Page 10 of Scandalous Contract
CHAPTER THREE
STEFANIE
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HE’S GONE, STEFANIE. Pull yourself together.
Yeah, he was gone, but the effect of his presence lingered. The scent of his cologne still floated in the air around me. The phantom feel of his lips against my hand was still there, a reminder of that brief goodbye kiss.
His words were on repeat in my mind like a broken record player that I wasn’t sure I was ready to fix. His red flag was still waving in the air. Red. Not green. Julian Cattaneo was a bright red flag, and the sooner I got him out of my head, the better.
Trying to push my encounter with him from my mind, I called my daughter’s phone. She answered on the fourth ring.
“Hey, mom.”
“Hey, sweetie. I’m downstairs.”
“Oh, okay. Here I come. Are you okay, mom?”
“I am. Why?” I asked, frowning.
“I don’t know. You sound different.”
Did I? I cleared my throat. “I’m fine. Just hot. That’s all.”Hot and bothered.
“Okay. On the way. Bye.”
“Bye.” I hung up.
I slid the phone back into my purse just as the door to the building opened, and in walked....Julian Cattaneo. My eyes widened. My stomach flipped. My pulse stuttered. Had my wayward thoughts conjured him?
“Why are you back?” I hissed through clenched teeth, worried that my daughter would see us together. Wait! Why was I worried that my daughter would see us together? I hadn’t done anything to be ashamed of.
I may have thought about it. But I hadn’t done it. There was no reason for my daughter not to see us together. Still, I felt guilty. I felt... naughty. I felt as if I needed to avoid Julian at all costs.
“Did you miss me?” Julian asked with a wink.
“No one ever misses trouble,” I replied, trying not to smile.
Oh, no! Was this banter growing on me? Please don’t grow on me. Grow in me.Damn it, Stefanie. Stop being a cougar.
His smirk was pure sin when he asked, “You may not have missed trouble. But what if trouble missed you?”
“Trouble wasn’t gone long enough to miss anything,” I countered.
Yeah, I was enjoying this. Something was wrong with me.
To get things back on track, I asked, “Seriously, why are you back?”
“My sister texted me and asked to borrow some money. I could’ve sent it to her via an app. But, I decided to give her cash.”
