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lift that determined little chin of hers and stride into his house as proud as a queen.
    Lila didn’t strike him as the type to back down from a challenge, which made him wonder why she hadn’t come downstairs to the dining room as he’d ordered. Had she lost her nerve? Hunter gritted his teeth, slamming the glass on the table, uncaring of the droplets of merlot splashing on the white lace tablecloth. He’d spent every single night since making this arrangement with her, lying awake, imagining his hands caressing her creamy chocolate body, her lush lips crushed beneath his. Then, he’d think about turning www.samhainpublishing.com 31

    Eve Vaughn
    her over and riding that voluptuous rump and asking himself how she’d respond to toys.
    He tortured himself with questions of how things would be between them.
    He supposed time would tell if only she would get her ass downstairs so he could lay down some ground rules. Glancing impatiently at the platinum Rolex adorning his wrist, Hunter decided he’d give her five more minutes before he stormed upstairs and dragged her down—by her hair, if he needed to.
    The soft clicking of heels against the marble floor in the foyer alerted him to someone’s approach. Lila.
    Folding his hands in front of him, he tried to project an air of nonchalance he didn’t feel. His pulse raced, and breath caught in his throat when she appeared.
    Wearing a little black dress, which dipped in the front to reveal the top of her tempting cleavage and accentuated her curves to a tee, she stood proud and graceful. He could probably span her tiny waist with his hands. Lila wore her hair piled on top of her head and her face was bare of makeup save for a touch of gloss.
    She was absolutely gorgeous. And late.
    “You were supposed to be down here a half hour ago!” The words rushed from his mouth like an angry roar. It was a bit harsher than he’d intended. Hunter hadn’t meant to let on how eager he’d been for her to join him.
    Lila jumped at his brutal rejoinder before standing even straighter and taking a seat at the foot of the formal dining room table. “I’m here now.” She replied so calmly, it raised his ire.
    “You’re too far away. Come down here.”
    Golden brown eyes narrowed as she raised her chin in defiance. “I prefer where I’m sitting, thank you.”
    There could only be one reason why she wouldn’t want to be so close to him. Well, that was too damned bad. She’d have to accept him, scars and all. She’d already seen them and knew exactly what she was getting into. “Perhaps you’ve forgotten, but I call the shots around here. Not you. But seeing as how you’d like to test me, I’ll give you two 32
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    Mistress to the Beast
    options, you can either take the seat here,” he pointed to the table setting next to his, “or I’ll come get you. I don’t think you’d appreciate the experience.”
    Lila went completely still, her gaze locking with his. For a moment he believed she’d stand her ground, but in an abrupt movement, she pushed her chair back, and stood, her lips tightened to a thin, angry line.
    Disappointment at her reluctance to be close nagged at him. One of the first things that had struck him during their initial meeting was the way she’d seemed unaffected by his appearance. Oh, he’d seen that look of horror flash in her eyes upon his reveal, and of course she’d fainted, but after she’d come to it was as if she’d forgotten about them.
    Could he have just imagined it? Was it simply wishful thinking on his part? Probably. He was a fool.
    She was no different than anyone else. Too bad for her she’d have to deal with him for the next three months. Hunter had given up a great deal to give in to her demands, including hours with board members, executives, contractors and on top of that coming up with a feasible alternative to his previous plans. He’d be damned if he allowed her to treat him like a fucking nuisance.
    When