Page 2 of Boss Level

Oh. Oh, shit. That was the photo that sat on the bookcase behind me. The same one that was in Xander’s office as well. It was of all three of us, from the day I signed the paperwork on the building I was in now, and the three of us were toasting champagne in cheap plastic glasses, in the best selfie Xander had ever taken.

If this guy thought Dominic was married, that explained why Xander was dragging this conversation out. “Thirty seconds,” I warned.

“Pretend to be his fiancée through the holidays. That’s the favor. Through the holidays and only for his potential client.”

The request sent a chill up my spine, and I wasn’t sure why. What was I supposed to say? It was a favor, and favors had to be honored, but what he was asking me to do… “I have to walk into this meeting. I’ll call you when I’m free. “I’m sorry. I swallowed the apology as I disconnected before he could say anything else.

The conversation stuck in my head the rest of the day, and screamed loudly when Xander sent a follow-up text a few hours later.

A fake relationship was a bad idea. If someone found out, it would make things worse than if he’d told the client the truth to start. Then again, I knew Dominic almost as well as I did Xander, and it wasn’t like Icouldn’tfake it. Dom was a sexy beast of a man—it wasn’t as though I’d have to fake attraction.

And there was a sliver of underlying resentment, like any real couple should have, since he’d stolen my best friend from me. A hint ofhow could youthat I’d hidden from him for years.

Right now was possibly the worst time in my career for me to step into something like this, but it would also be a distraction if it didn’t interfere with my schedule.

I failed to see how I was the perfect spouse to impress a high-ranking member of any Christian church. I ran a business that was making an X-rated game. There was more nuance than that to what we were doing, but a church man was going to look at me and see a forty-year-old woman who would rather make digital porn than stay at home and raise a family.

Gag me with a spoon.

On the other hand, I wasn’t the public face of the company. Yes, I was listed as the owner in trade publications, but if this man wasn’t in the industry, it was unlikely he cared who I was.

All the back and forth in my head made me dizzy, but it didn’t make a decision any easier.

Around seven in the evening, Ivan, our office manager, made sure I had dinner before leaving for the night. Which was my reminder to send a few employees home. Mostly Adrienne, who was several months pregnant, and looked like she was ready to pop. She’d work all night, like everyone else, if I didn’t make one of her boyfriends take her out of here.

But most of us stayed. The developers. Elliot. Nigel. Dustin.

Some days I felt like their mom. I could tell this potential client of Dominic’s that.Of course I chose to raise a family. A family of kids the same age as me, who worked too hard, didn’t eat right, and kept falling in love.

Idiots.

And I adored almost every single one of them.

It was after nine when someone knocked on my office door. I looked up to see Dominic standing in the doorway. He was the kind of man a lot of people would swoon to get a surprise visit from. Taller than six feet, which meant I was always straining my neck to look up at him when he was nearby, short, dark hair, and no hint of the handful of tattoos that lay under his clothes.

He walked in without waiting for an invitation, and closed the door behind himself. His suit was impeccable and expensive, and hugged all the right places to highlight and hint at an incredible physique. The way he strode across the room whisperedpowerandcontrol.

And I didn’t know what I was going to tell him.

Instead of taking the seat across from me, he walked to my side of the desk, and leaned against the wood, less than a foot from me. “Xander said he talked to you earlier.”

Having Dominic here intensified the conflict raging in my brain. I wanted to help him. Yes, there was a hint of resentment, but the friendship and admiration were more potent. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for him, and this was exactly where I wanted to be. There were worse people to pretend to be engaged to. “He did.”

“And that you’ve avoided him since,” Dom said.

“It’s been seven hours, and obviously I’m still working. Hardly avoidance.”

Dom smiled. “You know Xander. If there’s no drama, the story isn’t worth telling.”

Not true at all, but fun to pretend. “Uh-huh.”

He shifted his weight to bring him closer. It was late, I was tired, and my defenses were down. Which meant that new thoughts could trickle in. There were days when I wondered what would’ve happened if Dominic and I had hooked up instead of him and Xander. The first time we met, Dom and I jerked each other off under a restaurant table.

Fortunately for me, my first marriage had shown me I wasn’t cut out for long-term romantic relationships. I was married to my company, and no one wanted to be the other person in that arrangement.

“It wasn’t right of me to have him make that call,” Dominic said. “I should’ve asked you myself and I should’ve done so in person. Do you have a minute right now, or do you have a meeting?”

The hint of playful sarcasm in his question almost made me smile. “I keep trying, but I haven’t found a way to get anyone to agree to meet this late on a Friday.” I tried to joke back, but there was a lump in my throat that I didn’t want to define.

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