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“I have an app that lets me send down a brief alert when I need to be picked up. It even gives my location to the driver. Just in case over the course of the evening I wind up in a different place than where he dropped me off.”
She got in, and Ferro slid in beside her. “Oh, like if you bar hop or something?”
His smile turned naughty. “Or something.”
Oh. Yes. That. The going back to a random hotel with a random woman. Strange, considering the reputation Ferro had as a legendary lover, that he wasn’t actually photographed with women all that often.
She frowned. “Right.”
“Now, don’t look jealous, cara, those other women, they meant nothing.” He wasn’t being sincere. He wasn’t even trying to look sincere, and yet her body, her heart, which, she swore skipped a beat, didn’t seem to care.
She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms. All the better to keep from reaching out and touching him again. “It’s almost frightening how full of crap you are.”
“Excuse me?”
“The smile.” She punctuated that with a wide, cheesy grin of her own. “The pickup lines. You’re very good at it, Ferro. It’s easy to forget that it’s all a show and you’re just a big empty husk of a man with no heart and no soul.”
“Ah, you see right through me,” he said, still smiling, still looking at her like she was the only woman on earth. “I would advise you to remember the words you just said to me, because you may need them later. I am a man with little in the way of a conscience and it would do you well to keep that in mind.”
“Don’t worry, Ferro, I won’t forget. I’m not in the habit of trusting men. Anyone, really. I won’t lapse with you.”
But with his dark eyes trained on hers, and the impression of his mouth still burned into her lips, she was afraid that if she didn’t watch herself, she would be tempted to forget. Just so she could enjoy the fantasy of the man.
Because the fantasy of him was more compelling than any reality she’d had yet, at least in terms of kissing and desire.
But the important thing to remember was that it was a fantasy. Was that this was a tentative alliance at best. And that when all of the deceit was stripped away, when this night was nothing more than a memory, Ferro Calvaresi was her deadliest enemy.
And that was much more important than a kiss. No matter how scorching.
CHAPTER FIVE
JULIA HUFFED OUT a curse word as the doors to the elevator opened. She’d been in her office, ready to start the day with a tureen of coffee, when Ferro had called, demanding her presence at his office. No, he wasn’t going to her. No, it wasn’t negotiable.
And he hadn’t had the decency to give her any details about it, so of course, if only out of curiosity, she’d decided she had to go. But only after Thad had tracked down the biggest to-go mug he could find so she could bring her daily dose of caffeine with her.
She stalked down the hall, pausing for a moment to take in the caramel marble floors and the artwork on the walls. It was very similar to Ferro’s home. Opulent and unrestrained, like no office building she’d been in.
She’d gone for the Zen approach in hers. Bamboo floors, and yes, the little sand gardens on her employees’ desks. So she was a little bit of a cliché. She felt it made for a relaxing work atmosphere so it was worth it.
She walked toward the ornate, dark wood reception desk at the end of the walkway, satisfied by the harsh sound her heels made on the floor. It was her favorite part about the makeover she’d gotten a few years back. All the sexy, black shoes. The way her steps sounded on the sidewalk, or on hard floors, made her feel powerful. Confident. Especially after she’d learned to walk in them without falling on her face.
There was a man sitting behind the reception desk, which shocked her. She imagined Ferro would have had some pretty young thing hired to be his assistant. And why not? She did. But no. His assistant was just a very normal-looking, middle-aged man in a blue shirt and tie.
“Hi, I’m here to see Ferro. And yes, he’s expecting me.”
“Ms. Anderson.”
“Yes. That’s me. Julia Anderson, Anfalas.”
