Page 47 of My Secret Bandit

I shook my head. “Mateo made us breakfast this morning.”

“Stop! Don’t tell me anymore.” She plugged her ears with her fingers.

“Such a child.” I laughed.

My phone rang while she continued to drown me out. I answered as soon as Mateo’s picture popped up.

“Well, if it isn’t one of Tampa’s Most Eligible Bachelors.”

He groaned on the other end. “Not you too. The guys have been busting my balls about it all morning.”

I imagined his shy smile as he spoke and the way he’d push his hand over his curls.

“Don’t worry. I haven’t seen it and I have no plans to. Some woman mentioned it earlier. She is willing and extremely ready to be Mateo Linx’s trophy wife. You know, if you’re interested.”

“Right, I’m good,” he scoffed.

“You sure?” I teased. “She was a really hot redhead, gave me her contact info and everything. Asked me to pass it along.”

“Did you tell her she doesn’t stand a chance in hell? That my heart belongs to a really hot brunette who makesthe mostgorgeousface when she comes and whose deliciously sweet skin I can still taste on my tongue?”

The skin he so effortlessly mentioned burned while Sierra watched me and shoved a massive bite of waffle into her mouth.

“Should you really be talking like that at a children’s hospital?”

“Talking like what? I wanna hear!” Sierra reached across the table and I swatted her hand away.

“I’m outside. No one’s around.Pleasetell me my secret little jealous Jameson popped out.”

“Of course. As soon as my brain caught up, I threw her card into the nearest trash can.”

“Good girl.”

“So, you don’t mind if we let the world believe in this bachelor thing a little while longer? As a journalist, I’d hate to spoil the appeal of the list, plus I kind of like having you all to myself.”

“You can have me however you want me, baby. As long as I’m with you, I’m good. We have a couple more kids to visit, but Coach called a mandatory meeting. I wanted to let you know I probably wouldn’t see you again today. Well, that and I wanted to hear your voice. Hear it turn all shaky when I tell you the moans you made this morning plus the images of you last night…” He groaned. “Mm, Jameson, you almost made me late. I wanted to hear your breathing change when I told you I can’t wait to have my mouth on you again. Or how I dreamt about you trembling on your bed with my head between your—“

“Please stop,” I whispered, biting the inside of my cheek to keep the tingles from spreading any further than my ear.

“There she is.” He chuckled. Fucking laughed because apparently once the tease turned on, it was impossible to shut it off again. “Okay, I’ll call you after the meeting.”

“All right. I lo—I’ll… um, yeah. I look forward to speaking with you later.”

Sierra’s dropped fork rattled on the ceramic plate. She stared at me with wide eyes. I hung up, barely hearing Mateo’s chuckle when he said goodbye.

“Wow!Save of the century right there! I told you, you loved him.”

“Hush your mouth.”

At the office, I worked through the entire day, a thin crescent moon replacing the sun before I looked up from the computer.

Jeffrey stood in the doorway flipping through Tampa’s Finest.

“Flynn, you seen this?” he asked, closing it. The heavy magazine landed on my desk with a thud, leaving the other papers flying up around it.

I had no interest or intentions of looking at the list. Articles like that are done months in advance and normally a part of some contractual obligation. I’m not naïve to the fact that Mateo had a life before I came around. Gorgeous, successful and incredibly generous. He was the perfect candidate for this kind of feature. Without even reading it I knew there wasn’t another man on that list that came close to mine.

“No. Heard about it though.”

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