His Irresistible Darling (6 page)

“Clap, yes, that’s exactly what’s in order. No screaming,” he lectured, as he counted each one off on his fingers, “no yelling obscenities at the other team—” he ignored her widening smile as she was clearly recollecting her behaviour at the last match “—no whistling or—” he paused again “—flashing any parts of your body.” He pursed his lips.

He saw her smile fade as she crossed her arms tightly under her chest, sulking. Unfortunately for him the action only served to push her pert breasts further into fleshy mounds barely contained by her Booster Bra…
Was that black lace peeping out?!

He had to force his eyes away from her porcelain skin.

“Fine,” she said, her eyes wide, hands now held up in mock surrender. “I’ll be as dull as the rest of them. Best behaviour. Promise,” she said, crossing her heart with her fingers.

Jumal felt like he was caging a wild bird or like a parent berating his child. He hated the reminder of the thirteen-year age difference between them. He didn’t like it. Not one bit.

Despite her promise, he didn’t believe she could restrain herself. Not because she didn’t intend to, but it simply wasn’t in her nature. It wasn’t Pippa.

He needed to lighten her mood again and he was shocked by this newly developed inner need to put a smile back on her face.

“So, are you excited about your birthday party?” he asked, confident that would bring a smile to her angelic face with its perfect translucent skin. Although he thought she’d gained a few more freckles over her nose and cheeks… He pondered how he’d noticed…huh.

He was pleased that his plan had worked as she looked up and smiled. “Yep. James is flying in from home, so it’ll be lovely to see him again and Melina is sorting it all out.”

An ache in his jaw was the telltale sign that he was grinding his teeth. Who the hell was James and what was his interest in Pippa? Why was she smiling at the mention of this man’s name and, more importantly, what was
her
interest in him? The guy must be pretty serious about her to fly out all this way. The bloody woman attracted men like bees to a honey pot. He finally managed to tune back into what she was saying.

“She’s such a star. I just wish Matt and Ana could’ve made it—” she shrugged her shoulders “—but with Harry being so young and all it’s just impossible.”

The engineer’s voice stopped him from making further enquiries about this James imposter.

“Hello there, we’re really sorry for the delay but we’ve sorted the problem now so it will just be another five minutes and we’ll have you out, Mr Aldabbagh.”

True to his word, the main light came on in the lift at the same time it started to descend. He quickly jumped up and helped Pippa to her feet and held her jacket out for her again. She in turn picked up his suit jacket and brushed it off before handing it back to him as the doors finally opened. He heard her take a deep breath as she turned to him. “Thanks for keeping me calm in there. I know I was a pain but you really helped.” She pursed her lips. “So, er…just thanks.”

“You’re welcome. I enjoyed your company.”

He had to smile as Pippa nudged his shoulder with hers, a huge smile on her face. “Yeah right.” She chuckled. “You’re such a bad liar. I know you came close to smothering me in the lift with the stress ball.”

***

Jumal opened his car door for her before striding round to the driver’s side and speeding out of the underground car park, anxious to get Pippa home and out of his car. He could smell her scent on his jacket and knew that it was going to linger in his car for the next few days and drive him crazy. Correction: crazier. He’d have to have it valeted again despite the fact it was spotless.

She looked over at him with a quizzical look on her face as they sped through the deserted city streets and out to the low-rise buildings of the suburbs. “What?” he asked.

“You know the way to where I live?” she asked, raising an eyebrow in surprise.

“Of course,” he replied, like it was obvious that he’d know where all his employees lived. “I went to see it before I rented it for you. I had to make sure it was appropriate.” He shrugged his shoulders, dismissing her question, but hoped she’d just accept his response and assume that his role as boss meant that he’d know where all his staff lived…right?

But he caught her still staring at him from the corner of his eye, seemingly unconvinced by his response. “What?” he asked again, turning his head towards her briefly.

“Nothing,” she said, turning her head back to the front. “I just assumed someone else had sorted it all out. That’s all.” Her voice was quiet and he could barely hear her over the throb of the car’s powerful engine.

