Denying Mr. Parks (The Parks #1) (6 page)

“No, I won’t let you fuck me, Parks.”

“Jesus,” he emphasized his exasperation with firm hands. “Call me Wade.”

“Why are you always insisting on me calling you by your first name?”

He smirked salaciously and released my elbow. “Because it’s what you’ll be calling me when I’m fucking you, Evelyn, so I want you to call me Wade at all times. Only you.”

“Fucking me?” I gaped. “I can’t listen to this.” I was about to open the door when he spoke, halting me again.

“Is he your boyfriend?”

“Who?” I spun around on my heel, exasperated.

“The guy who took you to that dive and sent you cheap flowers. A beautiful woman like yourself should be wined and dined and sent diamonds.”

I laughed contemptuously. Was he for real? Clearly not. “Excuse me, Mr. Parks, but not everyone is a millionaire. I love what Alex does for me. He’s kind and thoughtful. And if he
was
my boyfriend, I don’t see what concern it is of yours. And whilst we’re on the subject”—I prodded his shoulder—”I thought it was very fucking rude of you to interrupt my date yesterday. Who do you think you are?”

“He’s thoughtful and kind?” He laughed, pinching his nose. Then he glanced through his dark lashes at me, showing me all the vividness of his green eyes, all his intensity, all the control. I could have shivered, he held it all so well. “But does he make you angry, Evelyn? Does he make your blood pump? Your stomach knot, your cheeks burn red? Does he make you wet when you think of him? Because that’s what I do for you, don’t I? I can read your body like a book. The sooner you realise it, the better.”

“The better for who? You?” I scoffed. “You’re a man who goes around collecting those jars of hearts, aren’t you?” I could imagine all the women he had fucked throughout his life and making a damn good job of it. Sending them wild for more, wild for his attention.

“I’m simply a man who knows what he wants. And sex with no strings is one of those things.”

“So there’s no denying you’ve broken more than a couple of hearts by telling those women all you want is sex?”

He shrugged casually. “Not my problem. That’s all I desire, and I make that clear from the very beginning.”

I was a little intrigued now. He knew a bit about me, yet I knew nothing about him. I wasn’t about to let him have an advantage. “So who collects your heart, Mr. Parks?”

His eyes narrowed slightly. “No one collects my heart, Evelyn. That is not for transaction. Why give a woman my heart when she can have me for a night?” He shrugged like it was the simplest idea that ever existed.

“Do you even have a heart, Parks?”

His lips twitched. “Do you?”

That was easy. “No.”

He agreed with a rumble. “Hm. You do seem heartless, Evelyn.”

I didn’t gasp or feel offended by that remark because he was right. Why should I give out love when I didn’t get any back? And Parks was exactly the kind of man to break hearts. Did he think I was stupid? “I would rather be heartless than heartbroken.”

The slight gasp that emerged from his parted lips told me he wasn’t expecting that pronouncement. I placed my hand on the door handle, ready to leave and warned him for the final time. “I’m going to go now, and you’re going to let me, and then you’re going to leave me the fuck alone. For. Good. If you think doing all of this will get you into my knickers, then sorry to disappoint you, it won’t work.”

I suspected an argument, but instead he walked to the door, clenching his jaw. He placed one palm around the hand I had on the handle, pressed the other beside my face against the doorframe, and leaned in, intimately close. His strong, rock-hard chest pressed into my breasts, forcing my breathing to halt.

“Then maybe you shouldn’t wear any to make it easier.”

His wry grin dominated his face, so I leaned in until I was inches away from his lips. “Maybe I should wear a chastity belt to keep you out.”

Cocking his head sidewards, he agreed. “That could work. Then I will have reassurance that no other man will touch you.”

My head tilted back when I laughed. “That also includes
you
.”

He let go of the door handle to stroke my face. “I am a determined man, Evelyn,” he said with assurance. “I always get what I want. I
will
have you.”

“Determined?” I mocked as our eyes locked. “I’d call it being a spoilt brat.”

He pushed off his arm to give me space and did a raspy chuckle. “I think you’ll find the correct term is
spoiled
.”

“No,” I argued, “it’s
spoilt
. And seeing as you’re a
spoilt
brat that isn’t about to get his own way, get ready to throw your toys out of the pram. Now let me leave.”

He clenched his jaw tightly again but still went ahead and held the door open for me.

“As you wish.”

Oh? That was easier than anticipated. I turned on my heel and walked back into the corridor until he called me again.

“Oh, and Evelyn?”

“Yes?” My sigh should tell him he was being a nuisance.

“It’s
spoiled
.”

“Fuck off. How about that for a correct term?” My heels clipped ferociously down the corridor, but he wasn’t far behind, and when we entered the office all eyes were on us as we barged through the doors together.

Nosy bastards.

Parks walked ahead of me and made his way through the room. All the women in the office watched his every move with gaping mouths—all apart from Posh Pat.

“Evelyn,” I heard Clarke hiss. I snapped my head in his direction, forcing my eyes away from Parks’s firm arse. “You keep looking at Mr. Parks like that and we’re going to need a Wet Floor sign.”

My mouth fell open. “Clarke,” I admonished him, stunned by his unusual lewd remarks.

“Well,” he said, his cheeks turning in like he was chewing a sweet. “You can try and hide it, but I know what those eyes mean.”

I did not give Parks arousal eyes. Did I?

No, I didn’t.

I threw myself into work for the rest of the day and finished all the files I had to type up for Clarke and Pat. When five thirty came around I gathered my belongings. Sure enough, as I got my bag ready to leave, Parks called me into his office, making Clarke suspicious.

“Evey, what on earth is going on between you two? Are you heading for promotion?”

