Page 5 of Dante (Members From Money Season 2. #153)

"Taking notes," her fingers flew over the keypad swiftly.

"Just making sure I got all of it. No calling you Dante, check.

No ordering you a cake for your birthday which will be on September thirtieth.

And if I feel the urge to reach across the desk and rip your clothes off, I should try and control it. "

She looked up and had the grim satisfaction of seeing the cold mask replaced by a look of complete shock. It was quickly covered up. She had the time to admire the complete shift and wondered belatedly if she was going to be fired on her first day.

"I also have a few things I need to clear up myself."

"Excuse me?"

"I don't fetch coffee, and I expect to be treated with respect. I am not one of the best, I am the best. I will anticipate your needs and try and be one step ahead. No one gets by me without being on the schedule, and I mean no one."

She rose gracefully and glanced at her watch.

"Was that everything?"

Dante had to bite back the smile and took the time to admire her temerity. No one had ever spoken to him like that before. The woman had backbone. One he would think about later. Much later.

"That about covers it." His voice was expressionless, and his face did not reveal anything.

"Good." Her heart was galloping, the blood roaring in her ears, but she was determined to remain calm. "You have five minutes to get to your board meeting. The file is to your left. I brought myself up to speed on the apartment complex."

She started to say that she admired the designs and the efficiency of the building but kept that to herself. She was not sure she was not going to be fired.

"I'm assuming I will be needed to take notes."

"Yes." He snapped. "Give me a few minutes."

He waited until she left and closed the doors before leaning back in the chair and staring at the doors.

Picking up the pen, he slid it through his fingers absently.

Most people would have been rushing out the door by his first attack, and that had been an attack.

He had held his punches because seeing her seated behind the desk, looking so goddamned beautiful had set his teeth on edge.

He had told her the truth. He did not mess around with his employees, no matter how comely they were.

He had decided on that from the first time he started his company.

He had seen corporations tumble and destroyed because the CEO could not keep his pants zipped and had worked too damned hard to allow that to happen.

He had his pick of beautiful women. Ones who had started shamelessly pursuing him as soon as he made his first million.

He did not have to pick from the company tree.

He was not blind to the fact that the single females and some of the married ones were hoping he would change his mind, but that was not going to happen.

They were his employees and as far as he was concerned, he was responsible for providing them with a job and making the workplace safe and comfortable.

They were rewarded for their excellent work, because he did not tolerate shoddiness. He expected the best and was more than willing to pay for it.

Shoving away from the desk, he picked up the file and headed out.

He kept his eye on her during the meeting.

He had introduced her to the board as soon as they stepped into the conference room and noticed how the collection of men ranging from their mid seventies to late twenties took on interest in her as soon as she walked into the room.

He believed in being open minded and fair, so his board consisted of the experienced and the educated, with a few women mixed in.

He was not the kind of boss who cowed his board, not giving them room to breathe and insisted on all of them having a say.

At his position at the head of the table, he leaned back with the pretense of casual relaxation, fingers twirling the sterling silver pen while he listened to the CFO drone on about equity and bottom line.

He would allow it for another few minutes.

His employees knew him well enough to know that he did not miss a thing. Even when he was sitting still.

And it annoyed him to realize that he was intrigued by the woman seated at the front of the room, studiously taking notes on her device.

Her legs were smoothly encased in transparent stockings that highlighted the curves of very long and shapely legs.

Dragging his eyes away from them, he happened to notice that he had not been the only one taking a long look.

His eyes met those of Devon McIntosh, head of the acquisitions department and a friend.

His attempt to freeze the man with an icy look only managed to gain him a cheeky smile and a knowing look. Hissing out a breath, he tamped down his temper and coolly told the CFO to wrap it up.

She liked him. He was cheerful and amiable, and she could not help but be flattered by his obvious admiration and his friendliness as well as his flattery. He had thinning sandy hair and sparkling light green eyes that kept wandering over her face.

"If I knew you were going to be a model, I would have brought you flowers."

Playing into the spirit of things, she lifted one tapered brow as she swiftly and concisely detailed the meeting on her desktop.

