The Millionaire Meets His Match

planned a major celebration. The investors and their families will be staying there for a long weekend. There’ll be a big formal party and lots of hoopla. If we can get our act together.”

“I’m sure it’ll come together nicely,” Trish said. “The photos of the resort look beautiful.”

He sat forward in his chair. “It’s a great place, Trish. Top-of-the-line luxury, with a spa and a world-class restaurant, great trails and ski runs. It’s fabulous. The rooms are rustic, but warm and beautiful and elegant at the same time. I can’t wait to show it off.”

Trish couldn’t help but get caught up in his enthusiasm. “It sounds wonderful.”

Adam looked thoughtful. “Cheryl was in charge of the big opening-night gala we’re throwing for the investors.”

“A gala?”

“Red carpet, formal ball, the whole bit.”

“Sounds exciting.”

He stabbed at a small piece of chicken. “It will be if we can still pull it off. That’s something else I’ll need to bring you up to speed on tomorrow.”

“Oh, I’d love to work on something like that. I’ve always dreamed-” She stopped. Whoa. No dreaming, please. What was she thinking? She’d been drawn in by his charm again. She carefully checked her watch, then stood. “Naturally, I’ll be glad to do whatever you need me to do. I’d better be going now. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Adam seemed surprised by her abrupt change in attitude, but said smoothly, “Of course, it’s late. Thanks again for everything. See you tomorrow.”

“Yes, good night.” She hurried out of his office, grabbed her purse off her desktop and raced to the elevator. As she waited, she berated herself. What was wrong with her, sitting around chatting with him as though they were the best of friends? Lest she forget, Adam Duke was not her friend and never would be.

And furthermore, as far as the opening-night gala was concerned, if she managed to complete the real job she’d come here to do, she’d be long gone before the Fantasy Mountain formal ball ever took place.

Three

She should’ve quit yesterday.

It was now Trish’s fourth day on the job. She’d been through every file drawer along one long wall of her workspace but had found absolutely nothing incriminating about Adam Duke. Nothing that could be used to create even the tiniest public outcry against him and his company. On the contrary, yesterday she’d stumbled upon a full drawer of files containing the many charitable foundations he served on, along with pages and pages of donations he’d given over the years. The man seemed to be a veritable paragon.

“He even wants to save the whales,” she muttered.

But that’s not why she should’ve quit. She wanted whales to have a good life, too. And it was great that he supported all those charities. But did Adam have to come across as such a Boy Scout? She knew he wasn’t, knew all those good deeds were just a facade to cover up the slimier projects his company carried out. There were plenty more files to search and she knew she’d find something eventually. She had to. She’d been here almost a week and so far he’d treated her so nicely, she was racked with guilt.

But that wasn’t the reason why she should’ve quit, either. No, the reason was that she was starting to like Adam Duke. And not just because he was beyond handsome, not just because her heart stammered whenever he got close to her and not just because she was starting to dream of him at night. God help her.

No. The problem was, she was starting to like him. The man himself. His sense of humor, his sense of right and wrong, his work ethic, the way he treated his subordinates. Everyone in the company seemed to adore him and as much as she’d fought it, she found herself teetering dangerously close to that slippery slope. And adoration was not, repeat, not listed on her business plan.

And even if she did adore him-which she didn’t-Adam Duke was the last person on earth she would ever get involved with. Not that he’d asked her out or anything. He never would. She was his employee and he was probably too damn conscientious to ever cross that line. And that was fine, too. She’d heard enough office gossip to know that she wasn’t his type at all. Meaning, she wasn’t a supermodel, tall and thin and beautiful-if vapid. Nor was she the type to fall into bed with a man just because he took her out to dinner.

She fumed as she slammed shut another file drawer. Even if he did ask her out to that fancy dinner, she would say no. Because Adam Duke was the enemy.

“Remember, Trish?” she muttered fiercely under her breath. “That’s why you’re here. The man is the enemy. Try to stay on track, would you?”

“Good morning, Trish,” Adam said.

Okay, she might’ve let out the eensiest little squeal, but she applauded herself for not jumping more than six inches at the sound of his voice. Why did he continue to sneak up on her?

“Good morning,” she whispered hoarsely, trying to catch her breath.

“You’re trying to make me look bad, aren’t you?” he said, gazing at her through narrowed eyes.

“What? Me? No.” She glanced around quickly. The file drawers were closed. There were no incriminating notes on her desk. How had he grasped the true reason why she was here?

He laughed and every last synapse in her nervous system stood up and did the cha-cha-cha. Who needed coffee when Adam Duke was in the room?

She cleared her throat and moved to her desk. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

“I thought I’d be the first one in the office,” he explained. “But you’ve beat me to it every day this week and here you are again, already settled in and hard at work.”

“Oh.” She was such a moron. “Right.” She tried to breathe evenly as she fiddled with the staple remover and almost gouged her thumb. “Um, well, I do like to get an early start on things.”

“Great,” he said with a wink and a crooked smile. “I like that, too.”

She resisted the urge to check her pulse. She looked away, tried to swallow, but her throat was dry as dust.

“Everything okay this morning?” Adam asked.

“Uh, yes.”

“Any calls?”

“No, sir.”

“Sir?” He grinned. “I like the sound of that.”

She shook her head. There was that teasing sense of humor again. And that, combined with a winning smile, was surely the most attractive quality in any man. Well, a perfectly shaped rear end helped, and Adam Duke had that going for him, too.

“Are you ready to go over the opening-night arrangements?” she asked as Adam turned toward his office.

“Absolutely,” he said. “Grab your notes and come in.”

Trish squelched the thought that her notepad wasn’t the only thing she wanted to grab. As she followed him into his office, she took it all in: the perfect butt, the wide shoulders, his masculine scent, his powerful stride. The man exuded strength, charisma and incredible sex appeal, and his ethics had the appearance of being honorable. So what was she doing here? Besides tormenting herself, of course? Lust, forbidden and sweet, roiled inside her and she almost groaned. How could she be so stupid as to be falling for him?

She really should’ve quit yesterday.

Adam ignored the now-familiar tightness pulling at his groin and sat down behind the heavy mahogany desk. By now, he should’ve been used to this ridiculous lust and the physical manifestation it produced in him every time he walked into the office and feasted his eyes on the deliciously curvaceous Trish James.

Physical manifestation? He rolled his eyes in disgust. Why not call it a hard-on and be done with it? But hey, wouldn’t his brothers be proud that he was using his words?

Despite the physical…whatever, Adam had to admit he got a kick out of seeing Trish every morning. She was