The woman was determined to drive him crazy. Oh she had no idea what she was doing to him; he was damn careful not to show it. Every morning Ryder anticipated Lydia Morris’s arrival. His blinds were always wide open to give him a clear view. He had to be the first to see what new confection she had decided to torture every male within a hundred-yard radius with.

On some days, she wore a simple skirt, modestly cut to right above her ankles. In theory, it was conservative to the point of prudishness. Only, with her curves, the skirts hugged her like a second skin. Add in the fact she had a fondness for three-inch 1950s pinup heels and shirts that showcased the most unbelievable set of ta-tas this side of the Rio Grande, and Lydia was a walking wet dream. And she was completely unaware of the fact.

Just once, he longed to rip off those hip-hugging skirts, strip those thin, low-plunging silk shirts, and make her parade around his office wearing nothing more than those damnable pumps and black stockings with the seam up the back. Ryder just knew the lingerie hiding beneath her clothing would be droolworthy in the extreme. Lydia wouldn’t deem to wear anything less.

As she walked from his line of vision, he got an excellent view of an ass that would make most grown men weep. Its perfect apple shape was probably what men had in mind when they paid homage to the behind. With each step she took, her perfectly rounded ass cheeks moved like ripe melons waiting to be fondled and squeezed.

His cock jumped to immediate attention at the thought of taking her from behind: slamming his dick between her tight, wet folds and riding her until they were both oblivious to everything around them. The funny thing was, when she’d first started as a temp at his company six months ago, he’d barely spared her a second glance: She was a little taller than he preferred, she didn’t wear her hair loose and flowing as he preferred, and she didn’t seem one bit impressed by him. Three strikes.

No, she wasn’t someone a person took notice of right away. Her beauty was of the unconventional variety, but once noticed, it had the ability to knock a man flat on his ass with her near onyx complexion, large brown eyes that were neither dark nor light and tilted at the corners, and lips so large and plush, he ate his heart out daily when he saw them.

If only Lydia would give him the time of day. Sure, she listened when he spoke; he was the boss, after all. She performed her job flawlessly, coming up with hot ad campaigns for his clients that not only satisfied them but their bottom line as well. But she refused all offers of drinks after work, even in the most professional of settings. Though she came to a few company events, she kept her distance.

She could charm the pants off a prospective customer, schmooze heavy hitters with the best of them, but never allowed anyone to get close, him especially. There wasn’t a time when she didn’t keep it strictly professional in the office. It didn’t help matters that her husky, alto voice stroked his cock, just as surely as if she had slipped it in between those luscious glossy lips. He was getting damned tired of retiring to the men’s room to calm his throbbing dick after a meeting with the all-too-tempting seductress.

Ryder didn’t consider himself conceited, but he was a good-looking guy with more than his fair share of female attention. He couldn’t remember the last time he was interested in a woman where the attraction had not been reciprocated. Most women considered him a catch; he was the owner of his own advertising agency, had a healthy bank account, a nice house on the hill, and a hot ride — two, in fact. Not bad for someone who started out with nothing except a dream, the drive, and a huge set of balls to take the risks required in starting one’s own business.

Ryder couldn’t for the life of him figure out what the problem was where Lydia was concerned. It crossed his mind that perhaps she wasn’t into white guys, but from further observation, she kept all the men, and women for that matter, in the office at arm’s length. It was one thing if she didn’t believe in dating a colleague, but something told him that wasn’t it. She didn’t appear to socialize at all. Despite the distance she put between herself and the other employees, she still managed to be friendlier and open with them than she was with him. And he was fucking tired of it.

Before he could change his mind, he informed his personal assistant he wanted to see Lydia in his office — now. Enough was enough. He wasn’t going to come right out and ask her why she wouldn’t give him the time of day. He wasn’t even going to tell her of his interest. What he had in mind was so much better.

New prospective clients wanted an advertising campaign for their “adults only” resort island. In order to get exactly what they were looking for, they had suggested Ryder and an associate spend a week on the island — to get the feel of the place — before coming up with a proposal. They’d offered the same deal to his biggest competitor, and the firm had failed miserably.

Ryder couldn’t think of another person he wanted to do “research” with more than Lydia. She was good at her job, and it would give him the perfect opportunity to get to know her one-on-one. It was the perfect excuse to break the ice and finally find out if they’d be as good together as he thought they could be. But he needed to play it smart. If Lydia even suspected what he was up to, she would walk right out of his firm and out his life before he could blink, and that was simply unacceptable.

Licking his lips in anticipation, he rubbed his crotch to ease the ache. His cock was so fucking hard, it threatened to bust the seam of his pants. He wished he had time to rub one out real quick, but that wasn’t an option. Lydia would be here in a matter of minutes. Less than that probably. If he’d learned nothing else about her, Ryder had discovered she was punctual to a fault. It took him several deep breaths and thinking nonerotic thoughts for his dick to go down. Just as he got his body under control, his phone rang, displaying his assistant’s number on the caller ID. “Yes, Donna?”

“Lydia is outside your office. Should I send her in?”

“Yes.”

Seconds later, the woman who starred in all his deepest, darkest fantasies walked into his office. The sight of her made his cock jump to attention again. She wore a polite smile, yet her eyes were devoid of any emotion. He wondered what she’d have to say for herself when he told her what he had in mind. Lydia would probably be suspicious if he deviated in any way from his normal affable self, so Ryder pasted on the jovial smile he gave to all his employees. Too professional and she would sniff a rat; too friendly and she would shoot him down.

“Good news! Prospective clients, high-end, need my best person on the job. And I think you’ll do nicely.”

Nodding her head, she whipped out a pen and pad. Always ready, Lydia was. It added to her allure. He wanted to knock her off-kilter, just once.

“Give me the particulars, and I’ll get on it.” She readied her pen to make notes.

Yeah, baby, it’s not going to be so simple this time.

“Fantastic! Glad you’re on board.” Ryder grinned like the Cheshire cat. “Pack your bags. We leave Friday. Seven days at an exclusive resort. The client wants us to experience the place before coming up with a proposal. They were adamant about it, in fact.”

Her mouth opened and closed as if she wanted to come up with some excuse as to why it couldn’t be her. Like he was going to give her the chance.

“Make sure you pack a bathing suit.” He stood up but turned his back before she could see the raging hard-on he was sporting. “The client wants us to participate in some of the outings they have to offer. And bring your laptop. We can start working on the logistics while we’re there. Go ahead and knock off for the rest of the day so you can get ready. I have back-to-back meetings, so I will see you when the car comes to pick you up Friday morning. That will be all.”

He walked out of his office, leaving Lydia gaping after him. A wry smile graced his lips as he walked down the hall. Yep, sweet Lydia was in for it now.