Page 16 of Seduced by Her Billionaire Fake Fiancé

“Listen, about our contract,” she said, twirling her engagement ring.

“Si?”

“I’m sure you’ll forgive me for not taking you completely at your word, given how often you’ve gone back on it in our short acquaintance.”

He didn’t respond to the insult and the elevator arrived at the foyer of the building. Andie pulled her coat more tightly around her waist. Fall in New York was colder than usual this year. Out of nowhere, she remembered the afternoon sunlight of Max’s estate and felt a strange, totally unwanted yearning to be back in Italy.

“I’m not going to notify the Santoros until this is complete. How quickly can you activate the funds?”

“Within twenty-four hours, though an amount this size will take a few days to clear into your accounts.”

She lifted her brows. “Impressive.”

“I’m not messing around with this.”

She pulled her lips to the side. “Okay. Do it. Then, we’ll end negotiations with them, officially.”

“Still hedging your bets?”

“Don’t you think that’s wise?”

“It’s unnecessary. Contrary to your opinion, I don’t go back on my agreements.”

“Just constantly change the terms,” she said, batting her eyelids, as he approached an SUV with darkly tinted windows and a driver opened the back door. He stood beside it, waiting for Andie, but she held her ground.

“I’ll go back to my place,” she murmured.

Max regarded her for a moment. “I’ll come with you.”

“No, you’ll go to a hotel,” she said emphatically. “I’ll see you at dinner tonight.”

He compressed his lips. “We’re engaged, remember?”

Her eyes narrowed. “Seriously?”

“We’ve already discussed this,” he said calmly, but she sensed the impatience just beneath the words. “We’re living together, at least, so far as anyone else is concerned.”

She ground her teeth. He was right. They’d discussed this and she’d agreed. Far be it for Andie to be a hypocrite and start going back onherword. “Fine,” she snapped. “Let’s go then.”

Five

HER APARTMENT WAS MORE than large enough to accommodate them both comfortably. Three generous bedrooms, two living rooms, a decent sized kitchen, a couple of bathrooms, and a wraparound deck with views of Central Park, it was possible for them both to live here and barely interact.

And yet…

As Andie showered, then dressed for dinner, she was aware of Max in every way. She couldn’t see him, she couldn’t hear him, but just knowing he was in the apartment did something funny to her pulse. It was as if his breath was infusing the air around her with a different quality, so her skin tingled and her own breath burned in her lungs.

She chose a floor-length dress made of soft wool, figure hugging with long sleeves and a v-neck. She teamed it with ankle boots and a denim jacket, applied a little makeup, and styled her hair in a loose bun high on her head. As she finished her hair, the ring on her finger caught her attention and she stared at it, emotions riding high.

Her mother’s ring was being used to lie to her father.

Guilt hit her in the centre of her chest like a cannon ball.

But the ends justified the means. She had to do this.

A knock sounded at her bedroom door. “Andie?”

Her name on his lips did something funny to her already knotty tummy. She felt a thousand and one things zip through her.

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