Chapter one
Joy sat, legs crossed primly, body stiff and
tense, her stomach churning as nausea clutched at her. Across the
desk, the powerful 32-year-old CEO of the Calle Corporation stared
in disbelief. For what seemed an eternity, the silence stretched
out before the man blinked, his mouth setting in an angry line.
“Are you out of your mind Miss Reid?”, the words bitten out
contemptuously, his dark eyes raking her with disdain. She
swallowed, only managing to cling to her calm exterior by her very
fingertips, her knees hidden under the table shaking violently. If
he could see the way she quaked inside she thought, he would not
look so stunned, praying for Ricco’s sake she could hold strong.
The thought of him was the shot of courage she needed, Joy raising
her small chin, eyes meeting the man across from her and nodding.
“That is my offer Mr Calle... Take it or leave it”
The man leant forward, his fingers steepled
together on the large, ornate and obviously expensive walnut desk,
the thought that it no doubt cost more than she could earn in a
year flitting through her mind, not sure why such a thing should
register at a time like that.
His deep voice, the slightest hint of an
accent making it strangely sexy, interrupted her musings, “So...
Let me get this right. For the past six months you have been
holding out selling your land... While I have been upping my
offer…” Joy nodded in affirmation as he continued, “But now... You
are prepared to sell at the ORIGINAL price... If I agree to be your
boyfriend for some unknown period of time?”
When the offer was laid out like that even
Joy could see how crazy it sounded, her insides knotting together
even tighter, her voice almost a squeak, “Yes” Before her, Carig
Calle shook his head, his eyes hard as slate and just as dark. “You
are out of your mind Miss Reid. I will get your land by legal means
if necessary. You are blocking a major development... One badly
needed around here and I will win in the end... Even if the sale
has to be court-ordered”
Joy gripped her bag tighter, staring back at
the arrogant Spaniard, her tone harder now, her own eyes flashing
back, the usually warm brown of them darkening. “Don’t threaten me
Mr Calle. You might manage that eventually but we both know that
you need to start this project in the next three months”, her head
rising as she locked stares with the CEO, not aware how glorious
she looked, Carig Calle frowning at the change in the little mouse
who had walked in with her ridiculous demand only moments before.
“I might not win... But I will cost you so much money in delayed
building that even YOU will feel it Mr Calle”
Stopping, she glowered at the man. She hated
bullies, and even more so this man and his ilk. Why did rich people
think that because they had money they could destroy the lives of
others? A flash of pain once more ripped through her as an image of
Ricco in a hospital bed pushed into her mind. The fight left her as
she lifted a hand, pushing a wayward strand of hair from her face,
her voice softening, “If you do as I ask... then you will maintain
your schedule and even save some money”
Carig Calle sat back in his chair, one
finger absently stroking his lower lip, brows furrowed in
confusion. “I do not understand Miss Reid. Why would you want to be
my girlfriend? We are strangers”, a light of sympathy suddenly
appearing in the inky darkness of his eyes as his voice softened.
“Miss Reid... I have heard of this... Of women fixating on people
they see in the papers... On TV... This idolisation... ”, the rest
was lost as Joy, her emotions still taut, burst out laughing, not
sure why she would at a moment like that react this way. Carig’s
frown turned to a scowl as she shook her head, “No... Oh God no.
Please don’t think that. When I said girlfriend... I meant in name
only. I have NO desire for anything else... ”, another giggle left
her, tears starting to slide down her face,
Joy sat, legs crossed primly, body stiff and
tense, her stomach churning as nausea clutched at her. Across the
desk, the powerful 32-year-old CEO of the Calle Corporation stared
in disbelief. For what seemed an eternity, the silence stretched
out before the man blinked, his mouth setting in an angry line.
“Are you out of your mind Miss Reid?”, the words bitten out
contemptuously, his dark eyes raking her with disdain. She
swallowed, only managing to cling to her calm exterior by her very
fingertips, her knees hidden under the table shaking violently. If
he could see the way she quaked inside she thought, he would not
look so stunned, praying for Ricco’s sake she could hold strong.
The thought of him was the shot of courage she needed, Joy raising
her small chin, eyes meeting the man across from her and nodding.
“That is my offer Mr Calle... Take it or leave it”
The man leant forward, his fingers steepled
together on the large, ornate and obviously expensive walnut desk,
the thought that it no doubt cost more than she could earn in a
year flitting through her mind, not sure why such a thing should
register at a time like that.
His deep voice, the slightest hint of an
accent making it strangely sexy, interrupted her musings, “So...
Let me get this right. For the past six months you have been
holding out selling your land... While I have been upping my
offer…” Joy nodded in affirmation as he continued, “But now... You
are prepared to sell at the ORIGINAL price... If I agree to be your
boyfriend for some unknown period of time?”
When the offer was laid out like that even
Joy could see how crazy it sounded, her insides knotting together
even tighter, her voice almost a squeak, “Yes” Before her, Carig
Calle shook his head, his eyes hard as slate and just as dark. “You
are out of your mind Miss Reid. I will get your land by legal means
if necessary. You are blocking a major development... One badly
needed around here and I will win in the end... Even if the sale
has to be court-ordered”
Joy gripped her bag tighter, staring back at
the arrogant Spaniard, her tone harder now, her own eyes flashing
back, the usually warm brown of them darkening. “Don’t threaten me
Mr Calle. You might manage that eventually but we both know that
you need to start this project in the next three months”, her head
rising as she locked stares with the CEO, not aware how glorious
she looked, Carig Calle frowning at the change in the little mouse
who had walked in with her ridiculous demand only moments before.
“I might not win... But I will cost you so much money in delayed
building that even YOU will feel it Mr Calle”
Stopping, she glowered at the man. She hated
bullies, and even more so this man and his ilk. Why did rich people
think that because they had money they could destroy the lives of
others? A flash of pain once more ripped through her as an image of
Ricco in a hospital bed pushed into her mind. The fight left her as
she lifted a hand, pushing a wayward strand of hair from her face,
her voice softening, “If you do as I ask... then you will maintain
your schedule and even save some money”
Carig Calle sat back in his chair, one
finger absently stroking his lower lip, brows furrowed in
confusion. “I do not understand Miss Reid. Why would you want to be
my girlfriend? We are strangers”, a light of sympathy suddenly
appearing in the inky darkness of his eyes as his voice softened.
“Miss Reid... I have heard of this... Of women fixating on people
they see in the papers... On TV... This idolisation... ”, the rest
was lost as Joy, her emotions still taut, burst out laughing, not
sure why she would at a moment like that react this way. Carig’s
frown turned to a scowl as she shook her head, “No... Oh God no.
Please don’t think that. When I said girlfriend... I meant in name
only. I have NO desire for anything else... ”, another giggle left
her, tears starting to slide down her face,
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