I laughed at his accusation. “Clarke, I love that you immediately think the worst of me. You’re lucky I know you’re joking. I don’t know what he wants.” I shrugged coyly, glancing away from his scrutiny and hitching my bag onto my shoulder.

“Hmm,” he sang. I could not pull the wool over Clarke’s eyes. “Be careful, my girl.”

“I will be. See you tomorrow.” I waved a hand over my shoulder and burst into the office. Parks was sitting in Carla’s leather swivel chair, talking on the phone.

“What do you want?” I snapped.

He held his finger up, gesturing for me to wait a moment and watched my impatient, tapping foot whilst he spoke on the phone. “I understand. I will be staying in London for another month. I have a lot of firms to get through, as you can imagine. Yes…thank you, Mr. Peru. Good-bye.” He smirked when he finally slipped his iPhone into the pocket of his suit jacket. “Evelyn.”

“Get it over with.” I made sure my voice sounded like I was bored.

He rocked back into his chair once, engaging eye contact. “Evelyn, as you know, I’m hosting a law society dinner this Saturday night.”

The slight movement of my eyes proved my confusion. If I was told about it, I forgot.

“What about it?” I bluffed.

“Would you do me the honour of joining me?” he asked in that irritating, confident voice that was sexy as hell.

“As what?” I laughed. “Your date?”

He grinned as though he was oblivious to my mockery. “What else?”

“And why would I do a thing like that?”

Slowly he pushed to his feet and walked around the desk, straightening out the cuffs on his wrists. “Because I want a beautiful woman on my arm for the night, and the woman I would like is you. You would make me a very happy man.”

I would make him happy? “What do I get out of it?”

“The pleasure of my company.” He shrugged, saying it like I should be privileged, leaning his backside against the desk and sliding his hands in his pockets.

“No.” My answer was point-blank.

He blinked, completely thrown back. “No? My company won’t be a pleasure? Or no, you won’t accompany me?”

“No to both. Besides, I’m busy Saturday night.” I wasn’t. My confirmation forced him to stand from the desk, his body instantly more alert and direct.

“Doing what and with whom?”

I turned my nose up at him and crossed my arms. Fuck how it enhanced my breasts. “That’s none of your business.”

“Evelyn, you
will
be there on my arm.” His voice was solid and his eyes strict.

“Parks, I said no.” He was testing my
patience.

“You can’t tell me no.” I loved that he blinked every time I declined, like it was a rarity. He loathed my lack of obedience, and I loved every second of it.

“I just did.” My tone was mocking him. “Do you even know what N-O spells?”

“
Yes
.” He smirked.

“Really?” I raised my brow. “A Harvard major like yourself can’t spell?”

His eyes lit up, all amused. “You know I attended Harvard Law School?”

Shit. I was busted. “No.” I shrugged defensibly. “It was just a lucky guess.” I had to make
something
up.

“Really?” He replicated my earlier remark with a dark raised brow of his own. He was so frustrating. “If I didn’t know any better, I would say you have you been researching me, Evelyn.” He was gloating, and his smile showed all his perfect white teeth. It pissed me off because it was sexy as hell.

“Oh, go fuck yourself, Parks,” I shot back at him, throwing my hands up in rage. I had never let anyone get to me the way he had. He got under my skin. Every part of it.

Grazing his bottom lip with his top teeth before answering, he said, “I would rather you fucked me.”

What? I wanted to scream at him. But before I could, he called Jittery Joanna into the room, bellowing her name. She was there within a nanosecond and looking at me like I smelt of horse manure.

“Yes, Mr. Parks?”

Parks never looked away from me. “Send a reminder invitation to all employees of Parks Law Firm.”

She fiddled with the paper in her hand before hesitantly asking, “For what, sir?”

He rubbed at his forehead, exasperated, then waved his hand around briefly as he spoke. “For the dinner Saturday night, Joanna.”

“Right.” She shifted from heel to heel, making herself look extremely awkward.

“Joanna?” Parks moved his head forwards a little, as if to ask what she was doing still standing there.

“Sorry, I’ll get right to it.” And she scuttled away with bright red cheeks.

“Do you speak to all your staff that way? I’m surprised you have any,” I quipped.

“I am a man of control, Evelyn. If I don’t use control or discipline, I simply will not get things done.
My way.
”

I rolled my eyes to the ceiling. “And you love everything
your
way?”

“Only my way,” he answered slowly as he looked lustful down the length of my body.

“I knew you were a control freak.” I pointed out, proud of my admission.

“That’s what you think of me?” He was playing that time, back to casually leaning against the desk, ankles crossed and hands pocketed.

“Yes, and you’re also egotistic, arrogant, and narcissistic.”

He was tapping his fingers in his pockets whilst I pointed out the words—words that he was not at all offended by. “I prefer
self-controlled
and
obedient
. Do you want me to tell you what I think of you?”

I groaned inwardly, knowing where this was going. “No, but you’re going to.”

“You’re beautiful.” I scoffed at that, but he continued. “Independent. Strong-minded, maybe a little misunderstood. A complex introvert.” He ran his index finger across his bottom lip, deep in thought. “You are going to be very difficult for me.”

Taking a deep breath after his admissions, I tried to make myself clear. “I am not going to be anything for you.” Why wasn’t he getting it?

He removed his hands from his pockets and began to take his dark blue tie from around his neck. When he was tie-less, he deftly undid the first two buttons of his shirt. I watched his hands whilst he worked slowly, stupidly wishing they were working on me instead. He spotted me watching, and a conceited smirk broke against his lips.

“You like what you see more than you think, huh?”

Hating myself for getting caught blushing, I scoffed, “In your dreams, Parks.”