Page 20 of Fiancée for the Cameras

Her catlike eyes flashed at him. “You’re mocking me.”

“I’ve...never been asked to fill out a questionnaire before I embarked on an affair.”

Her eyes searched between his and then zoomed down to his mouth with a helpless eagerness that made him want to groan out loud. “And I’ve never just jumped into an affair with a man like...you.”

“A man like me?”

“So out of my league. Who radiates confidence and sexuality and...”

Her open admission sent lust spiraling through him.She was new to this and that meant it could go wrong in so many ways, that rational voice he lived by whispered. “I wish I could put a shelf life on it. But I have no idea how long it would last. You might grow bored long before I do.”

“Maybe in an alternate universe,” she said, her own fingers coming to grasp the base of his palm in a tentative touch. He felt the contact shiver down his spine, wondering if he was so deprived of all touch or if it was just hers that had him reactinglike this. Wondering if there would come a day when she realized the hold she could have over him.

“I guess the timing is convenient,” she said, her voice gone husky.

“How?”

“The fake engagement, the forced proximity is a good cover to get it out of our systems.” When he stared at her, she blushed. “That’s the technical term.”

He had never in his life discussed the terms of a maybe affair and the naiveté, the sheer lack of worldliness with which she asked the questions, told Andrea why his mother had been so outraged. Releasing her wrist, he moved away from her. “I tend to take people at face value. And yet, I cannot forget that you’ve just been through a painful, life-changing experience. And, by your own admission, you’re not even sure what this is. What did you call me earlier? A giant blanket?”

“As much as I can cuddle a grumbly, grouchy bear,” she said, coming up to the other side of the desk, her eyes wide in her face. When she gripped the edges of his desk and leaned over it, want made every inch of him curl tight.

He watched her, feeling a slow hum of pleasure through his veins at her aching beauty. Emotions flickered through her eyes. When the silence lengthened and he still didn’t say anything, her mouth pinched down at the middle. “You’re changing your mind about this. About wanting me.”

He rubbed a hand over his face, feeling all of his thirty-four years in his bones. “No, I know I want you, Monica. And I know all the ways I want you. I cannot stop thinking of how many of my own rules I’m breaking by even admitting how much I want you.”

“And if I said I was sure, Andrea? If I want to do this with you no matter what?”

“Itisa lot. I should’ve never told you—”

“Then why did you?” she demanded, pushing her upper body over the desk like a bow bending toward him.

“Because I lost control. Your sweet admission made me forget how complicated all of this already is. When I invited you in here, all I meant to do was suggest the fake relationship. Not propose an affair.”

“I know that. I started this. I was the one who said it first.”

He stared at her, willing her to leave it, willing her to go.

“Do I need to sign a contract that says I won’t ask for more than you give, or cling to you when it’s done or that I’m old enough, wise enough and savvy enough to have sex with Andrea Valentini for pleasure without making it too much in my puny head?”

He let out a pithy curse.

She nodded, as if he had given her answers to all her questions. Then she wrapped her arms around herself again, as if she was pulling her dignity around her, and turned to leave. She was almost at the double doors when she turned back and said, “What time do we have to leave for the gala?”

“Monica—”

“We’re not losing that contract. I’m not going to stop working for you because of something that didn’t even happen, because of what that jackass did to me. And we’re not going to let your reputation get tarnished.” There was steel hidden in her quivering voice and it made him want her a little more.

She rubbed a palm over her flat belly and then glanced down at herself with a frown. “I need better clothes and shoes and maybe a little help with makeup.”

“You’re the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever met. And believe me, I have met some.”

“Ri-i-i-ght,”she said, stretching the word out. “I keep forgetting you had a playboy phase.” Then as quickly as it came, the teasing left her eyes. “I don’t want to let you down, Andrea.”

“You won’t.”

“I don’t want to let myself down, either. After everything with Francesco... I need a little boost of confidence. As the fake fiancée of the CEO of Valentini Luxury Goods, I’m allowed a little trip to the designer freebies showroom, aren’t I? I’ve heard so many stories about it and I’ve been dying to go.”

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