"Are you implying that if I was plain, you would be bringing me weeds?"

His engaging grin flashed and charmed her even more.

"Makes me sound like a shallow bastard, doesn't it?"

"Makes you sound like a guy."

"I really like you Courtney Vernon. Why don't you persuade the boss to have you come and work with me?"

"Don't you have work to do?"

Icy golden eyes flashed between them, before settling on the man leaning on the glossy desk.

Instead of jumping to attention, Devon simply grinned at his boss. "I was here welcoming Courtney to Livingston Enterprise."

"Ms. Vernon," the stress on the name was not lost on any of them, "should be busy." His eyes bored holes in her. It took considerable effort on her part not to squirm. "I need the report..."

"On the board meeting? Already sent to your email. The file on the Latimer deal has been edited and is now on your desk."

She barely glanced at his schedule on the edge of her computer.

"You have a meeting in fifteen minutes and Mr. McIntosh has ten minutes of your time. Mr. Greene called, and I told him you were on for the luncheon that had been rescheduled twice already."

She met and held his gaze, which seemed to glower at her. Without saying a word, he strode towards his office and stood there at the door, shooting a gaze at Devon.

"Coming?"

When Devon winked at her, she had to bite down on the urge to laugh as he strolled behind his boss and closed the door.

Shaking her head, she pressed her hand to her jumping stomach and resumed typing.

"She's pretty efficient."

"Did you get her number?" he snapped it out and wished he could cut his tongue out for asking the question that made him sound like a jealous lover.

"I was working up to it. Think she's single? I'm not seeing a ring."

Devon took a step back at the look of icy displeasure on his friend's face.

"I did not mean to poach. I never realized you were interested."

"Have you ever known me to dip in the company's pool?

" he had to take an effort to get his anger under control, something that had never been a problem for him before.

But seeing his friend lean so companionably on her desk, something he had done a hundred times before when Ms. Carstairs was the one sitting behind the desk, had unleashed something funny inside his chest.

"No." Devon cleared his throat and sat cautiously. "She's beautiful."

"Why don't we get to why you're here?" he made a point of glancing at his watch. "I'm busy."

"Of course." Devon nodded and opened his file.

He couldn't find any fault with her. In fact, he was becoming increasingly impressed with her efficiency and her professionalism.

She knew what the hell she was doing and was completely cool under pressure.

He also discovered that she was fluent in three languages.

When she took a call from his manager in Italy, she spoke the language and had him looking through her file, where he saw that it was very impressive.

She had told him she anticipated his needs, and it was true. He did not have to ask her for a file or remind her about a meeting. She knew his lunch menu and had something waiting from the kitchen when he returned from an outside meeting.

She looked up from her filing as he strode in after yet another meeting.

This one had pissed him off enough to rattle his usual cool.

The red tape wrapped around the building of the apartment building was tangling at his neck.

Politics, something he tried to stay away from, had reared its ugly head.

The mayor, the senator and a bunch of others wanted assurances that the people being 'displaced' as they put it would have a suitable place to peddle their junk.

Which translates to them playing their usual games and trying to please their voters.

It had taken a hell of a lot of tap dancing, reassurances, and hell, pledging to donate to their campaign to get the project rolling.

He hated politicians with a virulence that was making his head pound.

And it had taken longer than he anticipated. So long in fact that most of the employees had taken off for the day.

As it was almost six-thirty, he certainly had not expected to see her at her desk and clicking away at her computer.

He stopped just inside the doorway, the headache peaking at his temple.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

She merely glanced over at him and continued typing.

"As far as I know, I work here."

"It's minutes to seven." He pointed out and realized he sounded almost accusatory.

Her tapered eyebrows lifted. "I'm aware of the time. I had some details to finish up for your meeting first thing in the morning. Since you missed dinner, the kitchen sent up some dinner. Prime rib steak and a salad. Also, I included a bottle of pain killers for your headache."

"How the hell do you know I have a headache?"

"You had a meeting with politicians. It's a given."

He stood there staring at her for a few pulsing seconds, before crossing to his office and slamming the doors shut.

A smile curved her lips as she stretched out her aching back and resumed typing.