Page 26 of Forbidden Desires

“He’s your general manager. If you don’t trust him around female employees, then why is he still working here?”

“He’s still working here because my father employed him, and he has been with the company since before I was born. I also haven’t got any proof yet, it’s just a feeling and some rumors. But I don’t want you alone with him. Do you understand?” I say a little more seriously.

“Well, look at you getting all protective of me again,” she says with way too much sass for my liking. She thinks this is a joke. It’s not. Victor’s up to something, and I don’t want her caught up in whatever it is.

“I’m serious, Gisele. The way he was looking at you isn’t normal.”

Her brow knits together. “It’s the same way you look at me.”

She's comparing me to that creep. I might be a little older than her, but I’m not going gray. I also look at her that way because I know she was into me in New York. Our chemistry together was off-the-charts hot, and I know the feeling is mutual, even if it shouldn’t be now. “It’s not.”

She takes my tie in her hand and runs the silky fabric through her fingers, just like she did in New York. It’s sexy as hell, and I have to remind myself wherewe are to stop from shoving her against the wall and kissing her like I want to. “So, to my face, you’re going to pretend like there’s not something here, but I was good enough that you bragged to Parker about me.” She drops the tie. “Or was it just that you wanted him to think you could bang a Broadway star, give you extra credit with the other guys around here?”

Of course, she’s going to bring this up now. “It wasn’t like that, Gisele.” I sigh, cursing Parker for telling his sister.

Her hands go to her hips, and I can see she’s not impressed with me. “What was it like then, Brody?” she snaps. And fuck, that mouth of hers, I can’t take my eyes off it. Her lips are painted a shade of pink to match her shoes. I move so she is against the wall, the two of us only inches apart. It takes everything I have inside of me not to touch her.

“Parker was the only one I told,” I say, dropping my head closer to hers. “I had a really great night with you. I was disappointed when I got back to my room and you were already gone. I was hoping to exchange numbers or... I don’t know. I told him about you because I had never met anyone like you before. But now that you’re here working for me, this can’t happen. Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t want it to if it could,” I admit, my voice low and coming out as more of a growl.

I find myself irresistibly drawn to her when we're this close. What I wouldn’t do to run my fingers through her hair or kiss her plump lips right now. Maybe bend her over my desk and punish her for sassing me yesterday.

She bites her lip as she studies me. I would kill to know what’s going on in that head of hers. What she made of my admission. I don’t normally go aroundtelling one-night stands I wanted more with them. In fact, I never have before. “No, it can’t, and it wouldn’t anyway. I’m here to change my life, not fall right back into old patterns, getting messed up with guys I work with.” She sighs. Placing a hand to my chest, she shoves me back out of her space. “We had a nice night together, Brody, that’s all it was. I don’t need you looking out for me. I grew up in New York, I can handle myself in this town. Like you said yesterday, you’re my boss, nothing more.”

I stare back at her, hating the words as soon as they fill my ears. It’s one thing when I tell her we can’t be anything more. But when she says it, it hits me right in the gut like a sucker punch. She turns and walks away, leaving me watching her, feeling empty inside. I try to reassure myself it’s better this way, safer, but I already know it’s not. I want her desperately. Once wasn’t enough.

Chapter 12

Gisele

Emerson and I have just finished showing a new couple through our beautifully landscaped gardens and function center. I listened intently to all the features, knowing next timeI will be on my own for the tour. I only hope that I can come off sounding as enthusiastic and passionate about this place as she does.

“How are you settling in, Gisele?” Emerson asks with a warm smile.

“Okay, I think. I’ve taken two new corporate bookings today, some ideas Victor had. They’re a lot easier to deal with than the brides, aren’t they?”

“Sure are. Those brides, you need to kill them with kindness. Weddings are all smoke and mirrors, that’s why I knew you would be good at this job.”

A hesitant smile plays on my lips. “Yes, I’m learning that. I thought I was all over it yesterday. This weekend’s couples seem lovely, but the girl I talked to this morning kept saying one thing, then sending me images of what she wanted, and it was the complete opposite of what’s already on her file. She said she talked to Paisley about the flowers, but I’m pretty sure Paisley’s going to flip her lid when she sees what she wants her to create for the budget she has.”

Emerson’s laughter fills the air. “Welcome to the world of weddings; they want Instagram opulence on a DIY budget.”

I join in the laughter, realizing the absurdity of it all. “What do I do about it?”

“Go talk to Paisley, she should be around today. Before you do, though, you may want to visit the parking lot.”

My curiosity is piqued. “Why?”

She pulls a set of keys from her jacket pocket and hands them to me. “Your new wheels. The position comes with a corporate car.”

My eyes narrow, suspicion rising. “For what? I do all my work here at the hotel.”

“You’ll have to discuss that with Brody.” She shows me through to the lot and points out a flashy new white Jeep.

I’m actually going to kill him. He’s so strangely overprotective of me when he has no right to be. The sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach tells me he arranged a car for me because I drove to work with Parker this morning, and he didn’t like it. When Paisley said he offered me a lift, I was happy to take him up on the offer because I hadn’t figured out the bus yet. There was nothing more to it.

“I will. Thank you, Emerson.” I place the keys in my pocket and bring up the file for the Sierra wedding on my iPad, a mix of emotions swirling within me. Brody has boundary issues. Major ones. Just because I slept with him once doesn’t mean he has any control over my life. I didn’t move halfway across the country to escape my domineering father, just to have him replaced with a boss who thinks he’s my daddy, buying me an expensive car and threatening to punish me in text messages. I can laugh the rest of it off as harmless flirting, but this is going way too far.

“You’re not going to hop in, check out the fancy interior and new-car smell?” she asks, her curiosity obvious, and I wonder what she makes of her brother’s behavior. Surely, he’s not like this with every event coordinator.

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