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  She left and shut the door behind her, and he heard Lawson trying to get his attention.

  “Rian, are you even listening to anything I’m saying?”

  No.

  “Of course I am, Lawson.” He leaned back in his seat even more and reached between his legs to adjust himself. His cock was like a fucking lead pipe between his thighs, pressing against the material of his slacks, and all but roaring out to be relieved. “I don’t want to make an announcement, because in the end it really doesn’t matter. She’ll get her fifteen seconds of attention, and then she’ll have to move on like the rest.”

  Lawson exhaled loudly, and the sound of a chair squeaking came through the receiver. “Okay, but do me a favor, and the next time you want to spank your partners have them sign a damn contract, Rian. This shit gives me a headache.”

  Rian disconnected the call and sat there for a moment thinking over what Lawson had said. Of course Lawson hadn’t been serious about a contract, but more busting Rian’s balls because this had happened before, but honestly it wasn’t a bad idea. He turned in his seat and stared out the window.

  The only problem was he wanted a woman that could give as good as she got, that didn’t just submit her body to him because of who he was or how much he had in his bank account. He wanted a woman that would hit him back when she was pissed and aroused, not because she wanted to hurt him, but because she wanted him to give her more.

  Fuck, he was starting to get even harder, and his damn cock was digging into his zipper. What he was thinking about would only end up in a shit storm like the other times he’d screwed his secretaries. It wasn’t like he was this evil bastard, not most of the time at least. He went for the women that wanted one thing from him: to wine and dine them before he fucked them unconscious. Of course there were the ones that thought they could have him giving them everything: marriage, a family, little babies. That wasn’t in Rian’s future and sure as hell wasn’t something he dreamt about. He got pleasure in seeing them limp out of his home because they could barely walk from what he had given them the night before.

  But Sorcha was different from any woman he’d had. Fuck, she was different from any woman he had ever associated with. The women that ran in his circles were brought up to stay quiet unless spoken to, and to be submissive in all things. They were bred to please the man above all else, because that was who took care of them. Maybe it was screwed up to some, but to the people he knew, that was the only life they had ever lived, and that was the only kind of woman Rian allowed into his life.

  He didn’t want a clinger of a woman, didn’t want to marry them just because he stuck his cock inside of their bodies. He wanted them for pleasure, and if they were willing, and agreed nothing more would come from that, then he brought them back to his place and showed them exactly what he liked.

  But Sorcha … fucking Sorcha would give him exactly what he wanted, because when she fully surrendered to him he would be victorious. Yeah, he was a fucking douche-bag in a lot of ways, but that was how he had been all his life. With a tough as nails father, a mother that was more interested in the next party than in him, and isolation of being an only child, Rian had to rely on himself. Adapting to his surroundings was key, and so he became hard, unforgiving, and because of that attitude rose to the top.

  He turned back around and stared at his closed office doors. Hell, he doubted Sorcha would even entertain what he wanted to do to her, let alone sign a contract for it. She’d slap his face, or curse him out. That had him grinning. She may have only been working for him for the last six months, but in that time just seeing her carefully controlled resistance, the anger she had simmering below the surface, and the way she narrowed her eyes at him, had his blood pumping fiercely. People bowed down to him, kissed his feet, and treaded lightly. She was a secretary, his secretary, and she infuriated him like no other.

  He wanted to fuck her, and if she was willing to play that game, he was going to show her exactly what it meant to be with him. Rian Hartford didn’t give up on something he wanted, and what he wanted like a fiend was Sorcha Case.

  3

  The workday was winding down, and for what felt like the hundredth time Sorcha looked at the clock. She wrapped up her paperwork, closed out her programs, and shut down her computer. Fortunately, Mr. Hartford had stayed in his office for most of the day dealing with clients. The only time she really saw him aside from this morning was when he had gone on a lunch meeting with a few attorneys from the office below. The way he looked at her as he walked past her desk though, like a cocky bastard that had something up his sleeve, had made her unsettled in a purely aroused way all afternoon.

  She breathed out, grabbed her purse, and headed out from behind her desk. It was already past five, but she always double-checked with Mr. Hartford before she left to make sure he was settled with everything. More times than not all he did was wave a hand to dismiss her without saying anything or looking at her, and she prayed it was the same tonight. Bringing her knuckles down on the wood, she called out softly, “Mr. Hartford?”

  She pushed the door open, saw him sitting behind his desk with a stack of papers in front of him, and for a moment lost her train of thought. His attitude might suck, and he may have absolutely no compassion, or at least didn’t show any, but she couldn’t help but appreciate the way he looked.

  He had his jacket off and slung over the back of his chair. The desk lamp was on and a swatch of light covered his serious face. The sun was starting to descend behind the skyscrapers, and this ominous atmosphere surrounded him. He glanced up from his work, leaned back in his chair slowly, and rested his finger on his mouth, as if he was concentrating. For a second all he did was stare at her, seeming to wait for her to speak, but Sorcha couldn’t find the words. Right now, as he stared at her with those cold blue eyes, he looked like the very devil himself.

