Page 7 of Secret Babies For My Brother's Best Friend

Scarlett sighed deeply and gave me an unimpressed look. “You are begging, though. There’s no room for your giant ego if you want them to sign on the dotted line, Luca. Suck it up.”

She swept up her papers and sauntered to the elevator without another glance in my direction.

“Speaking of impressions…” I followed close behind her, taking a moment to appreciate how well her skirt fit the roundness of her ass. “You’re my fiancée.”

Scarlett spun around, her green eyes clouded with a mix of anger and confusion. “Excuse me?” she spluttered.

I stepped into the elevator and only spoke once the doors slid shut.

“For the purposes of the meeting, you will pretend to be my fiancée,” I said. “I believe it will help soften the executives.”

She frowned, shaking her head vigorously. “This is business. I don’t see how—”

“You wouldn’t.” I fixed her with an unflinching look. “You know nothing about running a multi-billion dollar empire, so how could you see?”

“You’re an asshole,” she said, rolling her eyes in resignation.

“Well, that means you now have an asshole for a fiancé.”

She increased the distance between us, nearly pressing up against the side of the elevator. I bit back my smile and pretended not to notice how flustered she was.

***

“That can’t be all of them,” I whispered to Scarlett from behind my hand. “They have a board of over two hundred.”

She watched closely as the three executives talked among themselves at the door to the conference room.

“They’re not from the board,” she replied in a similar secretive whisper, her red lips barely moving. “That’s legal.”

I gave the three men another look but didn’t see what she so confidently identified. “You’re wrong.”

“Of course,” she scoffed. “I have no idea what I’m talking about. Which is why you have me here, holding the future of this deal in my hands.”

I glared at her. “Please, fix the attitude before they sit down. You are a representative of my company, and you’ll behave that way.”

Then I glanced at her hand and noticed her ring finger was bare. She followed my gaze and realized the same.

“Fine,” she said with a sigh, ripping the plain silver band from her middle finger and transferring it. “Better? Although, now they’re going to think you’re a cheapskate.”

I chuckled softly and pulled a velvet box from my pocket. I’d taken it the moment she’d left my office to pack. Scarlett’s eyes widened in shock, catching on to my premeditation.

“What kind of businessman would I be if I didn’t practice a little foresight?” I pulled out the vintage band dressed with a fourteen carat champagne diamond and slipped it onto her finger.

Scarlett lowered her hand out of sight of the executives and stared silently at the ring, the reflection of the rock dazzling in her eyes.

“Now it’s better,” I whispered and flashed her a wink.

Her cheeks turned a deep crimson and she turned away from me, suddenly transfixed with the documents and files on the table in front of her.

“You will be pleasant and loving toward me.” The command came as an afterthought, but I felt it was necessary.

I expected her to shoot daggers from her crystal clear eyes, but instead, Scarlett’s face broke into a wide and welcoming smile. That’s when I realized our company had arrived at the boardroom table.

My hand was already extended when I rose to greet them, but Scarlett quickly pushed my arm back down. She then gave a subtle bow of her head, which the three men amicably returned. I pasted a smile on my face to hide the embarrassment and followed her lead.

Speaking through teeth clenched tightly in a smile, she said, “Don’t move unless I tell you to.”

And that set the tone for the next two hours, as I launched into my pitch with Scarlett as my mouthpiece and guide. It was a dance I knew well, so I didn't succumb to any kind of nerves apart from desperately wanting to know what they thought.

---