If he was smart, he’d take that as a huge warning sign to stay away and not become involved, but he’d never claimed brilliance.
She’d changed into nothing more glamorous than a pair of sweatpants and a San Francisco Tide jersey.
Odd, but she hadn’t struck him as a baseball fan.
Her shoes had long since been shed, and her toenails, painted a delicate shade of pink, teased him. Hell,
he was even attracted to her feet. Small and dainty.
He was officially losing his mind. Never before had he lusted after a woman’s feet.
She forked another bite into her mouth then sighed and made a low sound of agony before putting her plate down on the coffee table.
“That was fabulous. I’ve eaten so much that I won’t fit into that sparkly dress I brought for the wedding.”
That statement brought a whole host of splendid ideas to mind. Namely that they could both skip the wedding and stay in bed where clothing was entirely optional.
He shifted in his seat and wondered for the sixth time why he was so bent on torturing himself.
“So tell me something, Evan,” she said as she leaned farther into the sofa cushions. Her eyelids lowered and she tucked those pink toes underneath a throw pillow. “What made you walk away from your family’s business and start your own in a field that was so different from the jewelry trade?”
It didn’t surprise him that she knew so much about his background. She would have researched him tirelessly. Still, he debated how much to tell her.
Their gazes locked, and he saw only simple curiosity. No ulterior motive, just interest.
“There were several reasons,” he finally said. “Emotion has no place in business and yet I find myself making emotional decisions.”
Her eyebrows rose. “I’m surprised you’d admit that. Doesn’t jive with your big, bad, ruthless businessman persona.”
He smiled ruefully. “Okay, so part of it was emotion based. I didn’t agree with my father’s style of management. The fact is his company is in trouble. I saw it coming years ago and he was in flat denial. He saw no reason to change the way he ran things since it had worked for decades before.
“The other reason was I don’t exactly get along that well with him and Mitchell.”
“You don’t say,” she said drily.
He chuckled. “Yeah, I know, hard to believe. Mitchell…there are lots of more appropriate words for him, but I’ll go with the fact that he’s a lazy, unmotivated brown noser. All his life, because he was the baby, he’s never had to actually work for anything. He’s been handed everything since he was a child.
As a result, his sense of entitlement is huge. I would work for something and he would want what I had worked for. Dad would give it to him.”
“Ah, I think I’m beginning to understand the fiancée thing more now.”
He nodded. “Yes, I don’t harbor any illusion that Mitchell and Bettina are some great love match. I had Bettina, so Mitchell decided he wanted her. Bettina saw Mitchell’s appointment to CEO as her ride into a life of glamour.”
“And were you and Bettina? A love match, I mean?” she asked gently.
He pursed his lips and blew out a long breath. “This is where I look like the jerk.”
Celia chuckled. “Jerk? You? Surely you jest.”
“All right, don’t rub it in,” he grumbled. “I’ve admitted my shortcomings.”
“Do continue. I’m dying to hear all about what a toad you are.”
Her eyes sparkled with mischief and amusement. He’d never wanted to kiss her more than he did right now. Instead he found himself telling her stuff he’d never tell a woman he planned to take to bed.
“Bettina didn’t pose a challenge. That sounds bad but when I met her, I was devoting all my time to making my business a success. It was exciting and exhilarating. I exceeded even my wildest expectations.
Everything was falling into place at the speed of light. All that was missing in my mind to complete the image of perfection I had built up was a wife and a family. Perfect house in the suburbs. I’d come home after a hectic day and she’d have dinner waiting. The kids would all be bathed and well behaved. Even the dog would be the epitome of good behavior. I wanted—still want—a woman who’ll put me first.”
Celia snorted, covered her mouth and then dissolved into hoots of laughter.
He regarded her dubiously. “I do believe you’re mocking me.”
“Mocking you?” She wheezed between words and tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. “Oh my, Evan. You do dream big, don’t you?”
“Well, it was a good fantasy while it lasted,” he grumbled. “I looked around and there was Bettina. I didn’t have time to figure out what my ideal woman was. I wanted my perfect life then and I didn’t want to wait. So I asked her to marry me, she said yes, I gave her a ring and that was that.”
“And yet here you are. With me. The fake fiancée.”
He scowled ferociously at her only for her to dissolve into laughter again.
“Okay, so what happened? Other than Mitchell stepping in and being an overindulged twit.”
He liked this woman. She was good for his ego even when she was tearing it down.
“Bettina wanted to set an immediate date. She had a grand wedding planned. Even had the honeymoon destination picked out. She littered my office with brochures. Hell, she even had our children’s names picked out.”
“I would have thought given your fantasy that you would have eaten that up with a spoon,” she pointed out.
“Yeah, so did I. Only I found myself backing off. I kept making excuses to extend the engagement. I was busy. This deal had to take priority. That deal needed immediate attention. Before I knew it, we had been engaged a year with a wedding scheduled another year beyond that. And moreover I was content with that.”
“Did you never love her?” Celia asked quietly.
“No. No, I didn’t. Which is why I can’t really blame her for wanting out. Our marriage would have been a disaster just as soon as I figured out the reality didn’t live up to the fantasy I’d created in my mind. I just didn’t think she’d dump me for Mitchell or that Mitchell would have been poaching on my territory.”
Celia winced. “Yeah, I can understand that.”
“I found them in bed, you know. How clichéd is that? The sad thing is, when I found them together in my bed, I just laughed, because to me it was just the next step in an already farcical relationship. I tossed them out of my apartment and washed my hands of them both.”