  “I’m…” She cleared her throat, hating that she could want him more than any other man she had ever been with. He had this air of self-assuredness that covered him like a second skin. Maybe it was because her life felt like it was so out of control that seeing this man so in control had her aroused beyond belief?

  “Well, get on with it, Miss Case.”

  Lord have mercy, even though he was a snappy bastard, his voice was so deep, so husky, that she was sure if she just closed her eyes and focused on it she could come right then and there. “I’m leaving for the evening, and like always,” she felt her resistance for her unwarranted arousal fade. “And like always, I wanted to make sure you were all set before I left.”

  He lowered his hand from his face just as slowly, set it on the desk once more, and started drumming his fingers on the smooth, glossy top. He wore a ring on his pinky, maybe a family crest or alumni seal, but the clank-clank, clank-clank of it hitting the table was in time with her heartbeat. “Miss Case, have I ever needed anything from you before you left for the night?” He lifted a dark eyebrow, and she pursed her lips and clenched her hands into fists.

  No, you asshole, but at least I have the decency and work ethic to ask.

  “No, Mr. Hartford,” she said between her teeth.

  He lifted the corner of his mouth in a sarcastic smirk, and she bit back a retort. She was so stressed with everyday living that she seemed even more annoyed with him than usual, and that was saying something.

  “So, then you don’t need anything?” Sorcha didn’t stop herself from having a bit of a lash in her voice, and his smile faded immediately.

  You need this job. You need this job. You need this job.

  She repeated the words in her head like a mantra.

  “No, I don’t need anything, Miss Case.”

  Sorcha tried to get her body under control, but the way he said her name, slightly sardonic, with a hint of controlled heat, had lust and annoyance slamming into her. Irritation should not have made her want him more, but the thought of having him under her, doing what she said and giving up his control, was quite a heady feeling. Who the
hell was she kidding? Rian Hartford would never relinquish his control to anyone, least of all his lowly secretary.

  He didn’t say anything in response, and so she nodded, tightened her hold on her purse strap, and turned around to leave. But before she exited the office his deep voice stopped her.

  “Miss Case?”

  She looked over her shoulder, and the way he stared at her had her pulse increasing, her palms sweating, and this impending doom settling inside of her. “Yes?” She hadn’t meant to say the lone word so softly.

  “I need you to come in tomorrow, say noon?”

  She knitted her brows, and turned around. “But tomorrow is Saturday.”

  “I’m glad you can read a calendar,” he said without any emotion. He still leaned back in his chair, looking cocky and without a care in the world. She was just supposed to drop what she was doing? Not like she had plans, but that was beside the point. She already had to work with him five out of seven days a week, and now he expected her to give up her free time to do his bidding? Before she could respond he started speaking once again.

  “It is imperative that you attend tomorrow, because I have an offer for you.”

  She knitted her brows. “An offer?”

  He leaned forward, and the light from his lamp slashed across his face. “Just be here tomorrow at noon.” And with his voice going hard, he dismissed her like he hadn’t just dropped this cryptic freaking ball.

  She nodded, but wasn’t sure if she was agreeing to be here tomorrow, or if she was just too confused to understand what in the hell she was doing. She turned and left, not knowing exactly what Rian was up to, but feeling as though she had just made a deal with the devil.

  4

  “Rian, are you sure this is really what you want to do?” Harold Theon had been his father’s attorney and been with the Hartford family for longer than Rian could even remember. He was old as shit, but knew the law better than any attorney Rian had ever been around, and that was saying something. Lawson was also here, and his PR rep was actually impressed he was going down this route, because at least it would solve the whole spilling personal information to the media. Or at least Lawson had acted impressed.

  “Harold, I haven’t been surer of anything than I am of this.”

  Harold lifted his bushy white eyebrows, and stared at Rian with his light blue eyes. He scribbled his signature on the last line, and leaned back in the seat across from Rian. Sorcha had left the office an hour before, and Harold and Lawson had showed up per Rian’s request.

  “I actually think this is one of the smarter moves in Rian’s personal life when it concerns the women he associates with,” Lawson said and took the contract Rian had just signed. “But I guess it’ll be the smartest move if the young woman actually agrees to it.”

  “I, for one, have never drafted up a contract proposing a woman to be … what you want her to be,” Harold said, took the legal documents from Lawson, and put them in his briefcase.

  “Well, with the media trying to tarnish the company because of Rian’s personal life, hopefully having…” Lawson looked at Rian for help.

  “Sorcha Case,” Rian said and leaned back in his seat, and put his hands behind his head.

  “Hopefully having this in place will ease some of that negativity. At least if she signs she won’t be able to legally backfire once it is all said and done,” Lawson said.

  “I’ll have a judge go over them and have them signed before the end of the night,” Harold said and stood. “You should have the final documents sent over to your office first thing tomorrow morning. That’s when you’re meeting with the young woman?”

