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The Perfect Temptation, Part 4
Damien shoved his hands through his hair as he continued with the paperwork on the boardroom table. He was silently fuming over his brother's comments before he went out to lunch with Veronica. "I don't let women play mind games with me," he muttered as he reached up and loosened his tie with a jerk. "Vaughn is just being the pain in the…" He was cut off when there was a knock on the door. "Come in," he called as he leaned back in his chair.
Quatre smiled as he pushed the door open, but he didn't close it behind him. "I thought I would stop by and see how you were doing."
A weak smile was all Damien managed to give his father. "It's going all right. Vaughn went out to lunch with Veronica again."
"He's been doing that a lot lately. Good for him. She needs his support right now," Quatre replied as he sat down in the chair across from his son. His matching aquamarine eyes met his son's. "And you're working through lunch again?"
"I have to when he takes the hour long breaks."
"Take a break, son. The work won't run away."
"Dad, I don't have the time to…"
"Nonsense, Damien, you always have time to take a break, especially to eat. You won't be as frustrated looking as you are. Your mother always made sure I took a break."
Damien arched a brow. "As I recall it, she would come and drag you home from the office if you didn't."
A grin crossed Quatre's lips. "That she did. She insisted she was doing me a favor. And it was. I got more work done and I was able to concentrate better."
"But I don't have the time. My assistant isn't here to help and Vaughn's assistant is at her lunch."
"I can remedy that problem," Quatre replied as he stood up and went to the open door. "You can come in now."
Damien gave his father a puzzled look until she walked into the room. "Oh no, oh no, oh no! I can't deal with her on a daily basis! She'll drive me insane!" "Angelina," he croaked.
Quatre pulled out a chair for her and sat down next to her. "Angelina could help you until Missus Calen comes back from her vacation. Howard says she almost single handedly runs the scrap yard up on L2. He just does most of the hands on stuff."
Angelina gave Quatre a sweet smile. "I hope I can be of some help to your son." She gave Damien a slanted look. "Could I help you, Damien?"
"Yeah, help me into an early grave." "I don't know," he hedged, not wanting to flat out say no to his father's suggestion. His eyes skittered away from her in the simple, yet sexy black suit she was wearing.
"It'll only be for another three weeks. You can accomplish a lot more in the three weeks with her help," Quatre prodded, starting to become aware of the undercurrents floating around the room. "What's Damien got against, Angie? And what's she up to?"
Damien tamped down any emotions that dealt with her, knowing his father could and would pick up on them. He cleared his throat. "I suppose she could." His eyes went to back to hers. "There's a lot of paperwork you would have to do."
Angelina's chin came up several notches from the barb he sent. "I'm a hard worker. There's nothing I can't accomplish."
Quatre could feel the electricity charging throughout the room as his eyes bounced between his son and his friend's daughter. "Damien and Angie? Is she the reason he's been twisted into a bundle of nerves this week? Well, whatever it is, he'll get over it. He's just like me when he goes into work mode. He thinks of nothing else." He cleared his throat and pasted a smile on his lips. "Well, than it's all settled. She'll be of great help to you, Damien. But first you eat lunch, which Angie has for you. Your mother sent it with me and insisted that you eat it."
Damien plastered a smile on his face as well. "Tell mom I said thank you." His eyes went to Angelina as she set the large bag on the table. "And thank you for giving me an assistant, dad."
"It was no problem," Quatre said as he rose from his chair. He pressed a kiss on top of Angelina's hair. "Take care of him, Angie, and make sure he takes a break to eat the food his mother sent him."
"Sure thing, Quatre," Angelina answered as she smiled up at him. Her eyes went to Damien. "I'll make sure he gets what he needs done."
Quatre felt the air crackle again. There was more than enough animosity radiating from his son than he thought towards her. "I'll leave you two to get to work." He nodded at his son and left the boardroom.
As soon as the door closed behind his father, Damien pinned a glare at the copper haired woman in front of him. "What the hell are you doing?"
She gave him an innocent look. "Whatever do you mean?"
He growled. "You know exactly what I mean. How did you weasel my dad into letting you be my assistant?"
She propped her elbows up on the table and leaned forwards. "I didn't do any weaseling at all. Duo suggested it to your father. He agreed."
Another growl was emitted from Damien's throat. His eyes flickered over her, taking in the figure enhancing black suit. It left nothing to the imagination. Well, to his imagination. He yanked his eyes away. "Just do what you're supposed to and leave me alone."
A wounded look crossed her face before she smirked. "I can't do that."
"And why the hell not?"
"I'm your assistant. I'll be with you constantly."
"Grrr."
"You make that sound so bad. Trust me, I'll be a very good assistant for you." "In more ways than one."
"That's a laugh," he snapped as he pulled over the bag that contained his lunch. He took a peek inside it. A slight smile flickered across his lips. She had packed his favorites. "Thanks mom," he said softly as he closed it again.
"You're not going to eat it?"
"I'll eat when Vaughn gets back."
"And when's that?"
"In half an hour."
"Why don't you just take it now?"
"Why can't you leave me alone?"
Angelina gave him a gamine smile. "Because I'm getting paid to work for you…and to see you get all hot and bothered by my presence."
Damien's mouth twitched. "Here," he gritted out as he pushed a bunch of files and an extra laptop across the table towards her, "go and enter these into the database. It should keep you occupied and out of my hair for several hours. You think you can do that, Angelina?"
That barb didn't go unnoticed either. "I'm very competent in the office, Damien Winner." She flipped open the laptop and the first folder from the foot high stack of files. She sent him an arched look. "Do you always act like a bastard?"
