The man dropped his hands and gripped the arms of the chair then he looked up. “Well, no. I’ve been focusing on the overall picture, I guess…” His face began to turn a deep red. “I guess I didn’t pay close enough attention to the little details.”
Rock scowled. “Those little details cost us over a hundred thousand last year.”
Sean Johnson’s face turned an even darker shade of red and he dropped his eyes. For a long while there was silence. Then, to Rock’s surprise, the man looked up at him again and this time his eyes flashed with anger. “Do you know what? I am innocent. Whatever you may think, I know I have a clear conscience. If you doubt me, why don’t you call the police? Let them do an investigation.”
Rock frowned. “I’m not ready for that yet.”
“If you’re ready to accuse me of being dishonest then you’d better call them in.” Sean Johnson stood up and the cowardly man that had sat in the chair was gone. Now he was all indignation. “I enjoy the job I do here, Mr. St. Stephens, and I take pride in the fact that I’m an honest man. If you’re going to call me in here to accuse me of theft, then you’d better go all the way. Bring in the police, anybody you want. You can accuse me of overlooking something but you can never accuse me of stealing from this company. I respect Robert French and myself too much to do anything like that.”
“Sit down, Mr. Johnson. I’m not accusing you of anything.” Rock jerked his head at the chair and continued scowling until his employee sat back down. He was not used to his staff members standing up to him - in this case, literally. But Sean Johnson’s reaction did one thing - it gave Rock the feeling that this man, as shifty as he looked, could not be involved. He could not have faked his confusion when he was confronted with the information about the discrepancy in the books. And he could not have faked his indignation at being accused of dishonesty. He was either telling the truth or he was an actor worthy of the Academy Award.
Rock folded his arms across his chest and shook his head but said nothing, realizing his dilemma. He’d thought he’d got to the bottom of this but if the culprit was not Sean Johnson, then who was it?
He was back at square one.
CHAPTER SIX
For the second time that evening Dana looked up to see Rock watching her and he did not look pleased. What had she done now? She glanced away and turned back to her computer screen, feigning intense interest in the report she was typing.
This was the third night in a row that he had asked her to stay late. She hadn’t minded at all. In fact, she totally understood because he had explained to her that there had been a steady decline in business over the last few months and he was determined to reverse that trend. That would require a lot of work – analysis, meetings with their major clients, a change in their business strategy. All of that meant that she would have to put in long hours with Rock so that he could complete the tasks within the time he had specified. He had shared with her that within the next two months he hoped to reverse the slide in the sale of luxury vacations but also to embark on some major projects. Instead of just selling luxury packages to clients Rock wanted to take the business to a higher level. He wanted the company to own its own luxury resort. That would require extensive research as they checked properties in the Caribbean for possible purchase.
Dana was up to the task and she’d been willingly working late hours with Rock. Although it was a lot of work, she’d actually enjoyed it. The only challenge was a personal one. Every time they were in the same room she had to fight to subdue her body’s reaction to this virile man. Each time he came near, her breath would catch in her throat and her ni**les, traitors that they were, would stiffen inside her bra. With a treacherous body like hers, working with Rock late at night was like playing with fire.
But tonight, for some reason, Rock seemed to be in a foul mood. Instead of piling on the work he would fall into silence, his thoughts seeming to be a million miles away. Then he would scowl and turn those golden eyes on her with a look of such ferocity that she would swear he had something against her. But if he did, he said nothing to explain himself, and she definitely was not going to ask.
**
God, this was torture. Rock got up from behind his desk and began to pace the room. He had asked Dana to work late again, and although the work had to be done it was more for selfish reasons than for anything else that he had her here till seven-thirty at nights. He let out a grunt of self-disgust and shoved his fists into his pockets. He was pathetic.
The fact of the matter was, he wanted Dana. He’d been trying to fight it all these months but he finally had to admit it to himself. What he felt for her was more than merely passing interest. Much to his chagrin he finally had to admit that, contrary to his morals, he was attracted to one of his employees. Now how the hell was he going to get out of this mess?
Rock drew in a deep breath then shook his head. The only way to get this monkey off his back was to confront it head on. He walked over to stand beside Dana’s desk then folded his arms across his chest. “What’s going on between you and Jason Blake?”
Dana looked up, seeming startled at first, then her brows came together. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me,” he said, his voice brusque.
As he watched, Dana drew in a deep breath and her nostrils flared. Then she fixed him with a cold, hard stare. “I told you before and I’ll tell you again. There is nothing going on between us. Not that it’s any of your business.”
“When it’s taking place inside my office that makes it my business.” So she wanted to play tough? Two could play that game.
“And I keep telling you, there’s nothing going on between us. Whatever you may think of me, I’m a professional, and I don’t take my personal business to the office.” She got up from behind the desk and turned to face him. “And I don’t appreciate your accusations.” Dana’s chest heaved and her eyes flashed. Her lips were trembling - those full, pink lips, so angry and yet so vulnerable, so tempting in their rage.
And as he stood there glaring at her, all Rock could think about was what it would feel like to pull her into his arms and kiss her breathless.