Page 30 of Enigma: The Complete Collection
Harlow’s eyes dart to mine. If looks could kill, I’d be dead right now. When I stick my tongue out, her face morphs into her adorable smile. Harlow rises from the sofa and saunters to a box of mismatched kitchen accessories.
“What are you looking for?” I question, just as she pulls two coffee mugs out of the box.
“We need something to wash down this overpriced bottle of champagne with.” She raises the bottle of champagne that was sitting on my doorstep this morning.
When I saw the bottle, my heart leaped. Although it still raced when I read the card, it wasn’t as fast as when I discovered the bottle. It was lovely of Cormack to send me a housewarming gift, but when I spotted the bottle sitting on my doorstep, I presumed it was from Isaac.
“Do you think we should drink it?”
I don’t know much about champagne, but considering this one has Dom Perignon written on the label, I’d say it’s expensive.
Harlow doesn’t grace me with a reply. She merely pops open the bottle of champagne and pours us both a generous helping into a pair of dirty old mugs.
“To freedom and expensive bottles of champagne,” she says showily, handing me a chipped mug.
“To freedom.” I take a mouthful of the delicious aromatic champagne.
And to finally being able to entertain special guests.
CHAPTER16
Four weeks later…
“Brandon.” My greeting is drenched with sugary, sappy sweetness.
Prancing my way over to Brandon, I prop myself onto his wooden desk covered with files and blacked-out documents. When his apprehensive hazel eyes lift to mine, I flutter my lashes and purse my lips. To add even more allure to my intricate ruse, I undo the top button of my blouse, daringly exposing a portion of my cleavage scarcely contained in my white lace bra.
I fan my flushed cheeks. “It’s so hot today,” I sigh, fighting the urge to cringe.
I’ve never been good at flirting, and this is by far my worst attempt at seducing somebody.
Brandon gulps as his gleaming eyes rake my body, stopping at my undone button for an appreciative glance before reaching my eyes. His mischievous eyes glimmer with skepticism.
“What do you want, Izzy?” His mouth curves into a vast grin.
I huff. “What gave it away?”
“The greeting was okay. It gained my attention, but you lost me on unbuttoning your shirt and saying it was hot today,” he critiques me. His eyes lower to my undone button before they return to my face. “You do realize summer is over, don’t you, Isabelle?”
“Ha ha.”
Brandon light-heartedly growls when I button my blouse back to a more respectable level, soothing the sting my ego took from my botched attempt at seducing him.
“So, what brought you strutting over to my desk?”
Air whizzes between my teeth. “I wasn’t strutting.”
“You were strutting. The hips were swinging, and you had an extra spring in your step. Total strut,” he teases me.
My lips tug higher on my face. Obviously, my ruse wasn’t that ineffective.
“I’m glad you took such detailed notes of my performance.”
When I close my fist and punch Brandon in the bicep, he chuckles before rubbing his arm. Brandon isn’t as built as some of the other male agents, but I have no doubt he can hold his own. People are less suspicious of the smaller guy, unaware they’re usually the ones who pack the hardest punch.
My anxious eyes dart around the room before returning to Brandon’s. “I need a favor.”
“Anything,” he replies without a moment of reluctance.
