Seducing the Enemy's Daughter Read Free Page A

Donovan.
    And the Donovan’s were responsible for the downfall of his father’s empire.
     
    Don’t forget to take time for yourself .
    Sam read the card once, twice. Okay, at least three times before she smiled and realized who’d sent the most obscene amount of flowers she’d ever seen.
    She’d come back to her office after taking care of a minor kitchen-staff argument to check hermessages. But her desk had been hidden beneath a tall crystal vase with striking flowers in various vibrant shades.
    Sam hated the fact she immediately smelled each and every bud. She’d never received flowers before and this was a heck of a way to start her collection.
    On a sigh, Sam knew she needed to take a moment and thank the man behind the impressive, not to mention expensive, bouquet. Could something this large and exquisite be called a bouquet?
    Even though her Jimmy Choos were still biting into her little toes, she forced the pain aside and made her way to the top floor. She really didn’t have the time in her hectic schedule to talk with Brady Stone, not that she minded thanking him, but she knew their next conversation wouldn’t be a simple thank-you.
    He’d try to get her to dinner again. And, once again, she’d turn him down. No matter how she desired to give in, she would not allow her mind to be muddled with a smooth talker. She’d learned her lesson long ago where smooth, charming men were concerned.
    Once in front of the honeymoon suite, Sam smoothed a hand down her pale pink designer suitand tapped on the door. When the door swung open, Sam had to focus on breathing.
    Brady had taken off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves to expose tanned, muscular forearms, unbuttoned three—she counted them—buttons of his shirt and stood holding on to the edge of the door with a wide, knowing smile on his face.
    “Samantha. Please come in.”
    Because she knew it was rude to refuse, she stepped inside. The man had been in this overly spacious room for only a few hours and already his masculine scent enveloped her. He’d made the room his own by setting his laptop up on the desk, a pair of Italian leather shoes sat near the foot of the bed and his clothing hung in the open closet area.
    Without any effort on his part, he’d already made a lasting impression. She had no doubt he left a lingering impact on all the ladies he encountered.
    “I want to thank you for the flowers.” Lacing her fingers together, she turned to face him as he closed the door. “I have to say I’ve never seen quite an arrangement.”
    With his hands in his pockets, he offered her a wry grin. “How did you know I sent them?”
    Sam rolled her eyes. “Well, let’s see. You’rethe only man in the past six months to ask me out. Other than my father, my brother and the employees here, I don’t even talk with men, so I did the whole process of elimination thing.” Feeling a bit flirty, she added, “Plus, I’m just smart.”
    Brady’s soft, soothing chuckle settled in the crackling air between them. “I like a woman who has brains behind all her beauty. However, I can’t believe I’m the only man to ask you out in the past six months.”
    Oh, he was good .
    “Believe it. I’ve been too busy working to socialize.”
    He took a step closer, then another. He came so close, in fact, Sam had to lift her gaze to hold his. Brady was taller than she’d first realized. At five foot six, Sam hadn’t had to tip her head for too many men, especially when she wore her heels.
    “All the more reason for you to have dinner with me and take an hour to yourself.” He brushed a strand of hair from her shoulder. “It’s the least you could do after I sent you flowers.”
    Sam smiled. “Are you trying to guilt me into having dinner with you?”
    “Only if it’s working,” he said, stroking a finger down her cheek.
    She eased out of his reach. “You like to touch, don’t you?”
    His hand lingered in the space between them. “Problem?”
    “I—I’m