Page 5 of Awakened by Sin

“You’re a pro,” he said when he reached her.

“At what?” She waited for a sleazy line like, “Making me want you.”

“Networking. You know how to handle difficult clients.”

Okay, that was unexpected. She took a closer look at him and detected a gleam of amusement in his eyes. “Who says I was networking?”

“I do it for a living. I know another pro when I see her. What’s your aim?”

“Aim?”

“What do you want from them?”

She inwardly bristled. She wasn’t sure if he was accusing her of something. “Who are you?”

“Marcus Fletcher.”

Her stomach clenched. The COO she met earlier. At some point, he ditched the red mask and cape for a spiffy suit. How could she have known he was hiding a handsome face under the mask? “Oh.”

“What’s your aim?” he asked again.

She considered ignoring him, but technically, they were his guests, so she admitted, “I’m helping Alice.”

“Alice?”

“Your community outreach coordinator.”

“I know who Alice is,” he said patiently. “What are you helping her with?”

“Outreach.”

“By talking to celebrities?”

“By asking them to attend events for better publicity.”

Marcus smiled. It looked good on him—natural and genuine. She didn’t want to like him and definitely didn’t like the low curl of attraction that wriggled to life in her belly. She hadn’t felt a thing for any man since Vinny died and didn’t like that she felt a pull toward this man.

She took a step back and wasn’t prepared when he took her hand.

“That’s nice of you to help Alice,” he said.

She looked pointedly at the hand clasping hers. “Yeah, well, I’m busy so—”

“What do you think of Incognito?”

She glanced at the dance floor, which was a writhing mass of beautiful people moving to the beat, and stated the obvious, “It looks like a success.”

“Is it what you imagined?”

She looked back at him. “Excuse me?”

“You were involved in the initial concept. Is this what you imagined?”

She was nonplussed. “How do you know that?”

“Vinny had extensive notes.”

Vinny had been a compulsive notetaker. He couldn’t remember anything unless he jotted it down. What had Vinny included in his notes about Incognito? He wouldn’t have mentioned her fondness for costumes, would he?

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