Celia’s expression grew thoughtful. “Hmm, so you don’t necessarily object to the fact that she found someone else. Or that she cheated on you. Just who she indulged herself with.”
Evan nodded and rubbed the back of his neck to ease some of the tension and fatigue. Just talking about it raised his ire all over again.
“Yeah, it’s stupid I know. I mean, she could have cheated on me with my business partner, or my vice president or, hell, even my driver. I wouldn’t have cared. I might have even given the man a raise. But my brother. My spoiled, overindulged brother. No, that was the one thing I couldn’t forgive.”
“Well, if their relationship is based on all you say, then I’d imagine they’ll suffer enough in the long run without you wishing them ill.”
He regarded her for a long moment. “You’re not going to lecture me about harboring childish grudges?”
She smiled, and those gorgeous green eyes cut right through him. She took his breath away until he was helpless to do anything but stare back.
“Nope. Not a word. Considering I have my own grudges and I don’t plan on forgetting them in this lifetime, I could hardly chastise you for the same.”
“Oh, do tell. You sound so…vicious. I like it,” he teased.
Her expression grew serious. Pain flickered in her eyes, and she turned away, her mouth drawn into a tight line. He was immediately sorry that the light mood had dissolved. As much as he wanted to know her secrets, he wanted to see her laughing and smiling even more.
To cover the sudden heaviness in the air, he got up to pour a glass of wine. Without a word, he offered one to her, and she took it, gratitude easing some of the tightness around her eyes.
He wanted to touch her so badly. Wanted to ease the strain and the unhappy tilt to her lips. He wanted to kiss her plump mouth until he owned her very breath.
He forced himself to return to his chair. The remains of their dinner was scattered across the coffee table. Some had fallen to the floor, but he wasn’t inclined to clean it up. They sat there sipping their wine as evening fell all around them.
Finally he could remain silent no more.
He leaned forward to set his glass on the table. For a moment he looked down at his hands and
imagined her flesh beneath his fingertips. Then he glanced back up to see her studying him with the same keen interest flashing in her eyes. She wasn’t immune. He wasn’t the only one who felt the magnetic pull between them.
“What are we going to do, Celia?” he murmured.
He saw her swallow nervously. She hadn’t misunderstood, but neither did she respond.
“I want you so damn much I hurt. I’ve hurt for weeks. Every time I look at you, I get so many knots that I can’t function. I’ve thought of all the ways I can explain to you that our business relationship has nothing to do with the desire I feel for you. But the simple truth is I don’t give a damn. I want you in my bed, and I don’t care what has to be done to make that happen.”
Her eyes went wide and frightened. He hated that. He didn’t want her to be afraid of him.
“You feel it, too. Don’t deny me that much.”
Slowly she nodded. Her fingers went to her forehead and she dug them into her hair. Still, he could see them shaking, and she swallowed again, her slim neck working with the effort.
“Please,” she whispered. “I can’t do this, Evan. It’s the one thing I can’t do. Don’t ask it of me. If you want me to admit it, fine. I want you. More than I’ve ever wanted another man.”
Savage satisfaction gripped him. Didn’t just grip him but lunged for him and wrapped a hand around his throat and his groin. His entire body reacted to that simple statement. She wanted him more than she’d ever wanted anyone else.
She turned on the couch until she faced forward and her feet met the floor. She looked in turns miserable and scared. Her eyes closed in what looked to him like self-condemnation. He swore, startling her with the force of his curses.
“Whatever you’re thinking, I don’t like it,” he said flatly. “I have no idea what the hell kind of blame you’re placing on yourself, but I can guarantee that you didn’t use your feminine wiles to seduce me into signing with your agency. I wanted you from the first moment I saw you. Want to know when that was, Celia? Go ahead, ask me.”
He stared at her in blatant challenge, waiting, wanting her to take it up.
Her eyes went wide with shock, and her face was pale and drawn. “W-when?”
“At the Sutherland’s reception. You were there with one of your clients. Copeland, if I remember correctly. The grocery-store giant.”
Her mouth fell open. “But you were still with Rencom.”
He nodded. “Precisely. I looked across the room, and you took my breath away. Want to know another of my sins, Celia? I was still engaged to Bettina. It was a week before I found her in bed with Mitchell. I didn’t care. I wanted you so much. Now tell me how big of a bastard that makes me. Try to tell me this has anything to do with your pitch.”
In the course of their conversation, he’d moved to the couch. He moved closer still, stalking her like
prey. Her scent lured him, and he inhaled the delicate, feminine smell that he’d come to associate with only her.
Her eyes were flush with awareness and caution. There was confusion in her deep green pools, but something else, too. Desire. Matching desire. She wanted him. Maybe as much as he wanted her. It didn’t matter because he would have her.
“Want to know something else?” he murmured. “I almost didn’t consider Maddox for the account. Want to know why? Because I didn’t want it to interfere with my pursuit of you.”
He was close now. So close he could feel every little puff of breath that came from her lips. He could see the tiny little nervous swallows that worked her throat up and down. And her mouth. Her luscious, sweet mouth. He wanted to taste it, devour it like candy.
“W-what changed your mind?” she whispered.
“I’m perfectly capable of separating business from pleasure,” he said evenly.
“Evan, we can’t.”
She put her hand on his chest. Big mistake. A current of electricity singed him. They both jumped, but before she could withdraw, he caught her fingers and trapped her hand between his and his chest.
“Just one kiss, Celia. Just one. I have to kiss you. It’s all I’ll demand for now. I can wait for more until we have this account settled.”