No wonder Charlotte wouldn’t give me Samantha’s phone number. She had to call her sociopathic friend in advance and make sure she got her story straight before contacting me.
Rage floods me. My blood flash-boils. How many other guys has this woman played the same trick on? Is this how she keeps herself amused while sitting around waiting for her “hot boss” to finally make his move?
Oh my God.
My head snaps up and my eyes lock onto Josh’s smiling face.
Josh... is... Samantha’s... boss.
Holy fuck.
What the fuck did Samantha say about her boss?I’ve always had a little crush on him,she said.I kept hoping he’d make a move on me, but he never did.Heat flashes throughout my body like an electric current.
Samantha wants to fuck Josh—my sister’s soon-to-be husband.
I look at Josh again, my blood thumping in my ears. And then at Samantha. And then at my sister. And, suddenly, it’s taking every shred of self-control in my body not to lurch over to that bench, grab Samantha by the arm, and physically drag her away from my poor, oblivious, pregnant sister.
Kat.
My sister’s standing adjacent to the bench, right next to the man she loves and his ever-devoted personal assistant, looking up at both of them adoringly, her palms resting on her baby bump, a huge, clueless smile on her face. Has my sister unwittingly opened her heart to a woman who might be some sort of sociopath who’s gunning for Josh?
My eyes train on Josh again for a long beat. I scrutinize him with eagle eyes. There’s no doubt in my mind he’s currently head over heels in love with my sister. But what’s gonna happen the first time Josh and Kat get into a knock-down-drag-out fight (which, let’s face it, is inevitable at some point when it comes to my mercurial sister)? Is Josh gonna turn to his loyal personal assistant for some much-needed comfort after Kat’s lost her mind and said God-knows-what in the heat of the moment? Yeah, I know Josh seems like a great guy, the best guy in the world, actually—and, man, he sure seems to have endless patience with my crazy-ass sister—but great and patient men stumble all the time, don’t they, when the right opportunity presents itself? Especially when that “right opportunity” is a sexy-as-fuck Argentinian-sociopath who’s bided her time for years, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
My eyes flicker to Samantha and an overwhelming cocktail of adrenaline and rage and rejection courses through me. Who the fuck is this woman? I thought she was the real deal. “She doesn’t have a bullshit-bone in her body” is what I said about her to the Faraday brothers, and now I discover she lied to me about something as simple as her fucking name and occupation? What the hell else did she lie about?
“So you’ll definitely want to download the app we created...” Samantha is saying to the crowd, holding up her iPad by way of demonstration. “That way, you can check into whatever tour or activity we’ve got set up and—”
“Excuse me?” I bellow across the lobby, my arm shooting up rigidly over my head.
Everyone in the crowd turns to look at me.
“Sorry, to interrupt,” I say, trying to keep my voice from sounding like a hitman’s. “But I don’t think I caught your name?”
Samantha’s cheeks flush. She smashes her lips together.
“She’s the Mighty T-Rod!” Josh shouts, and everyone laughs.
Samantha’s blazing eyes are fixed on mine. “Theresa,” she replies softly.
“I’m sorry, what was that?” I ask, putting my palm to my ear. “Did you say—”
“Theresa,” she barks, cutting me off. She grits her teeth. “But feel free to call me T-Rod.”
“Ah,Theresa,” I say, my eyes trained on hers, every muscle in my body tensed. “Thanks for repeating that for me. I thought you said something else entirely. My bad.” I smirk. “I certainly wouldn’t wanna call you by the wrong name all week, would I?”
Samantha shoots me a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes and turns her attention back to the crowd. “So, like I was saying, if you have any trouble downloading the app—”
“And what’s your last name,Theresa?” I bellow.
“Ryan,” Kat snaps at me. “What the heck?”
Samantha ignores my sister’s chastisement. “Rodriguez,” she says, her voice steely, her eyes flickering with homicidal rage. “My name is Theresa Rodriguez.T-Rod.And you’re Ryan Morgan, right?”
“Yep. That’s what they call me. I’ve never introduced myself by any other name in my life, so, yep, that must be my name.”
She’s glaring at me, her nostrils flaring... and, strangely, I must admit, something in the way she’s looking at me is making my cock tingle like a motherfucker.
“Hey,” I say. “I just got theT-Rodthing. It’s like A-Rod, huh? Cool.”
