“Give me five minutes. Um, I need to finish getting dressed.” The moment the words left my mouth I cursed my stupidity. He didn’t need to know I was naked or even semi-naked. In fact the less he knew about my nakedness the better. I had enough men to worry about without adding another.
“Oh,” was all he replied, but that one word held enough lust to create a tight band around my chest.
I moved away from the buzzer and ran for my room. Clothes flew as I scrambled to find something suitable. Obviously I wasn’t going to let him in. I would simply pretend I was on my way out. Then there would be none of the usual awkwardness that usually accompanied these types of meetings.
There was something about his name though that struck a chord with me. I recognised the name Hatcher but I wasn’t sure from where. Dragging on a pair of jeans and a blouse, I attempted to arrange my hair into some sort of respectable style. It was impossible and it refused to cooperate in any way.
With a sigh I left it and grabbed my jacket and purse. I locked the door carefully behind me. The last thing I wanted was a repeat of the night before. Although if Richard hadn’t returned my key then locking the door wasn’t going to stop him from getting in. Mentally I planned and decided that calling a locksmith was probably the safer idea.
I hurried down the stairs and paused on the final step. Just a few hours ago I was leaving my apartment with David. It was strange how in such a short span of time things could change. I shook myself mentally. If I had made up my mind that he was bad for me then why was I still thinking of him? Why were all of my thoughts consumed by him?
I could make out what I presumed was Robert’s silhouette outside the doors. He was tall and broad shouldered. If I remembered correctly then he was everything that a woman could possibly want in a man.
I pushed open the door and stepped out into the sunshine. The look he gave me would have made another woman weak at the knees but not me. He was far too happy and had a shiny new feel to him. He reminded me of what I had always thought a playboy might be like. Handsome, far too much money, and very sleek. I couldn’t imagine Robert having any trouble charming a woman into his bed.
“Carrie?” he asked, his boyish grin lighting up his face. It was then I noticed it. Although his smile was disarming and no doubt used to put people at ease, the smile didn’t reach his eyes. Oh they sparkled and lit up in the same way that his smile lit up his face but there was no happiness in his eyes. They were cold and for the first time since I had met him I was intrigued about this man. If he was so carefree and had time to chase down women he had met for just a few moments, why were his eyes so cold?
“That’s me. As you can see I’m fine after last night.”
“David, went after you. He seemed very concerned about you. Are you two an item?”
The bluntness of his question took me by surprise. For a moment I wasn’t sure how I should answer. We weren’t really an item but I knew a large part of me wanted to change that.
“It’s complicated,” I answered with a sigh and Robert gave me a very knowing smile. Although I wasn’t in the least bit sexually attracted to this man—at least not in the way I was attracted to David—there was something about him that made me want to get to know him.
“How do you and David know each other?”
Robert smiled. “We don’t know each other that well. I’d consider us to be more acquaintances that anything else. Ships passing in the night, if you will.”
“Oh.” I chewed my lip thoughtfully before continuing. “Well, as you can see I’m perfectly fine. Nothing to worry about. It was lovely of you to be so concerned.” I moved away and headed down the street.
“Fancy a coffee? I know a lovely little place not far from here. Perhaps there we can get to know each other a little better?” He gave me his best boyish smile again. It didn’t touch his eyes and I could feel some sort of tension radiating from him. There was something very odd about this man. And I was determined to get to the bottom of it.
I smiled back at him in an attempt to make him think I was succumbing to his charms. I wasn’t very good at it. I never had been very good at concealing my real thoughts and feelings.
“Alright. I guess I could do with it. I missed my usual morning coffee.”
Robert raised an eyebrow at my statement and smiled. “Ah, too busy, were you?”
Colour pooled in my cheeks and I turned away from him. How could he possibly think this was endearing?
“So I recognise your name from somewhere. Hatcher? It rings a bell but I’m not sure how I know it...” I once again started to walk down the street and he matched my pace easily.
“Hatcher Industries. It’s a company my father owns. One day I’ll take it over from him. That is if he ever decides to retire.”
Hatcher Industries was one of the accounts our firm took care of. If I remembered correctly it was the very one that had accused David of messing up the file transfer. The one that David had punished me for. I blushed as I remembered the feel of his strong hands on my ass. I had never been spanked before. But with David doing it, it had felt absolutely right. I would have given anything at that moment to have David drive up and bend me over the bonnet of his car. Even with everyone on the street watching I would have let him do whatever he wanted to me. It was a strange feeling to know that I would give every part of myself to that man. I would let him do things to me that I had only ever dreamt about late at night.
He was a man who could possess me completely and I could become lost in him.
“Penny for your thoughts?” Robert’s voice made me jump and brought me back to reality with a bump. How long had I zoned out for? This was exactly the reason why David had punished me in the first place. The realisation made me giggle.
Robert opened the door of the coffee shop we had stopped outside of. I noticed then that his hands were smaller than David’s. It made me long for his strong touch. The way he placed his hand on my lower back and guided me into a room. When he had done it, it had made me feel safe.
“Carrie, it’s like you’re on another planet. Have I done something wrong?” I looked at Robert’s concerned face. He was being so nice and here I was acting like some sort of space cadet weirdo.
I shook my head and smiled. “I’m fine, really. I just need to get some coffee inside me.”
Robert grinned and let me step inside. “Then I think you’re going to like this place.”