Page 9 of Ignacio

“I disagree. Living together makes perfect sense and will show everyone that we’re serious this time, making our reconciliation more believable.”

“I don’t agree.” Delta pressed a hand to her temple as if she had a headache. “I have a house in Atlanta.”

“And your family lives with you. When I’m in Atlanta, I often stay at my mother’s. Renting a place and moving in together gives us the opportunity to present to the world thatwe’reeach other’s family now.”

“Why is that necessary? I’m not convinced.”

“Then how about this? Moving in together will help me.”

“And I should care because…?”

He clenched his jaw but bit back the angry words that almost spilled from his lips. “Right now, the media portrays me as a wild partying playboy.”

“Gee, I wonder why.” She smiled sweetly.

She really knew how to push his buttons.

Ignacio continued. “If they see we’re living together, they’ll write different types of stories about me, which could send a positive message to potential investors.”

“I hear you, but there’s a problem you haven’t considered.”

“Which is?”

As far as Ignacio was concerned, he’d considered every angle. For years, he leaned into the media’s characterization, hosting wild parties and rotating women in and out of his life with ease. It wasn’t all bad. It kept women from thinking they had a shot at tying him down and making him monogamous, of becoming the first Mrs. Ignacio Santana.

But now he wondered if his behavior had lowered expectations regarding his business acumen. Did backers wonder if he could be trusted? Pretending to be monogamous with Delta could help his image, thereby increasing his chance of finding an investor.

“You’ve forgotten about household staff,” Delta answered. “They’re going to notice we’re not sleeping in the same bed.”

“We’ll have them sign NDAs, as usual.”

“There’s still a chance of a leak. Do you really want to take that risk?”

Ignacio scraped his fingers through his hair in frustration and paced away from her. She was right. They couldn’t risk chatter from staff. He had a loyal housekeeper who would be temporarily moving from LA to live with him in Atlanta, but there were other people, like the cleaners, who would be local hires. Could they be trusted to keep their mouths shut, or would they break when someone came along and offered a nice sum of money in exchange for knowledge?

He swung to face Delta, who was standing in the middle of the room with her arms crossed over her midsection. “Then we sleep in the same bed.”

If he thought her eyes had gone wide before, they practically bulged out of their sockets at that suggestion. Then she burst into laughter.

“I’m glad you think this is funny.”

“You’re serious?” she asked in an incredulous voice.

“Yes, and the more I think about it, the better I like the idea.”

“That’s a terrible idea.”

“I disagree.”

“Think about what you’re saying.”

“It’s for appearance’s sake, Delta. As you pointed out, we can’t risk having someone on staff disclose we’re sleeping separately. That doesn’t exactly confirm we’re a loving couple back together again. And what’s the problem with sleeping in the same bed? Neither of us has to answer to anyone, so there’s no one to be concerned that we’ll…”

“We’ll what?”

“Have sex.”

Her lips parted in silent shock.

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