Bejeweled and Bedeviled Read Free Page A

is
not conducive to serenity.”
    Had the intrusive Mr. Trielle been present, Kayden would
have informed him it wasn’t the clutter that was playing havoc with her
serenity, it was him. Along with all the things she anticipated he was going to
do to her.
    “Mr. Fuller was kind enough to give me access to your
office. Under Mr. Trielle’s assurance that should there be any ramifications,
they would fall squarely on his shoulders.”
    Struggling to dispel the image of those wonderfully broad
shoulders and how far she’d have to spread her legs to accommodate them, Kayden
was slow to process the rest of Chalmers’ statement. “Mr. Fuller?”
    “Jimmy,” Shayla supplied.
    “Remind me later to have a little talk with our security
guard.”
    “I assure you, Miss Starling, that won’t be necessary. Mr.
Trielle—”
    “It’s Kayden. And this is my office. Not Mr. Trielle’s.”
    Instead of voicing the contradiction revealed in the slight
shift of his expression, he said, “Very good, Miss. If you will please sit,
I’ll serve you breakfast.” He turned and lifted the silver dome off the platter
sitting on the cart behind him.
    Kayden nearly closed her eyes and ummmed over the
mouthwatering smell of eggs, Canadian bacon and…oh crap, was that a Belgian
waffle beneath a mound of fresh strawberries supporting a white, fluffy
mountain of whipped cream? The scrumptious sight almost made her cave. But she
needed to bring home the point that this was her place of business and no one
was going to come in here and dictate to her.
    “I told you, I don’t eat breakfast.”
    Before he could say anything, Shayla’s stomach growled and
drew their attention.
    “Sorry.” She smiled sheepishly. “Guess the small bowl of
cereal I had before rushing out of the house didn’t quite do it.”
    “I have the perfect solution.” Kayden turned to Chalmers.
“Shayla can eat the breakfast while I sit with her and have my coffee. Then you
can inform Mr. Trielle that the meal was thoroughly enjoyed. Problem solved.
Come on, Shayla, let’s sit down.” Intending to set her purse on the desk,
noting it too had been cleaned, Kayden was stopped in her tracks by his next
words.
    “I’m sorry, Miss. Mr. Trielle was specific in that you eat the breakfast. He believes that one’s body—”
    “Look, Chalmers. Your loyalty to Mr. Trielle is commendable,
but maybe I didn’t make myself clear earlier.” Kayden fought to keep the
irritation out of her voice. “This is not Mr. Trielle’s office. And this,” she
poked herself in the middle of the chest, “is not Mr. Trielle’s body.”
    The last part netted her a raised eyebrow. Okay, so what if
he did know of her arrangement with his boss. This was her turf. Over this world, she was master.
    About to tell him as much, she noticed both his and Shayla’s
gazes fixed on something over her shoulder. Shit .
    “Good morning.”
    The deep, quiet voice that flowed into the room curled down
her spine and infused heat into every crevice of Kayden’s body. Chin lifted,
she spun to confront her nemesis.
    Smacked with the realization the man looked every bit as
handsome, commanding and sinfully sexy as she remembered, her throat
constricted, cinching off her words.
    “Perhaps it was I who didn’t make myself clear
yesterday.” His gaze never leaving hers, he said, “Chalmers, the staff’s
breakfast should be arriving at any moment. Why don’t you confer with Shayla on
how best to have it served?”
    “Very good, sir.”
    “And Shayla,” Hunter said as he shifted slightly to let them
leave. “Would you be kind enough to hold all of Miss Starling’s calls?”
    “Kayden?” Shayla, God bless her loyal soul, turned to her
for confirmation.
    After a defiant hesitation, Kayden nodded. “I’ll let you
know if I need anything.”
    * * * * *
    Once assured of their privacy, Hunter stood where he was for
several long seconds, his gaze fixed on the stunning, stiff-chinned woman in
front of him