Page 117 of Daddy By Design

Archer chuckled. “Since when?”

I glanced over my shoulder. Since her, which was also a problem. She snaked her hand around me and snatched my notebook again. “Hey!”

“Hey what?” Archer asked.

“Not you.”

“Am I interrupting? Oh my God, you finally got laid!”

“Shut up. Did you listen to my message or check your email?”

“Nope. I literally just got off my flight. I’m in...” I could hear the booming voice of airport arrival announcement. “Hell, where am I? Excuse me, miss. What city am I in?”

The honeyed voice of a woman rumbled in the background, but I couldn’t make out her answer. As usual, the woman had entered the tractor beam of Archer’s charm.

“Right. Thanks, love. Coffee?” Even through the static, I could hear the smile in his voice. “Depends on the coffee and where my next flight is.”

“Could you wait five minutes for your next conquest?”

“Just a moment,” he said to the woman. “It’s a wonder you ever have company, Dev. I’m in Georgia.”

Archer was one of the few people who still called me Dev. And just like that, the tangles from my past darkened my mood.

“Get on a flight for Syracuse. I have a job for you. A big one.”

“Syracuse? Where the holy hell is that?”

“Central New York.”

“Not even New York City? If I have to come into a city, the least you could do was give me some nightlife.”

“Just get on a plane. I bought a house on a lake in the middle of nowhere.” I crossed the room to Dahlia. She was looking through the front of the notebook. “I gotta go. Text me when you land, and I’ll get you.”

“Wait. You bought a house? Actually purchased? In your name?”

“Yep. Get here and I’ll show you everything. I need your expertise.”

“I’m still trying to process the purchased part. And hey, what if I already had a job lined up?”

“It’s a Victorian with Gothic accents.”

He whistled. “Color me intrigued.”

“Get your skinny ass over here.” I hung up and stuffed my phone back in my pocket.

“So, I’m not special? You actually talk to everyone like that?”

Was she actually upset about it? I couldn’t quite tell by the coolness to her tone. I tried to grab the book and she shoved it under her shirt.

A flashback to the first time we met, and she’d confiscated my phone moved through me. “You think I won’t go after that?”

She backed up. “Why are you hiding all of this?”

My hand fisted at my side. “I’m not hiding.”

“Could have fooled me.” She held the book tightly against her middle. “You have millions of dollars, and you draw like something out of an art class.”

Astounded that she hadn’t looked me up, I crowded into her. “What’s it matter if you get paid, Dahlia?”

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