  Rian nodded and felt his gut tighten at the prospect of bringing this up with Sorcha. She’d either be open to it, which would surprise the fuck out of him, or, which was the more logical reaction, she’d slap his face and tell him to fuck off.

  Harold grabbed his suitcase, nodded at Lawson and Rian, and then turned to leave. Harold made sure to push things through quickly, but then again Rian had many connections. Being who he was, and having the kind of wealth he did, let Rian do pretty much whatever the fuck he wanted. He made things happen for people, and in return had things done for him. It was a never-ending circle.

  Once it was just Lawson and Rian in the office, Lawson leaned back and shook his head. “I was actually pretty surprised when you called me this afternoon and told me what you’re planning.”

  “I know, I could tell.” Rian removed his hands from behind his head and rested his forearms on his desk. “I have to admit that proposing this to Miss Case will probably have her getting violent, offended, and end with her walking out and quitting.” That actually had this sour feeling settling in Rian’s stomach, but he pushed it aside.

  “And you want her so badly that you’re willing to risk that?” Lawson asked. “What about any one of the other single, not employed by you, women that are in this state? You know many well-to-do women, many of whom would jump at the opportunity to take on what you have outlined in the contract.”

  “I know,” Rian said evenly.

  “Then what is it about this particular woman that you would risk losing yet another secretary, and having the possibility of her going to the media and bringing this to light?”

  “If she does, then she does. But it isn’t like the media hasn’t heard it all before.”

  “We don’t need another slam at your character so soon after your last sexual partner decided to jabber.”

  Lawson had a point, but Rian didn’t care. “I want her, Lawson. There is something different about Miss Case, something I want to explore if she’s willing.” He leaned back in his chair, the thoughts and images running through his mind playing havoc with his dick. He could see her in his home, on his bed, and under him, taking everything he gave her, and showing him that she wouldn’t give in easily. “She isn’t a pushover that is out to please me because of who I am.”

  Lawson stared out the window behind Rian and shook his head. “I sure hope you know what you’re doing.”

  “I do,” Rian said without hesitation.

  “I think the legal route that you’re taking is better than what you’ve done in the past, but I have a feeling this might backfire regardless.”

  Yeah, it probably would, but if it meant he had Sorcha, even for one night, he’d take whatever fallout happened.

  5

  “But he didn’t say why he wanted you to come in?” her friend Cora asked, looking as curious as Sorcha felt.

  She shrugged. “I told you exactly what he said. He was cryptic, and almost seemed pleased with himself for some reason.”

  “So, are you going to show up?” Cora took a drink of her beer and set it back down. The little pub they were at wasn’t too far from the office building they both worked at. Cora had been the one to get her the interview with Rian Hartford, and even though Cora worked in the law office in the same building, and not for the enigmatic man, she had pulled some strings.

  The music around them was loud, peppy, and the latest dance song. The pub was small, but a lot of the Irish community in this part of town frequented it because of the imported beer and food they had, especially the college aged population. Sorcha stared at Cora and shrugged. “Do I really have a choice? Before going into this job I said that if Mr. Hartford needed my assistance at any time, for any reason, I was there. I am basically his personal slave.” She growled out the last part.

  “You really hate it there, don’t you? Makes me almost feel guilty for telling you about the job,” Cora said genuinely.

  “Honey, hell no, you shouldn’t feel sorry. The job is great, and in fact I love it. I get to meet all these rich and famous people when they contact the office for retail property inquiries.” Sorcha shrugged and started picking at the edge of her beer label. “I owe you a lot for getting me the job.”

  “Sorcha, you got the job. I just got you the interview. If Rian Hartford didn’t want you I can guarantee you wouldn’t be sitting in that
ritzy office five days a week.”

  Sorcha nodded and stared at the condensation on the bottle in front of her. “The man just drives me insane, Cora, like so damn crazy that I have never wanted to kick a man in the junk, or strip my clothes off and lie on my desk for him, more times than I have working for Rian Hartford.”

  Cora laughed loudly. “Join the club, girl. That man rubs everyone the wrong way with his cocky, bastard-like attitude, and also has the women dropping their panties and grabbing their ankles. But if he was a pushover he wouldn’t be at the top, or have so many sexual conquests under his belt.”

  “Well,” Sorcha straightened and looked at Cora. “I can see why he goes through secretaries so fast. They probably can’t stand his arrogant ass either.”

  “That, or they were fucked so hard by him they couldn’t walk into work the next day.”

  Sorcha started laughing.

  Cora shook her head. “But seriously, you know the majority of them left because he fucked them and then refused to have more of a personal relationship with them.”

  “The majority?” Sorcha lifted a brow and grinned.

  “Okay, not the majority, but more than one and that is a lot.” Cora stood. “I’m getting a couple more beers. You want the same thing?”

  “No, give me something hard, because I have a feeling whatever Rian Hartford wants from me tomorrow is going to make me wish I had gotten trashed.”