Ten minutes later he waved at the gate guard, who clearly recognised him, and pulled up in front of her apartment complex. He jumped out to open her door, offered his hand to help her out with her bag and file and escorted her to the steps of her apartment before stopping and turning to face her, pocketing his hands. “Goodnight, Pippa.”

“Night, sir.” He watched her take the final steps up to her front door but she abruptly turned back and shouted, “Jumal.” She seemed surprised that he hadn’t yet moved away. “Oh, er by the way, thanks for the job, er I mean placement. I know you did it as a favour to Matt, but thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, bowing his head slightly before adding in a lower voice, “but I didn’t do it as a favour to your brother.”
My reasons were much more selfish,
he silently added as he turned away, sensing her eyes on him from her porch.

Chapter Three

Pip had just started to turn her key in the heavy front door when she felt a presence behind her. She gasped and started to turn before being paralysed as soft lips grazed behind her ear. Her breath hitched but she was held in place by strong hands at her hips, pinning her tightly between the door and a tall, hard body.

“Allah forgive me but I need you.” Jumal. His gruff, whispered voice vibrated against the shell of her ear, made her instantly wet and her inner muscles clench in the most sensitive part of her body. Her knees weakened beneath her but the strength in his arms held her up.

Her hands seemed to move of their own volition to cover his hands at her hips; her head fell back and to the side against his firm chest. Her neck exposed to him. He accepted her silent invitation and took complete control of her body, running kisses up her neck as she closed her eyes and maximised the sensations her body was feeling, unable to turn around.

Someone groaned; she wasn’t sure who but as her traitorous body was responding to his touch like a cat in heat, it was likely her.

“Hmm, so goddamn wrong but I just don’t care any more.” He moaned against her skin as he brushed his chin over the sensitive part where her neck met her shoulder, her body set alight at the feel of his slight stubble—huh, she had the strangest thought that she’d been wearing a jacket earlier. She must have taken it off in his car.

“Going to hell but at least I’ll have tasted you before I go,” he murmured. God his voice was amazing and much better when it wasn’t yelling at her in the office.

She squirmed involuntarily as he moved his hands from her hips to her inner thighs. He used his foot to part her legs further, their bodies so tight that she could feel his body’s excitement against her lower back. She braced her hands against the door and pushed back against him harder, delighted by his strangled moan in response.

For a fleeting moment she worried about her neighbours, but when his fingers moved tantalisingly over her damp knickers all such worries were forgotten…and merely added to her excitement.

“Oohhhh—” This time she knew for certain that the moan belonged to her as he pulled her lace knickers to one side and slid one and then a second finger into her tight slickness.

“Come for me, Pippa. Come now.”

Yes, sir…

The man had magic fingers that were about to make her come apart in less than a minute. Abracadabra one…two…

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!!!!

Whoa whoa whoa, what the hell was that bloody noise? Was it a neighbour’s car alarm?!

“No, No, NO!” she complained as she came violently awake. Her arm shot out aimlessly towards her bedside table, knocking her glass of water and the blasted alarm clock to the floor.

A dream, just a goddamn dream… She felt robbed and utterly cheated. She hadn’t even got to come in her first wet dream!

She slumped back against her pillows and slapped her palms against the duvet, completely deflated but highly aware of the delicious, if unsatisfied, ache between her legs and the sheen of sweat decorating her brow. She shivered involuntarily as a chill swept over her body from the air conditioning and decided to ignore the fact that she’d had a naughty dream about her boss—her brother’s best friend. Nope. She’d think about that later. Much later. It could be filed under “Forbidden Fantasy”.

With a roll of her eyes she remembered setting her alarm early so she could make a start on going over the contract Jumal had thrown on her desk last night.

“Agghh,” she complained to no one, throwing back her duvet and stumbling over her discarded shoes on her way to her kitchen/diner. “Ouch. Bloody shoes,” she cried out as she then stumbled over her lazily discarded bag. She treated herself to a mug of hot chocolate, grabbed the file from her bag and settled herself at her kitchen table, elbows resting, propping her head up on her hands, and decided that this activity might actually cure her infatuation!

