4. Sabrina

The correct answer was no, absolutely not. But I found myself faltering as I stared up into his bright blue eyes. Did anyone ever tell this man no? I was, because there was no way in hell I could let this man drive me home. I shook my head but let him see the regret in my eyes. “That’s not possible.” I managed a grin. “I don’t take strange men home.” There, that should satisfy his ego and help me keep the job he’d offered me.

Chase flipped the keys around his finger so they clanked against his palm, then the back of his hand, then his palm again. He studied me carefully. One eyebrow raised, along with one corner of his mouth. “That’s not a no, Sabrina.”

It wasn’t, was it? Damn it. Chase could not go home with me. Hot sun warmed my bare shoulders as we stood facing each other outside Grady International. Cars careened up and down the street with little care. A pedestrian leaped up onto the sidewalk, shouting and waving his fist at the driver who nearly took him out at the knees. A typical day in the city.

“That was a ‘you can’t come to my house,’ Chase.” God his name felt good on my tongue. What other parts of him would I get to taste if I gave in to the desire running hot through my body? I hadn’t wanted a man like this in a long time, if ever. This was an all-consuming need that only Chase could fulfill. The hot desire in his eyes told me he knew how I felt.

He continued playing with the keys, his nimble fingers twisting the key fob and rubbing over the buttons. The sight had heat coursing through me and my clit throbbing. “My car is around the corner. I’m going for a drive.” He lowered his head toward mine, still not touching me. “You’re welcome to ride along.”

“And go where?” I was not backing down about my place. I lived in a small apartment with Keith … on Dad’s property. The instant Chase pulled up to my home, he’d know who I was and I’d be fired. Like hell I’d let him get that close to my personal life. Sex, however, was not off the table as long as he never found out he’d asked to sleep with his best friend’s daughter.

My job was to find out if Chase—or his buddies—were stealing my dad’s work. One look at the powerful man in front of me and I didn’t want to think he’d stoop that low. He had a high tilt to his brow, and even though I’d never spoken to him before today, I couldn’t help feeling like he was honest. Probably my hormones talking. I wanted to have sex with him, of course I wanted him to be a good guy. Then again, a hot, one-time fuck didn’t exactly endear the genuine quality. It spoke of desperation and a desire to either bend or flaunt the rules.

Chase remained silent for several seconds, but the wheels never stopped turning. I could almost see him thinking things through and coming to a decision. “As much as I’d like to offer, I’m afraid my car’s out of the question.” He tipped my chin up with one finger, then dropped it back to his side. Anyone walking across the foyer could see us if they bothered to look. He either didn’t care or was so enamored with me that he’d forgotten.

He was the CEO, obviously he didn’t give a flying fuck what people thought. I was the hot new hire, and after tonight, he’d never get another chance with me.

“I want you spread out under me. I’m going to take my time with you. Because tonight is all we have, and I’m going to make it so fucking hot you’ll never forget me.” His eyes blazed with the promise in his words. “If that’s what you want.” A cocky smile emerged and he tilted his head to the side. “Is that what you want?”

Hell yes. I’d let him back me up to the wall and drive his cock into me right here on the street if he kept looking at me like that. All my goals and motivation for taking this job flew right out of my head when he slid a hand into his pocket and stroked his cock.

I could use sex to gather information. The thought was fleeting, but it threw a shudder of ice down my spine. I’d never used sex to get what I wanted before, and I didn’t plan on starting now. The information I needed was inside Grady, and I’d dig it out the old-fashioned way, through hard work and perseverance so Dad would finally see that I wasn’t the screwup he thought.

Chase wasn’t the kind of man who would steal what he had the money to buy.

“Just so you know, I’m not a passive participant.” I wished I could reach out and show him, but that would have to wait until we were behind closed doors. “If we do this, I get to have my time with you.” I ran my tongue over my bottom lip and eyed his crotch. “And I’m a generous lover.”

“Let’s get the hell out of here.” He fisted the keys. “We’ll figure it out once we’re in the car.”

“What about your place?”

Chase shot me a look so full of heat that I almost melted right there on the sidewalk. A group of businessmen rushed past. One knocked into me from behind, sending me a step forward. I hit Chase’s chest with an oomph and all the air rushed out of my lungs.

He wrapped a strong arm around my waist. “Watch it.” He glared at the man, his fingers flexing over my spine.

The bulge of his cock pressed into my abdomen, and I shifted my weight to rub against him. He hissed through his teeth and his hand spasmed on my back. “Fuck.”

