Page 172 of Strange Seduction
Her brows furrowed, but she didn’t say no.
Marcus glanced at me, his expression unreadable.
I leaned forward slightly. “You don’t owe anyone anything, Carmen. Not me. Not Marcus. You can stay here as long as you need.”
“Actually, she does owe something. A part of our agreement was that she’d work at my firm after she graduated.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “You forcing her back to work after she lost her Dad, Marcus?”
“No,” he said evenly. “But knowing Carmen, she probably wants to work through this. It’ll help take her mind off it.”
I scoffed. “Tuh. What the fuck do you know about Carmen?”
“Theodore!” she warned, and I ignored it.
“She needs a break, man. That’s what’s best for her.”
“Does she?” Marcus cocked an eyebrow. “Or is that controlling attitude you’ve developed rearing its ugly head again?”
I sat up. “What?”
She placed a hand on my chest and looked between us. For once, unsure.
And that was fine. Because I was sure enough for both of us.
She wasn’t leaving me.
“I don’t know, Theo. I have a lot waiting for me back home.”
I didn’t look at her. I looked at Marcus.
And I smiled.
“Nothing that can’t wait, right?” I said smoothly. “The firm’s still standing. Marcus is handling everything so well, he had time to fly across the world and take you to lunch.”
Marcus gave a tight laugh. “This isn’t a vacation, Clayton. Carmen’s a friend who needed me, so I came.”
“Friend,” I echoed, sipping my coffee. “Right.”
Carmen’s eyes narrowed at me.
“Theo—”
“I’m just saying,” I continued casually, still watching Marcus over the rim of my cup, “you must have a pretty light caseload to be in Rome making sure someoneelse’sgirlfriend is emotionally okay.”
Marcus leaned back, arm slung over the back of his chair.
“I care about her,” he explained, and the thought of Vince’s words echoed in my head. Every man in her life was so invested in her all of a sudden.
“You called me, remember?” Marcus continued. “If you didn’t want me here—”
“I didn’t say that,” I cut in. “I appreciate you showing up—”I don’t.“—I really do. But you’re not needed anymore. I’ve got her now.”
Carmen turned sharply. “Theodore.”
But I didn’t take my eyes off Marcus. That corporate, polished lawyer look on his face was like he was waiting for me to slip up and hand him something he could use in court.
But I wasn’t bluffing.
