divorced woman with a young daughter.
Samantha interested him in ways Xander had never even considered with any other woman. He wanted to know about her: her marriage, her husband, and her divorce. More importantly perhaps, what she had done and how she had lived in the years since that divorce.
And none of that had anything to do with the fact that he’d also like to take Samantha to bed.
Well, perhaps it had a little to do with it!
He certainly wouldn’t say no, for instance, if she were to offer to go to bed with him without first telling him any of those things. In any position she wanted.
Although, from the look of disgust she was shooting him now, he didn’t think that was even a possibility!
‘I’m good, thanks,’ Xander drawled.
Sam didn’t think this man was good at all. Impossible. Temperamental. Sexy. Wickedly outrageous. But he definitely wasn’t good.
She straightened. ‘I’ll see you in the morning, then, Mr Sterne.’
‘Oh, you can count on it, Samantha,’ he murmured as he watched her cross the room to the door before speaking again. ‘I meant to ask, do you have any tattoos?’
Sam froze halfway across the bedroom before turning slowly back to face him, her eyes wide. ‘What?’
‘Do you have any tattoos?’ he repeated as if this were a perfectly normal conversation.
Which it certainly wasn’t. ‘What does that have to do with anything?’