The Royal Contract

Chapter 16 - A Puzzle

"Where are you?" She muttered to herself. She scanned the entire surface, but she could not find what she was looking for. She stretched further to get a better position of the area, but it was still nowhere in sight.

Unknowingly, an unexpected visitor was quite enjoying himself with the view she was presenting to him. Dani was on her hands and knees on the floor under her desk with her ass pointing straight at him. The skirt she was wearing highlighted the curves of her butt to perfection just the way he liked it.

A knock at the door startled her and she accidentally bumped her head at the edge of her table when she hurriedly tilted her face to the direction of the door. "Aaahhh, what do you want now?" She shouted thinking it was Jacky.

She had been in and out of her office this morning ever since Alexander and Marcus arrived for their meeting with Mr. Jenkins. Marcus and Jacky hit it off the other day and he wanted to see her again tonight for another date.

"Don't you see I'm busy, Jacky? Can't we talk about your date later during lunch?" She said annoyed at the persistent knock.

She quickly stood up, shaking the pain away from the bump on her forehead. She felt slightly dizzy from the bump and her sudden movement, making her wobble on her feet. A pair of hands suddenly held onto her shoulders and assisted to steady her.

She already knew whom those hands belong to even before she even looked at his face. His scent was becoming all too familiar and it was not good for her senses.

"Dani. Are you ok?" He said with a bit of concern, but she could also sense the amusement in his tone. He held her head firmly to look at the discoloration that was slowly developing on her fair skin.

"I'm fine." She said sardonically, trying to get out of his hold on her. She knew he was just trying to help, but she was not particularly comfortable with him standing so close to her.

"No, you're not." You have a huge bruise on your forehead, he pointed out.

"I said I'm fine. It's nothing. I think I will survive." She moved away from him.

"Were you looking for this?" He asked, holding out in his hand was the gold round pendant she accidentally dropped. "I found it by the door."

"Thanks." She took the shining object from him before returning to her seat, restoring the chain and its pendant inside its casing. "What are you doing here, Mr. Princeton?" Making him known that his presence was unwelcome.

"Call me Alexander or Alex. Mr. Princeton is too formal. I would think that we are more than just an acquaintance." He took a seat at one of the chairs in front of her without waiting for an invitation. He figured he would not get one anyway.

He and Marcus went here to finalize the closure of the case because he needed to fly out tonight. In truth, his presence was not necessary for this proceeding, but he could not resist the idea of not seeing her again.

"We are neither acquaintance nor friends, Mr. Princeton." She told him, not liking what he was implying.

"Maybe you should attend to that nasty bruise. It's starting to swell." He suggested, pointing to her forehead.

"Don't worry about it. It's nothing. I had worse." She took a small tube out of the side drawer and her compact. "Just give me a minute."

She inspected the skin just above her eyebrow and found a small swelling around the bluish area with a slight cut. "Let me." She found herself staring at Alexander's eyes as he snatched the ointment from her hand.

She did not notice him moved and his sudden nearness caught her off guard. His face was just a few inches from hers, his proximity sending havoc in her nerves.

"You should always be careful." He said as he spread a small amount of the gel in the affected area. He wanted to touch her, to feel her skin against his. An invisible string pulled him to her and there was no way for him to break free.

He slowly caressed her cheeks as he pulled some stray hair away from her face. His eyes lowered to her lips. How he wanted to kiss her.

She suddenly came to her senses when her phone suddenly rang. "Thanks." She straightened her shoulders and collected herself while he walked back to his seat. She answered the call, concentrating on the person in the other line while evading his gaze.

"Mr. Jenkins informed me that you will be updating me about the pending case." He stated as soon as she hanged up the phone.

He assessed her quick change of demeanor. He admired her control as she easily shifted to her professional guise. He wondered what else he would discover if he spent more time with her.

"Sorry, I was just made aware of that by Mr. Jenkins. If we could reschedule because I'm heading out right now." She said as she noticed the time. It was way past her break, but where was Jacky. She was engrossed in her work that she forgot about lunch.

She wanted him gone. Every minute she spent time with him was a risk she did not want to take. However, Mr. Jenkins just informed her that she needed to discuss the case with him today.

"About that, Jacky just canceled on you. She left with Marcus a while ago." He casually said. "I suggest that we do it now since I'm pressed for time. Why don't we have a working lunch so we can finish early?"

When he suggested that Marcus take Jacky out for lunch, Alexander was not sure of his intentions, but he could only guess that it had something to do with the girl behind that desk.

She was a puzzle that he needed to solve. Something that he could not quite understand, but his fascination with her was driving him insane. This was the first time that he felt this way. Intrigued by a girl he hardly knew.