Her expression shifted from cheerful to uncertain when she spotted his frown. “What’s wrong?”
“Did you have a fun morning with my mother?”
“As a matter of fact I did.” Missy crossed to the table he’d been working at all morning. “Are you mad because I had fun or because it was with your mother?”
She set her cell phone down and used her finger to spin it. Today’s outfit of jeans and a snug white T-shirt had about the same effect on his libido as the sexy black dress she’d worn last night. Russet waves, still damp from her shower, rested on her shoulders, turning the cotton fabric transparent.
Sebastian spied the straps from her simple white bra. It frustrated him that everything about her turned him on. How was he supposed to maintain a professional relationship with her when all he could think about was lifting her onto the conference table and checking her for tan lines?
“She’s been lecturing me on taking advantage of you,” he muttered, stepping near enough to touch her. Keeping his hands to himself tested his control, but he triumphed. “I thought I told you to leave it alone.”
“You told me not to say anything to your father or Lucas Smythe.”
He barely heard her. She’d interpreted his words literally to defy him. His annoyance with her behavior had yet to run its course.
“Only you didn’t set things straight. You spun a story. An outrageous story.”
“Not so outrageous,” she said, her full lips drawn tight. With her impudent chin cocked at a belligerent angle, she concluded, “I’d just broken up with my boyfriend. It’s not so hard to believe I got tipsy celebrating my birthday and hit on you, but you were the perfect gentleman and turned me down.”
“And if I turned you down, how exactly did you explain why you were in my suite wearing my shirt?”
“Because I was naked when I climbed into bed with you.”
Vivid images of exactly that leapt into his thoughts. Even without his eyes closed the evocative memories tormented him.
“I told you not to interfere.” He gripped the back of a chair to keep from throttling her.
“If I hadn’t, Lucas Smythe wouldn’t know that you’d never take advantage of any employee, drunk or sober.” For good measure, she added, “Your mother promised to help me straighten out the misunderstanding.”
“There was no misunderstanding.” Sebastian knew Lucas Smythe would never believe such a ridiculous story. Who in their right mind could resist a naked Missy? “But now it looks like I’m making excuses for my behavior.”
His sharp tone eviscerated her composure. She set her hands on her hips. Her brow puckered. “Can’t you trust me to handle this?”
“No.”
“This is just typical of you.”
She’d never had the nerve to criticize him before. Apparently an abundance of sexy curves wasn’t the only thing his assistant had been keeping from him.
“What do you mean?”
“If you’re not the one in control of a situation, you don’t think it’s being handled correctly.”
Her accusation fell on deaf ears. If she’d hoped to stir his temper, she’d taken the wrong tack. He’d heard it all before. Being the one in control had led Case Consolidated Holdings to higher profitability and kept his personal life calm and peaceful. He wasn’t going to surrender the power without a down and dirty fight.
“That’s what makes me successful.”
“In business maybe.”
He smirked at her. “What else is there?”
“There’s your personal life,” she retorted, her color high. “Maybe if you didn’t have to be in charge all the time, something wonderful might happen.”
“Are you referring to last night when I let you set the terms for that ridiculous bet?”
Head held high, she blew out air with a disparaging noise, but her hunched shoulders told a different story. “I’ll bet the only reason you agreed to the wager in the first place is because you thought I’d lose.”
“Haven’t you learned that bets between us don’t work out?”