Page 16 of Worth Every Penny

How many seconds pass like this? Five? Ten? Or is it only one long drawn out second? I have no idea. On an intellectual level, I know I should say or do something, but my twenty-six-year-old body has been hijacked by teenage me, who’s desperate to bolt out of the starting blocks and straight into Nico’s arms.

And that absolutely cannot happen.

“I take it you’re not keen on the deal?”

His words bring me back, and coarse laughter cracks from my lips. “What could possibly have given you that idea?”

“Swearing in my face rather gave the game away.” He strokes the underside of his jaw with two fingers, a glimmer of amusement in his eyes.

A powerful gust of bitter wind blows down the length of the balcony and my whole body shivers.

“It’s too cold to be out here without a jacket,” he tells me. “Take mine.”

It’s not a question. Typical Nico, hiding his control with the pretense of kindness.

The scent of his cologne wafts towards me as he shrugs out of his jacket, and my body hums with arousal. It doesn’t feel like a memory of the past. It feels very present day.Present moment.

I’ve been silent too long because Nico, still holding out his jacket, repeats, “Little K?”

“I told you, it’s just Kate. And no, thank you. I’d prefer to freeze than take anything from you.”

His gaze narrows, but he doesn’t query my statement as he retracts the jacket and puts it back on.

“Jack showed you the contract,” he confirms, nodding at the sheet of paper in my hand. “Serious reading for a party.”

His casual tone has me seething. “As if I could enjoy the party now that you’re here,” I mutter. I’m not even sure I want him to hear it, but I don’t want him to think his presence is welcome. It’s not.Definitely not.

Nico stiffens. “Christ, Kate. You’re as cold as the weather. What’s going on? Is this about me buying Lansen?”

This is my opportunity.If I don’t address it head on, I’ll lose my nerve.“I’m surprised you dared come anywhere near us, after what you did to my father.” My voice is tight with the effort of restraining my anger.

He stills a moment that stretches interminably long. Then, finally, “Ah.”

Scowling, I step closer to him. “Is that it? Is that all you have to say?”

“What exactly do you think I did, Little K?” His voice is silk, his upper class accent like crystal in the dark night.

“Stop fucking calling me that,” I snap.

Nico’s only response is to raise a brow, his attention not wavering from me for a second. He waits, and the need to answer his question overtakes my irritation. “You killed my father.”

A beat passes before he replies. “How did you reach that conclusion?”

His voice is calm but curious, making doubt flail in my gut like a dying beast. But I know I’m right.Why won’t he just admit it?My fingers tighten on the stem of my glass.

“The timing. Two weeks after you refused to go through with the purchase, he was dead.”

Nico tilts his head, examining me like he wants to open up my skull and see what’s going on inside. His inspection makes me nervous and I’m suddenly aware of a pulsing sensation in my toes, my hands… thewhoosh-whoosh-throbof my blood.

“I can’t imagine how hard losing a parent was for you, and I’m sorry for all you’ve suffered.” This stuns me for a second, but Nico doesn’t pause before adding, “But your father’s death isn’t something you can pin on me, as much as you might want to.”

Angry heat scorches my insides. “If I have to listen to you deny—”

“It was a heart attack.” He enunciates each word, sharpening the syllables as if he thinks they’ll penetrate my delusion.Condescending prick. “In business, shit happens. If it was too stressful, then maybe your father oughtn’t to have been playing the game.”

A gasp of outrage sticks in my throat, and then the words escape in a rush. “It wasn’t the stress that killed him. It was you. Your fucking choices. He wanted that deal more than anything. And Lansen was a good business. Why didn’t you buy it back then? Why did you mess him around?” I pause for a beat to let Nico answer, but he doesn’t, so I continue. “Dad didn’t deserve it. He was a good man. A hundred times the man you’ll ever be.”

“Is that so?” There’s something in Nico’s gaze that draws me off point: the softening of his features, a gentleness to his eyes. If I had to guess, it’s pity.

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