Romance: The Boss Read Online Free Page B

can I ask you another question?”
    “Can I stop you?” I joke. But I don’t think I could stop this guy talking, no matter how hard I try.
    He snickers at me with a gleam in his eye. “No.”
    Just what I thought.
    “By all means then, go ahead,” I say, readying myself for his final play.
    This will be interesting.
    “Look, I find you very attractive,” he says clearly, very clearly, like he doesn’t have anything to lose. “Do you find me attractive?”
    Does he really expect me to answer that with a straight face?
    “No comment,” I reply.
    I’m not boosting his ego any more than it already is.
    “That’s a yes,” Brooke declares. “She does.”
    “She does,” he echoes in agreement.
    “No I don’t!” I protest, trying not to crack up at how ridiculous the both of them are being.
    “Yes you do,” he states confidently.
    I roll my eyes in an effort to not appear partially charmed by him.
    “Okay,” the suit says. “I’m going to put my offer on the table.”
    You mean that wasn’t his final play before?
    Wow.
    He unbuttons his jacket like he means business, like he’s about to sweeten the pot to clench a deal.
    He’s definitely a businessman.
    “I’m going to go and sit back there at my table,” he states decisively, eyes still trying to coax mine. “I’m then going to wait ten minutes. If you decide to go home with me, I can guarantee you that you will not regret it.”
    I shake my head at the size of his ego once again.
    I’ll give him points for cockiness.
    “Okay, well I think I’ve heard all that I need to. Thank you for coming over, but shockingly I must decline your offer.”
    I rebuke him with the verge of a smile.
    But he merely chuckles, his steel-blue eyes still holding their gaze.
    “You have fire. I like that,” he says before getting up and turning abruptly to Brooke. “Brooke, it was lovely to meet you.” And then, without even bothering to look back at me as he walks away: “Lauren, like I said…ten minutes.”
    Ha, the audacity of this guy.
    He really doesn’t know how to take no for an answer.
    “Oh. My. Gosh. Are you crazy? He’s hot – like mega hot!” Brooke yelps, grabbing my arm frantically like we’ve just seen a celebrity and I didn’t get an autograph.
    “Oh, he’s hot alright and I think the most pretentious person I’ve ever met! I mean, who does he think he is?”
    Her big green eyes blink at me beseechingly. “I think you should consider his offer.”
    “Excuse me? You want me to go home with that guy? Uh-uh, I don’t do flings. If you love him so much, why don’t you accept his offer?”
    “He didn’t ask me, Lauren. He asked you.”
    “Well, I’m not interested in him.”
    “That’s a lie.”
    She’s right, it is.
    But I’m not telling her that.
    “Besides, this is New York. Everyone has one-night stands here. It’s part of the experience. Just do it—the great thing about a city this size is that you will never bump into him again.”
    Unless I come back to this bar, that is.
    “Okay, firstly,” I say. “A part of the experience? Even if that’s true, that’s really not my thing. Secondly, the girls from Sex and the City bumped into some of the men they slept with.”
    “Pfft,” Brooke scoffs. “That’s Sex and the City. Plus, I bet he’s a total man in the sack! It’s just want you need! Trust me: have a fling with him. You’ll feel amazing afterward. I mean, how long has it been now? A year?”
    Ouch, that actually stings a little.
    “Shut up! It has not been a year…six months, tops.”
    “Whatever, just down that drink and go over there. You only live once. You can even take him back to my apartment; I’ll find my own abode for the night!” Brooke licks her lips seductively and gapes back over at the two men.
    I can only assume she has her eye on the other man now.
    She’s right about one thing, though: the suit is ridiculously good-looking.
    And hell, if I’m being honest with myself maybe my life