Page 38 of The Billionaire's Temptation

“That’s my understanding,” Lance replied.

“I don’t think they are corrupt, but I’m not sure if they always have their clients’ best interests at heart.” Levi sighed, exhaustion washing over him. All he wanted to do was head back to Clarissa. He knew that he’d feel better if he could just see her smile.

And what the hell did that mean? Just a week ago, he’d been all about fulfilling his obligation and getting back to his own life. When had Clarissa become his loadstone? When had seeing her become more important than…everything else?

The moment he’d seen her, he thought. There was just something…special about Clarissa. She was sweet and innocent, but surprisingly tough. He liked the combination. He liked…her!

Was it more than just “like”? It had to be more if he was craving just a sweet smile from her.

Okay, he wanted a hell of a lot more than just a smile. He wanted to talk with her and spend time with her. He wanted to make love to her again. Last night had only whetted his appetite for the petite dynamo.

What was she doing right now?

He went over a few more details with Lance and restrained himself from asking about Clarissa again. She was safe. That’s all he wanted Lance to concern himself with. Anything more would be a violation of Clarissa’s privacy.

So, what was this accountant doing with her? Why hadn’t Montrose answered Clarissa’s questions this morning?

He scrolled through the TBC membership lists. Sure enough, Montrose was a member, although, he hadn’t been to the club in a while. A lot of members had avoided the club over the past few years, but they’d maintained their membership. Probably because they’d forgotten that the membership dues were billed automatically. And since the membership dues weren’t outrageous, like some of the clubs around the country, the fee tended to go unnoticed. Many hadn’t been back to the club after the renovations, which was perfectly fine with him.

However, perhaps it was time to get Montrose into the club for a bit of poker and a chat, Levi thought.

Walking out, he paused at Emily’s office and poked his head inside. “Any chance you could figure out who Ian Montrose’s buddies are and invite them out here for a poker game in the next couple of nights?”

Emily pursed her lips for a moment, then turned to her computer, checking something. Then she nodded. “Yes. I can arrange that. Do you want to be in on the game? Or do you want Maggie and me to serve them drinks?”

He considered for a moment, then nodded. “Both.”

“You got it, boss.”

Levi walked away, wondering how much trouble he was in with Clarissa after this morning’s abrupt departure. He was an ass, and even he knew better than to jump out of a woman’s bed and leave her confused the morning after. Especially after a sizzling hot night of incredibly passionate sex.

No, that wasn’t sex. Last night had been so much more than just sex. Levi wasn’t sure what “more” meant when it came to Clarissa, but he wanted lots more of whatever last night had been.

Chapter 13

Levi hung up the phone, rage at his stupidity making him snarl at the inanimate object. It had been a week since he’d seen Clarissa and his entire body ached with missing her. He’d sent her flowers, a box of chocolate and text messages asking to speak with her. Nothing!

“Rejected again?” Matteo asked, coming into Levi’s office and dropping into the chair. “I thought you were down in Brazil dealing with the factory fire.”

Levi’s answer was a string of harsh epithets. “The fire was put out quickly, but there were several people hurt. I visited them at the hospital and made sure their medical bills were sent to my office to be paid.”

“That’s good of you, but I heard that the fire was set by a bunch of kids playing on the next street over.”

Levi sighed heavily, running a hand over the back of his neck as he started pacing. “It was, but they are still my employees. Plus, one woman was injured when she ran back into the burning building to save someone else.”

“Very heroic.”

“I agree, but she now has third degree burns on the back of her legs.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “I arranged to fly her and her family to Paris. There’s an amazing burn center there that has made significant advances in burn treatments.”

Matteo nodded his head. “I’ve heard of the clinic.” He eyed Levi for a moment, then asked, “But that’s not what’s bothering you now, is it?”

Levi turned, glaring at his friend for being so…right. He considered changing the subject, but then thought that perhaps Matteo might know how to fix the mess he’d gotten himself into. “I messed up,” he finally blurted out.

“With Clarissa?” he clarified. After a sharp nod from Levi, Matteo continued. “You have it bad.”

Levi knew that and it didn’t help when his friend pointed that out to him.

“I messed up by not calling her the day after….” He stopped, grinding his teeth with frustration at his screw-up. “I suspected something bad was going to happen to her and needed to protect her. I can’t explain further than that right now,” he said, turning to face his friend. “I just knew that if I touched her again, then I wouldn’t be able leave her. And I had to protect her. I had to get out of there and arrange for someone to stay with her whenever I couldn’t be with her.” He sighed, shoving his hands into his pockets. “I know that doesn’t make much sense, but…” He stopped and shrugged, then looked out the window again. “Then the accountants happened and I’ve done the exact opposite of my intention. She’s hurt and I don’t know how to fix it because she won’t talk to me.”

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