"Only to women like you."
Her eyes narrowed. "And what kind of woman am I?"
Damien noticed that her eyes had taken on a dangerous metallic glint to them. "I'm too polite to say it since you're the daughter of my father's friend."
"Chicken," she muttered under her breath as she began to type the information into the computer.
He muttered a few choice words in Arabic before returning to his work.
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Twenty minutes went by before Angelina looked up again. His head was bent forwards as he read the paper in front of him, making his hair fall in a careless manner over his forehead. She watched as he brought a hand up and rubbed the back of his neck. There was a frown on his lips as he continued to rub and read at the same time. She smiled a little and pushed out of her chair. She walked silently around the table to where he was sitting and leaned over his shoulder. "Your neck hurt?"
Damien nearly jumped out of his chair at the sound of her voice. He turned his head to look at her. Her face was close, too close. He leaned his head away. "No."
"Liar," she scoffed as she propped one hand on her hip. "You've been rubbing your neck and grimacing at the same time. Let me rub it for you."
"Like I'd let you touch me."
"Afraid you might like it?"
A scowl flashed across his face. "I'm not afraid of you."
"Then stop being a baby and let me take care of it for you," she huffed as she pushed his hand away and began massaging the muscles in the back of his neck. "You're really too tense. Relax or else it'll hurt."
He crossed his arms and gave her a belligerent snort. He leaned back in his chair as he tried to relax his body. It was near impossible since she was touching him and he would admit, grudgingly that what she was doing was making his neck feel better.
Angelina felt him sink his shoulders down as she continued to rub his neck. She moved her hands up and down the back of his neck, working out all the knots she seemed to feel. She moved her fingers to the sides of his neck and behind his ears.
Damien felt all the tensions leave his body as she rubbed behind his ears. He bit back a sigh, but couldn't help letting his head fall forwards from her ministrations. "That feels so good."
She immediately felt his body relax. Pleased that she had gotten him to loosen up, she gave all her attention to that spot behind his ears. "So you do have a weak spot, Winner."
His neck felt boneless as she concentrated on that one spot. He rested his head on his arms, which were lying on the table. He couldn't keep his head up.
"That feel good?"
"Mmm."
She smiled at his response and moved her fingers from his neck to his scalp. His hair felt silky against her fingertips as she moved them in concentrated circles. "Like that?"
He leaned back against the chair and nodded his head. He kept his eyes closed. Her touch was making his skin tingle in a pleasant manner. "I could get used to something like this."
Angelina moved on to his temples, using the pads of her index and middle fingers.
Damien let his head fall back. It felt too good for him to keep his neck straight. He didn't realize however, that the chair had no headrest and the back of his head was resting against her.
She was startled for a moment as his head rested against her breasts. She smiled a little more and continued with what she was doing.
He felt like he was in heaven. No one had ever given him a massage like that before. Even his ex-girlfriend, Claudia, had never given him one this relaxing before. She had never pressed hard enough to make all the tension he had, go away.
Angelina took note of the look of contentment on his face. "Falling asleep?"
"Mmm," he mumbled again as he moved his head slightly.
A flash of heat went through her when he moved his head. She glanced down at his face and the peaceful smile gracing his full lips. She was dying to know how they felt against hers. She wanted to kiss him very much. She didn't get the chance however since Vaughn chose to push the door open.
Vaughn's mouth fell open in surprise as he took in his brother and Angelina. "Oh damn and I don't have a camera!"
Damien's eyes popped open at the sound of his brother's voice. He looked up at her. She was smiling. And he realized just what his head was resting on. "Shit." He pushed out of the chair and put distance between him and her. He glared at her.
Vaughn snickered at Damien's irate expression. "Now, I must say that was a shock to walk in on, but don't have her stop on my account."
Damien glowered at him. "Shut up, Vaughn."
Angelina sat down in the chair that Damien had vacated. She crossed her legs. "You were enjoying it, weren't you?" she pouted.
Damien eyed her and her silk clad legs before yanking his eyes away. "I wasn't."
She arched a brow over one eye. "Oh no? You certainly sounded like it with all your "Mmm's."
Color shot up to his hairline. "I was doing no such thing."
Vaughn smirked. "Deny, deny, deny."
"SHUT UP, VA UGHN!"
She gave him a steady look. "Deny all you like, but I know you were. You just don't want to admit it."
Vaughn burst out into full-fledged laughter behind his hand. "She's got you there!"
Damien gave his brother a killing look. "You, shut the hell up! And you," he growled as he turned a glacial look at Angelina, "Stay the hell away from me!" He swiped his lunch from the table and left the room with a loud slam.
Vaughn collapsed against the door, too weak from his hysteria to stand up anymore.
Angelina frowned and tapped her nail against her lips. She soon sighed and smiled again. "Well at least I know he has a weakness, but maybe it was the wrong time to get it. How can I get him completely alone?"
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Damien stalked to the courtyard outside. He felt like killing his brother and strangling her. "I didn't like it, I didn't like it," he muttered as he sat down in the shade of some trees. He stared at the gravel under his shoes. "But I did and that's the problem. I did like it and I liked who was doing it. Damn her for making me feel like this. I don't have the patience to put up with a woman like her. She's a distraction and I can't have that right now." He raked a frustrated hand through his hair. "What am I going to do? I can't fire her because I don't want to cause suspicion. And I know my dad has probably already picked up on it. Dammit! What am I going to do about her?"
A/N: Like it so far? More will be coming soon, so stay tuned! XOXO!!