“Yes,” I breathed. “Let’s fuck. At your place.”

Sunlight caught on the hints of gray at his temples. I wanted to drive my hands through that gorgeous hair while I rode his cock. I’d never slept with someone so much older than me. I’d bet he had experience that would give me the best fuck of my life. Chase had that sexy, confident look I’d come to appreciate in his generation. My pulse pounded as I waited for him to answer me. Would he back down now that I’d given the go ahead? What would Dad think about all this? I shut that thought down right away. Dad was the last person I wanted in my head while I rolled my hips over Chase’s hard-on and took a step back.

“This way.” He marched down the sidewalk, a man on a mission.

I loved his confidence. He kept his gaze straight ahead and plowed through the people walking toward us. They parted for him, and I squeaked into the space left beside him. I’d never seen anything like it before. My attraction was lethal to my job.

This job gave me the chance to become independent from my stepmother, Bailey, and even better, from Dad’s money. I’d never stood on my own before, with my bills paid by money I’d made for myself.

It was time I stepped out of Dad’s shadow and made my own way in the world. Chase’s job offer solved that problem for me. “Just this once.” I infused a hardness into my voice. “We get tonight and that’s it. Tomorrow, I’m your employee and nothing else.”

I needed to hear him agree that we could cut all ties once I left his house.

“Right.” He grabbed my hand when I started to fall behind and slowed his pace to match mine. “We fuck tonight, work together tomorrow. We never talk about it again. Once and done.”

“A free pass.” Why did my chest tighten with what I recognized as regret? One chance to sleep with him was better than nothing.

We rounded the corner of the building. Chase stopped and clicked the button on the key fob. At the curb, a chromed-out black muscle car’s headlights flashed and the lock snicked open. Chase opened the passenger door and held it for me.

I ducked into the car, sliding over the hot leather seat. My dress rode up my thighs, and I let it show him my legs.

He closed the door hard enough to rock the car and trotted around the hood.

“Are you worried about anyone seeing us?” I asked when he slid behind the wheel.

He started the engine and pulled onto the road with a quick glance at me. “Not really.”

I decided not to push for answers to the questions rattling around in my head. I could do without them. Instead, I concentrated on the drive. “How long till we get there?”

“Five minutes.” His grip on the wheel tightened and he pressed down harder on the accelerator. “Maybe less.”

I leaned over the seat and ran my hand over his cock. “Let’s make it interesting.”

“Oh, there’s no question about that.” He stared straight ahead. His cock twitched under my hand.

“You’re a cocky bastard.”

This time, his smile made his eyes crinkle at the edges. “You don’t get this far in life without gaining some experience.”

It was a pointed reminder of our age difference. I smirked and considered yanking off his belt so I could go down on him while he drove. “Yeah, but there are things to be said for youth too.”

We pulled into a gated drive, and Chase stopped to press his code into the control panel. The black iron gates swung open and he drove through, rounding a circular drive full of beautiful flowers and stopping outside a white condominium. He stopped me from unzipping his fly with a hand over mine. “We have plenty of time. Trust me, I’m going to use every second.”

This man could ask me for just about anything and I’d give it to him right now. This might be a one-night pass, but it was more than a fly-by-night quick fuck in the car.

I wasn’t sure what I’d expected when he agreed to bring me to his house, but it wasn’t the careful way he left the car, opened my door, and held out his hand in an offer to help me. Could I get out by myself? Yes. But fuck if I didn’t appreciate the gentlemanly gesture, along with the way he buttoned his suit jacket even though all we were doing was walking toward the front door where he punched in another code and twisted open the door.

I was really here, in Chase Grady’s home. The thought rocketed through me so fast, I almost stumbled over the threshold. “You have a beautiful house.” It was true. Even as my nerves scattered my brain cells in every direction, I took in the beauty surrounding me. The place was open and spacious like the office building, but much more masculine with deep sofas and the occasional splash of dark colors to contrast the off-white walls. I suddenly wanted to know how many women he’d brought here. How many times had he pulled this same one-time pass on previous employees?

Shit. I was going to regret this. I took a calming breath and focused. I was here now and I wanted him enough that it didn’t matter.

Chase locked the front door and pulled me into his arms. He skimmed his hands over my ribs, up over my back, and cupped my face in his hands. “You’re beautiful.”

He did it again, melting me with words and a look.

I tried to answer him, but words failed me. I didn’t belong here.

Was I going to regret this?