Focus, Sophia. Think unsexy thoughts. Paperwork. Schindler's List. Ernest in a skirt.
Urgh, too far.
"What makes you even sure I want to sleep with you?" I said, purposefully pulling away from him. I swear it was like he had his own personal gravity.
Annoyingly, this just made him laugh. "Is that really how you want to play this?"
"I'm not playing."
"Well neither am I. You can pretend if you want, but it doesn't change a thing." He leaned in close, as though whispering a secret. That intoxicating scent hit my nose once more, sending my hormones into overdrive. "Your body says more than any words ever could."
A shiver rolled through me, coming to rest firmly in the centre of my chest. I hated how easily he could read me. It made me feel strangely helpless. How do you fend off a man who already seems to know your secrets?
"You're right, my body is saying a lot of things," I said. "Like leave me the hell alone! I've been with men like you before, Sebastian. Hell, I work with them every day. Even if I was attracted to you, I wouldn't be interested in being another notch on the bed post."
"What makes you think that's all you'd be?"
I scoffed. "Because we just met yesterday — in rather extenuating circumstances, I might add — and now you're asking me to go to bed with you?"
He shrugged like it was par for the course. "I prefer to be up front in my relationships. That way there's no mixed messages. No one gets hurt."
"Well, that's very noble of you, but I get the impression we don't want the same things."
"And what is it you want, Sophia?"
"Well, call me old fashioned, but something more than, 'hey, want to fuck?' would be a good start."
"I didn't pick you for a flowers and chocolates kind of girl."
"I'm not. I'm too busy for that crap. Casual suits me just fine. But there's a difference between casual and meaningless."
"Good, then we're on the same page. Look, you're right, I'm not the sort of guy that dates. I don't have the time or the inclination to be tied down, and I make no apologies for that. But that doesn't automatically make me some asshole who just uses women and then throws them away. If there's no spark, I'm not interested. And this right here, this has got me very interested."
I laughed. "Ah, the playa with a heart of gold. How touching. But unfortunately, I'm not good at sharing. I have this weird thing about wanting the men I sleep with to only be sleeping with me."
He let out a long breath. "Well, I don't usually do exclusivity."
I recoiled in mock surprise. "I'm shocked!"
He studied me for a few seconds, his expression hovering somewhere between frustration and amusement. "This doesn't have to be complicated, Sophia. There are so many things I want to do to that body of yours, and I promise that you'll enjoy every exquisite minute of it. Why do you need anything more than that?"
Something in my lower belly clenched. Despite how crude his approach was, I believed him. And a rather loud voice in the back of my head was begging me to let him have his wish.
But somehow, I rallied one more time. "It's not complicated for me. It's incredibly simple. I'm. Not. Interested! Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go back to my friends. I'll extend you the same courtesy you extended me and let you walk yourself out, but if I see you here again, I'm calling security. I don't care who your friends are, if you're harassing an employee, you'll be out of here before you can blink. Goodbye, Sebastian. It's been... interesting." And with much more confidence than I felt inside, I spun and marched away.
I could hardly blame him for the way my body reacted to his, but it was still immensely satisfying to storm off like that. That'll teach him to get into my head. Bastard.
I expected maybe a parting shot, but no words followed me. I resisted the urge to turn and look back. I was proud of myself for not caving to him, although there were very specific parts of me that were emphatically venting their disappointment. I suspected I'd be delving into my underwear drawer later for a little relief.
"Jesus Christ," Elle said, as I returned. Miles was nowhere to be seen, but she was peering over my shoulder with an awestruck gaze, her lips hanging slightly open. At least it's not just me.
"Who the hell was that?" she asked.
I shrugged. "I'm not sure actually. Just some guy."
"Seriously? That's like calling Ryan Gosling 'just some guy'!"
I shrugged again, trying to feign disinterest. The sooner we stopped talking about him, the better.
"Well, whoever he was, he looked hella into you," she continued.
"You think?" I asked.
She stared at me like I'd gone mad. "He was practically eye fucking you from the moment you guys started talking. How could you not notice that? I even bet Miles ten bucks he'd get your number."
I winced. "Sorry, no dice."
She shook her head slowly. "Fuck. Well, I guess that means he's still fair game, then."
I laughed. "If we see him again, he's all yours."
Our conversation turned to other things. Despite my best efforts, I found myself glancing around every so often, checking that Sebastian wasn't still lurking nearby. It seemed like he'd taken my warning seriously, but I got the sense such threats may not really mean much to him. After all, he'd tracked me down and infiltrated my office as easily as walking through his own front door.
The effortlessness with which he'd done that frightened me a little. When he'd shown up, my mind had been reeling too much to really think it through; but now the reality of the situation was becoming apparent. In a way, it was vaguely flattering that he'd gone to such efforts, but it also made me suspicious. Between that and the bizarre events of the previous night, I got the sense that there was more to Sebastian Lock than he was telling me.
CHAPTER FIVE
I spent the next two days on autopilot. Soon, we'd be starting work on the Wrights case, but at that point, it was just business as usual. It felt a little like the calm before the storm. There was already a noticeable buzz around the office, like that frenetic pre-Christmas energy that fills the air as December rolls around. I was excited, but also a little intimidated. We had those people's futures in our hands. Winning wouldn't magically fix the damage, but it would mean hospital bills paid, carers hired, and a huge quality of life improvement for all those affected.