Page 2 of Seduced by Her Billionaire Fake Fiancé

His eyes were a piercing blue, his hair a deep brown, and his face had an almost intentional symmetry to it. His jaw was square, his nose aquiline, and his brows thick. He didn’t smile, but he did stand as she drew nearer—an ingrained sign of respect—and when she was close enough, he held out a hand for her to shake—a gesture of equality she appreciated.

“Andie Scott,” she said.

His expression gave nothing away. “From Acto Corp.”

It wasn’t a question, but she answered it anyway. “Yes.” She exhaled a slow breath, her own eyes, also blue but far paler, unconsciously showed pain at the mention of her parents’ flailing business. In a few months, they’d be bankrupt, or the business would be sold for good, out of their hands forever.

His face gave very little away, his expression not changing, but as he gestured for her to take the seat opposite, there was the slightest movement at the base of his jaw, as a muscle jerked overtime.

“What can I do for you?”

She hesitated. It was possible that the information she’d received was wrong, and the Valentinos weren’t desperately trying to pull together an eleventh hour offer for Acto Corp—that he genuinely didn’t know why she’d come.

Or it was possible that he was bluffing, getting Andie to show her hand before he considered revealing his own?

“I’m going to cut right to the chase,” she said, sitting down and crossing one leg over the other.

“Please do.”

“You know we’re in the midst of negotiations to sell.”

A dark anger flashed in the depths of his eyes.

“You know this,” she continued, leaning forward a little, finding her feet now, becausethis—business and negotiations—were something in which she truly excelled. “Because we’re in talks with the Santoros. I’m not familiar with the history between your family and theirs, but I do know you’re sworn enemies and will stop at nothing to best one another however you can.”

His eyes narrowed slightly, and his accent was slightly deeper when he spoke. “Everybody knows we are sworn enemies.”

“You’ve been trying to raise capital to put in a counter-offer, haven’t you?”

Again, that muscle twitched in his jaw.

“You can’t afford the whole company. Even in our current state, the market value is too high. If you hadn’t invested in an airline and a string of hotels right before the pandemic, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation, but your own company is under duress at the moment. The last thing you need is to over-extend yourself acquiring Acto, especially because of a stupid grudge.”

He leaned back in his chair, a study in relaxation, but the tension in his frame betrayed him. “You’ve done your research.”

“Always.”

Was that approval that glinted in his eyes? She ignored the warmth that spread through her at the thought.

“The Santoro offer is reasonable. I mean, they’re low-balling us, but not as badly as they could, given our current slump.”

“They’re such good guys,” he said with obvious sarcasm.

Andie ignored him. She wasn’t interested in their rivalry, except in how she could turn it to her advantage.

“I’ve tried to get them to buy a share of the company rather than the whole thing, but they’re not interested in that.”

“Of course they are not. Dante Santoro only wants to do things his way—that means complete control of everything he touches.”

“You can’t afford to buy the whole company,” she said after a beat. “But you can afford half of it, easily. Well, not quite half,” she added with a tight smile. “Forty nine percent.”

His eyes narrowed. “What are you suggesting?”

But this was where it got difficult. “Honestly?” She said with a slight, nervous laugh. “This is going to sound kind of wacky.”

He arched one darkly sculpted brow. “Wacky?”

She nodded quickly. “I’m fully aware that my suggestion might be something you dismiss out of hand, but hear me out.”

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