***

As his alarm clock turned six a.m., Jumal finally conceded that he wasn’t going to get any sleep. He’d watched the hours tick by since finally getting into bed four hours or so ago, without a wink of sleep.

He absently ran his hand over his head as he made his way to the kitchen to grab a coffee and tapped the note he’d seen late last night from his housekeeper reminding him that she was now away for an extended holiday. She was travelling to California for her daughter’s wedding and to help with the final organisation and hen party or whatever they called it in America. He grimaced and shook his head as he recalled Ana and Matt’s wedding, preceded by the stag weekend in London. He still couldn’t face drinking whisky.

As promised, his housekeeper had filled his fridge and had made frozen meals for him with notes stuck to them telling him how long to microwave. He didn’t have the heart to explain that he could actually cook and enjoyed doing it when given the chance. It was obvious that the woman missed her daughter and Jumal was happy to meet her need to care for him in substitution. Her note also reminded him that the plumber was coming back to fix the guest bathroom water supply and she’d given the spare key to the concierge. “What would I do without you, Maria?” he mumbled, before filling his cup and leaning back against the kitchen counter. His mind wandered yet again back to the image he’d seen in his mind all night. Pippa Darling. Her angel-like pixie face, long dark hair with a fringe she constantly blew out of her pale blue eyes—eyes framed by her strangely attractive Buddy Holly-esque thick black-rimmed glasses. At all of five foot three, she was adorably sexy and in his opinion, her breasts were perfect regardless of whether they were “boosted” or not. He found himself smiling at the image in his head and chastised himself yet again, “She’s too damn young. End of…” He slammed his cup into the dishwasher before heading for the shower.

***

After an hour and a half, Pip’s eyesight was blurred and her head ached. She dropped her head to the table and gently banged it in despair. She decided to shower before coming back to have one last look over the contract and finalise the notes on her laptop. She needed a break. Terms in the contract just weren’t making any sense to her. No doubt they were completely understandable to Miss Tall Dark and Sultry.

As she leaned against the cool tiles of the shower and allowed the hot water to pound over her aching neck muscles she cast her thoughts back to her decision to approach Jumal and take the step of leaving England. She had never been one to take the easy route or allow an opportunity to pass by and even at her relatively young age, she’d travelled both with her parents as a child but more independently once she’d finished her A levels. Her parents were a lot older than most of her friends’ parents but they hadn’t been stifling or overprotective; instead they’d encouraged their daughter in her desires to travel and undertake just about every hobby and sporting activity possible. Whenever she got homesick, which was usually just after she’d spoken to her brother and Ana on Skype, she would mentally slap herself and remind herself just how lucky she was to have such an opportunity.

Matt’s whirlwind romance with the world-famous super model Ana Harper aka her sister-in-law, had taken even her by surprise and made her look closely at her own future. Matt was now a father with another mini Darling already on the way; he was a successful businessman in his own right and had never been happier. She honestly wasn’t jealous of her brother and his new family, never that, but he’d always been there for her, particularly after their parents’ deaths. However, she couldn’t keep relying on him and assuming he would be there to pick up the pieces as she raced through life like a whirlwind. She needed to gather her inner strength and assert her independence once again—make a stand on her own. Even if the very thought of a new environment with new work colleagues in a foreign land and unfamiliar culture had made her nauseous and brought back the panic and dread of her earlier life experiences.

***

“Afwan! Oops sorry, oh pardon me, sorry, afwan! Oh heck was that your bag? I’m so very sorry—agghh—”

Pip sighed heavily and blew her fringe out of her eyes as she finally dropped down into the window seat of the heavenly air-conditioned Metro Rail, letting her bags fall to the floor. She knew she was still blushing and had already apologised profusely to the man sitting next to her in the aisle seat and whose lap she’d sat on as the metro started to depart with a sudden jerk. She was pretty sure she’d also clobbered him on the head with her fully packed lunch box.

She’d had to run for the bloody tram as, being sleep deprived, she’d forgotten the report for Jumal on her first attempt to leave her apartment earlier and had to double back.