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to her cheeks. He didn’t simply look at her. He made her feel
     devoured by his gaze.
    “You wanted to see me,” she said in a low voice.
    The corner of his mouth crooked upward. “I want to do more than see you, Mia. If I
     had only wanted to
see
you, I would have spent more time with you last night.”
    Her breath stuttered raggedly over her lips and then for a brief time she simply forgot
     to breathe. She licked her lips and ran her tongue over her bottom lip in agitation.
    “For God’s sake, Mia.”
    Her eyes widened. “What?”
    His nostrils flared and his hands curled into fists on top of his desk. “I want you
     to come to work for me.”
    Of all the things she thought he might say, that hadn’t been one of them. She stared
     in astonishment at him as she tried to process the fact that he’d just offered her
     a job. Good God, she’d been well on her way to making a giant ass of herself. Her
     cheeks tightened in humiliation.
    “I have a job,” she said. “You know that.”
    He made a dismissive gesture with his hand and a sound of impatience erupted from
     his throat.
    “It’s not a job worthy of your capabilities and education and you know it.”
    “It’s not like I intend this job to be forever,” she defended. “They’ve been good
     to me and they’re shorthanded, so I promised I’d stay on until they can hire someone
     else.”
    He gave her a look of impatience. “How long have they been telling you that, Mia?”
    She flushed and dropped her gaze briefly.
    “You’re cut out for more than being a cashier in a pastry shop. Jace didn’t spend
     all that money and you didn’t spend all that time in college to pass out donuts.”
    “I never intended it to be long-term!”
    “I’m glad to hear that. So give your notice and come to work for me.”
    He leaned back, staring intently at her as he awaited her response.
    “What exactly is the job you’re offering me?”
    “You’d be my personal assistant.”
    Just the way he said the words sent a shiver down her spine. The emphasis on
personal
couldn’t possibly be mistaken.
    “You don’t have a personal assistant,” she accused. “You never have. You
hate
them.”
    “It’s true you’d be my first in a long while. I trust that you’d prove a very capable
     employee.”
    It was her turn to study him. Her eyes narrowed as she took in his intense, brooding
     expression.
    “Why?” she asked bluntly. “What is it you want, Gabe? And while you’re at it, explain
     last night. Because I’m at a complete loss.”
    His smile was slow and deliciously arrogant. “So my kitten has claws.”
    His
kitten? She didn’t miss the significance of that little word.
    “Don’t toy with me. Something else is going on here. Why do you want me to come to
     work for you?”
    His upper lip worked up and down and his nostrils flared as he stared across the desk
     at her.
    “Because I want you, Mia.”
    Silence fell, cloaking the room, suffocating except for the loud pulse in her ears.
    “I d-don’t understand.”
    He smiled then, a predatory smile that slid over her like the smoothest silk. “Oh,
     I think you do.”
    Her stomach flipped and butterflies swarmed her chest and tickled her throat. This
     wasn’t happening. It had to be a dream.
    “What you suggest isn’t possible,” she said. “If I work for you…we can’t…”
    “Can’t we?” he asked mockingly. He leaned farther back into his chair, indolent and
     confident as he turned to the side to stretch his long legs. “The purpose of your
     working for me is so you’d be at my side at all times. And I’d have you when I want
     and how I want.”
    Heat infused her entire body. She fidgeted in her chair, her hands twisting together.
    “This is overwhelming,” she confessed. It was lame.Completely lame as a comeback, but what else was she supposed to say? She was utterly
     speechless.
    Her heart was about to beat out of her chest. She knew there was more to this than
     his